I love projects that my daughters (ages 6 & 8) and I can do together. It's so much fun to craft together, especially around Valentine's Day! These heart doily stamped tote bags are a fun way to teach kids a painting resist technique, by using the doily as a stencil. Just dab paint all over the top and remove the doily to reveal your design. We added some sweet XOXO key chains to the bag straps for extra flair.
Place a piece of cardboard inside each canvas tote bag to prevent paint from seeping through to the other side. Squeeze acrylic fabric paint onto a paper plate and apply a small amount to a foam brush, dabbing off any excess paint.
Position a small heart doily or large heart doily on top of the bag and hold in place with a small loop of masking tape on the back. Use an up-and-down blotting motion with the brush on top of the holes in the heart doily to stencil the pattern onto the bag. You can be careful to paint only inside the doily, or be a little messier and get paint outside the edges for a more freestyle, abstract look!
Repeat by using a new small or large heart doily each time. You can add words to your bag with letter stencils if you like.
To add a little dangling accessory to your bags, follow the instructions on the "hugs and kisses" key chains to assemble them. We combined multiple packages to make ours twice as long. Once completed, hang them from one of the bag handles.
Make as many tote bags as you want for yourself or to give to friends. The tote bags come in a bag of six and are the perfect size for holding books and other small items or gifts.