One Boy's Trash is Another Boy's Treasure #craft #art #paint #mixedmedia

My next art | craft post is up on ParentSavvy. I'm really excited to share the steps of this one.

There are 3 main things you need for this:

1. Heavy Structure Gel
2. A Masonite Canvas
3. Light Weight Junk You Will Turn to Treasure

I was so happy! My work gave me a $5 coupon to use at Blick Art Supplies. I found Winsor & Newton Heavy Structure Gel on clearance. It was $7. I had my teacher's discount on top of that. It was pennies.

We had canvas laying around.

Isaak has a lot of of junk that he wanted to turn to treasure. 

Screens

Washers and Other Things

Rubber Bits and Rusted Metal

Rainbow Loom - Not Really Junk, but We Used Them
We Also Used String

A Spoon to Apply the Medium, a Pen or Something to Draw on the Junk to Cut Them Out, Scissors to Cut the Junk

You May Use a Paint Brush, or Foam Brush (Optional)

You May Use Paint or Sand (Optional)

Turning the Trash to Treasure

Figure out what you want to stand out, how things will look on the canvas, and if there's any add on things you'll use before you get started.

We kind of had it figured out here. We decided to make the white mesh the biggest thing on the page, also known as the focal point.

Using Heavy Structure Gel:

Once it was all laid out we started to use the gel. Important use something you can wipe off to apply it. We used a spoon. You can use a fork, a palette knife, or even a plastic comb if you wanted to. It holds it's shape really well, so a fork or comb might be interesting. You'll get lots of lines.

Apply it to build it up on things that have recessed areas. Everything else can just be stuck into it.

We lifted the screen up to re position it. The gel held the texture! It dries a lot faster than I thought. Not so fast that you can't re position things, but I was expecting hours of drying time because it's thick. Nope! More like 20 min. When it dries, things are down for good!

We could have stopped here:

The little circles are Rainbow Looms.

But decided it needed something that would make one thing travel to something else. I told Isaak, "It looks like a Thomas train set with all the buildings, but no track.

We added string:

We could have stopped here:

We Chose to Paint it!

Gold and Silver went on! Isaak sprinkled sand in the wet paint in areas.

Blobs of silver paint went inside the Rainbow Loom circles.

It's Finished!

I would have worked on it more to add reds and teals to enhance the metal look, but Isaak hit his limit. I think it looks cool. Seriously a monkey could have done it with us.

It can go vertical or horizontal. Which way would you put it?

Why Do People Read So Much Into Things?

I should learn to totally not state my opinion when it comes to people asking for an opinion on FB. 

The question that got me in trouble was...

One of our Moms needs your advice: "My toddler wants pink athletic shoes. He saw a - girls - pair at Target and keeps asking if he can get them. He does need new shoes but I'm worried he'll be teased for wearing 'girly' shoes. Any advice??"

Many people weighed in saying, "Get them." "Color doesn't matter." "Let him choose what he wants to wear." "Real men wear pink." and so on. 

I said,  "I wouldn't mind if my boys wore pink, but my husband would mind. I'd ask the dad what he thinks first. If it bothers him, then tell your son that you'd like to pick out shoes that goes with more things he has. Don't make it about the color. My son has a thing for gold, and glitter. I got him a bling tooth brush, tape dispenser, and stapler for Christmas. He loves them!"

The next thing I know I got these comments back...

"I don't ask my husband for permission to buy things for my son. Thank goodness my husband will let my son wear what he wants to wear regardless of color or style." and the worst was..."The dad has to give permission? What decade/country are we in???"

I'm pretty sure what I was saying was taken out of context. 

I said back..."The Dad in our house doesn't have to give "permission" to buy anything. I just ask if it's something I'm questioning. The mom is questioning if she should get pink shoes for her son. Trust me, I buy most the stuff in our house. Why can't the Dad be part of the shopping experience, since it is 2015?" 

My husband likes to do things like choose the color of paint on our walls, pick out furniture, and yes I do most of the boys clothes shopping by myself. I know that some styles my husband doesn't like, so most of the time I don't get them. He doesn't prefer Polo's, and my nephews wear them all the time. Mica has had a Polo shirt, and Dad said, "He looks like he's going golfing, or to a Catholic school." So...I don't get the boys Polo's. I did get the boys bow ties. My husband hates bow ties. My mom doesn't like them either. I got them anyhow because the boys love them.
 
The point is, is that everyone is entitled to an opinion. I'm not in a marriage where I make all the choices. If that were the case I might as well be single with kids.

My boys have never asked to wear pink. If they did, and I felt the need to ask for advice on FB, I'd first ask my husband before I would a bunch of strangers. 

My husband and I have had this conversation before about painting Isaak's nails. He doesn't like it. He just feel like he'll get picked on at school. He's ok with Isaak getting his nails painted for the weekend, so I've painted them during that time. 

I would never buy pink shoes for either of my sons. Not because of the color, but because both of my sons would have zero to wear with them. I'm a matchy, matchy kind of person. Mica has red shoes, blue shoes, brown boots, and dressy black shoes. His shoes match what he's wearing every day. 

If I did buy them pink shoes I'd expect comments from others. I obviously don't care that my boys have girly things. Think about what I bought Isaak for Christmas. 
  

Apparently on the thread I seemed like I was in the Stone Ages with my comment. 

Would you buy pink shoes for a little boy? Why? Why not? I'm certainly not here to judge your answer. I hate when people slap the judgement on me.  

WW: Locker {Linky}

We got another big project done!

For years we've had a locker storing paint. I got it when a gym nearby was getting rid of it. I knew one day I wanted it to be in Mica's room. I wanted to wait until he and Isaak were past the slamming door/being rough phase.

I knew it would go perfect with his locker bed.

 

We've never done a project like this. At first I read that you have to get a locker sand blasted to repaint it. I was unsure of the cost. It is heavy to! Then I read that you just have to sand it. 

I sanded and sanded it.

Then Daddy primed it.

I kept having to go get more primer, and some Dukes of Hazard Orange (Mica's request).

We cleaned his room off and on all weekend. Here's the final result:

He's happy with it. Not so happy having to clean, but happy with the locker.