3 Homemade Paint Recipes for Toddlers

These 3 homemade paint recipes are perfect for kids and toddlers. Plus, they use common ingredients such as corn starch, food coloring, markers, and more! Learn how to make homemade paint today!

With these easy paint recipes for toddlers (or kids of any age) you will be able to keep the little ones busy and outside during the summer! Toddler activities that are as simple and engaging as these paints are sure to be a hit with mom and kids alike!

3 Homemade Paint Recipes for Toddlers

Toddlers are so fun! They are curious, love to create messes, and are constantly exploring. They are so busy and it can easily wear you out! Sometimes the days can drag on with toddlers.

I’ve found that doing a slightly structured activity really helps the day run smoother. One activity we love to do is to create homemade paint and then spend time being creative. It helps them in many ways: fine motor, hand-eye coordination, creativity, sensory exploration, and more!

Today I’ll be sharing three of our favorite paint recipes for toddlers. These are easy to make and require only a few supplies that you probably have already!

Sidewalk Paint

Do your kids like to color with sidewalk chalk? This this mock chalk paint recipe is great for coloring the sidewalks, but with a paintbrush. We love to make this one during spring and summer.

Here’s what you need:

• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1 cup water
• food coloring
• bowl
• spatula
• muffin tin (optional)

Stir the cornstarch and water together in a bowl. Add in food coloring and then pour the contents into muffin tin containers. Repeat to make more colors. Use a paintbrush to create designs on the sidewalk.

After you’re done, I recommend washing it away with water. We’ve never had it stain our sidewalk, but it’s best to not let it sit for too long. If it does get temporarily stained, you can use dish soap and water to scrub it off.

Frozen Paint Cubes

A fun and unique way to paint with toddlers is with paint cubes. These are cubes of frozen paint with a stick. It makes some cool pictures!

Here’s what you need:

• washable paint
• ice cube tray
• wooden craft sticks
• paper
• freezer

Pour washable paint into sections of an ice cube tray. Place a craft stick into the paint and lay the stick off to the side of the tray. Place the ice cube tray into the freezer for about an hour. Once it’s frozen, the paint will be a solid cube. When you’re ready to paint, pull the ice cube tray out of the freezer and let it thaw for about five minutes. Then let your little one hold onto the craft sticks and create designs on the paper. You can try mixing two colors together and talk about the colors they see on the paper.

When the paint begins to melt, you can either discard it or place it back into the tray and refreeze to use again later.

Homemade Watercolors

A fun indoor painting activity is to make homemade watercolors. This one is so simple and creates pretty pastel paints!

Here’s what you need:

• markers (dried up markers work great!)
• bowl or jars
• 1 ounce water (per color)
• 1 teaspoon cornstarch (per color)
• paper
• paintbrush

Begin by filling a jar with about one ounce of water. Place one marker inside and let it sit for about 1 hour. After an hour, you’ll see colored water. Stir in 1 teaspoon of cornstarch. Repeat to make more colors.

Then have your little one use a paintbrush to create art on paper. After you’re done, you can save the paint. You’ll notice the cornstarch may settle at the bottom of the jar, but you can stir it up and it will be good as new!

I hope these painting ideas are helpful to you! If you are looking for more fun ideas for toddlers, I’d love for you to check out my book, Play and Learn Toddler Activities. In this resource, you’ll find over 200 fun activities for children ages 1-3. The activities are in these 5 categories: create, explore, pretend, sensory, and play. You can learn more about the book and order it on Amazon today!

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BIO: Angela is the writer of Teaching Mama, where she shares hands-on learning activities for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers. She is a former teacher, turned stay-at-home-mom to 3 wonderful boys. You can connect with her on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram.

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