Eco Friendly Art & Craft Materials (part one)

Paint, Fabric Paint & Dye, Drawing Media, Varnish & Glue

We’re all for art and craft! Splashing around with paint, glue, clay and other fabulous materials is great fun and good for our mental health. It’s also an accessible and affordable pastime - for adults and children alike.

On a more serious note, being sustainably creative is not quite so straightforward. Many regular art and craft materials contain an array of chemicals and plastics - which is bad for the environment and bad for us. With their little bodies extra vulnerable to toxic materials, we need to be particularly careful choosing children’s art and craft resources.

So, how can we make our artistic creations as safe and sustainable as possible? In answer to this question, we decided to do a round up of eco friendly art and craft materials. And in the process, we discovered that all is not lost for the eco conscious artist - or parents wanting the safest possible resources for their children.

In this first of a two-part post, we look at various mark making media, craft varnish and glue.

Sustainable children’s paint

Children’s ready mixed paint in squeezy bottles is usually poster or tempera paint. Poster paint is basically pigment (colour) mixed with a glutinous, water soluble medium. Poster paint does not have the worst eco credentials. However, it can be difficult to find out exactly what ingredients have been used in your child’s bottle of paint. To add to any eco concerns, regular poster and finger paint is usually packaged in plastic bottles or tubs. To be sure that a paint is as safe as possible for your child and the environment, choose companies with a focus on sustainability. The German brand OkoNorm is a reliable name to look out for. Their ready-mixed finger paints are made from renewable raw materials and pigmented with natural food colouring. The paint also comes in a range of sizes and colours.

Natural earth and mineral paints

One of the most sustainable products on the market is the paint collection from Natural Earth Paints. This American-based brand was started by an artist who decided to replace all toxic products during her first pregnancy. Inspired by historical art, from cave paintings to the Renaissance, the earth paint collection is literally made from earth. The brand includes collections for both adults and children.

For a similar but homegrown children’s paint range, try Playspirations Earth Paint. Made from cornstarch, gum arabic powder and earth pigments, Playspirations is another reliably non-toxic option for budding young artists.

Sustainable packaging

Unlike most paint, both Natural Earth Paints and Playspirations Earth Paints come in eco friendly containers. Natural Earth Paints are packaged in paper packets. Playspirations use glass jars, with refills available in sealable recycled Kraft paper bags.

Sustainable acrylic paint

Acrylic paint is an extremely versatile and popular paint. It’s water soluble while wet but dries to a glossy, water resistant finish. It can be mixed with different substances to create a variety of textures. It also works on most surfaces, including stone, wood, ceramic and fabric.

Now for the bad news. Acrylic paint is basically liquid plastic. It doesn’t biodegrade, and washing acrylic paint off brushes and palettes releases microplastics into the water system.

Fortunately for the eco conscious artist, there are some more sustainable alternatives. Natural Earth Paints make a plant-based acrylic medium. This can be mixed with their earth paint powders to create a natural acrylic paint.

For a run down of other eco-friendly acrylic brands, including Placrylic and Lakeland Paints, check out this useful review article.

Home made natural paint

For the best all-round sustainable option, try making your own plant-based paint. For this you will need dried fruit and spice powders, plus kaolin to act as a binder.

Kaolin is a powdered white clay. It’s easy to source and very affordable. Kaolin is mostly used in beauty products - so you can be confident that it is more than safe as an ingredient in homemade paint.

Fruit powders are available at health food shops, both online and bricks-and-mortar. To get a range of colours, try the following…

• raspberry - red

• blueberry - purple

• spirulina - green

• turmeric - yellow

• carrot - orange

• activated charcoal - black

Make up the paint by mixing the kaolin and one of the plant powders in a 1:1 ratio. A tablespoon of each will give you plenty of paint. Store the mixed powders in airtight jars and make up the paint as needed by adding water. Once mixed with water, any unused paint will need to be stored in the fridge. It will then last for about a week.

Some of the colours won’t be as smooth as manufactured paint, although the slightly grainy texture adds character to your artwork. Bear in mind that many colours (in particular yellow turmeric) will stain.

Safety note: although kaolin is non-toxic and entirely safe for children to use in paint, it’s never a good idea to inhale powders or get them in eyes. Take care while mixing up the dry powders. If you are particularly sensitive, wear a mask and/or goggles.

