Paper Purses, Handbags, & Wallets - How to Make Unique Designer Gift Bags! | tutorial, paper | Learn how to make customizable paper handbags & purses for a gift bag they won't forget! We had form, function, and FUN in mind while designing our new... | By JenniferMaker.com | Hello, everybody. JenniferMaker here. It's a beautiful day to introduce my newest line of designer handbags. First up, the flower power handbags and the matching daisy duke wallet. Aren't they just so cute together? The next step in my collection is a design that I'm calling the Heartbreaker Handbags. These beautiful bags are decorated with a delicate filigree design made of hearts and finally, the crown jewel of the collection, the co Tour Handbags featuring a gorgeous chain-link strap similar to some of the most coveted designer handbags in the world. So, what do you think? Aren't they just so much fun? I love these and guess what? They won't break the bank. Let's head on over to my craft table and I'll show you how you can get your hands on one of your very own bags. Okay, okay. I'm sure you have figured it out by now but just in case I had you fold, these handbags are actually made of paper. Cardstock to be exact. Pretty impressive, huh? I just love all the little details that make these purses look so real. The detailed zippers, metallic-looking hardware, the functional pockets, cute little key chain, all of the components that make up a well-made handbag it's all here. These are great for gifts or maybe you could add some flowers and use one as a centerpiece for a special occasion. They would also work with bling bouquets. Whatever you do with them, they're sure to impress. These are super super cute and the best part, you really only need two things to make one. Good cardstock and glue. I'm using a variety of card stock including double-sided pattern to cardstock along with solid core cardstock. Make sure it's solid core and good quality. I will also use foil cardstock to get that real metal look and a good quality craft glue makes a big difference. I'm using my favorite glue, Barely Art Precision Glue. It is so easy to apply and it holds everything together so well. Now, I cut my handbags on the Cricut Maker three but you can use any of the Maker or Explore Series machines along with a blue light grip or green standard grip machine mat. One of these can even be cut on the Joy or you can simply cut them by hand using my printable PDF files. Here are some of the tools that are helpful to have on hand for this project. Every tool and material used to make these handbags is linked below the video and also over@JenniferMaker. com slash paper handbags and purses. So, there's no need to guess. Now, one item you may not realize is useful is a Cricut pen. That's right. That's how I got the stitched look on the handles and edges of the bag and I'll show you how I did that in this tutorial. Oh and make sure to stick around to the very end to see how I used a special tool to add another really cool detail to one of these handbags. So without further ado, let's get started on this season's JenniferMaker Designer Handbags Collection. Step one, get my free Paper Handbags design files. First, go to JenniferMaker. com slash 393 and look for libraries in the red bar at the top and then either click a password if you don't yet have one or click enter the library. You can find the design by searching the page for design number393 and then click it to download a zip file with an SVG file for cutting on a cricket or another cutting machine, a DXF file, and a principal PDF for cutting by hand. I'm going to show you how to cut the pieces out on a cricket cutting machine. First, upload the SVG cut file to cricket design space. If you're unsure how to do this, please go JenniferMaker. com slash SVGS to learn how to unzip and upload SVG files. I've included files for three handbags and the matching wallet. Each folder contains a version with score lines that require a scoring wheel or scoring stylus and a version with dash cut lines that needs only the fine point blade. The dash cut lines make the card stock easier to fold and it's really easier for beginners to use as well. I'm going to show you to make the flower power handbags with dashed lines. That's the one with the no-score tool needed in the file name. Here's what it looks like on the design space canvas. You may need to zoom out to see the full design. To do this, click on the minus sign on the lower left side of the screen. The other pieces in my collection follow the same basic steps with a few differences that I'll point out along the way. If you'd rather make the handbags using score lines but don't know how that works, you can check out my tutorial on how to make envelopes where I explain how to attach score lines step by step over@JenniferMaker. com slash envelopes. So Step 2, prepare your design for cutting. The Flower Power Handbags has the option to use the Cricut FinePoint Pen to mimic stitching on your purse. It looks really cool but if you don't have a pen or you just don't want to do this, you can hide these layers right now. Otherwise, there are six layers that we need to set as draw and attach so your pen draws them. With your design selected, click ungroup at the top of the layers panel. Find the layers with no color in their layer panel thumbnails that look like stitching. If you click on one and then look up in the top menu at the color box, you'll see it's orange. I colored all the stitching layers orange to help you find them. Each one is grouped with its corresponding cut layer in the layers panel. There's one stitching for all of the blue handle pieces, four for the corner padding on the purse, and one for the flap. Hold the shift key on your keyboard and click on all six layers. Then change the operation at