Wishing you all a positive and peaceful 2023

Let's all make it a better year than 2022!

Printable Santa Template - For Tree Hangings - Tutorial

If you want to make your own Santas - here is the link to download and print the Santa Template - print straight onto thin card if you can and then colour-in and cut out the six parts. 

Attach the arms and legs with paper clips (Brads) and then glue a flat lolly stick behing the body, with about an inch sticking out at the top. 

Attach Santa's head to this with a double-sided sticky pad. 

Add a loop and hang him on the Christmas Tree! 

Cotton wool beards and glitter can be added if so desired!

Craft at Mencap Braintree - with Christmas Carols, Tea and Donuts!

Click on the Christmas button above to find all the other Christmas Craft on my Blog...

Quiz - Match the Collective Noun to the Animal - Free Printable Quiz!

 

A new quiz for you to enjoy with your groups - 

Ten common animals to match to their Collective Noun!

Here is the link - Click and Print! Quiz - Collective Nouns

Hope you enjoy this Free Printable Quiz - Collective Nouns!

If you would like more quizzes 

please have a look at my eBook - 41 Easy Printable Quizzes

Halloween Buttons!

 

A very easy Halloween Button craft to do with your groups...

What you need...

A4 sheet of card for background 

Yellow or orange card for your pumpkin 

Black buttons for your spiders and orange etc for the pumpkin

Glue stick 

Black felt tip pen 

How to make...

Print out your pumpkin - here is the Pumpkin Template 

With thanks to One Little Project for this free template!

Print your Halloween word - Halloween Template

Cut out both of these templates and stick them onto your A4 card

Stick your coloured buttons onto the pumpkin and scatter and stick the black buttons around the card

Draw on the spider legs...

Have a Happy and Scary Halloween...!! 

Tutorial - Lollipop Halloween Spiders and Ghosts!

  




Lollipop Halloween Spiders and Ghosts were great fun to make!

Lollipop Halloween Spider

You will need...

A lollipop on a stick

4 pipe cleaners (chenille craft stems)

2 Googly eyes (we used 7mm) 

Double sided sticky pads

 How to make... 
 
Fold each pipe cleaner in half and twist the centre once around the stick of the lollipop, making a leg on either side - eight legs in all. 

Push the legs up towards the round lolly "body" and attach a small double sided sticky pad to keep them in place and on this pad attach the googly eyes.

Lollipop Halloween Ghost

You will need... 

A lollipop on a stick

A piece of old sheeting (or you can use tissue paper) about 25 to 30cms square

Ribbon - we used black, purple orange and yellow - 3mm width

A Loom Band or small elastic band

Black felt tip pen

A plastic straw (optional)

How to make...

Place the round lollipop in the centre of the white sheeting and fix around the head with a small elastic band. 

Tie ribbons around the neck and draw a face with your black pen. 

As the lollipop sticks are short in length, we used the plastic straw as an extension! 

Our groups at Mencap loved this easy, fun craft...

Have fun at Halloween...!
 

Paper Plate Dream Catcher Tutorial - Easy and fun to make!

These Paper Plate Dream Catchers are great fun to make and easy for any age and ability...

You will need... 

A good quality paper plate -  needs to be rigid enough to keep its shape

A length of Yarn - we Used Cotton Yarn DK - 2.5m plus 2 or 3 pieces for the dangles - each about 40cms long - Also about 30cms to make a tag to hang it.

Beads with large holes - we used Pony Beads

Feathers - dyed ones available at craft shops

Colouring-in pens or paints

Punch to make holes 

Sticky Tape

How to make... 

Cut out the centre of the plate.

Punch holes around the inside hole as per photo - about 2.5cm apart - no need to measure - don't have to accurate!

Working on the "bottom" surface of the plate - colour or paint the decoration - our plates had ridges which added to the effect!

Take your long piece of yarn and secure one end with sticky tape to the inside of the plate.

Thread the yarn through the holes - back and forth - no fixed pattern - just as you like! When about two thirds through, thread some beads onto the yarn (see photo above) 

When all the holes are used up, secure the end again with sticky tape, on the inside of the plate.

Punch a hole centre top and make a loop to hang up your Dream Catcher.

Punch two or three holes along bottom edge for dangles...

Tie a bead about a third of the way down on your yarn - then thread beads onto the longer piece above the tied bead.

Thread the end of this yarn, above the beads, through the punched hole and secure with sticky tape inside the plate.

Repeat with other one or two dangles.

Tie feathers onto the ends of yarn below the beads.

Sweet Dreams!

Nicola with her Dream Catcher

Andy painted his Dream Catcher with Acrylics

 

Harry Potter Pop-Ups - Tutorials

 After a visit to London's "Harry Potter's World" our Craft Group at Mencap were keen to colour-in some Harry Potter characters - loads to find online and printable.

So we decided to use them to create some more Pop-Up pages...

