Art Tip

Lauryn's art.

I keep a whole section of art materials just for the rowdies to use when they come to visit. Kids do love to paint and draw, but almost all of my grandkids have experienced "artist's block."

They are all set to paint and they ask me what they should paint. I suggest things like bunny rabbits, kitty cats or merry-go-rounds. Their reaction is "I can't paint that", or "I don't know how...you do it for me."

To encourage them to explore with their art I tell them I would like to see how they paint a bunny rabbit, maybe by watching them I can learn something about bunny rabbit painting...things I would never have done...like pink and purple polka dots and squiggles for a tail.

So, instead of me sitting down drawing a bunny and them copying me we sit down and let the grandchild draw and I do my best fo copy theirs. It is a good experience for both of us. Funny thing...I almost always like their bunny best!!!

So many stuffed animals, so little time!!

Sarah, my 11 year old granddaughter from Arkansas, spent a week with me recently. She adores doing arts and crafts as much as I do, maybe even more.

Sarah with her new collection of creatures.

Everyday we did some kind of project. I taught her to use my sewing machine and together we created a menagerie of cool stuffed creatures.

Sarah, concentrating on her stitching!!

All it really requires is a whole bunch of stuffing material, plenty of old clothes to cut up and a few socks. Sarah made up a lot of her creatures by drawing them on the material with chalk.

Chalked mermaid.

She also looked through one of my favorite books on stuffed animals, Plush-O-Rama by Linda Kopp, and based some of her creature designs on those she liked from Linda's book.

That same week FaveCrafts asked me to submit a craft to their website, this gave me the idea to interview Sarah as a guest blogger and find out how she feels about creativity.

Stuffing a creature.

Here's what she had to say.
RG: What are your favorite colors?
Sarah: Green, blue and purple.

RG: Do you have a favorite art project?
Sarah: Probably stuffed animals, because I got to learn to use a sewing machine.

RG: What is your favorite part of being in the art studio?
Sarah: So many possibilities of what you can do, looking around at everything.

RG: What inspires you?
Sarah: Pictures in magazines for drawing; for stuffed animals just seeing them all in my room.

RG: What do you think is the most exciting part of a new project?
Sarah: Watching it all unfold and come together.

RG: Which stuffed animal is your favorite and how did you come up with the name.
Sarah: My favorites are Polly and Molly, I picked Polly because it's a fun name and reminds me of pink, I picked Molly because it rhymes with Polly.

Sarah, Polly and Molly.

Thank you Sarah, we had a great time crafting!!

Click over to FaveCrafts website to see my latest project called Bling Bouquet.

Flipped out!!!

As a mixed media artist I play with a lot of recycled objects. I have tons of flip flops in all sizes, each grandkid leaves at least one pair here every summer.

Lauryn and Lyndsey painting their silly shoes.

A couple of summers ago I decided to make a little art with these leftovers. The rowdies have been anxious to make their own silly shoe art so this past week a few of them came over to Rowdy Grandmas and we made an "altered flip flop" which can be hung on the wall.

Lyndsey's flame shoe, Lauryn's buzzin' bee shoe.

For this craft all you need to begin is a flip flop - from there you can add anything you want to it. They come in really cool colors, so you don't even have to paint them. They can be very simple, glue on an image from a magazine, a color book or a piece or two of old costume jewelry.

Colorful flip flops.

My rowdies jump at the chance to paint anything, so we painted our flip flops. If the kids seem a little stumped about what to put on their shoe it's time for brainstorming. What is their favorite insect, what is their favorite thing to do, do they have a favorite doll or sport!!! Sometimes coming up with funny ideas is the best part of the project, it gets them talking and thinking.

Shoes with white primer paint.

Afer a little brainstorming Lauryn decided since she had a friend who likes bees her silly shoe would be all about bees. Taylor decided his dad likes to rides motorcycles so he would make his look like a road, and finish it off with tires he drew on paper. Lyndsey decided her shoe was goin' down in a maze of flames...and...well.... who knows why Lyndsey decides anything.

Taylor's road hog shoe.

All of the flip flips were first painted with a white primer or gesso. For Lauryn's bee we applied painters tape in a stripe pattern. The untaped area was painted yellow. Once that paint dried we removed the tape and painted the remaining areas black. It already looked like a bee!!

Taped shoe, ready for bee stripes.

She then drew pictures of bees, colored them in with colored pencil, cut them out and glued them to her flip flop with hot glue.

Lauryn's bees, so cute!!

Bees like flowers, so she hot glued a big flower to her shoe. We could have stopped there but we decided to take some wire, coil it around a pencil to shape it and add a bead to the end for antennas. The wire very easily slips into the rubber of the shoe, so just poke the wire in where you want it.

Wire for antenna, glued flower.