the top from basic cut to pen. Then click off of the design. Now we need to tell the cricket to make the pen marks on the correct layers. Find the first pen layer grouped with the cut layer in the layers panel and select both layers. Click attach the bottom of the layers panel and repeat for all of the other five pen layers. If you did it right, all six new attached layers should be at the top of the layers panel just like you see on my screen. While the bag is basically ready to cut now. There are a few variations to consider. I've included a circle-shaped gift tag that you can cut and attach to your handbag that says for you. This is totally optional. You could also add a keychain to your handbags I've listed a clear acrylic tag in my materials list which you can decorate with vinyl if you like. To create a custom name for the acrylic keychain, use the text icon over on the left to add the name to your canvas then resize it to no larger than an inch and a half wide or tall using this fields. I'm going to write Alexa in the font tingler print but you can use any font you like. You can leave it this color or change the color in the top menu by clicking on the color picker and choosing your desired color. If you're making the Daisy Duke wallet to match, you can save time and paper by adding both designs to your canvas before cutting. Design space will put the matching elements on the appropriate mats in the next step. If you want the to our handbags filigree and zipper rectangles to stand out, click ungroup and hold shift to select each layer and change them to a new color using the color box in the top menu so that you cut them on a different color of paper. After you've made these adjustments, you're ready to cut. Step three, cut your paper handbags design. Make sure you have the right machine selected and click make it. If you're prompted, click on mat and continue. Since I'm making the Flower Power Handbags and the Daisy Duke wallet at the same time, there are 10 mats on the prepare screen and all of the pieces are combined. It's fairly easy to tell them apart but if you have any questions, just refer back to the canvas and design space. Since I'm making the acrylic hand tag with vinyl, there is a separate mat with just the name on it. I'm using solid core cardstock for the white mats, foil card stock for the yellow mats, pattern card for the green mats and solid core cardstock in a different color for the blue mats and then permanent adhesive vinyl for the name mat. If you're using the same foil cardstock as I am in my materials list, make sure to change the material size under the yellow mats to eight and a half by 11 inches to match the size of the foil cardstock. Then click continue in the bottom right. Design space will choose the cut order of your mats. So make sure you know which pieces you're cutting on each mat and change your settings accordingly. For the cardstock mats, I'll select medium cardstock and change my pressure to more. If you're using different cardstock than me, your material settings may be different so make sure to select the settings that work best for you. Remember to follow the design space prompts to use the pen correctly for your machine. If you're making vinyl decals like me, use the permanent adhesive vinyl setting with more pressure. Before the cut, let's go ahead and add the pen in clamp A so it's ready to go. Place your first mat's cardstock on a green cricket standard grip machine mat. If you're using double sided or patterned card stock, place the exterior face up and use a brayer to adhere it well. Load your mat and press the machine's flashing button to begin cutting. Once the mat is finished, unload it, flip it over onto your work space and gently roll a corner back to release the cardstock. Complete the process for the rest of the mats. Making sure to select the correct color and material for each mat according to the screen. Place the pieces for the handbag and the wallet in organized piles as you go so you don't get confused and here is a tip. When removing smaller pieces from your mat like the thin foil strips for the zipper pull and tag attachments, use the weeding tool to gently lift them so they don't tear. Step four, attach embellishments and crease pieces. First, let's prepare the flower power handbags. This is the base for the other designs so we'll cover most of the important techniques but I'll know any changes for you. Here are all of my pieces for the bag that will be embellished. Find the pieces with the dashed cut lines and the embellishments that go with them. We'll assemble now and others once the bag is closer to complete. The pieces are one rectangular piece with a rounded end for the flap. One rectangular piece with tabs along all sides for the bottom, two identical side pieces with rounded tops and triangular folds at the bottom, two pocket pieces, one with a curved top for the outside, and one with a straight top for the inside. Start with the front and back bag pieces face up on your work surface. Add a bit glue to the back of each padding piece and place them on the lower curved corners. When properly aligned, the stitched design on each pad will face inward. Next, glue the two long trim pieces at the top of the front and back pieces aligning the top edges. Here are the main body pieces with their matching embellishments. The decorations change for each side now. Let's start with the front piece so set one of the large pieces aside. Grab your zipper and its backing piece. Place a thin line of glue to the center of the backing and gently lay the zipper on top. Press it down spread some of the glue under the teeth. While the zipper dries, glue the label toward the bottom in between the two pads. Then glue the zipper and backing above it so you have roughly the same distance