A STEM Project: An Amazing Slice Form Flower Arrangement in a Slice Form Vase

A Slice Form Flower Arrangement in a Slice Form Vase

Slice Form Flower Arrangement in a Slice Form Vase

I love this slice form flower arrangement. The entire arrangement when completed is nine inches in height. I have included many sizes of slice form flowers in the .Studio and SVG file.  I will not be creating a PDF for this posting as there are too many flowers and combinations of flowers and centers. Please use my arrangement as a guide to make your own special arrangement.  It is a very rewarding experience to create such beauty.

Examples of my slice form flowers in the file.

The basis of these flowers was a torus that I modified.  The size of each flower can not be altered because the slices need to be a specific size so that the pieces can slide into one another. There are two types of flower, a three slit version and a four slit version.  I recommend starting with the three slit version as it is the simplest to put together.

Here is the .Studio file.  I used 110 lb. cardstock for the vase and 65lb. cardstock for the flowers.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/11Brk8KzX6rWa6flzECmvRX5g5s8VVVcP/view?usp=sharing

Here is the SVG.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/16y4rreNhjntgBd6ZLoxNdtXjaklWC8p_/view?usp=sharing

Make the Vase

Bend the tabs of the buds at a right angle. Glue two of the vase pieces together.

The slice will look like the above photo. Repeat to make six slices.

Slide the bud slices onto the circle slices. There are five circles with three being small ones.  The order of the circles, starting from the top, is small, large, large, small and small

Completed vase

Make the Flowers

There are two types of flower pieces, a upward slit and a downward slit. The pieces are alternated as they are slid into one another and stacked together. There are eight of each type in this three slit design. (There is one flower that has twelve of each type.)  

I recommend starting with a center slit as shown above.

Continue adding the slices to create the above pattern.

Once completed, there will be a stack of slices.

I added a hole to each slice so that a thread could be used to make the center of the flower smaller.

Once the thread is sewn through all of the slices, flex the flower into a circle and slide the remaining two slices into one another.  Pull the thread tight and knot it.  The flower is now ready to be added to your vase.

Assemble the Flowers

Place the flower on the stem.

Make a center for the flower.

Completed center of the flower.

Apply glue to the circular bud area and adhere the center of the flower.

Move the slice form flower to the center of the flower. I added a glue dot to make sure that the flower wouldn't move.

Completed flower with center.

Continue adding flowers until the arrangement is complete.

Completed Flower Arrangement

A STEM Project: A Mechanical Cartoon Hand Extender or Clapper

A Mechanical Cartoon Hand Extender or Clapper

When the hand is fully extended, it is 18 inches long.  

As a child, I remember seeing a cartoon with these hand extenders and I thought it would be fun to replicate them. This clapper consists of a scissor action mechanism which extends the hands by pulling the handle together. To retract the hand, pull the handle apart.

Here is the PDF.   I used 65 lb. cardstock and Silhouette brand chipboard. Seven regular sized brads are needed to make this hand extender. I purchased them at Walmart.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1plVG9WbcvFoXR0CwQCSGUPKS6YaLke_4/view?usp=sharing

Here is the .Studio file. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1itsxlRuH8__a2WDNBdL1RxYsyi4RvihT/view?usp=sharing

Here is the SVG.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KbeJLRejqZrscgafzfwj2-fQWaTyKmTy/view?usp=sharing

Layout the handle and slit arm as above.

Glue them together to sandwich the chipboard.

Layout the arm as above.

Glue them together to sandwich the chipboard.

Layout the hands as above. Make sure that the corresponding pieces match as there is a right and wrong way because there is a thumb.

Glue them together to sandwich the chipboard. Layout the corresponding gloves.

Glue the gloves on the hand. Wrap the band around the piece, bend the tab and apply glue to the tab as shown on the right to form a circular cuff.

Attach to the other side to make the circular cuff. Repeat for the other hand.

Layer the handle pieces as shown above.  The left piece is on top of the right piece. Attach a brad to the hole in the middle.

Layer an arm piece. The left piece is on top of the right piece. Attach a brad the the hole in the middle. Attach a brad to both sides of the arm at the bottom.  Again, the left piece is on top of the right piece.

Layer slit arm. The left piece is on top of the right piece. Attach a brad the the hole in the middle. Attach a brad to both sides of the arm at the bottom.  Again, the left piece is on top of the right piece.

Slide the hand assembly onto the slit arm on both sides.

Completed Mechanical Cartoon Hand Extender or Clapper

Please note:  The extended hand does bend because the chipboard is not sturdy enough.  I recommend another layer or two of chipboard if you think it bends too much.  However the slit in the hand would need to be expanded to accommodate the added thickness.

