Play Date Week: Cloud Paint Art

Tamar Teitelbaum October 9, 2021

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By Tamar Teitelbaum of Candidly Delicious

 

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It’s Sunday morning and the kids are running amok. One of the quickest ways to settle the situation is to announce, “Let’s do a project!” A project that gets my kids and their friends really excited is puffy paint, which around my house we call “cloud paint.”

 

Puffy paint makes muted colors with a fluffy texture that stand up off of paper. Once dry, kids can touch the paper and enjoy the texture of their creation. Also important to note: even though the paint is washable, it will stain certain materials.

 

You Will Need:

1/2 cup school glue
1/2 cup shaving foam (not gel)
1 teaspoon washable paint for each color you’d like to create
Glass (or other non-porous material) bowl
Mixing spoon
Brushes, Q-tips, or Popsicle sticks
Paper

 

Make the Paint:

1. Measure in equal parts glue and shaving foam. Because shaving foam kind of grows as you spray it, it’s easy to overshoot the measurement. It’s ok if it isn’t perfect. Just try to get them close to equal.

 

2. Drop in washable paint in the desired color. Now stir everything in together. Add more paint if needed to adjust the color. The colors are always muted and kind of pastel.

 

3. Once the mixture is uniform, scoop it into a vessel for the child to use. Disposable bowls work fine.

 

 

Get Painting:

1. After mixing the puffy paint, it will need to be used within a couple of hours. Kids can use brushes, popsicle sticks, or q-tips to apply the paint onto paper. Puffy paint should be used on a thicker paper ideally, like marker paper or paint paper. Once finished, the painting will need to dry on a flat surface for three to four hours. The paint should dry at the same height, though the colors will darken a little as it dries.

 

2. This paint also works great for cool color swirls. The paints don’t mix too easily, so with a gentle swirl both colors can still be seen. 

 

Get creative and have fun!