10 posts tagged “design projects”

A little bit more time consuming, but cute!

Decoupage Ideas for the Nursery
	Add fun and whimsy to a baby’s room with a simple technique called decoupage (day-koo-paj). This process can be applied to any smooth painted or unpainted wooden surface. On the following pages, we’ve supplied animal templates and suggestions for paper patterns. Before beginning for real, practice on a piece of scrap wood. Once you’re comfortable with the process and you’ve gathered together your materials, you can easily complete a project in an afternoon—perhaps during your child’s nap. The animals shown here were made by simply attaching paper cutouts to furniture with coats of glue. Our animal templates and step-by-step instructions will help you get started. Before beginning, practice on a piece of scrap wood. Once you’re comfortable with the process and you’ve gathered your materials, you can easily complete a project in an afternoon—perhaps during your child’s nap. Animal Parade Harriet the Hippo may be the leader of the pack, but Mr. Giraffe is in charge of keeping a sharp watch for any approaching bad dreams—because, of course, he’s got the best sight line. To create this quartet of creatures, we painted the bottom and legs of a wooden crib light green; then we added the decoupage animals and a yellow sun. Whale of a Tale To make William the Whale, enlarge the template and place it on an unpainted stool. With a pencil, extend the waterline that runs through William’s body so it goes to the edges and down the sides of the stool: This creates the sea and the sky. Remove the template. Paint the sky and legs of the stool a light blue, and the ocean a darker shade. After the paint is dry, decoupage the whale; we used darker blue for the eye and underwater section, and different patterns for both of his other parts.   Scottish Terrier What suits a friendly Scottie better than plaid? If you aren’t able find the perfect pattern in a decorative paper, simply photocopy a favorite fabric to make a paper version. Bird Trio Who wouldn’t enjoy waking up to these little chicks? You can almost hear the chirp, chirp of their cheery conversation. By positioning the birds along the bottom of a drawer, we made them look as if they’re perched on a wire. Our bluebirds are of different patterns and shades of the same color. You can achieve a similar effect using reds (for cardinals), yellows (for canaries), or pinks (for any bird at all). To show the birds’ cheeps, you might add a few musical notes. The Three Bears Your little girl or boy will be happy to learn that Goldilocks’ three bear friends live right in the bedroom closet. These cute and useful hangers are easy to produce: Each bear’s face is constructed of just nine circles. A set of these would make a lovely gift for any newborn. HOW TO DECOUPAGE Materials Origami, craft, or construction paper, or wallpaper or card stock Water-based glue sealant such as mod podge Quality bristle brush Scissors Transparent tape Utility knife Straight edge Hole punch Pencil Water-based polyurethane (optional) Technique   1. Enlarge the animal templates to no more than 4 inches wide or the final pieces may pucker and bubble when glued. Make one copy for each major part of the animal (for example, you’d make two copies of the elephant—one for the body and one for the ear; use a hole punch to make the eye). Cut out each piece of the templates about 1/4 inch from the outline; tape on top of decorative paper. Cut out along lines using scissors; use a utility knife and a straight edge for straight lines. Mark the body lightly with a pencil to indicate the positions of the other elements. 2. Clean the surface of the item to be decoupaged; let it dry. Make a mark with a pencil to indicate where the animal body will go on the surface, and brush a coat of glue over that area. Then set the cutout on top of the glue. Smooth out any bubbles with clean, wet fingers (so fingers don’t stick to the glue). 3. When the glue is still tacky but mostly dry (about 4 minutes), brush a coat of glue over the top; place smaller cutouts in designated spots. Wait about 4 more minutes, and then brush on another coat. If you notice bubbling or puckering, again smooth out the cutout with clean, wet fingers, but don’t overdo it; at this step the paper usually flattens as it dries. Wait 20 minutes, then brush on another coat. Add two more coats (or more if paper is particularly thick), waiting 20 minutes between each. If desired, finish with a coat of water-based polyurethane once glue is completely dry (apply according to the manufacturer’s instructions). The polyurethane will provide extra durability and will also help protect your design in case it is exposed to moisture (as in a bathroom). Note: if in the future you decide to remove the decoupage animal from the surface, any underlying paint will be removed as well.

I love this:

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1 comment

Hand Tracing

During the first year of a baby’s life, the stages of growth and development come in an astonishing rush. In addition to snapshot-filled albums, there are many ways to document the changes, both big and small, as a baby comes into his or her own. One idea is to trace your infant’s hand at varying intervals. Use a sharpened pencil to trace the outline of his or her hand onto a sheet of colored paper. You may find that it’s easier to do the tracing while your baby is asleep. Repeat the process every few months using a different color paper each time. When you have a year’s worth of tracings, cut them out, write the child’s name under them, and mount the paper with acid-free tape onto an acid-free mat cut to fit inside the frame you’ve selected. You can purchase the acid-free materials at a crafts store.