A STEM Project: An Amusement Park Arcade Game made with a 3D Mechanical Claw

 A claw is a mechanical device that can grab or pick up objects.  In my previous blog posting I made a simple mechanical claw and a 3D mechanical claw.  https://papercraftetc.blogspot.com/2021/07/a-stem-project-simple-mechanical-claw.html In the this posting, I will make an amusement park arcade game using a smaller version of the 3D mechanical claw. 

The claw game is made up of two boxes that are glued together.  The boxes were designed with triangular supports to make the box sturdy. The upper box has a track that the claw must follow. The claw is used to pick up pompoms and deliver them to the trap door area. When the claw is released, the pompom falls into the dispenser area to reward the player. 

An Amusement Park Arcade Game made with a 3D Mechanical Claw

The claw in action.  Push down on the claw arm to pick up the pompom and push up to release the pompom.

Here is the PDF.   I used 65 lb. cardstock. Six mini sized brads are needed to make this 3D mechanical claw. I purchased the mini brads at Michaels.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZpJGmr0wHs8rAwyp9sO8VIr4kIO05sx-/view?usp=sharing

Here is the .Studio file. 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Tut_xF-pBNZsY8FIdw78M7wlDxcEg6Gh/view?usp=sharing

Here is the SVG.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/10P0X6ErGObEu4KP4IvP2psWy2NSDdWDy/view?usp=sharing

Make the Upper Box

Layout the pieces to make the upper box.

 Crease all of the dotted lines of the box sides as shown above on the left.  Apply glue to the top window tab as shown. The glue is not placed in the triangular area on each side of the tab.  These triangles need to be left unglued so that an adjoining piece will be slid into this area. Adhere the glued tab so that it looks like the piece on the above right. Repeat for the second side. Set these two pieces aside.

Crease all of the dotted lines of the upper box except the trap door.  It is best to leave this uncreased until the end because you want to be able to angle the trap door correctly.

Apply glue to the upper tab of the window.

Adhere the upper and apply glue to the lower tab of the window as shown above.

Adhere the window at a right angle to the trap door base.

Apply glue to the three tabs on the trap door base and the bottom tab of the side window.

Adhere the bottom tab of the trap door base to the side piece.  Slide the left tab of the trap door base piece into the side piece as shown above.

One side has been inserted. Repeat for the other side.

Adhere the side window tab to the base.

Completed side. Repeat the above steps to adhere the other side.

Apply glue to the top of the trap door base.

Adhere the track piece on top of the trap door base.  Set this aside.

Make the Lower Box 

Layout the pieces to make the lower box.

 Crease the dotted lines of the box sides as shown above on the right and apply glue  as shown. The glue is not placed in the triangular area on each side of the tab.  These triangles need to be left unglued so that an adjoining piece will be slid into this area. Adhere the glued tab so that it looks like the piece on the above left. Repeat for the second side. Set these two pieces aside.

Crease all of the dotted lines of the lower box.

Apply glue to the bottom tab of the window. Adhere it to the base of the lower box.

Apply glue to the upper back tab of the box as shown. The glue is not placed in the triangular area on each side of the tab These triangles need to be left unglued so that an adjoining piece will be slid into this area. 

Apply glue to the three tabs on the side of the lower box.

This tab is slid into the side of the box as shown above.

Glue the top triangle.

Adhere the triangle and repeat the above procedure to glue the other side of the box.

Completed lower box.

Apply glue to the upper edge of the lower box.

Adhere the upper box onto the lower box.

Make the 3D Mechanical Claw

This claw uses mini sized brads which I purchased at Michaels.

Layout the pieces to make the small 3D mechanical claw and six mini brads.

Bend the semicircle(dotted line) at the bottom of each claw at a right angle to the claw.  Glue two of the claws together to make a two layered claw with a circular base.

Crease the body and pull arm pieces as shown.

Insert a brad into the hole of the body piece as shown above. Repeat for the other two holes.

Insert the arm in the upper hole of the brad. Repeat for the other two holes.

Splay the brad apart and put one prong on each side of the hole as shown above.  Repeat for the other two brads.

Cut the prongs of the brad to size.

Insert a brad through the other arm hole and them through the slider section of the body.

Put the pull arm piece on top and thread the brad through the pull arm hole.

Splay the brads and cut the prongs to size.

Apply glue to the two tabs on the triangles and the tab on the pull arm. Adhere together to form a triangular prism. Check the tension on the brads to make sure that the claw can freely move up and down.

Splay the center tabs of the triangle upward and apply glue inside the tabs.

Adhere the circle as shown above.

Apply glue to the circles and adhere together. Please wait for the glue to dry before operating the claw.

To close the 3D Mechanical Claw, pull downwards.

  To open the 3D Mechanical Claw, pull upwards.

Insert the claw into the box by lifting up one side of the H.

Add some pompoms and you are ready to play.