Eco-blogger mum Militza Maury and her sweetie Maria show that creating your own art supplies is a piece of cake!
You won’t just save money making your own art-and-craft supplies, you’ll cut down on waste as store-bought products usually come in a lot of packaging.
Notes Militza Maury of Little Green Dot and also mum to Meabh, now 9, who develops her own recipes by “tinkering around” with whatever is available in her kitchen, “Many pre-packed materials are made with strong preservatives and chemicals that are not suited for little ones.”
She adds, “I also love that it gives my kids an opportunity to be creative when they experiment with what goes into the homemade products, rather than buying them straight from the store.”
Here are two of her family’s fave DIY projects:
Homemade Play Dough
Prep time 15 minutes
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup salt
- ½ tbsp cream of tartar
- ½ tbsp cooking oil
- Various kinds of food colouring
- Mix all the ingredients (except the colouring) together in a saucepan.
- Cook over low heat it until it clumps into a ball.
- Add colouring drop by drop, till the desired colour is achieved.
- Plop the dough onto your workstation and knead it for a minute, to spread the colour evenly.
- Your homemade play dough is ready to use! It will last two to three weeks in an airtight container. Keep it in the fridge to extend its shelf-life.
Top tip: If you prefer an alternative to food colouring, look around the spice section of your supermarket for natural flavourings that produce great colours. Try beetroot, green tea and turmeric powder.
Click to next page to find out how to make your own paint...
Homemade Watercolour Paint
Prep time 10 minutes, although the paint needs to be “set” overnight.
- 4 tbsps baking soda
- 2 tbsps white vinegar
- ½ tsp light corn syrup
- 2 tbsps cornflour
- Various kinds of food colouring
- In a container, mix vinegar with baking soda and wait until the fizz settles.
- Add corn syrup and cornflour, then mix well until the cornflour dissolves.
- Distribute the mixture into small saucers or containers.
- Use toothpicks to add different colours, mixing till the desired colour is achieved. Let it sit overnight.
- Your homemade watercolours are ready for use. Paint away!
Top tip: Store your watercolour paints in a muffin tin, old bottle caps or used egg cartons. Get creative — reuse and recycle!