My little guy and I painted using some fern fronds, cedar needles (?) and leaves we collected on a walk recently. They make for a fun way to keep ‘interacting’ with nature and created a birthday card for grandma and easy art piece for our home.  My guy is more of the mess making age (under 2) vs. art making but we still had a good time together and our final products met the mark. Have fun collecting a few bits and pieces on your next walk, just do it respectfully!

Supplies

• leaves, pinecones, flowers, sticks, grass
• paint
• paper or cardstock
• brushes
• tape

Instructions

• We first taped down the nature bits to a piece of paper, either double sided or doubled up, and then painted over the top.
• Start painting !

• You can also take the leaf off after painting its online and press the painted side down on a new piece of paper.

• Also, try making your own paint brushes. We taped some leaves, but grass etc would work, onto the end of brush, but a stick or pencil would work, to make a unique implement for more painting, or in our case mess making.