SkillmaticsRock Painting Kit - Mess-Free Art & Craft Activity for Girls & Boys, Craft Kits & Supplies, DIY Creative Activity, Gifts for Kids Ages 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,12

This pack comes complete with 8 rounded stones of various sizes. None too large, but you'll hear them drop through the letterbox! :-)The paint sticks are really effective; the paints are very vibrant colours and go onto the stones smoothly and easily, and are not too wet to cause runs. When dry, they seem waterproof (for how long depends I guess on where they are) and don't need varnishing (though if you wished to do that you could). A selection of googly eyes and "gems" completes the pack.It's advertised as "mess-free" - but it has the potential to be really quite messy. The paints take a few minutes to dry, during which time they will certainly make a mess if touched - or if they touch anything. The other issue is the pens: They have a felt tip, and the paint is in the body of the pen. To get the paint to the tip requires fairly vigorous shaking, and if you shake even slightly too long, the liquid paint will splash off the tip of the pen, onto the tiled floor, kitchen cabinets, and cat. Once on, it's PRETTY HARD to remove. We got the floor and cabinets sorted out, and fortunately I made up the bit about the cat. Anyway, an adult should get the paint flowing, and preferably do that where a small paint splatter won't matter. (Or just keep the lid on, but then you won't know if the paint has reached the end unless you keep on stopping and removing the lid, and you may end up with a lid full of paint)

This cardboard box contains all you need to turn a few rocks (8 supplied, including a tiny one) into fun creations. You get 8 markers in 8 different colours (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, purple, black). You first need to shake them well and then press the nibs firmly down on the rock until the markers' ink comes out. It dries quickly and becomes mat (unlike its original wet/glossy appearance) in vibrant colours which cover the rock well - much like paint but without the mess, a real bonus. Then you can add some 3D black & white eyes (2 pairs of large ones + 3 pairs of smaller ones - all self-adhesive, although you've got to first manage to peel off the back) or pretend gems (5 different colours, 15 of each - also self-adhesive but with a back that is much easier to peel off). Instructions are included with two designs explained step by step and many more illustrations to inspire. The outside box is well designed with lots of illustrations showing you what's inside and giving postal and email addresses for the UK and EU responsible persons of Grasper Global Inc based in the USA (website address included). The box displays the UK CA and the CE symbols and says that contents are 100% safe and non-toxic. For children aged 4 to 12 and not for children under 3 because of small parts which are a choking hazard. The box is branded Skillmatics and so are the markers. Made in China.

This is a great little starter kit which contains all you need to have a go at rock painting (including the rocks!). You also get 8 paint markers, some googly eyes and diamante stickers. The set comes with full instructions on how to use the markers, plus some ideas for designs and games to play with them.Pros:- No prep needed to the rocks- The paint that comes from the markers is moderately thick and 'chalky' meaning it sits well on top of the rock rather than being absorbed into it. I generally used x2 layers (drying in between) to achieve the base colour.- The colours are bright- Paints can be drawn over the top of each other with minimal colour underneath showing through- Chunky pens that are easy for small hands- No offensive smell to the paint- Paint dries quicklyCons:- Nibs are large so harder to do small details- The diamantés had glue on the back which peeled away when removing from the backing sheet- There's no varnish included to seal the designs (I'm not sure how they will last if they get wet, but I'd be happier varnishing them first!)- There's no white paint includedOverall I would recommend this product as a good place to start with rock painting. It's the first time I've encountered paint marker pens and they work really well for distributing a bold colour easily, and I think even younger participants would be able to work with this to produce something they're proud of.

This is a very good kit. The rocks are nice and smooth and a reasonable size. The set includes an ideas leaflet which is a nice idea for anyone needing a helping hand to get going. The paint pens are lovely and bright and the paint goes on well, it does take a little while to dry but that is to be expected. I love the googly eyes, they bring an added sense of fun! I know it says this set is for children but.....!! At time of review the set was £17.99 which I reckon is good value.This is a review of an item received free as part of the Amazon Vine program. I make my reviews as objective as possible and only award 5 stars if I feel a product is really worth it and is something that I would be happy to buy.

This skillmatics Rock Painting set has everything you need to decorate your own rocks without having to go out and source the rocks as the set includes the rocks (8), Paint Markers, Gems & Googly Eyes. The set also comes with instructions however you can easily design your own rocks without this. The paint markers work really well without making a mess, however it's best to paint one side of the rock at a time otherwise we found it does get messy trying to paint the whole rock in one go. My older kids created some really nice pieces with this set including a minion & thomas the tank engine as well as a peppa pig one which looked really great when finished. They said they are going to hide them in various places around our town for other people to find as we've often found painted rocks when we are out and it will be fun hiding these for others. Overall this is a great set and makes for a fun mess free craft activity.

Kit comes with everything needed for kids to decorate rocks. Paint pens were very good quality.

