August 15, 2025

Covering Up a Logo on a Tote Bag to Make it Cute

Nicole DIY, zero waste make do and mend, sewing, sewing project, upcycle, zero waste 2 Comments

I got this tote bag from our church swap group, well actually it was tossed in as an extra with some other things I had gotten, and I am not one to turn down a good reusable canvas tote bag! However, this bag had a logo stamped across both sides and I don’t want to be free advertising for a company. (The only logo I don’t mind carrying around is my public library tote!)

It is a really nice canvas bag though, so, what to do? I figured I could come up with a way to cover the logo, while still making it look intentional. Because this tote had the blue striped pieces on the sides already, I figured that if I added some more fabric pieces, it would look like a patchwork.

So, it was time to looked through the fabric scraps basket, and I found a piece of canvas and a piece of gingham I have had for about….20 years? This is why you should always keep your fabric scraps- you just never know when they will come in handy! Originally I was planning to do a fabric appliqué across both sides, but because this gingham was a previously cut piece, it wasn’t wide enough for two strips. So, then I realized I could do a pocket! (Actually the pocket might have been my mom’s idea) And instead of doing the pocket in just gingham, I used some canvas and put a strip of gingham across the bottom of the pocket for interest. I  discovered that the logo showed through the plain canvas, so that is why I opted to place the patterned fabric across the bottom.

For the pocket, I sewed the canvas and gingham together and then folded all of the sides in about 1/4″. The top was folded down twice and top stitched so all of the edges were encased.

If you decide to do this, make sure to measure twice and cut once. I didn’t measure at all and cut immediately, so when I went to place the pocket, I discovered that the logo was not in the centre of the bag, nor was it aligned from top to bottom, and not only that, but I had made the pocket the exact width of the logo, so there was no room to play with! I even had to sew the corners down by hand to make sure they won’t curl up and show the blue underneath! So, make your pocket an inch wider than your logo, so you don’t have to worry about that.

Once you have pinned your pocket in place exactly in place to cover the logo, then top stitch the pocket along the sides and bottom. And then that side of the bag is done.

For the other side of the bag, I decided to do a simple appliqué. First, open up the side seams just enough to slide your fabric into place.

Cut a strip of fabric long enough to go from seam to seam and tall enough to cover the logo. Press 1/4″ seam allowances along the top and bottom. Pin in place securely, so there are no wrinkles or bubbles.

Stitch along the top edge, then turn the bag 180 degrees and stitch along the bottom of the strip, very close to the edge.

Sew the side seams back up, and serge them again to finish them off, and then you are done!

Here is how the pocket side turned out…

And here’s the appliqué side.

And there you have it: a nice new reusable tote bag, and no one would ever guess that there was a logo hiding underneath!