Create a Stencil Painting Gallery

26 Jun

For toddlers, one of the joys of life is creating something with their hands. Painting is always popular, and stencil painting is a wonderful option for little fingers that aren’t yet nimble.

What you need

Non-toxic vegetable-based paints.
Paper (opt for larger sheets, at least A3 if possible).
Newspaper, butcher paper or plastic to use underneath the painting area
Items for stenciling – potatoes, leaves, flowers, twigs, pegs or anything else with a textured, flat surface.
Paper plates or flat dishes to pour paint into.
Painting smock or shirt.
String.
Hooks.
Wooden pegs.

apple stencil

Ready to create

Cut potatoes in half, and using a sharp knife, carefully cut a shape on the flat half. It might be a circle, diamond, or a crescent moon (whatever looks good graphically). Once you have the outline, push the knife about 5mm deep into the potato, then gently slice the potato from the outside to the picture’s edge. Lay out any other objects you are using. Pour a couple of different coloured paints onto paper plates. Arrange paper, paints and stencils.

Picture Perfect

To begin, simply help your child dip one of the objects into the paint and press it onto the paper. They’ll soon get the hang of it. They can create random patterns, or some other ideas include:

Paint the paper dark blue. When dry, use yellow or gold paint to create a sky with potato stencils in the shape of a moon and stars.
Create a landscape, using triangle shaped stencils for mountains, twigs for trees, and with a moon or sun.
Use twig and leaf stencils to create a forest scene.
Create a grid of different shapes in primary colours. Divide the paper into four. First paint each square a different colour. Then use one stencil image in a contrasting colour in each square.

Creating a gallery

Once you have several artworks, it’s time to display them. Tie string between two hooks on the wall and use wooden pegs to hold the paintings in position. This is both the best way to dry paintings where little fingers can’t touch them, and it’s a great, inexpensive way to decorate children’s bedrooms as well.