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Paper Bag Activities for Kids

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Here’s another one of those fun made up holidays: July 12 is Paper Bag Day for reasons unknown. But if your household is like mine, you probably have everything you need to celebrate this holiday every day. I think I bought a bag of paper lunch bags when my daughter was in preschool and we still have some (she’s about to turn 14!).

The first thing you probably think of to do with paper bags is to make puppets (we actually had a craft kit once that was all paper bag crafts, but you can design your own too). Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Another thing I liked to do was to make little books out of paper bags. There are instructions at Kitchen Table Classroom for how to do it. You can cover the “pages” with scrapbook paper or construction paper and kids can draw, journal, collage or whatever they want, and the ends of the bags are still open so they can slide little things into them, too.

Paper bag kites are another fun and easy craft to make with kids, because they’re fun to decorate with paint, stickers, drawings or whatever the kid wants to do. Check out the instructions at Somewhat Simple.

Make a whole little town of paper bag houses and buildings with this cute idea from In the Bag Kids Crafts.

And if you’re looking for an activity that goes a little beyond crafts, this guess the scent activity is low prep and lots of fun. Check it out at Raising Lifelong Learners.

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Knitting Market Bag Patterns

There are certain things that just make sense to knit at this time of year, and market bags are one of them. We tend to use our canvas bags more often in the summer with trips to the farmer’s market and the library, but string bags and market bags are great to use all year.

I love the Three Oranges Bag by Hana Cho, which looks just like a knit version of a plastic shopping bag, but with three cute oranges stitched on. The bag uses intarsia to make the oranges, but you could use duplicate stitch or intarsia to add a different design if you like. It calls for fingering weight yarn and you can find the pattern on Ravelry.

Sharyn Anhalt’s Market Square bag (also on Ravelry) uses worsted weight yarn and a mosaic pattern to make a pretty bag you’ll want to use every time you go shopping. The bag comes in two sizes and is worked in two colors of the same yarn for a fun mixed up effect that’s almost like weaving.

Speaking of fun colors, the Market Bag from Hubbabubbie Art uses a multicolored cake yarn (specifically Lion Brand Mandala) to produce fun color changes without any extra work. This bag is worked from the bottom up with a crocheted bottom and knit mesh sides. It’s a free pattern on Ravelry.

The Pike Place Market Bag from Blue Bird Pine Shop looks like a massive bag to hold all your market goodies (that is a child holding it, but still). The bag calls for worsted weight cotton yarn and the mesh is worked on extra large needles to help it open up to hold everything you want held.

The Knit Farmer’s Market Bag form Design BCB is another good one, made mostly of mes with a little stockinette for extra stability. The base is also worked in stockinette so items you put in it will sit flat.

This mesh bag from Sheep and Stitch doesn’t have a base, and the body is worked flat before being joined in the round to make the top and handles. That makes it easy to make the bag just the size you want because you can stop knitting whenever you feel it’s big enough. The pattern includes a step-by-step video if you need extra assistance.

And the Eco Market String Bag from Mama in a Stitch has a solid knit base worked in a contrasting color from the mesh body. It’s an easy project that comes out a great size for your market needs without being too huge.

Do you have a favorite knit market bag pattern? I’d love to hear about it!