In this blog post, I will show you how to make an easy gift bag with half a sheet of paper. I recently saw this tutorial on Splitcoaststampers, but I have made similar bags and boxes the same way many times. For this project, I chose to use the beautiful Sweet Soiree Specialty Designer Series Paper for the little gift bag. This bag is a decent size for a small gift or generous amount of chocolates!
Start with a 12″ x 12″ sheet of paper, whether card stock or designer paper. Cut in half at 6″ x 12″. Use the scoring blade on the Stampin’ Trimmer or use the Simply Scored scoring board. Personally, I like to use the Simply Scored when I am making a project like this as opposed to just a card. I also think it works better when working with designer paper, especially this heavier weight specialty designer paper.
Place the paper in the scoring tool with the 12″ side at the top. Score at 4″, 5 3/4″, 9 3/4″, and 11 1/2″. Turn the paper so the short edge is at the top and score at 1 3/4″. Now take some scissors and cut those short bottom tabs up to the 1 3/4″ score line. Cut off the little 1/2″ tab on the bottom. If you haven’t already folded on all the score lines and (I prefer) creased with a bone folder, do this now and see how the bag will go together. It’s good to figure out what will be the front of the bag so that you have the “raw edges” where pieces come together facing the back.
Place the paper with the design for the outside face up on the table. Apply a strong adhesive as shown in the photo. I used Tear & Tape. Remove the release paper on the tape when you are ready to assemble the box. Make sure everything lines up properly. For the bottom, fold in the sort tabs first, then the piece with the adhesive, and finally press down the last piece which will be the bottom of the bag.
At this point, you can leave the bag open as is, almost like a box without a lid, or you can pinch the top together and close one way or another. Be sure to put your treat inside first! For this gift bag, I punched two holes in the top and tied with Calypso Coral 1/4″ Ombre Ribbon.
The Sweet Soiree Paper is pretty enough not to need any embellishment, but I went ahead and made a little label for the front of the gift bag. For this label I used the Pretty Label Punch to punch out a stamped piece of Calypso Coral Cardstock stamped with an image from the Label Me Pretty Stamp Set. On Whisper White I stamped a sentiment from the same set and punched out with the 1 1/4″ Circle Punch and layered on a piece of Powder Pink Cardstock punched with the 1 3/8″ Circle Punch. For a little bling, I added two dots from the Metallic Enamel Shapes.
The Sweet Soiree Specialty Designer Series Paper is unfortunately on the Last Chance Retirement List so if this is a paper you want in your stash, be sure you put it on your next Stampin’ Up! order. The Metallic Enamel Shapes and the 1 3/8″ Circle Punch are also on the list.
Whatever paper you use, this is an easy to make gift bag using just a half sheet of paper, so keep it in mind for when you need a last minute bag for a small gift for any occasion! It might save you a trip to the store for gift wrap and bags!