At the weekend we had so much fun printing paper with water, paint and oil. This type of effect is called marbling and is as messy as you want it to be. I have seen the adult version done on a TV program recently with oil paints, but unfortunately oils are not the best material to use with children as they need to be mixed with solvents. With the correct precautions they can be used with older children, but you can have a similar effect by mixing acrylic paint with oil to have a perfect oily colour that will not mix with water and is perfectly safe.

For this marbling activity you need a large bowl filled with water, paints – we used the primary colours – oil and paper. We mixed the paints with the oil creating a smooth oily blend and we splashed the paint at random in the water with a brush. Then we passed the paper on the surface of the bowl very quickly without letting any water on the back of the sheet of paper. We made lots of patterns adding colours every time and then we put the paper outside to dry. Try to use different coloured paper as well as white for better results.

Happily shared with Kids Get Crafty.