Get cozy, creative, and cardboardconstructive from your casita with our architecturally trending DIY ~ ARTFUL A-FRAME WITH KIDS! Take a peek at our {hands on + mixed-media} process creating with crafty kids in Carbondale, Colorado in our downtown art studio at 449 Main Street and be sure to follow our artful adventure on Instagram!
An A-frame is an architectural house style known for its steep-angled roofline that generally begins at the foundation and meets at the top in the shape of the letter A. They became quite popular around the world in the mid-50s through the 1970s, but they’re totally trending today!
SUPPLIES FOR ~ ARTFUL A-FRAME FOR KIDS:
Paper and pencil
A-frame online inspiration, included below.
Utility knife (adult-use)
Straightedge and geometric shape stencils
Wooden sticks and a tool for cutting (optional)
Glue
Scissors
Paints, brush, water & container
Embellishments (optional)
PROCESS FOR ~ ARTFUL A-FRAME FOR KIDS:
ONE Collect cardboard upcycled from a large pizza box top.
TWO Take a peek at trending #aframe inspiration on Instagram. We’ve included a lovely list below!
THREE Start with a few simple triangles, pre-drawn onto sketch paper, for mini open-ended sketches. Young artists can work towards their vision, sketching within these triangles, to then create their favorite design to construct. Focus on sketching the main elements which might include doors, windows, sliders, decks, and more. A-frames are most often two-stories and symmetrical, but the sky is the limit! Just be sure to set your sights high and soar!
FOUR Use simple sketch ideas to begin construction. Here are some simple sample layouts for visual reference to artfully inspire.
FIVE Precut a large cardboard piece into a triangular base using a utility knife (adult-use) at a 45° angle. Then measure a 1 1/4″ border around all the three sides using a pencil. Midway, mark the second story with a horizontal line or keep it open for a single story with a vaulted interior. The inside of your A-frame is a completely open canvas to artfully design.
SIX Pick a favorite color. Using acrylic paint, cover all three sides with a solid coat. You can also use painter’s tape to get a crisp edge.
SEVEN Precut cardboard pieces into smaller, more manageable pieces for younger artists to explore. This makes cutting cardboard much easier for smaller hands. We usually have a bowl full of squares and rectangles in a variety of sizes. From these basic cardboard shapes, children can use a ruler or geometric stencils to create their own unique shapes for doors, windows, and additional parts.
EIGHT Select three main colors to complete your color pallet. On a separate work surface, paint individual elements, such as doors and windows using a medium-sized brush and acrylic paint. Dry all pieces separately. Keep interior pieces moveable so artists can rearrange and make changes to their layouts before finalizing piece placement by gluing down.
NINE Tiny cardboard pieces can be added to personalize. Take a peek at the divided lites in the windows in this A-frame. Many artists focused on symmetry for their A-frame but asymmetry is also a wonderful possibility. Young artists will love exploring this process and everything in between.
Love the circular and triangular windows on this blue A-frame with pom pom ribbon to compliment the archway entry!
TEN As a favorite “optional element” artists can add wooden pieces to make this project more real-world in construction. Kids LOVE working with wood! We collected cattails in the fall and most importantly pre-dried these sticks in the sun for several weeks so they wouldn’t shrink and pop off the cardboard when glued down. Cattails are an amazing and abundant resource in the great outdoors. They simply grow around wetlands and are easy to cut with heavier weight scissors. My daughter and I cut over 200 for this project. The best part about cattails you’re wondering? Cattails are smooth, straight, and simple to cut. Older children can cut cattails independently using small (6″) diagonal cutters or dikes, of course with adult supervision, to specific lengths. Younger artists can mark the length with a pencil and have an adult assist with the cutting. In the springtime, cattails have been drying out all winter so they’re ready to go without dry time. Collect, remove the top fluff, peel the outer layers to get to the center stick, and simply cut to any length! This element in nature is brilliant!
Additional wood pieces to artfully add might include, craft sticks, popsicle sticks, skinny sticks, mini craft sticks, natural mini wooden craft sticks, jumbo craft sticks (great for decks and porches), tiny dowels, wooden skewers, toothpicks, flat rounds, and more!
Most wooden pieces can be glued down with a generous application of white glue and dried overnight. A popout deck or balcony might need a little hot glue reinforcement. Doesn’t this A-frame have a wondrous in the woods or lovely log cabin feel?
Artists LOVED working with real wood as a “real world” architectural element for diversifying their siding in directions including vertical, horizontal, and artfully angled. The natural cardboard also remained as a natural compliment to spaces not covered in wood. Artists got clever and crafty adding window boxes, circular windows, stairways, railings around balconies and decks, entry archways, tv antennas, and more! Kids are just oh so clever and always so very crafty!
Tag us on Instagram with your creations. We’d absolutely LOVE to see what you’re making and creating! As always, thank you for following our artful adventure on Main Street in the heART of the Carbondale Creative District! Send us a noteanytime! We’d love to hear what you’re thinking, dreaming, envisioning, and of course, our favorite ~ CREATING!
Much love and happiness creating in this creative + colorful world filled with collaboration + connection + community + arts & crafting! Happy Springtime from our studio to your cozy, crafty, and creative cozy casita!
Happy December + Happy Holidays! Save yourself long hours in the kitchen spent mixing, rolling, cutting and baking gingerbread dough – use cardboard instead for a ~ DIY CARDBOARD “CANDY” COTTAGE!
This fantastic upcycled material is abundant and easy to use. Plus, you can avoid a sugar melt-down by skipping the temptation (and expense) of supplying bags of candy, sprinkles and royal icing – and sculpt your own candy cane columns and gumdrop windows using modeling dough.
This open-ended, creative process is fun for ages 5-12 (or, say, age 35+, if Mama is so inclined). These cottages can be used as holiday ornaments, wall hangings, or added as a 3D element to a canvas painting, as shown here. You can even make a village; a timeless, long-lasting heirloom, completely made by – hand from the heART!
Traditionalists who want a classic edible gingerbread house (complete with candies galore) can skip the inevitable sticky cleanup at home, and instead, deliver their children to December’s FIRST FRIDAY ~ CANDY COTTAGE WORKSHOPat HANDMAKERY, where crumble-proof walls and every sweet adornment will be provided.
See the full CARDBOARD “CANDY” COTTAGE article in Winter Edition | Issue 10 of the MOUNTAIN PARENT magazine offered FREE throughout the Roaring Fork Valley in print (oh SO beautiful) and/or online throughout the world!
Embellishments- white pom-poms, red & white paper straws, striped cupcake papers, wire stars, & white string.
PROCESS FOR CARDBOARD “CANDY” COTTAGE:
ONE Download a FREE printable template on handmakery.com/blog. Prepare a cardboard cottage cut-out ahead of time by cutting out two shapes: one will be the cottage, the other will be the roof. Using white glue, attach the cardboard cottage to the cardboard roof by overlapping just a bit and gluing in place. Dry.
TWO Have a mixture of smaller pieces of cardboard scraps available that can be cut and used for pop out details. Lighter weight cardboard is ideal as it’s easier to cut. Corrugated cardboard adds a wonderful texture and is also easy to cut. Architectural pieces can be drawn and cut to create doors, windows, porches, fences, shed roofs, steps, a chimney, and more. Draw, cut, arrange, and glue down detail pieces using white glue. Dry. Cottages will become one-of-a-kind mini-relief sculptures!
THREE Cover completed cardboard cottage with clear wrap and use masking tape on the back of the cottage to temporarily secure. This protected surface will allow modeling dough pieces to be placed on the house to dry without attaching to the cardboard cottage and will keep the cardboard protected from paint.
FOUR Keep cottage covered with clear wrap. Move into making accents using Crayola Model Magic which is a fantastic product for use, flexibility, and simple drying. Start by rolling coils to imply snow and icicles. These pieces will take on the look of white icing. These snowy details can run along the edges of the roof, cottage, above the door + windows, and atop the chimney. Use modeling dough to also make candies such as gumdrops, mints, candy canes, and other savory + sugary treats. Wreaths, snowballs, and snow piles can also be fun additions. Allow pieces to air dry in place, on top of the clear wrapped house.
FIVE Paint dry modeling dough candies using paint and a small brush. Allow painted pieces to dry on top of the clear wrapped cottage. Pieces that are to remain white are beautifully painted with white glue and sprinkled with fine white glitter for added sparkle. Dry.
