Welcome to cabin fever season! Between illnesses and freezing cold temperatures, we Chicagoans are spending a ton of time indoors right now. Which means trying to keep the kids entertained. At this point, I’ve collected a whole arsenal of cheap and fun activities — everything from Fizzy Rainbow Science Experiments to Bubblewrap Hopscotch — but one of my absolute favorites when the kids are sick or on the verge of a meltdown is to stick them in the tub with some Homemade Bath Paints.
My kids have always been calmed and soothed by water so if they are in a crummy mood (or fighting a fever), a bath is a great way to chill them out. And nothing beckons them to the bathroom quite like these foamy, colorful Homemade Bath Paints.
Luckily, they are really, really easy to make using a couple of items you probably have sitting in your house right now. Just grab your kid’s favorite bath wash or shower gel (we’re particularly fond of ALDI Kid’s 3-in-1 but literally any bath wash should work). Then grab a few bottles of food coloring (Btw, if you have kids, you should ALWAYS have food coloring on hand. Seriously I can think of at least 10 things you can do with food coloring to keep your kids busy…but that sounds like another post…). Then you need an electric mixer or a whisk, a big bowl and a little bit of water. Plus some smaller bowls or a muffin tin and paint brushes. Thats it.
How to Make Homemade Bath Paints:
To make your paints, all you need to do is squirt about 7 or 8 pumps of bath wash into your bowl. Add about 3 tablespoons of water and start whisking it. You can use an electric mixer or a hand mixer to make the process go faster. Just keep whipping until the mixture is foamy and frothy…sort of the same consistency as egg whites in the soft peaks stage. Now divide it between your smaller bowls and add food coloring. Voila!
Homemade Bath Paints!
These keep my kids busy for at least 15 or 20 minutes at a time. Long enough to completely change their mood, fight a fever or just burn a little bit of a long day indoors.
Plus, since their made with bath wash, they rinse away pretty quickly. We’ve tried store-bought bath paints before and I’ve been left with grout and tile that looks like a crime scene. This stuff doesn’t do that. Thank goodness.
So what are you waiting for! Grab your paints and hit the tub!
