What you need
Black poster board
White tissue paper
Colored tissue paper (small scraps are fine)
Craft glue (choose a brand that dries clear)
Children’s coloring book (optional)
Soft bristle paint brush or foam paint brush, approximately 1 inch wide
Clear plastic wrap
Transparent tape
Pencil
Small piece of thread, string or lightweight cord
Instructions
It can be a lot of fun to decorate your windows for spring. Although there are plenty of interesting and decorative ways to beautify your windows, making tissue paper window art can be a fun craft that the entire family can enjoy. The end result will be colorful, pretty window decorations reminiscent of stained glass art. These pretty window decorations are the perfect way to enjoy the sunny days of spring. As a bonus, this craft is so easy that even small children can help make their own window decorations.
Choosing a Design
There really isn’t a right or wrong way to make tissue paper window art. If desired, you can simply create a free-form design. However, you can also use colored tissue paper scraps in a collage fashion to form various designs, such as a floral pattern. Simple designs can be traced from children’s coloring books, clip art, or other sources. Trace a design very lightly onto a piece of white tissue paper. If you can’t see the design clearly enough through the tissue paper, tape the coloring book page and the tissue paper to a sunny window, then trace. It’s usually best to stick to basic designs and simplified patterns.
Create the Tissue Paper Collage
Make sure you are working on a protected table surface. Tape a piece of plastic wrap to the table. Take the piece of white tissue paper with your traced design and tape it to the plastic wrap. If you’re not using a traced design, simply tape a plain piece of white tissue paper to the plastic wrap. Tear your colored tissue paper into small pieces. Use these small tissue paper pieces to create your design, using clear-drying craft glue to adhere them to the white tissue paper base. Work carefully so you don’t tear the base piece of tissue paper. However, even if a few small tears occur, the glue should hold your artwork together after it dries. You can either cover the white tissue paper base completely with pieces of colored tissue paper, or leave some of the areas white. Use a soft bristle or foam paint brush to lightly daub a thin layer of clear-drying craft glue over your artwork once your design is complete. This layer of glue will provide more stability for your window art while also giving it a shinier surface. Let the glue dry completely.
Create the Window Art Frame
Cut two matching picture frames from black poster board – one for the back and one for the front. The outside dimension of the frame should be slightly larger than your artwork, while the inside opening should be slightly smaller. Lay the back frame on a protected work surface. Apply a thin layer of craft glue around the top surface of the frame. Carefully peel your dried tissue paper art off of the plastic wrap. Center the tissue paper art on the bottom frame. Apply craft glue to the back side of the top frame piece. Place the top frame on top of the tissue paper art, sandwiching the tissue paper layer between the back and front frame pieces. Let the glue dry completely. Then, punch a small hole along the top edge of your window art. Thread a piece of string through the hole, knotting to form a hanging loop. Then, hang a sunny window and enjoy.
Designer and writer, Alyssa Davis of Metal-Wall-Art.com, has many ideas for bringing style to your home with metal dragonfly wall sculptures and birds metal hangings.
Fantastic idea….it may be for kids, but I like it for me (an adult) in my sun room/art room. Thanks for sharing!