Showing posts with label CraftLab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CraftLab. Show all posts

Sep 19, 2018

Slime for the masses

This past summer, I hosted a Slime Party at my library.  My wonderful colleague Janelle had put together a set of ingredients and instructions for a party at her library earlier in the summer AND she was generous enough to come help me run my party and I was SOOOO grateful!  We had about 90 people show up for our program and it was a bit of a tight squeeze.  During the process, we learned a few lessons that I'd like to remember just in case I'm nutsy enough to host this program again, so I'm posting those tips here for myself, but also for anyone else who's looking for the simplest way to throw a slime party for a large group.

Tip #1 -- if possible, require registration!  Being surprised by a large group with a project this messy and popular is stressful for the adults running the program.  Sometimes though, your program requires a drop-in format.  If that's the case....



Tip #2 -- When buying glue, one gallon of glue will make about 15 batches of slime.  It's nice to have a choice between white glue and clear.  Plan accordingly.


Tip #3 -- Have everyone make the same base recipe for slime (though some can use clear and some use white glue) in a baggie.  I recommend the saline solution version. Do it assembly line style: each kid gets a bag, then walks down a table of ingredients, measuring and adding each to their bag, then zip it closed and mix.

Tip #3B -- TEST YOUR RECIPE.  Make it just like the kids will -- in a baggie. Do the quantities work out as written?  Does it work to squish it in the bag instead of stirring it in a bowl?


Tip #4 -- Individualize slimes by having add-ons on a separate table that kids can go to after their base slime is mixed and ready -- food coloring, glitter, fake snow, styrofoam pellets (note: have a bowl of styrofoam pellets and ask kids to put their slime into the bowl and work in some pellets that way rather than trying to pour pellets into the ziplocs), confetti, pom-poms, air dry clay (Daiso brand is often recommended), rock salt, gold leaf.... or try out your own zany ideas!



Tip #5 -- for the purposes of your assembly line, it might be useful to know that small Dixie cups are approximately 1/2 cup.

Tip #6 -- although it might be easier to mix in a bowl than in a baggie, most disposable bowls are too small for a recipe's worth of slime and if you use re-usable bowls, you'll spend an hour and a half scraping slime out of bowls and then washing them clean.  REMEMBER: SLIME SHOULD NOT GO DOWN YOUR SINK DRAIN unless you want a really slimy clog.  Slime scraps and failed slime go into the trash only!


Tip #7 -- do the program outside or at least on a moppable floor surface.  Trust me (and Janelle) on this point.



Feb 18, 2016

Craft Lab: Pasta Maker Printing

Re-purpose kitchen tools for making art!

Today's project: Pasta Maker Prints
Supplies:
pasta maker (just the flat rollers--the cutting roller can be missing)
craft foam (sticky back kind works easiest)
scissors
brayers
printing ink
cards or cardstock to print on

I happened to own two pasta makers but on one, the cutters never worked very well, so I donated that one to the library for projects just like this one. Valentine's Day (the day after I hosted this event) is a perfect excuse to make some cute cards, so that's what we did!  I got the inspiration for this project from the Eric Carle Museum.

Here's what we did:

Aug 6, 2015

Craft Lab: Screen Printing

Bubbler Jr. brings Lesley Numbers to the Alicia Ashman branch for some fantastic screen printing lessons!

Today's project: Screen Printing
Supplies:
(a hired professional, optional)
screens (pre-burned or blank)
squeegees
something to print on
screen printing ink
plastic sheets to cut shapes from (same size as your screens, if possible)
cutting tools (we used die cut machine, scissors, exacto knives....)

What the teens did:
Learn the basic technique--


 Speed up drying with a hair dryer--

 Use the blank screens to create their own designs---
 Cut a design from the plastic sheets, then tape it to a screen, covering all the screen that you DON'T want ink to go through--
 Make cute matching BFF! shirts (with a little hand-painted heart to cover up the identical smudges in the corner--brilliant!)--
 Make your own Deadpool shirt--
 Touch up bits with a paintbrush if necessary--
 Or... just add some new bits (nice shades, duck!)
Thanks for the fun lesson!

