Friday, December 17, 2010

One Fabric, Five Ideas: #5 Quick Treat Gift Bag

Today I'm wrapping up the One Fabric, Five Ideas series. I challenged myself to create five different Christmas items using five different images from one piece of fabric, and so far I've made an embroidery hoop Christmas ornament, a gift card holder ornament, a cocoa cozy, and an applique hoodie. Here's idea number five...

 
A quick and easy treat gift bag for giving holiday goodies. Throw in some homemade candies, cookies, a mini loaf of bread. This is a simple and cute way to dress up a food gift for a teacher, neighbor, or friend.

For those of you just tuning in, here's what my challenge fabric looks like...

 
And these are the five fabric circles I chose to use in my challenge. Today I'm using the... What is that? I had a pretty good idea, but I had to do a little research to confirm... It's a plum pudding!
 
 
Materials and supplies to make one treat gift bag:
  • Christmas fabric
  • bag fabric
  • fusible web (I used Wonder Under.)
  • thread

Instructions:

First, cut a small piece of fusible web and iron it onto the back of your Christmas fabric. Make sure it covers the back of the entire image you want to cut out (in this case, the entire circle with the plum pudding image). Do this before you cut out your circle. After it cools, cut around the 3" circle.

Cut a piece of fabric for your bag. I used a piece 8" x 11", but you can make these bags in any size you want or need. After you cut your fabric, fold the fabric in half, right sides together.


Sew down the side of the bag and across the bottom using a 1/2" seam allowance. Leave the top open.


Trim your seam with pinking shears to prevent fraying, and clip your corners.


Turn your bag right side out. Peel the fusible web paper from the back of your Christmas fabric circle, and place this circle on your bag about 1" to 1.5" up from the bottom. Iron in place.


I did not sew my circle onto my fabric. I figured this bag is only going to be used once a year and won't be handled too much, so the fusible web should be enough, plus it saves time if you want to put together a whole bunch of these. If you want to applique, iron on your circle and then sew around the edge before sewing your bag together.

Take the top of your bag and tuck the edge in about 1/2". Press. Fold the top of the bag in again another 1/2". Press again.


Stitch around the top of the bag.


Your basic bag is done!


Now fill your bag with treats, but don't put in too much or you won't be able to close it. I used a strip of my fabric about 12" long and 1/2" wide to tie my bag closed.


I got a lot of mileage out of my quarter yard of fabric, and I have lots of circles left, so I can make some more cocoa cozies and treat bags for Christmas gifts. And I'm sure I'll have lots left over for some project next Christmas, too.

Thanks for stopping by today! My plan from now until Christmas is to show you some of my Christmas decor and some little projects I've been working on here and there over the last week. Can't wait to share them with you!



I'm linking up...
A Crafty Soiree

4 comments:

  1. Hi Gwen,

    This will be such a great way to use up my odds and ends of really nice fabric that I can't bring myself to throw away!!!

    Yup, I'll have my Christmas present in one of these, please!!!

    Sarahx

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  2. All I want for Christmas is a sewing class with Gwen! LOL Did you hear me singing? The sewing machine intimidates me!

    Love all these projects, especially the hoodie. :)

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  3. I loved this series, thank you so much for sharing!

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  4. I love the little bag and the fabric, but it's not a plum pudding, it's a Christmas Pudding. I'm surprised you had to research it - are they not common in the US? Christmas isn't Christmas in the UK without Christmas Pudding and they are a popular motif. I think they used to have plum in them, but I'm pretty sure they don't anymore!

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