Today I thought it would be fun to make some homemade toddler finger paint with Bella. We have tried finger painting a few times since she was able to sit up in her high chair but she has issues with getting her hands dirty. Let’s just say her 1 year cake smash didn’t go as planned, she wouldn’t touch the cake … I had to put her hands in the cake and even then she was not impressed.
I have come across many recipes over the years for finger paint and many either stain the children’s skin or are unsafe if the child puts it in their mouth. This recipe I am sharing today I came up with knowing it was completely safe for babies and toddlers if they were to take a taste. It also would not stain their skin if they were more adventurous than my sweet Bella and actually used their fingers.
I use Wilton Icing Colour gels instead of food colouring liquid and it has not stained any children’s skin that have used this paint, I have yet to see the colour ever transfer onto the skin at all. I always recommend having the child in play clothing and an art smock just in case any gets on clothing as I can’t guarantee it won’t stain clothing. We also threw down a plastic tablecloth from the dollar store on the floor so it’s an easy clean up.
I started off by showing her how to finger paint, sticking my finger in each of the paints, and swirling them around on the paper. Bella was intrigued …
She gave it a go for a few minutes but really didn’t like the fact her hands were getting gooey. The only time Bella doesn’t mind her hands being messy is when she is eating!
Toe painting anyone?
I realized I was losing the battle of the finger painting so I pulled out the sponge brushes I have in our craft supplies because I knew she would paint with those. She was happy and went to town painting a masterpiece.
Bella really enjoyed painting.
Homemade Toddler Finger Paint
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 6 tbsp granulated white sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- Wilton icing colour gels
Wilton icing colour gels
- Containers - I got my containers at Dollarama, they come in a 3-pack for $2 and they are stackable.
- Finger Paint Paper
Instructions
- In a medium-sized sauce pan add all your ingredients and whisk until combined.
- Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly until your mixture thickens.
- Turn off your stove and remove from the heat.
- Separate into your containers, one container for each colour you would like to make.
- Using a toothpick add a very small blob of the icing colour gel and using a spoon stir until the colour is fully mixed in.
- Let stand until cool before use or closing lid to store.
What is your child’s favourite craft to do at home? Don’t forget to come back and let me know what you think if you try the recipe!
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kristen visser says
absolutely amazing!! I have hardly done finger painting with my young girls because they put paint everywhere and it is so hard to clean off but this is so perfect! they can have fun painting without mommies worry of it staining them or their clothes and very straight forward to make!
Maggie says
I made edible finger paint with vanilla instant pudding when my now 29 year old daughter was small. Her and her friends loved it 🙂
Holly D says
Oh, this is a wonderful idea. My nieces would have a blast with this! They love doing crafts, and knowing this won’t get everywhere and stain everything is a huge bonus! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Ashley J says
I am so happy to have come across this post. Literally I have been looking for a safe/ unstained toddler paint to put a DIY project together for gift to someone special. Thanks for the recipe will definitely try this out.
loriag says
Messy but fun, what could be better than that to bring smiles. Thanks for the recipe.
Krista M says
It’s so much fun to just let kids be kids and create a big mess! That’s why this little paint recipe is so awesome.. no stains! Fun for kids and easy for mom to clean up!
Debbie White Beattie says
This is a great recipe for 2 reasons the first is the paint is easily made and hopefully easily removable. The second is the kids always want to make a mess but at least it’s fairly easy to clean it up and you can hang their art work when you’re done
kathy downey says
Thanks for the detailed directions,going to try this for the little ones !
Kristy R says
Love this. Looks like a lot of fun for the kids without the mommy stress!
Jenn Erin says
I’ll have to try this. I have strayed away from toddler finger paint because of the reason you mentioned, but your recipe sounds awesome and so safe for babies and toddlers! Thanks for sharing
Bella says
I run a toddler group once a week. I n the past I could never get the proportions right. Your recipe waa perfect – suitable for coeliacs, toddlers and mums who love messy play! Instead of paper I gave each toddler a spoonful of paint straight onto the table. Once they had “drawn” their pictures I then took a print of it. More fun and time to play.
Mara says
This is a great fingerprint recipe. It makes a nice amount. The recipe I usually use doesn’t set up this nice. Also, the gel colorings are SO SO SO much better than the liquid food colorings.
Thank you so very much for sharing.
Melissa Richards says
Hi there
I love your recipe for the finger paints.
I was wondering how do you store them?
Can they be refrigerated? And if so for how long? And if not and they can be just shelved how long would that be for?
Thank you so much for any feedback you may provide me.
Aimee says
Depending on the age of the child and how they are using (dipping fingers in or with paintbrushes). If dipping fingers and young I wouldn’t keep it as it could get bacteria in it from their mouth etc. If they are older or using brushes, I would keep them in the fridge for up to a week then toss.
Ellie says
Hey, this looks great! I’m an infant teacher and I’m making this tonight for my tiny students to discover tomorrow! However, although there aren’t any in my current group, I sometimes get kids whose parents don’t want them to have any exposure to processed sugar at this age, so for future reference, is the sugar very important to the outcome of the recipe? Will it work if I leave it out, and in that case would there be any other measurements I need to change? (I’m okay with if this makes it not taste good — I don’t plan to encourage eating, just want to be safe when it happens.)
Aimee says
I have never omitted the sugar and I am thinking since it is 6 tbsps that is a fair amount (vs a pinch of salt) so I am not sure how the recipe would turn out.