DIY Recycled Clutch-Bag
It’s a great feeling for any maker or crafter to have the opportunity of turning trash into treasure. You’ll be surprised to know that this clutch-bag is made out of vhs video case!
I had a few vhs video cases of my favorite cartoons and movies from my childhood. Who knew one day I was going to make a clutch purse out of one of’em! I’m probably going to turn all of those cases into clutch-bag now! but of course I didn’t throw away the case covers, I’m definitely going to frame them or make maybe ask my demon (husband) to make something awesome with all those covers, he’s a recycling addict!
Supplies:
- Old vhs video case
- Felt and fabric
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun
- Ruler and pencil
- Golden spray paint (optional)
- Awl and craft wire
- Old hair band and round bead (optional)
- Old purse chain handle
Instructions:
I’ve seen 2 types of vhs video cases- cardstock paper cases and plastic cases. For this project we’ll need the plastic ones. The plastic case would be great for making purse because it already has a lock system.
Anyways, lets get started! Take out the case cover and clean the plastic cover.
Open the case and measure the entire inner surface (front + spine + back). Cut out a felt according to the measurement.
Mark the width of the spine on the felt.
Measure the width of the case (which will be the height of the clutch). It’s usually about 4.5 inches. Place another felt beside the spine marked area of the main felt.
Mark the new felt as shown in the 3rd picture collage of this step- Mark the spine size by keeping a cm extra on both sides and the case width.
Similarly cut another piece. Have a look at the last picture of this step to see the 3 parts of the inner layer.
Use hot glue to attach all 3 parts of the inner layer. Be careful and steady during this step.
Simply glue the sides starting from any one side (not middle).
Once you’re done attaching the inner layer parts prepare to glue it inside the plastic case.
Again, start from one side and apply glue on the case rather than the felt. Glue around the sides and spine, you don;t need to glue the entire case.
Done gluing? Check if you can open and close the clutch nicely.
I’m using this sparkly fabric as the main fabric for the purse. Carefully glue the fabric and cover the entire outer surface of the plastic case as neatly as possible. To be honest, I wasn’t quite satisfied because I couldn’t glue the fabric smoothly, it’s probably because of the fabric. I would suggest to use plain and thick fabric for covering the case.
Use an old clutch or purse chain handle for the handle of this purse. Use craft wire to attach the chain on both sides of the purse.
Though the vhs video case already has a lock system but I attached a button and button loop (from old hair band) anyways.
Done!
It turned out pretty nice ha, I can’t wait to try out more.
Happy recycling!