Watercolors & Salt

The boys and I recently* made watercolor and salt art “cards” for Mother’s Day, inspired by Meri Cherry’s gorgeously simple Gratitude Boxes.


We didn’t have any watercolor paper on hand, so we used regular white cardstock. I cut out a few squares and taped down the edges, then the boys painted their cardstock with watercolors and sprinkled on some salt dumped the contents of the salt bowl on their art.

Yes, I did let them do that. Over and over and over again. They loved it. And then they learned to peel up the entire piece of cardstock and pour the salt back in the bowl. Pouring skills! Coordination! Teamwork!

The few times they did actually sprinkle the salt, they were delighted to see it “bubble” in the wet paint. The watercolors and salt made a sort of glittery effect when everything was dry. I love how they turned out.

This project was enjoyable enough that my 3-year-old asked to do it again the next day. This time around I let him tape down the edges of the cardstock, which gave the edges a more crookedly rustic look. I think this project is going to be a favorite around here.* We may even try making actual folding note cards like this – they’d make wonderful gifts!

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Have you made watercolor and salt art before? If you try this, I’d love to see your finished creations! Leave a comment below, or tag me on Instagram (@nodeskrequired).

*This post was previously published in 2016 and we’ve re-visited this process multiple times, shared it with friends, and even utilized it for our Christmas cards one year (stay tuned for a post on those). I’d say it’s in our Simple Process Art Top Ten!