Toddler Cork Painting

This was another November craft that I never got around to sharing.  I love that this craft included a hand print and some process oriented painting...with corks!  Don't worry, I had these corks saved from a long time ago.  No vino for this prego!  

What You Need:
Paint (brown + 2-3 "fall" leaf colors)
Paint brush
Paper (I used card stock)
Corks (You could use one but I used 3 so I didn't have to wipe off in between)
Paper plate or paint palette
*Optional: Hard surface like a clipboard

How to Make:

1. Using your paint brush, paint your child's hand brown and make a handprint on the top third of your page.  (See right center picture below.)
2. Using the same paint, create a trunk for your tree.  I added a little owl hole by mixing in some black paint.  **I've seen some people paint the entire arm and print that on.  I wasn't brave enough but let me know if you are!
3. While your tree is drying, get your leaf colors ready on your paint palette.  I used red, yellow, and orange.
4. Let your child explore the corks and practice "stamping" with the corks dipped in paint.  Carson did a lot of smearing and dragging so I'm glad I let him practice first!  
5. Once your child starts to get the hang of the corks, dip them in the paint and allow them to add leaves to the tree!  I dipped the corks in the paint for Carson to allow him to focus on one thing at a time.  (And obviously to make less of a mess, who am I kidding?!)

I didn't get any pictures of Carson during the actual painting process because I didn't want to get paint on my camera (been there, done that)!  Here are some of him exploring the corks before practicing though!