Dilly-Dali Art

DIY Welcome Sign {#summerofjoann}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 14:37:00 +0000

*** I received a $25 giftcard from Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores for the purpose of this review. ***

***All opinions expressed are my own. I did not receive any compensation for this post.***

Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores challenged us to try one craft from their craft catalog of 72 featured projects and then invite you to join in on the fun of crafting this summer with "Cape Discovery"

It was hard to choose just one project,

we decided on making these cute chalkboard signs and putting our own little twist on them.

Here's how we made our

Favorite Places Welcome Sign!

The materials are simple enough: black foamcore board * brown Foamie sheets * Crayola sidewalk chalk * Tacky glue * brown Sharpie marker * Krylon Clear Finish (I used Fixatif instead) we also used Outdoor Mod Podge and a wooden dowel

The first thing we did was make a list of our favorite places to visit, how far away they are from our house and which direction you have to travel to get there.

I cut the foamcore into pieces to make the signs

I find it easier to cut foamcore in three cuts

1. cut through the top layer of paper

2. cut through the foam

3. cut through the bottom layer of paper

Miss C used sidewalk chalk to write the locations on the signs

I added the distances

I took the signs outside to spray them with the Fixatif

(the fumes are very strong)

the Fixatif keeps the chalk from smearing.

(optional)

Attach your signs to a wooden dowel

Little A drew lines on Foamie sheets to simulate wood grain

and then cut the sheets into strips

Frame the signs with the foam "wood" strips

(optional)

Coat your signs with Outdoor Mod Podge

FYI: Outdoor Mod Podge is NOT waterproof so if you place your sign outside you'll have to bring it in if you're expecting rain

Place your new "Welcome!" sign outside to greet your guests!

Jo-Ann's chalkboard signs are so simple (and cheap!) you can make signs for anything! kid's room * mark the bathroom for guests * make "party here" signs to place in your yard * make signs to let people know you're having a yard sale * make small ones and mark the plants in the garden

What would you make signs for?

If you like this idea I'd love for you to pin it and tweet it with the hashtag #summerofjoann

Connect with Jo-Ann by signing up for their newsletter and receive a 20% off coupon!

Thank you Jo-Ann for inviting us to join in on your Cape Discovery crafting challenge!

Let's connect!

Save this idea for later!

Meet Baby B

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 15 May 2013 04:00:00 +0000

It's time for a proper introduction!
In case you missed the announcement on my Facebook page, this is Baby B. He is the sweetest little guy and already a total Momma's boy.
It has been a slow nine months on my blog, but I'm feeling better than ever and ready to start writing posts again.
The girls and I can't wait to get this little man messy!

Making Window Stickers With ALEX Toys

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Sat, 11 May 2013 04:17:00 +0000

*** I received the Window Sticker Art Kits from ALEX Toys for the purpose of this review. ***

***All opinions expressed are my own. I did not receive any compensation for this post.***

The girls and I were thrilled to be able to review some products for ALEX Toys.

If you've been following the blog for a while you know how much we love window art,

so we jumped on the chance to give their Window Sticker Art Kits a try.

ALEX generously sent us

the Glam kit AND the Zoom kit.

Little A was so excited to make window stickers!

Here's what I love about these kits,

they come with everything you need!

I just had a baby

and as much as I love setting up art projects for the girls to do,

sometimes I need something quick to grab off the art shelf that they can set up themselves with minimal help.

Both kits come with:

preprinted artwork, 5 different colored glues, outline glue, a plastic worksheet, and instructions

According to the box, these kits are recommended for ages 6+

Miss C is 5.5 and Little A is 3.5

Even though C's lines were shaky she was proud of her creations and was not once upset that her lines were not straight.

Finding the right amount of pressure to use for squeezing out the colored glue took a few tries.

We found that squeezing and swirling at the same time helped to fill in the outlines and spread the colored glue without using too much.

Little A was not able to trace the outlines herself

The black outline glue was too thick for her to squeeze out.

She did enjoy filling in the outlines with the colored glue.

