creating a kid- use those feet

As many of you know, we love making a creative mess around her and one our favorite things to do foot painting, yep you read that right...painting with our feet. It is a process that feels silly, messy and totally weird and Lucy has loved it since she was a toddler! It's also a process that is WAY more fun with friends so recently we invited some of our favorite kiddos over to experiment and stomp around in paint. And let me tell you it was a BLAST! Here are three of our favorite ways to use those feet to get creative-

A fun things to do is to use your shoes as a stamp! You could use an old pair of shoes with interesting texture on the bottom but I thought it would be fun to transform some cheap flip flops into stamps. I cut out shapes from craft foam and glued them to the bottom of the sandals. Then we dipped those shoes into paint and went WILD walking and stomping around on a big piece of butcher paper. The result is a surface filled with stamped pattern!

Wrapping those footies in bubble wrap is one of my personal favorite things to do- yes, I do this all the time! It's so much fun to walk around with that bubble wrap popping as you add colorful pattern and texture to a surface. Kids love this process because it's totally wacky, weird and tons of fun!

Using those toes to hold a brush is another really fun way to explore painting. This process actually takes a lot of focus so it's a great way to get kids to embrace abstraction and expression while having fun.

You can check out my entire series of "Creating With a Kid" HERE

creating with a kid: paint with your feet

We spend a lot of time outside but this time of year on the Oregon Coast can get a little bleak with days and days of rain. And while I have all kinds of fun and creative projects to keep Lucy busy and inspired, I save few of the really special (and messy projects) for days (like the grumpy ones) when everyone needs something extra special to work on! One of those special projects is painting with our feet and let me say that letting your three year old paint with their feet is not for the faint of heart but it is a really fun way to get creative and let loose with your kids. 

This is the kind of activity that requires a little set up and clean up time. Even though I am the queen of making a mess I still lay down paper or a drop cloth before we dive into painting. 

TIP: This is also a great outdoor activity for warm days and much easier when it comes time to clean up! 

You can paint on just about anything large enough to walk on- paper (I like butcher paper or brown painter's paper), fabric, canvas or even cardboard. Paper surfaces can get slick with paint (it's easier to slip around) while canvas and fabric are less slippery.

I love using my bare feet but Lucy is not into it yet so we grab a pair of summer shoes (that can be washed) and let her go crazy with them on. 

TIP- You can also get really creative with putting different things on your feet- bubble wrap, socks or anything that will create unique pattern or texture on the surface.

We start by dumping acrylic paint onto the surface- this step might be Lucy's favorite because she seems to love having the control and ownership dumping out all those bottles of paint.

Then I let her go crazy in all that paint- walking, marching, stomping and dancing! 

More paint is dumped and more craziness is had!

And don't think painting with your feet is just for kids...this kind of project is for anyone, any age especially those who might need to blow off some steam or let loose!

TIPS FOR ANY AGE:

If you or your child is not comfortable getting dirty or messy with your feet, at least try using your hands to apply paint! This is a great way to get yourself accustomed to what it feels like to use your body.

Blast your favorite music! Using your body to paint is all about expression and movement and having music on will make it even more fun.

Embrace expression and abstraction! Painting with your body is more about the experience and painting in an abstract way. Try to forget about things looking and feeling perfect and instead give yourself permission to get lost in the process and the mess.

Just let go, enjoy the moment and forget about the giant mess that is happening. The worst case scenario is that you have some cleaning to do when everything is over! 

You can read my entire series of "creating with a kid" posts HERE

i ♥ cardboard rolls!

If there is one thing I have learned by spending a good part of my life creating on a limited budget- it's that you can always use something- ANYTHING to make art and you don't need lots of money or fancy supplies. My favorite place to go "shopping" is in the trash or the recycling bin and I have a bit of an obsession with cardboard rolls. There a so many different ways to use them when working with painted surfaces- here are a few of my favorites.

I ALWAYS have a paper towel towel roll on hand when I am painting lots of layers. I love dipping it in paint and using it as a stamp- it is a really quick and easy way to add circles to your surface.

You can even bend or manipulate the cardboard into simple shapes.

I tend to work fast so I enjoy applying a layer of texture or pattern in my mixed media surfaces quickly. Inspired by my own creation a while back (see here) I have started using my cardboard rolls to roll on my texture and pattern. I cover the surface with all kinds of everyday things. Bubble wrap makes for great polka dots!

Wrapping string, twine, yarn or just about any fiber is another great way to roll texture onto your surface.

Use scrunched up saran wrap to wrap around a roll, cover in paint and roll onto your surface.

Or tightly wrap saran wrap around the cardboard roll and then paint designs all over it. While the paint is still wet, roll it onto your surface.

Use 3-D paint to cover the surface of the cardboard roll with designs and while the paint is wet roll it across your surface.

everyday decorating- easter eggs!

Who says you need messy dyes and paint to decorate Easter eggs?! Recently I challenged myself to utilize everyday things that I had on hand to decorate a dozen eggs!

As I have shared in the past, I love using white out pens in a variety of projects! Why not use it on the surface of my eggs. I started by painting the eggs with acrylic paint and then doodled over the top with a white out pen.

Believe it or not q-tips are a wonderful supply to use in all sorts of projects. You can dip them in paint and use to add polka dots OR use them to pull paint away from a surface.

I covered my egg with a light layer of acrylic paint and then used q-tips to mover around the paint and pull paint away from the surface to create a design.

Bubble wrap is one of the best ways to create an interesting surface! Simply cover the bubble wrap in paint.

Roll the egg across the surface.

There is nothing better than using simple lettering and handwriting as subject matter in creative projects! Using a sharpie pen I journaled all over the surface of my eggs.

In my opinion scribbling is TOTALLY overrated! Use colorful scribbles with permanent marker to cover the surface of eggs.

A ball point pen goes a long way in my world! I used a two pens from the junk drawer to sketch all over the surface of my eggs.

The result- 1 dozen creative eggs!

***Please note- I always blow out the yolk from my eggs (I don't like hard boiled eggs!!) and typically make a quiche or a frittata. I like that my eggs can last beyond Easter and become more like little pieces of art.

For more of my egg decorating tutorials-

doodle eggs

watercolor easter eggs

colorful canvas eggs

eggs and nest

scrappy eggs