between the label and the bottom of the purse and the zipper and the label. Here is my bag front so far. Now for the back, these decorations take a little preparation. Place your outside pocket face up and glue the arched trim piece at the top and let it dry. Find your flower petal and centerpieces. If you'd like, gently fold the petals up for a bit of volume. Use small bots of glue to attach each smaller petal piece on top of a larger one. Then glue a small foil circle in the middle of each small petal piece completing the flower embellishments. Fold the pockets tabs and glue one of the finished flowers to the center front. Using the tabs, glue the pocket to the back purse piece about an inch from the bottom and centered in between the two pads. Set the other flower aside for now. Here is my bag back so far. Now for the pieces to hold the gift tag. Take the two longest foil strips and glue them back to back. Repeat for the other two pairs. If you're making the Daisy Dig wallet at the same time, don't get them confused. Take the two oval shaped zipper pull pieces and glue them back to back, making sure the whole cutouts are aligned. Here are the chain and zipper pull pieces assembled. Set them aside for now. Now take your tassel piece and curl it around the pencil. Remove it and roll it tight enough at the small rectangular trim piece can be wrapped around and glue to the top of it. Place a small line of glue along the top edge of the tassel and hold it until the glue sets. Glue the trim piece along the top and align its top edge with the tassels top. Glue the two many rectangular pattern pieces back to back to make the tassel attachment. Once the glue is dry enough, make a U shape with the tassel attachment piece and glue it together at the bottom. Slide this bottom edge into the top center of the tassel and glue it in place. You may need to use your tweezers to press the edge with glue against the inside of the tassel. Now, just fluff the tassel with your fingers and then set it aside. Now, let's the creases that will make the bag three dimensional. The side pieces can be a little tricky so start by folding outward along the center dash to line. Only fold down to the top of the triangle shape. Then fold outward along the left side of the triangle stopping at the top of the triangle shape again. Finally fold outward along the right side of the triangle stopping at the top of the triangle. This type of fold will allow the finish bag to fold inward at the top leaving the bottom flat. If you make the cardstock tag, fold it in half and glue the words to the front surface. And if you cut a name or phrase in vinyl to add to your bag, remove any protective film from your keychain. Transfer the vinyl into the acrylic using my taco method to make sure that it goes on without bubbles and creases. So first cut a piece of transfer tape just a bit larger than your vinyl decal. Remove the backing from the transfer tape. Apply the material to your vinyl decal by holding the transfer tape in the shape of a taco or a U shape and then put the bottom of your taco onto the middle of your design. Smooth the tape over the decal from the center outward making sure to press out and remove any bubbles. When the transfer tape is in place, use a scraper tool or another heart flat-edged item like a store loyalty card to burnish the vinyl decal design to the transfer tape. It's important to scrape it well to fully adhere the vinyl decal. Scraping the project from both the transfer tape side and the carrier sheet side will help and then remove the backing. Use the taco method again to transfer the decal to the acrylic keychain, removing the transfer tape once it's secure. We'll put the purse all together in just a minute but first, let's do the Daisy Duke wallet. You will have one rectangular piece for the main section of the wallet and two identical side pieces with tabs on the left, right, and bottom. The embellishments will look familiar too other than the tassel. So, follow the same steps to add your embellishments so the wallet looks like mine does here. Then, fold the pieces along the dash lines like we did for the handbags. For the tass follow the flower power steps up to the point of gluing the pattern attachment pieces back to back glue one end of the double sided attachment piece inside the center of the tassel now for the heart breaker and couture handbags you'll have the front and back one flap a bottom to identical side pieces and two pockets their shapes are similar to the flower power handbags pieces and the placements are pretty much the same I use my Barely Art Precision Glue to attach the filigree accents to the Heartbreaker handbags the precise tip really helps keep the glue right where you want it you could also use adhesive spray but make sure to follow all of the safety precautions on the label if you do and then follow the flower power steps to assemble the embellishments for the heartbreaker handbags the gift tag will have a filigree pattern that you can glue to the front instead of the four U design when gluing it in play make sure to leave the hole cut out unobstructed. Step 5, assemble your purse. For the flower power handles, find the eight pieces with stitching and the buckles. Slide a buckle on to the rounded end of a short piece stitching up. The handle go under the flat top of the buckle over the middle and then under the rounded bottom just like a real purse. Add a bit of glue to the buckle piece under the handle to keep everything in place. Repeat for three more short pieces and buckles making sure they look as similar as possible. Now, place glue along the back of one strip and adhere it to the front bag piece. Centering it about an inch and a half in from the left side. Before the glue sets, make sure the buckle is centered from left