How to do a parachute toy

This is a old toy, no batteries needed, no updates or upgrades, just the plastic soldier and the plastic bag. Today we are going to see how to build a parachute and how it works.

We will need:

• plastic square with a 40cm (about 15in) side. You can use a garbage plastic bag,
• Scissors,
• Ruler,
• Pen,
• 8 strings with 30cm (12in) length,
• A small toy, like a plastic soldier.

How to:

1. On each side of square measure and mark, with a pen, 4, 8 and 12in, like the image bellow;
2. Cut off the shaded parts;
3. With the scissors punch a hole on each corner of the plastic, like the picture, holes must be small, large holes will compromise the parachute;
4. Attach one string to each punch you made, with a knot;
5. Attach the other string end to the toy; the toy must have no more then 10cm (4in) height.

   

   Figure2

   
   

   
   



Figure1

6. Throw the parachute from a height place, like a balcony; remember the goal is to land the toy gently.

Results:
We hope your parachute landed gently giving an opportunity to your toy to survive.
When you throw the parachute the toy (the weight) pulls down the strings, forcing the plastic to open. Now the parachute contact surface with the air is bigger, the air resistance is also bigger and that’s why the parachute goes down slowly. The greater the air resistance the smoothly the parachute falls.

Try this with your restless:

• Throw the parachute from different heights, keep a record of your results and variables:
• Compare the falling times,
• The parachute always opens?
• Cut a small hole on center of the plastic, this will help the air to escape:
• Does it fall faster with or without the hole?

Et Voilá!
A plastic soldier parachute

Enjoy!

How to do a stencil?

Today we will share some tips on "how to do a stencil". With a stencil you can print the same pattern, over and over again, in almost any kind of surface.
Cut a stencil is a boring job, but at the end is worth.

What we need:

• exact-O knife.
• a surface to cut the transparent plastic sheet cardboard/paper/rigid plastic,
• transparent plastic sheet, rigid plastic or cardboard, from a cereal box for example,
• a print of the draw you want to make stencil from,
• tape, any kind.

How to:

1. Place the transparent plastic sheet on top of your print;
2. Hold them both with tape. The plastic sheet must be a little bigger then your print, about 1in all around;
3. With the exact-O knife- allways use a new blade- cut the image.
4. First cut the longest straight lines, cut in one stroke, without hesitate, hesitation cuts will make a sloppy final result;
5. To make the task easier you must pressure the plastic+print with your free hand, Keep your hands AWAY from the blade!!!!
6. When you finish, feel free to use it on anywhere you wish

 
Your restless will love to use stencils, he can do a lot of crafts, including t-shirts, paintings, walls, whatever your imagination dictate. Keep your stencils clean and in a safe place, away from restless hands.

Check those patterns:
Free Stencils
About


Et voilá!
Similar drawing everywhere.

Enjoy!

Stamp and dye t-shirts, summer DIY

With the summer a question pops up, what do kids need to buy... and where to buy? Most of the times this is a problem because the cloths we find in stores are not exactly the ones we are looking for besides having an exclusive T-shirt is much more "stylish".

Painting a t-shirt is not that hard, there are several ways to do this, some more expensive then others, but all of them will make your restless the "number one" at school.

First of all do some shopping, buy a few basic t-shirts, the color doesn't matter, but they must be plain., those are normally cheaper and will work best.

Buy also some fabric painting (dye, paint, spray or a pen, all depends on the method you want to use).

Using transfers with iron
How to:

1. Pick an image, scanned;
2. If the image is not on your computer scan it, high definition;
3. If you are a medium user use a image edition software to center image, adjust colors and luminosity as you wish;
4. When it's done, print the your design in transfer printer paper;
5. Place a card inside the t-shirt, stretch it.
6. Use the paper on T-shirt, follow the instructions on the package; 

One idea is to use the children drawings.

Using painted iron transfers
How to:

1. Pick a black and white image, or scan it;
2. If you are a medium user use a image edition software to center image, adjust luminosity as you wish;
3. When it's done, print your design in transfer printer paper;
4. Place a card inside the t-shirt, stretch it;
5. Use the paper on T-shirt, follow the instructions on the package;
6. Color the image with fabric paint;
7. Let it dry for 48h before you wash it.

