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Painting with strings

4 Comments Toddler, Preschool, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade

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I often hesitate to do painting projects with my kids because of the mess that always ensues. When we do paint, I often do it outdoors in order to facilitate clean up. So now that the weather is warming up, we’ll be getting outside more often to paint!

For this activity, I wanted to try something a bit different. Rather than painting with brushes, we ended up painting with strings! This was a new experience for my kids that produced some pretty unique and beautiful artwork.

Note: For more painting projects to do with kids, see my arts and crafts for kids page.

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

I started by gathering some supplies, including:

  • Paper
  • Paint (in our no-spill paint cups)
  • Yarn
  • Scissors (to cut the yarn into pieces)

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

We took our supplies outdoors and then I let the kids have fun. I handed the kids some lengths of yarn, and they began dipping them into the paint.

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

Then they layered their paint-dipped yarn onto their papers.

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

They had fun with some of the really long pieces of yarn!

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

I let the kids choose to put as many or as few pieces of string on as they wanted.

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

Once they had put sufficient paint-coated yarn onto their papers, they folded them in half.

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

Then we unfolded the paper, removed the string, and admired their artwork!

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

Painting with strings - a simple and unique way for kids to create beautiful artwork #artforkids || Gift of Curiosity

STEAM Kids book

Looking for more hands-on activities that incorporate Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM)? Then you’ll love STEAM Kids! This book features 52 hands-on activities are helpfully identified by category (science / technology / engineering / art / math) so you know exactly what skills your kids are developing.

Grab a copy of the e-book delivered as a PDF download (or this e-book for EU residents) and in print at Amazon.

More resources for kid-friendly arts and crafts

More arts and crafts from Gift of Curiosity:

  • Tape resist watercolor painting
  • Coffee filter art
  • Crystallized snowflakes
  • Upcycled crayons
  • Leaf collages
  • Glue monsters
  • Chromatography flowers craft

Note: For more kid-friendly craft projects, see my Arts and Crafts for Kids page and my Arts and Crafts Pinterest board. 

Follow Katie @ Gift of Curiosity’s board Arts and crafts on Pinterest.

Filed Under: Toddler, Arts and Crafts, Preschool, Kindergarten, 1st Grade, 2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade

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Reader Interactions

4 Comments

  1. Sara

    May 15, 2014 at 9:07 am

    What a fun activity for preschoolers! I love that you painted with strings outside in the yard. It makes cleanup so much easier. 🙂

    Reply to this comment
  2. Erica Loop

    May 16, 2014 at 8:15 am

    Great way to explore process painting with something other than a brush!

    Reply to this comment
  3. Nichole {youclevermonkey}

    May 16, 2014 at 11:47 pm

    We just did this at preschool! Lots of fun with lots of experimentation. We used pegs to hold the string to try and keep fingers paint-free but I think using the paint pots is an even better idea. Found you via 123 Homeschool 4 Me linky.

    Reply to this comment
  4. Jennifer

    May 13, 2015 at 12:45 am

    This is one of my favourite art activities for building fine motor control — we just posted our most recent attempt at it after I realized that we’ve done it easily a half dozen times without ever sharing with readers 🙂
    I love the idea to take things outdoors.

    Reply to this comment

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I help parents who are transitioning into homeschooling shed old mindsets and embrace their homeschooling superpowers so they can create a homeschool they love where their children will thrive.

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