Teaching a mask making class is tricky, very tricky! I feel like whenever I research mask projects online, all that comes up are paper mache projects and felt animal masks.
I've been trying really hard to use fun and unique projects that the kids haven't encountered before. I already tried this with the sugar skull masks, then these past lessons we did Venetian Carnivale masks with Puffy Paint and some Mardi Gras Masks!
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| These first two are ones that I made for examples to show the kiddos... |
I based the Venetian Masks off of this project from Sprinkles in Spring, but I had to tweak it a bit since I was making them with seventeen 3rd graders! I made a plain template beforehand for the kids to sketch their mask design and then draw over in sharpie. The sharpie gave them a better idea of what kind of designs would actually work with the thick lines of the puffy paint.
Then came the tricky part....In the tutorial I used, you tape down the entire thing to the table. But since my lesson isn't at the end of the school day, I couldn't leave 17 wet puffy paint creations taped onto their desks...so that took a bit of time to figure out a solution. I ended up taping the layers to pieces of chip board, that way we could move their masks away from their desks and allow them to dry! It was a pain to tape them all but it worked really well!
They're layered like this: the base is a 8.5 x 11 piece of chip board (cardboard would work too), then a layer of plastic wrap over that, then the tulle on top. I taped in only on three sides so we could slide the kid's sketch under the plastic wrap/tulle. Then they just traced over the designs with the puffy paint! For the win! I was pretty proud of these little boards...they look pretty strange and a little crappy but they did the trick!
Since we had to wait for them to dry, we finished them the week after. Finishing them didn't take that long so we did a quick Mardi Gras Mask too! It was pretty fun to see the kids wearing their masks. I think the Venetian ones turned out pretty awesome!
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these puffy paint masks are such a great craft! and look so cute!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jo! I think the kids really liked make them, and I loved making mine too!
DeleteThey came out great! What a cute idea to tailor them for the classroom. Glad I could help out a bit for this project :)
ReplyDeleteThank you! I think this was their favorite project so far! Thank you for coming up with such a great and versatile project :)
DeleteSUPER cute! Those kids look like the really enjoyed the whole process as well, it really is a beautiful thing to make your own masks because the possibilities are endless :)
ReplyDeleteIt is! I was hesitant to teach this class but I'm actually enjoying it a lot now!
DeleteBeautiful masks! I've made these with kids as well, and it's always a big success.
ReplyDeleteThank you! They were so much fun to make, now I need a masquerade party to come up so I have a reason to make more!
DeleteSuch a wonderful painted mask you have created. It is indeed beautiful and unique. Most of the mask tutorials I found on the internet were kind of the same. Thanks for posting such a unique DIY tutorial. Check out some of the best kids craft kits online.
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