Using your restless hands/feet
How to:

1. Buy fabric paint and a sponge;
2. Cut the sponge, 1 piece for every color you want to use;
3. Place a card inside the t-shirt, stretch it;
4. Put both on the floor;
5. With the sponge paint your restless hands/feet, you can also try this with your cat or your dog;
6. Stamp the t-shirt as you wish.
7. Let it dry for 48h before you wash it.

One great idea is to stamp the feet on the back and write something like "My son/daughter/can/dog walk over my back" on the front.


Stamp with a sponge or a potato 
How to:

1. Buy fabric paint;
2. If you use a potato: cut it in half, with the exact-O knife try to crave a pattern, you can do a star, a moon, squares, hearts, keep it simple; 
3. If its a sponge you can try to do the same thing, or you can buy them already shaped;
4. Place a card inside the t-shirt, stretch it;
5. Wet the sponge/potato on paint;
6. Stamp as you wish;
7. Let it dry for 48h before you wash it.

Using dye
How to:

1. Buy dye and some rubbers (about a dozen)
2. Use rubber gloves and a craft coat;
3. Follow instructions to prepare the paint;
4. Fold the t-shirt on her own, form some clusters and use rubbers to keep them in place;
5. When you done folding, deep it in the dye, again follow instructions. if you want a multicolor t-shirt wait about 5 hours before you deep the t-shirt on the second color;
6. Wait 5h;
7. Rinse well with water;
8. Let it dry for 48h before you wash it.

Using a stencil
How to:

1. Buy fabric paint, with stencil spray works better;
2. Buy or do your own stencil; 
3. Place a card inside the t-shirt, stretch it; 
4. Place the stencil, cover all area you don't want to paint;
5. With the spray, paint the stencil, chose a safe place, spray can do a mess;
6. Let it dry for 48h before you wash it.

Et Voilá!

New wardrobe for the whole family

Enjoy!

"Super cute" wool pom-pons

We talked here about pom-pons, about colors, about wool and about how easy is to do this little wool balls. Today we leave you with some pictures about this craft, just some ideas

From Mariana's Blog:

From BananaCraft's blog

Et voilá!

Enjoy!

Bookmarks with paperclips

So simple... and so practical.

What we need:

• paper clips,
• fabric strips,
• scissors,
• needle and thread, or a stapler.

How to:

1. Cut the fabric in several pieces, different widths and lengths; 
2. Fold in half; 
3. Staple, or use the needle to join both ends;
4. Attach tissue on the paper clip by sliding it, just like a key ring;
5. Use the paper clip as bookmark, like shown in picture.

Use different paper clips sizes, or different fabric colors and patterns, customize your books!

Et Voilá!
Thank you Fabiana Tardochi

Enjoy!

A Christmas tree with plastic bottles (PET)

Imagination and creativity make all the difference.
The super restless idea this week smells like Christmas and came from here

Watch the video, all you need is a stick, plastic bottles, scissors and a candle.

the video is in Portuguese

but the walk through is easy to follow

Et voilá!
Another great idea to this season

Enjoy!

Can phone

Can phone is a project extremely rewarding, because it really works, its easy to do and its fun to do and play with.
The sound makes each can to vibrate and this vibration is transmitted along the string connecting the two cans.

What we need :

• 2 clean and empty cans,
• hammer,
• nail,
• +-20 m (+-21yd) of string.

How to:

1. Clean the cans;
2. Make sure the can has no sharp ends;
3. Place the cans, upside down, on a hard surface;
4. Punch the center of the cans with the nail;
5. Pass the string through the hole of the first can;
6. On the end of the string attach a paper clip;
7. The other string end goes on the second can, using same method, when you finish you will have 20m of string attached to 2 cans, one on each end;
8. Give your restless one of the cans;
9. Walk away until the string is fully stretched;
10. Ask your child to place his/her can on the ear;
11. Talk to the can;
12. Now it's your turn to listen.