I've never seen this process before:

Baby Clothes Sun Prints

Little socks, baby tees, and tiny sweaters—the makings of an infant’s first wardrobe are so impossibly small, and so quickly outgrown, you’ll want to be reminded of them in the years to come. Put their captivating forms on display with framed sunprints; the bright-blue color and translucent effect of the cyanotype process yield images that are bold yet subtle. The technique is simple: Pin the clothing to special light-sensitive paper, cover with Plexiglas, and expose to the sun for a few minutes. Then rinse and dry the paper, and frame the prints as desired. Sun sensitive paper is available in kits at art- and craft-supply stores in sizes up to 11 by 17 inches. If the garment you’re working with won’t fit, make your print in halves, then frame the halves as one.

Gotta do this!

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Nursery Art

Four do-it-yourself works of art for baby that are hardly any work at all. In a baby's room, sometimes the simplest touches are the sweetest. They're also the most practical, because for busy new parents, finding time to sleep—let alone decorate a nursery—is a challenge. The ideas on these pages will brighten the walls of your little one's bedroom and fill it with homespun charm. They're as easy as they are affordable and can be tailored to any color scheme or motif—proof positive that when it comes to the nursery, little things truly do mean a lot. And what could be a more fitting message to surround your child with? Frames What's in a name? In this case, letters made from found items, such as paint, stencils, colorful paper scraps, and vintage wood blocks. Encased in box frames, they form a one-of-a-kind nameplate. How-To Using a utility knife, cut construction paper or patterned paper to line face and sides of the frame's cardboard insert. For 3-D objects, like the wooden E (a letter from a vintage sign) at far right, trim insert to reduce depth. Paint or glue letter onto paper liner. Set the insert in the frame. Ft_sum05msk28_m

Another cute project

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Life Line

A keepsake clothesline offers a fresh twist on memory-keeping, in which favorite cards, photos, children's drawings, letters from Grandma, and other sentimental treasures are displayed. How-To Run a length of 1/2-inch-wide cotton twill tape along a wall at a height that's out of reach of little hands, and, using a mallet, secure with a thumbtack every twelve inches. If tape runs over a corner, as our does, insert tacks at both sides of corner to keep it flat. Clothespins make it easy to change this display to fit the season or your child's new interests. Use miniature clothespins, available in crafts stores, to hang lightweight items. (Anything too heavy for the clothespins will be too heavy for the line.)

I love how this looks:

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Fancy Flight

Butterflies alight on a wall over a crib to delight baby. These pretty store-bought insects are made from feathers, though you could hang fabric flowers or any other charming notions. How-To Removable poster putty will affix the objects without damaging the wall (we arranged the butterflies so they appear to be taking off). Place decorations out of reach of babies able to stand; choose items that are lightweight and large enough not to pose a choking hazard to your baby.

This is kind of a cute idea

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CARPET BULLETIN BOARD

With a staple gun and some Flor (interfaceflor.com) carpet squares, you can create a colorful bulletin board. * Measure the area you want to convert, and order the foot-square tiles to fit. * Use a level to draw a straight line on the wall along the bottom of your bulletin board. * Place the lower center tile, making sure the bottom lines up with your line;   staple a brad through each corner, about an inch down and in. * Hang the other tiles, making certain they're level and snug.

I have to got to get a subscription to Blueprint - I'm really liking what I've seen so far.

Photo Enlargement Projects

Take a photo of something you love—a dog that comes every time you call, a keepsake with beautiful cursive and a colorful stamp, your lucky Tuesday-night poker deck. You can blow it up with some hassle-free Internet help, then frame it, hang it, and be enormously happy every time you walk by.

0506_blueprint_petphoto THE WALL: PET PHOTO Pets with spunk and a little get-up-and-go make great blowups. An enormous pet photograph may always look appropriate in a child's room or playroom, but try it in an unexpected place—a more formal living room or a kitchen or bathroom. Why This? Shooting the dachshund on a white backdrop plays up her unusual shape; a white frame doesn't pen her in. 0506_blueprint_antique THE WALL: ANTIQUE STORE ENVELOPE   "I wish I could say this letter was something my great-great-grandfather sent to my great-great-grandmother," says Blueprint editor Rebecca Thuss. "But I found it in a stack of letters at an antiques store when I was in college. I love the stamp, the smeared ink, and the postmark: 9 P.M., March 21, 1907." Also good: love notes, old report cards (especially ones that have teacher comments—either incredibly dead-on or woefully off-base) and teen-diary pages ("Mrs. Johnny Depp" written over and over in purple ink). Why This? Any letter or paper with a beautiful stamp or ink—even if it has coffee rings and smudges—adds drama to a wall. 0506_blueprint_poker 2 comments   The Wall: Poker Card Large images are powerful; by blowing up a photo of something that's small to begin with, you'll give props to something you shouldn't take for granted. Why This? The card has filigrees and curlicues to counterbalance the crispness of the number and suit. The color scheme also works.

