Dave DiNaso's Traveling World of Reptiles

This Saturday we had Dave DiNasso stop by for his unforgettable Traveling World of Reptiles. This has got to by my favorite event to photograph, by far. Enjoy!

MD

^Brave Soul Award goes to...

DIY: Make Your Own Soap (With Creature Inside!)

Here is what we used:

Supplies 

1. Glycerin blocks (unscented)

2. Microwave safe measuring cups

3. Skin-safe coloring

4. Skin-safe scents (in droppers)

5. Plastic mold trays

6. Vaseline 

7. Alcohol (in spray bottle)

8. Small plastic toys (to fit in mold)

9. Patience

10. More Patience

How to make your own soap.

1. Cut Glycerin Blocks into Cubes: Glycerin comes in large blocks. You want to cut your blocks into small pieces, like cheese cubes. We had 18 participants, and used two large blocks of glycerin. (Each block at 2 lbs each.)

2. Grease Plastic Mold: Take the plastic mold you will pour your liquidized glycerin in, and coat the inside of the mold with a thin layer of Vaseline. This will prevent the hot glycerin from clinging to the walls of the plastic mold. 

3. Melt Glycerin in Microwave: Melt glycerin in microwave safe measuring cups. Melting time will depend on the amount of glycerin blocks/microwave wattage. Your best bet for effectively melting the blocks (without overheating) is setting the microwave for a minute, and watching the blocks crumple, and melt. Once the blocks are liquidized, wait a few seconds. Then press STOP. 

Do not allow the glycerin to boil. 

4. Choose Scent, Color. and Animal for Soap: While the glycerin heats, students should choose a scent, color, and small plastic toy to go inside their soap bar.

5. Pour Glycerin into Soap Mold: Pour liquid glycerin into mold. Work quickly to incorporate about ten drops of the skin-safe scent, and 2-4 drops of skin-safe color. Stir in mold.

6. Place plastic toy in soap: Wait until film develops on the top of soap. Spray the plastic toy that will go inside the soap with alcohol, to eliminate air bubbles that can form around it. When a firm but thin film develops, use a plastic knife to push film aside, and insert toy into soap, and under the film. 

7. Finishing Touches: Spray top of soap (lightly) with alcohol to eliminate air bubbles. Alcohol can also be sprayed between multiple colors of glycerin, for a layered soap.

8. Drying: Allow glycerin to dry, and do leave mold to rest for several hours. The hardening process can be sped up by refrigeration.

MD

Note: 1. The best way to know how much glycerin to melt is to get a measurement of how much liquid your soap molds can hold. Pour water to fill your soap mold,, and then transfer that water to a measuring cup. This will give you an idea of how many glycerin cubes you must melt. 
2. Liquid glycerin solidifies quickly. Work fast!

DIY Stepping Stone Workshop (And How-To)

Today we took some concrete mix, water, some gems, seashells, and beads to make stepping stones. They came out great, and overall these stepping stones made for a really simple and unique crafting idea. 

Our recipe included a basic concrete mix (dry) purchased from a hardware store that we mixed with water in plastic buckets. We put on some masks, and kept stirring the mix until it could be poured into small aluminum pans. Once poured into pans, we allowed the concrete to sit for about before putting any decorative items on top. 

This extra sitting time allows the concrete to become more stiff, so when you put gems or beads on it, those small pieces won't sink in the muck. 

And without further ado, some pictures:

As you can see we had all age groups come out. It's a really fun craft to do, and it's surprisingly simple to do if you have extra stones, buttons, and gems lying about. But note these garden stones are largely for decoration. Anything more permanent would require broken tile. 

Other tips and suggestions: 

-Really make sure the concrete sits for an hour, or you have some method to remove access water from the concrete. (Dabbing with paper towels worked just fine.) After the surface of the concrete begins to stiffen, then apply the decorative items. 

-Press hard when applying gems, stones, beads, etc, into the mix. The more concrete they have holding them in, the more they will survive outside weather/wear and tear. 

-Let these stones dry for (at least) two days. Then, you can peel them out of the metal pans quite easily. Enjoy!

-MD