DIY Watercolor Paint – Recycle Old Markers!

Paint Made from Recycled Markers _ Steeping in Progress _ Abbie Ulstad _ GGH

Have old, dried-out markers? Don’t throw them away! Make this DIY watercolor paint for kids instead!

Markers are a supply that kids seem to fly through. Are you finding yourself with a pile of used markers that you don’t know what to do with?

Don’t throw your old, dried-out markers away! Instead, use them to make your own watercolor paints!

This DIY is easy and a great way to reduce your waste. Here’s how we did it.

Supplies:

  • Old washable markers
  • Jars with lids, one for each color of paint
  • Water
  • Paintbrushes
  • Heavy drawing paper

Directions:

  1. Sort your washable markers by color. You can group markers with like-colors or chose to mix hues.
  2. Place the groups of markers into jars, tip-side down and caps removed.
  3. Fill each jar with enough water to entirely submerge the tips of the markers.
  4. Allow the markers to soak in the water for 12-24 hours.
  5. Remove the markers from the jars, leaving a beautiful watercolor paint behind.
  6. Use your brushes and paper to paint away! When you are finished creating, store the jars of watercolor paints with the lids on.
DIY Paint with Recycled Markers_ Material Flat Lay _ Abbie Ulstad _ GGH
DIY Paint with Recycled Markers _ Pouring Step _ Abbie Ulstad _ GGH
Paint Made from Recycled Markers _ Steeping in Progress _ Abbie Ulstad _ GGH
Paint Made from Recycled Markers _ Jar Being Held _ Abbie Ulstad _ GGH

Looking for another DIY art recipe? Check out this blog post on creating paint from coffee grounds or this blog post on creating oven-bake clay from scratch.

Needing an art project to use this beautiful paint on? Check out this lesson plan on creating watercolor birds. This easy art project for kids even has a literary tie-in!

Happy creating, friends!

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