Showing posts with label crazy art teacher. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crazy art teacher. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

Art Teacherin' 101: Episode 18

Not even gonna lie to you: no matter how "prepared" I am, I spend most of my plan time running around like a crazy person prepping supplies, setting up the room, getting videos cued up or visuals displayed. I call it the Art Teacherin' Hustle. And most of the time, my hustle is spent SEARCHING for stuff. From my luke warm coffee to my half eaten Lara bar to the Sharpie markers or the funky monkey scissors, the hustle is strong with this one, y'all. But NOT for grade level examples and visuals. Nope. I always know where that stuff is, thanks to today's Art Teacherin' 101 tip:
How's that for easy? I'm a firm believer in Keep It Simple, Stupid cuz I'm pretty heavy on the stupid. But, you gotta admit, keeping up with all of this art biz is tough! I'm currently digging myself out of all things Dot Day and putting them up on the walls...(or, in the case of the very first photo, putting them around necks. My students also made Dot Day shrink plastic necklaces!)
 In case you missed these snaps over on my Instagram, here is just a sprinkling of all the projects (and project examples) that I attempt to keep up with using my lil system. By the way, you can find this lesson with video here
I've always wanted to do this extension project with printing plates. More on this process later this week. I love when a project lends it self to more fun lessons!
 By the way, my second graders framed out their texture relief pieces with some painted cardboard pizza rounds. I did notice that their texture pieces were looking a little lackluster. So I had them brush a thin coat of ModPodge over them and I'm super happy with how much they pop now.
And this third grade lesson can be found here

I swear one of these days I'm gonna get FUR REALZ organized...but until then, I'll keep offering y'all my super simple tips. Have a great week, kids!
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Monday, July 18, 2016

DIY: A Starry Night Dress (Yes, Another One)

Lemme share with y'all a lil story about a crazy person who THINKS she can sew but is totes winging it 99.2% of the time. Look, kids, I come by this know-it-all-but-don't-know-nuthin' attitude naturally. How about I paint a picture for ya: I've been living in the Nashville area for something close to 20 years now. Every single time my dear sweet crazy mama comes to visit, she gets lost. Like, WAY lost. Like, calling me after driving 40 miles past my house, lost. Mind you, I've not moved anywhere different in the last 7 years. The roads have not mysteriously changed. I don't live in the Bermuda Triangle. This woman, who owns both a GPS and has Siri on speed dial (I know that's not really a "thing" but whateves), REFUSES to use either of these modern-day handy dandy devices because she THINKS she knows where she's going. 
 Kinda like her daughter. Who THINKS she knows how to sew. 

Riddle me this: Would a fur realz stitcher create a Franken-Dress with a mashup of 6 patterns?! Me thinks not. 
In other news, some bird was DYING for some air time, y'all. Get that fine feathered friend on The Voice, stat!
In other-other news, there is not a single solitary photo of me standing still like a normal person. I blame that enormous circle skirt and yellow crinoline. You try wearing that combo and not spinning yourself silly!
So let's start with the dress pattern that likes to shatter dreams, ruin lives and drive folks to drink (it's a short drive, y'all. It don't take much): Butterick B5606. Like, whut the heck. It looks all easy peasy, right? Well, lemme tell you, it's a lie. I hit a road block on the SECOND STEP. I watched tutorials. I read blog posts. I laughed. I cried. I shook my hands at the heavens and wondered just how Butterick had managed to dupe me into another dress pattern again (it's been a while...but my distaste for Butterick goes WAY back). I'll tell you how: it was That Bow. 
 That's all I really wanted outta that dress, that bow. I was determined to make it happen even if I wasn't about to learn how to sew a gusset or whatever that nonsense Butterick Step 2 was taking about. 
So I did the unthinkable. Serious Sewists, plug your ears: I cut the pattern apart. That's right, I cut off the long tail in the pattern that makes the bow and I used it to cut out the yellow strips for the bow. I had no idea just how I was gonna make that yellow bow happen but I was determined. 
And that's when I busted out my trusty tried and true Simpliciy 8087. This one never lets me down. It's my go-to because I'm a fan of that waistband. I used the pattern for the waist and the back bodice from here. Then, again, I did something crazy: I cut the back of this pattern to match that of Butterick. Yep, I cut a big ole honkin' curve outta the back of the bodice pattern (I've since taped it back together, stop sweating) to accommodate the open bowed back. Then I did some magical trickery (read: I'm too lazy to type it all out) and shazam! I had a bowed back and a big ole waistband!
Now if you follow me on Instagram, then you know this dress had short sleeves instead of capped for a while. It just made the dress seem too heavy and matronly. So I used yet another pattern for the cap sleeves and pockets (YAZ, Y'ALL. This thing has pockets!) 
So I only used this pattern for a hot minute for the front bodice. I don't know what I did wrong but my neckline comes up way higher than hers. Just sayin'. 
Like, see?

