Pool Noodle Printing

We printed with pool noodles! (Though I would much rather be swimming with one with the extremely hot weather we've been having!) I've seen this idea around the web and knew that we had to try it! Cut up pool noodles make a great printing material and they are also inexpensive!  These noodles are only a dollar at our local "Dollar Store"!

First, I used some heavy duty scissors to cut up some pool noodles.  Some were left as circles and others in half or smaller pieces.  C was more intrigued by the circles!

I put some tempera paint in some recycled lids and put a cut noodle in each one and we were ready to print/paint.

C printed a bunch,  but then preferred sliding the noodle around as a painting tool!

Here is her finished noodle print/painting!  Never quite what I had in mind,  but she had fun with it and was very pleased with her art!

C tried some of the half circle noodles and said she was done!

Of course, I could paint all day and come up with all kinds of ideas,  but I am not a 5 year old that was wanting to go outside!  Here is my flower idea!

Here is my idea to create patterns with shape and color!  

What have you been printing/painting with?

Stay tuned for some more Pool Noodle ideas!

This post is linked to:

It's Playtime

Kool Aid Painting!!!

We created  Kool Aid Paint! A couple weeks ago we created Microwave Kool Aid Play Dough too!  Cassie really enjoyed the paint and loved how it had a scent.  She made numerous paintings!  It was also FUN to make your own paint and be part of the process!  Kool Aid Paint is super easy to make! All you need are packets of unsweetened Kool Aid and warm water and you are good to go!

We used Orange, Lemon- Lime, Cherry, Ice-Blue Raspberry Lemonade, Grape, and Lemonade flavors for our paint.  All colors were bright except for Grape. It looks more like Black.

We used a muffin tins to mix the paint in and it also made a great paint tray!  First we put each packet in each section of the six muffin tins.

Then we added a Tablespoon of warm water with each packet of unsweetened Kool Aid.  After that, we mixed the water and unsweetened Kool Aid with a paint brush.

Here is C painting a family portrait with Grape and Orange paint.

Here are some rainbows! Lemon Lime makes a WONDERFUL green color!

Here is my favorite painting that C did!  Ice-Blue Raspberry makes a Gorgeous Turquoise Blue Color and Cherry a Vibrant Red!

Mom even gave the Kool Aid Paint a try too! I give it a 5 Star rating! Well worth the 15 cents a pack!

There are numerous things to make with Kool Aid! Last year we even dyed Silk Scarves with Kool Aid!
The Scarf idea we saw over at The Artful Parent.  Be sure to check that post out here!  Here are our scarves we made last Spring.

These scarves have inspired hours of imaginative play! Maybe we will do Kool Aid Tie Dye Shirts one day?  Here is a link for making some.

Linked to:
It's Playtime
Summer Fun

So Easy Kaleidoscope!

We created a kaleidoscope out of a Pringles can! This great idea came over from a link that Jen from Paint Cut Paste suggested after her post on Creating A Kaleidoscope.  The link she suggested is on a site called MakingFriends.com and the link is here if you want their instructions. We don't usually have pringles, but saved the can for a school project that C had missed. Here is C looking through her newly made kaleidoscope!

 

Before constructing the kaleidoscope we had to decorate the outside of the can, so we sponged acrylic paint over the can with different colors! The acrylic paint worked well to cover the glossy can and it won't chip off like tempera paint might! You could decorate the can with scrap paper or stickers if you don't want to fuss with paint.

Here is the finished can.....very pretty! We also mixed up some glue and glitter to paint on to give it a glittery finish! We let the paint dry for the next steps.

Next we needed to make a small hole to look through on the metal side of the can. We used a hammer and nail to do this. I had to steady the can so C could do this.

Here is the hole so you can see how small it is. This is the hole you look through for the kaleidoscope.

You'll need some small pieces of cut up colorful tissue paper to glue on the plastic lid and for a piece of contact paper.

I mixed up some glitter, white glue, and a pinch of water so C could paint the pieces of tissue paper on to  the plastic pringles lid. We painted them on outside part of the lid.

Here is the finished lid part with tissue paper and our homemade glitter glue! Let this dry. This is the part you twist to make the kaleidoscope move.

Next, we used a piece of contact paper for the part that won't move on the kaleidoscope.  C put the small pieces of colorful tissue paper on the sticky side of the contact paper and I put another layer on top (no glue needed).

This shows the tissue paper in between the layers of contact paper. I took the pringles can and roughly traced around it because this part will be glued on the open end of the can. Now cut the circle out!

Put some glue on the edge of the opening. I used stronger craft glue.  I tried a glue gun and that did not work because you want the surface to be smooth so the lid can be turned. Let both parts dry before working the kaleidoscope!!!

