watercolors – Page 3

I just finished another fun and easy art project with the program members at work. Like alot of the other art projects that have been wildly successful with my students, I found this one by scavenging through the internet. This one had all of the things I look for when trying to find a good art project: fun, easy and cheap. Here is where I found the project if you want to check it out:http://jojoebi.blogspot.com/2010/02/salt-painting.html

I’ve included my own set of directions and some hints and tips I found after doing the project several times. Have fun!

All you need is:

-kosher salt (the bigger the granules the better)

– glue sticks

– water colors & paint brushes

– craft paper

1) The first step is to create a design using the glue stick (I found that the purple colored glue sticks work well b.c. you can see your design better)

2) As soon as you have created the design with the glue stick, quickly pour the salt over the design …and be generous with the salt (If you are helping younger students or your children I usually stand by as they are creating the design and as soon as they are done, I pour the salt…this way more salt sticks to the glue before it has a chance to dry)

3) After letting the salt dry into the glue for a couple of moments (it dries pretty quickly and doesn’t have to be completely dry to start)…the fun can begin!

Dip your paintbrush into your chosen watercolor and a nice dip into a cup of water, then gently tap the top of the paint brush onto the salt design and watch the color absorb into the salt crystals!

tips and hints: Just a couple of things I found that help you make the best out of the project..

-the more colors you use, the more beautiful I think the salt art turns out.

– Also, it is important to tell your students, or those youa re working with, to just gently tap the edge of the brush onto the salt for the best outcome. Some of my students pushed their brushes down onto the salt with a lot of pressure and pushed the salt around with their brushes.

-Finally, it takes a little practice to find the right balance of color and water. If you put too much water onto the salt design it will just become soppy salt soup and if you use too little the color wont spread into the salt crystals.

easy and beautiful leaf pressings.

I love Autumn and the changing colors of the leaves and have always collected leaves that I have thought were especially beautiful and stuck them in between pages of my books or journals, or shoved them in my bag.

The only problem is that more often than not, they end up as a crumpled pile of mess in the bottom of my bag or slip out of the pages of my books only to be eaten by my dog (who will eat ANYTHING).

Well, a couple of days ago, I stumbled on to http://www.artfulparent.typepad.com/ and found this Stained Glass Leaf Rubbings project. They are so simple, easy to do, require only paper, crayons and watercolors, and best of all, each one is unique and beautiful.

this colorful little guy on the bottom of the pic is my favorite, one of my favorite students who has autism had the great idea to use mulitple colors.

What I also really like about this project is that ANYONE can do it! The individuals with development disabilities that I work with often have a difficult time doing some more detailed art projects and can become frusturated. The leaf rubbings though is hands on but even those who don’t possess great fine motor skills, have little to no problems with the watercolors and the rubbings (although they may need a little guidance at the beginning).

Now, I can’t stop making them! I am trying to figure out what to do with them…I’m thinking of stringing them up or hanging them from branches…

You can visit here to view directions on how to create the leaf pressings: www.artfulparent.typepad.com/artfulparent/2010/06/stained-glass-leaves.html

…have fun!