Mini-Schultüten Sewing Instructions

April 15, 2025

Strung together, Mini-Schultüten become a garland; filled and closed, they work as gift packaging (add a cardboard insert for structure). I've made these from whatever fabric was on hand — an old cotton tablecloth, poplin cotton, canvas, muslin — in plain white and in colour.

This is the sewing manual for the Mini-Schultüten: what happens after the motif is printed and before the cone is filled. You can work from the stencil, screen-printing the motif yourself, or from the sewing pattern alone if you'd rather use your own fabric — either way, the construction from here is the same.

Finished Mini-Schultüten garland strung together

Materials

What you need

Screen printing frame, squeegee, tape, ink, and spatula — for printing the motif
Screen printing stencil(s) or sewing pattern — either gets you to the same construction
Fabric for the cone(s) — at least 16 cm × 17 cm print area (15 cm motif + 1 cm seam allowance); a sturdy, mid-weight cotton canvas around 200–270 gsm holds the cone shape well
Fabric for the cuff — 14 cm × 22 cm per cone
String or cord — for the garland, length depending on how many cones
Ribbon or cord — to close each cone

If you resize the template, remember to adjust the seam allowances and the cuff accordingly.

Sewing Instructions

Print first, sew second. Once the fabric is shaped into a cone there's no flat surface left to print onto, so the motif always goes on before construction starts.

Printed Mini-Schultüten motif ready for cutting — Print the templates and heat set, or cut directly from the pattern

Cutting fabric along the seam allowance line for the school cone — Cut along the outer edge of the seam allowance

Folding the top edge of the cuff fabric inward — Fold the cuff's top edge inward twice (0.5 cm, then 1 cm)

Sewing down the folded cuff edge — Sew it down

Cuff fabric folded in half with sides stitched together — Fold the cuff fabric in half and stitch the open sides with a 5 mm seam allowance

Cuff with raw stitched seam before enclosing — Before: raw stitched seam

Cuff turned inside out to enclose the seam with a French seam — After: turned and sewn again with a 1 cm allowance — the French seam keeps the top edge clean, with no raw seam showing

Now for the cone.

Cone fabric pieces placed right sides together — Place the cone pattern pieces right sides together

Cone fabric pieces matched right sides together, ready to sew — Right sides matched up — pinning is optional, skipping it is fine too

Sewing along the side seam of the cone — Sew along the side with a 1 cm seam allowance

Trimming the seam allowance at an angle near the cone point — Trim the seam allowance at an angle — careful not to cut into the stitching

School cone turned right side out — Turn the cone right side out

Cuff slid over the top of the cone before final stitching — Slide the cuff (wrong side out) over the cone so its bottom edge aligns with the cone's top edge

Sew around the edge (and optionally finish the edge), pull the cuff upwards — and then fill your cone.

Finished Mini-Schultüte cone with cuff turned up

Mini-Schultüte closed with ribbon and knot — Close it with ribbon, cord, or string and tie a knot — a few stitches will secure it further

For a Garland

Lay the garland cord across the knot and secure it with another knot or a bow.

Mini-Schultüten garland with a dinosaur motif design

Tips & Tricks

I batched the steps: first sewed all the cuffs, then all the cones, and only then assembled and filled them.
You can fit two stencils on one A4 "Lossie" paper. Either mask off areas accordingly or print in a single colour.
You'll also find the stencil for the paper/cardboard insert in the files.
These are decorative rather than functional pieces, made to be looked at rather than washed — I've never needed to clean one, so there's no tested care guidance to give beyond that.

A finished garland adds its own detail to the run-up to the first day of school — quiet or loud depending on the colours you pick — laced along a shelf or over a doorway, it sits somewhere between the excitement of the date itself and the everyday. I've made these in white cotton and in colour, in motifs from Monstera leaves to dots and stripes, though the fabric and design matter less than they might seem.

Kids at this age tend to have very specific ideas about how the day should look — stencil or pattern, any fabric on hand, this leaves enough room to land on something that actually matches what your child pictured.