Showing posts with label elementary art blog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label elementary art blog. Show all posts

Sunday, October 9, 2016

DIY: Zombie Head Planters

These here Zombie Head Planters are the ugliest things I've ever made and I really couldn't be happier. Weird? Yes. Okay with that? Totes. 
I mean, you gotta have respect for something that finds brains appetizing, y'all. 
 So I got the idea to create these Zombie Head Planters last week after I wrapped up my last Celluclay creation. I STILL had half a bag left of the stuff (a little goes a long way...and even with these guys and the pumpkins, I still have some left over) so I actually have another project I'd love to do...but more on that later. 
Let's talk about the brainz-eaters at hand, shall we?
Over the summer, I picked up these little plastic planters from Target with the grand idea that I'd plant herbs in them or something. That didn't happen and so six of these dudes were sitting around collecting dust. I had been using them to prop up my pumpkin heads as I worked on them...which gave me the idea to create these. 
Need a review on how simple it is to work with Celluclay? Here you go!
Originally, I was just going to make the heads but I really liked the idea of the zombies having a body as well. So I used the upturned pottery for that. 
Again, I didn't sand the plastic or prep it in any way. The clay did take longer to dry this time as the weather is now cooler. So I put them in front of a fan overnight and they were dry the next day. They've yet to crack or flake off which is great. They are rock solid once painted and Modpodged. 
Painting was easy. I just picked a dark green color to paint everything, put them in front of the fan and started to dry brush on lighter colors. With a smaller brush, I added details. But, really, the painting is the easiest part. The surface of the Celluclay is perfect for zombies...who knew?!
My original idea was to have herbs in the planters but let's get real: I have a black thumb. So I shopped the heavily marked down fall floral isle of my local craft store and picked up what I thought would look good as hair and brain matter. I'm sure that's what everyone looks for in the floral isle, right?
True fact: I am no floral designer nor do I pretend to be. I seriously just used those floral foam thingies, hot glued some moss on that and stuck in some flowers. 
Side note: hot glue and styrofoam don't play well together. The hot glue melted the foam and, um, that was fun. I was watching Project Runway so I channeled my inner Tim Gunn and I made it work (which for me always means: ADD MORE HOT GLUE!).
And I'm kinda sorta thrilled with how they turned out! With faces only a mother could love. 
It's funny, whenever I'm tasked with creating something at a PD or otherwise, I ALWAYS make this lady. Sassy retro mama with a gnarly expression and usually a cigarette dangling from her lips. I think she's my spirit animal. 
This is my tribute to Gene Wilder's character in Young Frankenstein...note the hair. Of course, I had to zombie-ize him. I love how the moss looks like brains. 
P.S. these will NOT be on display in our bedroom. Their eyes seriously do follow you everywhere. 
Don't tell the others but this one is my favorite. It reminds me of Beetlejuice...which is super duper in my book. 
Now off to find just the perfect place in my house for these lovelies. Love to hear from you if you've worked with Celluclay and what you've created. You can comment below or shoot me an email. In the meantime, steer clear of the brain-eaters, y'all!
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Tuesday, September 6, 2016

In the Art Room: A Fiber-tastic Twitter Chat!

Hey, favorite friends! I'm super stoked to share with y'all that I'll be hosting a Twitter chat tomorrow in conjunction with the Wisconsin Art Education Association. If you've never joined the fun of a Twitter chat, here are a couple of things you should know:

*  To join the chat, simply search #wiartchat in the search bar. Starting at 8pm, you'll see the chatter starting with questions by me about all things fiber. 

* To add to the conversation, begin your tweet with the hashtag and an A for answer the number of the question you are responding to. For example, "#wiartchat A1: Yes, fiber arts is in my curriculum!" 

* Know your abbreviations. Because of the limited amount of characters, folks will often respond with abbreviations which can be a little confusing. Just think of it like reading a text and the shortened words will make sense. 

* Hold on to your seats: these chats are often only 30 minutes in length. With a half dozen questions and a bunch of folks responding, it can get VERY busy. My first time joining in on a chat involved me just taking it all in. Relax and enjoy the ride.

Now, let's talk about what all the tweeting will entail:
I'll be resharing the questions during the chat so no need to put them to memory. I hope to chat with y'all tomorrow night, it will be so fun!

