Felt Monsters .

When I was in elementary school (from third to six grade), we used to have "sewing lessons" every other week . I remember doing some pretty cool stuff , such as a tote bag , pillows , a clown , and much more . I am not much of a "sewing teacher" but I thought it could be fun to introduce one of those fun projects once in a while . That is how I came up with these felt monsters idea .

Grade level : Any grade between 3rd and 6th grade . Make sure the kids are calm enough so they will not jump around with their needles !

Objective: Learn some basic sewing skills , while doing a fun little monster .

Material needed : * two pieces of felt (about   8.5" X  11" )
                               * more felt (use scrap pieces) to decorate the monster
                               * needles
                               * floss
                               * pins
                               * scissors
                               * synthetic fiberfill
                               * paper
                               * pencil
                       
Activity :
  (1) Ask you students to draw a monster on a regular piece of paper with a pencil . They should avoid making skinny legs and arms , as it would be awkward and difficult to fill it with the fiberfill .They should also not draw any details , as we only want them to draw a pattern of their monster at this time . Here is an example of how their pattern should look like :

  (2)The students should cut out the outline of their monster with scissors.

  (3) They will now place their pattern on one of the big piece of felt and trace around with their pencil .

 (4) Now the students have their monster drawn on one of the big pieces of felt . They should pinned BOTH big pieces of felt together . Using their pencil , they should draw a bigger outline around their original monster and cut around on this second line .

(5) Now your students should remove the pins . They have two separate pieces of felt .One piece will be the front of the monster , one piece , the back .

(6) On the leftover of paper , they can draw with their pencil , details they would like to add to their monsters . Such as eyes , a heart , a tooth , etc. Here is an example :

  

(7) By using scissors , the students will cut those eyes , heart , etc. They will take scraps of felt of different colors and trace those eyes , heart , etc . Once it is done , they will cut them .

(8) It is now time for the students to take the piece of felt that will be the front of their monster . Using pins , they should place and secure those eyes , heart  , tooth . 

  

 Show your students how to stitch them using a "blanket stitch" .If you don not know how to do that , you may want to take a look at this video by GulfCoastCottage . It will explain it very well .

  

For the mouth , you may want to show your student how to back stitch . Here again if you do not know how to do this , you may want to take a look at this video by Needlerific

(9) Now , is time to sew our monster together . Your student will put the back of their monster , flat on a table . They will then grab the front of their monster and put it on the top of it , neatly aligned and INSIDE OUT !  (You want the good front of their monster facing the back !)  They will use pins to secure the two sides in place . Like this :

(10) Using a back stitch , they will sew their monster following the line . 

 

(11) They will have to make sure to leave one area open  , so they will be able to turn their monster around (so it will be on the "good" side ) , and also so they can fill it with synthetic fiberfill .I like to let one of the leg open so the last few stitches are not too visible . But it can be a little tight and difficult for a child to turn it around . So you may prefer to leave the top of the head open . It is up to you . 

In this example , you can see , the leg is open so I can fill it with the synthetic fiberfill .

  

(12) Once your students are done with filling their monster , they should close up the open are using a slip stitch . If you do not know how to do that , you can easily learn it reading this tutorial from Taffy Talk

Here is an example of the finished project :

Have fun making your own monsters !

Thank you

Hello everyone ,
I just want to thank everyone who ever visited this site and every single person who is following it . We just reached the 4,000 total page views today ! I am so amazed that I was able to reach so many people , and it will definitively keep me going . I will be back next week with a new art project !

Salt dough magnets and plaques (Part 3)

In this third lesson , we will finish our plaques and magnets . As a teacher , art docent or mother , you have baked your  students art projects and it is now time for the finishing touches .

Materials needed:   * Old newspapers to cover the desks

                               * paintbrushes of different thickness

                               * old rags or paper towel to wipe your paintbrushes

                               * plastic cups (for water)

                               * acrylics paints of different colors

                               * gloss and matte varnishes

                               * paper plates (for acrylic paints)

                               * round magnets

                               * super glue

                               * thin colorful ribbons

Project :  (1) Each student will get their magnets and their plaque back .

               (2) Each student should get a little bit of acrylic paints of different colors . They should paint their magnets and their plaque . This stage should not take them very long .

               (3) Let it dry for at least 24 hours .

               (4) The teacher or art docent can apply some varnish on all the pieces .

               (5) Using the super glue , glue a round magnet on the back of the small art pieces to make the magnets . Let it dry !

               (6) Attach a beautiful ribbon to each plaque .

Examples : Here are the finished pieces I showed you last week :

 

Glass of lemonade magnet

 

Apple on a book magnet

 

Cactus magnet

 

Little mermaid plaque

And here are more beautiful pieces :

 

A head magnet

 

A green head magnet

 

An army shark magnet

 

A kid plaque

 

An Arizona landscape plaque

Here it is . This project is now done ! I certainly hope that you and your students had a lot of fun creating your very own magnets and plaques . Have a wonderful weekend :)

Salt dough magnets and plaque (Part 2)

In this second part of the lesson , we will make some magnets and a plaque . This is one of the most exciting process in this project .

Materials needed:
                               * Some salt dough we made last week  (give each student a generous amount so he/she will be able to make two magnets and one plaque)

                               * A rolling pin

                               * Some plastic knives (to cut the dough neatly)

                               * Some toothpicks (to make designs on the dough)
   
                               * Some plastic straws

                               * Small plastic cups for water

                               * Some plastic picture frames 5" X 8" (to measure the plaque )

                               * Wax paper

                               * You may want to have some flour handy , in case things get too sticky .

Project :
              Start by covering each desk with wax paper .

              (1) Each students will start by kneading the dough a little bit to get rid of the air bubbles .

              (2) Each student will then roll the dough flat with the rolling pin . He/she will use the plastic picture frame to measure the size of the plate . With a plastic knife he/she will cut around the frame . We now have the base of our plaque .

              (3) Use a plastic straw to make two holes at the top of the plaque (so we will be able to put a ribbon through later on , to hang the plaque) .

             (4) Now each student can decorate their plaque the way they want to . They can add flowers , ice cream , make a cat or a dog , or simply make a landscape . It is really up to their imagination ! When they add additional pieces of dough on the plaque , they should "glue" it by adding a little bit of water .

             (5) The student can add details to their design , by using toothpicks , a plastic knife ,a straw , etc.

             (6) Once the student is done with the plaque , he/she should set it aside on his/her desk .

             (7) With the extra dough that a student has , he/she can now make a couple of magnets , once again , simply ,using their imagination . They should just use the dough as they would using play dough . They can once again add details by using toothpicks , a plastic knife or a straw .

             (8) After the student is done , they should set the magnets aside on the wax paper .

Teacher's job :
Once every students are done with their salt dough art , it will be the teacher or art docent's job to bake every single piece . BE AWARE ! It will take some time . Use the oven at 350 F . The magnets could take about 2 hours (depending on their sizes ) and the plaques about 4 hours . Make sure each piece is completely dry on BOTH sides !!!!!!!!

Examples: Here are some examples of magnets and one plaque after they were baked .

 

A glass of refreshing lemonade . Look how the lines on the lemon and on the straw were added by using a plastic knife .

 

An apple on a book .

 

A cactus . This time the details were added with a toothpick .

 

A little mermaid . The mermaid , the flowers and the algae were all modeled separately and then glued onto the plaque by using water . As you can noticed , there is already a little bit of paint on this item , which bring us to our lesson next week  ,where I will explain how to paint and varnish the items . We will also add all the other finishing touches . 

Salt Dough Part 1

With the cold weather , I thought it would be a good idea to make some crafts with salt dough . I will divide this tutorial in 3 parts :

                                 (1) Salt dough recipe

                                 (2) How to make a plaque and magnets

                                 (3) Painting and varnishing your items .

Part 1 : Salt Dough Recipe 

I did this project with second graders . But once again , it can be adapted for any grade .

My mom knows how much I love to create things , so a few years back she sent me a book on how to make salted dough projects . The book was a French translation of "Salt Dough" written by Cheryl Owen . The book contains a lot of amazing creations and is very inspiring . I love her salt dough recipe and that is the recipe I use whenever I want to create something out of salt dough .

Here is the recipe :

                               2 cups of flour

                               1 cup of salt 

                               1 cup of water 

You need to mix the flour and salt in a big mixing bowl . Then you add the water , little by little until your dough becomes smooth and firm . 

Be careful , if you add too much water , your dough will be extremely sticky and it will be hard to do anything with it . If you add too much flour , some cracks will then appear in your creations after you baked them .

Take the dough out of the bowl and knead it for at least ten minutes . By doing so you will eliminate the air bubbles . You may used the dough immediately , but it is better to let it rest about 30 minutes in a closed container in your refrigerator . 

And it is done . As a teacher or an art docent , you may choose to make the dough yourself , in advance . If you are a mom and doing this with your kids at home , you may want to have them  help  you out .

Halloween Shadows ...

With Halloween approaching fast , this lesson or craft idea has a Halloween theme . Once it is done , you may tape it to a window . When the sun will shine through , it will make a really pretty Halloween decoration !

Grade level: This art lesson or craft can be used by teachers in a classroom or by a parent at home . Kids of any age can do it . For the youngest ones , you may want to keep the designs simple .

Objective : This project is using the same concept than negatives for photographs .

Material : You will need :
                 * orange tissue paper 8" x 11" (or any size you wish)
                 * black tissue paper (or black construction paper)
                 * a white color pencil
                 * glue
                 * tape

Activity : This project is very simple .

1. Every child will need to draw , on the black tissue paper  with a white pencil , a shadow of a Halloween design such as pumpkins (plain or with carved eyes , nose , and mouth ) , bats , crows , haunted houses , owls , etc . Small children may be frustrated when trying to draw on a tissue paper . If it is the case you may want to use a black construction paper instead of a black tissue paper .

2. Now they will need to cut the outline of their Halloween design .

3. The next step will be to take the orange tissue paper . The student will arrange all of his "Halloween shadows" on it . Once he/she likes the way it looks , he/she will glue the "shadows" in place .

4. You can now tape the beautiful Halloween decoration on your classroom/your house windows .

Examples :

Here is an example for younger students where you may want to do something simple , such as pumpkins carved with eyes , nose and mouth .

For older children , you may want to stimulate their imagination a little bit more by asking them to create the shadow of a haunted house and its surroundings ...Well , just something a little bit more complex and challenging .

Here is an example :

Have fun and Happy Halloween !

Georgia O'Keeffe's Flowers

Grade Level : 3rd graders .


Objectives : The children will look at the paintings of Georgia O'Keeffe and attempt drawing a close-up of a flower themselves .


Material :  *real flowers for students to look at
                  * Color construction paper 12' X 12'
                  * white and color chalks


Biography : Georgia O'Keeffe was born on November 15, 1887 . She was the second of seven children and the oldest of five girls . Her mother made sure that her children had the best education possible . She especially wanted her five daughters to have the chance to learn a profession since it was becoming more acceptable for women to go to college and work . 
The O'Keeffe lived in a farm in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin .
From age 5 , she attended Town Hall School ( a nearby schoolhouse ). When she was 11 (along with her two younger sisters) , she took weekly private drawing and painting lessons . Georgia loved these lessons and she progressed very quickly .From then on , her artistic talents were recognized by her teachers and by her parents who encouraged her to go to art college after graduating from high school . 
In 1905 , she studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and learned traditional art . In 1907 she enrolled at the Students Art League in New York. 
Georgia liked New York City . It was busier and more exciting than the peaceful farm where she had grown up . Whenever she was in New York City , she often visited a small gallery that showed the work of new artists . It was owned by a well-known photographer named Alfred Stieglitz .
After finishing school , she traveled to Texas , where she decided to teach art . She found it an exciting place to be and very inspiring . At this time , she would teach art during the school year and take classes in New York during the summer .
Alfred Stieglitz became very interested in her artwork and asked her to come back to New York , where she could paint and he would promote her paintings in his gallery . The two will eventually get married . Georgia moved to New Mexico after her husband death . She died in 1986 (at the age of 96 ) in Santa Fe , New Mexico .
Georgia O'Keeffe is the only woman in the United States to have a museum dedicated solely to her works . This museum is the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and it is located in Santa Fe  , New Mexico .


Resources : You will show the students several paintings of flowers made by Georgia O'Keeffe . Here are some examples of what you could look at :
(1) "White trumpet flower"
(2) "White flower on Red Earth "
(3) "Blue flower"
(4) "Poppy"
(5) "purple petunia"
and so on . Notice how she doesn't draw the entire flower , but how she draw a part of the flower , a little bit like if she would zoom in on the flower with a camera , showing us a "close-up shot" ? The way she paints those flowers is just amazing as well . They look so soft , so real , so colorful .


Activity : (1) Students will observe the flower they want to draw .
                (2) Using both hands , they should form a "rectangle" and use this "rectangle" to look at the flower , as if it were a camera . It will help them to draw a close-up of the flower .
                (3) Using a white chalk , they will draw the outline of their flower .
                (4) Once they like what they see , they will add color to their flowers and their background , using the color chalks . The flower should fill out most of the paper .


Examples: