Make your Own Watercolour Paints

Do your kids love to paint? Watercolour paints are easy to use and clean up. To save money on constantly purchasing these paints, why not make your own colourful watercolour paints? This paint will dry into hardened paints that will last for a very long time. Just wet a paintbrush and off you paint!

Watercolour Paints

Originally, watercolour paints were made with earth or clay mixed with a wet ingredient such as saliva or fats. Today, they can contain nasty additives which alter the way they work, while extending their shelf life.

We made these paints in small plastic shot type glasses that I had picked up from a cheap shop. Originally, I had planned to use them to hold water for the paints, but worked out they would also be great for holding the paints we made too. Any small jar or container will work well for these paints.

Making your own paints is a great way to create your own watercolours that are free from things such as fillers, preservatives, metals and other toxins. 

You also great to create your own colours as well!

Ingredients to Make this Paint

To make this wonderfully inexpensive paint, you will need:

• bicarb soda
• cornflour
• white vinegar
• syrup (make by boiling one cup sugar and 1/2 cup water until clear)
• food colouring or tempura paints
• jug for mixing in
• containers to put your finished paint in
• paddlepop sticks for mixing

Creating Your Watercolour Paints

• Mix 4 TBSP baking soda with 2 TBSP white vinegar. When the fizzing subsides, slowly add 2 TBSP cornflour and ½ tsp syrup.
• When mixed, pour into containers and add food colouring. Mix well.
• The colour of your watercolour paints, depend on the amount of food colouring you use.
• To make darker colours, add more food colouring, for lighter colours, only add a small amount of food colouring.
• Leave paints to harden. The deeper the container your paint is in, the longer it will take to harden.

If you have a young child who loves to paint, then this is for you! By all means, this paint is the best in the business, but it is a cheaper way to let your preschoolers and kindergarteners get creative while working on fine motor skills.

More Fun Activities

• Edible Playdough
• Alphabet Pictures Playdough Mats
• Australian Animals Playdough Mats
• Alphabet Letter Playdough Mats

Edible Version

• Mix equal amounts of milk powder and water.
• Add juice from berries for colour or other natural food colouring.

You could use these paints to complete these Colour By Code pages.

DIY Watercolour Paints

S Jones

Watercolour paints are easy to use and clean up. To save money on constantly purchasing these paints, why not make your own watercolour paints?

Print Pin

Supplies

  

• 4 TBSP Bicarbonate of Soda, (baking soda)
• 2 TBSP White Vinegar
• 2 TBSP Cornflour
• 1/2 tsp syrup
• Food colourings, of choice

Instructions

 

Watercolour Paints

• Gently mix the baking soda with white vinegar.
• When the fizzing subsides, slowly add the cornflour and syrup.
• When mixed, pour into containers.
• Add food colouring to each container and mix well.
• The colour of your watercolour paints, depend on the amount of food colouring you use. To make darker colours, add more food colouring, for lighter colours, only add a small amount of food colouring.
• Leave paints to harden. The deeper the container your paint is in, the longer it will take to harden.

Edible Version

• For an edible version of watercolour paints, mix equal parts of milk powder and water together.
• Add the juice from berries for colour or use other natural food colouring.

Keyword Paint, Watercolour

Tried this project? Share a pic on Instagram#simplelivingcreativelearning