How to Make Gift Tags

Gifts are a fun treat throughout the year. Whether you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or holiday, gifts are present in times of celebration. 

What goes right along with gifts? Gift tags! With sweet added embellishments and various ways to create gift tags, gift tags can be as simple or as elaborate as your imagination will allow. Handmade gift tags are a brilliant way to add a touch of personalization to your gifts and share a little extra love.

The right materials will add some extra flair to your gift tags. Choosing good quality materials will enhance embellishments, and truly help your gift tags stand out. 

For gift tags, a medium-weight (approximately 80 lbs) cardstock will provide a good, sturdy tag that won’t bend or curl easily. Medium-weight cardstock is ideal for single-layer gift tags because they only have one layer. For gift tags that are multiple layers, you can use a lightweight cardstock (approximately 65 lbs.). 

Because layered gift tags will vary, sometimes a combination of the two cardstock weights can be used. For example, for a good, sturdy base color, try using medium-weight cardstock and layering with lightweight cardstock. Read this What Is Cardstock to learn more about cardstock.

When layering gift tags, my preferred method is to use runner tape adhesive. This is quick, requires zero drying time, and won’t warp your paper. When an intricate cut is made out of a layer, a clear liquid glue with a precision tip will allow you to get glue in the tiny pieces, ensuring your gift tag does not fall apart before gifting. Just be sure not to use too much liquid glue so your cardstock does not warp from heavy saturation!

Adding string to your gift tag is an option, and highly dependent on how you want to attach your gift tag. For packages, sometimes you will just want to tape your tag to the package, like a Christmas gift. Other times, a string is a handy addition to add a gift tag to a gift bag, or even tying around a gift basket. A gift tag is an embellishment on a gift, so take a look at how your gift tag will enhance your gift, and choose string or no string accordingly.

Between Sharpie and markers specifically for your cutting machine, there is a wide variety to choose from. From fine lines, to bold, and calligraphy tips, there is also a plethora of colors and ink types to choose from. Stick with solid colors, and try some metallic, or even fun glitter pens to spruce up your gift tag!

One of my favorite things about crafting is that I always have something I can use at home to create things. Buttons and washi tape add fun elements to gift tags, and rope, braided embroidery thread, and yarn give you different options for tying gift tags to bags or gifts. Today, I’m going to walk you through five different ways to make gift tags, using different tools and fun gadgets. So grab all your craft supplies, and let’s make some gift tags!

It doesn’t take much to create a fun gift tag. A pair of scissors with a fun edge, and a cute hole punch, and you’re there! Here are the materials you will need for this gift tag:

Cut the purple and pink cardstock to the specified sizes.

Use edging scissors to trim all edges of the pink rectangle.

Use a decorative hole punch to cut a flower shape out of the top center of the purple rectangle. This will be used to attach the string.

Apply liquid glue to the back of the punched-out flower and attach it to the lower left corner of the trimmed pink rectangle.

Place the pink rectangle on top of the purple rectangle, ensuring the hole in the purple rectangle is not covered.

Tie a string through the hole at the top of the purple rectangle. Alternatively, you can forego the string, and simply tape it to a gift or gift bag.

Use a Sharpie to write a message on the tag.

Your tag is complete! You can attach it to a gift using the string or by taping or gluing it directly to the wrapped gift. For a fun twist, create a hole punch theme across the top of the tag using multiple hole punches, or use the trimmed pieces to create a design on the back of the gift tag!

Cricut Design Space makes it super easy to upload a design created in programs like Canva and use Cricut’s print-then-cut feature to finish our gift tags. You will need the following supplies for this method:

Log into your Canva account, or create a free account if you do not have one. Click the “More” button, and search for “Gift Tags.” This will automatically pop up different themed gift tags. I chose the Halloween Gift Tag, and Canva automatically created a 3.5 x 2” rectangle tag for me.

Off to the left, there were plenty of designs to choose from, some free, some only available with Canva Pro. I opted for one of the free options, which Canva automatically put into place on my rectangle tag. Click “Share,” then click “Download” and save to your computer.

Open Cricut Design Space, and upload your Canva design. My design had an off-white color to the background that I did not want, so my design required a little cleanup. Had I chosen a full-color background, I would not have had to complete this task. 

