What the Art Teacher Wore #171

Happy Holi-daze! These photos are completely random and outta order which is fitting for this week, don't you think? disco top: UAL; Christmas tree skirt to lady skirt: found at Big Lots, made by me last year with my tacky teacher buds; tights: Amazon; silver chucks: Journeys; big red bow turn hat: Hobby Lobby

Hello, Craziest Time of the Year! I know I'm not alone when I say WOW. Could things be any more bananas right now? And yet, would we really have it any other way? I think not. 

Adding to the craziness, I also decided to start sharing short videos on Instagram with y'all this week. Stay tuned for more of those. And if you've missed any, I'll be archiving them here. 

I also hosted my first Facebook Live chat this week! It is still up in case you missed. I'll be back this Wednesday at 8pm CST to chat about classroom management...something I know I'll be cracking down on after the holidays. Hope you'll join me! 

I'm still in school until Wednesday...here's to makin' it, y'all! 

Last year, my kindergarten teacher friend Heather (left) and my second grade teacher buddy Bethany made these skirts from tree skirts found at Big Lots. We wear them every year for our annual Tacky Holiday Sweater day! Aren't they the cutest? We're so famous for our tacky, we were even featured on BuzzFeed! 

Fourth grade is rockin' and wrapping up their Faux Stained Glass project. I am so in love with their work!

Light Up Dress Ain't Got Nuthin on No Elf: Seriously, after showing the kids the Elf Cam 2016, they were so not interested in my light up dress. They're all, "nice but WHERE IS ESMERELDA?!" sweater: vintage, thrifted; light up dress: made by me, details here; shoes: Aldo

Second grade is weaving right now and it's just the most perfect project for this time of year. I see my second graders at the very end of the day when we are both tired. For the last week, we've been siting on the floor in a "Weaving Circle" while chatting, reading books and helping others learn to tie knots. It's just been the best way to end our day!

Polka Dotted Holidays! I so love this noisy dotted dress. It was a lucky estate sale score and it's one of my faves. sweater: Target; dress and brooch: vintage; boots: Frye...paint splatters by me

This week, I went LIVE on Facebook! If you weren't able to join the fun, it is currently archived here. I'll be back this Wednesday at 8pm CST to chat about Classroom Management. I think that is on everyone's mind at this time in the school year. I hope you'll join the fun!

I forgot to snap a photo on this day...but I did make a run to the grocery store. I was stopped by one woman who said, "My nana had a tree skirt in that same print!". I didn't have the hear to tell her that I probably was wearing her nana's tree skirt. Then a dude stopped me and said, "OMG, I was so going to wear that exact same outfit!" I told him it was a good thing he didn't seeing as how I looked so cute. Nobody wants to be the loser in a Who Wore It Best, right? 

First grade had a blast painting their Bebo-inspired birds. I heard comments like, "I'm a serious artist!" and "I love painting" the entire time we were working. It was so sweet. 

Friday Funday: I think everyone's schedule is cray right now what with programs, plays, etc. I've decided just to let it go and ride the crazy rollercoaster. Having a wacky outfit certainly helps. dress: made by me, here; tights: Amazon; candy cane chucks: Marshall's years ago

One of my favorite things ever is to host a craft night. I try to do one every coupla months but life just got so crazy this summer and fall, I just couldn't squeeze it into my schedule. I was determined to make a Christmas Craft Night a thing this year. So I through out an impromptu invite and we had a house full of food, booze, crafts and laughs. We missed y'all who couldn't make it and so sorry we didn't get a photo with everyone! Our Christmas Crafts of Holidays Past here and here. 

 The next morning, I went to my first ornament exchange at my friend Camilla's home. I had the best time opening ornaments from these sweet ladies. What a wonderful way to share our talents! You can see my ornaments here. 

I hope y'all have a fabulous week! May it be full of friends and fun. 

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DIY: El Dia de los Muertos Calaveras

Hey, cats and kittens! I hope this Tuesday night finds you somewhere snuggled under a cozy blanket. It's been rainy and chilly for the last coupla days here and I'm just about over it. At school, the combo of Halloween week, full moon and rain-induced recess-less days has been a trifecta of cray. Did I mention that I've been giving the kids candy to draw as their sketchbook prompt? Yeah, crazy breeds crazy 'round here. 

At school, my kids are neck deep in self-portrait town. However, I did wanna introduce them to el Dia de los Muertos this week so I have been showing this super sweet and short clip to my younger students. 

And if you aren't into cartoon-land, this short clip is also a great intro to Day of the Dead. A couple of weeks ago, I had a buncha artsy buddies over to mi casa to create some Day of the Dead inspired pieces.

Doncha just love 'em? Did I mention that most o' my artsy friends are also art teacherin' types? Yeah, they got mad skillz.

To set the mood, I found some great party decor at Target and in my personal stash. Did I mention that I love hosting craft nights because decorating is so stinkin fun? It also means that I clean the house which is a highly rare occurrence. Just ask the hubs. 

For this craft, we used aluminum foil and Sculpey. In my Sculpey stash, I have tons of white. It's always the last color I use when I purchase the Sculpey packs so this worked out perfectly for our craft night! 

The inspo for this craft came from my new friend Janet. We met at The Frist when I taught my needle felting class. She was wearing this fab necklace and, when I asked, she told me her hubs had created it. Just last week, I received one from her in the mail. Thank you, Janet and Wayne! I love my necklace. 

The necklace is surprisingly lightweight and Janet told me that the reason is that the armature is made of foil! So on craft night, we all sculpted one from a gently wadded piece of foil. 

Using glass jars, we flattened the Sculpey. In my art room, in a pinch, I simply used one of our supply cups. 

Then wrap that bad boy around your foil and, viola! You've got the start of your calavera!

I used my thumbs to create eye sockets and then the rest is up to you! 

My art teacherin' buddy Sara showed us how to roll a coil of clay, flatten it and then roll that into a spiral to create a rose. Those worked out beautifully in our designs. 

 With our clay scraps, we created these marbled dishes with the golden edges. This is a craft from my fave blog that I'd been meaning to try for a while. They turned out beautifully! 

The possibilities of what could be down with these are endless: add a magnet to the back, a pin, use it as a necklace or, my fave idea, frame it in a miniature picture frame and put on display!

No matter what, happy creating! 

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