Hobbies and Crafts: Making Your Own Toys

A Great Way to Celebrate Your Children's Creativity

by Tamara Taylor

When your child starts school, you will quickly become accustomed to the numerous art projects that are brought home on a regular basis. This artwork was created by your child, so of course you're going to love them, and there will always be something beautiful carried home and presented to you. Bold, bright colours with adorable depictions of various people and events—you'll want to hang them all up. Sure, many of them will end up on the fridge, safely secured under a magnet, but maybe you want to do something special to celebrate your child's artistic creativity over the course of the school year. There's a great and stylish way to create a lasting memento of their artistic output.

A Full Selection

It's best to leave this project until the end of the school year so you have the option of using everything that your child has produced. The end result will be hanging on your wall, so you want it to have a sense of finality (courtesy of the conclusion of the school year).

Choose the Pieces

The finished art project will have a grid-like configuration so you'll need to choose an appropriate number of pieces. Six pieces (with two pictures on the horizontal and three on the vertical) or nine pieces (with three pictures on both the horizontal and the vertical) can be great choices.

Going Digital

The artwork needs to be digitised. You might have a scanner at home, and yet it might be more for A4-sized pages as opposed to larger sheets of paper. Since you will have the end result framed, you might want to contact picture framers in your area to see if they have the necessary scanning equipment. Many custom picture framing companies offer an all-inclusive service, so this won't be difficult to find. Size can be altered after scanning so each section of the grid will have a uniform size.

The Mock Up

Once the pieces of art have been digitised, you can play with the mock up to determine the final configuration. This can just involve switching the artwork in each individual grid until you're happy with the final result. Now you're ready to have the piece printed. The size is up to you and will depend on your budget since you will also need to have it framed.

Framing

The final step is to have the piece framed, using a frame and thickness of glass of your choosing. A company that does custom picture framing can help you pick out a frame that perfectly suits the art that will be placed in it.

And there you have it! A beautiful, framed composite poster showing your child's artistic output for the year. Your child will be delighted to have their work hanging on the wall like a real artist! And it sure looks better than when it was stuck to the fridge.

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