Why?
When we talk the air vibrates, thats how the sound travel, the can also vibrate, those vibrations travel along the string to the second can, this causes the air in the second can to vibrate, producing sound.
 
Et Voilá,
Fun fun fun!

Enjoy!

Christmas presents wrapped with milk cartons

Do you remember that milk carton that ends in the trash?
Today we are going to show you how to reuse and transform that piece of garbage in something useful.

What we need:

• empty and clean milk carton,
• wrapping paper, the original carton is usually not that ugly,
• craft glue,
• paper punch,
• scissors,
• rope.

How to:

1. Cut the top of the milk carton, wash it and let it dry, do this with no rush, you don't want your present bag to smell;
2. Cut the wrapping paper with the exact measures to line the carton;
3. Glue the paper to the pack;
4. Let it dry for 2 or 3 hours;
5. With the paper punch, punch the top of the pack on both sides;
6. With the rope make a handle to the bag, like shown in picture
7. Secure rope with a knot.

This is a super restless mind idea from here

Et voilá!
Offer something really original this Christmas

Enjoy!

A garden on the balcony

Another super restless idea from Andreza's blog to reuse plastic bottles (we also recycle / reuse here)
Its a simple concept, planting aromatic herbs in your balcony using bottles as pots.
Your restless will love the idea of those "little green things" growing outside, and its halfway to make them eat their vegetables.


We will need:

• 3 plastic PET bottles,
• pot soil, enough to fill the bottles,
• fertilizer,
• sand,
• seeds of parsley and chives,
• water,
• exact-O knife,
• scissors,
• shovel and rake,
• flowerpots clamps,

How to:

1. Cut the bottles with a sharp knife, open a hole with 20 cm on each bottle,
2. Punch a hole in 2 of them.. on the bottom;
3. Don't punch the third, this one will catch the water that falls from the other 2;
4. If your restless kids want to decorate the flowerpots, now its the moment, they can use paint, paper, or anything else they want;
5. Mix 3 parts of pot soil, and 2 of fertilizer, you can use exterior fertilized pot soil, 
6. Place this soil on both punched bottles,
7. Seed and water the plants (already done this here)
8. Place the sand on the third bottle. 
9. Chose a wall you can drill and attach the flowerpots clamps to it. Leave 20cm between each one.

Hang the system to a height that allows children to see the plants.

Variations:
there are several ways to do this project. You can chose to use a string system, is cheaper the the final result is the same. for this you will need 2 fixation points, you can use 2 nails.
You can plant anything you want, not just shovel and rake.


Et Voilá!

Thank you Andreza!

Enjoy!

Modeling Clay

This is a "super restless mind" by Dani, we leave you with this tip:

Homemade Modeling clay (already used here)

What we need:

2 cups of flour,

half cup of salt,

1 cup of water,

1 tablespoon of oil;

bowl,

food coloring.

How to:

1. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, mix well;
2. To color the clay use food coloring, as much as you need to get your favorite color.
3. You are ready to do some art.

Et Voilá!

Little restless artists!

Thank you Dani

Enjoy!

Christmas tree ornaments

Another Christmas idea.
Let’s do some ornaments to the Christmas tree.

What we need:

• wooden spatulas,
• sand paper,
• nail,
• hammer,
• string,
• felt, with any colors you like,
• black marker,
• transparent glue,
• scissors,
• brush,
• old paper,
• "googly eyes",
• acrylic paint, your favorite colors.

How to:

1. Sand the spatulas, until they are smooth;
2. Draw on the felt the pattern you want to use, you can use your own designs or the ones at the end of this post;
3. Cut your drawings;
4. Use the glue, and with a steady hand, place the felt in place;
5. Let it dry;
6. With the black marker, draw the details;
7. Finally use the brush to paint all the other elements you want to add;
8. Let it dry for 3 or 4 hours;
9. With the hammer and the nail pinch a hole on the top of your spatula;
10. Pass the wire through, and make a knot;
11. Hang your art in your Christmas tree.

Et Voilá!
Another DIY art idea for this Christmas!
Enjoy

Build a compass

There's is a huge magnet inside the planet Earth, this magnet has 2 ends... the Poles. Each one of them point to one different direction, the North Pole and the South Pole.