The Anna Maria Full Circle Skirt is my go-to for a circle skirt pattern. I love it because, unlike my vintage circle skirt patterns, it's a modern length. I did add three inches to the bottom of the pattern to get this length. And I did have to bust out the Scout Tee just to make a wee bias tape to hide a mistake on the bodice. Because I was at the end of my seam-rippin' rope, kids. 
Yellow chucks and crinoline come courtesy of Amazon. That crinoline was delivered to my doorstep on Sunday!
So, here she is! ANOTHER Starry Night Dress (my other one here)! One made without the help of Siri or a GPS...just like my mama done taught me. Until next time, if you see a crazy lady about 40 mile south of Nashville, send her my way, would you please? 






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Saturday, May 28, 2016

What the Art Teacher Wore #163

 Field Day Monday: With only 2.25 days left of schoolin', we had a field day on Monday. What that meant for this art teacher was I spent the day in the shade transforming sweet innocent children's faces into tigers, pirates, Boba Fett, and the random requests of horses, unicorns and a rainbow cat. Yes, that happened. I didn't take face painting in college so there will be no photographic evidence of the damage that was done on that day. But me and my helpers buddies had fun! dress: made by me, here; shoes: Converse

Welp, the show is over, kids. The school year ended for me on Wednesday with another year of art teacherin' in the books. This time of year is exciting for me as I start to think about 1. All the Things that I've Done Wrong and 2. Dream Up Ways to Make 'Em Right. Plotting, planning and dreaming is in full swing. Along with resting, relaxing and vacationing, of course! We hit the ground running to sunny (albeit chilly) California on Thursday and it has been a wonderful way to kick off the break. I hope y'all are enjoying your extra long weekend as well.

In other news, my attempt at sharing with you my Me Mades for #memademay kinda flopped as I only did one other What the Art Teacher Wore blog post! My vision of MeMadeMay ended up being more MeIsCray. Pretty sure you understand. 

Until next time, have a super fab-o weekender and we'll chat soon!
 Last Full Day Tuesday: Between field trips and class parties, I only saw a couple of classes on this day. That by no means meant my day was chill. I still had to bag and tag over 100 clay projects and art show work to take down. Thankfully, the teaching assistants and some sweet fourth grade students came to my rescue! It never hurts to ask for help. I need to remember this and do it more often. sweater: thrifted; top, hair bow and skirt: made by me, here; shoes: Shoe Carnival
 Last Day, Hurray!: What better way to celebrate than a good ole fashion barbecue dress from the lady who never cooks out! It's funny, being from the Mid-West, what we think of as a barbecue is cooking on the grill and then slathering barbecue sauce on said grilled stuff. In the South, it's tooooootally different. To barbecue means to slow cook meat until it falls off the bone in shreds. Imagine my surprise when I first moved to Tennessee and ordered barbecue. I was all, "where are the grill marks and the red sauce?!" dress: made by me, here; shoes: made by me, here
Disneyland Thursday: On Thursday, we hit the road to Cali (okay, we flew because lawd knows I couldn't handle that kind of car ride). Disneyland and California Adventure are our faves. Right now, the parks are actually calm-ish (well, as calm as Disney can be. In fact, the hubs coined a new term: Bisney. When something is SUPER busy, it's as busy as Disney. Therefore, it's Bisney). We were actually able to try out a couple new attractions! dress: made by me, here; sandals: Chacos
 We got to ride Luigi's Rollickin' Roadsters which entails mini-Italian style cars that "dance" in a synchronized manner to Italian songs. It was so fun! My fave part was picking out the car. 
 I had to get one that matched my dress. Of course. By the way, it's surprisingly chilly in SoCal in the evenings! I was all sorts of bundled up. 
 This ride was a total trip. But the spinning at the end just about did me in. 
 As a teacher, I find the Disney parks so inspiring. I always come away with new ideas and inspiration from what I'll teach to why and how. For example, our Diner Themed Art Show? Guess what inspired that? Carsland is all based on Route 66 and heavily vintage in theming. It's one of my favorite areas in the park. 
Shopping Friday: My other favorite thing to do in California? Shop! I am a diehard Buffalo Exchange fan (word is that there is one coming to Nashville...what?!). My faves are in Costa Mesa and Fullerton. If you've never hit a Buffalo before, you are missing out! Oh, and get you some grub at Native Foods, our other Cali fave. dress: made by me, here; belt: old, Anthro
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Sunday, May 1, 2016

In the Art Room: An Art Teacherin' Challenge for the End of the Year!

Okay, y'all. Starting tomorrow, The Countdown to the Bitter End beings! Dunno what art teacherin' land looks like on your side of the universe, but if I were a Bettin' Betty, I'd say that it's just as chuck full o' craziness as mine: stacks of half-finished projects, piles of art show prep, a kiln waiting to be unloaded and reloaded, an over-turned coffee cup, paint spills, lost car keys, a missing cell phone...you get the picture. Well, I say that we need not suffer thru this insane time of year alone! Let's attack it together with humor (and adult grape-flavored drink) and more humor! To do that, might I suggest a wee Photo-a-Day Challenge that I've dubbed #WeCanMakeItMay.

One of my fave bloggers and instagramers Art Teachers Hate Glitter did an art teacherin' photo challenge back in March which I had so wanted to participate in. However, my fugly To Do List made that impossible. Here's to hoping I can stick with THIS challenge!

