How to Paint a Penguin on a Rock

How to Stay Cool and Paint a Penguin on a Rock

I’m not sure about where you live, but summer weather has hit the mid-west. The heat index today was around 105. I love summer time, but that seems like a bit much to me. My children and I are looking for creative ways to stay cool. They love the outdoors, but sometimes you just have to come inside for a while to do fun things like paint a penguin on a rock!
I always have a variety of craft supplies in my house. I normally don’t have to purchase much when it comes to craft supplies. Rock painting is a great activity for my kids. The supplies are minimal and they can be used for many other projects.
So back to staying cool in this relentless heat; I decided we need a distraction. The best way to stay cool is to think cool thoughts, right? So we looked toward the south. The very, very far south and settled our minds in Antarctica. One of the beautiful creatures of Antarctica is the penguin. My kids have seen penguins at the zoo and got excited about making a craft project using their image.

Paint a Penguin on a Rock – Supplies and Rock Choice

This rock painting project only takes a few supplies. I used:

Black and White Anita’s acrylic craft paint Anita’s Acrylic Craft Paint
An orange paint pen Orange Paint Pen
Spray acrylic sealer Spray Sealer
Some small paintbrushes
Paper plate
Paper towels
Cup of water.

Paintbrushes do not have to be expensive. I typically use a fine point brush and then one with a flat end.

For the penguin, I chose rocks that were sort of oval in shape. I purchased these rocks at my local craft store. They were labeled river rocks and I found them in the floral department.

Painting a penguin shape is pretty simple. I started by painting the top surface of the entire rock white. Let that dry and paint on another coat of white.

Drawing the Penguin Body on your Rock

Use a pencil to draw the shape on the white paint. The basic shape is an open figure 8 with a point in the center of the top section. I outlined the sketch with a black sharpie marker so I could see it better. You can also use your fine point paint brush and some black paint.

Painting the Rock

Using the flat tipped paint brush, fill in the area outside of the drawing with black acrylic paint. I normally get pretty good coverage with one coat, but put on a second coat if you feel you need it. Once that has dried, turn the rock over and paint the entire back side with the black paint.

There is not a lot of detail work on this one. It should be pretty easy for anyone to complete. I started by drawing the eyes of the penguin. I used my brush with the finest tip and some of the black acrylic paint. You can start with a dot and make the spot bigger if you wish by using a circular motion. Place the eyes in the area that is set apart by the indention at the top of the head of the penguin.

Penguin Feet and Beak

Now grab your orange paint pen. Paint pens need to be primed before each use. Give it a good shake, you will hear the ball rolling around inside the pen. Then, pump the pen up and down by the tip on a paper plate or a piece of scrap paper. When the paint starts flowing out of the pen you are ready to go.
I used the paint pen to draw the two feet at the bottom of the penguin. I placed the feet right where the white paint met the black paint. Draw two ovals, equal distance apart, and fill in using the paint marker.

Now time to paint the beak. Draw a triangle shape in the middle of the face area. It should be in between the two eyes and around or above the indention in the figure 8 of the body shape.

The final step in painting a penguin on a rock is sealing the rock. I used Mod Podge spray acrylic sealer. I placed the rocks in an old box so I could contain the mess and only get sealer on the rocks. Do this step outside, the spray sealer can get pretty fumy. Hold the bottle several inches away from the rocks and spray a light coat of sealer. Once dry, flip the rocks over and seal the other side. Be sure to follow the directions on your bottle of sealer. I recommend that children have adult supervision for this step.

The finished penguin rocks are ready to display or give to friends or family. These would be great rocks to hide and use for rock hunting. They will make any hot summer day seem cooler.