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Sandpaper Art: 3 Easy Ways

Aug 7, 201493,330 views
Art Projects
Art activities for kids : Sand paper art Save
art activities for kids with liquid chalk Save
kids art with sandpaper Save
drawing with chalk on sand paper for kids Save
coll 3 Save
crayon resist art project on sand paper Save

by TurkeyMom in Art Projects

Ages3–6 yrs
Prep10 min
Activity30 min
Leveleasy
MessMedium
Works for1:1 · Small group · Class

Use super fine sandpaper as a canvas in three ways: paint it with homemade liquid chalk, rub regular chalk all over it, or make a white-crayon resist with liquid watercolors. It is open-ended, kid-centric art with lovely texture.

⚠️ Safety first

  • Chalk dust: blow it away from faces and other kids, and don't breathe it in. Work in a well-ventilated spot.
  • Liquid chalk, paints and chalk are art materials, not food. Supervise so kids don't put them in their mouths.
  • Liquid watercolors and food color can stain hands, clothes and tables. Cover the work surface.
  • Sandpaper is abrasive. Remind kids to rub chalk on the paper, not on their skin.
  • If you try the crayon-and-iron print variation, an adult handles the hot iron.

Before the kids arrive

  • Cut or set out super fine sandpaper sheets, one per method for each child.
  • Mix the liquid chalk (equal parts cornstarch and water plus a few drops of color) in one bowl per color.

Steps

  1. Mix equal parts cornstarch and water in a bowl and add a few drops of liquid watercolor or food color. Make one bowl per color.

  2. Paint the liquid chalk onto super fine sandpaper and explore the colors.

  3. Keep painting and mixing colors right on the sandpaper.

  4. Let it dry and see the texture the liquid chalk makes.

  5. On a fresh sheet, rub regular chalk all over the sandpaper.

  6. Pretend to be the wolf and blow away the chalk dust, away from faces.

  7. On another sheet, draw a design with a white crayon.

  8. Wash over the crayon with liquid watercolors and watch the design show through.

  9. Dry the painted sheets flat with a weight on each of the 4 corners.

Tips

  • If the liquid chalk is pretty watery, it doesn't flake off after drying. It gives the art a wonderful dimension and beautiful texture.from the author
  • Once the sandpaper dries, it tends to buckle a bit. Dry the art with weight on the 4 corners.from the author
  • Rubbing chalk on sandpaper was so therapeutic for the adult and lots of fun for the kid. It was hands-down our favorite.from the author
  • We are big fans of liquid watercolors. The vibrant color will make you pull up a chair next to your kid and PAINT.from the author
  • Color on coarse 80 grit sandpaper with wax crayons, then iron it onto muslin for a reversed, dotted print. It's a great way to introduce Pointillism.from readers

Make it your own

  • Use the liquid chalk and sandpaper to create a topography map.
  • Make geometric patterns with chalk on sandpaper.
  • Crayon print: color on 80 grit sandpaper with wax crayons, then an adult irons it onto muslin for a dotted, reversed print that introduces Pointillism.

The story behind it

By TurkeyMom · August 2014
sandpaper and liquid chalk art
Using super fine sandpaper as our canvas, we paired 3 materials to create art. Equal parts cornstarch and water with a few drops of food color or liquid watercolors gives you liquid chalk.
1 / 9

Sandpaper Art: 3 Easy Ways: the original post

Use sandpaper as a canvas and introduce these fun art activities for kids using 3 very simple methods

Ah! Feels so refreshing to sit down with the kiddos to engage in some fun open ended art activities. We have previously explored sandpaper in our crayon transfer art. But today’s art project was completely kid-centric. Using super fine sandpaper as our canvas we paired 3 materials to create art.

Materials

Method # 1: Art activities using sandpaper and liquid chalk.

Equal parts cornstarch and water along with a few drops of food color or liquid water colors will give you liquid chalk.

sandpaper and liquid chalk art

The sandpaper turned out to be a wonderful background for experimenting with liquid chalk.

art activities for kids with liquid chalk

It was all about exploring and experimenting with colors on sand paper.

kids art with sandpaper

I think the result was stunning. If the liquid chalk is pretty watery, the chalk doesn’t flake off after drying. In fact it gives the art a wonderful dimension and creates beautiful texture. I can see how these materials will be great to create a topography map. (with cornstarch you ask? Sure, why not?)

coll2

Method # 2 : Art activities with sandpaper and regular chalk

This one is fairly straight forward, yet the most fun. Use superfine sand paper and regular chalks to create stunning art. It was so therapeutic for the adult and lots of fun for the kid to rub chalk all over the sandpaper.

drawing with chalk on sand paper for kids

Pretending to be the wolf and blowing away the chalk dust during the art session was even more exciting.

I can visualize gorgeous geometric patterns with this chalk and sandpaper combo.

coll 3

Method # 3 : Art activities with sand paper and crayons

The popular crayon resist technique is experimented on sand paper. Draw a design with a white crayon on superfine sand paper. Have the child wash over the crayon with some liquid water colors. We are big fans of liquid watercolors here - the vibrant color will make you pull up a chair next to your kid and PAINT.

art activity with sand paper

Watercolor over sandpaper is a beautiful sight. Once the sandpaper dries, it tends to buckle a bit. So just dry the art out with weight on the 4 corners.

crayon resist art project on sand paper

All the art we created on the sand paper. Our favorite? Hands down drawing with regular chalk on sandpaper.

sandpaper with chalk and crayons art

Thanks for reading

More art activities for kids on on our category page

3 ways to make beautiful art with sand paper from Blog Me Mom

What readers say

💬 4 comments

✨ Readers' twist

Iron crayon prints to teach Pointillism

A reader colors coarse 80 grit sandpaper with wax crayons, then irons it onto muslin for a reversed, dotted print that introduces Pointillism.

“color on 80 grit sandpaper with wax crayons and then make a "print" by ironing it onto muslin.”
Rosemary, Aug 2014

Tried it?

Reviewed before it appears. No links, and please no children's names.

Read all 4 comments

  1. Ashley · Feb 2015

    You've been featured! <3 Feel free to share!

  2. Rosemary · Aug 2014

    Great ideas! You can also color on 80 grit sandpaper with wax crayons and then make a "print" by ironing it onto muslin. The image is reversed and, because of the heavy grit of the sandpaper, dotted. It's a great way to introduce Pointillism.

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