Activity:
Shoe Sketch
It doesn’t take too long for a pair of canvas shoes to look ho hum and drab. Help your aspiring fashion designer give them new life with a simple handful of colorful permanent marks. Just turn her loose and let her create.
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What You Need:
- Canvas shoes
- Water
- Newspaper
- Towel
- Pencil
- Permanent markers (various colors)
- Scrap paper
What You Do:
- Have your child start by washing her shoes with a damp towel.
- While the shoes are still wet, let her stuff them with newspaper to help absorb water.
- Every good art project needs a solid brainstorming session! Help your child think of what designs she could use to decorate her shoes with. She can get inspired by anything from flowers and hearts to storm clouds and clocks.
- Encourage her to practice doodling on the scrap paper before she moves on to her shoes.
- When she’s ready, have her prepare her "canvas:" she'll need to pull out the shoe's laces and set them aside.
- If she isn’t comfortable starting with the markers, have her lightly pencil her basic drawing – such as hearts – in several places on the shoe.
- Now its time to use the markers. Remember that as she starts to work with the markers, some markers will run more than others. A thick marker tends to produce a blurrier line than a thin marker. Outlining can be used to expand a drawing over a larger portion of the shoe as she alternates a variety of eye-popping colors.
- As soon as she's done, help her lace she shoes and put them on. She's ready to show off her fashionable and artistic creation!
