Statuettes in the form of African women were brought to Europe from Africa in 1900. People of that time believed that these figures were amulets that attracted happiness. Only a rich person could buy such a statuette. Today, you don’t have to pay a fortune for such a talisman. You can make it yourself from newspaper tubes.
Materials and tools
The list of tools and materials required for the work, as well as their purpose, can be viewed in the table.
| Newsprint | Required to create tubes |
| Long knitting needle with a diameter of 1.5 mm | Needed for rolling newspaper strips into even tubes. |
| Stationery knife | For quick cutting of paper. |
| Scissors | Useful for cutting pipes. |
| PVA glue | Needed to fix the ends of the tubes. |
| Set of soft bristled art brushes | For applying PVA glue and painting the product with paints. |
| Hot glue | Required for assembly of the product. |
| Cardboard for children's creativity | Needed to form the hem of an African dress. |
| Thick two-layer cardboard | To decorate the bottom of the doll. |
| Compass | To draw even circles on cardboard. |
| Masking tape | It is required to connect some elements of the product and level their surfaces. |
| White paper napkins | For pasting the head of an African woman |
| Simple pencil | Required for creating markings on thin cardboard. |
| Ruler | To measure some details |
| Transparent glue "Moment" | Needed for quick fixing of small parts and fastening of decorative elements. |
An African woman made from newspaper tubes will turn out bright and beautiful if you paint it with acrylic paints. To prevent the letters printed on the newspaper from showing through the paint, the product should be covered with acrylic primer or a thick layer of white paint before painting.
What colors of paint are needed for coloring:
- black;
- red;
- copper;
- white.
If desired, you can replace these shades with others. The main thing is to paint the open areas of the figurine's body in dark colors so that it resembles an African woman.
Experienced masters of newspaper tube weaving advise to cover the painted product with transparent acrylic varnish. This is necessary so that the craft lasts as long as possible. Without a varnish coating, the paint may crack or lighten from exposure to sunlight.
African women love large and beautiful jewelry, so decor is an important part of making a figurine from newspaper tubes.
What can be used to decorate the craft:
- beads;
- sewing threads;
- scraps of thin copper wire;
- large wooden beads;
- pieces of thin satin ribbons;
- newspaper tube cuttings;
- narrow lace ribbons.
The decor should match the product in color. In the master class presented later in the article, materials of red, white, black and copper colors were used.
Preparing newspaper tubes
An African woman made from newspaper tubes will turn out beautiful if you twist the tubes carefully.
How to do it:
- Place the newspaper on the table. If it is too thick, you will have to pull out half of the sheets to make the paper easier to cut.
- Fold the newspaper in half horizontally.
- Smooth the fold line with your palm.
- Extend the blade of a utility knife, insert it inside the fold and carefully cut the newspaper in half.
- Fold the paper vertically again and cut along the fold line. You should get strips 8-10 cm wide.
- You can start rolling the tubes. It is advisable to lay a silicone mat on the table. It will prevent the paper from slipping and will make the rolling process easier.
- Place 1 strip horizontally in front of you. Place the knitting needle on its left corner from below, at an angle of 30 degrees. Start winding the paper onto the knitting needle, holding it with your fingers.
- The opposite end of the paper should be slightly pulled with the free hand. To prevent the newspaper from slipping, you can wet your fingertips with water.
- During the twisting process, the angle of the spoke should not change, otherwise kinks and large turns will form on the tube.
- When the end of the newspaper strip is wound around the knitting needle, you need to press it with your hands, like a rolling pin when rolling out dough, and wind the rest of the paper, leaving the very top corner uncurled.
- Apply a drop of glue to this corner with a thin brush, spread it and twist the tube to the end.
- Hold the sealed tip with your fingers for better fixation.
- Carefully remove the knitting needle from the paper.
- Twist all the other strips in the same way.
The tubes can be twisted in the air, but then it is harder to make them tight. Protruding coils and creases will spoil the appearance of the finished product. The paper vine should be smooth and even.
It is difficult to name the exact number of tubes. You always need spare ones, since some elements may not work the first time. It is advisable to wind more than 150 tubes, so as not to be distracted by making a new vine at other stages of making an African.
Making an African
The process of making an African woman figurine:
- Bend 2 tubes in half.
- Glue their bent ends tightly with 2 new tubes in a circle. This is the base of the figurine's head. To fix the ends of the tubes more securely, you can drop "Moment" on them.