to right and you're happy with the overall placement. Now, take a short strip without a buckle and glue it to the back. Sandwiching the bag piece between them. Remember, have the stitching facing out. Repeat to attach the second handle and buckle set to the other end of the bag front. Then add the second and third to the back of the bag using the front for alignment. Make sure the buckles go on the exterior of the bag. Find the interior pocket piece and glue it to the inside back of the purse with the zipper attached. Position it so it's about an inch from the bottom and centered from left to right. You can use the pocket in the back of the purse as reference for the correct positioning. Lay the bottom piece in the middle of your work surface interior up. Position the side pieces and front and back pieces face down around the edges of the bottom piece. Place glue along the bottom pieces tabs one at a time and adhere the bottom of each surrounding piece to those tabs. The tabs will go on the inside of the bag. Next, we'll make the double-sided foil strips into chains and accents. First, wrap the smallest strip around your pencil to encourage it to roll instead of fold or wrinkle. Slide it through the zipper pull and glue the two ends together making a circle. You can use tweezers to hold the strips in place until the glue dries. Do the same thing with the next largest strip and slide it through the holes in the front and back of the gift tag. Glue it in a circle. Finally, take the longest strip and slide it through the circle you just made around the gift tag and the tassel attachment. Roll it and attach the ends using the same method making a large circle will slide around the handle later on. Once the smallest circle around your zipper pulls dry, glue it to the end of your zipper. Hold it in place until the glue starts to set and then let it dry completely. Once it's dry, the zipper pull will be able to hang freely like a real zipper. It's super cool. If you're having trouble working with the small foil strip, you can leave that piece off and glue the zipper pull directly to the zipper. Make sure the glue holding your large pieces together is dry and the tabs on your side pieces are facing inward. Put glue along a tab on one side piece and adhere it to the front or back piece so it's perpendicular to the bottom piece. Repeat for the remaining three side tabs. It helps to press the tab against the front or back piece while that piece is lying flat on your work surface. Take the flat piece and glue the remaining flower to the center on the stitch side. A little over an inch from the rounded end. Glue the flat end of the flap to the inside of the back bag piece so its folds line up with the top of the back piece. Stick one side of a complete Velcro. to the backside of the flap in the same spot as the flower on the front side. Fold a your flap and align it where you'd like it to close. Once it's in position, press down so the other sticky side of the Velcro adheres to the paper on the outside of your purse. Now slide the ring with a tassel and gift tag over the top of one of your front handle pieces. Now take two long unattached handle pieces and glue them back to back with the stitching facing outward. When that dries, add glue about half an inch up from the end of that piece and glue it to the back of one of the small front handle pieces. Glue the other end to the back of the other front handle piece connecting the handle. You can the length of your handle before gluing the second end in place if you wish. Repeat this process for the handle on the back side of the back. Making sure it's length matches the front handle. If you're using an acrylic key chain, use a piece of ribbon to tie it to the front handle. The Daisy Duke wallet doesn't have a separate piece for the flap. Instead, the main piece folds over on itself and the flower can be glued to the center of the front section. The Velcro. will be placed on the back of this section and attached following the same steps as before. The zipper for the Daisy Duke wallet will be glued to the center of the back section. This is how it should look when the pieces are correctly placed. The Couture handbags has one chain-shaped handle instead of two handle straps on either side of the bag. Glue the chain pieces back to back so that both sides are shiny. At After you've assembled the bag, glue one chain's open end to the inside of the bag's right side. Repeat with the other chain on the left. Carefully overlap the free chain ends to make the handle length that you want. With the chain layers aligned, carefully glue them together. Didn't these all turn out just so amazing? I just love how realistic they all look. They are definitely gift bags that you won't want to throw away. Oh and here's the handbags that I mentioned at the beginning. The one that I made with the debossing tool which looks like this. If you look close, it kind of gives the appearance of quilted leather. It might be hard to see on camera but it's really pretty in person. If you like this look, I explain exactly how to deboss it over in the written tutorial that goes with this video@JenniferMaker. com slash paper handbags and purses. Now, if you have any questions at all about my fancy designer handbags collection or crafting techniques that I covered in this video or anything else craft related that I might be able to help you with, please let me know. Just leave your question below this video or ask us over at our Cricket Crafters group@JenniferMaker. com slash Cricket Crafters and I hope to see many many photos of your paper handbags show up in our group. It would make me so happy to see you make them. So, I hope you make them and that's it for today. Until next time, this is JenniferMaker reminding you to craft a life you love.