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How-Tuesday: Favor Bags with Brooklyn Bride


Story by bklynpillow, julieincharge, missbatch, objecked Published on February 24, 2009 in How-To

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While a drawstring favor bag is a simple project, the idea behind it is big: fabric is an excellent way to add a personal touch to your special event! Whether you're planning a wedding, birthday party, or baby shower, think fabric for a unique — and inexpensive! — splash of color. The wrapping becomes part of the gift: a reusable bag is an eco-friendly alternative to wrapping paper. Your guests would never chuck your cute handmade bag into the trash, right?

Vane Broussard of Brooklyn Bride Blog (and bklynpillow right here on Etsy) joins us to share this design she developed while planning her own wedding. Her frustration at the lack of modern and affordable wedding decor options led her to become very creative — and got her started blogging! She's been going full speed ever since.

Drawstring Favor Bag

Materials You'll Need:

Fabric
Ribbon
Sewing machine with thread to complement fabric
Scissors or rotary cutter
Pins
Safety pin
Iron and ironing board
Embroidery thread, needle and hoop
Pencil or fabric marker
Ruler

Making a Favor Bag:

Measure and cut a piece of fabric that is 15" x 6 1/2". (You can really make this any size, I just like them petite.)
With the wrong side of the fabric facing up, at each of the shorter sides, fold and iron the fabric a 1/2", then again by 1". These sizes can be adjusted depending on the width of your ribbon.
Sew along the very bottom of that inch to make a pocket or channel for the ribbon on both ends.
Plan where you'd like to place an embroidered design. (Remember, you'll be losing at least a 1/4" on either side of the bag for seam allowance.)
Use a pencil or fabric marker to lightly sketch your design on the fabric; with an embroidery needle and four strands of floss, follow the path with a backstitch. (Keep stitches small so that the curves of any letters don't look choppy.) If you want to get fancy, you can try other stitches, like French knots!
Bring right sides of the fabric together and pin the sides, leaving the top of the bag open.
Sew using a 1/4" seam allowance along the sides, stopping once you reach the channels for the ribbon.
Turn the bag right-side out. To thread the ribbon for the drawstring, use a safety pin to catch one side of the ribbon to help you feed it through the channel created. Tie the ends together and trim the excess to finish.

Start with some fun favor bags, then try your hand at wrapped vases and a ring pillow... The possibilities are endless! What handmade touches did you add to your wedding? Tell us in the comments below!

If you're feeling crafty, check out the Stamping Metal Tutorial on Tuesday, February 24th at 3PM EST in the Virtual Labs. Catch more Etsy how-to videos and more wedding posts right here:

How Tuesday Videos | Handmade Wedding Series | Fabric Supplies Tagged "Organic"

Tags	Bags & Purses, bloggers, blogs, bridal, bridal favor, Brooklyn Bride, brooklynpillow, decor, decorating, decorating ideas, Earth Tones, eco-friendly, fabric, favor bag, gift bags, gift wrap, Handmade Weddings, Handmade Wedding Series, HOW-TO, How-Tuesdays, instructional, instructions, Needlecraft, party, project, sewing, shower, Supplies, textiles, tutorial, Vane Broussard, video, Weddings

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61 comments Login to add your own!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:48 p.m.

LaireMarie

SO CUTE! My friend is getting married in August. I will have to pass this along to her (even though I am sure she will have me make them for her! :) )

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:48 p.m.

dogties

Great items & fun Bags.
Everyone needs some of those.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:49 p.m.

dragonhouseofyuen

lovely! and great fabrics!

don't forget to have an original Arabella Art-Accessory Bag AT your wedding!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:50 p.m.

MagicalPonyFarm

Cute! I love to make little drawstring bags!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:54 p.m.

SASessories

cute, cute, cute!!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 1:59 p.m.

lalala08

Just another reason why Etsy is my number one go-to for my wedding planning! Thanks for the info!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2 p.m.

baconsquarefarm

You all are so creative~ cute and practical fun lil bags~ love the colors so spring looking~ can ya tell I'm tired of winter. Always enjoy reading your articles and seeing what ya find~!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:04 p.m.

BululuStudio

Lovely project, thanks so much Etsy.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:12 p.m.

GetReadySetGO

this is a hot little article- i love the colors and the whole idea behind it. thanks for drumming this one up for us:)!!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:14 p.m.

dawnperry

This was very cool and informative!! Thank you so much.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:15 p.m.

EpicBones

nice!!!!!! love the way the video was put together!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:21 p.m.

KutuuJewellery

Can't wait to try making some of these! :)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:34 p.m.

horshid

so nice;)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:34 p.m.

TheDizzyPixie

What a cute idea! I cant wait to make some of these. :-)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:42 p.m.

VintagePaperParade

I love these bags! I've made them for birthday parties and they are always a hit.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:42 p.m.

PookThy

very pretty, i love the retro feel.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:50 p.m.

