Open-ended art projects like this are my favorite. I love setting up a creative invitation and watching what my kids create. I almost always join in, too! My daughters and I had a fun afternoon painting a big stack of gift bags with two simple supplies – white lunch bags and watercolor paints. These watercolor gift bags are beautiful and will add a personal touch to a little gift. I love having these on hand for last-minute gifting!
Supplies for Watercolor Gift Bags:
- White lunch bags (I found mine at Target next to the regular lunch bags.)
- Watercolor paints & brushes
- Oil pastels or crayons (optional)
Before painting, you can draw pictures or designs on the bag with oil pastels or crayons, which will resist the watercolor paints. I recommend the oil pastels for the brightest colors.
Then, it’s time to paint! To get nice bright colors, wet the brush, then “stir” it round and round in the paint color of your choice. This loads the brush with lots of color.
We made some gift bags with doodles like balloons, flowers, and hearts. One of my girls also experimented with adding a blob of paint, then picking her bag up and letting the paint drip down. She repeated this many times, creating a really unique design!
My favorites, though, are the colorful patchwork ones we made. We added abstract shapes of color to the bag, filling the entire space. These dry pretty quickly, so we flipped them over and did the same to the back. We didn’t worry about the sides, and just left them white. Let your bags dry completely before adding your gifts. Amazing how a white lunch bag can become something so gorgeous!
These watercolor gift bags are great to have on hand. Fill them with homemade cookies, small gifts, or even a gift card. They look great folded and stapled, sealed with washi tape, or fancied up with a big, colorful bow. I’m already thinking ahead to Mother’s Day – these bags would make a little gift even more special!
Want to make your own paint? See this tutorial for Homemade Watercolor Paints!
