This panda art project is so cute and colorful and such a fun Valentine’s Day painting idea! Kids will use a mixed media approach to make this art project and an easy method to help them draw the panda bear.
For more great Valentine’s project ideas check out my collection of creative Valentine’s Day arts and crafts for kids to make!
We have made a few painting’s in this same style for different holidays and seasons. Take a look at this cute polar bear winter painting, adorable reindeer painting for kids and this sweet Easter bunny painting for more great ideas!
Create your own panda art project
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Supplies
- Acrylic paint in black, white and pink
- Watercolor paint
- Paintbrushes
- White cardstock
- Extra-fine black paint pen or an extra-fine black sharpie
- White oil pastel
- Paint palette
- Large and small lids or cardboard templates
- Water dish
Instructions to make your mixed media Valentine’s Day painting
1. First, you need to draw the panda bear. You will need white cardstock, a pencil and eraser, and 2 different sized plastic lids, one large and one small. If you don’t have the right size of lids you can make templates out of cardboard.
Using templates to draw the panda makes it easier for kids, but older kids might want to try drawing their panda bear without a template.
Trace the large lid for the panda’s head and use the smaller lid to trace two ears like in the photo above.
2. Draw the inner part of the panda’s ears and draw a dot in the middle of the face where you want the nose to go.
Use the dot as a guide to draw the heart nose and add in the smiling mouth.
3. Draw an oval shape on the left side of the panda’s face for the eye. Use a ruler to draw lines across the face at the top and bottom of the oval.
Use the lines to help draw the oval shape on the right side of the face. Draw in smaller ovals to show the panda looking up.
Draw in a small heart on the panda’s cheek.
4. Use white oil pastel to draw hearts on your paper. Kids can choose to draw small hearts all over, 1 big heart with smaller hearts or any pattern that they like.
5. Have kids decide on what colors they would like to use for their background. Use watercolors for this step, you can use liquid watercolors or watercolors from a set, both types will work great.
Kids can choose one color or 3 colors like my example. You don’t have to use traditional Valentine’s colors, any combination of colors would look great!
Paint the background with your watercolors to reveal your oil pastel design! Kids love watching their designs appear as they paint. Take a look at these 5 easy watercolor techniques for kids for more great watercolor ideas!
Remind kids to be careful painting around their panda.
Let the background dry completely.
6. Paint the panda’s face with white acrylic paint and let it dry. Using a small to medium-sized round brush works well for this part.
7. Paint the inside of the ears and the heart on the panda’s cheek with light pink acrylic paint and let it dry.
8. Finish off the panda by painting the outside of the eyes, the nose and ears black. Using a smaller brush makes this step easier.
Another idea to help make painting the eyes easier is to use a black paint pen or sharpie instead.
You can leave the inside of the eyes unpainted since they are white anyways or use a small paintbrush and white acrylic paint or a white paint pen to paint them white. I choose to leave mine unpainted.
Use a small detail brush or a black paint pen or sharpie to draw in the smiling mouth.
I love how this panda art project turned out. The bright colored background is a nice contrast against the panda bear and the heart designs give it a fun Valentine’s Day twist!
We love creating and exploring with different art supplies and techniques. If you are looking for more art projects to try, take a look at our ultimate collection of amazing art projects for kids!
More art projects kids will love
The Best Painting Ideas for Kids to Try
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Pin this painting idea for later
Adorable Panda Art Project for Valentine's Day
Kids will have fun making this cute and colorful panda art project for Valentine's Day using a mixed media approach. Step by step tutorial included.
Materials
- Acrylic paint in black, white and pink
- Watercolor paint
- White cardstock
- Extra-fine black paint pen or an extra-fine black sharpie
- White oil pastel
Tools
- Paintbrushes
- Paint palette
- Large and small lids or cardboard templates
- Water dish
Instructions
- Draw your panda bear face on white cardstock with a pencil. Use a large lid to trace for the panda's head and a smaller lid to trace for the ears. If you do not have lids to use, you can make a template with cardboard.
- Draw the inside of the ears. Then draw a dot in the middle of the face where you want the heart nose to go.
Draw the heart nose and the smiling mouth. - Draw an oval shape on the left side of your panda's face for the eye. Take a ruler and draw lines across the face at the top and the bottom of the oval. This will help with the placement of the other eye.
Draw the right eye using the guides to help with the placement and size of the oval. Finish the eyes by drawing in smaller ovals so it looks like the panda bear is looking up. - Finally, draw a small heart on your panda's cheek.
- Use a white oil pastel to draw heart designs on your paper around the panda.
- Mix 1-3 colors of watercolor for the background. Paint the background with your watercolors to reveal your heart designs!
Remind kids to be careful painting around their panda. Let your paper dry completely. - Paint the panda's face with white acrylic paint and let it dry.
- Next paint the inside of the ears and the heart on the panda's cheek with pale pink acrylic paint and a small brush. Let this dry.
- Then paint the larger part of the eyes black using a small brush. Some kids might find it easier to use a black sharpie or paint pen for this part. Let the eyes dry before moving on.
- Paint the nose and outside of the ears black and let it dry.
- Use a black sharpie or a black paint pen to draw in the panda's mouth.
- You can paint the inside of the eyes white with acrylic paint or a white paint pen, but you can also choose to just leave it, which is what I did.