First, hunt for and find the perfect rock. A flat, oval shaped rock works best but, because it's a gift, let your child choose and make it their own.

From my experience, painting the rock on a paper plate saves  time and mess. The rock has to stay on the plate while you paint it and makes it easy to move to a drying spot.

Let your child pick the paint colors and paint the rock. She picked blue and red and then quickly discovered that they made purple. The end product was a little dark. I'd recommend a light color like orange, yellow, or white.

Use the permanent marker to write "My Dad Rocks" or "My Grandma Rocks" or the name of whoever you are making your paperweight for. We added a little glitter to ours. Get creative and add glitter, puff paint, or stickers. Wrap up your gift! Your special someone is sure to love this paperweight—made with love.