Yarn. It's not just for sweaters anymore.

Today's project is a kid's craft!  As such, it's easy and requires little to no planning - the best kind!

I really like this craft because it's one that actually didn't result in me getting all OCD on my kids preceding tears - from them and me.  You know it's a keeper if my anxiety doesn't take over...

Are you ready to make some fun yarn prints?

You probably don't really need a tutorial, but here is how you make a yarn print:

1. Squirt some paint in your desired colors on your cardboard.

2. Take a strand of scrap yarn and dip it in the paint, saturating it.

3. Lay your paint soaked yarn in a design.  Press gently along each yarn piece, being careful not to move it around.  I suggest holding an end with one finger while gently patting it all along.  Also, it's most fun if your yarn pieces overlap, then there will be cool negative space.

4. Lift your yarn pieces off the paper, one at a time, top ones first.

5. Discard your yarn pieces on a separate paper.

6. Continue lifting off yarn pieces until they're all gone.  Admire your artwork!

mini had a field day.  As you've probably guessed, this is a pretty messy craft and resulted in crazy painty hands.  She loved it - every squishy, colorful, sticky second.

We decided to make a "z" for her name and laid out our pattern first so she could remember and then duplicate where it overlapped.

Then she wanted to make a flower, which I assisted with fairly heavily.

bug made himself an "E" and then wanted to make an "A" for his baby brother.  Such a considerate guy!  We also laid down some yarn on the sides and bottom for a little design detail.

I think this is a great way to "print" with kids.  Why?

1. It requires no special materials.

2. It's messy - kids love messy!

3. They can be super creative - you can make all kinds of shapes with yarn!  No holds barred!

4. Think of the lessons you can teach... colors, shapes, letters, numbers just to name a few.   And tons of art concepts too - negative space, composition, layering techniques, how to layer the colors to get the look you want, etc.

This was actually part of a larger project we are working on which I'll share with you at a later date.  We used it for our "Y" week and this art project was called "Y is for Yarn."

And what was baby brother up to while we did this?  Napping sweetly in his crib as all good babies do?

Nooooo!  Of course not.  Pip doesn't sleep until his body takes over and passes out from sheer exhaustion.

He played with Zoe's "Bun-nun" and smiled and growled - because that's what he does.  He doesn't coo.  He growls.

I would have had him making his own initial, you know, never to young and all... but my OCD had all it could handle with the older two.

Have you linked your projects to the party yet??

*Be sure to check the right sidebar for all the fun parties I link to!