See our previous Pop-Ups - Frozen & Monsters

For an excellent tutorial on how to make Pop-Ups have a look here...

Extreme Paper Making - Pop-up Basics

Here are some more we made...

 So easy to do and who doesn't love Po-Ups! 

Have a go - instead of just sticking pictures into your scrapbooks - make them

 POP-UP!

Painting Wild Flowers with Wet Watercolours!

This is a very exciting way to paint wild flowers, as you never know what you will end up with!

As you are painting watercolours "Wet on Wet" (wet paint on wet paper) it does its own thing - great fun and easy to do, so very suitable for your groups. 

And you get great results, even for the "un-artistic"!

You will need...

Watercolour paper (as you are wetting the paper, you will need watercolour paper - anything else won't work!)

Watercolour paints

Brushes

Black pen - waterproof ink. (I used Staedtler Pigment Liner 0.8, but any similar will do)

Get ready...

Mix your paints before you wet your paper.

I mixed green (2 separate shades - one darker)

Flower colours - I mixed Yellow (2 shades) and Crimson

Wet your paper by brushing over with clean water.

Wait a few minutes and then using a large brush, wash on the lighter green with upward strokes and feather the top edge. 

While still wet, apply the dark green - let some of the light green show through.

Next - check if your paper is still wet - if not then re-wet the top of your picture. (careful not to go into the green area)

Then apply the colours you have prepared - just load the brush with paint and then touch the paper and the paint will spread by itself.

Put different size blobs of the different colours - in random order (these are wild flowers - not planted in rows!!)

Lastly, take your brush and flick (hold the brush parallel to the paper and tap it sharply, with your finger, just below the bristles) small blobs of paint randomly over the whole picture. 

Do this with all your different flower colours.

Let it dry thoroughly (I use my hair dryer on low heat to speed up the drying process)

Once the paint is dry, take your pen and draw in your flowers. 

Try to draw freely - don't be too precise - the paint is not precise, so the drawing too must be "Random"!

To make it look natural, have some flowers "side view".

Scribble in grass at the bottom, over the green area. Stand back and admire your work...!

Have fun!

Make a Felt Wall Hanging - Sunbonnet Sue, Bunny and Flowers! Printable Templates!

 

Some years ago I purchased the Sunbonnet Sue pattern and I have now decided it was time to create a new Felt Wall-Hanging - Sunbonnet Sue, Bunny and Flowers -  which you can all make at home or with your groups!

About Sunbonnet Sue - Bertha Corbett Melcher is credited as a creator of the Sunbonnet designs. She illustrated children's Primer books in the early 1900s. Her book, “The Sunbonnet Babies” was published in 1900. In this book she depicted girls with their faces hidden by their bonnets.

I have given you a tutorial of my Sunbonnet Sue Wall-Hanging, but you can add or take away any of the embellishments - have fun and be creative...!

You will need...

One A4 sheet of felt for background

Scraps of felt for Sunbonnet Sue, Bunny and Flowers

A string of daisy trimming - or whatever you have 

Buttons for flowers and bonnet

Cotton wool tail and googly eye for bunny - 

Fabric glue or double sided tape to attach tail and eye

Embroidery thread for stitching

Ribbon and a wooden dowel to hang 

How to make it...

Print the pattern / template of Sunbonnet Sue and Bunny and Flowers

Sunbonnet Sue Template

Bunny and Flowers Template

Cut out your Sunbonnet Sue, Bunny and Flowers from your felt

Taking your A4 background felt, turn over a hem of about 2cm along the long edge and stitch down

Turn your A4 felt over and attach Sunbonnet Sue one layer at a time, using a small running stitch, finishing with the bonnet

Attach the bunny, again using a small running stitch

 

Attach the flowers, by stitching them to the background with a button in the middle of each one. 

Attach a cotton wool tail to the bunny and an eye, using fabric glue or double sided tape

Stitch the daisy trim along the top as in the photo

I attached a button on the bonnet as well as a few single daisies from the daisy trim scattered around.

Slip your wooden dowel into the top channel, tie on your ribbon and you will have a Sunbonnet Sue Wall-Hanging to make everyone smile...!

Four Platinum Jubilee Place Mats - Free Download, Print & Colour-in!

If you are joining in with the Platinum Jubilee Sunday lunch (5 June 2022) - at home or in your street - why not prepare Place Mats for you and your family and guests!

Here are four different Platinum Jubilee Place Mats - get out those paints or crayons and get the kids or your groups busy!

Enjoy the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, wherever you are! 

Four days 2 - 5 June 2022...

70 YEARS - God Save the Queen!

Jubilee Bunting to colour in - Free template!

Just a short while before the UK celebrates our beloved Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee - 70 years on the throne! 

What an amazing achievement for us all to celebrate... 

So get your groups or children together and prepare some Jubilee Bunting! 

Here is the link to download and print your Jubilee Bunting...

