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How to Create a Paper Bag Safari Vest for Your Kids

Paper bags score big points for their durability and eco-friendliness, and it’s also great to have a few lying around if you tend to enjoy indulging in arts and crafts with your children. There are plenty of fun things you and your kids can make using nothing more than an old paper shopping bag and a few household items, including masks, puppets, and even luminaries.

And if you’d like to get a little more adventurous, why not indulge your children’s inner explorer by using an old paper shopping bag to create a safari vest?

First up, you’ll need to gather all the necessary materials. A large paper shopping bag is going to be your main ingredient, though you can use several smaller ones instead if need be, and you should also lay your hands on a stapler, a pair of scissors, and a black magic marker.

Now that you’re ready to start, open up the paper bag slowly and lay it out on a flat surface. You can then cut a line right down the centre so the length of bag can be wrapped around your child. Mark where the armholes will need to go in the corners of the bag, unwrap from child, then cut out the armholes, making sure you curve inwards to create the right look. Now the vest can hang as it should, use your stapler to quickly seal the left and right parts together. This will let your child slip the vest on and off at leisure. You now have only to use your black magic marker to add details, such as pockets and zips. You can even cut small rectangular sections from another paper bag, then stick them to the outside of the vest to act as simulated pockets and add a little more character.

Children are great at using their prodigious imaginations to cast themselves as travellers cutting through the dense jungle or trekking across the dangerous savannah to encounter noble beasts or track down ancient civilisations, and they’ll be able to explore in style now you’ve made them their own paper bag safari vest.