SIX Carefully set all modeling dough piece aside and remove the clear wrap. Arrange pieces in place for gluing down onto cardboard. Most dough pieces can be glued with white glue. It can be helpful for an adult to hot glue fragile icing pieces for strength and a quicker dry time. Use chalk marker to add small details of color on the cardboard cottage. White chalk marker can imply small areas of icing and colored chalk marker can add vivid details to the cardboard pieces. Now, you can add your embellishments including, white pom-poms, red & white paper straws and striped cupcake papers, wire stars, and white string for lights. Most embellishments can simply be glued in place onto the cardboard.
Be sure to tag@handmakery on Instagram with your Cardboard “Candy” Cottage creations as we’ll be featuring your work on our feed! #candycottage
A peek inside the studio at a mini-exhibit + recognition ceremony for our Winter-IE Wonderland Workshop as family and friends gathered to celebrate Cardboard “Candy” Cottages atop a wintery landscape!
JOIN US IN THE STUDIO ~ FIRST FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7TH:
Happy Holidays! Tag us @handmakery with your creations on Instagram! Follow our blog for more inspiring process-based art projects! As always, thank you for following along on this artful adventure! Send us a note anytime! We’d love to hear what you’re thinking and dreaming! Much love and happiness creating in this creative + colorful world full of collaboration + connection + community!
Thrilled to introduce you to Gina Vide ofWillowday! Gina is an amazing (…and oh SO talented) artist living in Sweden, between the sea and the city! She’s flower-inspired, a maker of miracles + magic + moments, with an ornate eye for “delightful detail in the delicate” captured through design and illustration! Her style is whimsical + wondrous, and completely full of woo + wow + wonder! She loves creating + crafting with children and exploring a creative + colorful childhood. So honored to have Gina’s ABC Flower Safari and Fir Fox + 24 Flower Friends travel to our studio for a little collaboration! Literally, they came by airplane into Aspen, for First Friday ~ September, to celebrate our One Year Anniversary, in our NEW location on Main Street! TODAY, Gina launches her ABC Flower Safari Art Prints! Next month she’ll launch her NEW book ~ ABC Flower Safari! The timing is just perfect to celebrate a sneak peek of her creations through a hands-on artmaking experience inspired by the artist herself! Enjoy peeking into Gina’s amusing animal alphabet as a little tasty treat this Thursday! Enjoy the joyous journey!
Our First Friday artmaking event ran from 6 – 8 PM. Early birds anxiously waited outside the studio, with faces and hands pressed to the glass! Happy faces were peeking in and excited to get creating with Gina’s ABC Flower Safari! Yes, a true artful adventure for all ages!
Gina Vide creates magic with her whimsical creatures made from paper, paint, cardboard, and flowers. Here you can see “Fir Fox” and a few of his furry friends as they take off by airplane from Sweden to visit the Rocky Mountains, landing in Aspen | CO, just before we picked them up for the ABC Flower Safari Exhibit!
Every letter of ABC Flower Safari is inspired by an animal and a coordinating flower. Meet “Fir Fox” pictured above. Can you even believe Gina created a full alphabet connecting an animal to a flower? We have her ABC Flower Safari Art Print in the studio and we’re happy to announce these original prints are now available in her Art Print Shop! You can also read more about our collaboration on Willowday!
A favorite photo of a little artist completely inspired by Gina’s “Fir Fox”! Children used cardboard, paper, paint, and flowers to create their very own Willowday inspiredmasterpiece on First Friday! Gina’s imagination runs wild, can’t even think about how whimsical her NEW book ~ ABC Flower Safari will be! Love this must-see, “Fir Fox” Adventures | No 4 | ~ “Once upon a Friday, Fox read a fairytale in the fern fort.” #willowdayfoxtales
Gina’s “F is a Fir Fox” is part of a series she developed to spark imagination in kids and the world around them, using flowers, paper, cardboard, and animals. You can use #willowdayproject to share some of your very own creations part of #willowdayflowersafari on Instagram!
Gina started this series with kids in mind. It grew from her long interest in children, teaching, nature, play, and parenting with a fun crossover to illustration. She loves the simplicity of elements and imagination found in nature walks with children that evoke a story.