Fabric paint is fun for both children and adults. Painting textile items such as t-shirts and bags is a great way to make wearable and usable art.

However, as is so often the question… how do you bring sustainability to your fabric painting activities? Like acrylic paint, regular fabric paint is made with acrylic polymer. It also contains additives such as titanium dioxide, which is toxic to marine life and soil.

There aren’t many eco friendly alternatives to regular fabric paint. This is possibly because fabric painting is something of a niche activity. Fabric is also a more complex surface to work on than paper, and the painted fabric needs to be washable.

One sustainable product to try is Little Mashers’ Eco Fabric Inks.

Another option is Natural Earth Paints’ acrylic alternative - one we have already looked at in the ‘Paint’ section above. As demonstrated on the Earth Paints website, their plant-based acrylic medium mixed with natural pigment powder works as a permanent fabric paint. Find the recipe and instructions here.

Fabric dye

Other ways to decorate fabric include tie dye techniques - for which you need dye rather than fabric paint.

Plant dyes

The greenest option is a natural dye made from plants. However, you also need to use a mordant with plant dyes to get a colour that stays fast. Effective mordants are made from toxic heavy metal salts - not good for either the environment or us. If you aren’t too bothered by colours fading, it’s great fun to experiment with plant dyes. Avocado skins and stones, onion peelings and a glut of berries (elderberries, raspberries, blackberries) are just three plant-based dyes to try. Simply boil up the plant matter in water and soak your fabric in the dye. More info is available here.

Fibre reactive dyes

Overall, low impact fibre reactive dyes are more eco-friendly than mordanted plant dyes - even though they are made from synthetic ingredients. Dylon hand dyes are a good example. They contain no toxic heavy metals and dilute to safe levels within the waste water system. As a brand, Dylon dyes are readily available in the UK and there are lots of colours to choose from.

Pencils are one of the more naturally eco friendly art resources - although some are definitely more sustainable than others…

Eco friendly pencils

In sourcing the greenest pencils possible, consider the following …

• Is the pencil casing wood rather than plastic? Is the wood from a sustainably managed source, such as FSC or PEFC certified forests?

• Is the casing left natural or coloured? Bear in mind that the coloured coating on a pencil is likely to be plasticised.

• If the pencil has an eraser at the tip, is this made from plastic or natural rubber?

• Are pencils packaged in recycled card rather than plastic? Or better still, unpackaged at the point of purchase?

Small Kind’s eco friendly ‘positivity’ pencils meet all the above criteria. The plastic free shavings can be composted and the wood casing is from an FSC certified source. As a fun little addition, each pencil is printed with a positive message to brighten your day.

Pencils made from recycled newspaper are another option. Often produced by female co-operatives in India, purchasing them helps provide local women with good working conditions and fair pay. Recycled newspaper pencils have the added bonus of being really easy to sharpen. Check out these pencils made in Sri Lanka here.

Sustainable use

How pencils are used plays a part in their overall sustainability. Cheap and readily available, it’s easy to just grab a replacement when your pencil gets mislaid. This makes the pencil more of a ‘single use’ item than it needs to be.

You may, however, be a lost cause when it comes to hanging onto and sharpening your pencils until they become stubs. If so, reusable pencils might be a more sustainable choice - even if they are made of plastic. Look out for recycled plastic pencils. While this doesn’t solve the problem of plastic waste, recycled remains preferable to virgin plastic. Better still, invest in a metal reusable pencil. These can be quite expensive - but the cost gives an added incentive not to lose it!

The graphite question

In order to be a pencil, the casing must contain graphite. We commonly refer to the core of a pencil as lead. This is because, until a few centuries ago, lead and graphite were believed to be the same substance.

Graphite is quite an abundant mineral. However, it is also mined and non renewable - which raises questions over its sustainability. Graphite is used in a number of different products and industries, including batteries, brake linings and steel manufacture. Fortunately for the eco conscious artist, pencils utilise only a tiny fraction of global graphite production.

From paint and ink to glue and clay, any consumable art and craft resource carries an environmental cost. But we believe we can use the carefully chosen and well-looked-after graphite pencil with a reasonably clear conscience.

Wax, chalk and pastel crayons lend themselves well to sustainability - although it’s still advisable for the eco conscious artist to seek out an eco friendly brand. Pigments, additives, plastic packaging and unsustainable sourcing can all adversely affect the sustainability of otherwise natural substances such as wax and chalk.

