African masks
come in all types of different styles with different materials.
The many different tribes of Africa made all kinds of different masks with different materials. As a result there are a huge variety of African masks, giving you more room to be creative with your own design while still looking authentic. It's easy to make these masks with materials around the house.
Instructions
1. Cut out your cardboard into a mask shape. This might be a large triangle or oval shape, or any shape you like. Save any scrap pieces you cut off so you can stick them on later for decorations. Alternatively you can use a paper plate as the base for your mask, in which case you do not need to cut it. Also cut out small pieces of different type of paper to decorate your mask with.
2. Color in the different parts of your mask. Paint the mask one color such as brown or black so that the different colors of the decorations stand out. Color in smaller scraps of paper to put all over your mask. You can also color different types of pasta to decorate your mask with. Instead of coloring small pieces of paper for decoration, trying cutting out pieces of paper that are already colored, such as tissue paper or construction paper.
3. Cut out the features of your mask such as the eyes. Be careful when children cut out the eyes that they don't cut themselves. It might be easier to have an adult cut the eyes out with a sharp knife. You might also cut small holes for the nose or mouth so that it is easier to breath while wearing the mask. Around the top edge of the mask, make a line of small holes with a hole punch for later decorating.
4. Decorate the mask. Glue on all the scraps of paper you've been cutting and coloring. Glue on the pasta that you colored. You can also tie thread or string or even ribbon into the holes you punched along the top so that your mask has hair. If you add pasta to the thread then it can act as beads. Roll up newspaper to make 3D features such as the nose or eyebrows, but make sure you paint it a similar color to your mask so that it blends in.
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