For the longest time, I thought people who put shirts on their small dogs were stupid. I thought people who carried their dogs around were dumb. I mean after all, they have fur and feet, right? It wasn’t until a relative purchased two small dogs that I came to realize the practicality of it. They get colder and tired a lot easier than my Labrador Retriever. With this in mind, I designed a dog carrier purse for this relative for help carrying her Chihuahua.
How to sew a small dog purse
-Gather all the materials that you will need. For this pattern, you will need fabric, corresponding thread color, a sewing machine, a piece of plastic the length of the purse, Velcro and fishnet stockings.
-Cut out 2 of the following pieces. I did not list a size as it will vary depending on the size of your dog.
-front cover/back cover
-side 1/side 2
-bottom
-strap1/strap
-flap 1/flap 2
-Sew the two bottom pieces right side together on three sides. Turn inside right. Insert the piece of plastic and sew the bottom shut. The plastic is used to give the bag a tougher bottom for the animal to stand on. I used plastic in case the bag needed to be washed.
-Cut a window into each of the front and back cover pieces. Cut notches on each corner of the window and fold back to the wrong side. Sew it so the window has a “finished” look.
-Match up the front cover pieces right side together and sew around all three sides. Turn inside right. Sew the bottom. Repeat with the back cover.
-Take the fishnet stocking and cut a square the size of the window. Add it to the inside of the window (between the outside fabric and inside fabric) and sew around it creating a net allowing for air. Repeat with the back cover.
-Sew the front cover to the bottom piece. Repeat with the back cover.
-Match two of the side pieces right side together and sew around three sides. Turn inside right. Sew bottom. Repeat for both sides.
-Sew the sides to the bottom and covers.
-Sew the flaps on all three sides. Reverse, Sew the bottom. Affix above the windows on the inside of the bag.
-Take the strap pieces. Sew around three sides. Reverse. Sew the bottom. Repeat with other strap. Sew them to the inside of the purse securely so that they don’t come off.
This will give you the basic body shape of the bag. Other ideas would be to add some pockets. Make the sides shorter and add fishnet to allow the dog to poke his head out. I used Velcro so the windows will roll up on hot days and the flaps can hang on cold days. Use a small tie down to attach to the dog’s collar so he can’t jump out. Allow enough slack so that the animal cannot choke.
TIPS
-Make sure to measure your dog before you begin. This will give you the measurements for the covers and bottom pieces.
