Clubhouse Painting: 23 Ways to Create and Explore with Paint

I remember as a child I painted. With paint. And a paintbrush. On paper. That just about sums it up for my early childhood Art Adventures.

Then when I was 7 my Mother married an Artist, and everything changed. He showed me how to explore mixing colors, incorporating different paints and textures. How to actually make my own paint. He even provided me with,*gasp*, a blank canvas. A variety of canvases actually, all made from different materials. You mean I can paint without having to put a certain color inside of a certain number? Thrilling!

The options, the colors, the textures, the process... it was amazing to think outside of the paint by number book.

That's exactly what I want the Clubhouse Kids to explore. No lines to be colored within, no matching colors to numbers, and no limits on how many different types of materials can be used in one work of Art.

Water Bead Paint, Petroleum Jelly Paint, Puffy Paint,
Corn Syrup Paint, Epsom Salt Paint, and
Toilet Paper Roll Stamps all make up this
Art Display at the Clubhouse.

That being said, I decided to do a little exploring online. The amazing ideas I found, coupled with some of our more recent paint creations here at the Clubhouse, leads us to this list. Together, let's see what kind of Adventures in Art we can have!

Paint from the Pantry

You would be amazed at the variety of paint you can create by mixing a few simple ingredients found in most kitchens. Why bother with expensive paint? Making the paint themselves is half the fun for the Clubhouse Kids.

A couple of teaspoons of instant coffee and warm water = Coffee Paint. Paint on white/light paper that has already been colored on with white crayon, and watch the designs/letters appear!! Also makes the perfect paint for coffee filter art ;)

Jenae over at I can Teach My Child shares a simple recipe for Homemade Watercolors. I love how this one can start out as Science experience that turns into paint!

Four ingredients and a couple of squeeze bottles and you've got Puffy Paint. The Clubhouse Kids love using their fingers with this paint.

Speaking of finger paints, if you have ever been on Pinterest I guarantee you have seen the pin that leads you to Easie Peasie and her amazing Finger Paints recipe. For younger kids who are guaranteed to put their fingers in their mouths, check out the recipe for Edible Finger Paint from The Imagination Tree.

This Corn Syrup Paint recipe is just two ingredients, corn syrup and color. We have done this a few times, and the Art that adorns the walls from this paint is still shiny!!

Water and color is all that is required for this Happy Hooligans recipe. Simply pop it in the freezer and enjoy Painting With Colored Ice on a Sunny day.

The Clubhouse Kids love inventing their own paint concoctions around here, and that's just what we did when we made Dirt Paint. A perfect Diary of A Worm extension activity, they had a blast tunneling through dirt paint with finger worms!

Take your pantry concoction outside with this fun outdoor activity, Fizzing Sidewalk Paint, shared by Rachel over at Quirky Momma. Science meets Art, we will definitely be trying that one at the Clubhouse!

Paint from the Potty

Ok, maybe not really from the potty (sounds kind of gross actually!) but just take a look around your bathroom. You'd be surprised what you can find in there to work with.

It's not just for soaking tired bones, check out how we made Epsom Salt Paintings, and enjoyed quite a few different sensory experiences in the process. You could also use regular table salt like One Perfect Day did to create Raised Salt Paintings.

Shaving cream? Check out how Reading Confetti mixed it with glue and made Cloud Paint. 

You can also mix it with some color, and if you simply scrape off the shaving cream after the kids are done, you are left with some pretty amazing Shaving Cream Art to display.

Vaseline? Just add tin foil and a few squirts of color. Cotton balls are always a welcome addition to this mix. There you have it, Petroleum Jelly Painting!

We hope you don't throw them away because toilet paper rolls make the best stamps! We always have a supply next to our paints. Check out how Creative Family Fun used them to make Heart Stamps, because in the Preschool world, hearts are not just for Valentine's Day.

Speaking of stamping, I absolutely love these Homemade Felt Stamp Pads made by Housing a Forest. Using them to create Art that explores Math, even better!

Paint without a Paintbrush

Who needs them anyways? Learn With Play used the things we normally paint on, to paint with, and The Great Paint Off was born!

We love water beads here at the Clubhouse, and painting with them was a Slimy Painting hands on adventure. Next time we plan on trying what Growing a Jeweled Rose did, and put everything into a box for some fun Water Bead Art.

No water beads available? See how In Lieu of Preschool used marbles to do the painting instead, creating some fantastic Marble Art.

Another fun way to roll paint around is shared by Crayon Freckles as her Son decided to explore Wheelbarrow Art.

Or you could take it outside, with a much larger canvas, and let the kids paint with their bicycles. The Golden Gleam tried Bike Track Painting, inspired by Beansprouts Preschool. Looks like a fun filled outdoor painting adventure, which results in one giant piece of artwork to display!


Last, but not least, let's say it's "one of those days" and all you want to do is set out paint and paintbrushes. Even those days can make for creative painting fun if you leave a few empty jars out, and let the kid do some mixing, like Bean Sprouts Preschool did with their Mix it Yourself Paint Station. Always up for a new Creation Station idea, we love this one!


There you have it, 23 ways to create, explore, and have fun with paint! Pick a few you haven't tried, or enjoy some of your old favorites again. Either way, let's make sure that Art is always an Adventure for our little ones ;)


By the way, Fit Kids Clubhouse is now on Pinterest, and all of these ideas and more will be pinned to our Exploring Paint board. Check us out, and please bear with us while we catch up on pinning! 


We're off to paint some tire tracks,
Ms. Liz

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