to be honest, I couldn’t wait to start our art experiments with Leonardo. it was one of my favorite and most memorable daddy&me activity when I was a kid, but I also needed an excuse to blow off the dust from my art supplies, some of which I cherished and carried along with me since art school some 20 years ago.
being a one year old curious and adventurous boy, Leonardo might has been ready for some down&dirty (literally!) painting for quite some time, but knowing his habit to put everything in his mouth first i knew that he was NOT ready for my beloved watercolors or set of squirrel paint brushes with elongated tips. kids painting set that my mom bought for him didn’t convince me neither – I test-licked it myself, and it gave away an artificial taste I would not want my kid to devour, no matter how “kids-friendly” it claimed to be.
so I did my research and found lots of DYI recipes of edible paints for fun finger painting with babies and toddlers. I was not after the best taste, but rather the longevity and colorfulness of the final product, as i knew I would want to keep this very first masterpiece, no matter how messy it would come out. I settled for a simple 50/50 flour&water recipe, and bought food coloring set of 5 primary colors. I also bought spill-proof paint cups (to make the process a little bit less messy and more organized, as well as to be able to keep leftovers in the fridge for another time), as well as i swag by local convenience store and bought 1in & 2in chip flat brushes & flat foam/sponge brush. 53” wide white background paper I already had in stock in my studio came handy as it created quite large flatly easel, which i secured to the floor with masking tape all along its permitter. i finished all the preparations while he had his afternoon nap and was waiting impatiently for him to wake up and see his new “toys”.
as expected, he loved the surprise! i opened the lids of the paint cups and showed him how to use the brushes, dipping them in a cup and staining the paper. he grasped the idea right away! one brush in each hand, he tried one cup after another, mixing paints, trying various techniques: strokes, spatters, smudges. he seemed to be so beautifully lost in the process, making sounds and funny facial expressions as if surprised or fascinated. I didn’t want to intervene and was quietly photographing from afar, smiling and feeling equally fascinated. he actually held it quite long time until he finally put one of the brushes in his mouth and tasted the paint. with a tiny frown, he paused for a second, and then bent down to the floor to lick the paint off the paper. he seemed to like the taste!
I don’t know how long it lasted, but one thing is for sure – Leonardo was living by his name and enjoying it to the fullest. at some point I needed to step in and interfere with the process after the surface of the “easel” stopped being enough for the artist and he started showing interest in covering other objects around him with the colorful substances. prepared and minimally dressed for the grand finale myself, I grabbed the artist and carried him to the shower.
the masterpiece was soaking wet, but thick background paper was holding well. I used the same tape to secure this self-made easel on the wall and left it to dry. it ripped in the center, giving resemblance to works of Lucio Fontana, while its spatters reminded me Pollock, and Leo himself had a crazy looking self-painted mustache a-la Dali. not bad for the very first art experiment! and I am really excited for more.
this is what I used for my DYI edible paint kit:
– Melissa & Doug spill-proof paint cups
– 1in & 2in chip flat brushes
– flat foam/sponge brush
– 53” wide white background paper
– masking tape
– food coloring (I used Lorann Oils Liquid Food Coloring, Primary Colors, Set of Five)
– flour & water
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