Faux Fur Wine Bags Tutorial and 99 Handmade Gift Ideas Blog Hop

My schedule for December is already getting full with lovely holiday party invitations.  I'm usually so busy baking dozens of gingerbread houses and hosting decorating parties that my default hostess gift is a bottle of win whenever we go to someone else's house.  I just don't have time to think about anything more personal for each host.  (I also happen to know that my friends like wine, so it's all cool.)  But this year, at least my bottles of wine are going to look awesome and festive when I give them away!

My faux fur wine gift bags were inspired by these from Restoration Hardware.  I saw the picture, LOVED the idea, and happened to have a boatload of faux fur fabric left over from my spider dog Halloween costume.  I instantly knew exactly how I was going to use up my extra fur fabric.

How to Make a Faux Fur Wine Gift Bag:

• fake fur fabric, cut in a 14"x14" square
• 18" of leather lacing or ribbon
• sewing machine (or stapler)
• felt
• hot glue gun

Cut the fake fur fabric into a 14" x 14" square.  If at all possible, do this outside.  When you cut fake fur, it makes a HUGE mess, and it's so much nicer to cut the fabric and shake it vigorously outside and let all the loose fur fly free. Fold the fabric in half, right side in, and pin the raw edges together.

Sew along the long edge, and turn the tube of fabric right side out.

Trace a circle of felt fabric about two inches larger in diameter than the base of the wine bottle.  Cut out the circle of felt.

Use the hot glue gun to glue the felt circle to the bottom of the fur tube.  

Tuck the edge up and glue to the inside of the fur fabric tube.  It'll look kind of like the arm of a teddy bear when you're done.

Hem the top edge of the bag down (I say "hem," but what I mean is glue it down with the glue gun) so you don't see any raw fabric edges.

Tie a leather lace or a ribbon around the neck of the bottle, and you're ready to give your beautiful gift away.  Wouldn't white fur and a red satin ribbon look awesome?  But I'm going to use up my brown fake fur before I go out and buy any more bulky fabric!