This afternoon we tried the neatest thing… Using chalk on the trampoline! My sister-in-law suggested the idea and the kids absolutely loved it. The chalk went on smoothly and vibrantly, and in no time, the trampoline was transformed into a giant chalkboard-esque canvas.
When I saw this post from Reading Confetti, I immediately fell in love. We’ve made our own sidewalk chalk paint for a long while now and I’d seen many frozen versions, but never had I seen them made in popsicle moulds before! After sharing the idea on our Facebook page and pinning it on several Pinterest boards, I made a mental note to pick up some more cornstarch the next time I was out so we could get the project under way.
Well luckily for me, not only did I remember to pick up cornstarch during our next grocery shop, but I also ran into these Duncan Hines Frosting Creations packets for the first time ever. Immediately, I knew our frozen chalk pops would be scented. A few days later, Miss G and I gathered up our materials and got to work.
Using our tried and true sidewalk chalk paint method, we mixed 2 cups of warm water with 1 cup of cornstarch in our blender for a minute or so. Then we collected our popsicle moulds, our Frosting Creation packets, some gel food colouring (liquid will work too, but the colours won’t be nearly as intense), and several popsicle sticks.
Next up, I used the popsicle sticks to scoop a small amount of gel food colouring into each popsicle mould, and Miss G selected a Frostings Creation packet to coordinate with each colour before we added a small amount (maybe 1/8th of the packet) to each slot. (If you’re making this at home and can’t find the frosting flavour packets, you could always use unsweetened Kool-Aid or Jell-O powder instead.)
With our food colouring and powdered scent ready, we filled each popsicle mould about 2/3rds full of our cornstarch/water combo and Gracen stirred them well.
Then we topped them up with a little bit more cornstarch/water and Grae gently stirred them a little more.
At that point, all that was left to do was put our plastic handles in and freeze the chalk pops overnight.
The next day, they looked like this. The colours were vibrant, the texture was smooth and creamy, and they smelled absolutely delicious.
The blue one smelled like cotton candy, the green one was mint chocolate, the red was strawberry shortcake, and the orange was orange creme… YUM. The only potentially bad news is that because they do look so real and smell so wonderfully, some munchkins may be tempted to try eating them (yuck!) That being said, because they’re made strictly of kitchen ingredients, they are technically safe to consume. So though they may taste chalky and gross, they certainly wouldn’t harm a curious little monkey who snuck a lick.
With our fun new chalk pops in hand, we headed into the backyard to test them out. The verdict? They’re really awesome!
When they’re melting and drippy, they go on much like their liquid counterpart does, only via a wand of sorts instead of a paintbrush. When they’re not melting, they go on much like regular sidewalk chalk does – dry and colourful with a little bit of pressure. When dry, the colours are super vibrant and to me, they look very much like they’ve been made with regular sidewalk chalk.
By the time our chalk pops had melted, our cement pad was fully covered in bright swirls, drawings, drips, and letters. And the great news is that it all washed away really easily without any fuss – much easier than our sidewalk chalk paint normally does for some reason.
I can’t wait to pull this activity out again in Kuwait where the temperatures soar and our courtyard is made completely of cement.
♥
For extra fun, like us on Facebook here and find us on Instagram here.
One of our favourite things to do on sunny spring and summer days is to cover our sidewalks in bright colours and patterns using homemade sidewalk chalk paint. The paint, which dries with a chalk-looking finish, is vibrant, easy to apply, and washes off with a couple of rains. Perfect, right? Almost! The only {petty} problems are that it’s best used during the warmer, drier months of the year, and the beautiful sidewalk art created cannot be saved in Miss G’s scrapbooks (duh!)
With both of those things in mind, today we did some experimenting with using the paint on paper! I wasn’t sure how it was going to work, but I’m happy to report that it worked wonderfully!
First off, after making many batches of sidewalk chalk paint, here is our easy peasy, minimally-messy method of making it. The key component? A blender! First off, it prevents the inevitable cornstarch poof that comes with whisking it, and secondly, I find that after a good long spin in the blender, the cornstarch doesn’t separate from the water nearly as quickly as when we hand mix it.
With our paints ready, we headed outside with a stack of black construction paper. I’m sure other papers would work wonderfully too, but I was kind of going for the old-school blackboard look. Now… I’m not going to lie. When we first started using the paints on the paper, I thought our experiment was going to be a total flop. So much so, in fact, that we ditched the paper and used our entire batch of paint on our front sidewalk instead. Going on, the paint looked like slightly muddled water… Not quite the look I was hoping for!
