Create a Papercraft Christmas Gift Bag

Perfect for popping small gifts and favours inside, this Christmas gift bag will look festive and fabulous under the tree or on the table!

Follow our simple step-by-step guide to craft a gift bag in your favourite seasonal colours and patterns. With no die-cutting needed, this guide is perfect for beginner crafters keen to get creative for Christmas.

• Crafter’s Companion 12” x 12″ Paper Pad

• Multi-purpose card

• Christmas Sentiment Stamps

• Spectrum Noir Quick-Dry Inkpad – Jet Black

• White ribbon

• Collall All-purpose glue

• Red-liner tape – 12mm width

• Foam pads – 2mm and 3mm depth

• Hole punch

• Crafter’s Companion Boxer Board

• Bone folder

• Guillotine

• Scissors

• Cut a sheet from your chosen paper pad to 12” x 8”.

Top Tip: a design with a uni-directional pattern (i.e. a pattern that doesn’t have a right or a wrong way up) works best for this style of gift bag.

• Place the long edge onto the Box Lid side of the Boxer Board. Score at 2 ½” and 5 ½”.

• Turn the cardstock 90° and place the short edge onto the Box Lid side. Score at 2 ¼” down to the score line and then below the score line. Score at 5 ¼” all the way down the piece of card. Turn the card to the opposite short edge and repeat these 2 score lines.

• Top Tip: To achieve a crisp and neat score line and reduce the risk of cracking or even tearing the cardstock, score up and down several times over the same area rather than scoring once heavily.

Cut down the long score lines towards the middle to where the score lines cross. Cut away each other corner as shown.

• Cut a piece of co-ordinating patterned paper to 2 ½” x 4 ¼” and a piece of multi-purpose card to 2 ¾” x 4 ½”. Mat the patterned piece onto the white piece and glue to the front of the gift bag as shown.

• Top Tip: Adhere mats and layers onto 3D construction items like this gift bag before constructing, while the item is still flat. This will make it easier to achieve a neat finish and make sure the panels are adhered properly.

• Fold and burnish all score lines using a bone folder to achieve a crisp and neat finish to the folds.

• Stick the side box pieces to the inside of the longer vertical panel using red-liner tape onto the 4 tabs, leaving the longer piece loose.

• Use a hole punch to make 2 holes in the top (one on the front and one on the back), thread ribbon through the holes and tie in a bow to secure.

• Stamp your chosen sentiment onto a piece of multi-purpose card that measures 2 ¼” x ¾”. Mat onto a piece of patterned paper cut to 2 ½” x 1”. Use foam pads to stick this to the front of the gift bag.

• Use foam pads to add some embellishments to the front of the gift bag, we’ve fussy cut a stocking and some holly from the paper pad we used!

• Top Tip: using a pair of precision scissors and turning the cardstock instead of the scissors will give a neater finish when fussy cutting.

This is a super quick and easy gift bag that you’ll be able to recreate in all your favourite Christmas paper pads and collections to suit all your friends and family. Don’t forget to tag us in your Christmas craft creations if you decide to give this a try on our Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or I’m a Crafter’s Companion Facebook Group!