Painters Tape Art

With Valentines Day coming up, I knew I wanted to add some fun art around the house. I especially wanted items we made. I have done different art projects like this on my own before, back in high school for art class. Its way more fun to let a kid do it and see how much fun they have!
You need a canvas, or canvas board in whatever size you hope to use. Painters tape, or contact paper if you are wanting to do shapes (see the incredible heart resist art at Mama.Papa.Bubba.) it is much easier to use for things like that, and of course scissors to cut the shapes out or to trim the tape for the letters you make. Of course you need paint. I like to use acrylic paint, especially the Martha Stewart brand, as I find I get the best colour options, and it cleans off skin very easily.
I measured out the centre of the canvas so I knew where I wanted to line up the letters, and proceeded to measure out where I wanted everything roughly. So long as it was all visually appealing to the eye I was happy. It did not take long to layout the letters at all. Make sure you press the tape down firmly, especially near the edges.
Now the messy, fun part. Finger painting! We had Evie do this in her diaper because we did not want her to get paint on any of her clothing. We did not put a splash mat down, or garbage bag. Instead we just let her at it on the tile floor and had a cloth nearby for clean up of the floor.
We put down several blobs of paint all over the canvas, and let her have at it. I couldn’t believe that she just went to town running her fingers through the paint, all over the floor, and of course painting her own tummy, legs, and arms. I would say now, that less paint is best to start will. See how far your kid spreads the paint out. If you use too much all at once, it can become one solid colour, instead of having all the colours visible everywhere.
I waited a bit for the paint to dry before taking the tape off. I was not sure if I waited til it was completely dry, if I would need to use an exacto knife to score the edges of the tape and then take the tape off. With it being still a bit wet, the tape came off no problem.
There was a bit of paint that leaked under the tape, but I don’t mind at all. It’s my daughter’s first finger paint art and I adore it. I already have plants to do a few more pieces for around the house.