• 60 designs

Tote Bag Painting Ideas That Use the Handles, Hem and Seams

Three designs at a time sized for a tote, each with its colours and where it sits: the panel, the hem, the handles or both sides.

Tote Bag Painting Ideas That Use the Handles, Hem and Seams

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  1. Bow tied where the handle meets the bagDusty pink or black. A painted ribbon bow at the base of one handle, its tails falling a hand's length down the panel.
  2. Name in an arch over a small motifTwo colours. Pencil a curve with a plate as a guide, space the letters along it; one small motif sits beneath.
  3. Croissant, coffee cup and a folded paperTan, brown, cream, black. Three breakfast things in a loose triangle mid-panel; steam and newsprint lines in pen.

Next step Practise line art on paper firstSee cute painting ideas for a canvas

All 60 designs

Aesthetic 30

  • Abstract arches in clay colours Terracotta, sand, blush, rust. Three nested arches off-centre, their legs cut off by the bottom hem. Flat brush.
  • Books, plants, tea: your three things stacked Black, sage. Three words in lower case, one per line, centred; a small sprig under the last. Fine fabric pen.
  • Bookshelf wrapping from front to back Browns, six spine colours. One shelf of spines along the bottom of the front, carried over the side seam onto the back.
  • Bow tied where the handle meets the bag Dusty pink or black. A painted ribbon bow at the base of one handle, its tails falling a hand's length down the panel.
  • Celery-end roses Dusty pink, green. The cut base of a celery bunch prints as a rose; stamp five, add leaves with a small round brush.
  • Checkerboard across the whole panel One colour: sage, black or lilac. Rule a pencil grid of 5 cm squares; fill every other square with a flat brush.
  • Checkerboard that breaks apart toward the top Black. Full checks along the bottom; leave out more squares in each row until only a few float near the middle.
  • Coordinates of a place that matters Black. Latitude and longitude in two short lines, small and low on the panel, a single dot above them. Fabric pen.
  • Croissant, coffee cup and a folded paper Tan, brown, cream, black. Three breakfast things in a loose triangle mid-panel; steam and newsprint lines in pen.
  • Cut-out leaf shapes in four flat colours Cobalt, coral, mustard, green. Wavy-edged leaf shapes scattered like paper cut-outs, none touching; no outline.
  • Dipped look: solid colour below a taped line One colour. Tape a level line a third of the way up and paint everything below it, over the side seams onto the back.
  • Hand holding a stem, wrist at the bottom hem Black, sage. The wrist rises from the bottom hem; line-art fingers close round one sage stem that reaches the top third.
  • Lemons and leaves, tossed repeat Yellow, leaf green, white. Lemons at mixed angles with one leaf each; let some run off the edges so it reads as cloth.
  • Library bag with a lending slip Black, red. A ruled lending slip in the lower half, due dates in red as if stamped; 'library' in capitals above.
  • Monstera leaf filling the whole panel Deep green, mid green. One leaf edge to edge, stalk at a bottom corner; leave the splits and holes as bare canvas.
  • Mushroom cluster in one bottom corner Red, cream, brown, green. Three toadstools of different heights rise from one corner, grass ticks along the hem.
  • Olive branch wreath with bare canvas inside Olive green, black. A ring of paired leaves mid-panel, a few black olives; leave the middle empty or add one initial.
  • One-line face with a leaf for an ear Black. Centre panel; one unbroken line from chin to hairline, a single leaf where the ear would sit. Fabric pen.
  • Open book with birds leaving the pages Black, cream, one accent. Book low in the panel; its pages lift into six small birds that fly up toward one handle.
  • Painted handles, plain bag One bright colour. Paint only the two handle straps, both faces, stopping in a taped line where they meet the bag.
  • Pothos trailing down from the handles Two greens. Vines start where each handle meets the bag and trail a third of the way down; heart-shaped leaves.
  • Pressed-flower grid, three by three Sage, mustard, dusty pink, lilac. Nine small sprigs in a pencilled grid, each a different flower, stems pointing down.
  • Real-leaf prints falling down the panel Two greens or rust and gold. Brush paint on the veined side of a leaf, press, peel; tilt each print as if falling.
  • Row of potted plants along the bottom seam Terracotta, three greens. Five pots stand on the bottom seam as if it were a shelf, a different plant in each.
  • Stack of books seen through the bag Five muted colours, black. Spines stacked flat in the lower half, as if the canvas were see-through; titles as lines.
  • Sun and moon split down the centre fold Mustard, navy, white. Fold the bag to find the middle; half a sun face left of the crease, half a crescent moon right.
  • Tin of sardines, lid peeled back Silver-grey, navy, red, cream. Centre panel; a rounded tin, three fish side by side, a curl of lid. Outline in pen.
  • Two profiles sharing one line Black, terracotta. Two faces nose to nose drawn as one continuous line; a terracotta blob behind each head. Liner brush.
  • Wavy lines edge to edge, one colour per wave Four muted colours. Freehand waves from seam to seam, a finger thick, canvas showing between. Round brush, no pencil.
  • Wildflower meadow growing from the bottom hem Greens, poppy red, cornflower blue, yellow. Stems rise from the hem at mixed heights, the tallest half the panel high.

Cute 21

  • Apple-half prints with painted pips Red, green, brown. Halve an apple top to bottom, brush paint on the cut face, press; add pips and a stalk in pen.
  • Baguette and leeks showing at the top hem Tan, cream, greens. Paint a baguette end and leek tops just under the top hem, as if the shopping poked out.
  • Bees looping from a bottom corner up to a handle Yellow, black, white. Three bees spaced along one looping dotted flight line; dot the line with a cotton bud.
  • Bubble letters with a highlight on each One pastel, black, white. Fat rounded letters, black outline, a white highlight dash at the top left of every letter.
  • Cat peeking up from the bottom hem Black or ginger, pink, white. Ears, eyes and two paws only, rising from the hem as if the cat stood behind the bag.
  • Cherry pairs scattered on their stalks Red, dark red, green. Two round cherries and a V of stalk, repeated at mixed angles a palm apart; one leaf per pair.
  • Daisy chain under the top hem White, yellow, green. A row of daisies just under the top hem, linked by a green line; cotton-bud petals, two coats.
  • Ducks in a row along the bottom seam Yellow, orange, white, blue. Five ducklings follow one duck left to right along the hem, a blue ripple line beneath.
  • Frog on a lily pad, centred low Greens, pink, white, black. Lily pad a hand's width above the hem, frog seated, one pink flower; ripples in pen.
  • Ghost holding a daisy White, black, yellow, green. White wants two coats on natural canvas; outline in black pen, a small daisy in one hand.
  • Ladybird climbing the handle Red, black. One ladybird on the panel and two on the handle strap itself; keep strap paint thin so it still bends.
  • Name in an arch over a small motif Two colours. Pencil a curve with a plate as a guide, space the letters along it; one small motif sits beneath.
  • Paw prints walking corner to corner Black or brown. Prints climb from a bottom corner to the far top corner and on up the handle. Dauber and cotton bud.
  • Potato-stamp hearts in offset rows Red or pink. Cut a heart into half a potato, brush paint on it, stamp rows a hand apart; offset every second row.
  • Rainbow arcs with both feet on the bottom seam Six brights or three clay tones. Arcs a finger wide with canvas between them; both feet stand on the seam. Flat brush.
  • Sausage dog: front half on the front, tail on the back Tan or black, brown, red. Head, chest and front legs end at the side seam; hind legs and tail carry on across the back.
  • Smiling fruit faces in a row of three Red, yellow, orange, black. Strawberry, lemon and orange side by side mid-panel; dot eyes set low, small curved mouths.
  • Snail in the bottom corner with a silver trail Tan, brown, silver. Snail low in one corner; its looping trail wanders back across the panel in silver fabric pen.
  • Sponge-dauber polka dots Any one colour. Round sponge dauber, dots a palm apart in offset rows; let half-dots run off the edges.
  • Strawberry repeat with white seed ticks Red, green, white. Rows of thumb-size strawberries, each row offset like bricks; leaf caps, then white seeds in pen.
  • Teacher's name with an apple motif Black, red, green. The name in neat capitals mid-panel, a small red apple after it, the school year low in a corner.

Easy 5

  • Masking-tape stripes, wide and narrow Two colours. Tape off bands across the panel, paint between them, peel while wet; bare canvas is the third stripe.
  • Matching set for a group, one name per bag One colour for all. Same stencil layout on every bag: name mid-panel, the date small at a bottom corner. Sponge dauber.
  • Monogram as tall as the panel One colour. A single capital as tall as the panel allows; pencil it, outline with a liner, fill with a flat brush.
  • One word in stencil capitals across the middle Black. Tape letter stencils level mid-panel, dab with a sponge, lift straight up; leave the bridges in O and A showing.
  • Sun in the top corner, rays across the panel Yellow, orange. A quarter circle tucked into a top corner under the handle, straight rays fanning out. Flat brush.

Lettering 4

  • Alphabet grid, five letters a row Black or six colours. Capitals in a pencilled grid; Z lands alone on the sixth row, so give it a star either side.
  • Long word that wraps from front to back One colour. Letter the first half of the word on the front and finish it on the back, the break at the side seam.
  • Market list: bread, eggs, flowers Black, one accent. Three to five words stacked left-aligned like a shopping list, a tick beside each. Fabric pen.
  • Outline letters with a drop shadow Black, one bright. Letter the word in outline, then repeat each stroke slightly down and right in the bright colour.

How it works

A tote is a flat canvas rectangle with two handles and a bottom seam, and these tote bag painting ideas use all of it: ducks walk the seam, vines hang from the handles, a sausage dog ends on the back. All 60 designs list colours and placement.

Read the full guide

Use the hem, the handles and the back

A design centred on the front panel could be on any flat cloth. Here 6 titles start at the bottom hem or seam, 5 name the handles and 4 designs carry on over the side seam, such as Bookshelf wrapping from front to back.

Canvas, card and the paint label

Canvas is plain-woven cotton or linen. Slide card inside the bag first, so nothing reaches the back panel, and let one colour dry before the next. Craft acrylic is used on fabric and resists water once dry, but how a paint is set, and whether the bag can then be washed, differs by product: check the label.

  • Let a tool do the drawing: 6 of the easy tote bag painting ideas are stamped, with a potato, an apple half, a celery end, a leaf or a sponge dauber, and 3 are masked off with tape.
  • With a fabric pen and no paint at all, 4 designs still work as tote bag drawing ideas, among them Market list: bread, eggs, flowers and Coordinates of a place that matters.
  • A stencilled O loses its centre unless small bridges hold it in, so leave the bridges showing in One word in stencil capitals across the middle.

Questions and answers

What paint do I need for a canvas tote?

These canvas tote bag painting ideas assume fabric paint or craft acrylic on a plain cotton bag, plus a fabric pen for fine lines. White wants two coats on natural canvas. We do not test paints, so how yours is set, and whether the bag can be washed afterwards, is for the maker's label.

Which ones are cute?

Of the 27 cute tote bag painting ideas, Cat peeking up from the bottom hem and Ducks in a row along the bottom seam treat the hem as the ground, and Ladybird climbing the handle leaves the panel altogether. For a fruit repeat, try Lemons and leaves, tossed repeat.

Do these work on other bags and fabric?

Mostly. Tote painting ideas are flat-panel designs, so they move to a canvas pouch, a pencil case or a cushion cover unchanged. On a backpack they have to dodge zips and pockets, and the hem and handle designs belong to a tote alone. Whatever the cloth, check that your paint's label names it.

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