Kids Crafts: Colour Spinner

Spinning TopWelcome back to Kids Get Crafty… this week we share colour theory and colour spinners. I am REALLY excited about this craft for lots of different reasons. Let me start with the first and foremost one: we received the Spinning Tops from Kiwi Crate and they saved us from a crafty black hole that I had slipped into this week.

diy spinning tops

Kiwi Crate a fabulously crafty organisations, that makes, crafting, well, really EASY and FUN! Normally, I am not one for craft kits (surely, crafts is my forte and I don’t need to buy anything in?!). BUT…. as you may know, I have been very very busy, we have also had a house guest for two weeks, school fairs, a holiday and other bits and pieces. And there comes a time, when even the craftiest amongst us say “no more, I have run out of ideas, it is all too much to even think about”….. So, this week, you ALMOST didn’t get a Kids Get Crafty post. I was going to have my first break ever. But then our Kiwi Crate arrived. And everything was saved.

The lovely people from Kiwi Crate, sent us their Colour Crate.  You can make everything in the crate yourself and don’t have to “buy it from Kiwi Crate”… however, Kiwi Crate, really do make it simple for you. Lovely little instruction booklets, everything you need (including scissors), presented in a sturdy box (which has already been converted into a car by Red Ted). The best thing is, there is no “set up time”, you just get crafting. And as I am so very time poor at the moment, the set up time is what has been stopping me from getting crafty.

The crate we kindly received was the “Colour Crate” – which has huge appeal to me, as I LOVE exploring colour theory with the kids (it is like magic to me!) and the contents of the box have long been on my to do list:

We got the following crafts:

* A spinning top (see below)

* A stained glassed window

* A canvas bag to decorate

Everything to make them was included (including pens and scissors).

Of course you can make all these things without getting a kit. But sometimes you just don’t have the time, to sit there cutting things out and getting them ready. Also, the Kiwi Crates are very well thought out – the crafts fit perfectly together, are clearly labelled by difficulty level and what other learning you may achieve (e.g. discover and fine motor skills).  As well as suggesting questions to aid discussion and exploration.

We also have  a set of party ladybird wings to make with friends soon… can’t wait!! If you are interested in getting a Kiwi Crate for yourself or friends… then make sure you either get your free Ladbird Wings or free Comet Craft. From the craft we have experienced to date I can highly recommend Kiwi Crate for easy, stress free creative fun! (Oh and the crafts come in FAB little boxes that double up either as party bags for the party crafts or craft boxes! Nice bit of upcycling!)

If you do want to make your own, here are a couple of spinning tops to inspire you. And we made some stain glassed windows here, but it involved lots of cutting, aligning and getting things neat and you didn’t get the cool blue glasses to help you explore what happens to colours when you put them on!

  diy spinning top

Bottle Cap Spinning Top Creative Jewish Mom  Pencil Spinning TopThe Wonder Years

 So… after that long preamble. Onto our craft.

diy spinning topsWhen the box arrived, Red Ted was beside himself with excitement. We had visitors at the time and he asked every 5 minutes, whether we could craft yet. (I kid you not). Finally, I relented and we started with the spinning tops.

Easy really… spin the “samples”. Discuss. (Oooh red and yellow, turn orange. Black and white, turn grey). Then get colouring the templates (as discussed you can make your own pencil spinner, see link above).

Pip Squeak did lots of pink and discovered upon spinning that you get light pink and lines.

Red Ted tried out different patterns to see what would happen.

I made one in red and blue “circles”. The first circle had slightly more blue than red. As did the second. The third had more blue than red. The fourth more red than blue. The final, equal amounts. Now… what would happen when we spinned it??? Can you guess?
diy spinning tops
It was fascinating to see how, the same colours, used in different amounts resulted in different “spin colours”. Colour theory at its best.

I also showed Red Ted how if you drew a red and then a yellow circle.. not much would happen. But if you drew a circle made up of red and yellow… you end up with orange. We discussed why this may be.

Fabulous. A quick craft. Long on my to do list. Lots of fun. And magical colour theory!

Thank you Kiwi Crate for our gift!! And if are interested in getting a kit yourself, don’t forget to click through here, for your free Ladbird Wings or Comet Craft gift.

colour theory

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