Artist Trading Cards!

Ever since I got the “ok” to teach my art class, I have been WAITING for the session where I taught my students how to make Artist Trading Cards. And this last week, was FINALLY the time to do it! I was so impressed by the results….I loved all of them, they worked so hard on them. I was a little worried they wouldn’t take it seriously and give it %100 of their efforts but I stressed the importance of each card being like a mini-artwork….I loved how hard they worked and how unique all of them turned out…. 

How cute are these owls???

….I did a mini-lesson on creating “mixed media” pieces and showed them a couple of my favorites I have found via the web as well as some of my own ATCs. These are a few of mine: 

I brought in tubs of different materials including: magazine pages, fabric, yarn, glitter, watercolors, pens, markers, buttons, pom-poms…

I loved that each card never failed to showcase each students’ personalities…Here are a few of the ones the boys in the class did…they mostly stuck to markers and pens:

We are looking to SWAP with another classs….if you are an art teacher and have done or are doing ATCs with your students! Email me at jsheffield@kenilworth38.org

DIY Holiday Idea: Glitter Reindeers!

13 days until Christmas! YAY! Anywhooo…I made these three reindeers for under $15.00 total and so can you! All you need is: 

* tacky glue
* 3 wooden reindeers or other Christmasy wooden pieces ($3.00 a piece at Michael’s)
* 1 canister of glitter
* ribbon/string to hang

First, simply cover your reindeer with tacky glue ( I did mine in sections so that the glue wouldn’t dry before I covered it with the glitter) and then sprinkle generous amounts of glitter onto the glue. Of course, remember to place paper under your reindeer so glitter doesn’t cover your floors (Being as I am a messy person, even with paper, my floors are still sparkling).
After, applying the glitter, let the reindeer dry overnight or at least for a few hours. When you pick them up to finish them after they have dried, give them a good shake, to let the extra glitter off onto the paper and not your floors (I learned this the hard way).
Then, I used wire and a glue gun to make little loops to thread the ribbon through, but you can glue the ribbon directly to the back of the reindeer…it will save you time.

Finally, hang out reindeer in a viewable place and when people comment on how great they are…you can brag about how you made them for $15.00. 

Holiday DIY Decor: Yarn Christmas Tree Cones

I got inspired to do these super simple and cheap Christmas trees after seeing a pin on pinterest that came from Thriftyandchic.com: 

soo cute and rustic! But I didn’t have any hemp yarn so I used some thick wool yarn (and instead of styrofoam cones like the ones thriftyandchic.com uses, I used paper cones). All you need is a few yards of thick yarn of your favorite color, a glue gun and a paper or styrofoam cone and you are in business baby!

A simple, easy, chic and unique DIY Holiday Decoration!

Anyone out there done any of their own DIY Holiday decorations lately?  I am always looking for inspiration!