How to Make Custom Chip Bags with Canva (TEMPLATE)

Like what you see? Share it!

Ready for a fun project? Today I’m going to show you how to make printable chip bags in Canva! With just a few supplies and my free chip bag template, you’ll see just how quick and easy they are to create!

Printable chip bags (also called chip bag wrappers) can be customized for any special occasion using digital clipart or your own photos. They make great favor bags for baby showers, a bridal shower, birthday parties, backyard pool parties, and more. I’ve even used them for Valentine goodies, Halloween treat bags, and fun snack bags for no special occasion at all!

What You’ll Need:

• Custom Chip Bag Template for Canva
• Canva app (Free or Pro Version)
• Printer
• Paper (I prefer Koala Inkjet Glossy Photo Paper)
• Adhesive (permanent tape roller, double-sided tape, hot glue gun, glue stick, liquid glue, etc)
• 1 oz chip bags, cereal bags, party favors, or other little size goodies
• Paper Crimper

Clipart and digital patterns

In addition to the graphics from the Canva app, I used a nutrition facts label that I downloaded from Design Bundles.

• Birthday Nutrition for girl svg file by svgsbylisa

Pro Tip: If you plan to sell your chip bag designs, be sure to obtain a commercial use license for all the graphics and fonts you use.

At this point, you may be wondering what the differences are between the free version of Canva and Canva Pro, as well as why I prefer Koala Inkjet Glossy Photo Paper. Before we move on to the tutorial, let me explain.

What are the differences between Canva free and Canva Pro?

The free version of Canva has a lot to offer and I used it for quite some time before I upgraded to Canva Pro.

Here are the three main reasons I changed to a paid plan:

1. Unlimited premium content. When I was on the free plan, I often found myself wanting to use premium graphics in my projects. After a few times of paying for a single-use license, I decided that my dollars would be better spent toward a subscription.
2. Magic Resize. Once I design a project, I can resize it for multiple social media platforms and uses with just a click of my mouse.
3. More format options for saving projects, including SVGs and transparent PNGs.

Canva Pro also offers:

• access to more templates
• Brand Kits with logos, colors, and fonts
• folder creation for specific projects
• Background Remover tool
• scheduling tool for social media content
• 1TB cloud storage (compared to 5GB on the free plan)
• 24/7 customer support

If you want to give Canva Pro a try, sign up for a 30-day free trial. You’ll get a reminder 3 days before the trial ends and you can cancel at any time.

Note: If you are a K-12 teacher, check with your school district to see if they are enrolled in Canva for Education. If not, you can still use Canva for Education at no charge once your educator status is verified. Keep in mind that Canva for Education users may only use Pro content for educational, non-commercial purposes.

What is the best paper to use for chip bags?

I’ve used both Walmart brand (Pen & Gear) photo paper and Koala Inkjet Glossy Photo Paper. Either will work, but I like the Koala brand best. It’s a thin paper that folds easily and the printed image seems a little more stable than the Pen & Gear paper. (When I scratched on the Pen & Gear paper, part of the image came off.)

You can also use plain copy paper or cardstock, but the chip bag label will have a matte finish, unlike a vivid photo printed on glossy paper. Glossy brochure paper works well too. I do, however, recommend using plain paper to test your design before creating the final project.

Now let’s make some printable chip bags!

Custom Chip Bag Templates

The first step is to create your chip bag design. To save you the time of having to figure out the correct custom chip bag size and placement areas on your own, I’ve created a blank chip bag template for you to use.

When you click on the link for the Canva template, it will open in the Canva app. If you want to download a template to use in other programs, check out these tutorials using Silhouette Studio, Cricut Design Space, and Microsoft Word.

How to Make Custom Chip Bags in Silhouette Studio

How to Make Custom Chip Bags in Cricut Design Space

How to Make Custom Chip Bags in Microsoft Word

Please note that each blank template is a digital file with design guidelines only, not a physical item. You will need to add your own designs in order to create a chip bag cover. The digital downloads are meant for personal use only and no physical product is included. If you are interested in using the template for commercial purposes, please contact me for permission.

How to Create a Custom Chip Bag in Canva

Detailed instructions are included with the template, but the basic steps to creating a printable chip bag in Canva are:

1. Click on the link for the Canva template. You should see this:

2. Click on “Use template”.
3. Unlock the template.

4. Delete the text boxes. (You can also delete page 1 with the instructions if desired.)
5. Add colors, a background pattern, text, and graphics, using the template as a placement guide.
6. Delete any remaining parts of the template.
7. Download the finished Canva design to your computer and save as a PNG, PDF, or JPEG.
8. Navigate to where you saved the project on your computer and print.
9. Assemble the chip bag.

Video Tutorial

Step-by-step instructions for creating your own design and assembling the custom chip bag are included in this video tutorial:

Printing the Custom Chip Bags

The template is designed to be printed as a borderless 8.5 inch x 11 inch document (letter size paper). However, if your printer settings do not include a borderless option (or you forget to set your printer to borderless) you can still make cute custom chip bags!

After printing on your home printer, trim off the white border using scissors or a paper trimmer or leave as-is. The choice is yours! (I actually found that the white edges on the left and right helped me to know exactly where to glue them together.)

How to Assemble the Custom Chip Bags

Once you’ve printed out your custom chip bags, putting them together is very easy.

1. Place the printed side face down on your workspace.
2. Put a bag of chips in the center. (If you’re going to fill your bag with small toys or other treats, use ziploc bags to keep them all together or skip this step and add the fillers after you’ve glued the bottom of the bag together.)
3. Place a strip of glue on either the left or the right side of the printed page.
4. Wrap the page around the chips and glue the short sides together, overlapping one edge on top of the other.
5. Glue the bottom of the bag closed.
6. Glue the top of the bag closed. 
7. Crimp the top and bottom edges using a paper crimper.

How to Use the Paper Crimper

1. Lift the handle to open the crimper.
2. Insert the narrow edge (top or bottom) of the chip bag into the top of the crimper, between the two rollers.
3. Close the handle and turn the knob counter-clockwise slightly to make sure the paper edge is aligned properly.
4. Turn knob clockwise until the edge of the chip bag is crimped.
5. Remove the bag by turning the knob counter-clockwise.
6. Repeat for the remaining edge.

Like what you see here? Share the image below to Pinterest!

These printable chip bag designs are so much fun to make and leave lots of room for creative expression. I hope you’ll try making some with your own custom designs for your next celebration (or just to add some celebration to an ordinary day!).

Don’t forget to come share your project with us over in the Silhouette Crafters by Design Facebook group too. Our group is open to ALL crafters, whether you use a digital cutting machine or not!

Until next time,

Like what you see? Share it!