So here's how this works: each day o' May, snap a photo. Tomorrow, being May 1st and all, we'll start with numero uno. Take a picture of your art room (or wherever you work, I don't wanna exclude any of y'all!), pop it up on instagram, use the hashtag #WeCanMakeItMay and be sure to tag me (as well as all your friends, the more the merrier!). Let's share this journey to the end together and have fun while doing it!
I'll have you know that this is EXACTLY what my face looks like every morning I walk into my art room. That's me just looking at all the messes, stacks and piles. I don't plan on sugar coating it for y'all. If you follow me and ride along for this journey, you're sure to see some of the hawt-est, stankiest messes in town. Almost immediately after dropping my bag and chugging my coffee, I go into full blown hustle mode:
 If I only had an Ethel, I'd get so much more done! 

Now, I just did a look-see and, despite the recent occurrence of undesirable behaviors in my art room that leave me making this face:
there's not to be another full moon until the end of the month! I coulda swore we'd been experiencing a full moon of the last coupla weeks but turns out I was wrong. For once.

I have been writing down the random silliness that has been taking place from kindergarteners eating clay (WHHHHY) to another passing so much gas I coulda swore an elephant was in the room. Like, a BIG elephant. Who just ate five pails of beans. Anyway. Share those silly stories with your photos, y'all! We could all use the laughs. After all, it's just a matter of time before we do this...
And wake up at 10am every morning only to stay in our pj's everyday and do this...
Can't wait to make it to the end with some of my favorite people! And, dudes, don't worry if you miss a day, just pick up the following. I'd be willing to put money on it that I'll totes miss a day or five. Looking forward to seeing your snaps of the countdown cuz...#WeCanMakeItMay!

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Thursday, March 10, 2016

DIY: Needle Felted Masterpiece Hats

Hello, my most amazing artists! (this is how I greet my students every class to which I've taught them to reply "Hello, my most amazing art teacher!"...makes an art teacherin' type feel good. Y'all should try it, it's fab-u-lous!). I'm here today to share with y'all some masterpiece head-toppers I recently created. I've been plotting and planning my ensembles for ole NAEA 2016 and while I would just love to have the time to whip new 'fits, I'm just gonna have to go with some ole favorites. For that reason, I made hats to go with my wacky wardrobe! This one is for my Mondrian coat and dress.
Of course this bad boy with go along with my Warhol-inspired Campbell's soup can dress
And this one for my Lichtenstein pop art dress! I was inspired by my Target sweater for this one. In other news, I thought I was gonna POP a blood vessel while the 4th graders were painting their 3' long pencil and crayon sculptures today. I might have gotten impaled by a giant No. 2 pencil more than once...it wasn't pretty. 
Here's my lil mini-collection all complete. I've been dying to make more hats since making my donut hat last year. I know these lil guys aren't technically hats as they don't do much head-coverin'. They're more like headgear.
{shivers} Okay, not THAT kind of headgear, praise the Lord! That'd be what 12 year-old me wore whilst opening my birthday prezzies ('twas my birthday yesterday! I turned 41 which I was totes okay with until one of my students told me his grandma was the same age.) In other news, WHAT KIND OF PARENTS MAKE THEIR KID WEAR HEADGEAR ON THEIR BIRTHDAY?! AND get them an office chair?! Y'all better believe I was all about that office chair, I have one just like it in my art room. I mean, look at me all batting my baby bro Kris away from my seat. It's DELUXE, son! Back the funk off!
Oh how times haven't changed. I'm still wearing headgear. Thankfully this one doesn't make me look as sad and tweenie. Or maybe it do, I dunno!
So I created these hats with these hat-starter thingies I found on Amazon for like a buck each. They pretty much look like what I shoved inside my bra as a teen (okay, still do) with clips on the back. 
I busted out the Mondrian hat first. I began by using regular ole craft store felt cut to a larger size than my hat. 
 And commenced needle felting like crazy. 
Look, ma, I made an egg hat! Squares and rectangles were added in primary colors.
 And outlines in black. This hat came together super fast. 
From there, I hot glued the needle felted design to the hat/bra padding thingie. 
The can was done totes differently. I needle felted it as a flat label. Then I turned the needle felted label right sides together, stitched then flipped it right side out. I added a can lid to the top (as well as the peeled back lid) and stuffed it from the bottom before attaching it to the hat. 
Laziness prevented me from adding a plate under the can of soup. 
Here you can see how the top looks. I thought a flat can would be boring so I opted for the peeled back lid look.
 CAN you dig my SOUP-er hat? How 'bout my puns? 
 This one is my fave, can't wait to wear it out!
This hat is the biggest one and prolly my least fave because of it. I tried to make the letters smaller but they just didn't have the impact when I did. This hat really only looks good from the side tho I am thinking of trying a big ole beehive and putting it at the base. That should work, right?
Yarn really came in handy with this hat. I used it to outline the letters and the blue shape.
I've had so much fun making these (and spent so much less time than I do when I make clothing!) that I'm sure to make more. I've already got a sketchbook full of ideas...I just need me a spring break to bust 'em out. Till next time!
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