The girls couldn't wait to stick their stickers to the window

Once they were up

Miss C exclaimed, "They're suncatchers!"

We love that this is window art we can take down and move around

They stick to windows, mirrors, fridges, etc.

They are really sticky

(without being a sticky mess!)

As soon as their first stickers were done they sat down to make some more

and we still have glue leftover to make a couple more batches!

We really enjoyed making these window stickers,

the instructions are simple and fool-proof,

the kit comes with everything you need,

the colors are bright,

the preprinted designs are fun.

The only gripe I heard from the girls was that they wish they dried faster.

The outlines take two hours to dry and the colored glue takes 24 hours

Of course drying time can't be helped and the waiting is well worth the fun to be had!

Thank you to our friends at ALEX Toys!

Find ALEX on Facebook

Find ALEX on Pinterest

Let's connect!

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Gelatin Plastic Butterflies

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 04:00:00 +0000

Unflavored gelatin is one of our favorite materials to create with.

You can make a sort of gelatin "plastic" when you mix an envelope with a small amount of water.

Let the gelatin dry for a few days, and it hardens up like plastic!

It reminds me of acetate sheets that teachers use on projectors

(do teachers still use those?)

Here's how we used our sheets to make gelatin plastic butterflies!

Mix your gelatin with boiling water until it dissolves Here are more detailed instructions on making gelatin plastic add any coloring you want while you're stirring (we use food coloring)

Pour your gelatin into any type of tray you wish

we've used plastic plates, baking sheets and plastic wrap, and these plastic trays from Discount School Supply.

The girls decided to add more colors and swirl them around

and

then dumped generous amounts of glitter on top

Here is the gelatin before it is dry

Here is the gelatin after it is dry

It took several days for this batch of gelatin to dry and it dried quite crinkly

(I'm blaming wet weather, it rained several days during the week)

While we were waiting for our gelatin to dry, the girls decorated clothespins with

paint, googly eyes, and pipe cleaner antennae

Miss C traced a heart cookie cutter to make wings,

then cut her hearts out (there was some free form wing cutting happening as well),

and glued her wings to the backs of her clothespins.

Here are the butterflies waiting for their wings to dry!

We stuck them to our windows,

I love the light shining through the wings!

See how you can see some of the Sharpie marker?

Drawing designs on the wings with Sharpie would show up really nicely!

Have you made gelatin plastic yet?

If you'd like more inspiration why not

make a simple rainbow?

Let's connect!

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Picture Book Art: Dog's Colorful Day

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 04:00:00 +0000

For awhile I've been wanting to do simple art projects to go with the books we check out from the library

So, here is the first Picture Book Art post

Dog's Colorful Day

Emma Dodd

This adorable book is about a little white dog that collects colorful (and messy!) spots on his fur throughout his busy doggy day.

After reading the story the girls drew dogs on a large sheet of white paper.

I set out paint and paint daubers that I made with clothespins and cotton balls

(pom poms also work great).

The girls' favorite part was dabbing on the paint and talking about how each spot got there.

When they were done with their spots we counted them and made a list of what every spot was.

Little A's dog had spots from black rain AND blue rain!

That brown spot on Miss C's dog's ear was from a scrumptious chocolate bear

YUM!

Even though my girls know their colors and numbers they still really enjoyed the funny story of Dog's Colorful Day.
We had a great laugh making up our own dog stories and talking about the spots on their dogs.
Be sure to look for this book at your local library or bookstore!

Let's connect!

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Inspired {Wayne Thiebaud}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 03:42:00 +0000

We were Inspired by Wayne Thiebaud!

The girls wanted to do something special for my husband's birthday

(since he doesn't like to eat cake)

so they painted cakes!

Whenever we're learning about a new artist the first place I visit is YouTube.

I love searching for interviews, it's so interesting to hear the artists speak about their methods and work.

We really enjoyed this interview with Wayne Thiebaud.

In the video there are close ups of his work where you can clearly see the build up of oil paints on his cakes, it looks exactly like frosting.

He even mentions that while he's painting it almost feels like he's making real cakes and pies.

