5 Bubble Wrap Art Ideas from the book "Art with Anything"

week 4
Bubble Wrap

Pop! Pop! and POP! What is more joyful or satisfying for children (or the young at heart) than the sound and feel of bubble wrap popping? Pop some, pack with some, and use the rest for bubbly art activities.

Day 1 - Bubble-Wrap Surprise Rubbing

* easy beginner activity

Materials

bubble wrap (any sizes of bubble air pockets)

large paper, like newsprint, butcher paper, or wide craft paper from a roll

tape

peeled crayons  

Steps:

 Note: An adult needs to prepare this bubble wrap surprise-art activity by taping bubble wrap to a tabletop (bubbles up), completely covering the bubble wrap with newsprint or other large paper, and then taping the paper to the table.

* The surprise: The artist rubs a peeled crayon on its side over the paper. Enjoy the pattern of bubbles on the paper that emerges, and the noise of the bubble wrap popping as you rub crayons more firmly over the paper. Use lots of colors!

 

Day 2 - Bubble-Wrap Print 
 

* easy beginner activity

Materials

bubble wrap (any sizes of air pockets and bubbles)

fingerpaint

paper for making a print

paper for the background

glue

(optional) tape, paints and brushes

(optional) painted picture still wet

Steps

* Cover a square of bubble wrap (about 12” x 12”) with fingerpaint. Mix several colors at once. (Try mixing and exploring the primary colors: red, blue, and yellow.)

* Place a piece of paper on top of the painted bubble wrap and gently press down. Lift the paper to see the print. Let both the paper and the bubble wrap dry. Glue the dry painted bubble wrap on a larger separate sheet of paper with the bubble–paint side up, and then tape the bubble-wrap print next to the bubble wrap so you can see both pieces together.

* Bubble Wrap Painted Print Idea: Use tape to cover a table top with bubble wrap. Paint any color or design on the bubble wrap with tempera paints and paintbrushes. While the paint is still wet, make a print by pressing a piece of paper down on top of the painting and then lifting. The more paint and colors there are on the bubble wrap, the more interesting the prints.

* Bubble Wrap Smoosh Idea: Paint a picture with wet, colorful areas. While the paint is still wet and in puddles, place a piece of bubble wrap over the artwork and smoosh it down onto the wet paint. Set the painting aside to dry for an hour. Pull off the bubble wrap to see the patterns left in the dry paint beneath.

 

Day 3 - Bubble-Wrap Collage

 * beginner activity

Materials

bubble wrap (any sizes of air pockets and bubbles)

tape or glue

colorful scraps of paper or art tissue

white glue thinned with water

collage materials, choose from: paper scraps, art tissue scraps, bits of foil, sequins, feathers, yarn, or other choices

Steps

* Use bubble wrap as a unique base for a translucent collage. Pop all the bubbles first (fun!) to make a flat collage, or leave the bubbles puffy. To begin, tape a square of bubble wrap to a flat workspace.

* Tape or glue colorful scraps of paper or art tissue to the bubble wrap. A colorful approach is to use a brush to “paint” art tissue scraps to the bubble wrap with white glue that has been thinned with water. Add more collage items. Be sure everything is secure before moving the bubble-wrap collage and displaying it. Collages can be heavy! Display a bubble-wrap collage in a window to see how the light shines through.

 

Day 4 - Bubble-Wrap Fish Craft
 

Materials

bubble wrap (any sizes of air pockets and bubbles)

rolling pin or paint roller

tape

tempera paint in a large tray or baking pan

scissors

googly craft eyes or buttons

 Steps

* Wrap bubble wrap around a rolling pin or a paint roller. Use tape to secure the bubble wrap.

* Roll the bubble wrap in a tray of tempera paint and then onto paper. When the paint is dry, use this paper to create tropical fish. Cut out colorful paper fish in all shapes and sizes (the bubble dots makes great “scale” marks). Use some of the dots to make air bubbles for the fish.

* Make more fish by pressing your hand onto a piece of bubble wrap that has been covered in paint, and then making a handprint, fingers closed together, thumb sticking up on a sheet of paper. Add a wiggly craft eye or button for a fish eye.

* When all the fish when are dry, cut them out, and tape them to windows, walls, or hang them on thread wherever a school of fish would be fun to see.  
 
 

Day 5 - Bubble-Wrap Mural

Materials

bubble wrap (any sizes of air pockets and bubbles)

scrunched ball of newspaper

tray of tempera paint

 large sheet of paper

(optional) crayons, scissors, paper, glue

Steps

Note: Ask an adult to help hang a large piece of paper on a wall. (If you prefer, spread the paper on the floor or on a table, and then hang it on the wall when dry.)

* Scrunch a ball of bubble wrap into a fist-sized ball, like a softball. Press it into a tray of tempera paint, and then press it onto the mural paper. Change colors as desired.

* Scene Mural Idea: Use this large sheet of bubbly printed paper to create the background of a mural scene. Consider these ideas for the mural backdrop: a forest, an undersea world, the desert, the night sky, an alien planet, and outer space. While the bubble-printed background is drying, color and cut out figures, people, animals, fish, stars, moons, or other elements. Glue them to the mural background to form the complete scene.

© MaryAnn Kohl 2010 Here's a peek at the "Bubble Wrap" pages in the book --- you can click on the page images below  and open them in a new window. Print out for personal use only, not for multiple copies or distribution.