We are always being asked how to make yogurt paint so I thought I’d show you just how we do it around here. Making baby safe paint is super easy using two ingredients, yogurt and food coloring. We use it weekly for art play group. The colors always come out beautiful and vibrant and did I mention it’s sooooo easy??!!!
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First, enlist the help of your favorite ballerina. If you don’t have a bejeweled little girl obsessed with tutus around, a regular child will do just fine : ) Have ready, a tub of plain or vanilla yogurt, a spoon or two, some food coloring
We go through an insane amount of food coloring around here. I don’t know when I am going to learn to buy it in bulk. I am constantly running over to our local grocery store to pick more up. It’s some sort of weird mental block I have. Anyway, you can find food coloring
Once you you’ve squeezed in a few food coloring drops into each container than you just mix it up with the spoon. Kids love to do pretty much all the steps, but mixing is a favorite. I encourage Gigi to mix up the food coloring as she drops it in the yogurt so we can get a really nice variety of colors. It’s a great color theory lesson too.
Of course it’s very important to do a little paint tasting as you go.
And that’s it folks! Super easy right? Yes, there is a slightly bigger mess than when you do it yourself, but you can do it outside and it’s super fun for kids, so I think it’s worth it. We’ve used yogurt paint for… Our Painting Wall A Plexiglass Painting Easel Toddler Disco Feet Painting Balloon Painting and just plain old painting on paper. However you use it, have fun!
I had never thought using yoghurt in painting, what a perfect idea!! Thanks for teaching an easy way for this. I find your whole website too inspiring, creative and very well designed. Good work, thanks (from my baby son and me 🙂 )
Beyza, thank you so much!! I really appreciate your kind words. Have fun with the paint!
Food Coloring is not something I would use ,it is made from toxins and horrible for the body. Try a natural dye fruit or vegetable puree. Beets, spinach, blueberries or Indian tree makes natural dyes.
Thanks for the suggestion : )
Great idea! Could you post a picture or describe what it looks like dry? How long does it take to dry? Thanks!
Hi Amy. If you scroll down on this post you will see a clear pic of the yogurt paint on our painting wall. It dries pretty quickly, especially in the sun. We used it on paper and it dried just like regular paint, with no odor. It’s really fun to use it on transparency paper too. Here’s the link. Hope this helps. http://www.mericherry.com/2014/04/27/10-art-activities-toddlers/
Kids of been eating paint chips for years why are you giving them more ideas
ha : )
As someone with a friend with some pretty damaged Lead poisoned kids I’m not sure that “the kids have been eating paint chips for years” is like, HaHa Funny. And if we move on from the seriously disturning neurotoxicity of lead, we find the seriously disturbing nurotoxicity of food dye. So much so that that red food dye you picture is illegal in Europe. For a reason. I know beets and cabage are a drag, but so are learning disabilities. So are kids who lack impulse control, and math tutors are expensive. We can’t make direct connections, but theres so much suggestive evidence to say this is harming those very kids pictured, that a little precaution is in order I think.
I love this idea & did it with my little boy today. I just wondered how do you stop the painting going mouldy once dry do you have to spray it with anything?
Thanks