Homemade Water Color Paints

These are SUPER-easy to make. These homemade watercolor paints cost me next to nothing, and they turned out so much better than I imagined they would!

You’re going to love how simple this recipe is. You probably already have all the ingredients already in your kitchen.

What you’ll need:

4 tbsp baking soda
2 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 tsp light corn syrup
2 tbsp corn starch
Food coloring
container to keep your paints in – I used a vintage mini muffin tin.

 What you’ll do:

Mix your baking soda and vinegar together and wait for the fizzing to stop. It’s handy if you mix in a container that has a spout (I used a measuring cup).

Add your corn syrup and corn starch, and mix well until the corn starch has dissolved.

Pour into your container.

Now, get out your colors and have some fun! Stir food coloring into paint mix for about a minute to make sure the color is mixed in well.

If you’re using liquid colours, you may have to add about 6 drops to get the intense colour that you ‘re looking for. I added a pinch of extra corn starch to compensate for the extra liquid.

You have to let your paints “set up” and dry which could take up to 2 days.

Once they’re hard, simply grab a paint brush and some water and get painting!! I couldn’t wait to try mine, and I was really impressed when I did. The paints glide on smoothly, the colours look super. Honestly, they are nicer than any of the kiddy watercolor paints I’ve used before. They’re a little chalky when they dry, but not nearly as chalky as the dollar store paints.

I also think the muffin tin will be much better than those shallow trays that kids’ paint usually comes in. With the shallow trays, the colors get muddy quickly when the little ones drag their brushes all over the tray, sloshing water around and mixing the colors together. I’m hoping our colors stay a little “cleaner".

Another Perk - Homemade watercolor paints don’t stain!

Have fun!