Slabtown Backpack Online Class

A stylish, heavy-duty backpack built for adventurous makers. Create a professional-quality bag on a home sewing machine!

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In this class, Ellie, the pattern designer + founder of Klum House, will guide you through creating the Slabtown Rolltop Backpack, a stylish and highly-functional bag designed for adventurous makers. The Slabtown features a spacious main compartment with a quick-access side zipper, a front zip pocket, and snap closures. Whether it’s a day on the trails, your daily cycling commute, or a weekend getaway, this bag will keep up with your active lifestyle and hold up to years of wear and tear. Pack your gear—there are adventures ahead!

The Slabtown is an advanced pattern that involves managing many pieces of fabric, heavy-duty sewing on a home machine, and work with leather and hardware. This pattern will push the limits of what you thought was possible on a home sewing machine, teach you heavy-duty sewing techniques, and turn you into a leather and hardware boss.

Get excited! This is going to be fun.


The Slabtown Full Maker Kit

Comes with all of the ingredients and instruction you need to make this bag!

Durable pre-cut + hole-punched waxed canvas, ready-to-attach premium leather straps, and professional-strength hardware—all in the colors of your choice.

Get this class for free with the purchase of a Slabtown Full Maker Kit.

Check out the Slabtown Maker Kit

 

"Klum House workshops are not only ultra-clear and packed
with information, but Ellie's laid-back teaching style was a fun
and encouraging way to tackle my most complex bag to date.
Plus- she seemed to know every mistake I was going to make
and caught it every time."

- Katie W.

Your Instructor


Ellie Lum
Ellie Lum

Ellie Lum is the founder, pattern designer, and head educator at Klum House. With over twenty years of professional bag making experience, she draws on her roots in the industrial sewing industry to make heavy-duty bag making fun and accessible to home stitchers. Ellie has taught hundreds of makers to sew over the years and is known for her fun, casual teaching style and crystal-clear instructions. She believes in the joy, struggle, and triumph that comes from making something from start to finish with your own two hands.


 

Skills Learned

  • How to sew extra-bulky seams
  • Attaching leather straps
  • How to sew a hidden zipper
  • How to create adjustable leather backpack straps
  • How to finish seams with binding
  • How to set tubular rivets
  • How to set Line 24 snaps
  • Conceptual elements of bag making
  • Various ways to topstitch

Digital Pattern + Resources Included with Class

  • Fully-illustrated, step-by-step instructions booklet
  • Tiled PDF pattern (for home printing)
  • Large format PDF pattern (for professional printing)
  • Complete list of necessary materials + tools
 

Testimonials

"I knocked out a great Slabtown my first try. The videos made everything easy. I nailed the zipper and I always freak about zippers. The explanations were fantastic."

- Heather W.

"Ellie is a fabulous instructor. She gives just enough information with concise direction. I love her style & would love to take her classes in person at her workshop. Great job."

- Felicia G.

Course Curriculum


  Getting Started
Available in days
days after you enroll
  Get Ready
Available in days
days after you enroll
  Make The Slabtown Backpack
Available in days
days after you enroll

FAQ

When does the course start and finish?

The course starts now and never ends! It is a completely self-paced, online course, so you decide when you start and finish.

How long do I have access to the course?
For life! After enrolling, you have unlimited access to this course for as long as you like, across any and all devices you own.

What if I am unhappy with the course?
We would never want you to be unhappy! If you are unsatisfied with your purchase, contact us in the first 30 days and we will give you a full refund.

What materials and tools do I need for this class?
Check out our "Meet the Slabtown" preview in the Course Curriculum section above! You'll find everything you need to gather before you begin the class.

How long does it take to complete the course?
The time it takes to complete the course will vary depending on your sewing skill level, so this is entirely up to you! The total video time is 90 minutes, so you can either watch the whole class in one go, or take your time and make the bag over a few days. You can return to the course as many times as you like, so there's no rush to complete.

How do I get the pattern?
The pattern is included as a PDF download once you purchase the course. You will find it in the first section, titled "Meet the Slabtown."

What if I want a printed copy of the pattern?
If you'd like to follow along with a paper pattern, you can purchase one from our Online Shop


Do I need an industrial sewing machine to make this bag?

No! All Klum House bags can be completed on a home sewing machine, no industrial sewing machine required! At the Klum House teaching studio, we teach all of our classes on Singer Heavy Duty 4423 sewing machines that generally retail for $130-160. That is to say, you don’t need a fancy, expensive sewing machine to make our bags. If you have doubts about the power of your home sewing machine, test it out! Try sewing through multiple layers of heavy-duty canvas. Sometimes when a project gets especially bulky, we have to use the handwheel to manually sew a few stitches. If your sewing machine breaks a needle, skips stitches, or refuses to feed the fabric, it might not be up for the challenge. But we see lots of different home sewing machines come through our teaching studio that do just fine!

What skill level is this class?

This class is suitable for an intermediate or advanced stitcher and great for folks who want to build on their foundational skills and tackle a bag project that’s a bit more involved. If you’ve taken a workshop, completed a confident beginner pattern, or are an experienced stitcher who feels confident working with your hands, these projects are for you. Get ready to seriously impress your friends.

Get started now!