iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts:Funky Flower Tank Top

iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts

Funky Flower Tank Top

Margot Potter for Avalon Potter

“Mom crafted, teen approved.”

Av is in her final week of school and just got home from a trip to Washington, D.C.  So I stepped in to make this funky tank top.  This was my second painted shirt attempt from yesterday; the first one was so horrid it ended up becoming the paint rag.  By the end of the day, I was starting to think this was heading for the ‘craft fail’ bin too, but now I’m kinda liking it and Av really liked it.  Craftastrophe or crafty triumph...sometimes it’s a fine line, people.  If you really get into a pickle, you can always cut the fabric up and use it for another project or, as I did with shirt number one, turn it into a colorful rag! I used the Paint Canon paints to do a Jackson Pollack influenced splatter background and then the flower stamp added a little touch of girly whimsy.  Still...it needed something...so out came the dimensional paint and some faux gemstones.  What was cool was the fabric was so wet, the dimensional paint sort of faded into it in spots.  The key here is to really get it layered without letting it get muddy and to keep dabbing as you work.  Ideally you’d dry between layers, but I was in a crunch for time, so layers just kept going on and the shirt kept getting wetter.  A lot of my best ideas come from taking being willing to make glorious messes and ultimately, there are no craft fails, except for the failure to craft. 

Materials

Ribbed tank top in grey

Tulip Fashion Graffiti cannon fabric paints in black, pink and white

Tulip Soft Fabric paint in hot pink

Tulip Slick 3-D fashion paint in white

Aleene’s Fabric Fusion glue

Faux gemstones

Foam flower stamp

Tools

T-shirt or sponge to blot and soak up paint as you work

Tulip sponge pouncer to apply paint to stamp

Tulip fashion form

1.  Wash your shirt first.  Slide the form inside of your shirt.  Use the paint canon paints to drizzle and drip layers of paint straight from the bottles.  As you work, dab excess and keep layering and dabbing until you are happy with the results.  Allow to dry or leave wet while moving to next step for a more faded look.

2.  Apply pink paint to stamp with foam applicator.  Stamp flowers randomly on front of shirt.  Use a pouncer to add pink paint on spaces between flowers for another layer of color. Allow to dry or leave flowers wet for more faded dots.

3.  Use dimensional paints to add dots around flower petals.  This is not meant to be perfectly perfect, vary spacing and placement.  Add a white ring to center dot on each flower.  Carefully glue faux stones to center of each flower using Fabric Fusion.  Allow to dry before wearing. 

ILovetoCreate Teen Crafts: Mythical Leaf Creature

(Mom's Note: Avalon really blew us away with this project. She described it to us, drew a sketch and then she made this finished design. Seriously? On top of the fact that she's a straight A honor roll student and she's been chosen to attend Kiwanis leadership camp this summer, she's an amazing three dimensional thinker and artist. Yup, I'm a proud parent!)

Leaf Man Sculpture Copyright Avalon Potter for ILovetoCreate

ILovetoCreate Teen Crafts
Mythical Leaf Creature
An Avalon Potter Original Creation
“Teen crafted, mom approved.”

We were assigned the task of creating our own mythical creatures at school recently. I have always loved Greek mythology, so I was very excited about this project. While my friends were busy making flying evil dolphins and Medusa berries I thought I would go with something a little less sinister (yes, a dancing leaf). My magical leaf had to be 3-d for my school project so I went out in search of paper clay and a manikin. Once I had finished the leaf I still felt like it needed some thing more, so I thought what better way to give it life then to paint it with Tulip and Crafty Chica sparkles and paints! I had lots of fun making my leaf creature and I hope you do too.

Materials
Paper clay
4.5 inch human manikin
Paint brush
Aleene’s spray acrylic sealer
Tulip soft fabric paint (Light green)
Tulip white glitter paint
Little Chica Paint Packs (Green)

Tools
Paintbrush


Instructions

1. Take the mini manikin and position it as you desire.

2. Cover the manikin with a medium to thick layer of clay then cover the torso and head with clay hanging off of the sides to use to form your leaf. On the tips of the feet make a curve to form the elfin shoes.

3. Sculpt the clay on the sides into points in random spots to make it appear like a leaf. Then add a vein with a few smaller veins off the sides running through the middle of the body.

4. Cover the back of the head and the torso with more clay including the clay hanging of the armature. Fill in any cracks.

5. Let the clay dry for one to three days and fill in any cracks as they appear.

6. Get the light green paint and paint the limbs and the vein the light green.

7. Take the dark green paint and paint the torso and head (excluding the vein) dark green.

8. Paint the metal and platform white. Let the paint dry.

9. Take the clear sparkle paint and coat the entire leaf with it.

10. Once the entire armature is dry take the coating and spray lightly over the entire project two to three times. Let it dry and your adorable leaf friend is done.

ILoveToCreate Teen Crafts: Spring has Sprung Greeting Card

Here's a new project by my talented daughter Avalon for ILovetoCreate! She's a wizard with paper and this is such a fun idea!


Spring has Sprung Pop-up Card
Avalon Potter for ILovetoCreate Teen Crafts
“Teen crafted, Mom approved.

I have been noticing the subtle differences of spring appearing around me. The trees have started to regain their leaves and butterflies have started to flap their wings. My grandmother sent me a card with a spring flower and Easter treats, and my mom has been saying one of her catch phrases every day “spring has sprung!” I wanted to thank my grandmother for the wonderful card so I decided to use ILoveToCreate products to make her a three dimensional butterfly card. Before I send it to her I thought I would take a few pictures and write some instructions so you could make one too! I left one of the applique butterflies uncolored so she can iron it on something and have fun coloring it in herself!

Materials
Colored cardstock
3 Crafty Chica Iron-on Appliqués butterfly
Tulip Fabric Markers Bright
Tulip Soft Fabric Paint
3-D small square stickers

Tools
Paint brushes
Scissors

Instructions
1. Take two of the butterflies and color them in using the fabric paint or the fabric markers. (These butterflies will be used to decorate the front of the card.)

2. Cut your card stock so that both the butterflies can fit on the front.

3. Fold the longer length of card stock in half and score with bone folder. This is your card.

4. Cut a small strip from the same color paper as the card and fold in half. Use bone folder to score fold.

5. Find the center point of each length of paper from your center fold. Fold again using bone folder to score. When attached, this should form a square or rectangular shape to create your pop up feature.

6. Place two 3-D stickers on either side of the two small ends.

7. Use the 3-D stickers to attach the ends of the armature inside the center fold of the card. The two ends should meet in the center at the card fold. Place the armature directly in the middle of the card; make sure that the shape bends with the card as it closes. If it does not reposition it so that it will bend with the card. This is forming a square/rectangle that will fold with the card, when opened fully it should become a full square shape.

8. Use the 3-D stickers to attach the blank butterfly on the front of the armature. Test to make sure it still bends correctly.

9. Use the 3-D stickers again to attach the colored butterflies on the outside of the card.

10. Cut out a strip of a different color cardstock that will fit on the top of the inside of the card.

11. Use the 3-D stickers stencil and the big phat pink marker to write spring on this piece of cardstock.

12. Repeat step 10 using a different color cardstock and writing sprung instead.

13. Attach the spring cardstock to the middle of the top of the inside of the card. Use two 3-D stickers on top of each other instead of one on this.

14. Repeat step 12 with the sprung cardstock and attach to the bottom of the inside of the card. Add above sprung on the card itself not the sprung cardstock the word “has” using the yellow big phat marker and previous stencil.

15. To complete leave a note on the instructions on how to make the iron on butterflies so your friend or family member can color in and iron on the blank butterfly!