I haven't ventured into letting the girls use oils yet

(no particular reason why)

so I thickened up some tempera paint for them to use instead

I mixed 1 cup of cornstarch with 1 cup of water in a saucepan

and heat it over low heat stirring constantly until it was the consistency of sticky play dough

Using a muffin tin I mixed the tempera paint with my cornstarch thickener and

voila!

tempera frosting.

To make their cakes, the girls drew a simple cake shapes onto their paper with pencil.

An oval top, two straight sides, and a curved bottom.

Then they went to work using popsicle sticks to spread on their "frosting"

Alongside the thickened tempera,

I also set out regular tempera and paintbrushes for them to use

Sweet Little A was so proud that she drew her cake all by herself

She worked on the same cake picture the whole time

(Miss C painted three in the same amount of time)

A was absolutely fascinated with adding layer after layer of paint

and then she decided to mix it all together.

I wish I had a picture of her face when she saw that she made gray

she was surprised and amazed all at once

C was also surprised, pointing out that A didn't even have black paint.

How DID that happen!?

The girls really enjoyed painting Thiebaud-Inspired cakes and couldn't wait to show my husband when he came home from work.

He loved them!

Unfortunately, we weren't able to keep the paintings because the paint started flaking off

(due to the cornstarch, I'm sure).

Whenever we decide to try oil painting, Wayne Thiebaud-Inspired cake might just be the first thing we paint!

Check out our other Inspired art here!

Let's connect!

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A Few of Our Favorite Things {Winner, Take 2}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 12:00:00 +0000

The first giveaway winner did not respond so a new winner has been drawn!

Congratulations Tricia Orchard!
You have 48 hours to claim your prize! Please check your inbox for my email.

A Few of our Favorite Things {GIVEAWAY!}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

To thank all of you for

following along,

commenting,

and sharing,

and to celebrate my two year blogiversary,

I'm giving away some of our favorite things!

Here is what is included in the giveaway

and

suggestions on how to use the materials

Contact Paper and Tissue Squares

You can stick almost anything to contact paper,

tissue paper squares are our favorite for making collages.

When you're done using tissue paper squares

try squishing paint in between two sheets!

Canvas and Crayons

Give melted crayon art a go!

Have you already made melted crayon art?

Try painting with melted crayons.

Unflavored Gelatin and Food Coloring

I always keep unflavored gelatin in my art cupboard,

gelatin plastic is so easy to make, lasts a long time,

and can pretty much be made into any shape or color you'd like!

You can even make your own rainbow!

Watercolor Paper and Watercolors

We use watercolor paper for almost everything. It's perfect for all kinds of art!

We even cut the paper up into smaller rectangles for making notecards.

Setting out water and pan watercolors is easy and quick to do when my girls are in a hurry to paint,

they also travel nicely for impromptu painting at the park.

Coffee Filters

Coffee filters are amazing for tie dying!

We like to use food coloring on our coffee filters and cut them out like snowflakes

we've even taken advantage of how the coloring bleeds through the filter and made abstract art.

Shaving Cream

Marbling with shaving cream is so much fun but nothing beats the fun my girls had making shaving cream cupcakes.

Sidewalk Chalk

We LOVE sidewalk chalk!

We use it for everything from tracing around each other to making hopscotch and mazes.

Our favorite way to use chalk is soaking wet.

We've also created with chalk dust, which was really neat.

Plastic Spray Bottles

We use spray bottles to make negative art by filling the bottles with half paint and half water.

You can also fill the bottles with water and spray on chalk boards, cement, watercolor paintings,

food coloring on coffee filters.

The possibilities are pretty much endless with spray bottles!

Fun Extras!

Here are some fun extras to keep in stock

glitter glue

white glue

glow in the dark glitter

and

Kool-Aid.

We've never used Kool-Aid for art purposes but I know you can make sensory doughs with it and use it for painting and dying!

Here is all

the important mumbo-jumbo

*This giveaway is open to anyone with a mailing address!

(Yes, that means internationally!)

