Make DIY Paint From Natural Sources
Collect berries, spinach, turmeric, soil, and flower petals to make washable DIY paints using flour or cornstarch binder, then paint with brushes and natural tools.
Step-by-step guide to make DIY paint from natural sources
Step 1
Spread a plastic cover or old newspaper on your table to protect it and set out all your materials.
Step 2
Put each pigment into its own small bowl or jar so berries spinach petals soil and turmeric are separated.
Step 3
Rinse the berries spinach and flower petals under cool running water to clean them.
Step 4
Extract berry color by mashing the rinsed berries in their bowl until lots of juice comes out.
Step 5
Strain the mashed berries through the strainer or cheesecloth into a clean jar to collect the juice.
Step 6
Extract spinach color by chopping the spinach then pressing the chopped leaves in a little water until the water turns green.
Step 7
Strain the green spinach water into a clean jar to collect the pigment.
Step 8
Extract petal color by crushing the petals in a small amount of water until color appears and then strain the petal water into a jar.
Step 9
Make a brown earth color by stirring a small spoonful of clean soil with a little water in a jar until the color is even.
Step 10
Make a turmeric yellow by mixing a tiny pinch of turmeric powder with a little water in a jar to make a bright yellow liquid.
Step 11
Make your binder paste by stirring 1 tablespoon flour or cornstarch into 2 tablespoons cold water until smooth, then with adult supervision heat 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan and whisk in the paste until it thickens; let it cool.
Step 12
Mix a spoonful of the cooled binder into small jars of each pigment juice to make paint and adjust thickness with extra water or a bit more binder until it spreads well.
Step 13
Paint on scrap paper or cardboard using brushes sticks or cotton swabs and let your natural artwork dry.
Step 14
Share a photo of your finished natural paints and your artwork on DIY.org
Final steps
You're almost there! Complete all the steps, bring your creation to life, post it, and conquer the challenge!
Help!?
What can we use if we don't have a strainer, cheesecloth, or small jars?
Use a clean coffee filter, paper towel, or an old clean cotton sock or t-shirt to strain pigments, and repurpose small yogurt cups, baby food jars, or muffin tin cups instead of small jars.
My paint is too watery or too thin—what should I do?
If the paint is too watery, stir in a little more of the cooled binder paste made from the 1 tablespoon flour or cornstarch and 1/2 cup heated water, or mash and add more berries/spinach/petals to concentrate the pigment and re-strain if needed.
How can we adapt the activity for younger or older kids?
For preschoolers skip the heated saucepan step and use ready-made white school glue thinned with a little water while an adult handles the flour/cornstarch binder, and for older kids let them chop, press, strain pigments, and experiment with pigment-to-binder ratios and soil textures.
How can we extend or personalize the paint-making activity?
Extend the project by mixing pigments from the jars to build a color chart, making custom brushes from sticks and feathers, and labeling each jar with the source (berries, spinach, petals, soil, turmeric) and the binder ratio you used.
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Facts about natural pigments and dyes
🥣 A simple flour or cornstarch-and-water paste works as a safe, washable binder to hold your homemade pigment onto paper and wash out with soap.
🍃 Chlorophyll is the green pigment in plants; spinach makes lovely green paints but green from plants is often less colorfast than mineral pigments.
🫐 Many berries (like blueberries and blackberries) get their colors from anthocyanins — they can make purples, reds, and blues and even change color with a little lemon juice or baking soda!
🟫 Soil and clay contain iron oxides (ochres) that create earthy reds, browns, and yellows — ancient artists used these same natural pigments.
🟡 Turmeric makes a super-bright, sunny yellow that has been used as a dye and spice for thousands of years — but it can really stain skin and clothes if you’re not careful.
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