Use watercolor techniques like alcohol resist, sticker resist and saran wrap to create space art projects for kids. This post is written in partnership with OOLY and these watercolor painting activities are all shown using OOLY’s watercolor supplies in celebration of National Watercolor Day.
Today is National Watercolor Day and to celebrate, we teamed up with OOLY to create some fun space art projects for kids.
Here at The Artful Parent we do a LOT of watercolor art. We tried three of our favorite watercolor techniques with a fun space twist.
We love OOLY’s watercolor products–the paper is thick & absorbent and the watercolor paints are very vibrant. We’re reminded how extra satisfying an art experience is when using high quality art supplies.
In short, we think you’ll love these supplies too!
Space Art Projects for Kids
MATERIALS
- Chroma Blends Travel Watercolor Palette
- Lil’ Watercolor Paint Pods
- Chroma Blends Watercolor Paint Set (Neon)
- Lil Paint Brush Set
- Chroma Blends Circular Watercolor Paper
- Chroma Blends Watercolor Paper
1. Planets with Alcohol Resist
We really liked OOLY’s circular watercolor paper and thought it’d be the perfect fit for creating space themed art like planets, the moon & sun.
Pro tip: To open the circular watercolor paper, look for the gap in the glue around the edges. Slide a thin sharp knife or letter opener across the pad to release a piece of paper. If you have multiple kids, loosen a few pieces in advance.
We started by painting our planets and moon with lots of watercolor paint. It’s important to err on the side of very wet for this activity in order for the alcohol to mix and create a swirl effect.
Pro tip: Pan watercolors can be tricky for toddlers so my 3 year old used a pipette to pre-wet the paper to make it easier to paint.
Once the paper is nicely saturated with watercolor paint, use a pipette to transfer rubbing alcohol to the painting. Squeeze and squirt all over the paper and watch the colors mix. There was lots of excitement at our house over this step!
We loved the circle paper and travel watercolor set. The paints were so vibrant and fun for the kids to use.
2. Galaxy Watercolor Paintings with Sticker Resist
To create a galaxy painting, first add gold foil star stickers to your watercolor paper.
Pro tip: Make sure the stickers are firmly stuck to the paper or the paint will leak underneath.
Then brush clean water all over the paper (the thickest OOLY brush was perfect for this task). The base layer of water allows the watercolor paint to blend in a beautiful way.
We used purples, blues and blacks for our color scheme. Once the paper is painted, sprinkle coarse salt onto the wet paint. This creates an effect that looks very much like a galaxy far, far away!
When the paintings are completely dry, brush off the salt and peel off the stickers to reveal a lovely galaxy! If you’re feeling extra starry, water down white paint and flick your brush to add even more stars.
We loved this activity so much, that we did it multiple times using both the paint pods and the travel watercolor palette. Both paint sets were vibrant and easy for my preschoolers to use. We especially liked the mixing tray in the travel palette to create our own colors.
3. Constellations with the Saran Wrap Technique
To create these fantastic geometric constellations, we started with a wet wash on our thick OOLY watercolor paper.
Once the paper is nice and wet, it’s easy to blend the colors of your choice.
I encouraged my kids to continue to use LOTS of water as they painted; you really need a liquid base to have the best effect with the saran wrap technique.
After your paper is covered in some beautiful colors, scrunch up a big piece of plastic wrap on top of the paint.
It’s fun to experiment with different amounts of plastic and wrinkling techniques! Each painting will be totally different and totally gorgeous.
You can remove the plastic wrap once the paint is dry (about 1 hr). The wrinkled plastic creates all kinds of interesting lines and shapes in the paint, perfect for inspiring constellations.
Use a metallic sharpie and a ruler to connect a few lines, making dots or stars at each intersection. My kids loved creating their own unique constellations!
Thanks again to OOLY for sponsoring this post to help bring all these fun art activities to you and your family! We think OOLY watercolor products are high quality art supplies that your kids will enjoy using over and over again!
More Watercolor Activities for Kids
- How to Make Raised Salt Paintings
- 6 Amazing Watercolor Resist Techniques To Try With Kids
- Making and Decorating Colorful Paper Twirlers with Kids
- Create Gorgeous & Abstract Scribble Drawings with Watercolors
- How to Make Giant 3D Watercolor Flowers with Paper Plates
- DIY Thank You Cards for Kids with Washi Tape
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