We have A LOT of plastic lids. We have been collecting them for all kinds of projects. (One of the biggest ones is the gigantic murals project we have under construction for our outdoor fence!) Unlike our murals, this project utilizes clear lids. We used 2 types this time around, the ones from baby food containers (rectangular) and some from Crystal Light containers (oval) , but any plastic lid will do!
The whole purpose in this activity is to work on strengthening the muscles in the hand. - So in preparation I filled our glue bottles up and added some liquid watercolor to them. The children helped to decide what colors to make. (After you add a bit of the liquid watercolor to the bottle, shake it up good! You can add a marble to the bottle to help if you need.)
This project is very much process based. Our ornaments are made by filling the lid with glue and then adding gems and sequins. You don't need to add the gems and sequins- the dried colored glue is sufficient-but the children like to add a little bit more of sparkle.
Know that the thickness of the glue makes this a long drying project. However- you can speed it up by adding the ornaments to the food dehydrator on the craft setting of 115 degrees.
If the children add too many sequins to the top, you can always add another layer of glue over the top to seal them in! This is a prime example to illustrate the fact that children need to use too much before they learn to use just enough.
After a couple of hours/days... or a week of drying- you have fabulous suncatchers that can easily be make into ornaments. We drilled small holes in the top, added a bit of ribbon and Voila! Suncatcher Ornaments! The glue dries semi-transparent and the sparkles glisten with the light. They look fabulous on the tree right in front of a light! They are also great any time of year in the window.
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[…] Empty plastic baby food containers! However, I didn’t just want to use them as is. I know they are fun to build with without doing anything with them, but I wanted to add some color and make a nice set for our light table. So, I gathered my supplies. (If you remember we have used the lids from these containers before to make suncatcher ornaments). […]
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