Is potato printing ok?

[ForeverBubblegum]

Just trying to keep my 3 year old busy, can we make potato prints or would that be an irresponsible waste of food. For full disclosure we already made salt dough earlier this week, which I feel kind of guilty about considering how difficult flour is to get at the minute.

We have them in, so it's not like I'm going out, though I suppose it will make us run out of food slightly sooner. Am I over thinking this?

In my area, I can't get hold of flour or potatoes for love or money.

In normal times, potato prints would be a fun activity but perhaps defer that for a while and do something else?

Oh love - you go for it. If you are making your child happy and you have enough food you are doing just fine

you are doing just fine

For heaven's sake.

How about leaf prints if you have access to outside?

So you’re part of the reason I haven’t been able to purchase potatoes or flour (for actual consumption). Carry on drawing and painting, love.

Or cut up old dish sponges into shapes? Does seem particularly wasteful at this time to be using perfectly edible food.

In fairness, OP did ask so she is trying to consider others.

It wasn't she who said "if you've enough food, you're doing just fine".

Have you done it with her before? I tried it years ago when my DC were small and it really wasn't as much fun as I thought it would be. They didn't stick with it for long at all and I was cross at the waste of food even then. If you know it will absorb her though, absolutely go for it.

What responses !

Ok as long as you eat the potato afterwards

I personally wouldn’t but I am very anxious about our food supplies and would feel even worse if I ‘wasted’ it on crafts.

use plastic animals and do animal footprints.

Use playdough cutters.

Leaf and stck printing.

Toys cars to make tracks.

Lots of things you can use that aren't food.

Wait until you have an apple core and use that. Or search round for other things you can use - lids, corks, corrugated card etc. String is a good one. Dip string in paint, lay it in a swirly pattern on paper. Lay another sheet of paper on top with end of string poking out. Put something on top to press down lightly, and pull string out.

How about looking around the house for things to print with eg lego (you can use the top and the sides for different effects), bottle tops or small boxes.

Duplo blocks make some cool prints.

I absolutely wouldn't - but then I'm on 14 days quarantine and didn't stockpile like crazy, so everyone potato is special to me ;-)

Are there other household things you could use? How about:

• animal footprints (using
• finger/toe/bottom ;-)
• tops of mugs/glasses make lovely circles
• if you have a straw, blowing bubbles in paint and printing on that is lovely: www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-Bubble-Print-Paper/

Point taken, I'll put the potatoes down.

If it makes it any better, the flour we used had been in the cupboard for nearly two years, so had questionable edibeity.

Thank you, OP, I appreciate that.

I do understand that you are doing your best for your child, truly I do, and it was considerate of you to ask.

I am, however, wholly gobsmacked at some of the earlier responses on this thread.