Art Dice - Inspirational and Educational

I am lucky enough to be my youngest grandson's art teacher (I may have mentioned this one or two times before ☺) While researching project ideas for his lessons, I was inspired to create these art dice from the book "Tinkerlab - A Hands on Guide for Little Inventors" by Rachelle Doorley.   As she explains in the book "Art dice games are a creative way to jump-start drawing.  Every toss of the dice becomes an opportunity to explore and expand art vocabulary, drawing skills, color recognition, and shape identification."  Of course I don't see any reason they have to be just for kids, I think they can also be a way to practice or try something new in creating my own drawings as well - throwing one or all of them - could be a great way to try a limited palette or try a new style.

Or, you can make dice for any game you choose -  Some suggestions for other types are at the end of this post.

To make the dice you will need:

Creative Paperclay® modeling material

sanding block with coarse or medium grit sandpaper

file or emery board

cardboard

craft knife

ruler

pencil

paints

varnish

plan or pattern - the themes for these dice are:

• Shapes- square, circle, oval, heart, rectangle & triangle)
• Lines - vertical, diagonal, zigzag, wavy, spiral, and dots
• Colors - blue, red, green, yellow, purple, orange

My dice are 1" square, so the instructions will be for those proportions.  If you want larger or smaller dice adjust accordingly.

Begin with a 1/8" thick, flat, dry sheet of clay (for my instructions on how to make a flat sheet click here)

Measure and mark the grids for your die or dice.  If desired, carve a design or indentation into each side.

Cut the squares apart.  Measure and mark cardboard - for each die you will need two 2" square pieces of cardboard with a one inch square cut out of the center

Using the sanding block, sand each side of each square towards the center at any angle greater than 45° (this goes pretty quickly with coarse grit sandpaper, so make sure you don't sand too much off the edge!)  Go as close to the edge of the square as you can though, without losing the edge.

Now test fit four of the squares into your cardboard square form as shown -

If they all fit, wet the connecting sides of each square and place in the form.  Add the second square of cardboard over the first.

Now re-wet an inside corner and apply a roll of clay

Press the clay firmly into the corners to join the pieces, and repeat with remaining corners.  Pull the second piece of cardboard up to the top of the clay square and set it aside to dry.

When the clay is dry, remove the cardboard forms, clean off any stray bits of clay and file the inside corners at an angle (if needed).

Now test fit the top and bottom squares.  You will most likely have to file the edges of these down a bit and increase the angle of the interior of the square to get them to fit within the cardboard forms again.  When you've finished adjusting the top and bottom pieces, make a mixture of clay and water to the consistency of thick paste.  Wet the top rim of the square and the edges of the piece you are adding.  Place a heavy layer of your paste mixture along the inside of the cube then place the top section on and press firmly.  Repeat with bottom piece, then place the entire cube back into the cardboard form to hold the cube together securely while it dries.

When all is dry, remove from the form and sand any rough spots or clean up as necessary.  Paint as desired.

To play with the dice, throw one or all three, then draw a picture using the elements shown on the dice.  It's up to you and the other people you are playing with as to how strict you want to be with the elements - just suggestions? or perhaps you want to play with a timer and each person HAS to use all three of the elements in his or her drawing.  

Blue, Triangle, Diagonal Lines, Go!

Some other suggestions for creative dice making:

• Animal dice - each person would have to act like that animal, make a noise like them, or say a fact.
• Story dice - make dice with different pictures pasted on them and the players have to make up a story about what comes up - or, paste pictures of family and friends on the die or dice and then their photo comes up they have to tell a story (about themselves, or, make something up)
• Monster dice - one or two dice with the names of body parts - eyes, legs, antennae, teeth, etc. one with numbers, and one with colors.  Players make a picture of a monster with whatever they roll, for example, green monster with 6 eyes.

The possibilities are limitless!  The author of "Tinkerlab" suggests textures, emotions, movements, etc.

Thanks for joining me here again!  As always, play, experiment, and have fun!

Tori

Find me on Facebook, or peruse & ponder pics with me on Pinterest

Summer Sun Marble Run

Here's something to do with the kids on a hot summer day - make a marble run!  It's fun to make, and fun to use, very relaxing, and a good "tilt table" for fidgeters.  You can use my pattern or create your own, make a maze, or try writing out a name.

For this project you will need:

• Creative Paperclay® modeling material
• foam core, wood, or cardboard in the size and shape you want (my pattern calls for a 16" x 16" square)
• a marble
• pattern
• pencils
• tracing paper for transferring pattern
• stiff round brush; a stencil brush will work well
• rolling pin
• plastic wrap
• paint

If you are making your own pattern, you will also need

• dial calipers - OR circle gauge - OR toothpicks, tape, and a ruler
• paper large enough to draw out your pattern

If you are using my pattern, skip ahead to the pattern transfer picture.

If you are going to make your own pattern, first measure the size of your marble.  Use either the gauge, calipers, or toothpicks taped to a ruler lifted to the midway point of the marble as shown,

Write down that measurement, then tape two sharpened pencils to a scrap of cardboard so that they match that distance.  I'm using two different colored pencils in the photo so you can more clearly see how drawing the pattern works out.

Draw your pattern either freehand or over a sketch, using these two pencils as a guide to indicate how much room the marble will need.  Try to hold them straight up and down while drawing, to keep the lines the same distance apart.

This would be the first step for a maze - beginning, squiggly path, and end.