For all the flip flop projects we sprayed the final, dried paint with a clear acrylic apray so the paint would be sure and stay on. A note of caution, we sprayed Lyndsey's entire shoe with acrylic after we put the flames on. Her flames were drawn on paper, thin cardboard would have been a better choice, the acrylic spray made the paper flames a little limp. Lesson learned, on Lauryn and Taylor's silly shoe we sprayed the painted flip flop before applying the paper figures.

Two types of wire hangers.

There are several ways to make hangers for the "altered flip flip".

1. A length of wire approx. 4" length stuck into the top of the shoe in a loop fashion.
2. A length of wire approx. 2" length with each end bent up slightly and stuck into the back of the shoe, the best alternative if you don't want the hanger to show.
3. Just poke a hole in the back of the shoe near the top and hang it on a nail

So, the next time you are looking for a lazy day, summer craft just pull off your shoe and get to work!!

Chalkboard paint.

I love chalkboard paint, it can turn just about anything into a message board or drawing center.

Lauryn's jar.

This is a really fun paint to use on the wall in a child’s room or on a piece of furniture.The rowdies painted a storage chest I have in my studio and spend a lot of time drawing pictures and leaving messages there. We love chalkboard paint so much we decided to try it out on a few other projects.

Taylor and Lauryn in the studio.

Old shoe boxes and jars are wonderful storage items, if you paint them with chalkboard paint you can list almost everything you put into them…and if you change your mind, just erase and start your stash list all over again.

A few things to keep in mind when you paint on these surfaces.

1. You will need at least 2 coats, and it is best to let it dry for at least an hour before writing on it.(I sometimes put a coat of gesso on first as a primer).

2. Since you are crafting with the rowdies remember to have an old hair dryer ready so they can dry between coats…they adore this step in any painting project.

3. Brush on each coat in a different direction for a smoother coverage.

4. Wax paper is better than newspaper as a surface to paint on …Lyndsey turned her freshly painted box lid over on newspaper and it stuck…big time!!!

5. You may use bristle brushes, this paint does wash out with water. I prefer inexpensive foam brushes that can be thrown away.

Lyndsey's box top.

The coolest project we came up with is applying the chalkboard paint to denim.

Denim patch. Approx 5 1/2''h x 4"w

I cut up a pair of my old jeans; we made a pin out of one scrap and a big patch from the other.

Denim pin with gesso.

A coat of gesso was applied to the small denim piece used for the pin. When dry we applied 2 coats of chalkboard paint, letting each coat dry. Since the pin is a small area we used chalk pencils which you can purchase at any craft store, they come in a variety of colors.

Denim pin. Approx. 2''h x 1 1/2"w

Attach a safety pin to the material and it becomes a really cute pin. This piece was sprayed with a matte acrylic spray so the chalk would not rub off. Be careful with the spray so the picture is not too diluted.

Denim pin with matte spray.

The big patch was not coated with gesso, we applied 3 coats of chalkboard paint. This piece is large enough to use regular chalk.

Big patch drawing!!

This is a great way to leave yourself a message or even use as a name tag. If you decide to try this project with the grandkids leave me a comment about how you decided to use it. I would love to hear from other Rowdy Grandmas!!

Accidental Art

Something for you to ponder Grandma...learn to recognize art in the most simple, unusual and sometimes irritating moments. Strive to impart this attitude to your grandchildren (and your adult children). As a mom I remember getting upset sometimes when there was an accidental spill, or clothes were ruined by a good day of unexpected play. It's normal, and you can bet most parents still get bugged when the kids make a big mess. One of my jobs as Rowdy Grandma is to not get bugged, but to pat them on the head and say "that's okay, everybody makes mistakes.....now what does that spilled milk look like to you, maybe a cloud, or a giraffe"??

rowdy handprints

A perfect example happens all the time in my studio...spilled paint. The rowdies and I now call it accidental art and we have fun with it. We have spilled so much paint on my floor it has now become a giant canvas. There are a few masterpieces we don't paint over but otherwise any of the kids can just pick up a paint brush and paint the floor.

Dylan's studio boy

When they spend time in the studio without me I am always pleasantly surprised at all the amazing things they come up with. The best are often the sweet notes they paint to Rowdy Grandma, sometimes it brings tears to my eyes.

studio girl

Now I know you may not have a floor you want painted. My studio was once a garage and I have a concrete floor, (by the way I love concrete floors... four rooms in my house are painted concrete). But take it from me you can also paint a carpeted floor. I know this because when Dylan was younger he was painting his model car in the sunroom and dropped the paint jar. Wow, the pattern it made on the carpet was awesome...and he really dreaded telling me about this major spill....talk about trouble from grandma!! He and I ended up making the most of it by taking some of the other paints and trickling them in similar patterns all over the carpet...he had created accidental art.

Heart America!!

Point being, Rowdy Grandma, try to lighten up and be the grandma who doesn't want to grow up!!!...and have fun with the grandkids!!

