Mixed Media Fun With Spirographs

Everything old is new again – including toys! Did you have a Spirograph as a kid? (Did you find it fun or frustrating?) 😉

During one of our Mandala Madness Show ‘n Share sessions, Jennifer (a super creative class member) showed us her Spirograph Cyclex and explained how she used it in conjunction with drawing Mandalas. I don't know whether or not to thank Jennifer for enabling a whole new artistic addiction! 😉 Seriously, I've had more fun figuring out how to use this new-to-me toy! It's a bit like patting my head and rubbing my stomach, but it's portability totally made the learning curve worth it to me.

The Spirograph Shape Set is much different than the Cyclex. The box contains several large and many small pieces. As I began figuring out how to use all the pieces, I realized that patience was a virtue. 😉 The key to success, for me, is to relax and have fun and to remember that it's only a piece of paper if my pen slips and ruins a design.

I found that I couldn't tell by looking at the disks what the patterns might be. I had to play with them and enjoy the surprises they contained. Making designs with the various disks from the Shape Set and labeling proved to be a handy reference. You can see some of my experiments, including black and white card stock with Gelly Roll Moonlight pens. Yummy!

Just click the image to see examples of my test designs in detail.

For me, I'm the most creative when I feel free to play and experiment. Although I spend many hours each week on computers, recording videos, writing class notes, etc., I always squeeze in creative time. It's what keeps me sane and filled up and happy. Grabbing a few colorful pens and my Spirograph and I'm lost in my own little world for a while and that makes ME and much better ME!