After we experimented with our first bleeding tissue paper art, I knew Lovey was excited to try it again with different colors. Tinker also wanted to participate, so I set up another invitation to create while we were still home sick. Using fall colors the girls created beautiful art. We used the finished products to make fall tree crafts.
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I set the same basic invitation up for Lovey using large pieces of tissue paper that she could tear herself.
Tinker was still very sick, and I knew she wouldn’t have the patience or energy to tear all of the paper. Instead I precut her paper into smaller squares that she could just lay on the paper. This did eliminate some of the fine motor practice.
Materials
- Bleeding Art Tissue-Regular tissue paper will not work. The package must say “bleeding art tissue.” We used red, yellow, and orange for this craft.
- Watercolor Paper
- Spray bottle filled with water
- Work surface-We used cardboard.
- Small piece of cardboard to create each trunk
- Fork
Please be sure to visit the original tutorial from Bloom Bake Create for some great tips and additional details.
Right away Lovey got started tearing and decorating.
Tinker loves to use the spray bottle, so she was delighted with this step!
I mentioned in our initial tissue paper art post that we patted down the wet tissue paper with bare hands. There was a bit of a stain for the rest of the day. Lovey didn’t feel like getting messy again, so this time we place a piece of wax paper over top of the tissue paper before patting it down. It protected her hands for the most part as long as we didn’t press down for too long saturating the wax paper. You could also experiment with other barriers if you have an anti-mess kid like me.
We took a break and waited for the tissue paper to dry.
One of the best parts of this activity is seeing the girls’ faces each time they remove the dried bits of paper to show the beautiful colors underneath. After we admired the details of each masterpiece we trimmed the edges of the paper to make it look like the top of a tree.
I cut a trunk out of a scrap piece of cardboard. Then the girls used forks to create a textured bark look like we did in our T is for Tree Letter Craft. Tinker especially loved this part of the activity, but I did supervise her closely to make sure she didn’t poke herself.
Aren’t they gorgeous? The finished fall tree crafts makes a bright fall decoration for our playroom. Check back tomorrow to see one more craft we made using the bleeding tissue paper technique.
Get a Full Week of Tree Theme Learning and Play
Save time and get right to the playful learning with our printable lesson plan sets. Each set includes over 30 playful learning activities related to the theme, and we’ve provided different versions for home preschool families and classroom teachers so all activities are geared directly toward your needs.
Explore the signs and symbols of fall with hands-on activities and fully developed fall theme lesson plans. Watch this short video to see just a few examples of the types of activities and printables included in this set:
This set includes active hands-on learning ideas and the following printables:
1) Uppercase and Lowercase Alphabet Matching Tree Activity
2) Colorful Trees Sorting Mats
3) Tree Color Word Building Mats
4) Tree Addition Game
5) Tree Beginning Sound Sort (for sounds /t/, /r/, and short /e/)
6) Tree Dice Game
7) Uppercase Tree Alphabet Cards
8) Lowercase Fruits, Seeds, and Flowers Alphabet Cards
9) 0-35 Tree Number Cards
10) Shape Cards (for hands-on shape activities)
11) Tree Word Family Sort (for -an, -op, -it, and -ug)
Jessica
These are so beautiful! I found them on pinterest and I’m going to have to give them a try! I wondered if you’d be willing to let me link to this post in a fall kids craft round up I’m putting together on my blog. If I could link to it and use one of your pictures, it’d be great!
Thanks!
Jessica
Shaunna Evans
Thanks so much, Jessica! Yes, you can definitely include a link and one photo to any of the fall posts you like in your round-up. Can’t wait to see your collection!
Alisha
You can do this using just about any type of tissue paper (the cheapest worked best) if you just replace the water with white vinegar. It isn’t the best smelling but it works amazingly well. And it’s natural. I work in a toddler classroom and we use this method often. We have had some really amazing results. We especially love using pinks and blues and purples. The colors come out very bright and saturated.
Shaunna Evans
That is great to know, Alisha! We have TONS of regular tissue paper. We’ll have to give it a try soon. Thanks so much for sharing.
Kim @ The Educators' Spin On It
Thanks for sharing in the After School Linky Party! I love how the colors turned out with the trees. You’ve been featured this week in a Roundup of Halloween Activities!
Shaunna Evans
Thanks so much for featuring us!
Anna@The Measured Mom
Beautiful projects! Thanks so much for linking up at After School.
Debbie @ http://kidsbibledebjackson.blogspot.com/
I love this idea! Pinned it and will use it! Thanks for sharing at TGIF!
Shaunna
So glad you like it! Have fun!
Deb
Another great activity. Thanks for posting it. The fork-lined details on the tree trunk are perfect!
Shaunna
Thank you, Deb! I love how this technique worked for the tree crafts…so glad you enjoyed it, too!
Kristan Price
This is lovely! We have a large stash of tissue paper, so we will have to try this!! We have only ever tried activities like this with coffee filters/paper and washable markers.
Shaunna
Just make sure you’re using “bleeding art” tissue paper. I tried with regular paper and it definitely doesn’t work. ๐ Have fun!
Carla
Hi, Shaunna,
These are absolutely stunning! I made sure to pin the idea immediately!! I wonder what it would look like to try it on a pumpkin shape with green tissue for the stem & leaves??????? Thank you for the inspiration. Love your blog and your creative ideas!
Carla M.
Shaunna
That’s an awesome idea, Carla! Maybe we’ll give that a try, too. Thanks so much for pinning.
Missy
My kids love anything with a spray bottle! We’re definitely going to have to try this one! Thanks for sharing!
Shaunna
My kids, too! Pretty much any activity with a spray bottle is bound to be a hit around here! Hope your kids have fun trying this activity!
Sarah @ How Wee Learn
I love these fall trees! It is so wonderful when crafts kids love to make end up looking beautiful! Hope you all feel better soon
Shaunna
I love when process and product come together so nicely, too! We’re FINALLY all healthy…and so thankful. Thank you!