Mar 18, 2015

Craft Lab: Himmeli Shapes

Straws + wire = some really interesting (and beautiful) sculpture possibilities!

Today's project: Himmeli Shapes
Materials:
straws (tiny coffee stirring straws work great, bigger straws also work fine. Paper, plastic, whatever)
wire (I used a fairly thin, flexible gauge that could be easily cut with scissors)
scissors
rulers (optional)

Himmeli are traditionally Finnish Christmas decorations, but their beautiful geometric shapes can grace a home at any time of year in any country of the world. They take a little time to make and can be a little tricky to get the hang of, but if you're not a strict traditionalist, the sculpture possibilities are endless!

Sep 25, 2014

Craft Lab: Embossing School Notebooks

Got some boring looking notebooks and folders for school?  Here's an easy way to embellish them!

Today's project: Embossing
Supplies:
cardboard (cereal boxes work great!)
die cut machine and dies (or... an exacto knife and a self-healing cutting mat)
gluesticks
bone folders (or Sharpie markers)
water in a spray bottle

Aug 19, 2014

Craft Lab: Giant (and also not-so-giant) Pom-Poms

Fluffy, fuzzy fun!

Today's project:  Giant pom-pom's
Supplies:
--yarn
--cardboard pom-pom makers (see photo above--that cardboard thing that looks like the letter C?  You need two of those, plus two cardboard circles somewhere between the size of the hole and the size of the C.)
--scissors with a sharp point (kids' safety scissors don't work so well)


Jul 15, 2014

Craft Lab: "Tie-Dye" Tiles

Swirling colors make infinite designs in psychedelic hues.... groovy. 

Craft Lab Project:  Tie-Dye Tiles
Supplies:
Sharpie markers in as wide a variety of colors as you can afford
blank ceramic tiles
eye droppers
91% rubbing alcohol
small plastic containers for holding alcohol
(optional) clear spray paint

Today's class was guest taught by the multi-talented Karen Corbeil of the newly founded "The Bodgery."  Thanks, Karen!

Mar 22, 2014

Craft Lab: Billboard Bags

Recycling an unusual material is inspiring!

Today's project:  sewing with reclaimed billboard material
Supplies: 
 a discarded billboard banner
sewing machines
rotary cutters, rulers and self-healing cutting mats

The question you're all wondering:  How did you get a billboard?
My answer:  I was in the right place at the right time.  There's a "small" billboard near my house and occasionally, I happen to drive by when they're switching the ad.  Most of the time, I don't have time to pull over right at that moment, but one day, I did!  I asked the billboard worker whether or not I could take the ad he'd just removed and he said, "Sure!  Otherwise, it just gets thrown away."

The other question you're all wondering:  What does it feel like and is it easy to cut/sew?
My answer:  it's basically like a woven plastic.  It's strong and doesn't stretch at all, but it cuts VERY easily (almost too easily... don't get your finished bags near any sort of blade...).  Almost any project that you can find on Pinterest made from fused plastic shopping bags can also be made from this material.  It's also enormous.  Even though this was a "small" billboard (not on the highway), unfolded, it nearly filled half of our meeting room.

Feb 14, 2014

Craft Lab: Melting Crayons

Colored wax + heat = fun and easy art opportunities!

Today's project:  Melting Crayons
Supplies:
crayons (both broken and whole will work)
hair dryer
embossing gun (optional)
art canvases or unfinished wood objects
painter's tape (optional)

Jan 29, 2014

Craft Lab: String art

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2014/01/craft-lab-string-art.html
If I had a hammer.... and some nails and a bit of thread, I'd make string art to hang on my walls!

Craft Lab Project:  String Art
Supplies:
blocks of wood (ours were about 4-6"-ish)
hammers
nails
thread
paper
pencils


Nov 21, 2013

Craft Lab: Dr. Who party!

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/11/craft-lab-dr-who-party.html
Celebrating 50 years of the Doctor with crafts galore!

This Saturday is the special 50th anniversary episode of Dr. Who and I have some pretty serious teen fans of Dr. Who in my neighborhood, so we gathered together for some Whovian crafts.  Here's what we made:

Oct 7, 2013

Craft Lab: Playing with Paper Pulp

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/10/craft-lab-playing-with-paper-pulp.html
What can you do with paper pulp besides making more paper?