*You must be 18 years or older to enter

*The giveaway

starts

Monday, 02/18/2013 at 12:00 am EST

and

ends

Sunday, 02/24/2013 at 11:59 pm EST

*Winner will be announced

Monday, 02/25/2013

on the blog and by email

*Winner will be chosen by random.org

*Winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen

*You must provide a valid email address to enter

(so you can be notified if you win)

To Enter

Leave a comment letting me know what material(s) you're looking forward to using!

Good Luck!

Let's connect!

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Window Paint by Number

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

I recently had my two year blogiversary I can't believe it's been two years!
The very first post I ever wrote was about stained glass windows made with tissue paper.
For my first blogiversary I posted about window painting.
Keeping up with tradition I'm sharing another window art post, paint by number on the window!

I started off by painting a very simple design with acrylic paint.

Then using tempera paint,

I painted numbers into each section.

One number for each color,

we used seven colors.

The girls painted in the sections with the colors that matched the numbers.

They decided to do one color at a time

and had a lot of fun hunting for the numbers and making sure they painted in each section.

I love how our window looks when it's painted!

The girls and I really enjoyed this twist on painting the window and I know we will do this activity again!
I think next time I'll be more brave and try to design a paint by number that has a hidden image!
Have you tried painting on your windows?

Let's connect!

Save this idea for later!

5 Ideas for Valentine's Day Cards {Part 2}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Valentine's Day is on the way!

Here are five easy ideas for Valentine's Day cards!

Rainbow Valentine

Made using an oil pastel and watercolor resist technique.

Don't forget heart stamped clouds!

Orange Valentine

Print with orange slices

then

stamp your message with alphabet stamps!

Firefly Valentine

Make a valentine that glows

with

fingerprints and glow in the dark glitter and paint.

Heart Valentine

Make negative heart shapes using

foam stickers

and

watered down paint in a spray bottle.

Sticker Valentine

Create your own stickers

with

contact paper!

and if five ideas for cards isn't enough here are five more!

Let's connect!

Save this idea for later!

Sticker Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

These valentine cards are so easy,

I mean,

REALLY easy!

For these cards, the girls made their own stickers out of contact paper.

All that's needed is contact paper, permanent markers,

and blank cards

(for cards, I just cut up sheets of 90lb paper)

Tape the corners of the contact paper down

and draw images on it with the permanent marker.

I traced a few heart shapes for Little A to color in,

but left the majority of the contact paper blank for her

Cut out the stickers and attach them to the cards with a small dab of glue.

Make sure to leave the backing of the contact paper ON!

These would be so simple to make in bulk!

A cute Valentine's Day message

and a special sticker

all in one!

Looking for more Valentine's Day card ideas?

Here are five!

Save this idea for later!

Heart Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

These simple heart valentines were made using a paint resist technique

(earlier this week we shared another type of paint resist)

To make these cards

(for the cards I just cut up sheets of 90lb paper)

we used foam heart stickers and watered down tempera paint

Stick the foam stickers on the card

(pressing lightly so that they are easy to remove)

then,

using a spray bottle filled with watered down tempera paint

spray paint over the hearts

Once the paint is dry, remove the stickers

You can leave the cards like this or you can embellish them.

The girls used glitter glue to add a little Valentine's Day sparkle.

When the glitter glue was dry,

we chose our favorite conversation heart messages

and I wrote them in the blank hearts.

Write your favorite message to give to your favorite Valentine!

Looking for more Valentine's Day card ideas?

Here are five!

Firefly Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

These cute valentine cards are made with fingerprints!

Guess what else?

They glow!

First, make as many fingerprints on the card as desired.

(I just cut sheets of 90lb paper into cards)

Leave enough space around the fireflies for wings!

Use glue to make wing shapes then sprinkle them with glow in the dark glitter.

I found this glow in the dark glitter at Michaels,

you can also find glow in the dark glitter on Amazon.

For the little glowing tushies we used glow in the dark fabric paint

(also from Michaels)

Once the cards are dry add little details

faces, antennae, etc.

Add a message and light up someone's day by giving them a card that glows!

