This morning I decided that we should do a project as we haven't done a single Valentine's Day craft yet. Of course once I came up with an idea of how I wanted to do said project, I realized I didn't have any pink or red paint. I only have blue, green, orange, and purple in my closet, which definitely don't scream "Valentine's Day."
I think The Imagination Tree read my mind this morning because up pops a recipe for easy homemade paint on their Facebook page.
This recipe truly is easy to make and there is a great chance that you already have everything you need for it right in your house. To me, those are the best recipes, because I normally do things on the fly.
Easy Homemade Paint Recipe
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup water
1 cup dish soap
food coloring of your choice.
All you have to do is mix the flour and water in a bowl until it is no longer lumpy, mix in the dish soap, and then add as much food coloring as you want/need to achieve the colors you want.
How simple is that?
I used Ajax dish soap which made our paint bubbly (and pink without the food coloring even), especially with the cookie cutters that we used. It made it more fun for my son though, he loved making the big bubbles and popping them.
My daughter decided that this should be a finger paint instead of using her dauber I gave her. Her little fingers are still pink, but that's the price I pay for cheap entertainment.
Don't be afraid to use different materials to make your pictures interesting. I bought these cookie cutters in a pack of four for $1 in the dollar section at Target. They were intended for play dough, but they worked well for this project also. Can't go wrong with multi-purpose items!
*Recipe from www.theimaginationtree.com*
In our house, reading is the "it" thing. My 3 year old has so many books, it isn't even funny. His lovely grandma has been giving him books since he was born, so he has an extensive collection.
We love books that are rhythmic and Finklehopper Frog by Irene Livingston sure hits that one on the head. It flows so nicely, it's hard to miss a beat.
Sometimes I joke with my son about it by saying,"Finklehopperr, Finklehopper, Finklehopper Frog, that's a silly jogging suit and you don't know how to jog!" It always makes him smile!
The book is about a frog who decides one day to take up jogging as that is the hot thing to do in his town. He gets himself a snazzy jogging suit and gets out there to attempt this jogging thing. The only problem is, he can't get the hang of it and his peers are not so kind about his attempts or his appearance. One compassionate animal reminds Finklehopper that everyone is not the same and therefore cannot do the same thing but that is ok.
Finklehopper Frog carries a wonderful theme for today's world. The use of bright colors and various animals makes it appealing as well.
I highly recommend adding this story to your own personal library, you won't be sorry!
I decided to do this project on the fly today and it is seriously cool! (Or maybe I spend too much time around my kids and am impressed easily, don't judge me.)
This is not only a fun craft project, but also a neat little project that shows reactions. It's also incredibly easy. All you need is:
-1 Tablespoon self-rising flour
-1 Tablespoon salt
-a few drops of food coloring
-enough water to make a smooth paste (be careful with this part, I accidentally added too much water on the first one and then had to play the guessing game with how much of the other stuff to add to make it smooth)
Mix your ingredients in a bowl and then you are ready to paint. We used paint brushes but the website I found this recipe on suggested cotton swabs as well.
Paint your pictures on pieces of cardboard (I used the backing of a pack of construction paper and a torn up Panko box. I may be a hoarder at the beginning level.)
Microwave your painted picture(s) for 10-30 seconds, basically until the paint is puffy and hard. I did 20 seconds for my bigger pictures and 15 seconds for the smaller ones.
*Original recipe from: http://melissagoodsell.typepad.com/day_to_day/2008/01/holiday-activit.html
