Snowflake Silhouette with Masking Tape

Sweet Pea was 3 years old.

From: I saw this fun winter art project on Valerie’s Frugal Family Fun blog.

Material:

• 3 colors of craft paint.  (I preferred to skick with the wintery blues and purples, but you could let your tot choose.)
• Small bowls for the paint.
• Canvas paper (or card stock, but the canvas paper works better.)
• Masking Tape
• Paintbrush.
• Sharpie.

Procedure:

• Stick the masking tape to the canvas paper to create a snowflake shape.  (I did mine freehand and even cut some of the tape in half lengthwise and liked our results.  However Valerie has excellent instructions if you want to create a more symmetrical snowflake.)

• Pour a small amount of each color of paint into separate bowls.
• Allow your tot to paint directly over the masking tape, encouraging him to cover the entire sheet of paper.

• Repeat until your tot is tired of painting snowflakes.
• After your tot is done, let the painting dry overnight.

• Make sure that the paint is completely dry and then carefully remove the masking tape.  If you chose to use card stock instead of canvas paper, be especially careful or the paper will peel off with the tape.

• To make the snowflake “pop”, trace the outline with a sharpie.

Observations: Sweet Pea loves painting and enjoyed this activity.  She painted 2 snowflakes before she was ready to quit.

We did this last winter when Sweet Pea was 3 and I did have a little bit of trouble getting her to cover the entire sheet of paper with paint.   I don’t think I would have the same problem now.   However, I think this would be a great activity even for very young tots because it doesn’t really matter how they paint.

It is a bit messy, but if you like art projects, then I would recommend this activity for all ages.

Notes from the Trenches:

1) Pressing down firmly on the masking tape before painting will help keep the paint from bleeding under the canvas paper.    You can even use a Popsicle stick to rub the tape to make sure it is stuck.

2)  I don’t advise sticking the tape down firmly if you are using regular paper though, as I had a really difficult time peeling the tape up without causing damage.

Rating: 3 Stars * (Fun, Easy, Frugal)

Carnivals:  This post is linked up to It’s Playtime at hands on : as we grow.