Margas Crafts: Paper Bag Ornament

It’s amazing how you could create art from almost anything. Organizing my kitchen and deciding what to keep and what to put in the recycling bin I decided to experiment with brown paper bags. Playing around with markers, paint, newspaper and metal tape I came up with these Angel Christmas ornaments.

Let the base Evolve

Take a paper bag and cut all the sides so you can have a flat surface to work on. With a black marker start writing on the plain unprinted side of the bag. Enjoy this liberating moment and write your emotions don’t worry what you write because at the end your words are not going to be legible.

When you are finished paint on top with white gesso mixed with a little water, making sure you do not cover all the black lettering. Once dried choose two acrylic colors, mixed each with some water and start painting half with one color and the other half with the other color.

Once dried stamp all over with the stamp of your choice, I used a stamp with letters and black ink. While you wait for it to dry cut little designs with punchers or cut free hand hearts, flowers, circles, etc. from the newspaper.

In this case I decided to use stars and circles. Start pasting these shapes with liquid matte medium over your base. Once dried iron interfacing, I like to use Sf 101, shape-flex interfacing by PELLON, to the back and take your piece to the sewing machine. Choose free motion stitching or straight lines to decorate and give texture. Your stitches not need to be perfect, it’s a good opportunity to practice your free motion stitches.

Make the Angels

With a glue stick paste the base fabric to a piece of felt and cut both the same size. Trace the pattern with a marker or chalk and sew on the line. Turn it over and cut close to the line

Mix white gesso with a little water and paint the face. Choose a scrap of fabric for the hair, iron ‘Steam a seam” on the back. Trace the hair pattern, cut and iron in place. With a thin black marker draw the eyes and nose and with a red marker the mouth. Paint with pink colored pencil the cheeks.

With the end of a toothpick pick little paint and mark dots around each newspaper shape. Cut the letter “O” from old magazines for the crown and paste them in place with matte medium.

Cut a long piece of metal tape. With your pencil start writing. Again, enjoy this liberating moment and write your emotions don’t worry what you write because at the end you will cut it in thin strips. Once finished cover it with black acrylic paint immediately after wipe with a paper towel. You will notice that only the words stay black and that’s what you want. Cut a long strip for the bottom and two short ones for the sleeves.