One day last week my little guy Nico approached me and asked if we could do some wood work. Always game to crack out my handy jigsaw I jumped at the chance.
We found some old pieces of wood from a previous project and Nico decided he wanted to draw a simple shape on the board to cut out with the saw. He opted for a fish.
We put on our protective gloves and goggles and started sawing away. It’s possible we even got a little carried away and sawed right into our outdoor wooden table (oops). Oh and due to some reckless sawing the fish became more of an eye (that fish tail kept getting in the way anyway).
After he had his desired shape (sort of) he decided to paint it. We got out some thick masking tape so that the lines would be well defined and got busy painting the different rings of colour. Due to the 40 degree heat it took less than a minute for each colour to dry so we could continue with the painting without having to wait around too much.
We loved ripping off the masking tape to find beautiful crisp clear lines on our wood. We continued the project off and on over the following days. The sisters decided to get involved as well so we have a beautiful collection of painted wooden pieces at the moment.
I loved watching the thought process that went into the colour combinations and their concentration while painting.
After they had finished painting their lines they sprayed their wooden pieces with special varnish. That way if we leave them hanging outside the paint will be more protected against harsh weather.
Nico’s tail-less fish. Or eye. Or whatever he wants it to be.
Jillian In Italy 
That’s it! I need to get my kids doing some woodworking. 😉
Nico’s tail-less fish/eye is pretty incredible! I am super impressed with his jigsaw handiwork. It’s far better than I could have done.
And I’m also intrigued by the squares. Did the girls paint them and then cut them down the middle? It’d make a cool puzzle or trivet. I love the simple design and bold color choice. Well done everyone!
Those saws are so much fun. I used to make painted wooden mushrooms and hide them all over my garden and in the chicken coop.
The big painted square cracked in half for some reason. But in the end it works out well. And I agree about making them into puzzles….it’s now on the list for the next rainy day!
Oh that’s so cute! And with a real electric jig saw! When I was his age, I was only allowed to use a fretsaw (which was fun though). Such a beautiful fish! I totally see another crafty project coming to create a colorful tale with strips of fabric… if it’s still a fish 😉
Oh nice. Strips of multicolored fabric hanging down would be so pretty. I’ll have to see if the boy agrees though….
a local artist makes wooden fish in a similar pattern -you might try experimenting with tail shapes. Anyway, the local artist’s aren’t nearly as interesting in use of colour and pattern. WOW
amaaaaaaaai
zo mooi
dat zou bij ons ook tof zijn in de tuin
proficiat nico een echte artist
mami