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    Painters Tape Kids Flag Art

    June 14, 2013 |

    Your kids have probably been off school for a week or two, and you're probably reaching the point where you're getting bored. If you don't have school age kids then you're probably way past this point. Looking for something fun to do? Make them make you some patriotic artwork. 😉 It should take a few hours, and you will get messy.

    This idea has been in my head for a few weeks now and I'm glad we finally made it. Last year my kids helped to make abstract artwork with painters tape lines, and it's still one of my favorite projects. I love having little bits of them throughout our home,  I want them to know that and see their work. When I saw the stripes, it reminded me of a flag, and here we are. A simple project to beat summer boredom and slap some patriotic décor up on those walls.

    'Merica.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Materials Needed

    -blank canvas (don't buy one new, get it at Goodwill and apply Kilz primer)
    -painters' tape, 1" or 1.5" wide works best
    -craft paint in reds, pinks, and oranges
    -craft paint in blues and greens
    -star stickers
    -brushes, paper plates
    -a kid (optional)

     

    Instructions:

    first, you'll take a blank canvas and tape it:

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Taping is the trickiest part of this project, but it wasn't that bad. Keep in mind that the parts where you have tape are where the artwork will be WHITE. Here's how to tape it:

    • Keep a tiny flag or picture of a flag nearby. Study it. Get to know and love it.
    • There are 13 stripes: 7 stripes next to the blue star area, 8 on the bottom.
    • Measure how tall your canvas/flag is, then divide that by 13. That's how big each stripe will need to be, mine were 1" and some change so I used 1" painters tape.
    • Start from the bottom, leave one white strip on the bottom and add three green strips of tape.
    • Now measure how wide your canvas/flag is across, divide by two, and place a vertical piece of tape to section off the rectangle area.
    • Add three more strips of tape on the right side to finish your striped area.
    • Cover the square blue star area. (We didn't, but I can't tell you how many times I had to say "don't paint the square".

    Once your tape is done, put your red, orange, and pink paints on a paper plate and paint away! Don't tell them what to do or do it yourself.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Let me say it again, 'cause I don't think you were listening.

    Don't tell them what to do!

    Let your kids do their thing. White space is okay, painting one whole stripe orange is okay. I fought myself to keep quiet and did say "oh, don't forget that spot!" a few times, but you'll be pleasantly surprised with what your kid does. Lily's is more ombre looking, Ben's has a lot of white space and looks distressed. Let. Them. Do it.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    We didn't finish taping off the star area, but you should. An extra minute of work and few pieces of tape will save you from saying "don't paint the square yet" a dozen times or so. 😉

    When that's done, immediately take the tape off, wash your brushes, and let it dry a bit.

    See the flag? You want a white stripe BELOW the blue, so tape that off. Put another piece of tape at the border of the blue part, right along where your red stripe starts.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Take your star stickers and give them to your kid. Again,

    don't tell them what to do!

    Phew, I really struggled this time. I wanted to tell them to put them all over, I really did. And I tried a few times. But my kids are stubborn like me and wanted to do their thing and I'm so glad they did. Lily's has a 1776 flag sort of feel.

    You do want to help when they're done and press the stars down REALLY well.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Fill up a plate with a few different blue and green paints, and let them paint the rectangle. Keep your mouth shut. 😉

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    because HOLY COW, didn't they do an amazing job?! You'll be glad you let them do their thing, even if they did get some paint on the red part.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    Wait 15-30 minutes, then start taking the stars off with tweezers. The stickers bled a bit, if you have vinyl and a cutter that might be a bit more crisp, but this worked well enough for us!

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    The coolest part was seeing how they turned out, and what it said about their personality.

    Here is the one my 3 year old, Ben, made. More white space, more uniform color since he mixed his paint together. It looks distressed and rustic.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    And this one is by my four year old, Lily. She applied each color separately, wanted her stars in a "circle square", and was a bit more precise with covering the white space. I like how it looks ombre at the bottom.

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    I hung one on the fridge and one in the foyer, below. If either grandma is reading this, feel free to take dibs on which one you want. We want to make more!

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    here's that long pinnable graphic you might want, so you don't lose this post:

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

    whatcha think? want to make a flag now?

    make a flag with painters tape, paint, and stickers! great project for kids

     

    linking up to Tatertots & Jello and I Heart Naptime

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Megan

      July 03, 2014 at 4:16 pm

      I see some grandparent gifts in our very near future! My USAF veteran dad will love this!

    2. Ann Marie Heasley

      December 20, 2013 at 3:52 pm

      awww, he would love it! Great idea 🙂

    3. Hilary

      June 26, 2013 at 9:29 am

      Such a cute idea! I love it.

    4. Katie

      June 17, 2013 at 8:33 pm

      Super cute and great way to get the kiddos creating art and having fun!

    5. Tricia

      June 15, 2013 at 10:33 pm

      Love these! I have some canvases that have been sitting in my closet for months, and some kiddos who would love to paint this summer! Thanks for the idea!

    6. Frani W.

      June 15, 2013 at 6:07 pm

      This is one of the cutest ideas for kids I've seen all summer!!! Educational and fun! These turned out so good! Talented children you have there! Thank you for sharing.

    7. Megan

      June 14, 2013 at 9:36 pm

      They turned out fabulous. I think you should keep it hanging in the entryway. Pottery Barn ain't go nothing on you 😉

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