Make your own sidewalk chalk paint

When we were playing outside the other day, Logan requested sidewalk chalk. We have a ridiculous amount of sidewalk chalk. I bought some at a local big box store when they were having summer clearance, and I don't suspect that we will run out anytime in the next few years. But I need to admit, I was sick of drawing with sidewalk chalk. So, I uttered my famous, "I have an idea....." phrase to Logan and he was quickly excited about attempting something new.

The other day while reading a post at {Share and Remember}, I found a recipe to make sidewalk chalk paint. If you have read my blog for any amount of time, you probably know that Logan loves anything involving painting. The messier this kiddo can get, the better in his book. This recipe cost me nothing to make, since I had all of the ingredients already on hand. I took a 1/4 of a cup  of cornstarch and 1/4 of a cup of water and added it to a container. Then I added around five drops of food coloring and stirred it up until it had no clumps left. I only made two colors my first time around: 

When painting the colors go on pretty brightly, but they do dry close to white.  I had to use our sidewalk though, since I don't have a paved driveway (one of the many things still on our to-do list) yet. I bet on a darker surface this would be less of a problem. I probably should have added more food coloring, but I was worried about staining clothes.If you attempt to do this activity, I have just a bit of advice. As it sits, sometimes the paint starts to get thicker and more clumpy. I just added a bit more water and stirred it. It seemed to solve the problem. 

As soon as we got outside, we both took a brush and got to painting: 

The paint ran out long before Logan's interest in the activity did. 

Once we had used up every last bit, we extended the activity by filling up a watering can and watching the paint wash away. We live on a bit of a slope, so Logan was fascinated by the way the water rolled down the hill, and washed away different parts of each of his paintings.

Since this was such a popular activity we have already made this recipe again. I think it is definitely a new favorite!

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