Tips For Painting With Toddlers

Last updated on March 6th, 2024

Inside: How to paint with a toddler – everything you need to know to start creating cute keepsakes together. I will provide clear step by step set up instructions that will reduce clean up time so you can enjoy the process together.

When the weather has been crummy all week and we have been going stir-crazy from being stuck in the house, I like to choose a fun painting activity to break up the monotony.

Painting activities might feel a little overwhelming if you’ve never done one with a toddler before because of the obvious mess that paint creates, but this fool-proof set up makes cleaning a breeze so you’ll be able to create some fun painting keepsakes with your little one and let them have some creative play.

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Things that you need for this activity are:

• A table
• An art smock or old baggy shirt
• Kraft paper and masking tape
• Paintbrushes or sponges
• Fingerpaint Paper +/- Keepsake Paper (Cardstock)
• Crayola Washable paint
• Old washcloth
• Optional: old sheet or drop cloth if activity table is over carpet/rug

1. Gather All Of Your Supplies

I like to store all of our painting supplies in one location so that on craft days, I can grab the art bin and get the activity going quickly. The last thing you want to do is spend 20 minutes searching for art supplies just to end with your toddler running out of patience for the set up before it even begins.

My son is pretty good about being patient and understands the set up process by now, since he’s seen it done so many times and from a young age, but you can absolutely set things up in advance when your toddler isn’t around, if that is easier for you. Over time though, they should learn the routine involved in set-up and hopefully will be patient for you.

So gather your supplies and bring everything to your crafting area. For us, we use my dining room table. This works for us because my table is naturally distressed looking, wipes down easily, and has no carpet or rugs underneath it – just laminate flooring. So it’s all very easy to clean up and won’t be hurt by paint.

If your table is suuuuper fancy (like my parent’s Amish-made wooden table), I would recommend doing craft activities elsewhere. This paint does wipe off with water easily, but it’s not worth the risk if you’ve got really fancy stuff! You don’t want to run the risk of getting upset if something is spilled or be nervous about mess the whole time. The key is to relax with this activity. A kid’s activity table or picnic table could easily work in this instance.

2. Cover Your Table, Floor, and Chair

Begin by cutting out Kraft paper from a roll to cover the surface of one end of your table. I leave the edges a little longer so I can fold the paper down over the sides of the table, especially where my toddler will sit. Tape each side down. I like using painter’s tape for this because it peels off easily.

I leave a plastic booster seat set up where my toddler will craft. It’s easy to wipe down and I won’t be mad if paint gets on it anyway. If you’ve got a cloth booster pad on the chair, put an old towel down overtop to protect it.

If you’ve got rugs or carpeting underneath your table, I’d roll them up or lay an old sheet or drop cloth down to protect them from inevitable spills.

3. Choose Paper, Brushes, and Paint Colors

Now you can choose which type, size, and color paper you want. I use thicker white paper for keepsake crafts and colorful construction paper when we are just messing around.

Next, choose which brushes to use. I usually just give my toddler the first handful I find, but will use specific ones for the finishing touches that I add to keepsake crafts, such as the lettering, so I set these aside for myself.

Lastly, choose your paint colors. My toddler is just starting to approach the age where he will call out for a certain color, but in the early days, I’d just choose a few at random for him. When I’m doing a keepsake craft, I choose specific colors and I set those aside for that purpose.

4. Complete the Set–Up

Now the last part of set-up depends if you’re doing a keepsake craft or just for fun painting. I’ll walk you through both.

For Just For Fun Painting:

Lay a piece of paper in front of your toddler’s spot with brushes near and squirt a few globs of different paint colors on the Kraft paper near their piece of paper.

Here, I’ve set up a spot for my son. Multiple brushes, globs of different colors, and paper. My kiddo will often paint on the Kraft paper too so I don’t worry about taping down his white paper most times.

For Keepsake Crafts:

Do the above set up but also set up a section removed from your toddler that only you can access. Squirt globs of colors specific to your keepsake craft and have separate clean paper off to the side with something sturdy underneath the paper, such as a cutting board or cookie sheet. You will complete the keepsake while they are distracted and busy doing their just-for-fun painting.

Here, you can see my toddler’s set up to the left, my set up for the keepsake off to the right where he can’t touch.

5. Begin Painting

Once you’re all set up, you can simply put the art smock on your toddler, plop them into the booster seat, and let them have fun!

If it is their first time painting, you can demonstrate what to do a few times or show them hand over hand how to paint. They’ll catch on quickly though!

