Art & Craft Tutorial for Kids - Mosaic Paper Collage Easter Egg

Those of you who have been following my art and craft projects for a while know that I’ve got about a million ways to create Easter eggs. This project is one of the easiest and is a great way to use up those scraps of paper left over from other projects. Mosaic art is a way of making a picture with lots of small pieces of material, so your paper scraps are perfect for this craft. You can make a lovely mosaic paper collage Easter eggs and do your bit for the environment at the same time.

Supplies Needed: heavy card, scrap paper, pencil, PVA glue, glue spreader, small bowl for glue, scissors, ribbon, glitter

1. Cover your work area with an old table cloth.

2. Draw an egg shape onto a piece of card or heavy paper.

 3. Cut the egg shape out with scissors and set it aside.

 4. Cut or tear scrap paper into small pieces, roughly 1 inch (2.5 cm) in size. I used construction paper, but you can use tissue paper, wrapping paper, scrapbook paper, old magazines or whatever you happen to have on hand.

 5. Put some glue into a bowl. I've recycled a plastic butter container for my glue pot. Depending on how thick your glue is, you may wish to add a little water to get a consistency that is easier to work with.

 6. Glue the paper scraps onto the egg shape, overlapping the pieces, until the entire egg is completely covered. I covered around the edge of my egg first with a repeating pattern and applied the paper randomly on the rest, but you can create any design that you like.

7. Allow your egg to dry, then turn it over and repeat the process.

8. When the egg is completely dry on both sides, trim off any excess paper that went over the edge.

9. For a bit of extra pizzazz, apply a glitter and glue on a ribbon bow.

Voila! Your mosaic paper collage Easter egg is done. Now the only thing left to do is to hang it on your fridge, a window or on your bedroom wall and admire your work.

1/2 Price Offer - Wine, Dine & Design

What do you get when you combine your favourite wine, yummy food, great craic & and creative entertainment?...the perfect evening out with Wine, Dine & Design!

If you're looking for something to do in Belfast, you’ll love this new and exciting alternative to the traditional night out. Learn to create your own masterpiece in a fun, relaxed, adults-only environment while sipping your favourite wine and enjoying delicious food. 

Even if your last artistic creation was a stick figure, never fear because I will give you all the guidance you need to create your painting with confidence.

It's still early days for this workshop (or shall I say party with paint?), so I'm offering 1/2 OFF (normally £40) on the event this Friday, 16 March, 2012 to help get the word out. Where else are you going to get a lovely meal and an evening's entertainment for only £20? Just bring your favourite bottle of wine & everything else is provided for you!

To get your discount, book via Eventbrite and enter this promotional code when prompted: WDD-16march2012-HALFOFF.

If you prefer to pay via Paypal or cheque or have any questions, contact Jolie Dennison. Be sure to like JolieArt on Facebook to keep up to date with dates and locations of future events, as well as get fan only special offers.

E: info@joliedennison.com
W: www.joliedennison.com

T: 07830 429618

To see what other people are saying about Wine, Dine & Design, check out my earlier blog post and this one from journalist, Heather McGarrigle.

Art & Craft Tutorial for Kids - St. Patrick's Day Music Shaker

They say that at the end of every rainbow is a pot of gold. Just in case you don’t spot a rainbow this St. Patrick’s day, you can create your own! This craft project is easy to make and fun to play with too! Watch the video below for step-by-step instructions. Be sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel so you can see new art and craft projects as I post them. 

If you would like to share, feel free to post a photo of your creation on the wall of my JolieArt Facebook page.

Art & Craft Tutorial for Kids - Sweetheart Crown

I love hearts, so Valentine's Day crafts are some of my favorite crafts to make. You can watch the video below to learn how to make this sweetheart crown. If you would like to share, feel free to post a photo of your own creation on the wall of my JolieArt Facebook page.

Be sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel so that you can see new art and craft projects as I post them!

Art & Craft Tutorial for Kids - Heart Mobile

Make a Valentine’s Day mobile decoration with just a few supplies you probably already have around the house. It takes just a few minutes, so you will have plenty of time to make one for your best friend too!

Supplies Needed: Heavy card, coloured papers, crayons, cello tape, scissors, ribbon or string, dinner plate, and a pencil.

1. Draw various size hearts on coloured papers and card and cut them out.

2. Layer the hearts by attaching them together with tape. Colour some with crayons to form interesting designs. Make at least 3 hearts to hang from your mobile.

3. Put the plate on top of the card and trace around it with the pencil. Cut along the line to form a large circle.

4. Decorate the circle with crayons and cut into a spiral shape. It might be easier if you draw the spiral first and cut along the line.

5. Use tape to attach a piece of ribbon to the top of each heart. Attach the other part of the ribbon to the bottom side of the spiral shaped card. Be sure to place the ribbons on different areas of the mobile so that it balances well.

6. Make a loop with a piece of ribbon use tape attach it to the top of the spiral. Hang your mobile and enjoy!

If you'd like to share, feel free to post a photo of your creation on the wall of my Facebook page.

