Category Archives: Art Tutorials

Jul15

SUMMER CRAFTS: OJO DE DIOS (GOD’S EYE)

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SUMMER CRAFTS: OJO DE DIOS (GOD’S EYE)

OJO DE DIOS (GOD’S EYE)

What is an Ojo de Dios? The indigenous peoples of the Americas originally used them as an object of worship. Today the Ojo de Dios or Eye of God is also used as a decoration.

OJO DE DIOS (GOD'S EYE)

OJO DE DIOS (GOD’S EYE)

Materials:

Chop sticks or dowel rods (12” in length)

Yarn in assorted colors

Scissors

White glue

  1. Cross the chopsticks or dowel rod in the center. Pick a color for the center of the God’s Eye. Tie securely with the end of the yarn.
  2. Loop the yarn a couple of times to secure it further.
  3. Holding the center of the sticks, wrap the yarn under and around one of the sticks a few times. Make sure the sticks don’t show by pushing the yarn together on the stick. Pull snugly.
  4. Pull the yarn to the next stick. Wrap it under and around.
  5. Continue to wrap the yarn from stick to stick by wrapping under the sticks.
  6. If you choose to change colors, tie the yarn to a stick and cut off the excess. Tie on a second yarn.
  7. Continue to wrap until the sticks are almost covered. Make the final wrap and tie the yarn to the stick. You will need extra yarn so cut this piece about 5 “– 6” from the knot.
  8. Place a small amount of glue on the end of the stick. Wrap the end of the yarn over the glue, covering the entire end of the stick. Snip any excess yarn.
  9. Make a loop. Tie it to the opposite end of the stick and hang.

TIP: Small God’s Eyes make great Christmas tree and/or window ornaments. Pencils or short thin dowel rods can be used to make smaller Ojo de Dios ornaments.

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Jul7

SUMMER CRAFTS: AZTEC SUN

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SUMMER CRAFTS: AZTEC SUN
Aztec Sun

Aztec Sun

Materials:

Two bowls (or plates or other round object)

Ruler

Yellow craft foam

Pencil

Scissors

Tissue paper in four different colors

Wax paper

Mod Podge

Foam brush

Puffy paint

Glue

Hole punch

String

 

Project:

  1. Center a large bowl upside down on the yellow craft foam.
  2. Draw triangles all around the bowl with a pencil indicating the sun’s rays.
  3. Remove the large bowl and place the small bowl upside down and in the center of the sun. Trace.
  4. Cut outside of the sun. Fold it in half and make a small cut in the middle. Unfold it and cut from the middle to the circle. Cut around the circle.
  5. Cut the tissue paper into small pieces. Vary the size, shape or color; variety is more interesting than uniformity.
  6. Cut a piece of wax paper larger than the sun. Squeeze some Mod Podge on the wax paper and spread it over an area larger than the sun with the foam brush.
  7. Lay the pieces of tissue paper on the Mod Podge, overlapping them. Cover the Mod Podge completely.
  8. Brush Mod Podge over the tissue paper with the foam brush and allow it to dry thoroughly.
  9. Decorate the sun and its rays with puffy paint, glitter glue and sequins. Allow to dry.
  10. Place the large bowl on top of the tissue paper and trace it. Cut around the circle, removing excess tissue.
  11. Put a thin line of glue around the edge of the circle. Place the sun over the glue and press. Weigh the sun down with heavy objects until the glue dries.
  12. Punch a hole in one of the rays and pull a string through it. Tie a knot and hang up.
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Jul1

SUMMER CRAFTS: HOJALOTA

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SUMMER CRAFTS: HOJALOTA

What is hojalata? A hojalata is Mexican tin art used to create ornate and often practical objects like boxes or hangings or candelabras and more.

 

HOJALOTA

HOJALOTA

 

Materials:

Disposable round aluminum pan

Paper

Permanent markers (Optional: use paints specifically for metal, brushes and a water container)

Scissors

Newspaper

Puncher to make holes

Jump rings

String

 

Project:

  1. Cover the work table. Place the disposable aluminum pan on a piece of colored paper and trace the bottom of the pan so you have a circle.
  2. Sketch a design on a piece of paper: the sun, flowers, cactus, birds, the moon, an animal, etc. (Traditionally, humorous or religious or cultural objects are drawn by hojalata artists.) Then draw the design in the circle using a black marker. Cut out the circle and the bottom of the aluminum pan.
  3. Lay the drawing on the aluminum pie pan circle. Pushing hard enough to mark the metal, trace the design with a sharp pencil or similar tool.
  4. Turn the aluminum pie pan circle over and color in the design with permanent markers.
  5. Punch a hole at the top of the pie pan circle, pull a piece of string through and hang the hojalata.
  6. If you make more than one, you can string them by punching a hole at the top and bottom of each and connecting them with jump rings.
  7. Loop a piece of string through the hole of the top hojalata and hang. If you hang the hojalatas outdoors, watch them shine in the sum or blow in the wind!

 

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Jun17

CELEBRATE THE SEASONS! Summer Is Fun! Mobile

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CELEBRATE THE SEASONS! Summer Is Fun! Mobile
SUMMER MOBILE

SUMMER MOBILE

Ages: 5 – 12 years

Time: ½ hour – 1 hour

MATERIALS:

White felt square 36”x 36”

Orange craft foam

Yellow craft foam

White craft foam

Beige craft foam

Turquoise craft foam

Black craft foam

Moss

Black marker

White glue

scissors

String or jute or wire or thread

Dowel rods (plus cutters for cutting or sawing the dowel rods)

  1. Using the patterns provided, trace and cut the sun from the yellow craft foam, the pail from the orange craft foam, the shell from the beige craft foam, the shovel from the turquoise craft foam, and all four colors of craft foam for the ball. Finally, cut the sunglasses from the black craft foam. You don’t have to use all the patterns from the banners project.
  2. Take a small amount of moss and glue it on the top of the pail. Press down firmly while it dries.
  3. Use a black marker to draw the sun’s cheeks, smile and nose. If you are using the shell pattern, sketch a few lines on it to make it look three dimensional. Also, spell out “Summer Is Fun!”
  4. Cut two dowel rods. Tie a piece of string, jute or wire around the middle of the two dowel rods to secure them. Then, lace a piece of string, thread, jute, or wire 6” to 8” in length through the hole at the top of each shape. Tie the shapes to the dowel rods.
  5. To balance the mobile, place two or more shapes to each dowel rod and be sure that some of the shapes hang lower (or higher) than some of the others. Cut a string long enough to tie on either end of the dowel rods for hanging.
  6. Does your sculpture move? What makes it move? How is this design different from the banner design? Can you list the differences? Can you list the similarities? What is the difference between attaching the leaves on the mobile and attaching the leaves on the banner? What makes the leaves on the mobile three-dimensional and the leaves on the banner two-dimensional?
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Jun9

CELEBRATE THE SEASONS: SUMMER IS FUN! BANNER

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CELEBRATE THE SEASONS: SUMMER IS FUN! BANNER

WHAT IS A BANNER?

A banner is a piece of cloth suspended between two poles and often bearing a design, symbol or slogan. Banners can celebrate the seasons, holidays or bear slogans. The designs in this series of Art Tutorials celebrate summer, spring, winter and fall.

SUMMER IS FUN!

SEASONAL PROJECT: SUMMER IS HERE! BANNER

       SEASONAL PROJECT    

Ages: 5 – 12 years

Time: ½ hour – 1 hour

MATERIALS:

White felt square 36”x 36

Orange Fun Foam*

Yellow Fun Foam

White Fun Foam

Beige Fun Foam

Turquoise Fun Foam

Black Fun Foam

Moss

Black marker

 

1. Measure and cut the white felt to 14” x 20”. Holding the felt vertically, fold a 1” seam at the top and iron. Fold a second 1” seam and iron again. Glue. The dowel rod will go through this loop.

