Gifts From the Art 2012: Watercolor Pin

I just finished a two session mini course called "Gifts From the Art" where children can make three projects a session (a total of six gifts) for their families and friends. I did this course last year as well and it was a big hit. The class was comprised of 2nd-4th graders and I had 2-3 fabulous helpers each session. Doing this many projects a week is a bit crazy, so having good helpers is key. I try to keep things fun and moving along, but I definitely prefer my normal teaching routine where we focus on one project a week!

Here is one of the projects we did:

Aren't these just beautiful! I want to make these by the dozen!

Watercolor Heart Pin

When planning this course I try to think of gifts that can be gifted to a variety of people. A pin is a nice gift for a variety of ladies: mom, stepmom, grandma, aunt, cousin, babysitter. Here's my version that uses watercolors with a neat technique along with a few findings to create a lovely one-of-a-kind pin that is sure to be a hit!

Supplies Needed:

• Two little pieces of watercolor paper (ours were about 2 1/2" x 3")
• Pencils
• Watercolors and brushes
• Plastic wrap (maybe two 6" lengths)
• Wooden heart shape (ours were 1 3/4" wide)
• Scissors
• Tacky glue
• About a 14" piece of contrasting embroidery floss, optional
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue sticks
• 5" strand of copper wire
• Various glass beads and/or word beads (I bought both at Michael's--the word beads are plastic, the other beads are glass).
• Pin backing (ours were adhesive-backed so they were just peeled and stick-EASY!)

Directions:

1. Write your name on both pieces of watercolor paper. Wet most of the center of your paper and apply watercolor paint to the paper in nice, saturated color. Use a couple colors of paint and allow the water to blend the colors (wet on wet technique). Choose colors that are next to each other on the color wheel (analogous) so that the colors look nice when they mix. I suggested having the children create a reddish or purplish color combo on one of their papers and a greenish/bluish color combo on the other. Make sure the colors you are using are nice and saturated and while the paint is still wet, crumple up the plastic wrap and press it into the paint. Leave it there and let it dry overnight.

2. When the watercolor pieces are nice and dry, remove the plastic wrap and discard. Trace the heart shape onto the front of the watercolor paper in an area of the watercolor that you like. Cut the heart shape out. Use tacky glue to glue the watercolor paper heart to the wood form. Press for a couple of minutes until the paper no longer curls (you can also place the piece under a book or something to help it adhere better.

3. Wrap a strand of contrasting color embroidery floss around the heart, securing the ends with hot glue.

4. Attach one end of the copper wire to the back of the heart pin. Wrap it around to the front and add a couple of beads. If you are using the word bead, use it now. Keep wrapping the copper wire around, adding a couple more beads if you'd like. Make sure you only add beads to the part of the copper wire that is on the front of the pin--no beads on the back of the pin (a couple of my students tried that--but no one would ever see them that way!). Secure the end of the copper wire with hot glue.

5. Attach the pin finding to the back of the Watercolor Heart Pin and press nice and hard to make sure it sticks on there. 

What a beautiful pin--so artsy! Any mother would love to receive this! It was neat to see how different the pins came out. The children had lots of fun choosing their favorite watercolor swatch, floss color, glass beads and word bead. They took such care with each detail.

Last Minute Valentine: "I Love U"

This is a nice project to teach positive and negative space and symmetry and makes a cute last-minute Valentine for the wall or as a bookmark. It is super-inexpensive and pretty darn easy. Make one of these for your Valentine today!

Positive/Negative "I Love U" Valentine

Supplies Needed For The Wall Art:

• Piece of black construction paper (9" x 12") in black
• Pieces of red and pink construction paper (the red sections are 3" tall and the pink sections are 2 1/4" tall)
• Pencil
• Glue stick
• Scissors

Supplies Needed For The Bookmark: 

• Piece of white posterboard (2" x 5") in white
• Pieces of red and pink construction paper (1" square)
• Pencil
• Glue stick
• Scissors
• Clear packing tape (2" wide)
• Hole punch
• 8" of ribbon

Directions:

1. Decide on the order of your colored paper pieces.

2. For the first section, the heart, draw a half a heart shape onto the first piece of colored paper. Cut it out. Glue the outside of the heart shape onto the backing of your piece (either the posterboard if you are making a bookmark or the black construction paper if you are making a larger piece). Line up the cut edge the square with the center of your backing paper.

3. Glue the corresponding half heart shape along the center line, "flipped out" from the square it came from. Hmmm....sounds confusing, but look at the picture for a guide.

4. Continue down the column, cutting out half an uppercase "I" another half heart and half an uppercase "U." Finish with another heart, if desired.

5. If you are making the wall art, you are done! If you are making a bookmark, put a strip of clear of packing tape over your design to protect it. Punch a hole in the top edge of the bookmark and add a ribbon, if desired.

Sealed with a kiss! ENJOY!

