Saturday, April 24, 2010

Make Your Own Gift Bags


On a recent trip to Melbourne I learnt how to make these cute paper gift bags. You can use old books, wrapping paper or magazines. Here are some that I made using a Richard Scarrey children's book I bought cheap from the opp shop.

Here is the how to:
* collect up these materials:


* Grab a solid box that you can use to make the shape - i.e. an old metal biscuit tin or wooden box. This will designate the shape of the bag. I'm using a wooden box big enough to hold a wine bottle.

* Cut the paper so it wraps around the box and glue (pva applied with a paint brush works well) the edges together.

* Then fold the ends together like your wrapping a present and glue.
* Pull the box out and insert a base from cardboard. I used cardboard from a cereal box.


* Fold down the top and use a hole punch to place two holes on either side of the bag.
*Thread through the braid or ribbon as handles and add a tag if you like.

Here's my finished version of a wine gift bag made from a brochure out of the mail.

Tuesday, April 06, 2010

necklace

Mum gave me a set of stone beads (turquoise maybe?) along with cute fish clasp, ready to thread/ be made to the right length etc. So, as a very satisfying long weekend project I strung them on nylon thread with small greenish glass spacer beads, and seven spacer beads each side before the clasp to make it a little longer. Finished product is rather zippy new necklace. Yah.