Once the cleanup was done, I converted the design to a flat graphic, and applied the design to my canvas. With the design uploaded to my canvas, I left the lock open and resized my design to the original 3.5 x 2” rectangle.

With the design on my canvas, I created a white 3.5 x 2” rectangle, centered it behind my design, then flattened the layers to present a print and then cut option. I clicked “Make,” and walked through the steps to print then cut my design using my home printer and Cricut Maker 3. 

I chose to leave this version without a hole to add string, and just tape it to a gift. Alternatively, you can use Cricut Design Space to add a hole to cut out, or use a handheld hole punch, and then attach a string to the gift tag.

If you don’t have a Cricut cutting machine, use a Canva free account to create your gift tag, and save the design to your computer. Simply open the design in a Word document, and add your design to the page. Fit as many of your designs on the page as you can, print as many pages as you need, then hand-cut the gift tags!

Cricut Design Space has a wide variety of designs you can choose from. Some designs are free, and some require either payment to the designer or Cricut Access to use them. If you are anything like me, you had cartridges you used to upload into your older version Cricut machines, and have, therefore, built up quite a collection of purchased assets to use. For this method, you will need the following supplies:

Create a 4 x 3” rectangle, and make it white. Choose a design to draw from Cricut Access, or create your own using text and graphic elements. Select each element of your design, and change the pen color to match the color you want each section to reflect.

Resize your design to fit inside your rectangle, and place it to your preference. If you want to attach a string or ribbon for attaching the gift tag, create a shape (I used a heart), and place the shape on your rectangle so it will not interfere with your design. Slice your shape for the hole, and your rectangle, then discard the extra pieces. Attach your rectangle to your design. 

Click “Make,” load the first color marker and blade required, then proceed with changing colors as instructed. Remove from the cutting mat, and attach the string.

Be extra bold and use some glitter pens instead! Don’t have a Cricut cutting machine? No worries! Check out Method 3 for an alternative method! You can also lower the opacity of a design, so it acts as a traceable when it is printed, and you can easily draw over the design with your markers!

Vinyl is such a versatile option when creating crafts. Gift tags are no different! Here are the supplies you will need for this method:

Using Cricut Design Space, create your design. I chose a simple ornament from my Cricut asset collection. I changed the colors to reflect the colors I was using, then added a hole to the stem of the ornament.

Click “Make” to cut your design out, being sure to load the correct material on the mat for each piece cut. Once the pieces are cut, remove them from the mat, and weed the vinyl.

Cut a piece of transfer paper to the size of your design on the vinyl. Lay over the design, and burnish the design. Then, carefully place the vinyl over the cardstock cut-out. Flip the piece over, and burnish from the back. Slowly peel the transfer paper away from the design. Attach string.

If you don’t have a Cricut cutting machine, you can find an ornament outline, and print it on cardstock of your choice. Then cut out the design, and add your embellishments! Instead of using vinyl, there are plenty of glitter papers that you can print designs on the back side of the paper, and cut out. Another fun option for adding a glitter element is to use hot glue to pipe a design on your ornament, and sprinkle glitter over it!

Last but not least, I am going to show you how to create a dimensional gift tag using layers. This one was fun to make! For this method, I used the following supplies:

Begin by creating a 4.5 x 4.5” square with rounded corners in Cricut Design Space, making it the color of your base cardstock. Then, create a smaller 4 x 4” square with rounded corners with your secondary color.

Next create a banner, with a 0.20 offset, and change the color of the offset. Create text and attach it to the banner, then cut out all the elements with your cutting machine. 

Choose a design plate for your Cuttlebug, sandwich your secondary square in the plate, and run the plate through your Cuttlebug as directed by the Cuttlebug user instructions.

Using liquid glue, glue the two squares together, as well as the two pieces of banner. Next, use foam squares to place the banner on the squares to add a little dimension to the overall product.

Working with layers can be super fun! Change up the paper type to add some extra sparkle or design. Instead of solid colors, choose patterned paper. Don’t have a Cricut Cuttlebug? Check out the textured paper options at your local craft store!

Gift tags are a creative way to add a personal touch to your gifts. You just learned five different ways to create fun gift tags for any occasion. I hope these examples inspire you to create some out-of-this-world gift tags. I cannot wait for you to come back and share what you have created!