Of course, I'm thrilled to be chatting with my buddies in Wisconsin as I'll be there for their fall conference leading a fiber class and talking it up in LaCrosse on October 20th - 21st. You can find out more details and register to attend here
 And, since we are talking all things fiber-tastic...
Just a reminder that I'm teaching a fibers course over on AOE. Remember, if you use the code SAVE10CASSIEART17, you'll get a 10% discount!
So looking forward to chatting with all y'all real soon! 

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Thursday, September 1, 2016

In the Art Room: Radial Design Printmaking

I love art teachers because they have the best ideas and are super sweet about sharing them. This idea comes courtesy of art teacher Jeanna Pena (who you can follow on Facebook and Twitter for all of her art adventures). When she shared this lesson in the Art Teachers Facebook group, I immediately decided to scrap the lesson I had planned for my fourth grader's Dot Day project and go with this one. And I'm so glad I did. It was such a smash hit of a lesson (with still one more round to go as we'll be covering these printing plates and burnishing them next week, a la this project) that I just can't thank Jeanna enough for sharing. So, with her permission, I'm sharing my version of her lesson here!

But first, a word about Jeanna. She's pretty stinkin' awesome. I noticed from a wee bit of Facebook stalking that she seemed to be quite the adventurer. Here's what she had to say: I came up with this idea after I traveled to Cuba last fall. I was attempting to translate the radial tile patterns that I saw in some amazing old buildings.

I applied for the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship with National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions and it has been a whirlwind! They are sending me to Antarctica in December. They brought our group together in DC and we had photography lessons at NatGeo HQ, naturalist updates, and classes with the Google Educational Engagement folks. I'm the only art teacher. They're looking for adversity in content areas! I highly recommend it!

How awesome is Jeanna?! If you have a moment to show her some love in the comments for this awesome lesson, please do so. AND if you have any questions about her travels, you can find her on those social media links above.
Now, let's talk about this project. It was our first for the new school year, right after we wrapped the Escape Game and the Monochromatic Selfies. Jeanna had mentioned she did this project with her older students...so I wasn't sure how my kids would do being brand new fourth graders and all. But they knocked it out of the park! Here is the video they viewed on the first day.
Supplies:

* Cardboard. We used cardboard rounds because of our Dot Day focus which were purchased from Amazon. However, any cardboard or mat board would work. 
* Foam Sheets and/or Shapes with Adhesive Back. I found that Michael's had the best selection where Joann's fell short. I did purchase foam sheets because I knew some kids would want to explore creating their own shapes. Some foam sheets were not adhesive backed so the kids glued them on. Those we found did not stick super well when it came to printmaking. When they came off, I just had the kids bring their board to me and I hot glued them back on.
If you follow me on Insta then you've seen our progress. I had my early finishers recreate their design on scratch paper (also purchased via Amazon) and write about what they learned. 
The following art class, we printed! And, with about 35 fourth graders in the room it was, well, busy. We'll just call it busy.
* Printing Ink. Y'all. ALWAYS buy water soluble Speedball. I have had the same jars of ink forever. I just keep adding water, stirring and it still works great. Unlike the "house" brands that the art supply vendors sell which harden in the tube. 

* Inking Trays. You can purchase these through your art supply vendor. However, with this many kids, I did run out so I simply cut my Gelli Arts plastic containers in half and used those. I'm sure something could be found at the Dollar Tree for this item.

* Paint. We used tempra paint for rolling on texture/color on the background.

* Brayers. I happened to have one per kid so there was no wait time. 

* Paper. We  used 14" squares that I had cut down from large paper. 
Day two's video: honest speaking, I didn't show the entire start of the video to my second group of fourth graders. Knowing that they are a group that likes to move, I knew I'd need to get them working right away. So I started the video just before the demo portion. 
And then they went to work! They had a BLAST.
And the prints turned out so colorful and fun just like the artists. 
A little "before" action. Don't ask me what the aftermath looked like. I've blocked it out.
I had a couple of kids double stack their shapes which I wasn't sure just how that was going to turn out...but I really dig it. Check out the triangles. 
I can really see so much potential with this printing project: a lesson on architecture, a portrait project, floral creations...the possibilities are endless!
Yeah, ya did.
For now I'm just gonna keep taking them off the drying rack and saying Ooooooh and Aaaaaah. Stay tuned for what happens next with these beauties.
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Sunday, July 17, 2016

What the Art Teacher Wore #167

 Marvelous Monday: Ah...this week actually felt like SUMMER! I didn't have too obligations on my agenda except to visit buddies, hit estate sales and do whatever I wanna do. Isn't that what summer is supposed to be all about? dress: sweet little five dollar estate sale number from the 50's. I'm in love! belt: a market in L.A.; yellow Chucks: Amazon; bag: Goodwill Outlet

Hey there, party people! I hope this week has treated you well. It's been a fun and relaxing one here. I've stitched, worked on a couple new projects to share with y'all and in my art room, attended and presented at the Art Ed Now conference, estate sale'd and met up with buddies for coffee and lunch. The perfect summer agenda, says me! 