2. Enlarge the photo of the completed banner (above). Then trace and cut the sun from the yellow Fun Foam, the pail from the orange Fun Foam, the shell from the beige fun Foam, the shovel from the turquoise Fun Foam, and all four colors of Fun Foam for the ball. Finally, cut the sunglasses from the black Fun Foam. Glue the pieces down.

3. Take a small amount of moss and glue it on the top of the pail. Press down firmly while it dries.

4. Use a black marker to draw the sun’s cheeks, smile and nose. Sketch a few lines on the shell to make it look three-dimensional. Also, spell out “Summer Is Fun”!

5. Cut the dowel rod to about 16” x 18”. Insert through the loop at the top of the felt. Cut string to a length that is suitable for hanging. Tie the string to the ends of the dowel rod and hang.

Have a fun summer!

Fun Foam is also called craft foam.

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Jun2

RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: VEGGIE PRINTS GIFT WRAP PAPER

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RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: VEGGIE PRINTS GIFT WRAP PAPER

                    

MATERIALS:

Reused paper from mailed packages or paper bags or tissue paper

Any items with interesting shapes that you can paint, i.e. sponges

Idaho potatoes

A bunch of celery

Carrots (carrots may be too hard to carve designs but can be used to stamp circles)

Acrylic paints

Paint brushes

Butter knife

Cookie cutters

 

VARIATIONS (use alone or with the celery, carrots and potatoes):

Rubber stamps

Ink for rubber stamps

NOTE*

The veggie prints (above) were done with a sweet potato and poster paints applied with a brush directly on the potato surface.

 

 PROJECT:

  1. Cut off bottom of celery. Paint the bottom of the stalk with acrylic paint and stamp it on the paper. To use more than one color, wash off the celery and start over.
  2. Slice the carrot into discs. Carrots are suitable for stamping circular designs.
  3. Peel and cut a potato in large discs. Use cookie cutters to make shapes on the potato or make your own shapes.
  4. Paint these “stamps” (using and odd number of colors like 3 or 5) and stamp them on the paper in a pleasing pattern.
  5. Use rubber stamps together with the veggies or alone to form patterns.
  6. Allow the ink and/or acrylic paint to dry before wrapping gifts.

 

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May26

RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: PAPER BAG BOOKS

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RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: PAPER BAG BOOKS
Paper Bag Books

Paper Bag Books

MATERIALS:

Brown (or white) paper grocery bags (or any unused paper)

Scissors

White glue or glue sticks

Embroidery thread (or similar thread or thin yarn) and needle

Awl

Typing paper

Decorative edge scissors (optional)

Decorations: photos, lace, buttons, pebbles, paper, pictures, fabric appliques, wallpaper scraps, etc.

 

VARIATION:

Use rubber stamps and ink pads to decorate the paper bags or potatoes cut into various shapes.

OPTIONAL EMBELLISHMENT:

Glitter dust – apply while ink is still wet

 

PROJECT:

  1. Cut the bottom off the paper bag. Cut up the side of the bag to make one flat piece. Decide how big you want your book. You can cut this piece in half or in four quarters. Fold the pieces so the writing is on the inside. Use as many bags as you need to make the number of pages you want. You many substitute typing paper or similar for the inside pages.
  2. Fold the pages in half. Stack the pages, one inside the other. Make holes along the fold with an awl for your needle to go through.
  3. If you are using embroidery thread, use three or four strands. Make a knot at one end of your thread. Sew along the fold and make a knot at the other end when you are finished.
  4. Decorate the front and back covers.

The sample above was decorated with rubber stamps, sponges, rubber stamp ink, fabric applique, markers, and decorative edge scissors.

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May20

RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: Nature’s Leaves Note Cards

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RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: Nature’s Leaves Note Cards

 

The craft NATURE PRINTS was adapted from the project “From the Yard/Nature Prints” found in All-Around-the-House Art and Craft Book by Patricia Z. Wirtenberg and published by Houghton Mifflin Company in1968

Materials:

Leaves, bark, twigs

Printer’s inks or poster or acrylic paints in various colors (cheaper to use)

Drawing pencils (optional)

Rice or bond paper in white or various light colors (works best with poster/acrylic paints)

Brown wrapping paper or construction paper for use with printer’s inks

Brayer (or roller)

Piece of glass

Newspaper

Solvent for cleaning brayer and glass if using printer’s inks unless using water-soluble printer’s inks

  1. Collect fresh leaves from the trees or bushes in your neighborhood or yard. You will need some to experiment with and some for the last print. Other objects such as tree bark (if it’s easy to peel off) and even some twigs will work along with the leaves, too.
  2. Cover your work surface with newspaper. Lay down the glass and brayer on the work surface. Select the paints or inks that you will use. Acrylic or poster paints are less expensive than oil-based printer’s inks and easier to clean up after use.
  3. You can squeeze one color for each leaf or squeeze two or three colors side-by-side on the glass. The leaves in the samples shown used one or two or three colors at one time.
  4. Roll the paint or inks on the glass until the pigment covers the brayer. If you are using more than one color, let the colors run into each other. Roll the brayer over the leaf several times and turning the leaf over, lay it on a piece of paper like rice paper or bond paper. Use your hand to press the leaf so that it prints on the paper. Paper that is not too thick or too thin is the best to use if using acrylic or poster paints. Printer’s inks can use a slightly heavier paper like construction or brown wrapping paper.
  5. Remove the leaf and see how it printed on the paper. Experiment until you have a print that you like. Experiment with other materials from nature combined with the leaves.
  6. To create a mixed media design, color the whites of the leaves or the background paper or outline the printed leaves with colored pencils. See the two samples below.
  7. Frame the print or using old note card stationery, make note cards or poster cards of the printed leaves. They make a thoughtful gift for people who still write notes!
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May13

RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: TWIG FRAME

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RECYCLED CRAFT PROJECT: TWIG FRAME

 

MATERIALS:

Twigs

cardboard or poster board

white glue

colored raffia (twine or string can be substituted)

scissors

pencil

ruler

photo

glue stick

 

PROJECT:

  1. Measure the photo. Measure and cut the board to the size of the photo.
  2. Collect twigs the size of the photo maybe a little longer. You will need three or four twigs for each side of the frame.
  3. Trim the twigs if needed with the scissors. Or get an adult to help you.
  4. Bundle three or four twigs and wrap the raffia around each end. Do this for all four sides of the frame.
  5. Glue the photo to the cardboard using a glue stick.
  6. Apply white glue to the bundled sticks and glue along one side of the photo. Glue the bundled twigs to the other sides. Allow to dry.
  7. Make a loop with any remaining raffia and glue it to the back of the cardboard. When that is dry, hang the photo.
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May5

CELEBRATE THE SEASONS! Spring is Here! Mobile

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CELEBRATE THE SEASONS! Spring is Here! Mobile
SPRING MOBILE

SPRING MOBILE

Ages: 5 – 12 years

Time: ½ hour – 1 hour

MATERIALS:

Construction paper or craft foam in 4 pastel colors

Eraser/ Pencil

One dowel rods cut to 12”

Tacky glue or glue stick

Patterns from the Banners project

Hole puncher

Ball of jute or string or wire

Scissors

 

  1. Ask an adult to cut the dowel rods so that you have two. Cross them in the middle and tie them tightly with a piece of string or jute or wire. Lay aside.
  2. Select the paper or craft foam or use a combination of papers and craft foam. Trace and cut shapes from the patterns used for the Spring Is Here! Banner. Vary the sizes of the flowers. Add a yellow circle for the center of the daisy.
  3. Poke a hole near the top of the paper or craft foam shapes with a pencil or use a hole puncher. Then, lace a piece of string or jute or wire 6” to 8” in length through the hole at the top of each shape. Poke a hole at the bottom of the flowers and have some of them cascade downward. Tie the shapes to the dowel rods. To balance the mobile, place two or more shapes on each dowel rod and be sure that some of the shapes hang lower (or higher) than some of the others. This is called balancing or making the mobile level. Ask an adult for help if you need it.
  4. Tie a piece of string in the middle of the two dowel rods for hanging. Does your sculpture move? What makes it move? How is this design different from the banner design? What are the differences? What are the similarities?
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