DiY: Sew a beanbag with coffee history
As the saying goes, if you work hard, you should also celebrate. Hear ye hear! And if you're too tired to celebrate after a long day at work, you can simply sink into a cozy, homemade beanbag chair. How do you get one? With the help of a sewing machine and a bit of skill. Here are the DIY instructions to help you recreate it.
Required materials:
- Two coffee bags
- yarn
- 1.80m cotton fabric
- 250 liters of filling material
- 2.10m canvas or artificial leather
Your tool:
- Scissors
- tape measure
- needles
- Sewing machine (possibly overlock)
- iron
Ready? Let's go!
A little tip in advance: If you don't have an overlock machine, you can also overcast with a normal sewing machine by setting the zigzag or overcast stitch.
Step 1: unpick and clean
First, cut the two bags open so that you end up with four equal-sized pieces, which you then neaten all around with the machine to prevent fraying.Step 2: Then sew together
Now sew three of the four fabric pieces together along the long sides, right sides facing. Ideally, the piece with the coffee print should be in the middle. A simple straight stitch will suffice. Now, iron the seam allowances open from the wrong side and then sew them from the right side along both sides of the seam. 
Step 3: The food
Because the jute of the coffee sack is quite coarsely woven and you don't want the filling to fall through the holes, you'll need a lining. The cotton fabric is designed for this purpose. First, cut it to exactly the size of the sewn-together sack pieces. Then, place it on the wrong side of the jute fabric and sew all the way around using an overlock or straight stitch to join the two pieces together.
Step 4: The floor
Now the canvas or faux leather comes into play. It should be about 40 centimeters wide and the same length as the three sack pieces sewn together. Canvas and faux leather are great because they're very durable. After all, the fabric will be subjected to a lot of wear and tear later on when you sit on it. Now sew the canvas or faux leather strip, right sides together, to the bottom edge of the jute. Once that's done, you're not far from your goal. 
Step 5: A bag is created
Now spread out your sewn-together work in front of you so that you're facing the jute and the canvas or faux leather strip is at the bottom. Mark the center on the top and then fold the entire surface from left to right. Then, using the widest point of your foot, sew the top edge and the side seam closed. Don't forget to leave the canvas or faux leather side open so you can stuff the filling in later. Turn the bag over so the nice side is facing out.
Step 6: The Finale
In the next step, neaten the opening by folding the canvas or faux leather inward about three centimeters and sewing it with a straight seam. Leave about 10 cm open for filling. Now you're almost done – just fill the bag. Don't be too fussy, but don't fill it too full either. After all, the bag needs to be able to give enough for you to sit comfortably. Sewing the last part of the seam will be a bit tricky. If possible, have someone hold the bag in place.Is DIY your world?
There are many good reasons to make things yourself. It saves resources, sometimes even money, it's fun, and you learn a lot. What's more, there's a special magic in the things you've created with your own hands and passion. It's a wonderful feeling you can't buy in any store and for any amount of money.You can find more ideas for great DIY projects in our book "Your Creative Garden." Thanks to step-by-step instructions and helpful pictures, many of our DIY ideas can be recreated with children. The internet also has a lot to offer. So if you want to get active, the following websites are a good place to start:
