It is almost September! For many it is back to school time, for me it is one day closer to Halloween! My next coloring book is Penelope's Garden, out in a few weeks, and in celebration I made a cute witchy Penelope charm. I drew her on a three inch Shrinky Dink circle with Sharpies, put her in a 325 degree preheated toaster oven and cooked til flat. Very important! I punched the hole in the top before toasting. She looked a bit muddy so I added some acrylic paint highlights. Here is a quick vid of the highlights at the end. Enjoy and Happy (getting close to) Halloween!
Pablo Picasso said, "We are all born artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." So true!
Children gain self-esteem and emotional fulfillment when they are allowed to create without judgement. They do not have preconceived notions or endless loops of internal negativity to get in the way of their thinking. If we foster the creativity in a child we are allowing them to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The Whole Child of PBS states: "Theexperiences a child has during their first years of life can enhance their creativity."
For all those parents out there that want to do art with their kids but think I do not have a creative bone in my body--maybe you do, but need a little help finding it. Make it easy. Get some paper and some pencils, crayons, or paint and go for it. Don't worry about the result. Enjoy the moment and just go for it. For those that need a bit of a nudge, here are some prompts: * A lovely November morning * A yellow bird * A cup of tea * A monster in the closet * A rocket ship in space * A new planet * A flower no one has ever seen before * Constellations in the night sky * Your pet * A pet you wish you could have * A cool car * Snow flakes with faces Choose any of these items and draw one on a page, a few, or 50. Just have fun. And here is a quick how-to for Kiki the Cat :) Show me your version when you are done! xo
Kiki starts with two circles, kind of like a snowman, except the bigger one is for her head! (Only slightly bigger--mine almost look the same size and that is fine.) Draw lightly here because you will be erasing some of these lines later.
Now draw some VERY light guidelines on her face so you know where to put her eyes and nose. Her face is looking right at us, so her nose will be right in the center, on the lower guideline.
Make the nose with just a tiny triangle, and then draw another short time down from the bottom point of her nose. Then draw the top of her mouth--it looks like two very shallow Us. Her eyes fit between the top and bottom guidelines. My Kiki will be looking to the right. (Her head is facing forward, but her eyes are looking off to the side.)
Lightly draw two triangles on her head for ears. If you draw them wide apart she will look calm, if you draw them more on top of her head she will look alert, or surprised. Her front paws are just small ovals with the tops of the ovals erased. Her back paws are kind of like parenthesis with tiny cat toes. Her tail looks a bit like a large backwards C. She's starting to look like Kiki now!
Now we can darken the lines and make her look fluffy. I also left some white spots in her eyes for highlights, and lines under her for a shadow. I also added some very light whiskers and I shaded part of her ears. Voila! Kiki! I will be adding more Kiki how-tos in the weeks to come. I'd love to see what you draw!
Just a quick weekend post to show off this great craft from a cereal box by Craiftingeek!
You will need: A cereal box An Exacto knife Glue Decorative paper Glitter and other crafty decorations
I thought this was great, and of course you can update it in whatever fashion you choose. Flowers, under the sea, holiday--the sky's the limit! Have fun! xo
Today as I perused Instagram I came across one of the cutest, easiest spooky crafts of the season. Posted by muminthemadhouse, these Clay Tealight Ghosts were done by one of her nine year olds. What you'll need: Air dry clay (Crayola makes one for under $5 HERE) Rolling pin or smooth bottle Butter knife Shot glasses or bunched up paper towel Just roll out the clay to about 1/8 of an inch. Cut appx. six inch diameter circles. Form ghost shapes over the shot glasses or paper towel, then make marks where the eyes and mouth will be. Lay flat again, then cut out eyes with butter knife.
Drape ghosts over glasses again and let dry. When dry (about 24 hours) place a battery operated tea light beneath ghost and place in a very dark corner to create a spooky atmosphere. I love these! Hope you do too. Thanks Mum in the Madhouse! xo
