The last 2 weeks have been a frenzy of artistic creation and mountains of paper mache around here! 12yo N and 8yo M have been preparing for this years Recycled Art competition. The show is this weekend. They are SO excited. They both still have a lot of work to do in the next few days, but I have to say I am really very impressed with their efforts!
M's concept is a globe, sitting in a flower pot, being hugged by vines. It took her a couple of days to get it how she wanted it...with a little bit of help from me when her globe tried to run away from her! LOL.
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| Homemade paper mache glue...is fun to squidge in your fingers! |
Catastrophe was averted, and all was well. It is taking longer than she thought to dry...she used a LOT of glue!! Now she is working on leaves and blossoms (made from egg carton cups, so cute!).
N's idea was a bit more ambitious...ok, A LOT more ambitious. Last year she entered the competition with a 2 foot high model of a palm tree, flowers, and butterflies. This year, she went bigger...
She went for an oak tree...
She started on the base of her tree without consulting me...which would come back to haunt her!
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| Working on the trunk of her tree. |
The first attempt at attaching branches collapsed...
As did the second...
And just when she thought everything was going well...
The trunk collapsed...
She had forgotten to glue the bottom coffee can to the base...and when she attempted to move the tree....TIMBER!!!
So with a bit of help from me and her little sisters, we reconstructed the trunk...reattached the branches...and waited.
Then to color the trunk...no paint in the house (still needing to make a trip to the craft store!!), so we mixed up a simple tempra paint using cinnamon as the pigment. Perfect...until it started to dry...and crack...which necessitated a few coats of mod podge...which made the 'bark' look even cooler...catastrophe and happy accident are conspiring to make her tree REALLY cool! (not just a gushing mama here, it really is!!)
Leaves came next...sheaves and heaps and piles of leaves...layers of newsprint colored green (She used every SINGLE green crayon in the house!!), doubled up, traced, trimmed, shaped, and glued to the branches...she has one branch to go, and has already gone through a dozen full size sheets of newsprint! She has 7 more sheets waiting to work on when she gets home from school!
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| Lots and lots and lots of leaves! |
Crowning the tree is the most amazing tree house...decked out in style!!!
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| A board ladder leading up to a cozy hollow, then a rope ladder into the trap door. There is a cute little swing off to the side, a skipping rope, ball, bat (whittled out of a kindergarten pencil!), and glove...rocks and little acorns are in production :D |
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| Inside is a table and stools made to look like construction spools, a telescope, cups & plates, pizza, a laptop, bookshelves & brick-a-brack, curtains, a rolled shade, lamp, pennants & posters and all sorts of fun constructed and found objects. :D M asked if she could move in. |
We are in desperate need of a trip to the craft store...on the list...LOTS of paints, glue sticks, hot glue....and yarn for an order for my shop...More to follow!! :D
(ETA: Trip to procure more crafting supplies a success...further leaf production and much blue paint ensues. :D)
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