This is my take on an anti-pickpocket bag made of fabric with twisted handles. I'm calling it Helsinki and here's the backstory to this design:
As many of our regular readers know, I was recently away on vacation with my family. During the break, we managed to visit the Bernina factory in Switzerland, call in on what I'll argue is the finest fabric shop in the world in Italy, and as a final stop, we went in search of the famous design house, Marimekko, in Finland –all of which I'll be writing about in the near future.
In any case, while we were in Finland, in supposedly one of the safest cities in the world, my teenage daughter was pickpocketed and lost her very, very expensive new iPhone. Needless-to-say, her father was none too happy about this. The small handbag she was carrying was relatively open and the thieves just brushed up against her and it was gone. Poof! We were in a department store and the security cameras got it all on video, but it happened so fast and the perpetrators were gone by the time the tapes were reviewed.
It got me thinking that this can't be a rare occurrence and that I should design an anti-pickpocket bag with internal pockets, secure zippers, and strong straps to keep this thing from happening again. I started designing and as soon as I got home, put this new bag together. I think you'll find it an easy project to follow and the bag will not only be an attractive addition to your wardrobe but also super functional if you're traveling or spending time in crowded places. The twisted fabric handles are relatively unique and very strong. So Helsinki, this one is for you..
Skill Level: Advanced
If you have made a nag with lining and pockets, this project is easy for you to accomplish. If you, however, have never done a bag before, you will find this difficult.
Key Features:
- Secure main zipper with no gaps around the gusset making it is hard for a thief to access.
- Zippered inner pockets for money and valuables.
- Strong twisted fabric handles that will let you hold the bag securely.
- Complete video tutorial and sew-along (links at the end of the article)
- Dimensions 17″ by 11″
Materials for the Anti Pickpocket Bag
- 1 x 20″ zipper
- 2 x 8″ zippers
- 1 yard of fabric, quilting cotton or cotton canvas 60″
- 1 yard of lightweight fusible interfacing
- 1 yard of fleece
- 1 rectangle 10″x 6″ of thick sewable interfacing
- 1/2 yard of lining 60″
- 4 large metal grommets, 1.5″ hole diameter
- 4 x 1 1/4″ metal rings with spring
- Glue E6000
- 1 zipper foot
- serger (optional)
Recommended Fabric Options
Here are some suggestions for potential fabric options.
See the entire sewing tutorial series here:
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11:34
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8:45
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13:7
Subscribe to the YouTube channel:
See next page for free pattern download.
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very nice for the polite/lightweight thieves. In the countries where the thieves go around, sometimes on motorbikes with knives/cutters (in case of chain straps) to relieve you of your goods, or else drag you down the street until you let go…….. one of my sewing friends made a travelers vest with the important stuff in inside pockets – though I really wouldn’t want my phone up against my chest until I’ve done more research about the dangers….
Where do I download? I went through all pages. Teally like the looks of this!
On page 2 Please.
The bag is beautiful and doesn’t look like it would be pick-pocket proof.
Really? why do you think so? It has worked for me, but perhaps you have a better idea. Do share…
I am planning on making this bag for a future trip. JMSI.. why do you feel it would not be pick-pocket proof. Is there anything you can suggest to make it better?
I have admired this bag pattern for awhile now…thank you for a great design!
Mayra, I love this bag! Your tutorial and written instructions are clear and easy to follow. I’m now making a list of the items I need to purchase to make my own bag. Thank you for all your great ideas, patterns, and tutorials.
It is my pleasure, if you have any questions the best way is to send me a message through Instagram ATSOSEWEASY you can always send me an email. I will be able to see your bag if you use #soseweasy, I would really love to see what fabric your choose. Kind Regards,
I love the looks of your bag and I just love the strap, I made a reversible market bag and told myself it needs pockers on inside and out, so this is awesome, nevermind what the person said about not looking like it was pick-pocket proof, I think she either got her words mixed, or meant that you cannot tell or doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Thank you for sharing
I gotta make this!
You for it girl, let me know how you go.
Adding to the “security” of the bag is the shortened handles and wearing it as it is shown on the mannequin. Your arm is automatically over top the opening, clamping it shut and blocking some access as well
Use quilting washaway sticky tape available on both US and UK Amazon and probably world wide, to position the zip perfectly. (‘Double Sided Adhesive Wash Away Quilters Tape’ in search box).
Your instructions and video are excellent. Thank you.
Great explanations and photos for a newbie to bag making and some reminders for us experienced sewers, thank you
thanks for responding to Michelle. I now have a downloaded copy.
