Heart Window & Ice Skater Tall Tote Assembly Guide

These two tall totes or gift "sacks"

can be put together quickly

for winter or Valentine's Day giving

or party fare.

Each has a shaped window that is backed

with a cut shape of clear acrylic or mylar plastic.
Since assembly is practically identical for either,
this is a combined informational post.

ASSEMBLY:

1. Identify and cut the shapes:

For Valentine tote --
A tote body
B heart window doily & accent shapes
C clear panel
D oval tag with hole punches
E handle heart accents

For Ice Skater tote --
A tote body
B ice skater stick figure accent shape
C (invisible!) clear panel
D oval tag with snowflake accent shape














2. Complete the pre-assembly while the tote body shape is flat. This includes:

Valentine - layer and attach window hearts, oval tag with brads or eyelets, handle heart accents

Ice Skater - layer ice skater accent stick figure over cutout, layer snowflake onto tag

3. Fold the perforation lines on the tote body:

Mountain folds (or back folds) - vertical side lines of front and back panels, side seam tab, handle latch tab, bottom sections

Valley folds (of forward folds) - side panel diagonal folds

4. Prepare the clear window panels by applying double-sided adhesive strips such as Kool Tak 1/8" permanent tape to all four edges of the panel's front.

(I was assembling both totes at the same time, so the photo image shows TWO panels. One tote needs only ONE panel.)

5. Remove the double-stick tape liner strips and position the clear panel behind the window with sticky tape surface next to the tote body backside, within the front panel's side fold lines that define the panel, and adjusted up or down so that it covers the window cutout.

For the skater, consider placing small sections of sticky tape on the backside of the stick figure extensions so that they will attach to the window panel and not be vulnerable to unwanted bending and damage.

(I placed the sections on the head and "hair bun".)

Here is the ice skater tote version window panel being placed.

6. Fold the tote body into a tube to join the side seam to the right front edge. (Overlap front straight edge to perforation line of tab, adjust so that side and bottom panel lower perforation lines line up EXACTLY.)

7. To close the tote bottom, fold side tabs in to center, fold "whole" front bottom inward, overlap back latch and insert into front bottom slot.

Adjust the tote bottom to "square up" the bottom's edges into the rectangle shape they were designed to have.

8. To close the top, bring the handles together, fold the latch tab over to the back, pull it down completely while pushing the half-circle tongue into the slot near back panel's upper edge.

9. Add a short length of ribbon through the handle punch holes as a finishing touch.

Here is the Valentine tote completed.

Attach the snowflake tag to the handle tie.

Here is the Ice Skater tote completed.