Here is how the open end with the contact paper will look. You may want to trim the edges of the contact paper if it is hanging off the edge. This will allow the lid part to turn more easily. Let dry!

Now put the the lid on the end like this and your kaleidoscope is ready to go! The lid part is what you turn. So make sure it can turn easily or the contact paper may come off.

Here is C enjoying her kaleidoscope! She is not turning it here! I think she just likes looking through it without making it turn! Either way it was a fun process to create a simple kaleidoscope without mirrors! It looks pretty too!

What Do You Think?

More simple Kaleidoscope ideas:

How to Make a Kaleidoscope for Preschool

How to Make a Kaleidoscope for a Science Project

Recycled Kaleidoscopes from Mrs. Bearden's Art Room

This post is linked to:
Sunday Showcase
No Time For Flashcards
Craft Schooling Sunday
The Play Academy
Made By Little Hands Monday

Forest Easel Painting

I was thrilled when Rashmie from Mommy Labs asked me to be involved in her Forest Fiesta project to help celebrate World Environment Day!!! Today many bloggers are participating in this Forest Fiesta project to help their children understand the value of our forests by creating "Art" that has a forest theme.  I've been talking to Cassie about Trees and the importance of them for the past couple weeks and also shared with her the video: Of Forest and Men which was made for the purpose of raising awareness of the importance of forests. Even as an almost five year old she understood some of the content that this video was telling and asked many questions! I encourage everyone to watch this video here and you will be moved! For this project Cassie created an outdoor easel painting of a forest scene. You can check out the progression of her painting from start to finish below. Other "forest scenes" will be featured in the Linky after this post.

We don't live right next to a forest so I figured being outside with "real trees" would be great inspiration for Cassie! She started out with the tree trunks and some branches.

I told her to make at least 5 trees to make it look more like a forest! She added more trees, branches, and the beginnings of some grass.

Some leaves were added along with more grass! C was really getting in to this! Mommy was proud!

Still more grass and leaves were added! Looking great!

The last touches were made with more grass! C said, "I am done!"

Here is the artist with her finished painting! Very PROUD, indeed!!!

Hope we've inspired you to really think about the importance of our forests on our Earth! I told Cassie that by making this painting that she was helping the forests by making people understand how important they are to every living thing!

Be sure to check out all the other great posts below about Forests!

(or link up your own idea!)

If you don't have a blog you can share your idea on facebook at Mommy Labs page here or my page here.

Thank You Mommy Labs For Inviting Us to Your Forest Fiesta!

***Be sure to check out Mommy Labs Forest Art too here.

This post is linked to:

It's Playtime
Show and Tell
Craft Schooling Sunday
No Time For Flashcards
Sunday Showcase
The Play Academy

Contact Paper Rose Window

We created a contact paper rose window or stained glass.  Rose windows are the windows you see in older churches and cathedrals. All you need for this project is black paper, colorful tissue paper, contact paper, and scissors. Cassie loved this project because she loves cutting snowflakes and you have to know how to fold and cut and she loves both! She especially enjoys projects that involve scissors!

Here is the South Rose Window of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France for some inspiration.

First we traced a plate on some black paper.  We used some thin construction paper that was easy to fold and to cut through! If your paper is too thick it will  be too difficult to fold and cut!

Then Cassie cut out the circle. She is an expert at cutting circles! In her preschool class she was the best at this! So serious in this picture!

Once cut out, it needs to be folded in half like a taco or semicircle.

Then fold the paper again to look like a piece of pizza (1/4).

If you able to fold again, then fold and begin to cut small triangle shapes on the edges. Cassie cut mostly triangles, but you could do any shapes that you desire.

Once you have all the cutting done, lay your "black snowflake"on the sticky side of some contact paper that has been peeled. This paper had brown on the back (in case you were wondering?).

I chose to use contact paper so it would be east to attach the tissue paper. Cassie just put small pieces of tissue paper over the holes of the cut paper so there was no messy glue! The contact paper made it much more simple to attach the tissue paper.

I put another piece of contact paper on top of the back and cut around the circle. Beautiful!

We did quite a few!

Here is our array of rose windows!

I really enjoy looking at them!

Older children could get  a lot more detailed with their cutting!

Have Fun!

Click here if you would like to see more rose windows for inspiration!
They are Gorgeous!

This post is linked to:

CRAFT SCHOOLING SUNDAY
PRESCHOOL CORNER
IT'S PLAYTIME
KIDS GET CRAFTY
CHILD CENTERED ART PARTY
THE PLAY ACADEMY
RESOURCE CENTRE
SUNDAY SHOWCASE
NO TIME FOR FLASHCARDS
SHOW AND TELL