Lirola

Lovely!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:53 p.m.

bhangtiez

I luv this idea, it can b so unique per persons personality or occasion! Thanks!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 2:53 p.m.

laurebelle

What a superb idea!!! I will use this for many uses!!! And, someone has a great flair for fashion - love the collection!
Thanks!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 3:17 p.m.

zannesart

Cute!1

Feb. 24, 2009 at 3:22 p.m.

PeppermintDaydreams

fancy! i'll keep that project in mind when i have a special event ;)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 3:28 p.m.

SydneyAndZoeDesigns

Great packaging idea to give that extra special touch!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 3:53 p.m.

worksofwhimsy

I package some of my products in a similar pouch. Easy way to add a special touch.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 3:53 p.m.

fernfiddlehead

yay for how-to tuesday. I love these!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:02 p.m.

weirdwolf

Super cute!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:06 p.m.

amyrwyatt

What a cute idea, I think its a lovely touch to have something personal. Its also a great way to keep a colour theme.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:15 p.m.

FancifulForm

Such a cute Idea! I love them!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:32 p.m.

maiziedesigns

I LOVE how to Tuesday! Thanks Etsy for hosting such a great community!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:34 p.m.

JeweledAmbrosia

cute idea, love it!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 4:46 p.m.

CwButcher

love the wedding cake toppers how-to tuesdays rock!!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 5:40 p.m.

nakedpeggies

Very cool!!
Thanks SO much for sharing this!
What a great tutorial!
Suzy

Feb. 24, 2009 at 5:52 p.m.

squareware

gorgeous. Getting married in july so this is inspiring. Now I just have to figure out what to put in the bag.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 5:58 p.m.

BabbidgePatch

Sweet favor bags ~ it's a great idea! Thanks for sharing all the fun activites in this series!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 6:07 p.m.

ladaworks

Cute. Thank you for sharing.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 6:07 p.m.

kachingdesign

What great idea! I love it.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 6:48 p.m.

voleurdebijoux

Splendid! Pretty colors and very lovely idea! :)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 6:59 p.m.

lelephantrose

It's ridiculous how awesome this one is!! THANK YOU! :) Something to use for my wedding & beyond! Yippie! :)

Feb. 24, 2009 at 7:27 p.m.

polkadotsoup

another great how tuesday! i love the beautiful spring-y colours! :) a very cute idea.

Feb. 24, 2009 at 7:53 p.m.

barelymeasured

This is really nice- the embroidery really added a special touch!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 8:18 p.m.

odiliafu

Lovely fabrics!!

Feb. 24, 2009 at 9:09 p.m.

tinygreenapples

I LOVE IT! Thanks!!!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 12:09 a.m.

evelynfields

I painted a metal box for guests to place gift cards & I have kept the box to hold the reply cards that I now use as address cards. Everytime I go to update someones address it is a reminder of that special day.

Feb. 25, 2009 at 12:28 a.m.

AntoinetteDesign

Oh such a cute idea! We had a backyard/BBQ wedding with a lot of out-of-towners roadtripping to it, so we filled brown paper lunch bags with roadtrip goodies for them to enjoy on the trip back home (trailmix, mints, chocolates, tea bags, wet naps, jujubes, etc...) We made little handmade labels and prettified the brown bags with ribbon...they were much appreciated (and would've looked a whole lot cuter in little bags like yours!!)

Feb. 25, 2009 at 5:13 a.m.

Berlinski

This is such a cool way to give completely individual, special wedding gifts!! Must store that idea away...

Feb. 25, 2009 at 7:58 a.m.

bbbennyandthejet

I'm definitely going to use this idea for wedding gifts too Berlinski.. my vinyls usually get packaged in retro album covers.. but this idea will make them SUPER handmade! Too cute.. thanks for another fantastic How Tuesday!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 8:07 a.m.

christinececelia

I love it!!!
Im totally making them...oh to give wine at house warming parties!!!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 9:26 a.m.

DeborahVoizin

Too Cute!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 10:13 a.m.

PipocaHandmade

What a great idea for wrapping, and being green! I love the idea of embroidering the bag for a personal touch. Beautiful fabric. Cute. Cute. Cute!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 12:19 p.m.

yourcreativeoutlet

Thanks so much for this great idea!!!

Feb. 25, 2009 at 1:27 p.m.

TheSingingBird

great how-to video, thanks! :)

Feb. 25, 2009 at 1:48 p.m.

WingsDove

Thank you for the wonderful idea for fabric favor (or gift) bags.

Feb. 25, 2009 at 5:51 p.m.

nichan

my sewing teacher long time ago gave me a small drawstring (coin) pouch made from batik...very well-made...it was made for wedding souvener or some other traditional ceremony (i forgot)...
I use it for coin now...
it's a good idea, isn't it?

Feb. 25, 2009 at 8:14 p.m.