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We always make a special card for our nearest and dearest on Valentine’s Day. We live far away from our loved ones, so it’s extra important to us that they get something special in the mail to let them know we love them.
This multi day process based art play is a great way for your 1.5-6 year old to experience color without focusing on line and shape. The wet paint dances across the wet paper beautifully as the young artist leads its movement. This method is used in Waldorf schools around the world.
These cards took us 3 days to make as we created layers on the post cards.
Materials
- 1-3 watercolor paint colors thinned with water (these are Stockmar brand, but food color + water is taste safe and works great)
- High quality watercolor post cards (these are Richeson brand)
- Jars or cups to hold watery paint, each with its own brush
- Assorted crayons
- Tissue paper and watered down glue. We added bio glitter to our watery glue for some extra sparkle.
Instructions
Day 1: Wet on Wet Watercolor
Set up the paint play invitation by taping flat cards to a table and wetting them thoroughly with a sponge.
Model the possibilities of how to use the materials, and then watch your child explore this immersive color experience.
Day 2: Tissue Paper Collage with Glitter Glue
Invite your child to glue tissue paper scraps on top of their dry wet on wet paintings.
We also glued hearts made with a heart shaped hole punch from previous watercolor paintings.
We use watered down elmer’s glue in a spill resistant paint cup to thoroughly wet each piece of tissue paper onto the post cards.
Day 3: Crayon Drawing
Invite your child to draw on top of the wet on wet painting tissue paper collages for an added layer of texture and color.
We select crayons from a specific color group together to promote color harmony.
Now, carefully peel off the painter’s tape and send the post cards off to your loved ones!
Process over Product
Art play for children is about the process, not the product. When your child is “done”, the paper could look different than you envisioned it would. Celebrate their process as it is.
