Spawn’s Supermegatotally Thrilladelic Not Bummer Summer: Day 8: Homemade Sidewalk Chalk Paint

I found this recipe online and I thought it was a great idea. It is - just limit yourself to one color. We got a little too ambitious (by mixing 5 colors), had a heat wave roll up on us, and really needed to get it done to take pictures before the storm hit and before we had to leave for fencing class. It made it a little less fun than I'd hoped for, but we'll be doing it again soon because it's fun when it's not 101 degrees out. ;)

Sidewalk Chalk Paint

- 1 part corn starch - The original recipe that I found called for corn flour, but the kind we can get around here is more like cornmeal than corn starch, so we stocked up on cheap corn starch.

- 1 part cold water

- food coloring, LOTS! - We used a mix of traditional and neon food colorings to get the tints and shades we wanted.
- disposable container(s) - We got ours from our awesome neighbors at Little Creek Bar B Cue. (Thanks, Kim and Rich!)

Mix everything thoroughly in a bowl with high sides using your hands - OUTSIDE. Your hands aren't just the best tool for this job - they're really the only thing that works to combine these ingredients. And corn starch can be a little bit like concrete resting on the bottom of the bowl. Dig in, pinch, grind, mix, and slop it everywhere. Doing it outside will save your floors, if not your clothes. ;) The food coloring might not seem to be mixing at first, but keep at it and it'll blend in eventually. I added probably 20 drops to get the really bright yellow, red, and green, but the blues and purples don't require as much food coloring to get a bright, pretty color. You really have to experiment with the colors to get what you want.

Then, use whatever you've got on hand to apply it to your driveway or sidewalks. We tried all sorts of things - brushes, car wash sponges, splashes, hurling clumps, slinging it with our fingers,  stamping with our hands, and dumping it straight onto the pavement. It goes on thin and wet, but dries just like chalk! It's also just fun to play with!

 

You will get messy, your fingers will look tie-dyed, your nails will have corn starch caked under them, but you will have fun!

Chrissi, Cyber School Mom