- Take 2 new tubes. Grease their ends from the inside with PVA glue. Insert 1 tube into the other. Wait for the glue to dry.
- Move apart the tubes sticking out from the bottom of the workpiece so that 2 pieces remain at the top and bottom.
- Insert a long tube between them. These will be the African's hands. The place where the 2 tubes join into 1 should be hidden.
- Fix the crossed tubes with a drop of glue.
- To make the body frame, take 8 tubes. Bend 4 of them in half and glue them over the "arms" on the left side. Glue the remaining 4 tubes in the same way, placing them on the right side.
- At the bottom, secure all the tubes into 1 large bundle using masking tape.
- You need to make a bodice out of 2 tubes, wrapping them tightly around the African woman's chest. It is advisable to secure the ends of each tube with "Moment".
- Glue 2 new strips crosswise, wrapping around the shoulders and neck of the figurine. These will be the straps on the bodice. The ends of these tubes should meet at the back. If there is excess, it should be cut with scissors.
- Put the tube blank aside for now. Take a sheet of thin cardboard and draw a circle on it, 25 cm in diameter, using a compass.
- Cut out the circle with scissors.
- Roll the cardboard circle into a cone. Secure the joints of the cardboard with masking tape.
- Place the resulting cone on the table and smooth it out slightly.
- Using a ruler and a simple pencil, mark a straight line on the wide edge of the workpiece.
- Cut off the bottom of the cone. Check its stability by straightening the cardboard and placing it on the table. Trim off any excess if necessary.
- Place the workpiece back on the table. Press down. Measure 2 cm down from the top end, draw a horizontal line.
- Cut off the tip of the cone along the marked line.
- Straighten out the cardboard blank and place it on the table.
- Insert the tube blank into the top hole.
- Tape the cardboard to the tubes with masking tape. This creates the shape of a fluffy skirt.
- Use a ruler to measure the diameter of the bottom of the skirt.
- Glue a ring from 5 tubes equal to the diameter of the skirt hem. For convenience, you can use a mug or a bottle of a suitable diameter. Dry the finished element.
- Grease the inside of the cardboard skirt with PVA glue, glue the ring of tubes so that there is a free edge of cardboard (5 mm) at the bottom.
- Cut 15 squares measuring 6x6 cm from thin cardboard.
- Cut all squares diagonally.
- Roll up the resulting triangles into cones. Secure the edges of the cardboard with scraps of masking tape.
- Using hot glue, attach all the cones to the bottom edge of the cardboard skirt, with the pointed ends facing up.
- Measure the length of the skirt from the waist to the bottom edge with a ruler. Cut about 40 tubes of the desired size. Glue them onto the skirt, placing them between the cones. The tubes should tightly cover the cardboard from which the skirt is made, so if necessary, you can cut a few more.
- The tube cuts in the waist area need to be closed by tightly wrapping them in a circle with 3 long tubes. The ends of the tubes need to be secured with "Moment".
- Cover the African woman's head with masking tape in a circle in 3 layers. Cut off the excess with scissors.
- Tear 5 napkins into pieces 1-2 cm in size.
- Coat the masking tape with PVA glue.
- Cover the head of the figurine with napkins in 3 layers so that its surface is smooth.
- Dry the workpiece.
- Twist a circle from 10-12 tubes. Before twisting, all tubes should be soaked in PVA glue.
- While the glue is still wet, use your fingers to push the center of the circle slightly to create a recess for the head. This will be the African woman's hat. You need to try it on the figurine while the tubes can still move, so you can adjust the depth of the recess.
- Dry the hat. Glue it to the African woman's head with hot glue.
- On double-layer cardboard, using a compass, draw a circle equal to the diameter of the bottom of the skirt.
- Cut out the blank, glue it to the bottom of the doll with hot glue. Thick cardboard will make the figurine stable.
The African woman made of newspaper tubes is almost ready. All that's left is to paint her.
Procedure:
- Apply a thin layer of acrylic primer or white paint to the dry craft. For convenience, you can use a large brush with soft bristles.
- Dry the craft.
- Paint the exposed areas of the African woman's body black. The paint should be applied in 2 layers, using a medium-thick brush.
- Paint the skirt red. You need to paint the inside of the cardboard cones that imitate the lush hem so that the unpainted material is not visible from different angles.
- Paint the bodice red and the crossed straps white using a thin brush.
- Paint the belt and hat with copper paint.
- Using a thin brush, paint a border on the edges of the hat with white paint, as well as along the bottom edge of the skirt, going onto the small cones.