We met several years ago on Instagram (@willowdaygram + @handmakery) and became part of the Rockin’ Art Moms. Over the years we’ve kept in touch and have formed a friendship afar…someday we’ll meet! Gina started a summer series, Friday Flowers for Kids, on Instagram. She was able to complete her delicate + detailed series by September as the perfect highlight to welcome fall and First Friday! It all came together and the gallery wall went up with ~ ABC Flower Safari handcrafted by Gina Vide!
A favorite letter is Gina’s “Lilac Llama”! We weren’t able to get ahold of lilacs this late in the season but how this artist so lovely improvised! Discover Gina’s 3D Lilac Llama with template to make your very own.
The studio was alive and in full bloom as children of all ages shuffled through the studio (sneak peek) with their families. Picking flowers, painting cardboard, cutting and gluing paper, assembling parts and arranging pieces.
Look at this delightful dog inspired by Gina’s letter D “Daisy Dog” created by a nine-year-old, aka my daughter!
A most mastered “Hydrangea Hedgehog” inspired by Gina Vide’s letter H!
Love how this family formed a team of makers.
This sweet-sisterly duo spent the evening inspired, emulating Gina’s letter P “Peony Pig” for a priceless + pink + pair of pigs on parade!
This family “art affair” definitely brought community, closeness, collaboration, creativity, color, and craft to a complete circle!
A couple of happy zookeepers in the studio of safari!
Another F is for “Fir Fox” mastered by this maker!
Meet E is for “Eucalyptus Elephant” definitely a most favorite in the ABC Flower Safari collection!
This artist must have known she’d need to wear red to compliment, and really make her gorgeous green elephant pop in this priceless photo with a little P-O-W-!!! and polka dots!
Many artists were intrigued and inspired to create their own creations and unique combinations! Love this delightful D for dolphin!
With our logo being the owl, couldn’t conclude without adding Gina’s letter O is an “Oxypetalum Owl” handpainted in one of our most favorite tints of turquoise!
Love how this mini maker matches her eyes to her owl’s eyes in a wide-eyed expression! Hooo!
Next month Gina Vide will be launching her NEW book ~ ABC Flower Safari! We look forward to celebrating with her! Be sure you’re on Gina’s Willowday Mailing List! Excited to announce HANDMAKERY will be highlighting a very special “fox celebration” inspired by Gina’s “Fir Fox” which is perfect as we welcome fall, the changing seasons, and Gina’s NEW book!
In the studio, Gina also creates the most beautiful pieces using petals, leaves, and other items collected from nature during her walks in nature! Definitely pop into her Art Print Shop and say hello! Thank you Gina Vide for bringing your inspiration all the way from Sweden! So LOVE all you do!
Tag us @handmakery with your creations on Instagram! Follow our BLOG for more inspiring process-based art projects! As always, thank you for following along on this artful adventure in beautiful Carbondale | CO at 449 Main Street! Send us a note anytime! We’d love to hear what you’re thinking! Much love and happiness creating in this creative + colorful world full of collaboration + community!
The art studio was filled with mini maker exhibits and recognition ceremonies as ALL six-week workshops wrapped up last week! We celebrated our fifth exhibit, an end of the week highlight, hosting a FIRST FRIDAY “kid at heART exhibit” showcasing my 88-year-old grandfather, Bob Fadely aka Papa Bob, and his very first art exhibit ~ COLORING IN COLORFUL COLORADO! Megan Tackett, an incredibly talented and enthusiastic writer, captured my grandfather in both a delightful article in The Sopris Sun and live interview on KDNK! After it was all said and done, my most genuine Grandfather shared with me, “Last week was one of the BEST weeks of my life!” “Art (without a doubt) washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” – Pablo Picasso
As springtime unfolds the outdoors become artfully alive! Dragonflies always mesmerize with their stealthy speed, shimmery color, intricate detail, and pattern on point. They lead us to our favorite outdoor places and spaces, including rivers, ponds, and lakes. Spring into a simple process upcycling household goods to create a bountiful + beautiful ~ DIY Delightful Dragonfly dreamed up in the HANDMAKERY art studio! Simply take a peek!
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