DIY Coloring book/painting of your pet (no drawing skills required!)

Here's an easy, simple way to turn a photo of your pet into a work of art! For this tutorial, I will be using GIMP 2.0, a free photo editing program that you can download here. Although I am using GIMP, this process can be done in most other photo editing programs such as Photoshop.

Let's get started!

*Click the images to enlarge

1.

Open up GIMP, click on File>Open and select the picture you will be using. I'll be using a picture of this kitten.

2.

Once your picture is open in GIMP, you want to turn it into a black and white photo. To do this, click on Colors>Desaturate. 

3.

On the right side of the screen, you'll find the layers panel. Right click your layer and duplicate it.

4.

Next, you'll want to invert the color of the top layer. With the top layer selected, click on Colors>Invert. 

5.

The top layer should still be selected in this step. At the top of the layers panel, you should see a "Mode: Normal". Open up the drop down menu and select Dodge. This should make your picture very faint.

6.

Right click the top layer and select merge down. This should leave you with one single layer.

7.

Now we want to make the image more visible. Click on Colors>Curves. Play around with the curve until you reach a point where the image is lightly colored but still visible.

8. Lastly, we want to click on File>Export As, and save your image.


Now you can print your picture out and use it as a coloring page
OR
Save your photo onto a flash drive and bring it into Walmart. You can choose to print your photo on a canvas and bring it home to paint yourself!

Good luck and have fun!

Rat paw print art DIY

Rats are playful and curious creatures. I own two 7-month-old rat brothers (Timmy, the black hooded rat, and Butters, the double rex) and I can tell you that they love running around and having fun. This morning, I decided to do this little DIY project with them. As many rat owners know, rats have fairly short life spans (about 2-3 years) so you want to make the most of the time they're here. I thought, what better way to remember them by than doing a fun, creative project with them!

I suggest only doing this project with tamed and healthy rats that don't mind being picked up and handled

Here are the materials you need:

• Canvas paper (this is what I used) or any thick, durable paper like cardstock
• A NON-TOXIC watercolor paint
• Newspaper to avoid spills and messes
• Some fun-loving ratties

First, lay out some newspaper on the floor and place the paper on the newspaper. Add water to the watercolor palettes, but make sure they aren't too wet or the prints will become watery. Also try keep the paint away from the rats (Timmy attempted to drink the watercolor).

Take your rat and gently place his paws onto the watercolor. Next, set him down on the paper and allow him to walk around (use treats to guide him if you'd like!). Repeat this process for as many different colors as you'd like. Remember that rats lose interest and patience fairly quickly. To avoid frustration in your rats, try to keep the length of this project under five minutes. 

After you're all done, rinse off their paws and give them lots of treats as a reward!

Now you have your own piece of rattie art!

Butters( left) and Timmy (Right)

Thanks for reading!