Not everybody has hundreds of pounds to spend on accessories, but we can all covet lovely sparkly things. However, there is no need to go out and make a dent in the credit card when you can create a DIY Mawi clutch bag on a shoestring!
If you’re a craft fiend like me, then you will have a fair amount of bits and bobs which make DIYs like this so much easier to do. With a bit of imagination and some fun things to use, you can create a gorgeous addition to any outfit AND it’s practical; everyone needs a bag!
I became a bit obsessed with glittery things I think… as soon as I could appreciate the way things looked. These sequinned clutch bags popped up one day on my eBay travels and I just thought, “I need to get at least one of those, I could make them look so funky.” With them only being about £2.50 (or under), I couldn’t resist buying a silver and a gold one (then later a pink and black… and next I want to buy red, blue and purple…) so I could create 2 completely different designs. They came from China so I kind of forgot about them and was super excited when they arrived.
All of the ideas I had came rushing into my mind, so I grabbed all of my crafty stuff and set to work, messing around with layouts and different materials.
This was the point I realised I needed more bags so I could live out more fun designs!
Let’s get making!
So, you will need the following things to create your very own Mawi-style clutch bag:
- The sequinned beauty
- Glue gun/Super glue
- Needle
- Thread
- Beads, pom poms, spikes, crystals… your choice of lovely things!
Gold Sequins – Jewelled and Spiked
I luckily had been given some unwanted chandelier-style light shades, so I had some shaped crystals; these needed a bit more sparkle so I used glitter nail varnish on the back of them. Then I chose some jewels and things to create a layout I liked.
The spikes came after I was happy with my design but felt it needed a bit more of an edge. When I was happy with the way it looked, I started to glue the crystals onto the bag. I started out using my glue pen, but it was a bit too stringy, so I used super glue instead.
I started with the large central jewel and worked my way out so I could keep it as symmetrical as possible. Once all of my gluing was done, I waited for it to dry properly before adding the studs. When I came to this point, I found that the big chandelier crystals needed to be sewn down as well as glued, as they were moving about a bit and could have got caught and pulled off.
The studs I have are screw-ins which you have to make a hole for, before you can get the base into the fabric. To make holes, I used my thickest needle and then pushed a kebab skewer through that same hole and wiggled it about to stretch the fibres in the fabric, then I pushed the backs through. I had to push the fibres about to make sure they went around the screw and I could get the spike screwed on properly.
Once this was all done, I changed up the zipper charm for a crazy big acrylic shape I had from an old necklace and my funky, sparkly, shiny clutch bag was complete!
Ta-da!!!
Next up was my silver bag, which I wanted to give more of a tribal/boho feel and I knew I wanted to involve pom poms in this design.
Silver Sequins – Pom Poms and Tassels
Again, I was thinking about my layout, this one actually took a fair bit longer to decide upon that the gold bag. All I knew was pom poms!
So, this bag was a similar story to the other one, with a fair amount of gluing but with a bit more stitching. Since I knew those fabulous little bright coloured pom poms had to be attached somehow, I worked out a layout I was happy with and added in some tassels I found (I had actually made these years and years ago… yes I do keep everything, but now you know why!)
Once the pom poms and tassels looked how I wanted, I sewed them to the bottom of the bag. It was a bit of a pain, as there is a seam at the bottom of the bag which was sometimes a bit tough to get the needle through. But in the end, all were sewn on, with little seed beads in different colours adding even more detail.
I messed around with ideas, swapping and changing and I only cut the lengths of ribbon once I decided on my layout. To keep the ends from fraying I used a lighter CAREFULLY so seal the ends.
Seriously, all purpose super glue is my go to crafting equipment, it’s SUPER! It’s so cheap as well, especially if you shop at Wilko 🙂
The ribbons were glued on in the formation I (eventually) chose, and then the funky red howlite-looking thing from an old bracelet was glued into the middle and I built the pattern around it. The black small pom poms around it were sewn onto a piece of thread so they would stay close to each other (they are very springy little things).
So, another bag was complete and I absolutely love it! It’s probably best described as me if I was a clutch bag haha! In this pic, you can just see a multicoloured tassel to the top right-ish area; this is what I attached as the zip pully instead of the charm. Again, a tassel I made a while ago… in fact, it features every single colour of thread I have… which is 50 different colours… another spur of the moment eBay purchase which I am so glad I made!
What do you think of my cheap and cheerful and oh-so-crafty clutch bags? Better than things you can find in the shops, or good if you like things that look handmade? I’d love to hear your opinions, because I actually bought 2 more sequinned bags and I would love to pop the photos in another post at some point.
I hope you’re feeling inspired to get sparkly and try making your own statement DIY Mawi clutch bag!
