When I was about 7 or 8 my mom bought a few yards of Christmas-y fabric and spent a few hours in our basement with her sewing machine and some ribbon. Since then, wrapping paper has all but disappeared from our house. Instead, every year we pick appropriately-sized Christmas bags, pop our gifts in, tie them at the top, and when gifts have been opened and hot chocolate drank, we fold them back up and pack them away for next year.

These gift bags have been with us for almost 20 years now, and the collection has gotten vast: a pair of snowshoes one year necessitated a super-sized bag, while a sea of tiny bags pose a reminder of our lipgloss-heavy teen wish lists. Durable, charming, and easy to use and reuse, cloth gift bags are easy on the wallet and the environment, and take no time at all to turn a run-of-the-mill sweater into a beautifully wrapped gift, no tape or scissors required. GET ON BOARD WITH THE CLOTH BAGS, is what I’m saying. Here’s how:

1) Buy some festive fabric from a local fabric or crafts store.

2) Cut rectangles about double the size of the gift you want to wrap.

3) Using a sewing machine, simply sew up the sides of the fabric, leaving an opening on one side.

4) Pop your gift in, tie the bag closed with ribbon, and add a card or label.

5) That’s it. Can you believe it?? BAGS 4EVER