Wax crayons

Regular wax crayons are usually made from paraffin wax. As a by product of the oil refinery industry, paraffin is not an eco friendly ingredient. Sustainable alternatives tend to be made from beeswax rather than paraffin. Try Beecrayative’s beautiful novelty shaped crayons. The ingredients for these beeswax crayons include plant based cocoa butter and carnauba wax.

Vegan wax crayons

If crayons made from animal products such as beeswax and lanolin is an issue, look out for vegan wax crayons. The Natural Crayon Company’s vegan and eco friendly crayons are made from plant based waxes and food grade pigments.

Another alternative is Japanese company Kitpas’ rice wax crayons. These are made from discarded rice bran, helping to reduce food waste. Unlike many wax crayons, they are also water soluble. This makes them easy to clean up and they can also be brushed with water to create watercolour paint effects.

Oil pastels

Oil pastels are a drawing medium for older children and adults. They are made from a mixture of pigments and wax and oil binders. Sustainable German art supply company OkoNorm produce an eco friendly (although non-vegan) oil pastel. These are made from beeswax, lanolin, natural minerals and food grade pigments.

Chalk

Regular chalks can contain additives that are not good for the environment - or us. Go for a sustainable version, such as Kitpas’ chalks made from discarded scallop shells. The shells are powdered and blended with calcium carbonate, the main mineral found in chalk. The resulting chalks are smooth, long lasting and low dust.

Adding a layer of varnish gives both protection and shine to the surface of a craft project. However, like many art and craft materials, regular craft varnish isn’t particularly green. Fortunately, there are some more eco friendly alternatives on the market…

Renaissance recipes

Natural Earth Paints produce a plant-based varnish using recipes dating from Renaissance times. It’s more expensive than regular varnish but makes for a much more sustainable choice.

PVA glaze

Another option is to mix PVA glue with water to make a glaze. This gives a low gloss sheen and protects the surface of your project - although it’s not quite as tough as regular varnish. PVA glue doesn’t have the best eco friendly profile, but nor is it the worst. For more info, see the ‘glue’ section, below.

If you go for this option, don’t worry when your project turns white. The diluted PVA will become clear as it dries.

Like paint, glue production has become a heavily chemicalized process. The result is a huge choice of versatile and effective glues. But, as ever, at what cost to the health of the environment, wildlife and ourselves?

Choosing an eco friendly glue usually means deciding how to balance sustainability with effectiveness. Read on for some of the options to consider ….

How eco is PVA?

White PVA is the most commonly used glue for crafting and children’s art. It’s versatile, cheap, easily available and can be washed away with soap and water while still wet.

Unfortunately, the eco friendly credentials of PVA are less clear cut. It’s not the most sustainable art and craft product on the market - but also not the worst. Although PVA (which stands for polyvinyl acetate) is made from refined oil, it appears to be biodegradable. According to Clarify Green, there is evidence that microorganisms such as bacteria, algae and yeasts play a part in degrading polyvinyl acetate. Which may explain why traces of PVA glue don’t show up in the environment - unlike other commonly used art and craft ingredients such as acrylic polymers and titanium dioxide.

So, the sustainability verdict on PVA remains mixed. For more info, check out the Clarify Green article on environmentally friendly adhesives.

PVA alternatives

One of the best alternatives to regular PVA is German company OkoNorm’s range of eco friendly glues. These include a starch-based paper glue.

Another option is American brand Elmer’s eco version of its famous craft glue. This is made from 97% natural ingredients.

Compostable glue

For a glue that is natural enough to be compostable as well as biodegradable, try Coccoina. It comes in a tin and its main ingredients are potato starch, food industry preservatives and almond scent. It isn’t quite as strong as regular PVA but works well for sticking paper and card.

Homemade glue

Homemade glue is probably the most sustainable of all the options. The simplest glue to make is a flour and water papier-mâché paste. It uses household ingredients, is non toxic and compostable. If you use out-of-date flour that would otherwise be discarded, it’s even more eco friendly. The downside is that it’s not as strong as a manufactured glue. But - it’s the one to go for if you want to explore making your own sustainable art and craft materials. Check out Mr Otter Art Studio’s YouTube video for a tutorial.

Click here for more homemade glue recipes.

Have fun with your sustainable art and crafting!