[warm-up, creative parenting]

Did you play this game as a child? It bears repeating and is a great thing to do with your own kids. It’s non-competitive, free, interactive and instructive, for adults as well as children. Plus, if you bring a creative slant to it, it can be an experience that teaches about the close relationship between smell, memory and creativity.

THE GAME:

Place a series of smells under the noses of blindfolded people and ask them to name them.

Best played in the kitchen.

That’s it.

However, it’s not as easy as it would seem to be. Sometimes the smell is as familiar as your own name but the word for it will not come. This is probably because in order to do this we have to utilize two separate parts of the brain. The part that identifies smells as familiar and known—and the part that puts a word to that familiar and known smell, ordinarily with the assistance of sight.

It would be a great game to play at a Halloween party since this holiday is already so much about masks and the senses. Make it part of your “Haunted House” and have the kids identify a few ‘bad’ smells along with the good or neutral.

If you’re just playing this at home, talk to your kids about the brain and memory. Sit down with them and do a quick free-writing exercise just to see what the non-verbal sense of smell has aroused in your c-minds. If your children are too young to write, let them dictate their stories.

You can also use some of your game smells as the basis for art work. After you’ve played the Smell Game, tell your kids they can make art with the ingredients. Explain that this art work may not be as lasting as if you were using paint. It might be a good time to teach them words like “transient,” “ephemeral,” and “fleeting” and to talk about art and artists who make art that is intentionally so.

Smell Art Ideas:

Sprinkle jello on a paper and let them use their fingers to make art (this is a great sensory-rich way to help them learn to write their letters and numbers, but save that for another more structured time ) Enhance the smell factor by letting them dip their fingers in lemon juice first!

Dip paper in strong tea, coffee, fruit juice.

Use berries to make dyes, paint with them!

Finger paint with (a little) peanut butter. (Maybe even jelly, too?)

Put glue on the paper and use aromatic spices as you would glitter.

Take one item—how about a lemon?—and do a whole picture out using all parts of the lemon.

And, this is a whole other article, but don’t forget: edible art! Pancakes with food colouring, popcorn ball people, rice cake worlds.

LINKS

Here’s a lovely website
http://library.thinkquest.org/C0110299/html/index.php made by three young people about the brain and the mind, including pages on creativity (take the How Creative are you? quiz), the senses and memory.

The Ephemeral Arts - check this one out. it’s all about ephemeral arts on the Indian sub-continent; here’s another link to the same site, one that gives examples of these kinds of art. Use them with your kids!

Stayed tuned for my own Ephemeral Arts article. Coming soon!

Have fun and never forget that anything you can do with kids and creativity, you should be doing for yourself anyway. Tapping into our childhood well, keeps creativity flowing strong!

[-craft, tutorial-]

Making handmade paper is an artform. In the hands of an experienced artist, the paper can be thin and smooth, molded to wonderful shapes or scenes and made into elaborate sculptures and vessels.

However, the good news is that making paper is just as rewarding for a beginner.

Last summer, I finally—after many years of saying I wanted to—made paper. My first attempts were so fun that I soon organized another day, inviting my friend, Sherry, her two kids–Mark and Emily, and neice, Meggan to come along. I’m including some of the many photographs of the two sessions here.

Papermaking is messy and time-consuming. Some internet sites tell you that it can be done in two hours. This is optimistic to say the least. My advice for your first time: set aside most of a day.

I also recommend that you do it outside or in a garage (unless you’re lucky enough to have a large waterproof studio). It can be done inside but then you have a bigger mess to clean up so add that time into your planning. Also, because your hands are in water or are wet most of the time, it needs to be hot weather.

Beginners should probably stick to making paper from paper. Below are some links for making paper out of plant materials but the process is much more elaborate.

There is also preparation to be done before the big day. Below is a list of materials to be gathered.

MATERIALS

Paper torn into small pieces
White or neutral paper -
- computer paper with no or little print
- napkins and paper towels
- cardboard boxes (must be unwaxed and pre-soaked)
- paper egg cartons
- paper rolls
- greeting cards (may also need to be pre-soaked)
- magazines, newspapers
(note: the more ink on the paper, the darker and grayer/browner your finished product will be)

Colored paper
- construction paper
- tissue paper

Mold and deckle

If you read different sets of instructions, these terms get confusing.

The mold is usually a wooden frame with screen stapled or tacked to it, though it can be anything that you can attach a screen to. If you have no wood or construction skills (though tacking four pieces of wood together really doesn’t take much skill—you can do it!) you can use a sturdy wooden picture frame. If you are doing this with others, you’ll need a mold for each person.

The screen should be rust-proof (plastic or fiberglass) and should be stretched tightly over the wood so that it won’t sag when the pulp is on it. The mold/deckle will limit the size of paper you can make, but don’t get too ambitious the first time out. I suggest no larger than 9 x 11 and 5 X 7 is large enough to try and see how you like it.

Most of the time, the deckle is referred to as a separate frame that is placed over the mold to shape the edges of the paper. It is not necessary to have a separate deckle but if you are making molds anyway, try it. Make a separate frame, slightly smaller than the mold. The deckle does not have screen on it. Molds can be built with a little more sophistication.

Dishpan or tub
this needs to be considerably larger than your mold/deckle as you will be immersing the frame into the tub. It must give you room for the mold, your hands on either side and some room to maneuver the mold back and forth.

Blender -
preferably NOT one you want to use later that day to make Margaritas. You’ll be tired. Go out and pay someone else make the Margaritas.

Absorbent materials - after putting the pulp on the mold, you will need something to absorb the excess water
- sponges
- flannel or felt
- paper towels - the raw material for more paper!

Pressing materials - to flatten, smooth and press out the excess water
- Formica
- plexiglass
- screen

Embellishments
- threads, ribbons
- decorative paper
- leaves, seeds, grasses
- glitter
- magazine words
- drawings
- food colouring

Optional
- gelatin or liquid starch
This is helpful if you will be using your paper for inks that might otherwise run.

PROCESS
This is a craft you have to get into in order to find your own way. I found it confusing to read all the different instructions, but once I began, I was able to proceed by *educated trial and error* and I got results that were satisfying.

1. Tear up paper, soak for a while depending on its thickness/sturdiness

2. Put it in a blender with three times as much water as paper bits; blend until it is mushy. Don’t worry about the amount of water to paper as this can be adjusted at any time. This base is called slurry.

3. Blend up enough to put in your dishpan or tub

4. Add coloured paper (tissue paper works great for bright colours) or food colouring for quicker bright colours.

5. Add bits of embellishments to the slurry if you like (for less randomness, these can be placed on the mold later before you press the paper)

6. Dip the mold into the slurry. If you’re using a deckle frame, simply hold it on top of the mold. It’s purpose is to give a more exact shape and finished edge to the paper. Slide the mold/deckle side-to-side to get an even covering over the screen.

7. Lift it out.
I used two pieces of wood resting on the dishpan to catch the excess water.



In the picture above, you can see the deckle frame (the one with no screen) resting on top of the mold (the one that the slurry sits on when you lift it out). Once the mold is covered with paper pulp and out of the water, you can remove and set aside the deckle.

8. Press the paper to flatten and remove the water. I found that a separate piece of screen worked best, but this does leave the paper with the criss-cross surface design which you might not like. The trick is to find something that will take out the water but not lift up the paper. Paper towels, sponges, rags, cloth diapers, flannel, and felt can be used.

9. Once the excess water is out, gently lift off the screen (if that is what you’re using), turn the mold over and flatten the paper onto a fabric, Formica or paper material. I ended up using paper towels because I needed it to dry quickly. The thinner the paper you’ve made, the more delicate the operation to get it off the mold’s screen in one piece. You’ll have to find your own way but it helps to have as much water as possible absorbed. I found flicking the back of the mold’s screen with my fingernail was a good way to loosen it without tearing it up. With the thickness of the paper illustrated here, we had no problems getting it off in one piece.

10. Wait for it to dry (can be stacked between paper towel or absorbent fabric when almost dry).

11. Use, as you like!

Here are some of the fun things we made:



Nancy’s with grass embellishment



Sherry’s with rice paper bits and mixed slurry colours



Meggan’s with rick-rack and magazine words



Emily’s with magazine cut-outs and ribbon



Mark’s with pretty much everything



a day’s work



lovely deckled edges



mark, meggan and emily at the end of a creative day

See our Paper Artists article for three paper-making artists who’ve mastered the art.

LINKS to other paper making sites:
- simple, clear instructions on a kid’s site
- fun science gallery gives history and lots of information
- I found these instructions clear and easy to follow
- a grade school project using straw to make paper
- from a commercial paper company
- a good article from exploratorium
- for the more ambitious: using plant pulp to make paper

Please leave a comment if any of you experienced paper makers out there have something to add!

[-art, alteration-]

by Nancy Waldman

Eye Music

Originally uploaded by annieA.

This example of an Alteration is so simple and so stunning. It’s a collage using CD cases lined with painted paper inserts.

AnnieA created this in what she describes as a “humble offering in celebration of Mozart’s 250th birthday.” It’s a lovely tribute and clever way to re-use and re-purpose those plastic cases.

