We’ve been enjoying a winter storm here in Indiana. The kids are going on day three of school moving from in person to e-learning for the amount of snow we have had. They estimate we have had more than a foot of snow in 48 hours.
Our family has been able to get out and walk, play, and even scrap the driveway a time or four now.
Although we love the outdoor play, we have had more indoor play as well. It got us thinking that others might be looking for some indoor fun too. We thought we would share this fun and multiple step snowman project with you to encourage some creative fun in your home this winter. Gather a few supplies from around your home and join us to build a snowman!
Supplies:
base canvas (we used white cardboard)
coloring tools (we used pastels)
paint supplies (we used tempera paint and a brush)
scrap paper (card stock, construction paper, etc)
scissors
Elmer’s glue
Once you have the supplies and are ready to create, the first thing you do is draw a snowman! I love how Reagan drew a two circle snowman and Jeremiah drew a three circle snowman that is zoomed in on, as part of his shape is “off” the page.
After you have used your drawing tools to draw the snowman, then you are ready to paint a winter scene for the snowman to live in! Paint the background surrounding the snowman. You can ask your artist why you should NOT paint in the snowman. Hopefully, they value clean, white snow too.
The final step is to embellish and add details to that snowman. We used scrap paper to cut hats and scarfs to dress our snowmen. You can also use your drawing tools from step one to add more details to the snowman or background.
Wasn’t that super easy? This is such a fun project to do with a few students or a whole class! Just as a review the steps are..
- Draw a snowman
- Paint around the snowman
- Embellish by gluing and drawing to add details
We love that no matter the same steps taught or supplies used, every project can look different. If you keep the rules “open ended” like they are listed simply above, each artist will take their own interpretation and be able to use his/her imagination to bring their own ideas to life. How cool is that!?
We had so much fun creating some indoor snowman. Jeremiah suggested that real outdoor snowmen are more fun to create. It’s hard to compete with snow, right!? But, if you too need some indoor fun, try this fun project. My artists are in 5th and 7th grade and they still had fun. We are never too old to play with creative tools! The pieces don’t have to be saved for forever. Stick them on your mantel for the season like we did, and then feel free to toss them out. The most important part is to to HAVE FUN!
What kind of snowman will you create? Imagine the possibilities!
It’s the week of hearts.
I started with a bunch of cardboard boxes. I cut off the box flaps and use those pieces to then cut into heart shapes.
After I painted my hearts and they were completely dry, I used Elmers glue to attach them to one another. I used blue Elmers Glue, only because it was the first glue I found. Any school glue or hot glue would work!
You can probably tell by the pictures I created a base with the bigger hearts and then the smaller ones on top. It helps create a thicker, 3d shape and gives it some depth.
After I made my wreath, I thought this could be such a fun quick class party craft.
Do you have any emoji fans in your family?
The first step is to turn one plate over on top of another and staple around the edges to attach the plates to one another. 
After you have a face form, I used a little hot glue to attach my craft stick inside the plates. There was enough room between the stapled areas to stick a glob of glue on one of the plates, place a craft stick on top, and hold the sides of the plate together until the glue holds and hardens. 
After you have attached your stick, your emoji is ready to be created. This is where you can use whatever you have on hand! Markers, crayons, colored pencils, and even construction paper would be great tools to use to create your classic emoji face.
It was so fun to see the artists laugh at one another’s creation as they guessed which face they were making. These were quickly used as puppets or props as kids talked and acted out little skits with them. It’s a magical moment to watch a creation turn into inspiration for more fun!
This is such a simple project that you can personalize however you want! Maybe you want to paint your face-that’s great too!
If you paint or have a child that likes to paint, you probably have gone through some paint bottles, right!? For years and years, I have just thrown these little bottles out when they seem to be empty. Now that we have an 
My family uses essential oils, so we have these little 
for mixing oils up. I used them to suck up water/paint mixture from the bottle to drop on a wooden sign. The results were stunning and mesmerizing to watch a fluid art abstract piece come to life. The best part, this was a practically free project. As our studio has been asked to come into our local schools to complete art projects, we try to come up with amazing projects for not a lot of cost. This was the perfect project for just that. Watch how this project came to life through a group of 5th-grade students and then can follow the steps and create your own.
In the classroom, I stapled on a pipe-cleaner and twisted it up to allow the students to fill it with beads. This added a nice fun texture and hanger to make our wood pieces into hangable signs. You don’t have to do this step to your pieces, but I am a sucker for several textures in my projects.
This project is all about the process. You can’t totally control what your piece will end up looking like, which takes some of the stress of it being “perfect” away. I encouraged the students I was working with to do small drops at a time. Some of the bottles may be more watered down than others. By starting with small drops you can watch as colors blend together on their own to make new colors.
Another technique is you can slightly tilt these signs or even stand them up to watch as the paint colors blend and mix to make a stunning abstract piece!
I don’t think you can ruin this project. Often students thought they were done and then they would add one more color. At this point, it is usually when it became more stunning. As the signs dried, some of the paint colors would shift and sort out a little. So fun!
We went back and sprayed a 
on top of our signs, once they were dry. I use a gloss spray that adds a shine and helps them to look finished and more professional. We talked about how you could use this abstract painted piece as the backdrop to then paint a message on top. Maybe to say a phrase or inspirational word like “courage”.
I love how no matter how many times you do this project, no two signs will ever be the same. Depending on the colors you use and how your paint swirls and mixes together…each piece will be unique. This was such an inexpensive project to implement for a 5th-grade class. They had a blast.
What do you think? Will you start saving your paint bottles? I think these finished pieces make a great gift for a family member. Christmas is coming. You can create some masterpieces with your kids for all those proud grandparents.