December is on the calendar, and the grass stubbornly turns green outside the window and there is not a hint of frost. The Christmas tree has already been decorated with balls, tinsel, and even a star at the top, but still something is missing. I want to play snowballs, but put on five layers of clothing and go out into the street too lazy. In all cases, artificial snow will come to the rescue, which will not be difficult to do with your own hands.
To decorate
Artificial snow is an integral element of holiday decorations. They are decorated with spruce branches, with its help ordinary cones and nuts turn into snow-covered toys, and it also looks great in the interior as an integral part of compositions dedicated to the New Year.
Depending on how the snow will be used, you can prepare it in one of the following ways.
From acrylic paint and varnish
White acrylic in itself is good for simulating snow on bulky objects. Covered with her cones, clusters of dried berries and branches look very realistic. However, it should be applied not with a brush, but with a piece of finely porous foam sponge - this will convey the fluffy and heterogeneous texture of snowflakes.
To achieve various effects, other components are added to acrylic paint or varnish:
- Acrylic paint + glossy acrylic varnish + baking soda - this mixture is applied with a large round brush (you can take cosmetic, for powder). The layer should be thick enough, then you get an imitation of dense stale snow.
- Acrylic varnish + coarse salt + PVA glue - snow prepared according to this recipe looks moist, lumpy. For flat and thin surfaces, such as branches and spruce legs, it is not suitable. Apply it with strokes does not work, you need to impose with a wide brush.
- Acrylic paint + sugar - lays on any surface. It creates the effect of solid frostbitten snow. It is well applied with a sponge.
- Acrylic paint + semolina + PVA glue - this mixture produces the most beautiful snow, textured, lush and light. It holds well, does not crumble.
The proportions of each ingredient are determined “by eye”.
From salt
Loose snow, which can decorate the foot of the Christmas tree or fill a glass vessel for a bouquet of pine branches, is easily prepared from salt with large crystals and sparkles. Both components are mixed in the desired amounts.
Of thread and cotton
Snowballs made from cotton pads are perfect for room decor. To make them, you need to tear the disks into very small pieces, and then roll the resulting mass into balls.
Another option for making snowballs involves the use of fluffy wool or mohair yarn. The thread is wound on four fingers (index, middle, ring and little fingers), making 10-15 turns. Then they remove the skein from the hand, fold it in half and finely and finely cut with scissors. Pieces of thread stick together easily in snowballs.
Ready snowballs will look good under the tree or in a small decorative bucket.
Foam and foamed polyethylene
From the foam inserts that come in boxes with household appliances, great snow is obtained. To divide a whole piece into separate snowflake balls, you need to arm yourself with a fork and poke Styrofoam with it. This should be done until the material is completely crumbled.
But foamed polyethylene is often found in parcels. At the post office they wrap dishes, glasses and other fragile things. Turning a sheet of polyethylene into snow is simple - just grate it on a grater for potatoes (with prickly cells).
For games
If the landscape outside the window looks more like autumn than winter, this is not a reason to lose heart and put off the snow games until better times. You can make a soft white substance that looks almost like real snow, but does not melt at room temperature, from improvised materials.
From sodium polyacrylate
The name of this substance sounds intimidating, however, to get it, you do not have to rob the chemical laboratory. It is enough to take a few diapers, cut them and extract the contents. Next, the resulting powder should be poured into any container, plastic or glass, pour a small amount of warm water and wait until the mixture becomes gel-like. After this, the most important stage follows - the gel needs to be rubbed in the hands until it turns into snow flakes.
This artificial snow is absolutely safe if you do not try it "by the tooth." So it’s better to look after the children while they make a snowman out of him or build a snow castle.
From shaving foam
It will take no more than five minutes to prepare snow in this way. The sequence of actions should be as follows:
- A lot of foam is squeezed out of the balloon into a wide container.
- Baking soda is poured into the foam.
- Hand mix the ingredients until they turn into a kind of snow. The mass should be slightly damp and well form in a lump. If the snow is too liquid, add a little more soda, and if too dry - dilute it with an additional portion of foam.
For drawing
You can’t draw with real snow, but artificial - easily. There are several options for making snow paint. The simplest of them involves the use of toothpaste (it should not be colored or gel). Squeeze the paste on a saucer and add dropwise water, mixing the mixture with a brush. When the consistency looks like thick sour cream, you can start drawing. The snow in the picture is textured and voluminous.
If there are young children in the house who do not yet understand the safety rules, as well as pets, then artificial snow should be used only in a place inaccessible to them. Despite the absence of toxic substances in the above recipes, with the accidental use of such snow inside, the consequences can be unpredictable.
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