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"Dyeing Pasta for Craft Projects" by Rachel
Paxton
Kids love to play with pasta! Who knew
something so simple and inexpensive could be so interesting to young
children.
Dried pasta comes in a variety of sizes
and shapes. If you don't already have some in your kitchen cupboard,
you can find a variety of different pastas to choose from in the bulk
section of your grocery store. Let your child go with you to pick it
out.
Pasta can be used for a variety of
craft projects, and it is very easy to dye. It takes only a few
minutes to dye the pasta, and a couple of hours for it to dry. To dye
the pasta all you need is:
- Pasta in different shapes and sizes
- Food coloring
- Rubbing alcohol
- Several small bowls
Pour approximately 1/2 cup rubbing
alcohol into each bowl. Add 10 or so drops of food coloring into each
bowl, one bowl for each color. Drop the pasta into the bowl and stir
gently with a spoon for a few seconds. Remove the pasta from the bowl
and allow to dry for several hours on a paper plate. The colors will
brighten as the pasta dries.
Your kids will enjoy playing with their
colorful pasta. They can use it to create macaroni necklaces or they
can glue pieces of pasta onto a sheet of paper for a creative work of
art. Children as young as two years old will enjoy counting and
sorting the pasta into different piles. Have them separate the pasta
by color or shape. They will have fun moving the pieces of pasta from
bowl to bowl.
Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and
mom of four. For scrapbooking, card making, gift-giving ideas, and
more family memory-making activities, visit
http://www.crafty-moms.com .
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Do you have a craft idea?