This is a really nice set to try out rock painting. I ordered it for a summer party to keep the kids entertained, and wanted to test it out to see how difficult it might be. I think the older kids at the party (10+) will be able to pull it off easily, but it could be messy for the younger ones. I planned to do one rock, but I was having so much fun that I wound up painting three! lolThe set comes with 8 smooth rocks, 8 paint markers in assorted colors, a sheet of flat-back gemstones, and googly eyes, plus instructions and decorating ideas. I picked out rocks that were shaped appropriately for the designs I tried and went to work.Shake each marker before using it (I gave each one 10-20 shakes) then keep depressing the nib against a rock until you see the color running into it. I was impressed with the markers. Some paint markers pool and leave a big blob when you first get them going, but these do NOT. I used the edge of the nib to paint a bigger area and did one side of the rock at a time, then set it to the side to dry. They dry pretty quickly to a matte finish, and even though I did get a little paint on my fingers, it washes off easily with a little scrubbing.Once I had each rock painted front, back, and sides, I let them dry again before adding my details. And that’s when the real fun begins! I painted a bee, a fish, and a Mothman, but I didn’t want the googly eyes so I tried a different tactic. I painted two clear gemstones with the black paint pen for the bee’s eyes, and two pink gemstones with the red pen for Mothman’s eyes. It worked! Please note: you will need your own glue to attach them to the rock. I used E-6000 because it was sitting right there, but I’m sure a tacky glue would work, too.All in all, this is a beautiful set and the paint markers are the best I’ve ever used! I did do a second coat on the bee for the yellow, but the blue and purple were opaque in one go. I wish there was a white marker to add details (and so I could paint on the bee’s wings) but I think I have another brand of a white paint pen around here somewhere. I’ll most likely spray these with a clear acrylic to really set the designs, and I may have to purchase a second kit for the party. lolSuper enjoyable activity, and overall a simple craft activity.

This kit seems to have a lot of cool things included in this set. There are small round sticker jewels in four different colors, blue, white, yellow, and pink, and googly eye stickers too. Of course, there are the 8 rocks and 8 paint pens included. The pens seemed easy to use and all worked well. And the rocks were all very good quality. The mess is minimal for me because I tend to use gloves, paper towels, and pads for this type of art set. There are 2 small issues that I noticed - 1. the color is actually not as true and seems almost brighter like almost neon, but not quite and 2. the jeweled stickers do not stick well as the sticking back is low-to-average quality. I had to toss 2 jewels away. I suppose you could glue them on, but what would be the purpose of having the sticker-backing on the jewels then? This kit is 5/5 stars for having fun with your art time. This also provides good hand-eye and creative skills building for anyone. Still very worth it for me.

My 6yr old daughter LOVES painting rocks, so we've gone through a lot of rock painting kits similar to this. Every other kit we've used has some combination of squeeze tubes and paint cups with paint brushes for their paint supplies, and it's always a huge mess. My daughter doesn't have the fine control needed to make much with the paint brushes and squeeze tubes, but is pretty good with markers and crayons in her every day artwork at school. I was excited to try this kit with paint markers and it absolutely does not disappoint. No more having to clean paint brushes or having squeeze tubes that suddenly squirt giant amounts of paint everywhere. The paint markers give even the most beginner of rock painters the fine control they need to make their ideas look exactly how they want without mom or dad having to intervene and help. After trying rock painting using these paint markers I don't ever want to go back to the paint brush and squeeze tube kits! This is a great parent/kid creative activity for a rainy day, and is great for encouraging budding artist skills. The instructions even have several helpful suggestions for how to create some designs and what to do with your rocks once you're done making them. My daughter loves displaying her rock collection at our doorstep to greet visitors, or using them in Easter Egg hunt style games.The paint markers take a little bit of work to prime on their first use, since you have to shake them a bunch and then push the nib in until the paint starts flowing. Once you do that one time, they keep working like a charm. The paint flows at a consistent rate and doesn't make any unexpected giant puddles, so it's almost no difference from using regular markers. They have good coverage too, so it doesn't take layer after layer of paint to get a bright vibrant coat. They dry much faster than paint brushes and squeeze tubes, which makes it much easier to do multi-layered paint scenes. Depending on how thick you coat the rock, it's usually ready to paint a new color on top (like when painting a foreground item on a solid background) within a minute or so. The gems and googley eyes are fun little extras to add to your creations too. There doesn't seem to be any sticky backing on the eyes, so you either have to stick it into the paint while the paint is wet and let it hold, or do what I did and have an adult snag some super glue to stick it on quickly (and have a stronger glue bond).All in all, this was a huge hit for us and we'd happily get it again!

This kit comes ready to party! I love that you get paint pens instead of the paint jars. Not only are those jars hard to open, but then the kids ruin them by mixing all the colors (which is fine if you don't have 3 kids all trying to use it too).The paint pens worked decently. You have to shake them a good bit before you can use them, which was fine. But if you have little ones, I would get them started ahead of time because they're not going to want ot wait.You get 8 nice rocks to paint, and 8 different colored markers. I wish it came with a few more rocks, but we will save the paint pens for another project too!I think this is a great gift for any kid who loves crafts, and even adults looking for a fun all in one craft! Makes it some so much easier to have the paint pens, and everything you need for the project in one box.I would say, if you're going to leave your rocks outside you will probably need to seal them. Some of ours got wet on accident and the paint kind of stood up to it, but some spots messed up. I don't think this paint is made to be outdoors.