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Halloween Paper Bags

Make these cute window treat bags for Halloween with any Cricut machine!
20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Author Angie Holden

What You Will Need

  • Paper bags
  • Large plastic treat bags
  • SVG files for cutting bags
  • Cricut machine
  • Green mat

Instructions

  • Start with your paper bags. I tried a variety of bags and the ones noted above seemed to work best. You need fairly strong paper so it does not rip in the machine. Remember you are trying to cut TWO layers one of which will NOT be held down by the mat so this is important. Next, you will need my custom images or something else to cut out of the bags. You can download my version above. Just click upload image in the Cricut software to get those onto your design space.

Adding the Bags to the Mat

  • Now you are going to need to flatten the bags previously mentioned. Just remove all of the folds.
  • Next line the bag up on the Cricut cutting mat and press down.

Uploading the Files

  • Now we can get these images ready to cut. You really should not have to resize the images at all. You can double-check by measuring the front of your bag and making sure the image will fit correctly. Then hit the "GO" button and you will come to the screen below. You can drag the image to any location you wish within this window. You will need to measure the bag ON THE MAT and decide where the image needs to be to get into the center of your bag. Move accordingly using the mat markings on the screen as your guide. Be sure you are not getting into the bottom of your bag where there are more than two layers of material.

Cut Settings

  • Click go on the screen above and you will be brought to the cut section. I set my dial on cardstock to cut the bags and made a custom change in the software. After you load your mat, you can choose the material settings screen. I found that changing the cut pressure helped my images to cut smoother in this case. I ended up using 320 points for these bags.

Cutting Paper Bags with a Cricut

  • Now when you insert your mat AND when you hit the cut button on your machine, you will want to help guide the mat and bag into the machine. REMEMBER that top layer IS NOT held down by the mat. I would just hold it down with my fingers at the very beginning while the machine fed it in and got started. After that, it was fine to run by itself. Once done, remove and repeat for as many bags as you would like.

Finishing the Bags

  • Now you have these awesome bags with holes in them. What now? Grab some large plastic treat bags in the party section at any store and insert them in the kraft bags. Fill with candy and cut off the excess bag at the top.
  • Just be careful not to overfill the bags as the treats will start escaping out the front and back of the bags.