Next week, the fun really begins: the hubs and I are taking off for Southern California for a short vacation. Then my buddy Laura is flying in for us to join the amazing Patty Palmer at her Deep Space Sparkle Workshop! We are so excited to meet the attendees and share our passion for creating with children. I'll keep all y'all posted. Until then, have a fabulous week!
 If you follow me here, then you know I'm learning to play the uke. I've not played a musical instrument since my sad attempt to learn the violin in college (my apologies to EVERYONE who lived on the second floor in Edmonson at I.U.!). I'm a slow learner but this instrument seems like something I might be able to handle. The end goal is to learn to play We Will Rock You (odd choice, I know, but hear me out) so that I can play accompaniment when we sing Art Will Rock You in my art room! I've been working on more lyrics to share with y'all as well as how I plan to use it in my art room. Stay tuned, I'll be sure to keep you posted! 
 Terrific Tuesday: I've not had much luck shopping for vintage and other goodies at the thrift stores of late. This Anthropologie dress that I scored a while back is still one of my fave finds. I love the vintage cut of the dress! dress: Anthro, found at the thrift; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; shoes: Chucks found at DSW; bag: Enid Collins, antique
 This is the first time since May that I've had a chance to spend time in my sewing room. I have a small stockpile of vintage dresses that I've thrift picked over the last couple of months that are in need of minor repair before wear. I decided to knock out a couple before starting a new sewing project. The red dress (scored for a mere $8 at Buffalo Exchange) just needed to have the elastic in the shoulders tightened up!
 Wonderful Wednesday: And now look at the dress! I am in love with the print and the cut. I also dig how well it matches my Enid Collins bag. dress: vintage, Buffalo Exchange; belt: Pin Up Girl Clothing; shoes: DSW; bag: vintage Enid Collins, ebay
 If you attended the AOE Now online conference and happened to hang out with me while I chatted about fiber arts in the art room, then you got a sneak peak of my sewing room! This is also where many of my Art Teacherin' 101s have been filmed of late (y'all should subscribe. New videos about all things art teacherin' drop every Wednesday). I'm fortunate to have a space to sew. It'd be a lot  bigger of  a space if I didn't cram it full of fabric, felting supplies and patterns. But these things make me so happy. And, like a true hoarder, I like to surround myself with everything, all at once, all the time. 
 Thoroughly Thursday: I managed to pack so much into my Thursday it was bananas. Early morning estate sales, Art Ed Now conference and chat, Indian food, afternoon coffee with an art teacherin' friend and her wee baby and thrift store shopping. I love a packed day when it's filled to the brim with funness. dress: vintage. It once was a stained white before I dyed it fuchsia
 So, funny lil story: for the Art Ed Now conference, I needed to be available to chat and take questions during my session which was around noon. A storm was rolling in so I decided, five minutes before my air time, to run out and clear our deck of the furniture I didn't want damaged in the storm. And wouldn't ya know, the dern door locked right behind me. I was LOCKED OUTTA MY HOUSE. I could see my laptop on the kitchen table with Jessica about to introduce me and I literally screamed NOOO! 
Seriously. That was me. Dustin Hoffman. Thankfully, I'm married to a Boy Scout who is ALWAYS prepared and happened to have a spare key in a hidden spot. I made it inside just in time for my first question. Whew! Crisis averted. 
 Fabulous Friday: Lunch with a friend was the biggest item on my To Do list this day. Not to shabby after the mountains of To Do's I've been climbing of late. A girl could get used to this. top: vintage, Buffalo Exchange; circle skirt: vintage, estate sale; belt and yellow Chucks: Amazon; bag: made by me, details here
This weekend, I've decided to dive right into my first Back to Schoolin' dress with a mash up of five dress patterns (eep!) and some fab fabric found at Joann's. Stay tuned! I hope to have this complete by next week to share with y'all!
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