A New Day – Small Dresden Pouch

There’s nothing like the excitement of cutting into a brand new fabric collection. With that in mind, the latest release from Expressions Batiks, A New Day, delivers just the kind of vibrant textures that make a project sing. Recently, I stitched up a small dresden pouch using a few prints from this collection, and the results are absolutely adorable.

Hey there, it’s Kelly Renay here! I’m always on the lookout for projects that let fabric shine, and fortunately, this one was the perfect mix of playful and practical.

About the Pattern

The pattern I used is the No.160 Sewing Pouch by Tomato Candy, which you can find on Etsy. It’s a simple, uniquely shaped zipper pouch that comes with minimal written instructions. Instead of traditional directions, you follow along with a YouTube tutorial. This means it’s a different approach that might suit visual learners or confident beginners. Personally, I found myself pausing and rewatching a few steps to get everything right.

A Dresden with Big Impact

One of the standout elements is the dresden plate on the front of the pouch, which is the highlighting feature. It showcases prints from A New Day beautifully. The prints in A New Day are rich and expressive, so even small wedges of fabric bring a lot of impact. What’s more, the dresden is appliquéd onto the front before the pouch is assembled, giving it a lovely focal point without complicating the construction too much.

Finishing Touches

To keep things balanced, I kept the pouch lining simple and let the outer fabrics do all the talking. As a result, the finished product is a cheerful small zipper pouch—perfect for sewing notions, makeup, or small gifts—and a fun way to sample the A New Day line in a bite-sized project.

Final Thoughts

Admittedly, this wasn’t my usual go-to pattern style, and the video-based instructions aren’t my favorite format, but in the end, it got the job done—and the fabrics more than made up for the learning curve.

Your Turn!

So, if you’ve been eyeing A New Day, I definitely recommend trying it out in a small, high-impact project like this. The colors are stunning, and they bring so much personality to even the simplest makes.

How about you? Have you tried any video-based patterns lately? Or are you team written instructions all the way?