Materials Needed

Round or oval rock (palm-sized)
Brown acrylic paint
White acrylic paint
Black acrylic paint
Yellow or orange acrylic paint
Tan or beige acrylic paint
Fine detail brush
Medium flat brush
Toothpick (for stippling feathers)
Clear sealant spray
Pencil

Step-by-Step Instructions

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Step 1: Prepare and sketch the owl face

Wash and dry your rock. Use a pencil to lightly sketch two large overlapping circles for the facial disc — these are the distinctive rounded facial features of an owl. Draw a small triangle beak in the center where the circles meet.

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Step 2: Paint the body and facial disc

Paint the area outside the facial disc circles with brown paint for the body. Fill the two facial disc circles with a lighter beige or tan color. Apply two coats for solid coverage. Let dry completely.

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Step 3: Add the large round eyes

Paint two large white circles for eyes, one inside each facial disc. Once dry, add golden yellow or amber irises inside the white circles. Add large black pupils in the center of each iris. Finish with tiny white highlight dots in each pupil for a lifelike sparkle.

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Step 4: Create feather texture with stippling

Using a toothpick or the tip of your detail brush, stipple (dab) darker brown and lighter beige dots all over the brown body area. Work in rows, angling each tiny dab slightly downward to mimic overlapping feathers. Add small V-shaped or curved lines with a fine brush for individual feather tips.

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Step 5: Paint the beak, ear tufts, and seal

Paint the small beak triangle with yellow or orange. Add two small pointed ear tufts at the top of the head using dark brown paint. Outline the facial disc edge with a fine line of dark brown for definition. Once fully dry, apply clear sealant spray.

Step 6: Add RoxGeo Code

On the bottom or back of your rock, write ROXGEO.COM followed by a slash and your rock’s unique code (e.g. ROXGEO.COM/ABC123). This lets the finder go directly to your rock’s profile page and log their discovery. If the rock is too small for the full address, write #ROX followed by the code without spaces (e.g. #ROXABC123) — it’s short, easy to search on Google, and leads straight to your rock’s journey page. Use a fine-tip permanent marker or acrylic paint pen, and seal it with clear varnish so the code stays readable through rain, sun, and adventure.

Helpful Tips

Stippling with a toothpick creates the most realistic feather texture on small rocks.
The key to a great owl is the two large eyes — make them bold and round.
Use a round rock so the owl's facial disc looks naturally circular.
Add golden yellow irises for a barn owl look, or bright orange for a great horned owl.
Paint ear tufts pointing upward at an angle to give the owl an alert, wise expression.
For the RoxGeo code on the bottom, use a waterproof permanent marker (like Sharpie) or an acrylic paint pen. Apply 2–3 coats of clear sealant over the code — this keeps it readable through rain, sun, and handling for months.
Writing #ROXCODE (e.g. #ROXABC123) on your rock makes it easy to find via Google search. We actively optimize for this hashtag, so anyone who searches for it will find your rock’s profile page quickly.
The full address ROXGEO.COM/CODE takes the finder directly to your rock’s card, where they can see its full travel history, previous finders, and photos from every stop on its journey.

Paint this rock and track its journey with RoxGeo!

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