Don't forget to write a little note on the back letting the recipient know to hold the card in the light for a few seconds then take it into the dark for a surprise!

Looking for more Valentine's Card ideas?

Here are five!

Orange Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Miss C's favorite joke is the knock-knock that ends

"Orange you glad I didn't say banana?"

So I knew she'd love to make an orange themed Valentine card.

I cut an orange into slices

(slicing an orange in half would be much easier, do that instead)

and Miss C painted them with red paint.

We decided on red because of Valentine's Day,

if I were to make these again I'd probably suggest orange paint.

Stamp the orange on a scrap piece of paper to get the excess paint off

then stamp it onto a card

(we just cut a sheet of 90lb paper into cards)

Using her alphabet stamps,

Miss C stamped the message

"Orange you glad"

on the front of the card

Then on the back she stamped

"you're my Valentine?"

C had a lot of fun making these cards and the best part is she can hand them out to her friends with an orange instead of candy!

Cute and healthy!

Looking for more Valentine's card ideas?

Here are five!

Rainbow Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 05:00:00 +0000

These cute rainbow valentines were made

using a watercolor resist technique

First, the girls drew rainbows with oil pastels

Then, they painted over the oil pastel with blue watercolor

We made our own heart stamps by sticking foam stickers to bottle caps

then loaded them up with white paint

Once the watercolors were dry

the girls stamped a heart on either side of their rainbows to make clouds

Add a cute message and you're ready to pass out colorful wishes to all your Valentines!

Looking for more Valentine's Day card ideas?

Here are five!

Save this idea for later!

Heart Wands

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 05:00:00 +0000

While stocking up on Valentine's Day supplies,

the girls asked if I would buy them wands.

I promised that I would make them heart wands.

So,

I bought one sheet of self adhesive glitter foam

and one long dowel (that I cut in half).

These wands are REALLY easy!

I traced a heart cookie cutter on the back of the foam, four times.

Then, cut the hearts out.

Thank you Miss C for the picture!

She's been practicing being a blogger

Peel off the backing of the foam sheet,

stick the dowel in the center,

then stick another heart on top.

The girls would have been happy if I stopped there,

but I wanted to personalize the wands a bit more.

I glued ribbon along the edge of the heart

and raided my ribbon box

to add some pizazz.

Now I have two very happy little girls!

These wands would be perfect for surprising your little sweetheart on Valentine's Day!

5 Ideas for Valentine's Day Cards

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 05:00:00 +0000

Valentine's Day is on the way!

Here are 5 easy ideas for Valentine's Day cards:

1. Stamped Heart Butterfly

2. Pipe Cleaner Snake

3. Dot Painted Berry

4. Watercolor Heart

5. Button Peas

Inspired {Laurel Burch}

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 05:00:00 +0000

As soon as I saw the art of

Laurel Burch

I knew she would be the next artist in our

Inspired series

To introduce the girls to Laurel Burch we viewed the gallery on her website

and searched for videos on YouTube where you can find a couple interviews with her.

Let me tell you,

she was inspiring!

A single mother of two, she started off by making jewelry from found objects and then soon moved on to painting.

She was completely self taught and worked diligently on her art even though she had Osteopetrosis which caused her bones to break easily.

She even painted with her left hand while her right arm was broken!

Our favorite Burch paintings were her cat paintings,

so we gave them a try.

First the girls drew their cats in pencil.

At 5 years old, Miss C can pretty much draw what she sees in her head

At 3 years old, Little A knows what she wants to draw and can tell me what she's drawing,

but is just now getting a handle on the shapes.

After drawing their cats they chose their own bright colors of acrylics

and began painting.

This is where Little A veered from the cat path and got lost in the painting

(which I love)

C painted her cats carefully,

she noticed while looking at Laurel Burch's paintings that she used a lot of stripes and dots.

Once the paint was dry,

C used a silver metallic Sharpie to outline her paintings

and add other details like shapes, lines, and dots

Here are Miss C's finished paintings

and Little A's painting

and I even joined in on the fun!

I hope this post inspires you to learn more about Laurel Burch,

she was an amazing woman and artist!

