Holiday sweet treat plates

Hands-on time: About an hour
Total time: Plus 24 hours for the paint to set and heat-set
Skill: Easy and kid-friendly
Cost: Less than $10

Materials and Tools

• Square white china plates
• Rubbing alcohol and lint-free cloth
• 3cm soft fibre paintbrush
• Fine-tipped artist paintbrush
• Porcelaine 150 paints by Pébéo in copper and white
• Stir sticks and paint tray
• Painter's tape
• Cotton swabs
• Hair dryer (optional)
• Porcelaine 150 outliners by Pébéo in gold, charcoal, orange and red

Paint and bake your way to easy holiday gifts starting with snowman serving plates. These plates were a big hit with my friends and family. For an extra treat, load them up with fresh-baked goodies.

My design concept is quite simple: I applied a wide copper stripe to white plates, then drew a snowman using fine outliners. Pébéo Porcelaine 150 paints keep their bright and vibrant colours.

Wash the dishes with soapy water or wipe with rubbing alcohol and a lint-free cloth. Using painter's tape, mask off the area for the copper stripe. I placed an 8cm stripe slightly off-centre.

Stir copper paint and pour into a small paint tray. Apply one coat using a soft paintbrush, making sure you have full and even coverage. Carefully remove masking tape and clean any mistakes with a cotton swab. Use a hair dryer for a few minutes if desired to dry the stripe quickly, especially if you are doing several plates.

Stir white paint and pour into a paint tray. If you can draw a stick man, you can paint a swirl snowman freehand. For the snowman's body, dip a fine-tipped paintbrush tip into white paint, and paint three circles. Start with the head and let the other two circles overlap slightly. Apply white dots randomly over the surface. Allow to dry or use a hair dryer.

Add fine details with the outliners that come in fine-tipped squeeze tubes. I used gold for the arms, charcoal for the hat, orange for the nose and red for a striped scarf.

Let finished plates dry and set for 24 hours. Place plates in a cold oven and bake at 300 F (160 C) for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven using oven mitts, and set aside to cool.

Variations

• Plates with just a plain copper stripe can be used for dinner parties throughout the year.
• Use Porcelaine paints on glasses, mugs, vases, trays, bowls and ornaments.
• Simple holiday designs can also be created with stencils, rubber stamps and sponges. Children can make keepsakes for grandparents or teachers.
• Pébéo Porcelaine 150 paints are nontoxic, safe to use with food, and are dishwasher-safe.