magnets – MINDING MY P'S WITH Q

The lack of sunny weather for outdoor play is the perfect opportunity to break out Paperclay.

“Creative Paperclay is a non-toxic modeling material that can be sculpted, molded or shaped, and air dries (no baking!) to a hard finish that can be carved, or sanded – perfect for artists and crafters of all kinds!”

I found Paperclay at my local craft store. It is reasonably priced, and even better, I used a coupon for 40% off.

Instead of painting after the clay was molded, I decided it would be easier to tint it before shaping. Because my grandsons are very young, I completed this step before they began to create their designs. Working over the kitchen sink I created a cup shape with a piece of the Paperclay. I globbed a quarter sized amount of Crayola washable paint into the cup with a paintbrush and worked it through the clay. The clay quickly absorbed the color. I found I needed to add a bit more paint to increase the vibrancy of the hue. I turned it in on itself and kneaded it until the Paperclay returned to a drier state.

At this point I gave it to my grandsons to enjoy and fashion into their mushrooms, piglets and dolphins. They both worked on a piece of freezer paper, but waxed paper would work just as well. The dolphins were a challenge, the mushrooms and the piglets were very easy. In 24 hours they were completely dry. We enjoyed the texture of the finished product, very lightweight, and reminiscent of a dried out marshmallow.

I decided to glue the magnets on myself with Tacky Glue. Magnets such as these are very dangerous around small children. Swallowing them can be fatal. Be extra cautious when using magnets of any kind around children.

The magnets are not intended to be a toy. Use the finished product on the upper levels of your fridge door to hold all your children’s masterpieces in place. Happy crafting.

To learn more about paperclay check out their tips and techniques, along with many project ideas, at their website: Paperclay Tips

The inspiration for our project was found in our Sesame Street Craft Book.

Have I said yet that I love Pinterest? Or course I have. There are so many good ideas and projects to be found at the Pinterest boards. Click here to visit Pinterest. Recently I found a project to make for the grandchildren. The directions are so easy. I went to the local craft store and bought three sheets of magnetic paper.

The next stop was a local thrift store…six books for 1.00. I flipped through the books and chose several illustrations that I thought the grandsons would like.

I cut the illustrations out of the books leaving a bit of paper border around each. I brushed a little matte Mod-Podge onto the magnetic sheet and smoothed the illustrations onto the surface, then coated them with another thin and even coat of the Mod-Podge. They were dry in just a few hours. I then cut them out along the outer lines.