Add more lines, without crossing over any of the ones previously drawn

Once you are happy with your pattern, cut a piece of cardboard, foamcore or wood to the desired size.

Cover board with a thin layer of clay on both sides and on the edge; set aside to dry.  When the clay is dry, sand if necessary and then transfer the pattern you've chosen.

Roll clay out to about 1/8" thickness and cut into 1/2" wide strips.  If you have a strip of wood or cardboard in that thickness, you can use that as a guide.

Leave the strips in place and only work with one at a time, keeping the remainder under wraps so it will stay moist until needed.

Brush water a few inches along one of the pattern lines, then brush some water onto the edge of one strip of clay.  Apply that edge of the clay strip to the moistened pattern line by holding it in place then pushing down with your thumb and forefinger as shown.  Repeat this process a little bit at a time along your pattern line until you have about 6" applied then, using a wet brush, blend both sides of the clay onto the board.

Use your marble as a guide to make sure you have applied the clay walls properly.  Smooth clay with wet finger or sculpting tool to make a smooth path for the marble.

When you've finished adding clay to your pattern, allow the marble run to dry completely, then test it out, sand or add clay as necessary until the marble rolls smoothly, then paint as desired.

Thanks for joining me here again!  As always, play, experiment, and have fun!

Tori

Find me on Facebook, or peruse & ponder pics with me on Pinterest

Travel Tic-Tac-Toe Game

My grand daughters are soon going to be flying cross country from Ohio to California. I thought maybe a new game might be just the thing to help keep them occupied during the long flights, so I made this travel tic-tac-toe game.

I started by rolling out a ball of Creative Paperclay® into a slab. I used square dowels on each side of the clay as gauges so the entire slab was a uniform thickness.

Next, I used canape cutters that I use exclusively for craft projects to cut discs that would become the playing pieces.

Note: I thought the crowns would be cute since this set was going to be for girlie girls, but as it turned out they were too small.

I dried the discs on a drying rack similar to this one that Kerrie tells how to make. After they were dry, it was time to paint them. I used acrylic paints in the girls' favorite colors. When the paint was dry, I sealed the discs with PPA Gloss, an acrylic medium. I just couldn't help myself—I had to add the bling :) which I placed on each disc while the PPA was still wet.

Right now this travel game is packed and ready to go!! California here we come!!

Check out the Tiny Tool Time blog to see how I made the game board.

Carole

Tic, Tac, .... BOO!

It's that time of the year again. Cooler weather, leaves beginning to turn just a bit, and for me at least, thoughts of Halloween and what I'll be making for treats for the kids in the family. All kids can play tic-tac-toe, and most of us have access to some small tins. So here's a way to use that tin, show some creativity, and make the kids happy too.

For this project, you will need:

Creative Paperclay, available at Dick Blick's, HobbyLobby, and on-line at http://www.paperclay.com/

A small tin with a lid, like the ones mints come in

White glue

A bit of decorative paper for the lining (optional)

Acrylic paint and brushes

Odd and end tools to make impressions in the clay

Spray paint for metal in black or your choice of colors

First you will want to sand the tin, and paint it. I like to use a sanding sponge. It goes around curves so much easier than paper. If you don't sand, the paint will not stick well. Paint the tin, doing at least two coats. Make sure you sand and paint the inside, whether you use the decorative paper or not.

While your coats of paint dry on the tin, you will make ten tiny figures in two styles. I made five ghosts and five pumpkins, but you could do it another way. You could do ten tiny figures, all different and then paint five one color, and five another color. And think ahead. This could be a Christmas theme with snowmen, Santas, fir trees, etc..

To make the pumpkins, I rolled a small ball of clay, almost a half-inch wide, then took a bamboo skewer and rolled it along the side five times to make the segments. Then I inserted the skewer into the top to make a hole to add a tiny cone shaped stem. Use just a touch of white glue in the hole, or when the stem shrinks with drying, it will come loose.

For the ghosts, I rolled a small cone shape, flattening the bottom well, and rounding the top. Then I used the skewer to make holes for the eyes. Simple as can be.

Paint the ghost's eye area black, and the entire pumpkin black as well.

While that dries, you can cut the lining paper for the inside of your tin. To get the right size, place the bottom of the tin on the paper, and trace around it. That will be almost the perfect size for inside the lid. Then do the same for the bottom inside of the tin, but you'll have to trim it a bit all around to make it smaller and therefore fit inside. Check it before trimming, so you don't remove too much.

For the top of the tin, you need to make a game board. Some tins have the name-brand indented into the top. No problem. Just roll a thin sheet of Creative Paperclay to fit. Smear a layer of glue on top of the tin, then put your rolled sheet of clay on top and trim all around the sides to fit. Using a wet finger, smooth the clay to remove mars. Decorate the top as you'd like.

I made tiny ropes of clay to create a border for the actual game area. I then took a small knitting needle to indent the grooves , creating a rippled effect. I used the knitting needle to mark the squares in the center, for placement of the playing pieces.

The last thing to do is the painting. I finished the pumpkins by wiping the orange paint side to side, leaving the black paint in the dents. The ghosts just needed a coat of white everywhere but the eyes. The tin was painted as you see it, just using Halloween colors. The pieces are small enough that they fit easily inside for storage.

Wouldn't this make a cute stocking stuffer? You could do it Christmasy, or in about any theme. Dinosaurs, cars, flowers, fairies... the choices are practically limitless.

Come visit me on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NightmaresAndDayDreams

And my blog: http://nightanddayartetc.blogspot.com/