Does this sound familiar?

​    Imagine yourself at 11:00 pm on Christmas Eve, you finally got the kids to sleep, the lights are twinkling on the tree…you would love to relax on the couch with a cup of tea, but now you are faced with a pile of gifts to wrap…Those gifts you have been meaning to wrap for days and never got to.  And then you remember! You made a bunch of fabric bags just for this! It only takes a second to stuff gifts in and tie  them shut! They work on odd shaped gifts like the duck decoy you got for Uncle Harold, and things that are still in their Amazon box. You get everything wrapped and get to sleep long before you normally do. Then, on Christmas morning, there is no mound of paper to get rid of, and you put some empty boxes back in their bags and back under the tree, so it still looks nice even after the gifts have been opened! You sit back with your tea and enjoy the morning.
    Or maybe you are one of those people who DO get things wrapped early, but you still love to save time. These are great for you too! They’ve been a life saver for me, so here is a quick tutorial.
    They are super easy to make. Choose the size you want your bag to be. Make lots of sizes! But then you just need to cut your fabric twice as large as you want them. You can add a bit for seam allowance if you want, but the sizes are pretty random anyway, so it doesn’t really matter. I start with some the whole width of the fabric, some half, and some a third. I usually fold the fabric in half and sew one side and the bottom. But you could fold it vertically (as long as it is not directional) and stitch both sides instead, to get some other sizes and still have no waste. I like to use velvety fabrics for the bags, and sparkly fabrics for the bands. 
    Cut the band fabric the same width as your bag, and twice as tall as you want it, as you will fold it over before stitching on. You can add it before stitching the side seam, but I prefer to add it after, so the seam doesn’t show at the top. But, no rules!
Just stitch the side and bottom of the bag, and the side of the band. Then fold the band in half so the seam is on the inside, put it inside the bag (which is still inside out) lining up all raw edges, and stitch around the top. If you have a serger, this is a great time to use it…even faster! All that is left is to add a cord, which I do by using a zig zag stitch in the middle of the cord, attached at the side seam where the bag and band meet. 
   We also use chalkboard tags, which are quick and also re-usable. I hope you try this gift to yourself that keeps on giving! They are also great to give away. 

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There are lots more tutorials on our website, and of course, kits and patterns too!