How To Use Kosher Salt To Make Patterns On Painted Paper
With the holiday of Succot now behind us and Chanukah coming in eight weeks, now is a great time to start thinking about Chanukah, as planning and creating ahead of time means you can fill your home with light and joy, which is really what it is all about. I’d also recommend taking stock of the supplies, however basic, you have on hand and using those, (note to self) as that is one way to light the creative flame! Okay, I really wanted to tell you about a little discovery I made a few weeks ago regarding creating texture with kosher salt. Making your own patterned paper is a great way to start a craft, or a painting or illustration, and an especially great thing to do when you don’t know what to do! A nice pile of already painted, textured, abstract patterned paper waiting to be used is a wonderful thing to have on hand, so lets get started!
You’ll Need:
- watercolor or mixed media paper
- acrylic paint
- kosher salt (large grain salt)
How To:
- Kosher salt is often used in watercolor painting to create lovely speckles, as the salt absorbs the color where it is place, leaving behind white dots of the paper color (for example.) I decided to try this technique with acrylic paint, as that is much better medium for creating art paper than watercolor, and yippee it worked!
- The key is to make your paint thinnish and watery, but not devoid of color. Add some water to your paint or simply apply with a large brush laden with water, much simpler. Brush the paint on in a very sloppy way such there is a nice variety of tone and you see the brushstrokes.You don’t want huge puddles, but you do want to see the watery paint sitting on top of the paper a bit. Hard to describe, you’ll get it when you do it and see how much paint works for you. If you have too much paint and water, stand the paper on end to let it drip off the edge of the paper, creating more interest, as drip are always great!
- Now, sprinkle kosher salt liberally and here and there all over the page and set aside to dry, completely! Have a bit of patience here for best results. After paint is dry, shake page or rub off salt to reveal your pattern. Is it a starry night sky, the start of something seashore related, or a lovely pattern to be used as paper leaves or any number of ways?
Hope you’ve enjoyed this little lesson in making patterned paper using kosher salt, now go make a bunch in a many colors, and mix of colors to have on hand for December holiday crafting season!
