Finger Paint.. er...Body Paint... er... Mess = INFANT ART PROJECT 1

Zosia had her first experience with COLOR and ART! I honestly couldn't wait to share a moment of creativity with her. It's a challenge to come up with infant art projects that are safe and interesting for little ones. Finger-painting with colored flour and water was our first experiment.

It's pretty simple... all you need to do is:

• get paper/posterboard as a 'canvas' 
• mix equal parts flour and water in a medium bowl
• divide flour mix into three separate containers ( I used baking ramekins)
• add food-coloring or fruit/veggie dyes to the mix ( I used red, yellow, blue)
• setup a large 'mess' blanket or work in an area where it's okay to get messy
• have a towel ready for immediate delivery to bath after project

 

 At first I was trying to teach her to dip one finger in at a time to color on the canvas. It surprised me how 'neat' I was trying to be. After a few minutes of teaching her, I surrendered to  her own exploration of the experience. Immediately she went to paint herself. It instantly brought me back to memories of painting myself for hours as a kid. I used to love making intricate details on my body with paint. It is so cool to have those moments of personal reflection while parenting your own child. 

 

By the end Zosia was covered in paint! She really enjoyed spreading the paint all over the place. Flipping over the ramekins was a big event for her and me. I had to totally surrender to the mess and she rolled with joy in and out of the puddles. 

It is a great sensorial experience for her... feeling the texture of the paint, watching the affect she has on the canvas, seeing the difference between the three colors. She really enjoyed herself, and after about 45 minutes, she was finished. It was tricky getting her from the porch to the bath without getting paint everywhere.

All in all it was great fun! I learned to surrender my will for the sake of the moment and reconnected to past memories of pure concentrated joy!

Zosia's First Work of Art