You can see step-by-step photos of this project on my Youtube channel. Be sure to subscribe to see other videos as I post them.

Superbowl Sunday & a Disappointed Packers Fan

It's Superbowl Sunday and I don't think I'll be able to bring myself to watch this year. I'm a Green Bay Packers fan through and through. Generally, I consider myself a pretty good sport when my team loses, but I gotta tell ya...I'm crushed that they aren't going to be playing. This season was just so darn amazing that we Packer Fans could practically taste another Superbowl victory. How exciting would that have been 2 years in a row!?

Somehow, "Oh well" just doesn't seem adequate, but it's all I've got, so oh well! I'll just relive the glory of last year's game. You can watch a video of me painting this painting from the Packer Fan series on my Youtube channel. The painting, as well as prints are available for purchase in my Artfire shop.

You can also find the original paintings, as well as prints of both of the girls in the Packer Fan series in my Artfire shop. We may not be getting a Superbowl win this year, but that's never stopped we Packer fans from enjoying our Packer sweatshirts, blankets, caps...and art, of course, year round!

And on that note...GOOOOOO Pack! We'll get them next year!

Art & Craft Tutorial - Make a Money Box

I write an art & craft column for the fabulous family oriented magazine, NI4Kids. Visit their website to see step-by-step photos of this project. You'll also find lots of other fun projects to try.

Supplies needed: empty snack container with a plastic lid, pretty leftover papers from the holidays, scissors, ruler, tape, felt tip pens, tray to keep your materials tidy. Optional: glue, elastic bands.

1. Cover your work area with an old tablecloth and put your materials in a tray to keep them tidy.

2. After eating your Cheeselets, Pringles or any kind of snack that comes in a container with a plastic lid, clean out the inside with a damp sponge. Try to avoid getting the outside of the container wet.

3. Lay a pretty piece of wrapping paper face down on your table. If you don’t have leftover wrapping paper, you can use any paper that you have lying around. I used paper that I had hand decorated and was leftover from a previous craft project.

4. Mark where you will need to cut the paper by using the empty snack container as a template. Set it on its side, mark the paper at the top and bottom of the container, then roll it several centimetres and repeat.

5. Use a ruler to connect the marks. You should end up with two straight lines (one for the bottom and one for the top of the container).

6. Cut along the lines.

7. Wrap the paper around the container and tape it together where the paper overlaps. My paper wasn’t quite long enough to cover the whole container, so I cut another piece to fill in the space. If you prefer, you can glue the paper on instead of using tape. You’ll need to secure the paper to the container with elastic bands and leave it for a few hours until the glue dries.

8. Use the felt tip pens to decorate your money box. I personalised mine with my name and added some flower doodles, but you can decorate yours with any design that you like.

9. Ask an adult to cut a coin slot in the lid with a pair of scissors.

10. Voila! Your money box is done. Now all you need to do is find a place to keep it safe and start saving those pennies!

To see more creative project ideas, subscribe to:  www.youtube.com/joliedennison and www.facebook.com/jolieart.

Wine, Dine & Design - The Perfect Evening out with JolieArt

What do you get when you combine your favourite wine, yummy food, great craic & and creative entertainment?...the perfect evening out with Wine, Dine & Design!

If you’re tired of doing the same old thing at the weekend, you’ll love this new and exciting  alternative to the traditional night out. Learn to create your own masterpiece in a fun, relaxed, adults-only environment while sipping your favourite wine and enjoying  delicious food. Even if your last artistic creation was a stick figure, never fear because I will give you all the guidance you need to create your painting with confidence.

Journalist, Heather McGarrigle, who often writes for the Belfast Telegraph, attended the January launch of Wine, Dine & Design and described her experience as such, “It really didn't matter how it turned out; not only has it got me over my fear of putting paintbrush to paper, it will always serve as a reminder of a fun evening with my mate and the lovely people we met. We arrived at 7pm and by 10pm, we had completed our artworks, marvelled/guffawed at each other's efforts and were preparing to head to the pub to round the night off. It was a nice, non-cringey way to meet new people.” Be sure to visit Heather's blog to see her entire post.

Siobhan McGarry had this to say about her experience, “Oh Jolie - just have to say last night's 'Wine, Dine & Design was absolutely brilliant fun. My friend Jenny and myself had great craic! Great girlie night - thoroughly recommend it for getting a hen night started - or just a really lovely idea for a friends night out. Two words - Red & Town....let's just say the painting didn't stop when we left the building!”

For just £40 per person you’ll get step-by-step instruction, a canvas, use of paints and materials, a casually elegant buffet from the equally creative Whoosh Catering and, of course, a fabulous social experience that you’ll be talking about for ages. All you need to bring is your own bottle of wine and a few friends – or come and make new ones!

Wine, Dine & Design takes place in Belfast on the 3rd Friday of each month (or book a private event anytime). For more information, phone Jolie on 07830 429618 or visit www.joliedennison.com.