Stockings from UPcycled Paper

I was inspired to make these during the COVID shutdowns.  I’ve been a reusable bag person long before it was law in many places.  When grocery stores were scrambling to find their own safety policies at an unprecedented time, some stores let us continue to bring our bags, but one of them didn’t.  We started limiting our trips to that particular store, but we still ended up with way too many tragic paper bags.  I began brainstorming uses for them, and this is one project I particularly love.

These homemade stockings are darling!  I love that they can be customized to the size you’d like.  You can leave the bag designs on the outside or turn the bags inside out for a blank canvas.

You can use these as actual stockings, decoration, or as very creative gift bags.

This is such a fun way to upcycle any paper product, whether it’s paper grocery bags, catalog pages, magazine pages, calendar pages, reused gift wrap, old maps, damaged book pages, or even coloring pages.

 

It’s quite simple:

–Cut the shape of a stocking on two bits of a paper –  Remember, if you’d like a specific side facing out on both sides, you may have to flip your template for the second cut out.

–Punch holes all along the edges.  The closer they are, the more secure the stocking will be for smaller objects, but the longer the threading will take.  Then just weave a piece of string, yarn, or t-shirt yarn through.  I’ve also used my machine to stitch these closed.

–Make a bunch at once to have them on hand for future gifts or to share with friends who might like to use them.

–Try making a bunch of tiny ones and number them for a decorative advent calendar.

Have fun with it!

What are your own creative ideas you’ll add to this project idea?

Your actions can and will make a difference.