Hi Pad Scrappers!
Polly Liana here with a fun activity that is perfect for doing outdoors with kids AND will make some fun backgrounds for hybrid projects. I’ve been getting into using alcohol ink lately and I’m really loving it. It’s more vibrant than watercolor and a lot more forgiving, in general (which is great when you’re just starting out). For this project, you’ll need:
- alcohol inks in desired colors
- alcohol blending solution
- an ink blending tool and felt (not foam) circle tips attached
- a ball stylus and/or pens in accent colors
- Yupo paper or glossy cardstock
It also helps to have baby wipes and rubbing alcohol for clean up.
Important: using these inks can be toxic so it’s important to do this activity outside. Also, it is absolutely vital that there is an adult supervising any children working with these inks at all times. Lastly, these inks stain so do this project on a surface that is protected. Or, you can do it on a large glass patio table like I did. Just wipe it with a baby wipe with rubbing alcohol when you’re done!
First, get your paper ready. Put a felt circle on the end of the ink blending tool. Squirt some drops of two or three desired colors of inks in thirds of the circle. Squirt some blending solution on to the ink to spread it around a bit. Start carefully bouncing the felt pad on to the paper:
Experiment with twisting or sliding it around on the paper. The ink will dry quickly. You can make a more textured-looking design by pouncing a second layer of ink as it’s getting dried out:
After a minute or two of letting it dry, use a stylus dipped in some metallic paint or mixative to make dots around some of your design for accents:
My girls were so excited about how well these turned out! They want to frame them for their walls.
I hope you’ll give this a try soon. But a warning: it’s totally addictive!
Have a great start to your week!
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