My plan was to wing it with the party favor bags for Annabel’s last birthday party. And then of course I ran out of time to be comfortable figuring it out in process. If I couldn’t find a pattern online in five minutes or less, the bags were not going to happen. Between you and me, I gave myself roughly ten minutes. I had decided that I needed to make them. I stumbled upon a site called Lovely Design, which in my estimation earns its moniker. Sharilyn’s easy-to-follow goodie bag pattern saved the day. Literally, because I had been rear ended on the way home with the cupcakes, and the intricate frosting decorations didn’t handle the impact well. I couldn’t have handled half-smashed cupcakes and poorly made gift bags.
I had already chosen a font—Futura Condensed Extra Bold, enlarged to 425. Instead of muslin, I used something with a slightly more textural feel but still neutral-colored. I had some plain cotton string. The fabrics for the monograms were from my studio stash, and I pulled out rich, jewel tones with polka dots, small flowers, stripes, and so forth.
A friend sent me this picture of her son's goodie bag hanging on his doorknob.
The party was a success; it was a bit of a zoo, but the kids didn't seem to mind mashed frosting. I hope you have as much luck with the party favor bags as I did!
Karin
