Apr. 19, 2008

Nature Craft ~ Nature Prints in Clay

Posted in Nature Crafts

This is definitely our most favorite nature craft we've done yet!  The clay nature prints turned out beautifully!  This project took us a couple of days to fully complete, but it was WELL worth it.  My original inspiration for this craft came from The Artful Parent.

 

 

We started by setting out on a nature hunt to collect items that we thought would make good prints.  The items we collected were:  piece of a wild fern, a few miscellaneous leaves we thought were pretty (such as a wild violet leaf and a couple dried leaves from the fall), a half a walnut shell, an acorn top, a dandelion, and wild garlic.  We also chose out a couple of pretty seashells from our family's shell collection.

 

 

Next, we took blocks of Sculpey Clay, and cut them in 1/2" pieces.

 

We rolled them into nice even and smooth balls.  We chose to start with our wild violet leaf and placed it flat on the table (it was very important to have it very smooth and flat).  We centered the clay ball on top.  Next, we pushed down very evenly on top of the ball using the palm of our hand, until we new that the leaf was covered sufficiently.

 

After turning the clay back over, we took tweezers and removed the leaf from the clay.  We were so thrilled with how beautiful these were!!

 

We continued one by one doing this same procedure to all of our nature collection items, placing them on a large cookie sheet as we completed them.  We used a straw to poke a hole in the tops of them because we had plans for hanging them.  This is optional depending upon what you would like to use them for.

 

 

 

Now it was time for baking.  We baked ours for approximately 45 minutes at 275 degrees.  You can read the Sculpey Clay packaging for directions.  They baked up nice and solid.

 

 

Now here's where you can make a decision of whether to proceed.  These are truly beautiful just as they are without the straw holes, OR you can be like us and decide to experiment a little!

 

We thought I wonder what these would look like to give them a light watercolor wash (mixture of tube watercolor paint and water).  So Hannah got out her paints and brushes and we gave it a go!  We choose the dandelion print and thought it would be neat to make it yellow of course!

 

 

From the first brushstroke, we knew they would be gorgeous!!

 

Absolutely stunning!  I loved the way the watercolor settled into the indentions and made the prints stand out.

 

So we went crazy mixing colors and watercolor washing all of our prints.

 

 

This was one of my favorites, the wild fern.  Isn't that beautiful?!

 

Now again, I think if the straw hole weren't in these you could leave them just like this and they would be so neat to just have them sitting about upon your nature table, on a  window sill, hmmm you could even attach a heavy duty magnet to the back and have a very pretty refrig. magnet!  That's what I liked best about this craft I think there's many different ideas that could be done with these.

 

But, here's what we decided to do...we took some twine (found in the Target dollar spot just this weekend), and tied long pieces (sorry I forgot to measure) to the prints.

 

 

We continued working on these until they were all tied to twine. They are NOT tied together at the top, that's just how we were holding them.

 

 

Next, we took a piece of branch, we had also found on our nature walk, and began to tie the prints to it.

 

 

I did NOT worry about them being even, that would have took forever.  Besides the variety made it look more organic.  Here is the final product:

 

 

I also attached a piece of twine to the top of the branch in case I want to hang it from something.  I haven't decided yet if I'd like to hang it from a plant hook from the ceiling in our schoolroom, OR just hang it like a picture on the wall.  What do you think?  Oh, also, we talked about eventually taking a very fine tip sharpie marker (probably brown) and printing on the backs of them what the prints are of.

 

 

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Comments

Apr. 19, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by jiffy11
Oh, I absolutely love this!!! I think this is going to be in our plans soon as well. Thanks so much for sharing this in detail as you did. As far as how/where to hang it...my person vote is on the wall so all the impressions can be viewed easily. Hmmm...wonder where I'm going to hang mine...He-he.
Jennifer
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Apr. 20, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by westward
LOVE it! I have on my plans to do the prints from the Artful Parent, too, but I just love how nicely yours turned out with the paint. And adding holes in them give wonderful possibilities.

