Embossed Art

Materials:

• Corrugated cardboard
• white paper
• towel
• plant sprayer

Embossed pictures are an art form in themselves. With this activity, your child can emboss right in your kitchen without expensive printing gear.

Have your child draw or trace the outline of an animal, a car, a leaf, or a geometrical form on a piece of thick corrugated cardboard. The cardboard should be at least the same dimensions as the paper you'll be using, preferably an inch larger on each edge. Cut out the shape with a sharp knife (your job).

Now take a piece of white paper and mist it with a plant sprayer. Apply just enough water so that the paper is malleable (if it's too wet, it will fall apart).

Lay the cutout cardboard on a flat surface. Cover it with the paper and gently push it into the cutout, following the cut edge with your finger. Next, place several thicknesses of a cloth towel over the paper to absorb water. Place a heavy object on top so that the paper remains in the cutout as the water evaporates.

When the paper is dry, remove it from the cardboard and presto, an embossed piece of artwork that your child can turn into a greeting card or a piece of art suitable for framing.

More on: Arts & Crafts Activities for Kids: Project Ideas

Excerpted from:

© 2005 by Steve and Ruth Bennett. Excerpted from 365 Unplugged Family Fun Activities with permission of its publisher, Perseus Books Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

To order this book visit perseusbooksgroup.com.