Nature Prints

Welcome to Day 3 of Play Inspired with Nature, a series that I am so excited to be collaborating with Growing A Jeweled Rose on.  We have both been having a blast enjoying Mother Nature with our kids.  So far, we played in the Mud and made amazing mud pies, painted with rain and created magical princess mud puddles.   I am telling you are having a blast! Today we are exploring creative ways to use natural materials as paint.  Crystal is sharing an AMAZING nature inspired texture prints and we tried our hand at creating simple Nature Prints.

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Do you remember as a kid sitting criss-cross in a the grass making dandelion prints on your arm?  It brings bask lots of fun summer memories.  It is too early here to find dandelions, so we decided to try our hand at making prints with other flowers, grass and anything else we could find.

We have tried making prints on paper before, which creates a beautiful print that can be used on a card or framed.  However, this time we decided to switch things up and make prints on stone, tiles and bricks.

    Materials needed:

• Smooth rocks, stones, bricks or the sidewalk.
• A rock or hammer
• Plant materials like grass, leaves, flowers, pedals etc
• Soft rocks or dirt
• Really anything that you can find that will leave a mark:)

The kids gathered all the natural elements they could find in our back yard and set to work.     They were excited to see what different natural dyes they would find in the plants that they collected.

We used rocks to smash our flower pedals and leaves, however you could use a hammer as well.  The kids used a rocking motion or simply rubbed the rock back and forth which seemed to work the best for us.  However, they also used the rocks like hammers as well.  Just be careful of little fingers.

We found it surprising to see what made the best colors.  The bright rose petals left a soft pink glow and some leaves left behind a bright green print.   The plants that worked best for us had bright colors, but were not to juicy or dry.  It was fun playing to see what result each of the plants would create.  That is what this is all about PLAYING with nature.

The tiles that we were using we natural stone as well with a pours surface.  I am not sure how well the process would work on tiles that were shiny or glazed.  

The kids also used a few soft rocks to draw on the surface as well.  They told me that they made their own chalk rocks!  I would love to use clay at some point too.  I think that would add a fun dimension to their artistic pieces.  There is always next time:)

The best part about this process is that you can do it anywhere.  No need to carry around paper, all you need are natural elements a few rocks and you and your kids can create art.

I love the green rock and the simple leaf stamp on the tile.  It was a fun process that I am sure the kids will be doing again soon.  Maybe this summer when there are more bright flowers in bloom.

Have you tried making prints with nature?

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Make sure to stop by Growing A Jeweled Rose and check out Crystals amazing Nature Inspired Texture Paints!  You won’t want to miss this fun painting adventure.  Her daughter created an amazing recipe that is now on our to-do list!

For more exciting outdoor ideas check out Crystals Exploring Nature and Painting too and 200+ Outdoor Nature and Gardening Ideas

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You might also enjoy the learning through movement series being shared by members of:

Gross Motor Phonics Game

I-Spy Neighborhood Walk

Musical Sight Words Game

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