For whatever reason, I cannot copy/paste. Is there a download button.
That’s a lovely bag –great fabric!– and worth making but a word of caution: To be truly theft-proof a bag needs a more narrow opening, locking zippers (the pull clips onto a ring so the zipper can’t be eased open by a thief in passing), a slash-proof fabric and an RDIF lining to prevent your credit cards from being “read” electronically. Thieves sometimes use box cutters to slash the bottom of a purse and make off with the contents, in which case quilting fabric will not be sufficient protection, even if padded and you fortify the handles with chains. When my daughter, granddaughter and I went to Europe last year, we first purchased anti-theft bags online (there are a variety available) and left our other purses (including the ones I had made myself) at home. When I make this bag, it will be for local use.
Hi Mayra,
This is the first pattern I have tried to print. When I open the file either in downloads or documents I do not get my usual print dialogue choices. The only choice I get is “Allow the app to change my printing preferences”. Whether I allow this or do not allow, my test box is only 1.5 inches. I am running windows 10, if that matters. How do I get my regular print dialogue ? I made one of your , well actually I made 2, purses & love it. However I did not have to download a pattern, just use measurements. Thank you for your assistance.
Hi Marilyn, are you using Adobe Reader to download, Actual Size and Portrait?
Thank you so much for the pattern Mayra, one can’t let crime win!! Greetings from a struggling (against crime) South Africa
For the handles, you could also insert the small cable in the tube when making them if you didn’t want it to show.
Hi! Gorgeous pattern! One thing that I did with a bag that I made a few years ago to make it even more difficult for the pickpockets who have a sharp knife and slash the handles and take the whole bag: when braiding the handles, braid a chain in with the fabric so that there is muchas less of a chance of the pickpocket bring able to complete the job! Thanks for all your efforts!
If you don’t like the way a chain looks, a short piece of the braided stainless airline cable that some guys use as a wallet chain could also work. Even the very thin 1/16″ ones would deter a knife, and be close to invisible.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Custom-Cut-1ft-70ft-Stainless-Steel-1-16-core-7×7-Wire-Rope-w-Loop-Options/152892062010
That is an excellent idea!
This is wonderful. Can’t wait to make this. Thanks so much!
I don’t see any pictures of the inside of this bag, so I don’t know if I want to make it. Help.
You can watch the videos, they are free as is the pattern and all the instructions.
Help Please! I cannot find the “second page” on which this pattern is on! Thanks!
Here it is Beth, you have to scroll to the bottom of the page and you will find a row of numbers, those are the pages.
https://so-sew-easy.com/anti-pickpocket-bag-twisted-fabric-handles/2/
Mayra, thank you so much for the pattern and directions. Shopping tomorrow for the “perfect” fabric.
Looking forward to your picture Joanne 🙂
Hi
I’m having great difficulty finding the correct type of grommets. Amazon.com supplier you link to does not sell outside USA. Can’t find them anywhere else. Wish I’d looked before making bag. So I have a lovely finished bag except it has holes where grommets should go!
Is it possible for me to buy them from you? I will send a photo of the bag once it’s finishedif I get it finished!
Hi Elizabeth, Where in the world are you? Perhaps I can find a supplier closer to your town.
I’m in New Zealand. I’ve looked all over the internet and most have the screw in grommets. I’ve bought some from China but they are not as nice on both sides. The back I saw not the same as the front.
Hi EB, try Spotlight stores, in the handbag/millinery section.
I have,oozed there. They do not have them I have had to use the metal ones from China! I’ve finished it and will send a photo later.
Must say it’s very good bag and I’m very pleased with it after all my struggles. Thank you!
I am so happy you managed to find some grommets and after all the struggles you are happy with the results, congratulations on your perseverance. Looking forward to the picture.
Mayra I have put the photo on the “So Sew Easy” Facebook page.
Thank you EB will look for it!
Elizabeth,
I use Dritz curtain grommets for my purses. They work great! They snap together so it makes it easy, and you can pull them apart if you need to.
Jenny W
Joanne fabrics carries them. You could go to thrift store and recycle a. Hand bag that has the same hardware
Please help! I’m halfway through but I don’t understand the part above where you pin the facing but it looks like the lining in colour. You don’t show attaching the curved parts to the curved parts of the lining once the zip is in. Really want to complete it as have got this far so would be very grateful if you could help. Is the picture above showing facing or lining? If facing is it sewn in? I only able to get fusible facing here.