Sit back and let them explore the activity on their own. Be sure to applaud behaviors that you want to enforce, such as, “good job coloring on paper” and try to redirect unwanted behaviors, such as, “brushes are for paper, not our mouth, can you show me how to color on paper?” Also, compliment them, “wow, what a beautiful painting! You’re such a good painter!”. They will burst with pride.

Don’t be afraid to really let your little one touch the paint and get messy. I’ve had times when my toddler’s face is covered in paint somehow or another. Each time is different, sometimes he doesn’t get it anywhere but his hands and the paper but other times he really goes to town, so I just roll with it. It is just paint and it’ll wash off. This sort of sensory exploration is so good for them.

6. Keepsake Crafts

I’m big on keepsake crafts. I love creating them together and giving them as gifts to grandparents or other family members. I know that I’ll like to hold on to some of them and, when he’s all grown up, reminisce about the fun mommy-and-me craft days we had when he was little. (Now I’m sad just thinking about this).

Pinterest is full of ideas for cute handprint and footprint crafts. Those are my go-to type of keepsake ideas for toddlers. You can turn just about anything into a handprint or footprint with some creativity.

We did this keepsake craft for Mother’s Day. It turned out really cute and we had fun creating it.

The best way that I’ve found for creating these is having the table set up as previously mentioned and, while your toddler is busy painting atop the table, sneak underneath the table and paint their feet and stamp them onto paper held sturdy with a small cutting board underneath.

I always stamp 2-3 copies, that way if we mess up, we’ve got a backup and if we make 2 good ones, we can keep one and send one to Grandma. 

After I complete the footprint, I will use an old wet washcloth and wipe the paint right off his feet.

Afterward, I move on to the handprints. I will make sure I have given him colors for his just-for-fun-painting within my keepsake craft color scheme if I need handprints – but you could just as easily wipe their hands down prior to getting your print.

I talk him through what I’m doing as I use a brush paint on his hand and press it onto our paper. Again, I typically will do 2-3 different papers in case of a mishap or to give duplicates as gifts. He loves this step and always tries to mimic me and paints his own hands.

Afterward, I let him continue free-painting while I do any finishing touches, such as writing a cute little phrase, signing his name/date, or adding a face or something to the craft to complete it.

Set your finished keepsake somewhere safe and out of reach to dry. Once it’s completely dry, have your toddler give it to Grandma as a gift and she will just melt at how cute it is.

We hang our keepsakes on our art rack in the playroom and my little one never misses an opportunity to proudly show off his collection to anyone that will look.

This is our St. Patrick’s Day / Easter / Spring artwork from this year. I got the cute rack on Etsy and it’s perfect for displaying everything we create.

7. Clean-Up

Clean up… ahh the dreaded paint clean up. I promise, it isn’t bad! I do the clean up in 3 steps.

• 1. Carefully carry your toddler to the sink and wash their hands (and face if needed) and remove the art smock. Place the smock in the sink for cleaning later. Set your toddler down and ask them to play quietly or hand them clean brushes to play with while you clean up the rest.
  • **If your toddler gets crazy messy, a bath is always an option!
• 2. Roll the Kraft paper up into a ball and toss it in the garbage. Wipe down any paint spots that missed the paper with an old wet wash cloth. Wipe down the booster seat, if needed.
• 3. Rinse out the brushes, art smock, and old washcloth. I put the smock and washcloth in the laundry after rinsing most of the paint off and let the brushes dry in the sink rack.

That’s it. All done. Clean up is quicker than set up, honestly. There’s been a few times where paint has gotten under the smock onto his pants but almost always, after rinsing in the sink and sending it to the laundry, it has come out.

We had one time where red paint stained his light blue jammies for a few weeks until the wash diluted it over time. Always paint in older clothes to avoid any upset over stains. The washable paint truly does come out pretty great though.

Learn As You Go

Use your first few experiences and learn from them to make the activity more enjoyable. I’ve learned and tweaked things throughout our time such as doing the hand and feet print immediately upon starting before their attention span wanes or before they become super messy.

I’ve also learned that I’m totally okay with paint mess. I thought I’d struggle with it, being a clean freak, but I’ve found it to be so much fun to watch my son explore creatively and make something that he can be proud of. I’ve also found that it absolutely ‘resets’ the both of us when we are bored, frustrated, or in a funk. We are always in such a cheerful mood afterward.

Maybe you will both enjoy painting too! Let me know what cute creations you are your toddler have painted lately by leaving a comment below. Be sure to check out these craft ideas for more creative play with your little one.