Watercolor Wednesday!

Today is a treat! 
Kenai Peninsula 4-H'er, Melanie, will be leading a watercolor zoom party for all Alaska 4-H'ers to join. 

Download zoom here if you don't already have it.  When it's 11 AM, open up zoom, and type in the Zoom meeting: 825-916-1925.

A few helpful hints:

• Take note of the materials list (watercolors, paper, mixing tray, 3 brushes 1/4'' or smaller) and be prepared so that we are all ready to start our project when Melanie starts.
• The meeting room will be open at 10:40 to allow folks to login and get settled.
• Please mute your microphone upon entry into the room.

For those who can't join the zoom but want to have some fun with watercolors, check this out: Make Your Own Watercolors!

Project Discipline: Arts
​Ages: All ages!!
Difficulty level: Easy
Supplies: Baking soda, vinegar, corn starch, corn syrup & food coloring.  You'll also need some bowls and measuring spoons.  Don't forget paper and a paintbrush to test your paints! 

To make the paint (Thanks Martha!)

• In a mixing bowl, mix 4 tablespoons baking soda with 2 tablespoons vinegar until fizzing stops. Add 1/2 teaspoon corn syrup and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Mix until a uniform consistency.
• Pour the mixture into individual egg carton cups, deviled egg holders, mini muffin tins - whatever you've got! - filling each about a third to halfway.
• Add five to 10 drops of food coloring to each cup, mixing in thoroughly, to reach desired colors. (Experiment, we had green, yellow, red and blue food coloring and check out all the colors we got!)
• Allow paints to set overnight. Use paints on watercolor paper with a wet paintbrush.

Note: we followed a set of directions that said freezing the paints would speed up the setting process.  We would NOT recommend doing that. 

Once your paints are set, try them out!  New to watercolor? Check out these tips.
​Hopefully you'll get some awesome watercolor paintings like these 4-Her's did (see below).  Post photos of your paints or of your water color painting on facebook to share with all of our Alaska 4-H'ers! 

Kenai Peninsula 4-H Watercolors

Here's how our paints turned out on paper!