Salt crystal painting

Salt crystal crafts seem to be popping up all over the internet lately. Just in the past week or so, I've run across tutorials for making your own DIY frosted windows, growing snowflakes and icicles in a jar, and making a salt crystal garden.

Baby A. and I decided to make a few tweaks to make this activity a little more toddler friendly, and did a little salt crystal painting one afternoon earlier this week. This craft rules because it's virtually mess free and because you are guaranteed to already have everything you need for it somewhere in your house.



The first step is to mix a salt solution. The perfect ratio is about one part salt to four parts water; we found that three tablespoons of salt in a 1/4 cup of water worked best for us. (We used table salt -- you can also use Epsom salts or borax crystals, though neither of those are safe for eating).

Add the salt to the water a little bit at a time, stirring to dissolve it as completely as possible in between. When the salt stops dissolving in the solution (crystals will be floating on top of the water and will remain at the bottom of your cup), nuke it in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds (it shouldn't be too hot). Stir some more, just to mix everything one final time, then grab some black construction paper, and start painting. For the brightest results, go over your designs a few times.

Lay your paper flat to dry someplace safe and warm while the water evaporates. We left ours on top of the radiators overnight, and in the morning...

Jack Frost had been by for a visit!

Baby A's "snowflake."

We definitely aren't going to win any art awards any time soon, but we had a lot of fun with this easy, wintery craft. Next time, we'll try adding tempera paint and try painting on white paper for a colorful glittery effect.

Have you ever crafted with salt crystals? Tell us about it!