Fabric Gift Bags

During this Advent season we have been striving to keep the focus on Christ - not the secular type & hype of gift giving. By taking the time to make these bags, use them, pack them and re-use them I hope we have created our own little family tradition of giving something handmade. 

Why handmade? Well, it forces us (me) to take the time to remember why we give gifts at Christmas. 

Don't we do it to celebrate Christ's coming?  In giving to one another we give to Him. 

It takes me back to the story of the little drummer boy who gave his talent to the Christ child. (Yes, Jo, I know it is your least favorite Christmas song!) 

Or, another comparison might be to the "clown" in Tomie dePaula's  Clown of God story.  I want to be more like that child and that "juggling clown" in my giving and I want to teach my family that, too


Here are the details:
You can get 2 to 4 small to medium size bags from a yard of Fabric.

Ribbon closes the bags.

 We keep ~ 40 bags that we use year after year @ Christmas.

This allows for plenty of different sizes to be used as needed.

Pack them flat and they look great year after year -- OR pull out the trusty iron.   A great practical bonus of using fabric gift bags for Christmas is that all the gifts can be wrapped in about 40 minutes!

We make a few new bags each year because, as I mentioned, we use them for gifts we give away. We also use these for other gift giving celebrations. Sometimes friends are more excited about the fabric gift bag than anything else!


Here are the instructions:

• Cut 2 equal size pieces of fabric and place right sides together. (Or,  fold a longer piece of fabric in half - right sides together)

• Cut a piece of ribbon long enough close the bag. (Approximately 24 inches for most bags.)

• Fold the piece of ribbon in half and pin to the inside of the fabric about 3 inches from & parallel to the top. 
• At this point your ribbon will be on the inside of the bag laying parallel to the top of your bag.

• Sew all sides together except the top. Sew over the folded end of the ribbon. Be careful not to sew the opposite end of the ribbon into the other side seam.

• Turn right side out.

• Use pinking shears to cut the top so there is no need to hem.  Note: Flannel does not fray.
  

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cross posted @ The Best Nest
source and inspiration: almost positive it was Just Call Me Jamin (graphics of gift bags from her site)