diy paper bows for holiday gift wrapping

Thursday 27 November 2014


paper bow printables to download for free - woodland theme | creativebag.com

I've had a number of requests for the art to create the paper bows that were featured in our  Creative Living Magazine. I've made and shared printables to create paper bows before in patterns to co-ordinate with wedding and party themes. I could not resist making some to co-ordinate with three of our holiday collections and today I'm going to give you the printables to make them yourself.

Here's a really quick tutorial for making these. Please note that I numbered the individual pieces that you will cut out and glue on my "tutorial bow" so that you could easily see what I am describing in my directions ...

quick tutorial for creating paper bows - find lots of free downloads for paper bows on the blog | creativebag.com

Directions: Print downloads on white cardstock. Each page contains elements to create two bows. Cut bow shapes. For each bow you will require one set of loops (two), one set of tails (three) and one band for the middle (one). 

1. Take the two outer tabs on the loops cut out and bend them into the centre back. Glue in place. 
2. Glue the loops on top of the tails cut out. 
3. Place the centre of the band on top of the loops and wrap the ends around to the back of the tail. Secure in place with glue

paper bow printables to download for free - for holiday packaging | creativebag.com

Here's a look at some all of the bows included in the printables package. The three red, blue and white bows go nicely with our Holly Jolly collection, the wood grain bow matches our Into the Woods collection and the black, white and gold bow co-ordinates with the Glitz and Glam collection. Attach these bows to boxes and bags ... if you are not very good at tying a ribbon bow - try these instead!!

paper bow printables to download for free - great for holiday packaging | creativebag.com




Giveaway for the Holidays

Wednesday 26 November 2014


The holidays are less than a month away and we are excited to be giving away some of our great holiday products!

What can you win? Over $60 worth of holiday goodies!

Grand Prize
All in our silver sparkle market tray.

3 Additional Prizes


3 lucky winners will also have a chance to win our first 3 issues of Creative Living Magazine!

Enter below for a chance to win.




Good luck!


Custom cookies displayed in our large glass containers for the holidays

Tuesday 25 November 2014



custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

Here's an adorable idea for the holidays ... display beautiful cookies in our large glass containers. The cookies will be gone in no time and the glass container(s) can be reused after the holidays for more than just food. I recommend this holiday packaging idea for a hostess gift, a client gift or for anyone on your list that would appreciate the extra thought and effort put into a custom gift like this. 

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

Don't worry about trying to make these cookies yourself. It's so easy to find beautifully decorated cookies at this time of year. You will find them at your favourite bake shop, grocery store and even at coffee shops. I put coarse sugar in the bottom of the glass containers to create a snow like effect and also to keep the cookies in place so they don't move around and break.

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

Chalkboard tags were attached to the jar lids to use as gift tags. I wrote on the tags with a white chalk marker. The tag could be used as a Christmas ornament later on ... just decorate the other side with a cute saying or drawing and leave the string on for hanging.

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

We have a variety of different shapes of glass containers. I'd suggest that you buy the container first and select cookies to fit inside or have the cookies custom made in the size you want to fit. 

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

Is Grandma making Christmas dinner (again) this year? Surprise her with one of these and she will be calling you "Martha" all day! 

holiday sweet table idea | creativebag.com

Planning a sweet table for the holidays? These cookie jars would make a sweet addition to your set up.

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

We purchased our custom cookies from  Branded Bites I had them made this summer so that I could feature this idea in our online magazine, Creative Living. The cookies were inspired by our Into the Woods holiday gift bags. I created actual size designs for each of the cookies that I wanted and emailed the art to Jamie at Branded Bites. The cookies were made on time, in the right size and the icing colours are (I'm sure that you will agree) amazing. 

custom made cookies packaged in glass containers for holiday gift giving | creativebag.com

Please note that most of our glass containers can only be purchased in our stores. We do have a small assortment of glass containers that can be ordered online from Creative Bag Wedding if you are unable to visit one of our three stores in the GTA area





Host a cookie swap party + free printables

Sunday 23 November 2014

host a cookie swap party and free printables | creativebag.com

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

What could be more fun than an afternoon with girlfriends, sipping tea, getting caught up on what everyone is planning for the holidays and swapping cookies? Our cookie swap printables have all of the elements that you need to host a party this holiday season. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

Send out the invitations. You may want to email your guests in advance to get an idea of who is available. Follow up by sending everyone an invitation and recipe card. Mail them out or hand deliver them tucked into a red and white chevron paper bag. Let guests know what to do with the recipe cards and how many cookies to bake. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

Create a sweet table. Use cake stands, plates, platters and colourful boxes to present sample cookies. Add display cards from the printable party kit. Your sweet table should also contain beverages and snack foods. Include some healthy food options such as fresh veggies and fruit. 

Note: Set up a separate table for all of the cookies that will be traded. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

Setting up a sweet table does not have to be complicated. Use cake stands, serving dishes, boxes and display pieces in red, white and tiffany blue to match the invitations. Large chalkboards make a great backdrop and can be placed on the table with a welcoming message.

How to make the DIY paper straw vase: Place an elastic band around the centre of a glass jar or vase. Slip paper straws between the elastic band and glass container until the glass is completely covered. You will need almost fifty straws to cover a 32oz  mason jar. Tie a wide ribbon around the straws to hide the elastic band. 

