December 14 - Bag it, tag it (and a tutorial!)

One crafty commitment that I really wanted to complete was to hand-make all my own gift tags. And it was so easy! I think they turned out super cute. Due to time constraints, I wasn't able to get all scrappy and painty, just inky. But I think they turned out alright. And I also got to use my new obsession, 10-ply cotton twine. The feel is so different than the normal 4-ply twine (think divine twine). The red and white is my favorite, but I have a few other colors that I now want to put on everything.

So I decided to take photos of my tag making process and get a little mini tutorial happening for the ol' blog. Here we go:

You'll need:
- cream or white cardstock
- colored cardstock or patterned paper (scraps work best)
- 1/4 inch circle punch
- crop-o-dile or bigger hole punch
- ribbon or twine
- glue stick
- scissors or paper trimmer
- edge corner punch (not totally necessary, but nice)
- holiday stamps
- ink

First we're going to make the body of the tag. Take your cream/white cardstock and slice it down into rectangles. Perfection is over-rated. Different sizes (fat vs skinny) make for cuter looking gifts. Also, don't worry about crookedness. Nothing is going to hang straight on your present anyway, right?

After that, slice off the top two corners at a 45-degree angle. I cheated and used a punch. You could also get fancy and use one of those decorative-edged Martha punches.

Now it's time to start punching a bunch of circles. I used a patterned paper, but you could use a some plain cardstock in a festive red, green, or traditional brown.

Glue the circle in the center top of the tag. You are going to want to glue a circle on each side of the tag. To get them centered in the same place, glue one circle down, and then hold the tag up to the light so you can stick the second circle on using the shadow of the first circle.

Punch a hole in the center(ish) of the little circle. Again, don't get too worried about perfection here. The design on the tag and the twine used to tie it will totally distract from any crookedness. Also, that's how you know it's handmade right? ;)

After you've punched your hole, ink the edges of the tag in a fun contrasting color.

Now it's time to get your decorating goodies out and have some fun. Just think of a tag like a mini ATC.

I didn't worry about leaving space on the front, because you can always write the name on the back.

Just add some twine in a loop through the tag and tie it to a present and you are good to go.

I really love the look of these tags against some plain brown wrapping and that twine.