Both of my daughters LOVE marble painting. So far we've made apples, pumpkins, turkeys, and Christmas trees! Even after all that marble painting, Lena and Maggie both jumped at the chance to make some pretty Valentine's Day hearts in red, pink, and purple. The best part about this Valentine Marble Painting is that the finished product can stand alone, or you can take it a few steps farther and turn it into a Marbled Heart Garland. Both projects are fun, both are easy, and both are just right for Valentine's Day.
[Click HERE For More Great Valentine's Day Crafts And Activities]
This
post may contain Amazon or other affiliate links. If you use these
links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Click here for my full privacy and disclosure policies.
Gather Your Materials
For this project you need children's paint (we like Crayola Washable Glitter Paint and Colorations Kids Paint). You also need cardstock, marbles, a plastic storage box (cardboard works, too), masking tape, and scissors. If you plan to turn your hearts into a garland, you will also need a hole punch and yarn.
Get Ready To Paint
Print or draw hearts on your cardstock. I always use templates from First Palette. I printed large hearts for our stand-alone paintings, and several pages of medium hearts for our garland.
Tape the paper into the bottom of the box. Add several squirts or drops of paint around the edge of the paper and toss in 5-10 marbles. You're ready to paint!
Shake The Box!
Start shaking the box back and forth. As the marbles roll around, they'll pick up paint and slowly cover the paper.
If the marbles get stuck in the rim of the box or in the puddles of paint, we use a plastic fork to get them loose. The more you shake and roll the marbles, the more covered your heart becomes!
Once the hearts are covered, take the paper out and set it aside to dry. I think that marble painting looks best with plenty of white space left behind. My girls both think that's crazy and try to cover the whole page!
Once the paint has dried, cut out the hearts. If you're leaving them plain you can mount them on construction paper.
If you're turning them into a garland, get all your little hearts ready for stringing!
Punch two holes in the hearts, one on each side. Using a hole punch is super tricky for most kids, but great for little muscles!
Cut a length of yarn and thread the hearts on.
Space them out however you'd like them. Lena wanted to put her large heart in the middle and the smaller hearts on the sides.
All finished! Hang it in a place of honor-- ours is on our fireplace mantle. Don't you think that this would make a pretty collaborative classroom or family project?
You May Also Be Interested In
From Other Great Bloggers
Puffy Paint Valentines from Happy Hooligans
Cookie Cutter Valentine Painting from Hands On As We Grow
Tape Resist Heart Art from Munchkins and Moms
Valentine Card With Winter Birds from The Educators' Spin On It
