Paper Bag Pumpkins

We had a bunch of paper bags leftover from A and B's 3rd birthday party in July.  We printed on some of them and used them as goody bags.  So I have been trying to think up some paper bag crafts to use up our extra paper bags.  I have been on a pumpkin kick as of late, so I thought why not paper bag pumpkins.

What you will need:

• Lunch bag sized brown paper bags (though now that I think about it, larger bags would make bigger pumpkins)
• Orange paint and paint brush
• Something to make the face with.  We used sticky foam shapes.  You could use paint, makers or any number of supplies for your faces.
• Tissue paper or bunched up magazines
• Green ribbon

Then just have your kids paint the entire bag (except the bottom) orange.  Sounds easy right?  Wrong.  I didn't really have a great plan for painting the paper bag.  I mean the beginning seemed to go smoothly.  See for yourself.  Look at "A" painting her bag.

Here's B with her bag.

I love how intent B is on her work.

And C didn't get a smock this time but that isn't stopping her.

So everything was going just peachy and then the girls finished painting the first side of the paper bag.  No problem!  I will just open up the bag and they can paint the other side.  This worked well until A and B no longer wanted to hold the bags since their fingers were getting dirty.  So guess who had to hold the bags for 2 girls while they SLOWLY painted?  Me.  I was lucky that C lost interest in the activity after painting just one side or I would have had to hold her bag too.

I finally got tired of holding the bag for the slowest, most meticulous artists ever.  I was unable to take any pictures of my great holding technique since my hands were covered in paint. Trust me, it was spectacular.  I gave up on that idea and decided we would just lay the bag, paint side down, on the tray.  The part that was down on the tray didn't look bad at all when we done so I should have just done this to start with.  

Great, the bags are done being painted and now they just need to dry.  Ummm...how do I dry these things?  If I were still teaching, I would have hung them on the nifty clothesline that ran the length of my classroom.  Hubby vetoed having a clothesline in the kitchen, and we don't have one outside, so I just put the bags on a plate to dry.

Really?  This craft was not my friend.  I got some tissue paper and old magazines, bunched them up and put them in the bags to hold them open when they dried.  Take that bags!  You won't defeat me!  Vicky 1, Bags 0.

The tissue paper in the bag really did the trick and was a good solution since the bag needed to be stuffed anyway to make the pumpkins.  When the bags were dried and stuffed I cut some green grosgrain ribbon and wrapped it around the top of the bag to make a stem.  

I also cut some yellow and green foam stickers to make face shapes.

Next the girls decorated their pumpkins. A is not quite finished.  

Little C.  Don't you just love her half painted pumpkin?

B of course does her own thing.  And her own thing was putting stickers all over the pumpkin.  I asked her if she wanted to make a face and she said, "NO!"  She says that a lot.

So here is our pumpkin family.  I made one too.  Bet you can't guess which one?

I link my projects to - Wednesday: Blue Cricket Design, The Thrifty Home, Whatever Goes Wednesday, Look What I Made,  Works For Me Wednesday, Friday: Play Academy, Local Fun For Kids, Kidding Around Friday, Pumpkinspiration, Afterschool, Monday Sumo's Sweet Stuff, Craft-O-Maniac, Craft Catwalk,