I am not sure I understand your question, the facing is attached to the lining first. Then this is attached to the outer fabric. Have you watched the videos on YouTube yet? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfqGSFGanJ0
I think I have worked it out! Sorry for panic!
Mayra, this is a beautiful handbag and the videos are very well done! Just one thing I thought you and others would like to know is that RFID fabric is no longer needed…
Why is RFID no longer needed?
Mayra
Please could you give metric measurements as well with your patterns? It’s very time consuming to have to convert everything!
Gorgeous! Thank you I am waiting for my fabric to arrive so that I can make this. Perfect for my holiday to Vietnam.
I am new to your free patterns. I cannot figure out how to print the patterns. I see lots of ads for pdf readers but I don’t want to download these to my computer. Is there another way to print them?
Hi Linda those are just ads, I do not ask you to download anything, all you need is adobe reader to be able to print the pattern in a PDF format.
I have been trying to download the antipickpocket bag for days. I sent it to the cart and then returned to look at something else and now I can’t get back to the cart. At this point I would pay someone to download this for me and mail it, I`m so frustrated
Hi Judy if you downloaded the pattern you will find it in your pattern library. If you can not get to your cart log out and sign back in.
I tried to just start over and put it in my cart, but it said you already had this in my cart and wouldn’t let me go any further. Quite frankly ‘m so frustrated with the whole thing I’m ready to just cancel out. I also can`t enter the free giveaways.
If it says it is in your cart then it should be there. If you do not see it, there is a glitch and perhaps you need to log out. Go to History in your browser and empty your cookies, clean your history. Then log back in. That should fix it. Regarding the giveaway, read the instructions carefully, if you already follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest all you have to do is add a comment on what you would do with a fabric or better load a picture of a project you have done using our patterns. Good Luck!
I would love a pdf of this, that I could access. I don’t have access in my sewing room to a computer, so cannot watch these. As I am on public transportation, a pdf of this so I could sew it would be awesome! I love it!
Hi Catherine, the instructions are all on our the website. However, if you want to print, you can use the sharing buttons on the left, choose the three dots to see more options, choose “printfriendly” and you’ll get a printable .pdf if that’s what you need. Hope that helps and happy sewing. Mayra
Great bag, thank you.
Hi Mayra,
I’m a relatively new sewer so it’s taken me a while to get this bag done. I ended up making it bigger than the original pattern so it’s more useful for me.
I LOVE the pattern on yours, but now that mine is finished I really don’t like the pattern any more! Are there any easy ways to change some of the look (for example I’m going to redo the handles with a slightly darker colour) without undoing everything?
Sorry for the strange question and thanks for the lovely pattern
Thanks!
HI Shilpa, a picture, in this case, would help me a lot. You can load one with your phone. You can do any changes, but You need to keep the proportions in mind. Let me see yours and see what we can do with it. Kind Regards,
I am confused about the lining. The pattern shows that the lining includes the rounded top of the back, but in looking at the photographs in the tutorial, it looks like the lining is just a rectangle. If so what are the dimensions of the rectangle?
If you want the zipper to and the lining to fit together it is best to print the pattern.
Thank you so much for this beautiful bag. When we were in Rome several years ago, the pick-pockets were terrible. We are planning a trip to Ireland and Scotland so this bag is perfect and perfect timing. Thank you again, I’m excited to try sewing it.
Looking forward, to your picture. I have made a sew-along on YouTube hope you understand my accent.
Hi, Mayra , what is the name of the grey fabric you have on the table?
RFID is a shielding fabric. The color in the picture is off
I can’t find the link to the pattern.
Hi Michelle, the pattern download is on the second page of the article. Here’s a direct link to page 2: https://so-sew-easy.com/anti-pickpocket-bag-twisted-fabric-handles/2/
You can move to subsequent pages by clicking the page numbers at the bottom of each page. Happy sewing!
Thank you so much for beautiful bag. I cant wait to give it a try.
You are welcome, Sandra. Enjoy:)
it will not let me go to second page
The second-page button is under the Pinterest button.
I don’t see a link for the pattern. The “gallery for more fabrics” I don’t see also.
Where can I download the pattern?
Second Page Diann, thank you 🙂
I like the look of this bag so I have just downloaded it. My favourite bag has started to look quite worn and shabby and I have been looking for something to take its place. This looks like it. Thank you very much for your generosity. Suzy.
Hi Mayra
what is the fabric for this bag?
Many thanks
Regards
Evelyne
Hello Evelyne, the fabric suggestions I give are cotton quilting or canvas, under the fourth picture there is a gallery for more fabrics.