DIY Stenciled Garden Party Favor Bags

Remember the wildflower seed bombs I made a while ago? I figured they would make the perfect party favors for a garden party, wedding, bridal shower, baby shower, or whatever; all they needed was to be prettied up a little so they don’t just look like dried lumps of clay! So I painted a few plain fabric bags to make super cute, stenciled party favor bags that are perfect for any occasion!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

These “GROW” bags are perfect for the wildflower seed bombs, but you can stencil any design on your bags and make completely customized party favors for any party, wedding, theme, or occasion! And they’re so simple to make!

DIY Stenciled Garden Party Favor Bags

Here’s what you need:

NOTE: I made my own custom stencil with my cutting machine and some adhesive vinyl, but if you find a pre-made stencil that you love, that will work too!

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I love using small makeup sponges when stenciling; they’re the perfect density to get a nice solid coat of paint on your project, but unlike brushes, you won’t accidentally brush paint under the edge of the stencil when painting.

The first thing you need is a stencil. I decided to make my own using my cutting machine and some adhesive vinyl. I found a super cute design online, then pulled it apart into separate layers. I wanted each part of the stencil to be painted in different colors, so I pulled all of the stems into their own grouped stencil, all of the small flowers into another, the two large flowers into another, and the two yellow centers into a fourth separate stencil. Then I typed out the word “grow” and made that its own layer as well.

 

I cut out all of the layers of the stencil using my cutting machine and then weeded away all the inner parts of the stencil. I wanted to start with the word first, so I peeled that stencil layer off the paper backing and stuck it to the fabric bag.

Adhesive vinyl sticks well enough to fabric, but make sure you press it on really well around the edges of the openings. This is another reason I love using makeup sponges; even if the stencil doesn’t stick perfectly, the up and down “dabbing” motion you make with the sponge will make much more clear, crisp lines than the left to right “brushing” motion of using a paintbrush. (If you don’t have makeup sponges, you can use a nice thick stencil brush and “dab” the paint on with that as well, but I feel the sponges have better coverage.)

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Dab the paint on, then carefully peel away the stencil. I did the stems next; again I weeded away all the inside pieces, then carefully removed the paper backing and stuck the stencil to the bag.

Make sure the previous layer of paint is dry before you stick a new stencil layer on top of it! It should only take about thirty seconds for the paint to dry, but if there’s a thick layer on there, give it a few minutes so you don’t smear your previously stenciled layer with the new stencil.

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Carefully dab paint onto the new stencil layer using a makeup sponge.

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Then peel away the stencil vinyl.

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Continue adding new layers of the stencil and dabbing paint in different colors until your entire design is stenciled, and you’re done! Give it another few minutes to dry, just in case, and your stenciled party favor bags are ready to fill!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

I put the DIY wildflower seed bombs I made in these bags, and now they’re ready to give as gifts! You can also add a small piece of paper with instructions for using the seed bombs: Just toss the seed bomb into a pile of dirt, and wait for it to grow!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

Make your own custom party favor bags by stenciling little fabric bags! These ones are perfect for garden parties, weddings, or showers if you put seed bombs in them!

Want to share this tutorial with your friends? Just click any of the share buttons on the left to share with Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, etc.!

 

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Jessi Wohlwend

I believe that anyone can do crafts and DIY projects, regardless of skill or experience. I love sharing simple craft ideas, step by step DIY project tutorials, cleaning hacks, and other tips and tricks all with one goal in mind: giving you the tools you need to “do it yourself”, complete fun projects, and make awesome things!

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Reader Interactions

  1. Ann says

    4 years ago

    When you want to do your own images for stencils or cut outs, are we required to use a grid method for the Cricut to read it. If so is it complicated? I’m not to good with that grid stuff. I’m real excited about this machine but want to know EVERY THING first. Also, can it emboss on paper and stiffend fabrics. This would be a huge plus in my flower making….Thanks.

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      Nope, no grids required! The Design Space app has a grid background just to help you size things and lay them out exactly the way you want, but you can pick any image from the Cricut library or upload your own image and use that. As for embossing, the Maker cannot do heat embossing like you do with colored powder and a heat gun. But it does have a Debossing tool which can deboss paper and stiffened fabrics, creating an indentation in any shapes you want. If you want to add color to the debossed areas you’ll have to do that separately after the Maker finishes cutting and debossing.

  2. M Rand says

    5 years ago

    I’m new to Cricut, so forgive me if this is a dumb question: Couldn’t you use one stencil and just use the different paint colors on the different parts of the stencils accordingly? I’m wondering about the need for the layered stencils.

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      4 years ago

      Not a dumb question at all! You absolutely could do it with just one stencil if your design allows for it. Some designs are so small or intricate that trying to paint over just one hole while there’s another hole right next to it is hard, so doing one color at a time and layering the stencils makes it a little easier because you don’t have to be as precise. 🙂 The other reason I like layering stencils is because it allows me to create a painted design that doesn’t actually look like it’s stenciled. When you use a regular stencil you have to have “holes” in the material to let the paint go through, and then parts that are covered up to prevent the color from getting there. But if you do one color with one stencil and then another color with a separate stencil you could actually layer those two colors right next to each other or even right on top of each other without having to have a blank border where the stencil prevented any paint from getting on the material.

  3. Amanda Stauffer says

    5 years ago

    these are beautiful, and thank you for sharing this information. I have a question, though. You have a lot of really tiny bits in between the paddles of the flowers. Did you have to carefully apply and peel off each little piece for every single bag? And could you reuse the stencil on the next bag?

    • Jessi Wohlwend says

      5 years ago

      I used transfer paper to apply the stencil, so I did have to weed away all the little extra background pieces, but the transfer paper held the pieces together when I put it on the bags. And you can definitely reuse the stencils, but you need to be careful that any wet paint on the stencils doesn’t transfer to the next bag, or that any dried paint on the bottom of the stencil doesn’t create a bump and cause the paint to leak under the stencil. For small stuff like this I usually just cut individual stencils for each bag rather than risk it.

  4. Christine | Where The Smiles Have Been says

    9 years ago

    I love this idea! So unique and something that everyone would love taking home. I am also super impressed about using makeup sponges for painting the stencils….so stealing that in the future! 🙂

  5. Dawn says

    9 years ago

    what a great idea! I still have a ton of those bags and this would be perfect for a bridal shower this summer! thanks for sharing

  6. Michelle from Weekend Craft says

    9 years ago

    These came out great! Love how you layered the stencils! Also you have such a green thumb I learned a lot from your basil video. My basil plants have never been so big!

  7. Brittany @ DIY Just Cuz says

    9 years ago

    These. are. so. cute!
    Such adorable party favor bags…I’d love the bag without anything in it!

  8. Meredith @ unOriginalMom says

    9 years ago

    These are so, SO pretty – I love them!! And I have never thought of using make-up sponges for painting before, that is *brilliant.* Thanks for the tip!

  9. Melissa ~ The Stamp Doc says

    9 years ago

    I’m in love with these bags! Thank you for the wonderful step-by-step instructions. I can’t wait to try it myself.

  10. Pam - GetSilvered says

    9 years ago

    These are such a gorgeous idea Jessi. What a great party favor idea!

  11. Mackenzie says

    9 years ago

    What a CUTE idea! We gave out Wildflower Seed Packets at my wedding as favors. I wish that I had seen this back then. Such a cute idea!

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