Valentines Bowl Craft- easy

Last week I made this little bowl for 

Valentines day. 

It was a fun and easy craft!

1)  Permanent Sharpies-  I used a Red - plus optional pink and orange

2)  White bowl from Pier One

Cut a heart shape out of paper and place it in the center of the bowl, use a spot of tape to gently fasten. 

Using the heart shape as a template, draw little dots around the heart shape with a sharpie.
hint**
Draw the most dots nearest to the heart and then go lighter towards the edge to give it a starburst feel, The red near the center will help make the heart stand out.  

(don't draw on the paper heart, it could bleed)

for fun, I added in a few orange and pink dots.
OK to make your dots imperfect, this adds to the hand made look of the art

turn oven to 350.

Remove the heart template and tape.  

The white heart shape is in the middle of your bowl

**Please read all these notes first**
Fire your bowl in a 350 degree oven for 45 mins.  

Turn off oven and let your bowl sit in the oven til morning.  (keeping it warm for a long time will help keep the sharpie from washing off.) 

note** If you want to do this with kids, try it for yourself first, see what works for you, your oven, your dish and sharpie. Please use common sense using oven mitts to work with hot items.
This craft worked for me in my second attempt.   After reading other's posts about similar crafts posted on the internet, I read about MANY situations where the color wasn't permanent.
(please see my notes below -  my first failed attempt*) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Baking it at 350, for 45 mins then letting it cool overnight worked for me!

If you want to do this with kids, try it on a small bowl or lower priced item to test for yourself first.

***My Failed First Attempt***

Learn what works best for you, your oven, your dish and your sharpie.
(in my first attempt, I baked it twice.   First at 350 then removed it shortly afterward.  (on the rack, with no cookie sheet)

But, my bowl wasn't color fast.   I tested a small spot, it bled slightly.
I then baked it again the next day at 425 for an hour- on a cookie sheet. 
Unfortunately, this was way too much heat, this made my red color turn an ugly golden orange)
(but at least it was color fast)
Last, I went over all the spots with a red sharpie again. This time the color was permanent, maybe the roughness of the color of yellow helped the new color stick.  

**Test your art before**
After you fire, try to wipe a tiny spot of color off your bowl to see if your color is permanent.
If not, refire at 350 for 45mins- again, leaving it in a warm oven overnight.  

GOOD NEWS! 

it worked perfectly.

I've made several gift bowls with sharpies and baked them
@350 degrees for 45 mins. then let cool for three hours. 
this one was for my brother's birthday
(I personalized it to include our dog, cats, a bear, interests like gardening, names, fishing, boating)

Let me know how this craft worked for you!

***disclaimer***
This is a fun craft project using a permanent sharpie, a porcelain bowl and an oven.
please use common sense.
Use my bowls to hold jewelry, soap or crafts.
can be washed, please wash gently 

NOTE***
from my good friend and fabulous artist Viv  *****
"I recently found that the correct permanent markers to use are oil based.  I finally found them at Hobby Lobby.  Those are the ones that work for 15 min at 350 degrees. "