Recycled Cicipillers
These cute little Recycled Cicipillers will crawl into your heart and hang around for a long time. Let each one be as individual as the artist’s imagination and have fun recycling.
Supplies
Cardboard tubes from toilet paper or towel rolls.
Twist ties
Gesso or light colored water-based wall paint
Acrylic paint
A piece of cardboard or white poster board
A large artist's brush and a small one (for details)
White glue or rubber cement
Scissors
Craft knife (optional)
Scotch tape or masking tape
Pencil
Ruler
Compass
Clear acrylic sealant (to be either painted or sprayed)
Newspapers (to protect the table)
Instructions
Cut the cardboard rolls into 5 pieces the same size, 3/4" thick.
Measure the diameter of the tube's open side and draw ten circles that size on the cardboard. Allow 1" space between each circle.
Cut one 1/2" slit, 1/4" away from the edge of the circle. You will insert the cicipillar's cardboard "feet" in four of these pieces. Cut two slits 1/8" wide and 3/4" apart on the narrow band of one piece. You will insert the twist tie "feelers" into these slits.
Glue the ten circles to close the open spaces on each of the tubes.
Draw a pattern for the "feet." Using a ruler, draw a rectangle 1/2" wide and 3/4" long. Round one of the edges. Cutout eight of these and insert them into the slots. Bend the edge of one cardboard foot and glue or tape it to the circle to secure it. Insert two twist ties into the "head" and secure them with glue or tape.
Glue four of the tube pieces together in a straight line. Add the fifth tube on top of an end piece -- either looking straight ahead or to one side.
Paint all the cardboard and the twist ties with gesso or water-based wall paint.
When dry, paint everything with the cicipillar's basic color. Paint the feelers an accent color.
Paint a face, add patterns to the body and then add your signature and date.
Paint or spray with clear acrylic glaze to protect.
Contributor
eco-artware.com was a new adventure for me - but it dovetailed nicely with the way I lived. I recycled and reused before and after it became chic. I'd worn plain and fancy Birkenstocks with vintage Armani suits through stints as a magazine illustrator, custom needlepoint designer, crafts teacher and manager of crafts shops. My grandmother's hand-made napkins with crocheted borders were the centerpiece of every holiday table I set. I'd used flea market finds as the raw materials for cards, craft projects and holiday decorations since I was a child.