Pour Painted Christmas Tree

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 17:29:00 +0000

These Christmas tree decorations are very simple to make!

All you need are 3 terracotta pots that stack on top of each other

and a saucer that fits on the bottom.

You can use whatever size pots you want.

I chose small pots since these are for indoors

Maybe next year we'll make larger trees for outside

I believe my pots are 2", 3", 4" and the saucer is 4"

Stack the pots

and

don't forget to glue them together!

(I used model cement)

Wait for your glue to set and then start pour painting!

Just squeeze your paint on top of the pots and let it drip down the sides

With pour painting less is more!

You really don't need a ton of paint

Gravity will keep pulling the paint down until it is dry.

Check out

this post and this post

for more in depth pour painting instructions.

I set out several shades of green acrylic paint for this project.

Once the trees were dry,

they were painted with mod podge to give them a glossy sheen.

When the mod podge was dry,

I set out glitter glue, ribbons, pom poms, buttons, and beads

The girls stuck all the buttons, beads, and pom poms onto their trees with the glitter glue.

Here are the finished trees!

The girls love their beautiful works of art!

Kandinsky Circles

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 11:00:00 +0000

We have a huge front window we love painting on

Usually we paint whatever we're feeling,

but this time I thought it would be fun to try some

Kandinsky Circles

I drew squares on the window with washable marker

and

set out fingerpaint

(I love how translucent it is on the window)

I told the girls we'd be painting circles in the squares and painted an example,

They did a much better job than I did

I love how it turned out!

Miss C moved from square to square completing a little bit at a time

Look at the little circles she made!

Every square turned out different even though we used the same paint for each one

Miss C snapped a rare picture of me getting in on the action

Here is our finished window!

It faces the east and I love waking up in the morning and seeing the light shining through

I never want to wash it off!

Have you done Kandinsky circles with your little one?

Shaving Cream Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Sun, 23 Sep 2012 10:00:00 +0000

My baby just recently turned 3!

She's my little mess maker

so last year I planned a messy art activity for her birthday

(belly prints)

Little A had so much fun getting messy last year I decided to plan another messy art activity for her this year

This is a pretty simple activity but it kept the girls involved for a couple hours

All I did was set out shaving cream, bowls, food coloring, piping bags, piping tips, glitter, buttons, beads, shells, pasta, candles, silicon cupcake liners, and a cake pan.

If you don't have piping bags or tips a plain sandwich bag will work just as well,

just cut the corner off one side

Once the girls were done decorating one batch,

I rinsed the cupcake liners and cake pan and they started all over again.

They made 4 different batches of cupcakes

Enjoy the pictures of all the fun the girls had!!

Happy Birthday, Little A!!!!

Before you go,

check out how

Experimenting Mom

made

Shaving cream cup cakes

with her little one

Color Mixing Flowers

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 10:00:00 +0000

I love Deep Space Sparkle's

Colorwheel Flowers Art Lesson

so much that I adapted it into a color mixing project for my girls

Here's how we did it

First we painted red, blue, and yellow stripes,

make sure the stripes are wide enough to cut petals out of.

While you're painting you can discuss how red, blue, and yellow are

primary colors

they cannot be made by mixing any other colors.

Set your stripes aside to dry and grab a clean sheet of paper

To make the centers of your flowers

mix the primary colors together

Yellow + Red = Orange

Red + Blue = Purple

Yellow + Blue = Green

Don't forget to mention that orange, purple, and green are

secondary colors

Leave enough room between the centers to add petals

Little A didn't quite follow the instructions

but

she kept saying

"I did it! I did it!"

after making green

so I let her do her own thing

Once your primary color stripes are dry,

cut them out

and

then cut petals out of them.

Glue your petals around the flower centers

For our project we glued the two primary colors that mix together to make the secondary colored center

After the petals are glued on add stems, leaves, etc.

Miss C added a cute little bumblebee to her garden

Voila!

