Recycle an old credit card or gift card to make this DIY paint scraper for kids. Create interesting textures & patterns with this easy process art activity!

Do you have a used gift card or an old credit card hidden in your wallet? If you do you have exactly what you need to make this DIY paint scraper for kids. These are so easy and such a fun, satisfying process for kids of any age!

Enjoy the process…

Process art focuses on the joy of making rather than working to create something with a predetermined outcome. “Crafts” tend to break a project up into specific steps that result in a specific end product. Craft activities are fine and can actually serve a multitude of purposes. There is a time and place for crafts but today is not that day.

Today is a day for making something from nothing. Today is for think about helping your little artist enjoy squirting paint onto paper, squishing the brush into a pile of paint, and creating mesmerizing textured with their homemade paint scraper.

Enjoy the simple processes. Let the end product be what it will. Art should be fun and removing worry about the end product brings the fun! Don’t be afraid to try simple process art activities like this one with big kids. Too often we save this fun stuff for our youngest artists. Big kids, even adults, will enjoy this activity just as much as the little ones.

No pressure activities like this one are often an easy way to “hook” kids that think they are definitely “not an artist.”

DIY paint scraper for kids…

This part is quick and easy. Use an old gift card or credit card and snip bits and pieces out of one edge. The shapes that you cut out and remove don’t really matter. What matters is the pieces that are left. Those remaining pieces will create the patterns in the paint. Removing tiny pieces close together will make a much different pattern than larger, evenly spaced chunks as pictured above.

You may want to make more than one paint scraper so you can create more than one texture!

And, if you just prefer spending money you can buy paint scrapers for kids straight from the good ole’ world wide web. These may look a bit prettier but, I assure you, this DIY paint scraper for kids will do the exact. Same. Thing.

Set the stage…

All of the samples done these pics use this tempera paint made just for kids. I love it because the colors are so great. (It can be hard to find a wide variety of colors in tempera paint.) And, it’s washable, which is nice.

Set the stage with something to cover your table so your kids (and you) don’t ruin the fun by being too careful. We used one of these big silicone craft mats. I love this thing because it is big enough to contain a big paper plus supplies. Use newspaper, or whatever you have available. Just make sure you can spread out and have fun without worrying about a mess.

Painting with a homemade paint scraper….

The idea here is pretty basic- apply paint then scrape it off. We tried lots of different takes on this simple process but I’ll start with the simplest. Squeeze bits of paint onto plain white paper and used a scraper to spread them about. This is a more sparse look that results in more white background, depending on how much paint is distributed the first time around!

The second, and also super simple, idea is to use a brush to cover the paper in paint. Then use a DIY paint scraper to scrape paint away. I love adding this little extra step because it means little to white space is left on the paper which makes my art teacher heart happy!

Creating multiple layers…

Perhaps my most favorite way to use this paint scraper for kids is to build multiple layers of paint and then scrape off the top layer, revealing the layer beneath.

There’s no right or wrong way to do this. It’s an art after all, not a science. The big idea to remember here is whatever color touches the paper first is what will soak in. Colors laid on top of that first ayer are what will get scraped off. That doesn’t mean there won’t be some mixing but it is the general principle to how this works.

My favorite process is to paint the paper and let it dry for a few minutes before painting over top of it with a contrasting layer of paint. Then, while the second layer of paint is still wet, scrape a pattern into it. The base layer will be revealed creating a a lot of interest and movement.

What to do with all this amazing textured paper…

This paper is a work of art all its own. Lay it under a book or two to flatten out and hang it in a place of honor.

I also love repurposing artwork into, you guessed it, new artwork! Textured paper like this is amazing to add interest to a basic weaving project like this one or this one or to add interest to a collage!