Welcome Back (pack), Teacher!

Hi friends,
This is Day #2 of Teacher Gifts!  Today, I have a project I really like :) I call it...
Welcome Back (pack), Teacher!
Here it is:

A little back story:
A while back, SCS had a tutorial for a cuute backpack so I had to give it a try, but there was a problem... I soon realized that the backpack was tiny & a lot of work- something I didn't see me doing anytime soon. :( Then a friend revamped her own version & I liked that it was much bigger, but there was a problem... It took a lot of cutting & measuring :( sooo I looked at that little backpack & it hit me! The backpack could be made by using a regular bag! That cut down on a lot of the work! :) So you can make this back pack with any size bag you have. You'll see another example soon ;)

I used my Cricut designed on my Gypsy to create all of the elements of this backpack.
---> updated: I used a 12 x 24 mat to maximize the size. For the bag, I used Once Upon A Princess cart. I deleted (hide/contour) the pointy edges at the top so it would give me a straight edge bag.    The flap is from Home Décor cart (I chose the scalloped circle twice & removed (hide/contour) the scallops from one- (that left me with one scalloped circle & one regular circle for layering.)  The apple is from Create-a-Critter.

Download GYPSY cut file from ---> HERE
 
Here's a comparison of the original backpack from SCS & this one:

Here are a couple more peeks of it:

The backpack is 7 3/4" tall, 6 1/2" wide, & 3 1/4" deep. It also has a functional pocket on the front.

Here's a peek of what's inside:

Some first day of school goodies to get the teacher through the day. I know I would LUUUUUV to get something like this on the first day! It would come in so handy to grab some yummy munchies while running around all day. The first day is quite hectic & busy!

Here's another little treat you may have noticed:

Every teacher needs a pencil- especially if it's made of... CANDY!
I saw this cuuuute idea in this month's Creating Keepsakes mag (while I was standing in line at the store) & thought it would be the *perfect* addition to my back pack :) and best of all it's super easy to make! They used Rolos but I used Mentos instead (less temptation ;). I *had* a video tut for you, but You Tube & I are not playing nicely right now :( grrrrrr.

Here are the written directions for now:
1) Cut yellow CS at 3 1/2" x 4 1/2" Use scoring tool to score lines lengthwise to give it a more realistic look.
2) Use decorative scissors (pinking edge) on one short end & wrap CS around candy. Use very strong adhesive to secure it. (Scor-tape)
3) To create the eraser top, cut a strip of pink CS at 3/8" x 3 1/2" & wrap at the top of pencil. use a circle punch to punch a circle to cover the candy wrapper at the top of the pencil. The 3/4" punch worked for me.
4) Adhere a strip of silver foil CS (or aluminum foil) where the yellow & pink CS meet.
5) For the pencil point, use glue dots to adhere a Hershey kiss.

This really was so easy & fun to make! I also made a crayon following the same basic steps.

Today's next teacher goodie going into the bag is:

an 8 x 8 Grade School Stack :) I luuuuv this collection for teacher & school gifts. The papers are perfect! I used it for today's project afterall :)

Thanks so much for peeking today! I am soooooo sorry (and sad) my videos have not been available to you- after all, they did take A LOT of work & the whole point was to make it easier for you to see how the projects are done.

I have decided that I'm going to be holding off on the rest of the projects until next week. Sorry if that is disappointing to my wonderful friends, out there. I want to be sure I can get this all straightened out before spending more time on it, KWIM? I have 2 posts (not for this) that I already have ready to go for Wed & Thursday, though.

Thanks for your patience & Big Hugs!