Nuts and Bolts Art – Printmaking For Kids
This fun printmaking activity for kids uses old screws, nuts and bolts to make art!
Kids will love experimenting with the different prints and patterns different sized and shaped nuts bolts and screws make when you dip them in paint and press them onto the paper.
This is a great process art activity that allows kids to explore and experiment with this interesting printmaking technique.
It’s amazing what you can create with a handful of old nuts, bolts and screws that you find in the back of the laundry cabinet!
A handful of old metal hardware isn’t usually the first thing you think of when you want to do an art activity with your kids, but these large nuts, bolts and screw are the perfect size for small hands to hold, and they make all kinds of interesting patterns and prints!
Caution: This activity uses small parts and is not suitable for children who still put things in their mouths. Please supervise young children at all times while doing this activity.
Nuts and Bolts and Screws Printmaking for Kids.
This fun process art activity is all about transferring a texture or image from one surface to another and making a print.
Kids love exploring and experimenting and seeing what shapes and textures move from one object onto a piece of paper, and they can also be used to make interesting patterns, designs and pictures.
While playing around with printmaking kids learn all about cause and effect and will often spend lots of time happily experimenting with different printmaking objects and techniques to see what happens. This activity is all about the process – while your child may combine the prints to make pictures and designs, the aim of this activity is to see what happens when you make a print with the nuts and bolts.
How to do Nuts and Bolts Printmaking
To do some nuts and bolts art you’ll need:
- Washable paint
- A container to put your paint in and some sponges or material to make ‘stamp pads’
- Paper
- A selection of nuts and bolts
- A smock or apron
- A damp cloth to wipe hands.
When selecting your metal fastenings for this art activity try to find as many different shapes and sizes as you can. Look for screws and bolts with interesting designs on the head, and screw the nuts onto the end of the bolts to make them easy to pick up and use.
We used washable liquitemp paints for this art activity and made a ‘stamp pad’ out of a recycled plastic food tray and some cut of pieces of fabric. You could also use a paper plate for your paint, or some old kitchen sponges.
Make sure you have some big pieces of paper (the smaller the child the larger the paper you’ll need!) and some where to put your artwork to dry.
Then just put a good dollop of paint into each section of your paint pad, swish it around till it soaks in a little and then you are ready to print.
To make a print simply press the nut, bolt of screw into the paint, and then press it onto the paper and see what pattern it makes!
We discovered that the nuts bolts and screws made all kinds of interesting shapes and patterns, and sometimes they surprised us with the printmaking results!
We were quite surprised that the hexagonal nuts didn’t print hexagonal shapes! It wasn’t until we looked closer that we saw there was a clear circular rim sitting higher than the hexagonal shape, which is what printed.
We discovered some of the bolts had numbers and letters on them that printed onto the paper.
Our favourite printmaking fasteners were the screws with the different patterns on their heads which made really interesting prints.
Making art with nuts and bolts is a fun and easy printable making activity that kids of all ages will love!
Your kids will happily fill up the paper with all kinds of interesting shapes, patterns, prints and nuts and bolt art! We think these prints would make great cards or wrapping paper!
More Printmaking for Kids
Printmaking is such a fun and easy process art activity that kids of all ages love!
If you want to do more printmaking with your kids try printmaking with one of these ten crazy items to print with, check out these easy printmaking ideas:
This is BRILLIANT!
My hubby is a carpenter, and we were just sorting through a box of his odds and ends yesterday. Using them for printing is a fab idea. I particularly love the prints with letters and numbers.
I love how you discovered things about the nuts and bolts through printing…plus how delicate the prints look in those colors! The different screw heads would make really cool train wheels…guess what we’re going to be doing soon! ;-)
Funny, right before I read your line about wrapping paper I thought to myself this would make the perfect wrapping paper for my dad who always does woodworking projects with my kids :-) As always, your posts are inspiring! Yay, Play!
I love this Kate! We always have a handful of these hanging around in any given room (my hubby is in construction). I’ve never thought to use them to create art!
How fun! We have far too many screws/bolts/nuts around with a tradie as a hubby. I will have to try this. It’d be fun to roll them to make patterned print too :)
I can’t tell you how much I love this. I want to try it just for myself! Fun :)
This is a brilliant idea! I love how you created your own stamp pads from the polar fleece. I’m going to be giving that a go in the future. Love the bright fluro colours you’ve used in this post too.
I LOVE this, and want to do it right away. Gorgeous photo, too!
I have never thought to paint with nuts and bolts…its a cool idea!! I also love the aprons your kids wear for painting…where did you find them?
My son would love this. I love all the textures the nuts and bolts make.
You’re so awesome. This is the coolest idea ever!
Great idea for the “stamp pads” out of polar fleece. I’ve always used paper towels that never work well. Your idea is much better. I love gadget painting. Thanks.
Hello,
What a super idea! We did sponge printing which was lots of fun but reading you post on printing with bolts made me think there are so many different things you can do printing with… Endless fun! Many thanks we will no doubt be doing loads more printing! The print pads are a great idea too… Less mess if they get knocked over! Thanks.
Hi,
I tried washable paint but it is kinda thin and not getting on well on slippery steel of nuts and bolts and somehow not giving a good print on the paper.
Make sure your nuts and bolts are clean and not greasy or oily, and try thickening your paint a little with paste or even just a sprinkle of corn flour/starch
what age group would you aim this at please? great idea