Did you do the melted crayon on hot rocks yet? It's a very cool craft for those rock finds on a nature hike. I'll post about ours soon. The kids even entered them in our co-op's craft competition and won 1st place!

Love ya!
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Apr. 20, 2008 - Thanks for sharing...

Posted by Melissa at Our Side
your beautiful nature art project. I love step-by-step photos. I'll have to keep this idea in mind and maybe try making magnets like you suggest.

http://oursidehomeschool.blogspot.com/
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Apr. 21, 2008 - Wow! I love it!

Posted by OldSchoolMarm
Thanks for posting such a neat craft and showing the step by step process in pictures ( I'm a visual learner). We will definetly do this and I think we may put them on a small christmas tree to enter in our fall county fair (we have a christmas tree decorating catagory at our fair) with natural colored rafia strung through the hole to hang them with. BTW thank you for your kind words regarding our vacation. We're back and we did have a very nice time. Blessings and keep up the good work! Julie
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Apr. 21, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by happycamper
Wonderful job! You are certainly crafty!
Jenn
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Apr. 22, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by stillearning
Wow, what a neat craft idea! I would have never thought of doing that. They look beautiful and fun!
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Apr. 22, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by naturalpaths
Love this, love this, love this! I am getting such great inspiration from all your wonderful projects.
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Apr. 22, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by kimalita
How lovely!!! Thats fantastic!! Wow, way to go...I love this one.
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Apr. 24, 2008 - beautiful!

Posted by flysister
ok. We are sooo doing this! My kiddos will love it. That watercolors are a perfect touch. My vote is hang it on the wall; anyway, that's what I'll be doing with ours when they're done. Thanks for sharing your wonderful blog!
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Apr. 24, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by mamaof3
You make schooling sooo much FUN! - If I show my kids all these wonderful things you do - FOR SURE - they will want to "enroll" in your homeschool! - Great job! - Keep up the CREATIVE ideas! - Charity
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Apr. 26, 2008 - FANTASTIC!

Posted by Sonja
I am SO borrowing this idea from you! Thank you for posting about it. Yours turned out SO beautifully. I LOVE the 'organic' look. I have to tell you how much I admire your school. I'm so glad you are blogging about it. :)

Sonja
ouryearsofwonder.blogspot.com
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Apr. 28, 2008 - Untitled Comment

Posted by Dana @ School For Us
That is one of the neatest nature projects I've seen. Wow! They look great. Sounds like something we'll have to work on. :-)
Dana, www.alexml.blogspot.com
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About Me

Welcome to our blog home! My name is Melissa and I am a homeschool mom of three beautiful blessings ages 11, 9, and 2; and blessed wife to my husband for 15 years. Our homeschooling style is eclectic, but we love Charlotte Mason's educational philosophies and learning the natural, everyday hands-on life way! We especially see daily opportunities to learn and grow closer to God through His amazing creation in nature!

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"Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young - a place near your altar, O Lord Almighty, my King and my God." ~Psalm 84:3-4


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Nature Notes

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  • 7/22/08
    More huge storms last night! Woke half our household up at 1:00am. Very scary! But I think the calm is here now, and yet another new wildflower has emerged - Hairy Hawkweed. It has a beautiful delicate yellow flower that looks a lot like Chicory.

  • Today, I observed a Hummingbird Moth busying about a bunch of Red Clover! I don't remember ever seeing one of those before. At first glance it looked like a bumblebee, but then I realized that it was hovering about like a hummingbird does and was slender shaped. Very cool looking!


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    "The earth has music for those who will listen."
    ~ William Shakespeare


    "I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in."
    ~ George Washington Carver


    "Reading about nature is fine, but if a person walks in the woods and listens carefully, he can learn more than what is in books, for they speak with the voice of God."
    ~ George Washington Carver


  • Scripture Notes


    For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. ~ Romans 1:20

    But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? ~ Job 12:7-9

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    Nature Projects We've Done

    • Homemade Hummingbird Nectar
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    Nature Walk: 3-D Nature Scenes
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    Nature Art ~ Blueberry Painting

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