Grocery Bag Makeover

Make a quick gift bag out of a paper grocery bag.

A few cuts, folds and staples will transform a grocery bag into a fun gift bag in minutes. I added a stenciled design, but you could leave it plain too.

Place one bag on top of the other - with printed side facing up and one handle on each end. Line up so that handles will meet each other when bag is folded in half and trim bag down to 11" x 14" rectangle. Make 1" folds on each side.

Fold bag in half so that folded sides are facing in.

This method will keep the staples hidden and give the bag a neat, pleated edge on both sides.

I chose to decorate mine with an Ed Roth stencil (available at Blick art stores).

This is great for holding a small gift of stationary or jewelry and it's sturdy too.

Here’s a link to the Ed Roth stencil book I have.

Comments (5):

  1. Sara

    October 31, 2010 at 7:29 pm

    So clever!

    • camilla

      November 2, 2010 at 1:50 pm

      Thanks Sara! This works well with any type of shopping bag – you can just cut the bag down to the size you want.
      Take care, C 🙂

  2. Bonnie@WhatAboutPie

    November 1, 2010 at 4:33 pm

    that is really a cute idea. I love the owl stencil…it really makes the bag so interesting!! this would make great party gift bags.

    • camilla

      November 2, 2010 at 1:48 pm

      Thanks Bonnie. If I could only get my act together and remember to bring my canvas bags with me when I shop, I wouldn’t have the paper bags to work with in the first place 🙂
      Take care, C

  3. Cindi

    November 4, 2010 at 10:34 pm

    Brilliant! Super cute and so easy. Thanks for the great idea. 🙂

Comments are closed.