The artist tells me that she’s created one for her neighbor with a clever twist. It’s a puzzle to arrange. He took it one step farther by making a frame for the cases, backing it with metal and putting magnets on all the CD cases. She says it’s become a game in his kitchen. The painting can be reconfigured by anyone who has the urge! A great idea and collaboration!

Thanks, Rosanne!

Here’s another example of a similar idea that has been used in an elementary school. The cases are filled with clay “paintings’.

Way to go, kids!

Any other clever ideas for using those plastic cases?

Originally published on February 17, 2006 in the Practically Creative blog; edited for republication

[-craft, kids-]

here’s a fun activity to do with or without your kids!

by Suze Corte

Spring is in the air, so we know you’re going to want to make some of these hanging delights to brighten your porch, balcony or sunroom.

This is a tried-and-true project that’s fun for children and adults of any age. We are giving away our secrets, here, so the least you can do is dig in and have yourself some fun! You have to let your project dry overnight before you complete it on Day Two.
So if you’re into INSTANT gratification, see Optionalities*.

Materials:

Yarn-any color
White glue (like Elmer’s)
Liquid starch
Bowl
One-inch brush
White tissue paper
Colored tissue paper-Spring colors, torn into random 2-5 inch shapes
Nylon fishing wire
Hole puncher
Scissors
Spray starch (optional)

Day One:
Cut off a long piece of yarn 14-18 inches for each Floaty Tissue Paper Delight. You’ll probably want to make at least three.
Tie the length of yarn together and knot it so that you have a circle of yarn.
Mix together in your bowl: 1 cup of glue, ¼ cup of liquid starch and ¼ cup water.
If the amounts are not exact, that’s okay. You can have tons of fun no matter how the mixture comes out.* If the mixture becomes lumpy, add more water and/or glue.
After you have your mixture the consistency of very heavy cream, you’re ready.

Lay out two sheets of white tissue paper on your worktable, one on top of the other. Drop your yarn circle into the glue mixture and coat it all over. Mix it around with your hands for sensory fun.

Take the yarn out of the glue mixture and plop it onto your tissue paper. It will be drippy and that’s fine. This is a messy project. Begin to form a shape with your yarn circle. Make a large shape, fairly simple, with lots of open space in the center of the yarn. It can be a heart, a nebulous shape, a bird, anything!

Once you’ve got your shape ready on top of the tissue paper, dip your brush into the glue mixture and very lightly brush glue onto the yarn and the surrounding tissue paper. If you brush too briskly or too much, the tissue paper will tear, so a light, springy touch is what you’re after.

Take your pieces of torn up colored tissue paper and lay them down onto your yarn circle, overlapping as you go. This is willy-nilly placement; don’t worry about being exact. The pieces can flop over the yarn onto the white paper; that’s perfectly okay.

As you’re laying out the colored pieces, dip your brush in the glue again and again and use a light stroke to make the paper stick. You can brush right over the top of all the tissue paper. If some of the paper tears, you can “mend” it with another piece of tissue paper.

When you’re done, there will be about two to three layers of tissue paper. Keep it light! Next, place two more sheets of white tissue paper on top of the colored layer. Brush over this lightly, as well. Make sure it’s all nice and sticky and gluey. Hang your creation up to dry. We use a drying rack and clothespins. It might drip, so put newspapers underneath to keep the floor clean. If you want to make this nice and stiff, you can apply some spray starch at this stage. Experiment!

Day Two:
Your tissue paper creation should now be dry. Cut around the shape just barely outside the yarn, cutting away the excess tissue paper. You will be left with your interesting shape ready to hang. Punch a hole in the top and hang with nylon fishing filament. Watch how your Floaty Tissue Paper Delight plays with the spring breeze! Make lots and hang them all over your special space!

Have fun and let us know how this turns out for you!

*Optionalities: If you’re really into sensory experiences, transform your glue mixture into “Gak” once you’ve made your Floaty Tissue Paper Delight. Just add more liquid starch until you start getting a solid mixture. It will be slimy and fun. This will wash off hands with soap and water and lasts if you store it in a sealable plastic bag. We hope you have loads of fun, and that playing with all of this frees up your creative spirit!

about the author: Suze Corte is a pre-school teacher with many years experience as an art teacher, primarily to young children. she is also an artist and writer and contributing editor to The PCQ. More of her artistry can be seen at her flickr photostream or click on Suze Corte in the tags to see all her PCQ posts.

Originally published in the April 2005 issue of The Practically Creative Quarterly, theme: inspiration

Suze Corte is a writer, artist and pre-school teacher in Houston, Texas. In 2007, she was chosen as be the Houston Area Association of Educator’s of Young Children’s Teacher of the Year and the Texas Association of Educators of Young Children’s Teacher of the Year. Congratulations, Suze! It is a well-deserved recognition.