Crafts Around The World: South Africa!

By guest blogger Se7en

Hello Crafty Crow readers all the way from South Africa,
which is a country at the very bottom of Africa. We live
in a country of huge diversity: ranging from desserts,
through grasslands to luscious forests; An enormous
variety of birds, animals, plants and sea life; and
more importantly a wide variety of people. You can
find people of every color, every race, and every belief
here. We have eleven official languages and countless
unofficial ones. Most people speak at least two, if not
three languages: their home language and English
and Afrikaans.It is a huge pot of different cultures,
not just from Africa but from around the world,
ranging from incredibly wealthy to unbelievably poor.
Because of the wide variety of people in our country
it is often referred to as the Rainbow Nation.

One thing about our rainbow nation is that it is not just
the people that are colorful we have the most amazing
street art. With vendors on every corner and at every
stoplight hoping to sell you the latest crafty idea. So we
went on a photographic tour of street art looking for a
craft we could share with you all. Most of the pavement
crafts are made from easily found recyclable products.
There are wire crafts, tin can crafts, bead crafts and glass
crafts and so on. We wanted a craft that you could all
enjoy wherever you are in the world and this leather craft
seemed like a good one to share, but we reckoned you
probably didn't all have leather lying around your homes
so we made them out of stiff cardboard from a couple of
old boxes. This is what you are aiming for:

We started out with animals:

We quickly moved on to Rainbow people and
here's how in Se7en Steps:

1. We first made a template of the shapes we would
   need to build our people.



2. We traced the template onto thick cardboard.



3. This was followed by a frenzy of snipping.



4. And out came the paints.





5. Then we had a table full of puzzle
   pieces waiting to dry.




6. For the next step we used a hammer and a nail to
   make holes in our bits and pieces and then poked
   split pins (brads) through the holes to
   finish them up.






7. Finally we dressed them, with fabric scraps and
   definitely no sewing!!! Just wrap around or snip
   slits for arms. We pinned them on with beady pins
   (a South African Craft wouldn't be complete
   without beads somewhere!!!).

And we were done, se7en rainbow people:

With love from Se7en and the Rainbow Nation!!!
---
South Africa is brought to you by Se7en.
She's an amazing blogger that also homeschools
her eight children. She writes about all of their
adventures in and around Cape Town and
frequently shares tutorials so you can join in
their crafting and cooking fun too. I don't know
how she does it all but her cheerful and gung-ho
attitude always make it a pleasure to read.

If you have any questions about South Africa
please leave them in the comments in the
next few days and Se7en will answer them!
---

Links of Interest:

South Africa at Wikipedia
South Africa at The World Factbook