Kids Calder Mobile – Todd Oldham’s craft ideas for homemade gifts

Make Alexander Calder's famous mobile.

By Todd Oldham | December 11th, 2009 at 12:00 am

Alexander Calder was the king of mobiles. This center-hung mobile is a breeze to balance.

Assorted colors of adhesive foam
6 feet of string
Scissors
Wire cutters
2 wire hangers

Ask an adult to cut 2 hangers using wire cutters into 3 pieces each. 4 short and 2 long total.
Place two sheets of adhesive foam back to back. Cut through both layers of foam at the same time, making leaf-like oval shapes in various sizes. You’ll need a total of 12 pairs.
Remove the sticker from the back of the foam piece and lay a wire 1 1/2 inches in. Remove the sticker on the matching piece and stick the two together.
Match similar-sized foam shapes to the ends of each wire. Make a slight bend in the middle of each wire and stack them as shown.
Double-knot at the bottom of the wires, bend and trim. Tie knots around the wires every few inches, leaving 4 feet on the end for hanging. Adjust the balance by lightly bending the wires.

For more great kids crafts check out Kid Made Modern.

Distinguished as an innovator of accessible design, Todd Oldham is the founder of Todd Oldham Studio. Originally a New York fashion designer, Oldham is currently the mentor on Top Design, Bravo's interior design series. Oldham's career has evolved to include all areas of design, from interior design, film and photography, to furniture, graphic art, and a collection of floral designs for FTD.com. In 2002 and 2003, Oldham designed his own line of dorm room furnishings for Target. In the spring of 2008, Oldham launched his new line of floor coverings, called T.O.D.D (Todd Oldham Designs Durkan).

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