Book Page Pets

LOST & FOUND

Upcycled Book 
Page Pets!

New life for an old book!

Our kindergarten 

smallSHOP artists 

made their own adorable pets

using discarded book pages, 

found paper and imagination!

We learned how to plan a collage 

and 

build an animal from shapes.

We practiced cutting skills 

and 

added lots of details to make 

our pets extra special.

And we realized that inspiring art making

materials can be found all around us!

What else can you create 

from recycled materials?

Have fun!

always,

smallSHOP

Fancy Pants Animals

ANIMAL HEAD + HUMAN CLOTHES =

FURRY FASHIONISTA FUN

Create a funny hybrid creature

with a flair for fashion!

We came up with these adorable crazy critters by working in a series:

First, we made collage magic-

we combed fashion and sports magazines 

searching for the perfect outfit to match our animal's head...

INSTANT CHARISMA!

Next, we used our collage as the basis for a fine tuned sketch

Finally, we showed off our drawing skills 

by adding lots of detail and intricate pen and ink line work.

The result -

A whimsically surreal character with 

LOTS of personality!

Who wouldn't love these refined furry friends?

Have Fun!

Always,

smallSHOP

Get Stitchin...

Friday Fun. 

Bringing back an oldie but goodie…

Collage + Thread = a stitchin' good time.  

Stay tuned to see what new creations come out 

of one of our favorite projects. 

Until then… walk down memory lane

with these. 

Happy Friday, 

Sage and smallSHOP

Sweetest Daddy Day Card...

Make Dad's heart melt!

Need something creative for Sunday?

Try this... it takes no time 

and is full of sweetness!

Take a photo of your child 

pretending to hold something. 

Have your child draw or paint a small work of art 

or better yet photograph a piece of art 

that they have already done

and print it small. 

Cut out the artwork. 

Make a little cut around each hand. 

Slip the small artwork into the cut to make it look like 

your child is holding the art. 

And pop it in a frame. 

And here is another one... 

And watch daddy's heart melt!

Have a great weekend & do something creative today. 

Always, 

Sage and smallSHOP

WASHI WASHI

STAY TUNED TO SEE WHAT WE MAKE

WITH THESE WASHI TAPE COLLAGES

IN PROGRESS...

small & MIGHTY

We are celebrating some of our little guys and gals 

with a BIG shout out to 

the little smallSHOP'ers

We are proud of you and the art that you create. 

smallSHOP Artist Christina Tonges

smallSHOP Artist Christina Tonges is not only an incredible teacher,
she is an accomplished artist.
Please check out the wonderful shout out she got on Please Note Paper 
(please click here to be linked).
We are so happy that she is part of our team.

Here are few of my favorite works of art by Christina.

To view more of her art and choose your favorites, please check out her Etsy shop. 

And please share with your little artists, it is exciting to see your teacher in a new environment and I am sure that they would love to see her art.

And remember we teach adults too! So if you are feeling creative and want a supportive little shadow helping you along the way, please give a call and we will be that shadow. www.smallshopathome.com.

Have a wonderful day and keep creating.

Best Wishes,
Sage and smallSHOP

HIP TO BE SQUARE

What could be better than a perfect colored square?

100's of perfectly colored squares, of course. 

For this lesson we discussed transparency, overlapping colors to make new ones and texture. Using a wood block and a canvas as the surface to build on, the young artists experimented with colors and shapes. In addition to them having a wonderful time, the finished pieces have a modern controlled feel. Here at smallSHOP we say, "yes, please" to squares in all colors. 

It is hard to speak about squares without giving a "what's up" to the king of art geometry Piet Mondrian. While thinking of smallSHOP and our talented little artists, I remembered back to a fun "one day" project that incorporated patterns inspired by Piet Mondiran. We combined his technique with imaginative characters. After drawing, painting and choosing a solid background we came up with these fun images created by 2nd Grade students. 

SmallSHOP Artists 50/50

smallSHOP Artist, Age 8 (work in progress)

50/50 collage is one of the ways that smallSHOP teaches a collage and a drawing lesson. We encourage using found printed materials and adding at least 50% of your own sketching. Within this lesson there is an opportunity to teach perspective, Surrealism, contrast, arbitrary color and really everything. It is a more comfortable way to start for some artists, as they have a beginning point with the printed material.

smallSHOP kids collage + stitch

1. An idea

2. A stencil design

3. Cut out shapes 

4. Add details in paper

5. Poke holes

6. Stitch with colored embroidery thread

7. Add text

8. Sign and share

Collage Me Please

Jason Laferrera has taken a media of maps and repurposed them to represent this fab fox: Virginia Red Fox.

I am a sucker for a cute bird and this little Tennessee Mockingbird is so sweet.

And this unique nautical paper cut illustration. It was hand drawn and painted on water color paper Michelle Tavares.

The technique of collage is exciting and many artists push the boundaries with the materials they choose to use. Long gone are the days of only Henri Matisse and the limitations of a simple flat color palette and basic shapes. Although I do love Matisse and believe that introducing young artists to his work is important, I try to balance my collage instruction with some contemporary artists. I find myself drawn to artists like Jason Laferrera and Michelle Tavares. Our students find their creativity and fine motor skills exercised by using different textures and mediums in the art of collage.