Q-tip and Finger Painting Letters on Canvas

I've seen this technique all over Pinterest lately, and was really excited to give it a try!

I think this project is a cool way to practice letter recognition, and is appropriate for both the infant and toddler crowd.

Place the masking tape on the paint surface (I used a canvas board because I wanted the extra stability, and ease of removing the tape). Also, Ethan was surprised by the texture on the canvas, and thought it was pretty cool!

You can purchase canvas board for $1-2 in the art department of your local art or craft store. Then of course Ethan went to town painting. To add an bit of extra fun, I gave him Q-Tips to use (use your judgement as to when your child is ready to try this technique). He was very interested in the difference between a line painted with the Q-Tip and a line painted with his finger. On this particular day, he preferred the Q-tip. You can see he was very thoughtful about his painting!

After the paint dried, I carefully removed the tape and hot glued a piece of ribbon on the back for hanging. Ethan now has a new personalized piece of artwork for his wall!

We also did an abstract painting using the same technique. This time, I tore off pieces of tape and let Ethan apply them to the paper. Of course, masking tape is a lot like stickers, so to a toddler, it was super fun! This time we just used printer paper, and I was surprised that the tape came off better than I expected. Makes for some great abstract artwork.

How have you used making tape in a painting project? What about other methods for painting letters?