Recipe for art

While playing in the family activity room at the Shaker Library this summer, the little lady stumbled upon the ever changing art table.  On this particular day, the children were creating art by dipping tennis balls in paint and then rolling them across paper that was contained in a cardboard box.  I fancied the idea; however,  recognized that if we were to recreate this fun activity within our own home it would need slight tweaking.  The idea of the little man rolling a painted tennis ball around in a cardboard box had "must have magic eraser on hand" written all over it.  And, so this idea was born.

Cast of characters:

washable paint, large Clorox/Lysol dispenser (empty and dried), blank paper, scissors (to cut paper to size), rubber ball (or any small ball), droopy poinsettia plant (optional)

1. Wrangle up a kid or two.

(Hopefully, one who appreciates the art of dressing oneself in layers and fine jewelry. Or, one that prefers to go through life shirtless.)

2. Insert paper so that it follows the natural curve of the dispenser.

3. Dip ball in paint colors. 

In all honestly, there might be a better way to execute this step as this way creates a bit of a mess, but we just went with it.  Having paper towels on hand wouldn't be the worst idea in the world.

4. Place the lid on (firmly) and give it a good shake, perhaps while singing a lil' ditty.

5. Remove lid and paper.  Marvel over artwork.

6.  Repeat.


7. Allow to dry, and place in envelopes addressed to grandparents. 
(One can only save so many beautiful pieces of art.)