It is advisable to use soft-bristled brushes for applying paint, as they penetrate hard-to-reach places and small cracks more easily. Painting with a hard brush will be of lower quality.
After the paint dries, cover the craft with colorless acrylic varnish. Experienced craftsmen advise buying varnish in a spray can. It is much more convenient to apply than regular varnish in a can.
Decor
An African woman made from newspaper tubes will not look elegant without jewelry and beautiful accessories.
How to decorate the craft:
- earrings made of thin wire and beads;
- beads;
- a brooch made of satin and lace ribbons, as well as beads;
- bracelets made from scraps of newspaper tubes.
You can also make a fashionable bag that matches the color of your outfit.
How to make a bag:
- Cut out 2 rectangles measuring 2x4 cm from thick cardboard.
- You also need to cut out a triangle, one of its sides should be equal to 4 cm.
- Glue the rectangles together with PVA glue. Glue a triangle on top, connecting its longest side to the edge (4 cm) of 1 of the rectangles. Dry the workpiece under a press (you can use a stack of books).
- After the glue has dried, cover the corrugated edges of the cardboard with pieces of masking tape.
- Paint the workpiece with copper paint on all sides. Leave to dry.
- Cut 2 pieces from a thin black lace ribbon and glue them to the lower edges of the triangle on the bag. You can use Moment glue for this. 2-3 drops are enough to securely fix the fabric.
- Paint a piece of newspaper tube, about 5 cm long, red. After drying, glue it to the bag like a handle, using Moment glue.
- Cover the product with varnish.
- Using tweezers and Moment glue, glue several red beads onto the bag in a random order.
- Put the African woman's hand through the handle of the bag, secure the tip of the hand to the belt with "Moment".
The other arm can be attached to the brim of the hat at the front in a similar manner.
How to make earrings:
- Take 2 pieces of thin copper wire about 5 cm long.
- String 5 red beads onto each segment.
- Wind the wire and beads onto a pencil.
- Carefully remove the rings from the pencil. Secure the ends of the wire with a drop of hot glue.
Glue the earrings to the sides of the African woman's head using Moment glue.
How to make beads from beads:
- String several red and white beads onto a piece of sewing thread, one after the other.
- Place beads on the neck of the figurine.
- Tie the threads with a double knot.
- Trim off any protruding ends with scissors.
Large beads can be strung between the beads. The remaining beads can be glued to the hem of the skirt in a chaotic manner using tweezers.
How to make a brooch from 2 thin satin ribbons and 5 wooden beads:
- Use a tape measure to measure the circumference of the hat where the brim ends.
- Cut a piece of thin black lace ribbon.
- Tighten the ribbon around the hat.
- Secure the edges of the ribbon with hot glue.
- Tie each satin ribbon into a bow.
- Place the bows on top of each other so that the loops face in different directions.
- Tie them together with sewing thread or glue them together with hot glue.
- The brooch will be located on the hat, where the ends of the lace ribbon meet.
- Use Moment glue to glue the ribbons to the hat.
- Glue 4 beads to the hat, placing them between the loops of the bow.
The last bead is fixed in the center of the decoration. The beads can be painted in colors that match the outfit.
How to make bracelets:
- 3 pieces of newspaper tubes, 2 cm long, flatten, pressing them to the table with a ruler.
- Paint them with copper paint using a thin brush.
- After drying, spray the blanks with varnish.
- Wrap the tube pieces around the pencil to form rings.
- Place the bracelets on the hand of the figurine that holds the hat.
- Carefully glue the ends of the rings together using Moment glue.
The joints of the ends of the tubes can be covered with small beads, gluing them with Moment using tweezers.
Additionally, you can decorate the African woman's face with eyelashes. To do this, you will need 1 arch with false eyelashes, tweezers and Moment glue.
Procedure:
- The arc needs to be cut in half.
- Make marks on the African woman's face with a simple pencil to arrange the eyelashes symmetrically.
- Take 1 arc with tweezers, coat it with glue and attach it to the marked place.
- Wait 5 seconds for secure fixation.
- Glue the 2nd arch with eyelashes in the same way.
Apply the glue very carefully so as not to glue the eyelashes together. It is not difficult to take care of the African woman made of newspaper tubes. It is enough to brush off the dust with a soft brush during the weekly cleaning of the entire apartment. To prevent the paint from fading as long as possible, the figurine should be protected from direct sunlight.
Video about the craft
African woman made from newspaper tubes: