20 Insanely Cute Tote Bag Painting Ideas

Looking for an easy way to get a cute custom tote bag? Here are 20 of the cutest tote bag painting ideas that you can recreate.

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Tote bags are SO in right now, and we’re obsessed! Not only are tote bags super cute to carry around, but they also help reduce plastic waste if you use them when you’re shopping.

If you want to carry around a one-of-a-kind tote bag, I highly recommend painting one yourself. It’s super fun, cheap, and it’ll leave you with a completely custom tote bag that no one else has.

We’ve been seeing so many people painting tote bags with their friends on TikTok lately. If you want to get in on this trend, we’ve got you covered. We found 20 of the cutest painted totes that you can recreate.

So let’s get into it! Here are 20 super cute tote bag painting ideas to give you a little bit of inspiration.

Table Of Contents hide

What You’ll Need

How To Paint A Tote Bag

Tote Bag Painting Ideas

Cute Patterned Tote Bag Painting Ideas

Cow Print Painted Tote Bags

Flower Tote Bag Painting Ideas

Fruit Print Tote Bag Designs

Painted Tote Bags With Words

What You’ll Need

Painting a tote bag is super easy, but you will need some supplies before you get started. Here’s everything you need:

Plain tote bags
Cardboard – you’ll need to put a piece of cardboard in the middle of your tote when you’re painting. This will prevent the paint from bleeding through to the other side.
Acrylic paint (or some fabric paint)
Cup with water – to wash your paint brushes in between colors.
Paint brushes
Pencil – to sketch your design ahead of time.

How To Paint A Tote Bag

This craft idea is one of our favorites because it’s so easy that anyone can do it! To guarantee success, we’ll lay out all of the steps you need to take to make your own custom painted tote bag.

Figure out what design you’re going to be painting onto your tote bag. If you’re not sure yet, check out the rest of this post for some painted tote bag inspiration.
Start with a clean, blank tote bag. Stick a piece of cardboard in the middle of the bag to ensure that you don’t get any paint bleed-through.
Lightly sketch out your design on the tote with a pencil. This will help ensure that you have clean lines and fewer mistakes when you start painting.
Paint your tote with the acrylic paint and paint brushes.
Allow to dry for a few hours. And that’s it! You now have the cutest custom painted tote bag.

* Keep in mind that your painted tote bag will not be machine washable. If you want a bag that you can throw in the washer, you’ll need to use a high-quality fabric paint like this set from Amazon.

Tote Bag Painting Ideas

If you’re stuck on what to paint on your tote bag, you may just need a little bit of inspiration. Here are 20 of the cutest painted tote bags that we’ve seen. Hopefully these give you some ideas for what to put on your own tote!