Make Africa Crafts

Friday, May 10, 2013

Make Africa Crafts

Create African crafts

Leopold Senghor, a former statesman from Senegal, characterized African art as functional, saying that art does not exist for the sake of art. Creating African art with a purpose, making pieces like wall hangings, clothing, pottery and jewelry, reflects Senghor's sentiments. Make African art with a sense of purpose for every room of your house or create one African room.

Instructions

Batik Material

1. Create patterns with African designs on your Batik project.

Create your own design on material with batik. Place a block of wax in a double boiler to melt. Place a thick layer of newspapers on the table and spread the white cotton fabric over it. Mentally divide the material into 3-by-3 squares. Use the paintbrush to paint African symbols in each imagined square on the material. Saturate each design with the wax.

2. Prepare the dye, following the directions on the box. Put the material in the dye and soak up the color. Rinse the extra dye from the material and hang the fabric on a clothes line to dry.

3. Place the material on more newspaper. Cover the wax areas with paper towels and iron it until all the wax is removed. Add more wax on the fabric if you wish to add more colors, covering those parts you want to remain the first color. Iron out the wax after each dyeing. Rinse the fabric in vinegar to set the dye. Use the material to make a wall hanging or an article of clothing.

African Flower Pot

4. Enhance terracotta planters with African art.

Transform a terracotta flower pot into your own African craft. Mold a lump of red clay to form a circle with a 2-inch diameter and 1/2-inch thick; and glue the circle to one side of the clay pot near the middle. Press a 1 1/2-inch glue-covered faux gemstone into the center of the clay; let the glue and the clay dry thoroughly.

5. Place Tuscan rock-colored concrete stain on a piece of paper towel and rub it around the upper lip of the terracotta planter. Allow it to dry.

6. Stain the bottom of the planter with slate-colored concrete stain. Cover the attached circle. Immediately wipe the stain off the gemstone. Your new planter resembles that of a terracotta planter from Ghana.

African Jewelry

7. Add African designs to polymer beads.

Cut polymer clay into 1-inch squares. Work the clay with your hands to make it more pliable. Roll it into a ball. Brush a long needle with talcum powder and poke it all the way through the center of the ball.

8. Brush talcum powder with a paintbrush on two identical stamps of elephants or giraffes. Lay the clay ball on one stamp, centering it over the animal. Line up the second stamp's animal design over the top of the ball and gently press the two stamps together. Remove the top stamp and turn the plain side of clay ball, lay it on the stamp and repeat the action. Push on the stamp until the clay bead is the size you desire. Turn the needle gently and remove it from the clay. Repeat the procedure until you have enough beads to make a necklace and a bracelet.

9. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a square tile. Lay the beads on the paper and cover them with a second sheet of parchment paper. Place the tile in a toaster oven and bake the clay beads according to the directions on the clay's box. Set them aside and let them cool.

10. Paint the beads bold colors. String the dried beads on to a piece of elastic string. The length depends on how long you want the necklace or bracelet and the size of the individual who will wear it. Tie the two ends together with a knot.

19th century paint colors

Friday, May 10, 2013