Jubilee Bunting  

       Enjoy and celebrate!

ACEO painting - using Acrylic as a Base under Watercolour!

 

The Massive Rhino

Some years ago I joined an art class (for keen amateurs!) and had great fun, trying out new techniques and meeting other like-minded people. 

The one thing our teacher showed us, that has stayed with me over the years, is how to use Acrylic paint as a Watercolour base.  

When using pure Watercolour, it is difficult to portray texture - for us amateurs anyway! To overcome this, try painting a coat of Acrylic paint on first. Let me explain!

In the ACEO above of the Rhino (if you need to know what an ACEO is, have a look HERE)  you will see the rhino has a textured, rough hide. 

To get this effect I sketched in the drawing in pencil and then painted the Rhino only, with a layer of white Acrylic paint. While still wet, I roughed up the surface of the hide, keeping inside the lines, and smoothing and shaping the appropriate areas - keeping the roundness of the animal and particularly the legs, in mind.

Only paint the Rhino with the Acrylic base, leaving the rest of the painting until this base is hard dry.

Then take out your Watercolours and paint in your background as usual, just leaving off the shadows under the Rhino for now.

Next, go back to the Rhino and over-paint the Acrylic base with Watercolour. This is great fun, as the Watercolour sits on top and can be easily moved around, until you get the effects of light and shade and colours, as you want them!

Lastly put in the shadows, under the Rhino feet and body.

This method can also be used in landscape to give texture to rocks and other rough terrain and of course in other animals with rough hide like Elephants and Hippos. 

Hope this is helpful - give it a go and enjoy being creative! 

New Pattern Designs to Complete...! Printable Templates!

This is a Circle in a Square Collage craft project which I posted in 2016 - I am repeating it with three new variations to play with - starting as always with the basic shapes design, as before and then use your imagination...

Circle in Square Designs

Here is the Circle in Square Template

One of the New Pattern Design Templates

New Pattern Design Templates

Allow each member in your craft group to design and colour their own creation, as they want.

You will be amazed at what is produced...the above were done by our Mencap Art and Craft group and they loved creating their designs...

Very simple, but challenging enough to create enthusiasm and such pride in their artwork...

To make a collage, just cut out the finished squares and stick them together onto card - we used A2 black card, but any colour will do.

Make your collage as big or small as you like - depends on the size of your group of course and how many squares you have to display!

Have fun being creative...!

Quiz - Movies with Girl's Names - Printable!

 

An easy, fun quiz today - 15 Movies which contain girl's names!

How many can you get right? Here is the link...

Quiz - Movies with Girl's Names

Aimed at stimulating reminiscing and chat amongst your group - over a cup of tea and a choccy biscuit - it is the season to enjoy chocolate after all!

If you want more quizzes do have a look at my 41 x Easy Quizzes eBook - all to download and print as you need them.

Making Tissue Paper Flowers for All Occasions!¬

 

The Craft Patch - Tissue Paper Flowers

I am often asked about how to make tissue paper flowers and today I came across The Craft Patch and this was what I found...

Learn how to make tissue paper flowers with the help of this step-by-step photo and video tutorial. This is your ultimate guide to making, hanging and decorating with tissue paper flowers!

This is such a well presented Tutorial, so I decided to share it with you! 

Here is the link...

Tissue Paper Flowers: The Ultimate Guide by The Craft Patch

Have fun making your Tissue Paper Flowers and thanks to The Craft Patch!

Easter Felt Wall Hanging - with Tutorial and templates

This felt Easter Wall hanging is very easy to make - I have included the templates to download and print, so get together with your groups and enjoy putting it all together!

You will need...

A4 size of felt for background

Pieces of felt for Bunny, Easter Egg and Flower 

Washi Tape (or decorate your Easter Egg with bands of felt or ribbon)

Embroidery thread

Googly eye (or use a small button)

Pompom tail for bunny (or use cotton wool)

Fabric glue or double-sided adhesive  tape

Wooden dowel or gardener's cane

Ribbon

How to make...

Turn about 2.5cm hem along long edge and stitch with embroidery thread.

Cut out your Easter Egg, Bunny and Flower and a circular centre piece for flower 

Here are the patterns...

Easter Wall Hanging Template

Stick your Washi Tape bands (or felt strips) onto your Easter Egg 

Stick the googly eye (or button) and the pompom tail onto the Bunny, using double-sided adhesive tape or fabric glue

Stitch the flower in the centre, to attach the felt circle and also to attach the flower to the background 

Using backstitch sew a "stem" on the flower - I added a piece of green felt as a leaf too! (sorry doesn't show up well in photo!)

Attach the Bunny and Easter Egg to the background, using double-sided adhesive tape or fabric glue

Slip the wooden dowel through the to hem and tie on the ribbon

Hope you all had fun making your Easter Felt Wall Hanging!

For more Easter Craft ideas here's my Easter Page... Have a browse!