Travel Cubes aka Packing Organizer II

While the last version of the packing cubes work, I don't like how the zipper only opens the top "lid" half way. So, I've re-worked it. It's a little fussier to make, but still easy enough. I didn't worry if the edges didn't match exactly or the corner didn't match particularly well. They're just for organizing, no one will see them except you. And if you look at RTW (RTU? Ready-to-use?) manufacturers certainly don't worry about perfection.

Cut fabric as pictured above. The blue is the fashion fabric, the pink is the mesh. "s.a." = seam allowance              

The fashion fabric and mesh will look like this when it's cut. Just the top two pieces in the picture to the right. The other one at the bottom of the picture is so you can see the end of the mesh.

My ruler is covering the part I want to keep. I am cutting in from the long side. See next picture.

Here is one side cut out. The mesh will wrap along the sides to make items more visible.

 Here is the fabric back, top and bottom (the blue part in the schematic above).

 I serged along the top edge to finish the seam before installing the zipper on my conventional machine.

 Lay the zipper face down on the top of the fabric and stitch. Then repeat with the mesh.

Then I folded it back and topstitched to strengthen the zipper seam. It will receive a bit of abuse.

Unzip past the edge and abut the teeth. A stationary, wide zig-zag, will work as a zipper stop. Do both ends and cut off the extra zipper (with your cheap scissors, not the good ones).

Before you go on, remember to open the zipper, at least enough to get your hand in. You'll have to turn it right-side out at the end. Really ... do it now ... you'll forget ... I know ....

 Match the bottom edges of fabric and mesh and stitch.

This is the the most confusing part. It will create the boxed corners. But if you match yours to the picture, it will work. Those outer corners that sit out there on their own - fold from the point and match the edges. It will make a triangle. Serge (or stitch, trim and finish) either alongside the zipper tape or on your stitching line. It's not beautiful, but it functions. We're going for quick, not a construction contest.
Repeat for all 4 corners.

After the 4 corners, you end up with this. And now is when you might have to fudge. Those two open edges should match up fairly well.

If not, fuss a bit and make it work. You'll kind of pull the "lid" up out of the way to get the two raw edges to match. You could even take a tiny tuck at the bottom, or go at a slight angle to make the length match up. Serge that matched up edge.

 Turn it right-side out.

 Looks like this from the top.

 A zipper pull helps. I used a scrap of selvage, cut thin since selvage doesn't fray. Fold in half, push it through the hole in the zipper pull.

Push the ends through the loop and pull snug. You can see here in this pic, the corner stitching didn't match the zipper seam. But it works fine.

And it's done!

You'll want them in multiple sizes. You can look online for travel cubes for size ideas. I stacked up 5 or 6 t-shirts and measured it, then compared to a popular size. They work great inside the suitcase, makes packing things easy (and unpacking when you realize you forgot to add shoes at the bottom).

And speaking of shoes, make drawstring bags out of lining fabric for your shoes. Doesn't add bulk and keeps dirty shoes off the suitcase (the cubes keep the clothes off the shoes). But the lining is NOT waterproof, so keep that in mind if you're packing hiking shoes after a muddy slog.

Travel cubes aka Packing organizers

Travel cubes are popular, but expensive. I have used drawstring bags to sort and organize clothing in a suitcase, but these work better. They make it easier to keep your packing focused/light and definitely easier to pack everything. I usually put tops in a medium sized, bottoms in large and undergarments in a couple smaller ones. Tossing in my shoes (which I put in newspaper plastic rain sleeves) on the bottom, toiletry bag (which is always packed) and then the packing cubes, I'm done really quickly. And if TSA roots through my stuff, I don't have to worry about things getting handled much. Yes, officially they could open them up and root through them, but frankly, they're probably not going to bother. 

You can make them any size. Google "travel cube" or "packing organizer" and you'll get a plethora of selections. Or you can look at them at Target, etc. You can pick a size from any of them, the sizing is pretty simple to calculate, just use your own desired Height/Depth/Width measurements. Here's a couple size suggestions:

Small - finished size approx 6" x 2" x 6" (Height x Depth x Width)

Medium - finished size approx 12" x 4" x 7"

(because the zipper takes up a little length, sizes are approximate)

Supplies:

Small - (1) 10" x 9" (Height x Width) fabric

           (1)  7" x  9" (H x W) mesh

           (1) zipper at least 9" long (W) - easiest to use longer and cut off excess

Medium - (1) 19" x 12" (H x W) fabric

               (1)  13" x 12" (H x W) mesh

               (1) zipper at least 12" long (W) - easiest to use longer and cut off excess

(at end of posting, I have the calculations you need to select your own size)

1. Right sides together, place short side of fabric on zipper and stitch.

2. Flip zipper over place short side of mesh on top, 

matching edges with fabric piece. Stitch short side of mesh
to right side of zipper.
















3. Open the zipper at least 4-5" so you can turn it right side out later!

4. Right sides together, match all edges. The zipper will be a little more than half the Depth down from the top. Stitch the open edges. Finger crease the top edge enough to locate it in the next step. If you're nervous the zipper will come apart, zig zag across the teeth inside the seam allowance. Trim off the zipper ends.

5. To box the corners, about 4-6" diagonally in from the bottom corner, grab front and back and separate, the corner will look like a cone or 4-sided pyramid. Line up the corner side seam with the corner bottom seam. Flatten into a triangle. You will stitch across the triangle. Use a ruler to lay across the triangle until the stitching line is the Depth you chose - this is where you stitch. Repeat for other corner.




6. The top corners are done the same as the bottom

corners. Make a triangle out of the corner and stitch as close as you can to the zipper tape. If you want a loop handle, from the inside, you can tuck it in one of the top corners before stitching.









7. Turn right side out, pushing out the corners.

You're done!

This medium sized travel cube has 4 t-shirts folded inside.











If you want a different size, calculate needed fabric/mesh by knowing what finished size you want (Height x Width x Depth - H x W x D):

1) Fabric = cut a piece H + D + 1/2D + 1"   by  W + D + 1"

2) Mesh =  cut a piece   H + 1"                     by W + D + 1"

3) Zipper = at least W at minimum

           For example: if I want a large cube 15" x 10" that is 6" deep (H=15, W=10, D=6), I would cut

                                fabric 24" x 17"  (15 + 5 + 3 + 1  by  10 + 6 + 1)

                                mesh  16" x 17" (15 + 1  by  10 + 6 + 1)

                                zipper has to be at least 10" long.