It wasn’t until every last drop of our paint was gone and we were beginning to clean up that we noticed how beautiful the paintings we’d banished over to the side were now that they were dry.
Instead of looking wet and barely there like this…
Once dry, they were bright, chalky, and vibrant like this! Cool, right?
With that, it was back into the kitchen to whip up another batch of paint. Together, we painted many more pieces, this time watching the transformation as they dried.
The other kind of cool thing we learned is that once your piece is dry…
You can use your fingernail or the edge of a popsicle stick to scratch off designs and patterns! Fun, right?
How did our afternoon of painting end? Hah! Like this! Miss G was done, dinnertime was nearing, and we still had some paint leftover, so out it went onto the sidewalk. Of course, which two year old can resist walking through regular puddles, let alone rainbow-coloured ones?!
Well, and because feet were okay, hands must be okay too, no?
♥
For extra fun, like us on Facebook here and find us on Instagram here.
While we’ve done plenty of regular mess-free painting on our sidewalks and fence, today Gracen asked if I’d draw her something to paint. While maybe not as open-ended as I’d usually aim for, I do find that sometimes she prefers having a jumping off point, so I drew an assortment of shapes on the ground using sidewalk chalk. The activity was actually perfect for her new found interest of colouring in the lines, and when the water dried, it left our cement pad covered in beautiful, watercolour-esque shapes. So simple, but she enjoyed so much that she’s already asked to do it again.
♥
For extra fun, like us on Facebook here and find us on Instagram here.
While our morning consisting of a drizzly visit to Granville Island, our afternoon was all about enjoying a little bit of sunshine and soaking in the sights of spring scattered about our yard…
♥
If you’re new to Mama.Papa.Bubba., welcome!
Stay on top of the fun by liking us on Facebook here and following us on Instagram here.
After a quick torrential downpour and a whole family nap (amazing!) the sun decided to grace us with its presence. After a string of rainy days, we wasted no time heading out into the backyard to soak up a little dose of vitamin D. We gathered up some sidewalk chalk, bubbles, our cloud dough sensory bin, a water sensory bin, a tricycle and a bicycle, multiple blankets, and homemade popsicles and enjoyed a laid-back afternoon outdoors, just the three of us. Here are a few snapshots…
♥
After teaching both yesterday and the day before, it was so good to spend the day with my girl today. (Two work days in a row was new for us… I missed her.) We spent the morning at the aquarium visiting sea creatures, and decided to try something new this afternoon.
Sidewalk chalk is a usual thing around here, and we’ve done mess-free sidewalk painting a few times recently, but we hadn’t yet tried sidewalk chalk painting. It was about time.
There are TONS of sidewalk chalk paint recipes floating around the internet, but we just went for it and mixed up our own version. I wanted more of a watercolour consistency rather than a paste in order to allow Miss G to make longer brushstrokes before having to reload her brush, so we used a lot more water than cornstarch. And since I’ve read that the paint dries a lot lighter than it looks when wet, we amped it up by using generous amounts of gel colouring {hence them looking so dark in the photos}.
(FYI – The cool paint swirls are courtesy of my little lady. Who knew a good swift bump of the paint tray right as the photo is being snapped equals awesome swirls?)
Gracen didn’t hesitate to get started. The second I gave her the okay, she got busy dunking her paintbrush and creating her sidewalk masterpiece.
She honestly LOVED it. She was so focused and content that she did not put down her paintbrush once the entire time until the paint was gone. And when it was? There was a prompt, “More, Mama! More!” directed my way. Sadly, I’d used all of our cornstarch and couldn’t whip up another batch, but I’m pretty certain that this will become a regular activity this summer.
The end result was a sidewalk {and toddler} covered in beautifully vibrant colours, a very happy little lady, and much needed bath.
Sidewalk Chalk Paint
Using a muffin tin, put a little food colouring in each cup, varying the colour combinations and the amounts of dye. In a large measuring cup, mix together the cornstarch and water. Carefully pour a little into each muffin cup and mix well.
Take the paint outside {preferably on a tray to prevent spills} along with paintbrushes and watch your little one(s) create a sidewalk masterpiece. Give paints a little stir every once and a while to prevent the cornstarch from sinking to the bottom.
♥