Paper Bag Purse

These paper bag purses come together really quickly and easily.  I'm sure the idea has been around for awhile, but I was inspired by some that I saw at my LSS.  They are perfect for a small gift bag or for favors for a wedding or baby shower.  I used Close to My Heart's Wings paper pack and Sophia for these two.  Here are the easy instructions for the Wings purse:



You'll need:

1 - paper bag (standard lunch size--approx. 5.25" x 10.75")

1 - 5.25" x 5" cs for the front base

1 - 5.25" x 7" cs for back base

2 - 5" x 4.75" B&T paper for front and back (one is wrong in the pic--they should be the same size)

1 - 5" x 1.75" B&T paper for front flap

1 - 3" x 3" cs for front overhang

1 - 2.75" x 2.75" B&T paper for front overhang

ribbon of your choice

crumpled paper flower (for instructions for making this flower, click HERE)

Cut the paper bag 5" from the bottom of the bag.









Score the 5.25" x 7" cs 2" from one end and fold.





Adhere the 5 x 1.75" B&T paper to the end that's folded over.  I used gluestick for almost everything.

 

Thread ribbon through the slits, and tie small knots on each end to secure it.

Adhere the 5" x 4.75" B&T pieces to the front ande back of the purse.



Assemble the front square embellishment, and adhere it to the front flap.  I used a strip of two-sided tape to attach the square. 

Finished!  I added a little extra ribbon to the handle.  You can use a tiny glue dot to close the front flap, or a piece of velcro if you want it to open and close easily several times.

Crumpled Paper Flowers

I've seen these paper flowers around on blogs for awhile and finally tried making a few:

Start with a scallop circle punch--any size--and punch out five shapes.

Then pierce or punch a whole through your stack of shapes.

Insert a brad to hold the five shapes together.  I used a tiny brad when I planned to cover it with a button and a large brad when the brad itself became the flower center.

Crumple separately every layer but the bottom one.  The more "crumply" the better.

Unfold, add any center you want, and it's done.

To make the flowers look a little more shabby and add some depth, I ink distressed the papers both before and after crumpling.  I used both newspaper and B&T papers.  Very Easy!  I made all three flowers in about fifteen minutes.