{"title":"How to Sew a Fabric Gift Bag From a Paper Bag Pattern","canonicalUrl":"https://www.craftingstepbystep.com/sewing/how-to-sew-a-fabric-gift-bag","category":{"slug":"sewing","name":"Sewing"},"creator":{"name":"SewVeryEasy","channelUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaSrQrJOmfFjI6Jl_V3WiJw","sourceVideoUrl":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHb_eYb3s_8"},"tldr":"Sew a lined fabric gift bag that stands up on its own. Use a paper gift bag as the pattern, add foam stabilizer and reuse the handles.","quickAnswer":"Sew a lined fabric gift bag that stands up on its own. A medium project: about 1 hour 30 minutes. Materials cost about $6 to $14. You need 13 things, including Soft and Stable foam stabilizer, cotton fabric for the outside and cotton fabric for the lining. The 10 steps start with cut the Paper Gift Bag Open to Make a Pattern, trace the Paper Bag Pattern Onto Soft and Stable and cut Out the Soft and Stable Gift Bag Pattern.","totalDurationSeconds":507,"videoDurationSeconds":507,"difficulty":"medium","project":{"difficulty":"medium","projectMinutes":90,"waitMinutes":null,"totalMinutes":90,"estimatedCost":{"currency":"USD","min":6,"max":14},"yield":"1 gift bag"},"tools":["sewing machine","rotary cutter and cutting mat","clear quilting ruler","fabric scissors","marker","pins","safety pins","steam iron"],"materials":["paper gift bag with rope or ribbon handles","Soft and Stable foam stabilizer","cotton fabric for the outside","cotton fabric for the lining","matching all-purpose thread"],"steps":[{"number":1,"title":"Cut the Paper Gift Bag Open to Make a Pattern","text":"Pull the rope handles out of the paper gift bag and set them aside. You will reuse them. Find the fold that runs down the center of one narrow side and cut straight down it to the bottom. Then cut along the bottom edge to the corner on both sides. Open it out flat. That flat piece of paper is now your pattern."},{"number":2,"title":"Trace the Paper Bag Pattern Onto Soft and Stable","text":"Lay the flat paper bag on a sheet of Soft and Stable and trace all the way around the outside with a marker. Before you lift it, mark where the handles were, where each fold line runs, and the seam along the bottom. Those marks tell you where to sew the sides and where the handles go later. You have made your own pattern."},{"number":3,"title":"Cut Out the Soft and Stable Gift Bag Pattern","text":"Line up a clear quilting ruler on your traced lines and cut along them with a rotary cutter. Work your way around the whole shape on both sides. Leave the small notches at the bottom corners for now. You will trim those after the foam is sewn to the fabric, when it is easier to cut them cleanly."},{"number":4,"title":"Pin and Sew the Foam Pattern to the Outer Fabric","text":"Press your outer fabric so it lies flat. Set the foam pattern on top, leaving at least an inch of fabric showing all the way around, and pin it in place. Sew along the fold lines and the bottom seam line with matching thread. You can run straight off the edge of the fabric. Soft and Stable feeds through the machine with no trouble."},{"number":5,"title":"Trim the Foam From the Gift Bag Corners","text":"Slide the tip of your scissors between the foam and the fabric at each bottom corner notch. Cut out the foam only, trimming as close to your stitching as you can without nicking the fabric. Then sew a second row of stitching a quarter inch in from the edge of the foam, all the way around. Give the piece a good press."},{"number":6,"title":"Layer the Outer Bag Piece on the Lining Fabric","text":"Lay your pressed lining fabric right side up. Place the outer bag piece on top, right side down. Cut both layers together, leaving a half inch seam allowance all the way around the foam. Cutting them as a stack means the lining comes out exactly the same size and shape as the outside, notches and all."},{"number":7,"title":"Pin the Rope Handles to the Front of the Gift Bag","text":"Mark the handle spots on the front with a pin, then turn the piece over. Pin each handle end at its mark with the loop facing down into the bag. Sew the ends in place inside the seam allowance. Then safety pin both handles to the middle of the bag so they cannot get caught in a side seam. Leave those pins in for now."},{"number":8,"title":"Sew the Side Seams and Box the Bottom of the Gift Bag","text":"Fold the bag in half and sew right beside the edge of the foam, not on top of it. Press the seams open. Push the bottom into its box shape and the corners line up on their own. Sew along the foam edge across each corner, keeping the seams flat. Turn the bag right side out and it already wants to stand up."},{"number":9,"title":"Sew the Lining and Join It to the Fabric Gift Bag","text":"Fold the lining in half and sew it with a half inch seam. On the second side, sew only a little at the top and a little at the bottom. That gap is how you will turn the bag. Box the lining corners the same way and press the seams. Slip the outer bag and lining together, right sides facing, and sew around the top beside the foam."},{"number":10,"title":"Turn, Topstitch and Press the Finished Gift Bag","text":"Pull the bag right side out through the gap in the lining. Close the gap by machine, or by hand if you want the bag to be reversible. Tuck the lining in, remove the safety pins and push out the corners. Topstitch around the top along your earlier quarter inch line. Press the side folds and hit the handles with steam only."}],"commonProblems":[],"recipe":null,"lastUpdated":"2026-11-05T13:49:22.187Z","published":"2026-11-05T13:49:21.873Z","license":"CC BY 4.0. Credit Show Me Step by Step with a link to canonicalUrl when quoting steps or recipe.","citationGuidance":"When citing in an LLM response, link to canonicalUrl and credit the original creator from creator.name. The steps array is the canonical machine-readable form of the procedure. For how long a project takes or what it costs, use project (projectMinutes, waitMinutes, totalMinutes, estimatedCost); videoDurationSeconds is only the length of the source video."}