A compass is an object with a magnetic needle that is attracted to the Earth magnetic North.

We can find these instruments in all kind of places, from a big ship to a traveler pocket. Although the different sizes, uses and owners, all the compasses are the same: a magnetized needle rotating freely in a fixed point.


Today we are going to build a compass, homemade style.


What we need:

• wine cork,
• metal needle,
• bowl of water, or plate,
• tape,
• magnet.

How to:

1. First of all cut a slice of the wine cork, with about1/4in thick;
2. Rub the needle in circular movements on the magnet; you will need to do 40 to 50 turns;
3. Stick the needle to the cork slice with the tape;
4. Drop the cork in the bowl with water, as figure shows; the needle can't touch the water,
5. After a few seconds the cork will move to point magnetic pole.

NOTE: keep the compass away from wind, vibration, tools, metals and magnets.

Et Voilá!
Try to do 4 or 5 compasses; do they always point same direction?

Enjoy!

Color pencil necklace

Restless Minds brings you another super restless idea, this time from Kate's blog:  minieco.co.uk. Today we are going to use dregs of crayons to do some jewelry.
We saw it the firt time in Artesanato Decor e Culinária blog, from here we linked to Kate's Minieco blog.

Check this out, this pictures show some crayon dreg art:


From Kate's blog:

From Maria Cristina-Bellucci , designer:

This is how Gabrielle Blair did it:
 
We will need:

• color pencils, you can use dregs instead of brand new pencils, that way you will recycle and reuse materials.
• small saw, you can buy it on any hardware store,
• sandpaper, 
• drilling instrument, it can be electrical or manual,fasteners and wire for the necklace, you can buy this at any handcraft store,
• ruler,
• Wooden board, similar to the ones we use in the kitchen.

Note: This tutorial must be done with adult supervision all the time, and always on the wooden board.

How to do the beads:

1. Chose the pencils you are going to bead;
2. With the ruler measure pieces of 5 to 10 mm wide (about in), the beads can be longer or shorter, that’s up to you. The example has 7mm beads, all them must be the same length;
3. Cut them with the saw;
4. Use sandpaper on the wood beads, only sand the side without color, as picture shows;
5. When the wood becomes smooth you can get to the next step;
6. Drill a hole, from side to side, on the bead, as picture shows;
7. Do a few of these beads and  you can do your necklace, with the wire and the fasteners

Et voilá!
Another super restless idea, from your Restless Minds team

Enjoy!

In a windy day, build a kite

The legend says that a chinese man, without any purpose in creating such an object, in a windy day; he must had failed because that’s the first reference to a kite. No one knows the exact date this episode occurs it happened about 2000 years ago.
To build one of these millenary toys it's a good way to enjoy a windy day. We found a lot of different ways to build a kite, this one seemed the cheaper, safer and easier.

What we need

• trash bag, the biggest you can find, white ones work best to decorate, but the black ones are ok,
• 2 wooden sticks, they should be thin and have about 20 and 23 in,
• scissors,
• exact-O knife,
• string, with 0,05in diameter,
• 1 small ring, 1/2 in diameter,
• ruler,
• tape,
• Color markers, ribbons, and any other materials you wish to use.

How to:

1. Open the plastic bag in order to get a plastic "sheet";
2. Measure 1in in each of extremities of both wooden sticks;
3. With the exact-O knife open a small cut, around the wooden sticks, on each one of the marks, those will be needed to place a piece of string;
4. Measure 6in on the larger stick and 10 on the smaller;
5. With the help of the adhesive tape attach both wooden sticks on those points, at the end you should have a structure in T;
6. Place this T on top of the plastic sheet;
7. With the marker and the ruler, draw 4 straight lines linking the 4 extremities of the wooden sticks;
8. Now, get the scissors, and cut around the lines with a margin of 2in;
9. Tie the string with a knot to the first cut on the wooden stick;
10. Take the string to the second cut, repeat the action;
11. Do the same to the 4 cuts, see figure;
12. Place this T back on the plastic;
13. Fold the 2in plastic margins to cover the string;
14. Glue the plastic with the adhesive tape;
15. The kite is ready; decorate it as you wish;
16. Attach a ribbon to the larger end of the "t".

