Have you ever taken a pen – whether it works or not – and used it to write on aluminum foil? It doesn’t take much effort to make an imprint on the foil. When you use foil to wrap a gift you can quickly make hearts, write a message, or otherwise embellish the foil by using a pen. Did you know there are other metals on which you can write or draw? Aluminum is one such metal which can be used to create unique pieces of art. If you use aluminum soda or beer cans, don’t throw them away, make artwork for friends or yourself.
Cut the top and bottom off of the chosen can by using a sharp knife or scissors. It’s important that the edges be smooth and straight. Cut the can down one side and open it up to be a flat piece of metal.
The aluminum piece continues to try to curl. You can place heavy books on it for awhile and get it to lay straight. Or, go ahead and make your art, and put it in a frame, and that will prevent it from curling. You can use books along the edges to hold the metal down as you do the artwork.
Go online and find a poem, a picture, or even an excerpt from your favorite book. Re-size it to fit the aluminum piece; measure the aluminum so you’ll know what size to print the image. Print it out on regular printer paper.
Lay the paper on the aluminum – taping it in place can be quite helpful. Trace the image on the paper with a ballpoint pen, pressing down as you write or draw, to transfer the image to the aluminum.
The aluminum picture or poem is really nice but you can enhance it in many ways. For example, you can attach a piece of peel-n-stick magnetic sheeting and hang the artwork on the fridge. Or, cover the edges of the aluminum with colored tape to create a colorful frame. Or, just slide the image into a picture frame and hang it on a wall.
You can easily change the color of the aluminum when you use spray paint which is made especially for metal. Do the embossing first, then paint, for best results.
With the aluminum artwork you can make a special poem, a nursery picture, a child’s cartoon character picture, a kitchen “Welcome” sign, and much more. You’ll love this easy technique which helps you recycle aluminum cans while making beautiful artwork.