Colored Salt

Here’s a quick way to create a new art medium.  In a jar or baggie, pour in enough regular, table-grade salt to equal the amount of total colored salt you want to end up with.  About a teaspoon at a time, add tempera paint powder.  (If you don’t have paint powder, and you’re in a crunch for time, just smash a small piece of colored chalk into powder.  My prefered method is to put the piece in a plastic baggie and stomp on it.)  Mix the salt and color together thoroughly.  Voila!  You have colored salt!  I use this several ways.  Pour some in a cookie sheet or art tray and let children write in the salt with their fingers (for this, you really want to be scant with the paint powder to reduce the mess factor).  As you can see in the picture, I put some in baby food jars, poked a few holes in the lids and glued them on.  (Those of you who get ideas more than 5 minutes before you need them, could actually go to the store and buy cheap salt shakers, or even collect old spice bottles as you use them up.)  I’ve seen these colored salt shakers used to shake onto glue pictures at the art table and into shaving cream at the sensory table.  I’ve even reconstituted the tempera paint with salt to create a new texture.  The kids really like the bumpy look and feel of their salty paintings!  End up with some colored salt that you don’t need anymore?  Use it to make playdough and you don’t have to add any color! No wonder salt was once used as money in ancient times.  It really is versatile and fun stuff!