Easy Valentine's Cards: Stamping with Wine Corks

I love homemade cards! This year, I used a wine cork and acrylic paints to churn out a few simple cards for my hubby and kids. This is a fun way to learn about basic printmaking and the options are endless!

I TOAD-ally Love You!
(OK, so it's actually a frog...)

Easy Wine Cork Valentine's Cards

Supplies Needed:

• A wine cork
• Acrylic paints (assorted colors, a pea size amount)
• Paper plate for palette
• Cardstock or a blank card
• A fine point marker (I used a Sharpie)
• Embellishments such as googly eyes or antenna are optional (the antenna I used are flower stamens from the cake decorating aisle of the craft store)

Directions:

1. Practice different designs on scrap paper before you move on to the cardstock. I found it helped to have a few sayings before doing the stamping. Here are a few to get you started:

• HIPPO Valentine's Day!
• I'm WILD For You!
• You're DINO-mite!
• HOGS and Kisses!
• You're My Sweet-Pea!
• You're My ALL-STAR! 
• I think you're TOAD-ally Awesome!

2. Dip the cork into a bit of paint (you don't need much) and then stamp it onto the cardstock. 

3. When dry, use a fine point marker to add details and wording to your card. The sky's the limit! Have fun!

Detail of the card for my daughter--my Sweet Pea!

Here are the Valentines for the kids. I thought of things they liked
and then made a card to reflect that interest. These would also make nice bookmarks.

Mini Craft (Popsicle) Stick Snowman

Snowman's Valentine

by Leland B. Jacobs

I have a jolly snowman,

The best I've ever had.

I'm giving him a valentine

that ought to make him glad.

For though he's very handsome

and sound in every part,

I noticed only yesterday

he hasn't any heart.

So quickly with my scissors

and paper red and fine

I made a fancy little heart;

my snowman's valentine!

(Poem reprinted from Miss Brown's webpage)

Left: Back of piece
Middle: Front of snowman, partway through project.
Right: Completed snowman project

This is a nice little craft that uses supplies you may already have on hand. I sent this craft in for my son's 2nd grade class to do at their Holiday Party, but it is a cute craft to do on a snowy day or decorate your snowman with a heart, attach the above poem, and give it out for St. Valentine's Day!

Popsicle Stick Snowman

Supplies Needed:

• Four craft/popsicle sticks
• Glue (I like using a glue gun, but tacky glue is probably better for little ones)
• White tempera or acrylic paint
• Markers (we used black and orange)
• Felt scraps, assorted colors. You'll need a 3.5" x 4.5" rectangle for a hat and a 9" x 1" rectangle for a scarf
• One to two 6" pieces of yarn
• Sticky-backed felt shapes or paper to make a heart, optional

Directions:

1. Line up three of the popsicle sticks next to each other with their long sides touching. Cut the remaining popsicle stick into 1" sections. Glue two of the small sections onto the back of the larger popsicle sticks for support, using tacky glue or hot glue. This is your snowman's body. Let dry.

2. Flip the popsicles sticks over and paint the front of the snowman white. Let dry.

3. Fold one of the long edges of the 3.5" x 4.5" rectangle to make a hat brim. Using the photo as a guide, attach the hat to the snowman (you'll need to glue it to the front of the snowman and the back). Then, use a piece of yarn to gather the hat and give it some shape. Knot the yarn and trim excess. If you are making the snowman an ornament, make a loop with the second piece of yarn and attach it to the back of the piece.

4. Using the markers, draw features on your snowman such as eyes, carrot nose, mouth and buttons.

5. Cut 1/2" long slits for fringe at either end of the piece of felt you will be using for a scarf. Tie the scarf around the snowman and secure with a dot of glue. 

6. Add a paper heart if you are sticking with the poem above.

You're done! Enjoy your little snowman!

Valentine Solitaire Game

Well, I needed to create a craft for my son's 3rd grade class to create during his St. Valentine's Day party at school. In the past, I've sent in crafts where the kids can make bracelets and pom pom critters, but I wanted to make something that these "older" kids would like.

This summer, when my family went to The Polar Caves in upstate New Hampshire, my oldest son was facinated by the little wooden puzzles on the tables where players could jump little pegs trying to get as few pegs left as possible. The version he played was a triangle shape. I thought if I turned the puzzle upside-down,  could use a heart-shape and make a cool Valentine's craft that would appeal to these sophisticated kids in bigboy's class--both boys (who seem to hate anything with hearts on it) and girls.

They were fun to make. Relatively easy, and even though they are a little more expensive than I would normally do for a classroom craft, pretty economical. I could even see someone making a batch and handing them out as Valentine's. They would also work well for a Father's Day craft/present or a Christmas craft/present (or many, many, other holidays where a simple present is needed). The supplies for 22 of these games cost me about $30.00 without using any coupons.