A garden of color mixed flowers

A quick visual for your child to see which primary colors mix to make a secondary color

Here are my flowers

Miss C's flowers

Little A's independent art project

Elements Of Art Poster

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Since I'm getting ready to teach the girls about the elements of art,

I thought we should make a poster as a quick introduction

and also

to have as a reference for later.

You can make one for your home, too!

We started with a piece of poster board

titled it and made 6 spaces for the elements

Before we started I explained that the elements of art are the building blocks of art,

every piece of art has at least one or two elements

I started with color,

telling the girls that light contains all of the colors

the colors that we see is light bouncing off an object

all the other colors are absorbed.

White is all the colors being reflected,

black is all the colors being absorbed

Next we talked about shape

starting with the basics

square, circle, triangle, etc

then we had fun making up our own shapes!

Texture was a fun element to discuss,

I sent Miss C on a texture hunt and she came back with some great choices

She also demonstrated the appearance of texture with paint

Value was Miss C's favorite element to depict.

Her favorite thing to do is paint and she really was surprised to see the final result of adding white to purple after each stroke she painted

I described line by holding a marker to the poster board until it made a small point and then moving it forward

Line can also be described as the path between two points.

Form (in my opinion) is the hardest to show on paper.

Form is a 3d figure,

it has height, width, and depth.

Shape only has height and width.

Sculptures are a great example of form

but you can create the illusion of form with shading and perspective

Here is our completed poster!

If you make one for your home remember to have fun with it

get creative with finding textures

get silly with drawing lines

and make unique shapes and name them!

Art is fun!!

Learning To Use And Care For Paintbrushes

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Recently I was cleaning out the paintbrush drawer and this is what I found

Does anybody else have brushes that look like these?!

YIKES!

While I was going through the brushes one by one

I decided it was time to teach the girls how to care for their paintbrushes

I suppose I should have taught them sooner

but

better late than never!

Here's what we focused on:

Holding the brush like a pencil

This was hardest for Little A (2) but once she got the hang of it she had so much more control over her brush strokes

Loading the brush

Instead of sticking the paintbrush all the way into the paint we found out that sticking the bristles in halfway works just as well

AND

it's less messy

Rinsing the brush in water

Usually the girls are jabbing their brushes down into the bottom of the jar causing the bristles to bend or break,

swirling the paintbrush gently around will keep the bristles like new

Getting the excess water off

Tapping the brush on the edge of the jar flicks water everywhere,

we practiced rubbing the bristles across the edge instead

Blotting the brush

Blotting the brush on a washcloth (or paper towel) soaks up the water before dipping the brush back into the paint

Next, I worked with Miss C (4) on painting lines

My main goal for this was to help her realize that one brush can make several different lines by just adjusting how hard you press the brush onto the paper

She really had a difficult time with this

Once I placed my hand around her hand I soon realized she's been pressing about as hard as she can every time she paints

Holding her hand lightly gave her the chance to feel

light pressure versus heavy pressure

As soon as she knew the feeling she really enjoyed seeing what lines she could make

When we were done with painting I had the girls clean their brushes

a little swirl around in some warm soapy water

gently reshaping the bristles

(not squeezing!)

then setting them in the jar to dry before placing them back in the drawer

Now that we've learned the basics it will become routine and we should be able to use our brushes for years to come!

Do you do anything to keep your brushes like new?

New Posts Coming Soon

noreply@blogger.com (Aleacia) — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 10:00:00 +0000

I haven't blogged since the end of April.

First, we moved

and then

summer came.

I was having so much fun I wasn't sure I even wanted to blog anymore.

But,

I'm here to tell you that new posts will be coming soon!

My family is starting a new journey together

Miss C will be (officially) homeschooled this year,

she will be a kindergartener!

I was disappointed after searching for art curriculum for homeschoolers,

many of the programs I found made teaching art seem hard,

not to mention boring.

So,

I decided to share what we're learning on this blog.

We will be working on

the elements of art,

art inspired by artists,

art inspired by books,

and

plenty of artistic techniques.

I am excited to share new posts with you,

look for them starting in September!

In the meantime,

here are a couple of my favorite pictures from this summer