Supplies:
scrap paper in lots of different colors
water
old blenders (not to be used for food afterwards)
pitchers, buckets, containers for water
sponges
glitter
plastic bowls (we used some coated paper bowls, but I wouldn't recommend them...)
paper clips
wire mesh strainers
large spoons


Oct 4, 2013

Craft Lab: Gelatin Printmaking

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/10/craft-lab-gelatin-printmaking.html
A surprisingly effective print medium:  gelatin!

Today's project:  Printing with a slab of gelatin
Supplies:
gelatin slab (see instructions to make one here)
ink brayers
ink
paper
flat objects with interesting texture or shape

Aug 15, 2013

Craft Lab: Duct Tape

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/08/craft-lab-duct-tape.html
Duct tape:  it's not just for ducts any more!

Project:  assorted Duct Tape crafts
Supplies:
Duct tape (as wide a variety as you can afford)
scissors
rulers
cardboard (empty duct tape rolls from previous duct tape events were popular today!)

Aug 10, 2013

Craft Lab: Upgrade your Cup

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/08/craft-lab-upgrade-your-cup.html
Plain white ceramics get a boost of color from teens in the Craft Lab.

Featured Project:  Painting on mugs (and one bowl)
Supplies:
plain ceramic objects (I bought mine from the Dig-N-Save), clean and dry
rubbing alcohol & tissues or q-tips
Pebeo Porcelaine 150 Paint Pens
Sharpie permanent markers
Baking instruction sheets to send home

Pros & Cons of paints vs. markers:
--Pebeo paint pens come in less colors than Sharpies.
--You have to "pump" the paint pens to get the paint to flow into the tip of the pen and if you're coloring a large area, you may have to pump several times throughout your project to keep a constant color.
--Sharpies are a little less predictable in the oven and dishwasher.  If you love your Sharpie-decorated mug, you might want to hand-wash it only.
--Neither are considered "food-safe" so please only decorate portions of the dinnerware that will not come into contact with food or your mouth.

(see more photos of our projects after the jump)

Jun 4, 2013

Craft Lab: Painting

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/06/craft-lab-painting.html

Sometimes Craft Lab is about using everyday art supplies that we don't have a chance to use every day.

Today's project: Painting (on stretched canvas)

Supplies:
paint (we used gouache, but acrylics might have been better?)
stretched canvases
brushes


Apr 5, 2013

Needle Felting at the library

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/04/needle-felting-at-library.html
Stabbing fuzzy things never felt so good!  (Sorry.  Terrible pun!)

NeedleReads AND Craft Lab this month featured:  Needle Felting!

Supplies:
wool roving
foam blocks
felting needles

Book:

cover art I felt awesome : tips and tricks for 35+ needle-poked projects / Moxie

Jan 16, 2013

Craft Lab: Return of the Shrinky Dinks

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2013/01/craft-lab-return-of-shrinky-dinks.html
 The smell of a hot toaster oven brings plenty of curious (and concerned) onlookers in a library!

Today's project:  Shrinky Dinks (a second chance for those who missed it last summer)

Supplies:
Shrinky Dink plastic
colored pencils
pencil sharpeners
toaster ovens

Book we used for inspiration:
cover art Shrink! Shrank! Shrunk! : make stylish shrink plastic jewelry / Sheldon, Kathy

Dec 19, 2012

Craft Lab: Gingerbread Zombies

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2012/12/craft-lab-gingerbread-zombies.html
So tasty, you'll want to eat their brains!

Project: Create Creepy Cookies
Supplies:
gingerbread and/or sugar cookies shaped like people
frosting
food coloring
icing tips & other cake decorating supplies
candy (mini m&ms, red & white peppermints, red hots, mini chocolate chips, etc.)

Oct 31, 2012

Craft Lab: Horrorgami

http://librarymakers.blogspot.com/2012/10/craft-lab-horrorgami.html


Spooky origami, perfect for Halloween!

Art Project: Horrorgami
Supplies:
square paper

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