Melting crayons into a fun shape is a great way to use up the stubs of old crayons and create a new medium for yourself or as a gift that can be given to classmates, friends, or family.
Easy At-Home Art Projects To Do With Kids
Whether you are a parent, a grandparent, an aunt or uncle, or even a babysitter, you probably know how quickly kids can burn through different activities. While many of us are still working and playing from home, finding new ways to keep children entertained while also teaching them new skills is crucial. Art is a fantastic and fun way to practice cutting and drawing, work on identifying colors and shapes, and build upon kids’ motor skills and hand-eye coordination.
Check out some of the projects below for ideas on how art can keep your kids happy, entertained, and constantly learning.
Marble Art
Marble painting using shaving cream is a fun, sensory experience that leaves your child with an interesting and colorful painting. Plus, it’s super easy to set up.
- First, you should find a container large enough to put a generous amount of shaving cream in and use paper that is approximately the size of it. Pro tip: use a thicker watercolor paper rather than a printer paper so it holds up against the shaving cream.
- Once your shaving cream is spread in an even layer across the container, you can use either droppers or brushes to paint vibrant colors onto the shaving cream.
- Use a popsicle stick to swirl the colors to your liking.
- Place your paper onto the colors and press lightly. Once you remove your paper from the colors, wait a few minutes before gently wiping the excess shaving cream off with a paper towel.
- After you allow the paper to dry, leave it as is or cut it into hearts, butterflies, dragons, or other shapes to display on windows.
Homemade Masquerade
Bring back the excitement of carnivals and masquerade balls by giving your kids the opportunity to create and style their own mask. The easiest way to do this is to papier mache a plastic craft store mask that will be used as a mold.
- With the mold (plastic mask of your choice) in hand, create the papier mache mix which consists of 1:1 ratios of flour and water to create a paste.
- Dip strips of newspaper into the paste, removing any excess, and arrange onto the plastic mask being used as your mold. Repeat this process until the entire mold is covered, and then allow to dry.
- Once your mask is dry, the sky’s the limit for how you and your child can decorate them. Create a bird mask with vibrant paints, colorful puffs, and feathers or try a more mysterious look by using darker paints, lace, and glitter or jewels.
- After the masks are fully decorated and dry, you can either attach an elastic strap to it or glue a plastic rod, depending on how it is to be carried and worn.
Father’s Day Paintings from Kids
These Father’s Day paintings are simple and fun for young kids to make and quite easy on the budget too. This Father’s Day gift is sure to be a hit with Dad! This year I wanted to help the kids make something extra special for their Dad. I also wanted it to be something that would look great in his office at work or at home. In other words, I didn’t want it to be a handprint craft or something else cutesy. For the record, there is absolutely nothing wrong with those types of gifts and we have even made some of them over the years. Last year’s handprint craft and poem is sitting in my husband’s office upstairs. But this year I wanted to do something that would fit right in with the surrounding decor. That’s how I came up with these sticker resist paintings I knew my husband would love. The best part is that they are so simple to make. They don’t cost very much, don’t take very long to make at all and young kids can easily help make them. When all was said and done, we only spent about 15-20 minutes on them and about $15 for both paintings. Supplies Needed:As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
- 8 x 8 stretched canvases – I bought a pack at Michael’s and used a 40% off coupon
- Vinyl alphabet stickers
- Acrylic paint in 2-3 of the receiver’s favorite colors
- Mod Podge
- Paintbrushes
I talked with my children about what short sayings they would like to put on the canvas. We worked together to come up with a few choices and they each picked the one they wanted to use on their canvas. Think things like “Best Dad” or “#1 Dad” or “I love you” While the kids were eating lunch, I placed the vinyl stickers on the canvases.
Then I quickly brushed a thin coat of Mod Podge over the stickers. I did this so that the paint wouldn’t bleed under the stickers. Make sure you coat all around the edges of each letter. There were a few small spots where I didn’t do enough and the paint did bleed a bit because my toddler was very heavy with the paint. I let this dry for an hour or two.
When the kids were ready to start painting, I placed 2-3 different colors of acrylic paint on a tray with a paintbrush in each color.
Then it was time to paint! My kids really enjoyed painting the canvas for their dad. They really thought about how they wanted to do it and took their time covering the whole canvas. Make sure they paint the sides as well.
I did help my toddler smooth the paint out a bit since she placed very large globs of paint on it and I was worried it would never dry or the paint would totally seep under the stickers. I also fixed up the edges a bit because they had some trouble getting those covered.
Afterward, I let the paintings dry overnight. I figured it was better to be safe than sorry, so I waited a good long time. Then I gently peeled the stickers off of the canvas.
I just love the way these turned out! I think they look awesome and I know my husband will too. The kids are super proud of them and can’t wait to give them to their Dad. Now if I can just get them to keep it a secret until Father’s Day rolls around.
