Cub Scout Crafts: OLYMPIC DECATHLON; Part I

I made some awesome Olympic headdresses for pack meeting.  The Grand Champion of our decathlon was crowned with a Golden Pegasus headdress & received the Olympic Torch.  Instructions on how to make are below (craft instructions split into 3 separate posts):

Pegasus Crown

Materials: Pegasus template, gold foil, Scotch tape, transparent stiff piece of plastic (I used a clipboard), regular-width Sharpie marker, cereal box or other thin cardboard, Burger King crown, scissors, pencil.

I started with a Pegasus coloring page that I found online:

http://www.gratismalvorlagen.com/fantasie/pegasus.php

How do you trace an image onto an opaque surface, you ask? You can't simply hold it up to the window & trace it. This is what I did. I used a reflection technique to trace the image into gold foil wrapping.




Simply tape a section of foil firmly to the countertop. Tape the image firmly to the countertop right next to the foil. Hold a transparent piece of plastic (I used a clipboard) straight up in the air between the image & the foil. 

A reflection of the image is cast on the other side. 

Then, you simply trace the reflection of the image. It is very important that you hold the reflective panel straight up, or you will get distortions in your picture. It is also very important that you hold the reflective panel without moving as you trace, or your image moves around too.

Then, I reflected & traced the image back the other direction so that I would have a mirror image--one for each side of the headdress.

 

Next, I traced & mounted the image onto a thin piece of cardboard. I used a cereal box.

This will make a stiff Pegasus to be attached to the crown piece.



Lastly, I stapled the Pegasus pieces onto a foil-covered crown piece.  I got the crown for free at Burger King and cut all of the spikes off of it, then taped foil over it.  I realized after the fact, that I should have covered the back sides of the Pegasus pieces with foil too.  My perfectionistic tendancies were screaming at me, but I was out of time.

Grand Champion

Cub Scout Crafts: OLYMPIC DECATHLON; Part II

Olympic Olive-Branch Headdresses

Materials: Burger King crown, scissors, masking tape, pencil, Olive Leaf template, lots of green paper (bulletin board paper sold by the foot), stapler, staples, Exacto knife, cutting board.

I started with a trip to Burger King. I asked them if I could have 20 crowns for the Cub Scouts. They were happy to give them to me for free. I cut off all the crown spikes, then measured my son's head, marking which groove was the one I needed to use, and trimming the end 3 grooves away to give myself room to staple the end. Then, I covered them in green paper (attached with masking tape). The paper I bought by the foot at Zurchers (very cheap). I left the ends open so I could attach all the leaves before closing the crown into a circle.

For the leaves, I used an "olive branch" clip art that I found online, enlarged it, and used my favorite leaf pair as my template. I found that the quickest & easiest way to cut them out is with an exacto knife. Be sure to do it on a cutting board. And remember, it doesn't need to be exact.



I found that the quickest and easiest way to cut them out is with an Exacto knife. Be sure to do it on a cutting board. And remember, it doesn't need to be exact.

Then, staple several leaf pairs onto the crown.  Use as many as you'd like; the more you use, the better it looks; but I was running out of paper, so I had to space the leaves further apart  . . .

. . . leaving some room at the end to close the crown into a circle.

Close into a circle.

Insert like so.  All cardboard will be unseen.

And staple for security.

Cover your seam with a final leaf.



All participants were crowned with an olive branch headdress.

These headdresses could also be used for a Hawaiian Luau theme!!!


Cub Scout Crafts: OLYMPIC DECATHLON; Part III

Olympic Torch

Materials: 1 plastic water bottle, 1 piece of construction paper, tin foil, silver spray paint, flame-colored tissue paper, scissors, Scotch tape.


Cut the bottom off of a water bottle.  Insert a rolled piece of construction paper for the handle & secure with tape.

Cover handle with tin foil.

Spray paint the bottle silver

Insert flame-colored tissue paper, cut in spikey patterns.  We didn't bother securing the tissue paper, and it didn't fall out.

Crazy Hair Day

Y Template (from "Create Your Own Template" kit in your local craft store) used with colored hair spray.