How to Use Vegetable Scraps for Printmaking

This simple, multi-sensory print-making activity invites children to explore vegetables in a hands-on way, bringing new life to food scraps and introducing children to the wonderful world of printmaking. 

Investigating food together in such a playful way also provides an entry point for important conversations about the power food has to shape our identities, build community and foster a sense of belonging. The beauty of experimenting with printmaking is it’s really about the process (meaningful conversations, curious questions, bold experimentation and togetherness) rather than the end product. Take it slow!

What You'll Need

• vegetable discards (bok choy stems, celery stems, brussels sprouts) 
• acrylic paint (any colours you love, or whatever you have on hand)
• a plate for the paint to live 
• brayer or thick paintbrush 
• paper

How It's Made

This whole activity begins with a delicious family meal.

For my family, that meant we were having steamy bowls of delicious ramen. We included boy choy, celery and brussels sprouts, so that is what we had on hand.

As we prepared our dinner, I made sure to keep the vegetable cut-offs to the side for later use. 

Once they are all cut and set aside, it is a great time to start some conversations with little ones. Help them up on their stool, or bring the veg to their level, and ask them to look at the shapes that are formed ones you slice into celery, bok choy and brussels sprouts. 

Have them run their fingers along the grooves if they are more tactile, and encourage them to discuss any patterns or shapes that emerge. 

After some careful investigation, it's time to make some prints! 

Start by taking the tightly bunched ends and gently wriggling them open, trying to fan some of the layers out. Without the gaps, the prints and patterns won't be as defined, but it's really up to you how detailed you'd like to be.

On your paint plate, squeeze out little blobs of any desired colours. Note: the more paint you use, the thicker the print. But too much paint could mean not seeing any defined lines, so experiment with texture and thickness.

Now that you've coated your veg in paint, it's time to make a print. 

Take your freshly painted produce and press the painted side firmly onto a piece of paper. We used a variety of colours to keep things interesting. 

Your kids will love seeing the variety of shapes and textures they can make with different types of vegetable cuttings. 

They may even be surprised to see how floral some of the prints turn out. 

Prints should dry in about 45 minutes, but this will vary depending on how much paint is used. The more paint, the longer it will take to dry. 

But this printmaking activity can be used for so many things. You could take a roll of craft paper and turn it into a printed gift wrap, perfect for birthdays or holidays. Fold a piece of recycled paper into a card shape and add a print to it — a sweet gesture that would make any teacher, friend or family member smile. You could cut out individual prints, too! Maybe punch a hole at the top and add string or yarn for a sweet, DIY ornament. 

Ask your little artist how they want to use this new skill; let their imagination soar! And when you have new vegetable or fruit discards, try them out!

See the beauty that can come when we don't just chuck out what we don't need in the bin.