Another easy gift to make: Spice envelopes

Here's another easy gift you can make yourself. I've brought these as house gifts, and also plan to give some for Christmas. They're really pretty and useful for other things too - when you give them filled with little packets of spice mixes, they're two gifts in one!

This is a lined cloth envelope, filled with small baggies of spices and spice mixes purchased at a spice shop, in my case at Oaktown Spice Shop in Oakland.

To make the envelope, you'll need:
- 1/3 yard of a fabric for the outside
- 1/3 yard of a different fabric that complements the first fabric for the lining.
- a sewing machine

Cut a piece of each fabric 6" wide and 16" long. If you wish, you can cut across the corners of the top of each piece. This will result in a rounded flap, like the one you see in the photo.

With right sides together, sew the two pieces together with a 1/2" seam, leaving 2 inches open at the bottom for turning. Turn the piece right side out, taking care to pull out the corners. Press on both sides. Stitch the opening closed by hand, hiding your stitches as much as possible.

Turn the bottom up 5-1/2" to make the bottom of the envelope. Stitch along both sides of the turned up portion. Press well.

Turn down the top portion to make the flap of the envelope, leaving a little extra room at the top to account for the bulk of your spice packets. Press well.

Fill with spice packets and give proudly! Here's another photo of the envelope above, giving a peek at the lining...

All the measurements given above can be altered, making your envelope longer, wider, bigger, or smaller depending on what you're putting in it.