Here's how to make them:

Valentine Solitaire Game

Supplies needed for one game:

• 1-4 x 5"  rectangle of 1" thick styrofoam (I needed 20 pieces, so I bought a 12"x36" piece at Michael's for $7.99)
• 1-4 x 5" rectangle of cereal box cardboard (FREE-used my recycling)
• 1-8 x 13" piece of red wrapping paper (or whatever color/pattern you choose) (I bought a roll at Michael's for $3.99)
• Heart printout which includes game board and directions (Made by me--we'll see if I can upload a pdf)
• 14 Golf tees (I bought a large quantity at Sports Authority-250 for $14.00, but there are smaller bags there for about $5).
• Crayons or stickers for decorating (optional)(free--I used what I had on hand)
• Scissors, tape, glue stick

How to create it:

1. Tape the cardboard rectangle to the styrofoam block.
2. Wrap the cardboard/styrofoam with the wrapping paper like you are wrapping a present. Remember which side has the cardboard on it--that will be the bottom of the game (the cardboard keeps the golf tees from poking through the foam and out the other side which would ruin the game).
3. Cut out and decorate the two hearts: the game board and the directions. You can color them with crayons, markers or colored pencils (don't block the game board or directions!).
4. Using a glue stick, glue to game board to the side of the package that does not have the cardboard. Glue the directions onto the opposite side of the package.
5. You can now add stickers to the piece if you'd like.
6. Now, for the holes: gently poke the golf tees into the circles on the board game side. Poke them straight in. The cardboard inside the package will stop them from coming out the back of the game. Because there are 14 pegs and 15 holes, you'll need to poke an extra hole.

You are done! Have fun playing this game alone or with your family and friends!

Step One: Tape together cardboard and foam

Step Two: Wrapping the foam/cardboard

Step Four: Gluing on the hearts

Step Six: Poke the golf tees into the board

The finished game with 14 tees packaged in a quart size freezer bag so that the kids can take them home.

St. Valentine's Day--Little Scribblers

So, St. Valentine's Day always gets my creative juices going since I need to come up with something for my kids to give away at school and I usually volunteer to send in a craft for the kids to do during their parties.

So, my criteria for both are: cheap, easy & fun (usually something that lasts and doesn't get thrown away the minute it arrives in the house).

One of my sons is giving away pencils with cute little bee toppers I picked up a few months ago at a discount store. We taped mini granola bars to them to make them "more." I think they are cute, but they weren't the first choice of the kids. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough supplies to make the "Little Scribblers" that the other son is taking to school to hand out. "Little Scribblers" are bits of old, broken crayons melted down in a muffin tin to create swirly, beautiful chunks of colored wax that children can scribble with.

I first made the "Little Scribblers" many years ago when my first son was about 2 years old. He was in the habit of peeling the paper off of his crayons and breaking them. Frustrating for mom! I felt as though he was wasting them, but then I found a recipe for "Scribble Cookies,"* as one author called them. I was able to repurpose the broken bits and made a batch of colorful crayon chunks for him to use.

I was reinspired by Family Fun Magazine, when I saw that they published a recipe just like it, and suggested making the cookies in heart shapes to give away for St. Valentine's Day. Ah-ha! I could do that! The kids were very excited and I started peeling, chopping and melting our old crayons.

But alas, the Scribblers take a good amount of old crayons so I only was able to make enough for one class (with a few to use at home).

"But wait," you say, this is a craft for a little kid--like a preschooler. "My children would never use this!!" I disagree. This craft is awesome on many levels.

First, it recycles something that everyone with children has a bucket of already in their homes.

Second, you can do this with your children. Anytime you can sneak some family time or one-on-one time into your life is a bonus. You can talk with your kids while they peel the crayons and my littlest boy (who is three), used a safety knife and his little hands to break the pieces of crayons up.

Third, it facilitates a discussion of colors. Warm colors, cool colors, colors that mix well and those that don't mix so well! As your children are plopping the crayon pices into the muffin tins, they are learnng about color theory. You could whip out a color wheel to show them if they are older.

Fourth, they are fun to use for little and big kids! While my 3yo just scribbles along all over the paper, my older kids use them to make multi-colored mohawks on the people they've drawn or make awesome sunsets on pictures (the scribblers are great to fill in large areas of drawings). They are also good to use when making rubbings. Children can study textures by placing different elements such as bubble wrap, leaves, coins, etc. under a white piece of paper and rubbing over the area with their Little Scribblers.

Wonderful! Something that looks beautiful (wait 'til you see how the Scribblers look when you pop them out of the pans with all of their swirly colors!), reuses something I was gonna throw out anyway, and inspires creativity!

Enjoy!
Mrs. P

Here's the link to the recipe on the Family Fun site:
http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/crayon-hearts-671639/?CMP=NLC-NL_FFUN_Crafts_021011_crayon-hearts

If the link above doesn't work, go to www.familyfun.com and search for "crayon hearts"

*I've looked around for the source of the Scribble Cookie recipe in my stacks of books, but I'm unable to find it at this time. I'll keep looking and credit the author when I find the info.