Taylor's major paint spill on the driveway.

Chalkboard paint is another really great paint for kids to use, next time I will show you a few projects you can do with the rowdies using this great product.

Monster root!!

We have had some big rains in Texas lately. When the rain pours the creek behind my house becomes a raging river. The coolest thing about this is a lot of stuff flows down this river. As the water recedes it leaves behind all kinds of junk, this is where I pick up most of my wood scraps.

cedar stump

This past week the grandkids from Arkansas visted us. While we were scavenging the creek we ran across these wonderful cedar stumps with roots.

cedar stump with gesso

I know I have been a good influence on the rowdies when we all have the same idea.....hey, let's turn this into a monster face!!! So we did. First step was to coat the wood with gesso. The gesso coat makes the paint brighter.

Sarah's monster.

Each kid then painted their idea of a monster on one side of the stump using acrylic paint, it became a three-headed monster.

Marshall's monster.

When the paint dried we applied a thick coat of varnish to protect the paint.

Faith's monster.

And, oh yeah I have two more of these to play with. I guess I will paint my own monster face!!!

A walk in the woods.

I visited the rowdies in Arkansas this past week. They have recently moved into a wonderful home near Cabot, Arkansas. To my delight it was full of wooded areas with ponds and creeks; even an old delapidated house where I was able to collect some rusty metal and bottle caps, broken glass jars and strange nests left by who knows what kind of insect, I guess it is a dirt dobber!! Wonderful material for my next mixed-media project.

update...ain't google wonderful...my dear spouse just told me these are pipe organ mud dauber wasps!!

Paula, my oldest was in the play, Steel Magnolias, at the local dinner theater...by the way she was fabulous!! It was a little snowy and cold so I was only able to take one good walk through the woods but it too was fabulous. Woods and creeks are my favorite types of walks, I love the feeling of being deep in the woods and listening to the sound of the water......Sarah was good company and a good tour guide...thank you Sarah!!



Oh...and who remembers Dearborn heaters, this was in the old house...I actually caught my housecoat on fire when I was a kid by standing too close to one of these!!!

Lipstick art

Okay....okay..I used to be a makeup fanatic - any free gift with purchase from Estee Lauder, Clinique or Lancome and I was there!!...so, over these many years I have collected a lot of truly unflattering lipstick shades. Being the pack rat that I am...and convincing myself that one day I will wear that bright Candy Apple Red (maybe it would match perfectly with my Christmas party dress)...I stashed them all. Going through my old makeup hoard the other day I had almost convinced myself I would never really wear any of these when I thought "hold on a minute, these are kind of like neatly packaged oil pastels."

Four of my grandkids were coming over to work in the art room and cook up some fudge so how fun would it be to use up grandma's old lipsticks and create some art. Well as you can see they enjoyed this project. We spent a few minutes brainstorming ways we could create art with lipstick, then Lyndsey ,the youngest, immediately applied a luscious hot pink to her own lips and set about drawing a gingerbread man, we trimmed around the edges with scalloped scissors and pasted it to a piece of black construction paper for a frame. The lipstick picture is sprayed with a matte acrylic so it isn't quite so messy.



Lauryn totally smeared paper with the lipstick and used a toothpick to carve her picture, again it's a good idea to spray with an acrylic spray, otherwise lipstick takes awhile to dry completely.



Dylan took a different route and used the tubes and some clay to make lipstick man!!...and ..well not every kid gets into every project so Taylor took tons of pictures of the group and their art work.

Wow....I'm in the blogosphere!!

First off, why Rowdy Grandma.....cause kids like ROWDY!!!

My suggestion to all grandmas is become a Rowdy Grandma.
Rowdy grandmas yell with joy and often sing really loud when a favorite song comes on (even if they can't sing)...like me.
.....in fact my family teases me - when my son was small I would sing things like Zippity Do Dah, I don't want a pickle (Arlo Guthrie ...if you don't remember) and Santa Claus is coming to town.

He would say ...stop singing!!! Well, I tried the same thing with the grandkids - they all said ...stop singing...couldn't believe it!!

I am also a crafty grandma, my grandkids have been making gifts for Christmas and other holidays since they were little....one of their favorites is to use an old egg carton and turn it into a beautiful jewelry box. If you have a grandson who poo poos this idea just mention how much his mom would love this gift from him - little boys love making a gift for Mom. Of course no persuasion is needed for the granddaughters...being girls they love jewelry and all things associated with jewelry.

....and, oh yeah....Rowdy Grandmas are messy and let the grandkids get messy.....if you have a grandchild that seems a little nervous getting paint on their hands be sure and tell them that's the fun of arting and crafting - a little paint on your hands. It is also a good idea to have an apron or some old clothes they can wear so mom and dad don't consider you a little too rowdy!!

......tune in tomorrow for instructions and ideas for an egg carton jewelry box you can make with the grandkids.....see ya then