THE WALL: HERE'S HOW

1. CHOOSE AN IMAGE If you're enlarging a digital image, you're all set. If you're starting with a conventional film print, you'll first need to have it scanned, or digitized. FedEx Kinko's Office and Print Center (fedex.com for locations) will do this for around $17, and they'll put the new digital file on a CD for you to have printed wherever you want. When quality really matters, or when you have a negative or slide to digitize, go to a shop or photo lab that will do both the scanning and printing; this allows the printer to compare the scan to the original to make sure the colors are accurate. 2. CHOOSE A SIZE The size of the original image determines how much you can enlarge it. "With a 4-by-6-inch original, you can go to at least 16 by 20, and possibly 20 by 24," says Bryan Chandler of San Francisco's Blow Up Lab. "It depends on the clarity of the image." A reliable standard: Don't enlarge more than four times the original size. "The issue is pixels," says Jay Buckley, the owner of MegaPrint, in Plymouth, New Hampshire. While you can go online and order 20-by-30-inch enlargements of something you shot on a 2-megapixel camera, the pros have higher standards. "A picture from a 4- or 5-megapixel camera should look pretty good at 16-by-20," Chandler says. An untrained eye may be less exacting—and each enlarger will offer its own guidelines. 3. CHOOSE A FRAME Online framers invariably use Plexiglas instead of glass, which would likely never survive shipping. Indeed, if your frame is larger than 30 by 40 inches, Plexiglas is recommended no matter what. Depending on how and where you plan to hang your art (in a busy hall, for instance), some framers start advocating Plexiglas at the 16- by-20-inch mark. If you're dead set on glass, a local brick-and-mortar framing shop is the place to get it. VOCAB LESSON GICLEE A giclee ("sprayed") print is made with an ink-jet printer. Its quality may surpass that of a traditionally processed photo. GLOSS Shiny finish with true, vivid colors. May produce a glare. SATIN OR LUSTER Less shiny than gloss. Good color. MATTE Softer, less vibrant look. CANVAS Excellent color reproduction. Ask for heavyweight artists' canvas, pigment-based dyes, and an ultraviolet-protective coating. SOME SOURCES PRINTING Duggal A helpful if somewhat more expensive site, Duggal will do a 24-by-36- inch blowup for $160. The company shows you a test print before it makes the final. duggal.com Shutterfly This company creates posters of up to 20 by 30 inches ($23) and prints on stretched canvas (see below) up to 24 by 36 inches ($150). shutterfly.com FRAMING Daniel Smith Its wood frames feature an ingenious interlocking dovetail that lets do-it-yourselfers make a no-hassle frame. A wide selection of sizes. danielsmith.com ONE-STOP SHOPPING Graphik Dimensions This company prints, frames, and delivers. Upload your digital file, order a print (up to 32 inches by 40 inches), then select mat and frame styles, edit the whole package onscreen, and you're finished. Mounted canvas prints are also available ($150 to $400). pictureframes.com

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1. Your grandmother's china pattern 2. A flower from your sister's wedding 3. A baby's bootie 4. A ribbon spool from the attic 5. Vintage button package 6. Bugs and butterflies from the backyard 7. A ticket stub from a tour of an ancient Egyptian temple 8. Marbles of all colors 9. An old toy car 10. A rubber-band ball 11. A starfish from the beach 12. Costume jewelry that looks better on the wall than on your ears 13. The ruler your father used to build your playhouse

Just found this site - I definitely need to bookmark this for when Ava gets a little older.  It's called D.I.Y. Kids and it's basically design projects for kids.

Here's some examples

Sticker Art

Use a sheet of tiny "price tag" stickers to make itty bitty works of art. Each one is a frame for a different picture. You'll find yourself drawing different kinds of art, just because the space you're working on is different. Draw animals, sushi, flags, abstract shapes, or anything else you like. Keep your stickers together, or put them on letters, packages, stationery, or your notebook. Stickers by Ruby, age 7

Dressy Apron

Grown out of your favorite flowered dress? or just grown out of dresses altogether? The flouncy dresses loved by little kids make cool aprons for bigger kids, and require very little sewing.

1. Lay dress flat on table or floor.
2. Cut out the face of the apron, following the side seams up the top of the dress, across the top, and down. The front of the dress will form one piece.
3. Add ties. You can use pieces cut from the back of the dress or grossgrain ribbon. Sew ties on each side at the waist, and at the top right and top left.
4. For a finished look, you can hem the sides. (But remember -- aprons are for messy work, in the kitchen, studio or garden.)

Variations: cut dress at the waist for a half-apron.
If you don't want top ties and there's a button (not a zipper!) at the back, keep the collar (round neck opening) intact and use the button to open and close your apron.

Patterns with masking tape

Lay out a grid of masking tape onto paper. Use water color to fill in the squares. Let colors mix and blend for nice effects. You can also sprinkle salt into the wet paint. When the paint dries, remove the masking tape. These areas will be white, but with interesting borders. You can scan the finished pattern to make wrapping paper, cards, and other products.

Design by Ronnie, age 9.