Description
Sturdy reusable canvas bags are perfect for trick-or-treating, especially when you decorate them yourself using homemade potato stamps and craft paint.
Ingredients
- canvas bag
- jumbo potato
- metal cookie cutter
- paring knife
- paper plate
- acrylic craft paint
- paint brush (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare your canvas bag. If it needs washing, wash on gentle cycle and hang to dry. Steam or iron to create a smooth surface.
- Cut a large potato in half, length-wise as evenly as possibly. Press your cookie cutter into the white flesh of the potato and press down firmly until the cutter is fairly deep into the potato, leaving a bit of excess to pull it out.
- Using a paring knife, cut the excess outer potato flesh off, while the cutter is still in place. You can cut it off completely or just trim away about a 1/4” of the flesh to create a raised surface on the potato.
- Once the excess is removed, carefully wiggle the cookie cutter off of the potato and you will be left with a potato stamp.
- Put a little bit of craft paint on a paper plate and dip the potato stamp in, swirling to get the surface completely covered. Next, test the stamp on a piece of scrap paper to see how it looks.
- If part of your shape isn’t showing up, the surface of your stamp is uneven. To fix, carefully shave off a thin layer or two of the surface of the potato stamp until it is even.
- Lay your bag flat and dip your stamp in paint again. Carefully place your potato stamp down on the bag and press down firmly, without moving the stamp. Lift straight up to reveal your shape.
- Repeat this process, dipping in more paint each time, until you are happy with your design. Allow to dry completely before using.
Notes
To patch up any spots that didn’t get paint within the shape, cut a small circle out of another potato and use it as a stamper to dab paint carefully onto the spot.