I’m pretty sure that when I trotted off to preschool in the 1970s, I never carried a backpack. Fast-forward a generation and, apparently, my 4-year-old niece and her peers have lots of important stuff to carry.

So to help my niece get ready for preschool, we designed a tag together that will distinguish her backpack in a sea of multicolored look-alikes. The idea to trace over a child’s drawing in embroidery is not my own, but it feels particularly apt for this project. And if the kid in your life outgrows it, you can use the tag yourself on a piece of luggage or work bag.

Children’s drawings are wobbly and imprecise by nature, so don’t worry about getting the embroidery stitches just right. There are plenty of books and online tutorials if you want a little hand-holding on basic embroidery. Beyond that, draw inspiration from your inner child: Don’t fuss too much, so you can retain the looseness of the drawing.

You’ll need:

•Plain paper

•Pen, pencil or crayon for a child to draw with

•Two pieces of felt: one 7-by-2 1/2 inches, the other 5-by- 3/4 inches

•Disappearing-ink fabric pen

•Needle

•Embroidery floss

•Fabric scissors

•Computer with scanner and photo-editing program such as Photoshop

•Printer

•Sew-in cotton fabric sheet, available at craft stores

•Sew-in snaps

•Thread

•Pins

•Sewing machine (optional)

How to:

I used two techniques for transferring my niece’s drawing to the fabric. For the tag’s exterior, I embroidered right over her drawing. For the inside, I scanned and printed the design (along with information about her class and school) on a special sheet of cotton fabric that can be used in a printer. If you don’t have this equipment, take the drawing to a copy shop, where they can scan and print it for you.

1. Have a child draw a picture on plain paper for the inside of the tag. Also have him or her draw another image on the larger piece of felt with a disappearing fabric marker for the outside. If you want the drawing to appear on only one side of the tag when it’s folded, have the child draw on the top half of the felt. You may need to trace over it to darken the lines.

2. Thread the needle with embroidery floss and knot the long end. Embroider along the lines of the drawing, starting with your needle on the wrong side so the knot will be on the back. When you’re finished, knot the floss on the back of the fabric and trim.

3. To make the inside label, scan a drawing into your computer and reduce the size if needed. Use a photo-editing program to add the child’s name, school or any other information. Print the image and text onto a fabric sheet, following manufacturer’s instructions.

4. Cut the cotton fabric sheet to the same size as the embroidered felt.

5. With a needle and regular thread, attach one part of the snap closure along the bottom edge of the felt. (The embroidered drawing should be at the top.)

6. Lay the cotton fabric on top of the felt, with wrong sides facing each other, and pin in place.

7. Sandwich the 5-inch-long strip of felt in between the two pieces of fabric, at the middle of the short edge above the embroidered drawing.

8. On a sewing machine or by hand, stitch around all edges of the tag, about 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch in, securing the two pieces together and the long felt strip in place.

9. Sew the remaining part of the snap closure to the end of the felt strip.

10. Fold the tag in half and attach it to a bag, snapping to secure.