Welcome back to the 12 DIYs of Christmas! For this DIY we’ll be sewing some simple calico gift bags you can use as a personal touch instead of disposable wrappings.
I love using these bags to fill with small bits and pieces you’d normally give as stocking stuffers – lollies, chocolates, etc. But also think they’re a great idea for things that are a bit more special that come in smaller packages – jewellery, lush lip balms, perfumes and more.
They only take five minutes to sew and would even make a great addition hanging on a Christmas tree.
While I used calico, you can really use whatever material you have on hand. As you may have noticed so far, I’m a bit of a neutral Christmas lover and calico is a perfectly inexpensive and natural looking material to use for these bags.
#4: Calico Gift Bags
You will need:
Calico or other material
String or rope
Safety pin
To start, cut two rectangles of material whatever size you’d like your bags to be, leaving a cm on either side & the bottom for the hems, plus an extra 5cm for the top band.
Place the fabric facing right-side-in and sew around the two sides and bottom.
To create the band at the top for the drawstring, fold down the top of the material around 2.5cm. Sew around this section, careful not to sew the two sides together.
Flip your bag right-side-out. Make a small incision on either side of the top drawstring section. This is where the rope will thread through.
Take a length of rope to thread through the bag. I used a braided jute rope, but you could also use cotton rope, macrame cord or anything else you have. You may like to attach a safety pin to the end, which helps with feeding the rope through the channel. Push the rope the whole way through until the end comes out where you started.
Do the same with another length of rope, starting at the other side this time. Tie the ends off and your calico gift bags are complete!
Don’t forget to check out my other posts in the 12 DIYs of Christmas!
