You've probably already made beautiful things with all the chestnuts you collected. But if you still have a few left (or feel like collecting new ones), we would like to offer you this cool idea: paint the chestnuts with chalk markers! You can choose free patterns or cute animals and othersPaint motifs with chalk pencilsand create individual decorations. We are here for you if you have a few suggestions.
The spherical shape of the chestnuts is the perfect basefor hedgehogs, who increasingly visit us in our gardens in autumn to look for winter quarters. Add the finishing touches to the autumn fruits with simple chalk markers that you combine with black markers.
- Turn the light spot of the chestnut toward you.
- Draw a happy face and four legs on the spot.
- Then paint the dark part of the chestnut with simple strokes using the chalk pen.
Then make another nest
You can use the finished hedgehogs wonderfully for autumn decorations, but you have to display them properly. A great idea would be to create a hedgehog nest. To do this, use:
- a decorative bowl or an egg carton.
- Distribute colorful leaves in the selected container. Other autumnal natural materials such as grass fronds, sticks or dried berries on branches are also suitable.
- You can use the leaves whole or let them dry beforehand and crumble them into colorful confetti.
- If you wish, add a few unpainted chestnuts or ones with a (half-open) shell for an even more versatile overall picture.
Would you perhaps like to set up a real hedgehog house in your garden? Take a lookhere are a few ideasan!
Design snail shells out of chestnuts with chalk markers
We recently showed you how to...without drilling snails with chestnutscan craft. Today we're going a little step further by additionally designing the friendly snail shell.
You need:
- Plasticine (classic plasticine or craft clay)
- Chestnuts
- Chalk markers in any color
- Googly eyes
- Material for the antennae: tiny sticks (also with buds), delicate flowering branches (e.g. gypsophila) or elongated leaves
How to paint the snail shells with chalk pencils and put the snails together:
- Draw spirals of any colors on two opposite sides of the chestnuts. You can then color these in or design them with dots and other patterns.
- First form a ball out of the modeling clay and then form a roll between your palms. This should not be too long so that the part can stand upright and not fall to the side under its own weight.
- Press the chestnut lightly into the roll, with the spirals pointing to the sides.
- Bend your head up.
- Make the head with the googly eyes and materials for the feelers.
Make your own penguin or owl
This idea can also be implemented with acrylic paints, so you have a free choice of colors. Depending on whether you want to get penguins or owls, simply paint the eyes larger or smaller accordingly. The large eyes are characteristic of owls.
- You can decorate any area of the chestnut tree in white chalk paint. It's best to choose the light spot so that you have a light background that can be covered with white more easily.
- Allow the paint to dry.
- Using black and orange paint, paint the eyes and beak on the white face.
How you can use the figures as window decorations
As already mentioned, you can display the chestnuts designed with window chalk in a decorative bowl. But that's not the only option. How about creating a cool window decoration by hanging it?
- For this purpose, drill a hole through the chestnut before designing. The two openings should face up and down (keep this in mind when designing afterwards).
- Thread string through the hole. If necessary, you can use a needle to do this.
- Tie a knot on the bottom to prevent the string from slipping back through the hole while hanging. If the thread is too thin to form a thick enough knot, you can also tie a stick, a piece of toothpick/match, or a bead to act as a stopper. A dab of glue should also hold the cord firmly enough.
- Now design your chestnuts as you wish.
- Hang them on the curtain rod, preferably at different heights, for acute autumn window decoration.
