Go Green Bark Painting Craft with Recycled Paper

To make a Mexican bark paper, papel amate, painting is normally a long process with some hard work involved. The processes of making the canvas for the folk art was to boil the inner bark of certain trees and to then pound it flat to make the fibers interlock and to trim down thickness . We have a much simpler idea to achieve a similar appearance that will look great and is a fun way to recycle some of those grocery bags.

What you will need:

Scissors

Recycled Brown Package Paper (Brown Paper Grocery Bags)

Iron (that has a low setting option)

Drawing Pencil or Black Marker

Any Type of Craft Paints in Any Colors -

(Bright colors look great for this project)

Paint Brushes

Optional:

Organic Type of Rope or Sting or Bark for Picture Frame

Step One: Cut out a large square of recycled brown package paper, brown paper grocery bags work great for this project and it's a good way to go green. If you're planning to frame the finished art work make sure you cut your square to the frames dimensions

Step Two: Wet the cut out square in water; crumple it into a tight ball squeezing out all excess water.

Step Three: Unfold the paper ball and lay flat. With an iron, set at the lowest setting, flatten and dry the paper square.

Step Four: Draw out a picture you want to paint on the flattened square with a drawing pencil or black magic marker. Original bark (papel amate) paintings where usually very colorful and where simple pictures of the native daily life scenes, animals and plants.

Step Five: Paint the picture you have drawn with any color of craft type paint you would like to use, let it dry completely and display your finished art work anyway you would like. This form of art work looks very nice when hung with an organic type of rope or string threaded through or glued to the back of the upper corners of the picture. You can even glue some braches around the edge to frame it in to give your creation a very earthy appeal.

This recycled paper bark painting technique is such a quick and fun craft project to do as decorations for your home. Adults and children will enjoy being creative and learning a little about different folk art from around the world at the same time as benefit from the family time together.