[kate]

My three year old is starting preschool in the fall and he has been begging for a train backpack and I didn't want to buy him the same thing everyone else has, so we found a train he liked at the fabric store and I picked out coordinating fabrics and made up this backpack as I went. I put green piping in the seams for a little pop and yellow rick rack around the train. The train has a zipper on the top so it's an outer pocket. The inside is lined in yellow. So cute! I loved the striped straps, too. He loves his "special backpack Mommy made" and he hardly ever takes it off.

[MamaSasss]

It is truly awesome that not only were you able to just make that pattern up, but that your son loves it so much.

Ten thousand kudos to you, Kate!

[rexanimatrix]

Some of my family has asked me to make a backpack. How in the world did you make it up as you went? Is it mostly just common sense stuff or did anything stump you for a while?

Awesome job!

[DangerPinsX]

The piping was a great touch. It's no wonder he likes the backpack so much. It's one of a kind and it looks just as good as any store bought backpack.

[smugsmilz]

My four year old gives her approval. She says its very pretty!!!

The backpack is truly adorable.

[furiouselgeorge]

Aww, I love it! Now I want one ^.^

[ladyjanewriter]

Oh! That is truly amazing. Hell, I'd love that backpack and I'm er...not a kid. I love the contrast lining! Amazing job.

[miss.green.tea]

that's adorable!!! i would so have wanted that backpack when i was little!! and the best part is that you can avoid the disappointment that little kids sometimes have when they see someone with the same stuff as them~

[kate]

Thanks! I know it's not hip and funky like most of the things on this forum, but I was really proud of my work and happy with how it turned out and wanted to share.

As for how I made it, I first decided on the dimensions (10" wide, 12" tall, 2.5" deep) and then saw it as four main parts - the front, the back, the zipper gusset and the bottom. I cut out all my pieces, put the train pocket on the front and then rounded the tops of the front and back. Then I sewed the fabric on each long side of the zipper and trimmed the whole thing so it was 3" wide. Then I sewed fabric onto each short end of the zipper so it would be long enough.

Here's where it was tricky - I pinned the zipper gusset to the front and back making sure it was even. This can be time consuming. See the green piping at the beginning and end of the top zipper? You want that line to be nice and straight and if you don't pin it just right they will be crooked and it won't look right and won't sit right. So pin heavily and sew carefully. Oh, you'll have to remember to sew your straps in there at that time.

Then all you have left is the bottom. This, too, can be tricky to get lined up right. Just takes practice. Make sure the bottom of the straps are caught in there.

My three year old is telling me that my one year old needs a backpack now, too, so I might be making another one soon and might put up a tutorial if anyone is interested. If you make it a little bigger and out of different fabrics it would be a great backpack for a non-kid!

-k

[WonderlandAlli]

That's SO cute!!