Fun Rock Painting Ideas for Kids

People are leaving small painted rocks all over the place to give others a chance to find a small treasure. These rocks form a connection between two people who have never met, kind of like a message in a bottle. Help your child make and enjoy painted rocks with these fun rock painting ideas for kids.

Decorating rocks is a great activity to teach kids about painting, art, and kindness. Decorated rocks make great gifts for grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and teachers. Kindness rocks are a way kids can give back to their community and brighten someone’s day.

How To Get Started With Painting Rocks

Getting started is as easy as finding reasonably flat stones, cleaning up, and getting the supplies on hand. You can look online to get thousands of ideas for inspiration and pick a design. You can also just make up your own design. The awesome thing about painting rocks is you can do whatever kind of design you want. Get creative with it. Some people like to let the shape of the rock inspire the design. Others know what they want to paint and look for a rock that will work. Either approach is fine!

How To Pick The Perfect Stone For Painting

You might be able to find stones for rock painting right in your backyard. Landscaping rocks or rocks from a creek bed might be exactly what you are looking for. If you don’t have access to smooth, relatively flat stones in nature, you can purchase rocks for painting on Amazon and get them within a couple of days. The perfect stone will be small and easy to hold. I like to find a rock that fits in the palm of my hand when I close my fist. It will also be smooth so it takes paint easily.

How To Clean Your Stone Ready For Painting

Before you start painting, you need to make sure your rocks are clean and thoroughly dry. To clean your rocks, I recommend using a mild dish detergent and a scrub brush. If you purchased rocks, a quick rinse to remove dust will be sufficient. Once they are clean you will need to let them dry completely before painting. Use the hot sun to your advantage and place the rocks on a deck rail, porch swing, or sidewalk in the sun to dry.

What To Use To Paint Your Rocks

You’ll need to get paint and sealer on Amazon or at your local craft store. Depending on which paint option you choose you may or may not need brushes.

What Paint Do You Use On Rocks?

A variety of supplies will work for painting rocks, but some work better than others. I like to use acrylic paint pens because I’m much better at drawing and coloring than I am with a paintbrush. Paint pens work basically like markers once you shake them up. Acrylic paint can be rinsed off the rock with soap and water if you make a mistake and need to start over. In my opinion, acrylic is the best paint to use for this application.

Are Sharpies Good For Rock Painting?

As you know if you’ve ever run a marked item through the dishwasher, Sharpie markers are not really permanent. If you want your design to last the best option is acrylic paint and sealer. If you can’t get ahold of anything else, you can add a temporary design with Sharpies for fun.

What To Put On Painted Rock To Seal Them?

Once you finish painting you’ll need to seal the rock if you want your design to last. Apply a clear coat of acrylic varnish to the surface of the rock after the paint has dried completely. I like to get a spray.

How Do You Paint Simple Rocks? Rock Painting Ideas You’ll Love.

The best way to paint simple rocks is to keep your designs very basic. You can use painter’s tape of varying widths to create stripes. You can use removable stickers to create simple shapes like hearts or stars. Limit the number of colors if you are trying to keep it simple.

If you want to use multiple colors, start with the bottom layer and add one layer at a time allowing each layer to dry thoroughly in between. Dark colors will need to go on last. Use a thin tip black paint pen to outline your design once you are finished. Get inspired with these ideas!