From Our House to Yours! Appliqué Holiday Gift Bag

I designed this appliquéd gift bag using several frame shapes built-in to Brother machines and added details with trims and decorative stitches. This gift bag is perfect for filling with something special like homemade goodies, candy or other small gifts. The bonus Free Wreath Design
is an extra gift from Brother to you this month. Embroider the wreath and add to a covered button for a 3-D door decoration on this easy, “homey” felt bag. Gather your supplies and let’s go sew!

Materials and Supplies

• Brother
  sewing and embroidery machine with 4 X 4-inch hoop capability.
• Brother
  Embroidery Thread, Bobbin Thread, and size 11 embroidery needle for embroidering.
• Brother
  Stabilizers, Cut-Away and Tear-Away
• 
  Bobbin Thread,
  & Embroidery Needle
  
• SA186
  Brother Open Toe Foot
• Brother FREE Bonus Wreath Design.
  
• Temporary spray adhesive made for machine embroidery.
• Basic sewing notions including sewing thread and a removable marker.
• Sharp curved tip scissors for trimming.
• Clear, quick drying fabric glue.

Fabrics and Notions for Gift Bag

• Gold or tan felt for bag front and back, two pieces measuring 9” wide X 12” long.
• Cotton for door, one piece measuring 3” wide X 6” long.
• Thin, fusible craft fleece for door, one piece measuring 3” wide X 6” long.
• Light colored cotton for creating covered button, one piece measuring 8” square. Note: Apply lightweight fusible interfacing to the wrong side of this piece.
• Felt for accents and tag, two pieces of red and one piece of green, measuring 8” square.
• 3/8-inch wide ribbon to trim door, one piece measuring 45-inches long.
• Medium rick rack or similar trim for roof, one piece measuring 22-inches long.
• Small ribbon pieces and novelty trims for front.
• One Button covering kit, size 1 ½-inches.

Bonus Free Design:

• 1.22” Wide X 1.17” High

Steps to Create Gift Bag

1. Create covered button as follows:

• Transfer design to machine and decide on your choice of thread colors. In this example I used light green in place of the blue.
• Hoop 8-inch square of interfaced cotton in 4-inch hoop. Slip a piece of tear away under hoop.
• Embroider wreath design. Remove tear away and press finished piece.
• Cut a circle around the wreath design, using the template included with button kit. Center design over button shell. Finish making the button following directions included with button kit. Set aside for later use.

2. Create door design as follows:

• Fuse the 3” X 6” craft fleece to the wrong side of corresponding fabric piece.
• Select one 9” X 12” piece to use for bag front. Using a removable marker, mark a line approximately 2-inches from lower edge. Repeat this marking on the wrong side. Working from the wrong side, mark the center point for the door design 2-inches above the line. Hoop a piece of cutaway stabilizer. Spray stabilizer with temporary adhesive. Adhere felt to stabilizer, centering it in the hoop. See Figure #1 and Figure #2.

[caption id="attachment_22772" align="aligncenter" width="643"] Figure #1[/caption] [caption id="attachment_22773" align="aligncenter" width="665"] Figure #2[/caption]

• Create the door design in two parts. Part one: Select a rectangular frame shape using the triple straight stitch pattern. Resize shape to equal 4.00” X 1.87.” Add a second rectangular frame shape, selecting the decorative stitch pattern shown here. Resize shape to equal 3.65” X 1.54.” See Figure #3a and Figure 3b.

[caption id="attachment_22774" align="aligncenter" width="616"] Figure #3a[/caption] [caption id="attachment_22775" align="aligncenter" width="613"] Figure #3b[/caption] 3. Embroider door design as follows:

• Place hoop on machine. Lightly spray wrong side of 3” X 6” piece with adhesive. Center fabric over marked center line, having length of piece parallel to the long sides of felt. See Figure #4.

[caption id="attachment_22776" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #4[/caption]

• Embroider straight stitch frame.
• Carefully trim fabric outside the stitches using curved tip scissors. See Figure #5a.

[caption id="attachment_22777" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #5a[/caption]

• Embroider decorative frame within the trimmed edges. See Figure #5b.

[caption id="attachment_22778" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #5b[/caption] 4. Remove bag front from hoop. Trim away excess stabilizer. You will cover the raw edge with ribbon in a later step. Set front piece aside temporarily. 5. Create decorative shapes for accents on each side of door as follows: Begin by making a large diamond shape using the triple straight stitch pattern from built-in frame patterns. See sizing in Figure#6. Using 4-inch hoop, stitch shape on green felt. [caption id="attachment_22779" align="aligncenter" width="615"] Figure #6[/caption]

• Use the same method to create one oval with a piece of red felt. See sizing in Figure #7. Using 4-inch hoop, stitch shape on red felt.

[caption id="attachment_22780" align="aligncenter" width="638"] Figure #7[/caption]

• Cut the diamond shape just outside the stitching lines, and then cut in half to form two triangles for small trees. Cut the oval just outside the stitching lines, and then cut in half to form two pieces for planters. See Figure #8.

[caption id="attachment_22781" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #8[/caption] 6. Embroider a greeting on a piece of red felt. Trim to size. Set up machine for sewing. Form a loop using a 2-inch piece of the 3/8-inch ribbon and attach to the corner of the tag. Add Glue or stitch a second piece of matching felt to the back to cover stitches. See Figure #9. [caption id="attachment_22782" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #9[/caption]

Instructions for Finishing Bag

1. Fold the bag to determine the roofline. Mark lines for trim 1-inch from the edges. See Figure #10. [caption id="attachment_22783" align="aligncenter" width="713"] Figure #10[/caption] 2. Set up machine for sewing with open toe foot. Stabilize the wrong side with tear-away. Sew trim along marked lines for roof. Sew 3/8” ribbon around the door frame. Place shapes on the bag front, add ribbon for tree trunk and temporarily secure with fabric glue. Sew pieces to bag using decorative stitches, adding trims as desired. Remove excess stabilizer. Hand sew covered button above the door to complete the front. See Figure #11. [caption id="attachment_22784" align="aligncenter" width="639"] Figure #11[/caption] 3. Remove all markings. To box the corners at the bottom of bag front and back, cut away a 1-inch square from bottom corners of both front and back piece. See Figure #12. [caption id="attachment_22785" align="aligncenter" width="548"] Figure #12[/caption] 4. Switch to the “J” foot. Place front and back pieces right sides together. Sew sides and then bottom seam using a ¼-inch seam allowance. Next, fold the bottom corners so raw edges are even and side seam matches bottom seam. Sew the openings closed, forming boxed corners in the process. See Figure #13. [caption id="attachment_22786" align="aligncenter" width="539"] Figure #13[/caption] 5. Cut the remaining length of 3/8-inch ribbon in half. Attach ribbons to the back bag at the top edge of each side seam. Fold top of bag to the back to form roof. Fill bag with treats or gift and tie to close. See Figure #14. [caption id="attachment_22787" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Figure #14[/caption] 6. Attach tag to bag front. You are finished! Enjoy!

Options and Ideas:

• Create bag using firm fabric in place of felt, hemming top edge to finish the fabric.
• Use this same basic house design as the base for a pillow or wall hanging. As an option you could embroider the wreath design directly on the door fabric before creating the frame.
• Add a personalized touch by adding a family or personal name to the tag.