No-Mess Painting

I tried another art project with Parker last week. I wanted to let him paint again but it's a little chilly outside and finger paints are too messy for in the house.


The solution?  Bag painting!  :)




Since Valentine's Day is coming up, we made hearts. I cut some hearts from card stock and placed each one inside a small ziplock bag.



Next I poured a few drops of paint into each bag, then sealed and handed them over to Parker. After I showed him how to smear the paint with his finger to 'paint' the heart, I let him take over and sat down to watch.

He was doing a good job!

When I thought he was done with a couple I picked them up to open and he got a little upset.   ...guess he thought I was going to take them away or ruin his work.

So, standing where he could see me, I cut open the bags and lifted out the hearts, being careful not to smear the paint too much. I wanted to keep as many of his little finger strokes/designs as possible!

I placed the hearts on cookie sheets and set them outside to dry.

It took a few hours for them to dry. Just before he got up from his nap I brought them all in and hung them on the wall. He noticed them when he came in later and his whole face lit up.

He was so proud of what he did and told me HE painted them and then asked if we could send some to Grandma and Papa. He was very emphatic that we needed to send TWO hearts, so he picked out the red and purple ones on the left and we put them in the mail yesterday.

So fun! I love that he enjoys making projects. Elise likes it too, apparently. Every time we put her chair in the kitchen she stares at the hearts up on the wall and smiles.