Eco Art: DIY Paint Brush (For Kids and Adult Artists)

Nope, I did not suddenly adopt a child- I just borrowed one for a little while - and her name is Isabella. Isabella is 5 years old and caught onto this project really quickly. We decided to have painting time and make all our own art supplies from things we have around already, by picking poke berries for paint (the Declaration of Independence was written in it) and then making our very own eco paint brushes! I think it is really important for children right now to know that not everything they need has to come from an aisle in walmart, Toys'R-Us, or even an art store for that matter - nature holds the key to many a great invention and definitely way more fun.

What You Need:

• A Stick
• Hair (from a human or horse)
• Rubber band (or string, strip of fabric etc...)
• Knife (optional)

Me and Isabella walked around looking for a good stick to use for the brush handle, choosing whichever size would be easy to hold, or match the kind of brush you like to use when painting. Once ya have your sticks, you have the option of using a knife to wittle down one end to a point - this sometimes makes it easier when trying to paint a finer line.
Take a clump of human or horse hair (hair thick enough to paint with) and hold it to the end of the stick you will want to paint with. Choosing the amount of hair, is just like choosing the brush size.
Simply use your rubber band to hold the hair in place by wrapping it around a few time tightly. You can also use string or cotton fabric to tie it on snug.
Once you have the hair tied on, simply take some scissors to shape the hairy brush head- you can make it flat by cutting straight across, or you can make a fine point by cutting at an angle on each side coming to a point.
This is the face of success.... Isabella made a few paintings on recycled paper and some rocks!I will share more on making natural paints and dyes super soon - cause it is plant dye season!

Xoxooo