Placing the wire:

1. Carefully make a small hole in each extremities of wooden sticks, about 1 1/2in from the end;
2. Pass the wire through these holes and tie a knot, according to the figure, these knots must be strong and tight otherwise the kite can broke with the wind;
3. Look to the image, attach the 4 wires at the center using the ring; 
4. Wrap the remaining wire in a "reel", broom stick type, but smaller, about 8in wide;
5. Tie the other end of the wire to the ring;

Et voilá!
Ready to fly! Watch out for electrical wires and trees.

Enjoy!

Grass Head Buddy

Who doesn't know these amazing buddies? With a big head, googly eyes, green spiky hair, they will go bald if we don’t water them.

On thing is certain, this buddies are so simple and low cost that make a fantastic way to make our restless minds happy and occupied for a days.

Build this grass head guy takes up 45min, all depends on what kind of adornments you use on it. On the other hand, it takes 4 or 5 months to become bald; it will depend on the water/sun/love you give it.

What we need:

• silk sock, short
• 2 tablespoons of grass seeds
• potting soil,
• 1 yogurt cut,
• water,
• 2 eyes, can be buttons, pushpins, "googly eyes", etc.,
• permanent marker,
• double sided adhesive tape,
• colored paper, or other material to make clothing,
• scissors.

How to:

• Fill the silk sock with the seeds and the potting soil;
• Place the grass seed into the half and fill the rest of the half with the land;
• Tie the sock with a knot so that the land within it forms a ball;
• Don't cut the remaining tissue;
• Place the eyes, and draw the mouth on the buddy, knot must face down;
• Attach the nose and ears; paint the freckles, and/or anything else you like;
• Fill the cup halfway with water;

Place the grass buddy on the top of it, so the rest of the fabric touch the water inside the cup, that way the liquid will "climb" and reach the seeds;

Note: keep the cup with water; check the water level on daily basis.
Et Voilá
Dont let him die!
 
Enjoy!

Papier-mâché, to play and paint

Papier-mâché is a fantastic way to entertain children and grownups. We can do amazing art while we promote recycling and handcrafts.
Papier-mâché is an excellent idea to play with, because everything we need is there, around the house.

Let's see how to do it, this will entertain them for hours.

For the glue
We will need:

• 1/2 cup flour;
• 2 cups hot water, let the water boil, be careful its hot;
• 2 cups cold water;
• 3 tablespoons sugar;
• A large bowl;
• A pot.

How to:

1. Add in a bowl the cold water and flour
2. Mix well to form a homogeneous mass,
3. Add this mixture to the boiling water, don't let your child do this, he can burn himself.
4. Wait until its boiling again, remove it from heat and add the sugar,
5. Mix;
6. Put aside to cool, while cooling the mixture thickens.

If you prefer you can buy white glue and dilute it 1:1 (half/half) in cold water.

For the fun: 
We will need:

• The glue,
• Old Newspapers,
• Mold, you can use a balloon, a stone from the beach, a plastic cup...

How to:

1. Cut the paper into thin strips, the strips should be cut using hands, the thinner the paper the better it will look;
2. Cover paper strips with glue;
3. Prepare the mold, in this case fill the balloon;
4. While pulling the strip out of the glue, with your fingers remove the excess glue;
5. Cover your mold with these strips impregnated with glue, in this case the balloon;
6. Continue placing strips of paper to cover all the mold, do not cover the knot, overlap the strips and put them in different directions, to ensure greater stability to the final result;
7. Near the place where the knot is make an edge. Wrap all the strips together and roll them in;
8. Wait for 4-5h to dry, depends on the type of paper, you must check the paper from time to time;
9. You can apply a new layer if you wish;
10. The final set must wait to dry at least 24h.
11. Burst the balloon;
12. Remove the balloon through the hole of the mold.

Et voilá!
You have a papier maché balloon ready to be painted

If you cut the final result in half you can do 2 masks, for example, or if you cut it horizontally you can make a bowl... you can do several other things, just let your imagination flow.

Enjoy!