Painting Projects with the Help of Painters Tape

This week, we’re going to be featuring gifts that kids can make this holiday season.  Not all gifts will be appropriate for all ages, but we hope you’ll find something for everyone!

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We have found this year that some paper or canvas, paint, and some blue painters tape have opened up a whole new world for us. In the art class that I teach at our co-op, I have been able to work on two different projects with my students using just those simple supplies.

First Project: Blocked Off Painting on Canvas

This was the kids’ favorite of our two painting projects.  I love that while this was fun for my students, who range in age from 4^th – 6^th grades, it would also be easily accessible for children in preschool (and younger!).

Each of my students had a canvas of their own, and blocked off areas using blue painters tape.  I advised the students to be careful to push along the edges to seal the tape (although this didn’t happen in all cases).  I instructed the students to make sure that they were making distinct shapes and not just randomly putting tape in little spots throughout the canvas.

(If doing this project with very young children, you may have to apply the painters tape for them, and maybe just ask their help to make sure the tape is securely attached.)

Once they had blocked off as many areas as they wanted, they used a variety of colors of acrylic craft paint to paint each area of the canvas.  Some used only a few colors and used those over and over.  Other students wanted to use a different color for each opening.

We then allowed the canvases to dry.

Once they were all completely dry, we pulled off the tape (gently).  Each student was left with a unique piece of art, already perfectly ready to be hung on the wall!

Second Project: Shapes and Watercolor Paints

During our next class session, we again used the blue painters tape.  This time, however, each student made two different paintings.  Instead of canvas and acrylics, we used watercolor paper and watercolor paints.

Each student made one painting where they put either their first or last initial as the shape. They then made a second painting with the shape of their choice, though several made crosses, since that was one suggestion I made.

We allowed the paint to dry, and then removed the tape afterward.

(Note: We found that the watercolor paper with more texture made it more difficult to take off the painters tape after it dried.  So, less texture is better for this one.)

I was thrilled with how these watercolor paintings came out, and I think they would look so sharp if framed in a simple black frame!

This is definitely a great gift for a variety of ages of children to make independently or with the help of an adult!

Inspiration for projects found on Let’s Explore.