Note: Find the paper straw wreath tutorial here

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

Set up a packaging station. Create a workspace, close to the "cookies to swap", for guests to package their cookies to take home. Offer guests a variety of bags and boxes to choose from and don't forget to include twine, ribbon, tags and a couple of pairs of scissors. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

I designed the cookie swap party printables to match our Holly Jolly collection of bags and boxes. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

Select packaging materials in colours to match the invitations and packaging station display sign. Give guests a few different options to package their cookies. Keep in mind how many cookies each guest will have to take home. 

host a cookie swap party + free printables | creativebag.com

The party printable kit contains a couple of sticker designs that can be used to transform inexpensive plain boxes and bags into trendy holiday gift containers. 



FYI - We carry a number of different cake stands, serving dishes and large chalkboards in all three stores that are not listed on our website. All of the products shown in the photos in this post are available in stores but please note that stock availability may be limited on some items at this time of year.


Countdown to the holidays + free printables

Wednesday 19 November 2014


countdown to the holidays with Creative Bag

Countdown calendars are a fun holiday tradition. Pinterest is a great source for finding creative and interesting calendar ideas and it's easy to make your own using our packaging products and a little imagination. We'll help you get started with some project inspiration of our own and a few free printables.

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Advent calendars are not just for small children. Even grown up "kids" love to open a treat each day, so give them a box of "countdown chocolates" and watch them smile. Download the printables for these chocolate wrappers and use tissue paper to wrap the chocolate before adding the wrappers. This would make a great hostess gift idea for a chocolate lover. We packed the chocolates in a kraft window box lined with sizzle and finished off with a wide cotton ribbon. 

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Mom deserves a treat (everyday) too! Display the countdown chocolates in a pretty candy dish and let the kid's know these are off limits with a cute little chalkboard sign

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag


countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Fabric bags make wonderful countdown calenders. Just add a number to each bag and fill them up with treats. I used the small tags from the free printables kit on these cotton bags. Simply punch a hole in each tag and attach the tags to the bags using baker's twine and mini safety pins. I displayed the cotton bags in a vintage inspired drawer from our wedding collection. 

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Advent calendars don't have to be re-used year after year. If you are looking for an inexpensive idea for this year's countdown, why not use paper bags. They are available in a number of different sizes, colours and even patterns. Print the larger tags from the printables download on white cardstock and use mini clothespins to attach them to the bags. Display the bags in a wood market tray.

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Download the printables here. They can be printed on white cardstock, blank sticker sheets or iron on transfer paper

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Twenty-five cotton bags were embellished with iron-on transfers and hung from twenty-five clothespins mounted on a large chalkboard. The tutorial for this project can be found here.

countdown to the holidays with free printables and products from Creative Bag

Download the printables here for the numbers. I created the art in two versions in the kit, one version includes the "mirror-image" for iron-on transfers


countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

My original countdown calendar tree idea has be copied a number of times ... but it is still one of my favourite holiday projects. Check out my tutorial for making one of these yourself using our mini chevron bags and striped boxes

countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

Not everyone is counting down 25 days. This countdown is ideal for counting down a smaller number of days. I created mine one for a daughter that is away in University. She can count down the days in until her last exam before coming home for the holidays.

Fill small jewellery boxes with treats. Keep the lids closed with washi or glitter tape and number each box with a chalkboard sticker. Then tie the boxes together using baker's twine so that the calendar can be hung from a coat hook, door knob or curtain rod in a dorm room. 

countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

Twenty-five wrapping paper tubes make a unique (and inexpensive) advent calendar. Make them all the same, as I did, or select a variety of different co-ordinating papers. Use chalkboard labels to number each package and display them on a wood market tray or in a shallow basket. The kids will look forward to ripping open one of these fun little packages each morning. 

Find the tutorial to make these wrapping paper tubes here.

countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

Metal tags with numbers were added to linen bags using mini brads. We have a limited number of these metal tags in our Toronto store but I don't think they will last for very long ... they are just so cute. Keep a look out for unique products with numbers that can be added to bags and boxes using brads, pins or glue.


countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

I painted an old display shelf with chalk paint and used it to display twenty-five gift wrapped boxes to create this unique advent calendar. A holiday ornament was added to each shelf as a bonus treat to hang on the tree as well. Here's what I did ...

countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

I used twenty-five white 2x2x2 gift boxes and wrapped them with "Into the Woods" paper bands after filling each box with a treat. Chalkboard tags were used to number the boxes and red twine added a little pop of colour and added to the woodland theme. I used a white chalk marker to write on the tags instead of using chalk so that the numbers would be smug proof.

countdown to the holidays with products from Creative Bag

If you recreate any of these projects or make something different using our products send us a picture on our Facebook page ... I'd love to see what you come up with!





Free printables to download for holiday packaging and more holiday gift wrapping inspiration

Thursday 13 November 2014




free download | holiday label printables | creativebag.com

As seen in Creative Living - our new online magazines - holiday themed labels to download and print out. I hope that you like these free downloads and are able to use them in your holiday packaging projects.

free download | holiday label printables | creativebag.com


We printed the long labels on blank sticker sheets and used them on a number of different boxes and containers

free download | holiday label printables | creativebag.com

In the download you will find a long sticker design to co-ordinate with each of our three exclusive holiday collections. Use one design or use them all!

Looking for more holiday wrapping ideas and inspiration using our products? Check out the current issues of Style at Home magazine and Canadian House and Home magazine for inspiration ... then visit us for the supplies ...

holiday inspiration - Creative Bag in the media


holiday inspiration - Creative Bag in the media