Specification

Drawstring pouch: cord, channel and eyelet decisions

25 Oct 2026

Answer first: a drawstring pouch is decided by three things before any fabric is cut — the cord, the channel that hides it, and the eyelet it comes out of. Get the channel wrong and the bag gapes; get the eyelet wrong and it tears on the second pull.

The cord

Cotton cord is soft in the hand and frays at the cut; it needs an aglet or a knot that is bigger than the eyelet. Satin cord slides well and looks more expensive, and it also frays — heat-sealing the end is not enough on a satin cord, it needs a crimped end or a stitched finish. Ribbon lies flat and is the hardest to pull through a long channel.

Diameter drives everything downstream: a 3 mm cord needs a channel that will not bind, and the eyelet has to clear the knot.

The channel

Two decisions:

• Single or double drawstring. A single cord pulls from one side and the bag closes unevenly. A double cord closes from both sides and needs two channels, which means four eyelets and a longer cord.
• Where the channel lives. A channel folded from the outer fabric is the strongest. A channel sewn into the lining only looks cleaner from outside and tears first, because the whole pull load sits on a lining seam.

Whichever it is, the channel has to be wider than the cord by enough to run freely when the bag is full, and that dimension belongs on the drawing.

The eyelet

Metal eyelets take the load properly and need a setting tool, so they add a step. A stitched buttonhole is cheaper and softer, and it stretches. Behind either one, put interfacing: the pull concentrates on two points the width of the eyelet, and unreinforced fabric gives way there first.

What nobody asks and everybody notices

Cut both cords the same length. On a double drawstring, unequal cords make the bag hang crooked, and the customer reads that as poor quality long before they read anything else.

Orders start at 3,000 pcs, or 1,000 pcs per colour or size on stocked materials. Send the pouch size, the contents and the closure you have in mind and we will come back with the channel and eyelet we would specify.