Sewing Pattern! Gift Bags

A.K.A. Craftistic overexplains something that's actually really easy to do.

This one is for my friend S (go visit her blog and look at the ridiculously cute dog sweater she just knit!) in anticipation of her upcoming sewing classes. Posted as a public service announcement for anyone else who's interested in more eco-friendly packaging for presents.

Also, I am having difficulty with Blogger tonight and cannot get a decent picture/word wrap working. You will have to live with it, I'm afraid.

I have made a bunch of these little fabric gift bags that I use for all the family gifts at Christmas. It makes wrapping really odd-shaped things so much easier, and it gives you a nice warm feeling when you know that you are not wasting a bunch of paper that will end up in a landfill somewhere. I've reused the same bags for three years or so, and they're still cute underneath that Christmas tree. Also, they are really easy to make. It took me longer to write clear directions than it did to actually sew my sample bag.

Of course you can make these in any size you like. My illustration is for a bag big enough to hold one season of a TV show on DVD, with just a bit of room to spare. (Yes, it's Buffy, but I don't want to get in trouble with copyright people so I won't show the actual artwork.)

You will need: Some fabric in color/pattern of your choice. I can get 6 or sometimes more bags from half a yard of fabric; your mileage may vary based on how big you want your bags to be. If you're buying Christmas fabric, wait until the week after Christmas and you'll most likely be able to get it on sale.
Some ribbon in color of your choice; something that works with your fabric. I prefer to use a 1/8" thin satin ribbon, because I have a bunch of it on hand from other projects. I've also used a 1/4" metallic ribbon that's more grosgrain-y and that works too; it's just a little less flexible.
Scissors.
Thread. Something that either won't really show against your fabric, or something that's complementary/contrasting if that's how you want to go. Only the seam on the drawstring part will show at the top, just barely, when you're done.
Sewing machine with sharp needle.
Blunt yarn or tapestry needle.
Optional: Presents that you intend to wrap. Or just make a bunch of different sizes.

Need I mention: All of my "measurements" are really rough because size really isn't all that critical. It's just a fabric bag, and if it doesn't fit your present, then use it for a smaller present and sew a larger bag already. My knitter friends know how I feel about this one: gauge is not critical!

Step one: Roughly measure your fabric, if you want to. If there's something particular that you want to wrap, you can lay it out on the fabric like I did here. (I'm using 2 DVD sets to make my width and margins obvious.) Note that I left a good-sized margin up at the top - you want to have enough space above your present that you'll be able to close the drawstring part all the way when you're finished. If the bag is only just barely bigger than the present, you probably won't be able to get the bag completely closed, and that makes it really easy to see what's inside.*


Step two: With the wrong side of the fabric facing you, make a small fold across the top and iron it down. Mine was about a quarter of an inch - you're shooting for something wide enough to sew a seam down the middle of it without worrying that you'll run off either edge.

Step three: Fold down across the top again, this time giving yourself a fold two or three times the width of the ribbon. This is the little pocket that you'll thread the ribbon through for the drawstring. Iron it, so it stays put, and then sew.** Here's where you're sewing along that first fold you made, see?


Step four: Fold the bag in half lengthwise. (You'll sew this inside out to keep the hem on the inside, so fold it with the right side of the fabric facing in.) On the opposite side from the fold, sew a seam from the bottom of the drawstring pocket to 3/8" away from the bottom; turn*** and sew across the bottom. Finish off and trim any thread ends that are dangling.

Step five: Cut a piece of ribbon to use for the drawstring. Be sure it's long enough so that when you have the bag completely open, the ends are long enough to grab and tie easily. Use the tapestry needle to thread the ribbon through the drawstring pocket.


Step six: Turn right side out and admire! My final picture has one DVD set "wrapped" inside with another on top just to give you the scale of how the finished piece turned out.



* Granted, if you're worried about people peeking into their presents then this may not be the way to package them. It's really easy to untie the bag, look inside, and retie it, and there won't be any telltale signs like there would be if you used wrapping paper. Unless you can come up with some fabulously difficult knot that your recipient can only untie while you're standing right there giving them directions, but that seems kind of complicated.

** If you're really obsessive about things, when you start and finish each seam you run the machine back and forth a few stitches. This is one of those finishing techniques that Mom taught me that I faithfully follow, although in this case it's probably not strictly necessary.

*** I'm sure your basic sewing class will teach you this, but just in case: remember that when you turn your fabric, you need to make sure that the sewing machine needle is all the way down through the fabric so that you don't pull your fabric/thread in a strange way.

Happy earth-friendly gift-giving occasion!