Sew A Simple Dopp Kit Bag

What is a Dopp Kit bag? That’s what I first wondered when I saw this project, and I’ll happily explain the etymology in the end of this article. First, however, we should look at this fantastic project that Becky Stern has shared with us.

This kit is a great project to take on if you’ve done a few little kits already and you’re looking for a bit more of a challenge, without going wild in complexity. Becky’s directions and patterns make this feel almost effortless and frankly, nearly anybody will be happy to receive a gift of a utility bag like this.

Now, why is it called a Dopp bag? If you google it you’ll be inundated with blog posts that go on forever, and ultimately just say “it’s called that because that’s what people call them”. Gee, thanks AI blog bots. The real reason is because a leather worker named Charles Doppelt had been producing these toiletry bags for a while, and was eventually contracted by the US military leading up to WW2, and in the military everything gets a name. So, Dopp Bag or Dopp Kit it is. The bags became super popular (and Charles’ company was bought up by Samsonite), and the name stuck in popular culture.