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How to Make a Hacky Sack or Footbag
You'll need a little fabric and something to
fill the bag with. For the fabric, you will
need something sturdy. An old pair of
denim jeans or corduroy pants would be
perfect for the job. So long as the fabric is
not too loosely woven. Hacky sacks take a
lot of abuse, and you need fabric that's
going to hold up to all the stress it's going
to endure.
Use Plastic pellets. They can be hard to find
but JoAnn Fabric has them or you can use
some from an old toy. Alternatively, you
can fill your hacky sack with small dry
beans, such as lentils, but I think the pellets
hold up better and longer.
The hacky sack you're going to make looks
like a tennis ball or baseball. Using the light
bulb shaped pattern, cut two pieces of
fabric. The straight edge should be placed
on a fold. After cutting them out, you are
going to lay them with the right sides of the
fabric together. Lay one piece horizontally
in front of you, with the right side of the
fabric showing. Lay the other piece on top
of it vertically, with the wrong side of the
fabric showing. The rounded part of the
fabric on top should be in the "valley" of
the fabric on the bottom. Begin sewing (1/4
inch seams) at the center point on the top,
and work your way around the curves. This
is rather tricky, because you will have to
match up the curves which are going in
different directions. Sew slowly and work
your way almost the whole way around.
Stop sewing when you see that you only
have about an inch left to go. To make your
hacky sack really strong, start at the
beginning again and set your sewing
machine to zig-zag. I use stitch width 6, and
sew all the way around again, leaving that
one inch space open. When you are done
sewing, turn your hacky sack right side out
and inspect the seams. It is very important
that you have good sturdy seams.
How to Make a Hacky Sack or Footbag
To fill the hacky sack, you can use a funnel
or a rolled up pick of paper in the shape of
a funnel. Slide the bottom of the funnel
into the one inch opening and pour some
pellets in the top. Most "hackers" like the
hacky sack filled about two-thirds full.
Don't be tempted to fill it any more than
three-fourths full. A full hacky sack doesn't
work as well, and will not hold up for very
long.
When you have the pellets inside, it's time
to sew the opening closed. Using a needle
and thread, hand-sew the opening closed.
It is usually a good idea to go back and
forth three times and make frequent knots
along the way. This seam has to be
extremely tight, so it doesn't burst open
when it is used. Remember, these things
take a lot of abuse. Not only are they
kicked around, but they get scraped along
the pavement under shoes.