Transcripts
1. Introduction: Welcome to this class and how to make your own spinning tops. Did you know that
Topsy the monk, the oldest toys that
archaeologists have found. We like to think of them as
the original fidget spinners. Using some simple
materials and techniques, you can create these pretty and fun toys that you can enjoy. It will take you through everything you need
to do to make them. And you can follow
along step-by-step. We're excited for you
to join us and we'd love to see what you can
create in the class project
2. Cutting the pieces: The materials for this step, or a basswood ply
board, 2 mm thick. Scissors and exacto
knife, a pencil, a ruler, and the template, this we've printed from the
class resources section. You need to cut out the shape, cutting along the edges. This is what you'll use later on to trace onto the plywood. Next, you need to make a slit in the center so that you can mark where the center
is on the wood. It's important to mark
the center as accurately as possible because the
more centered or it is, the better your top will spend. Next, you're going to
take the board and trace the template onto
the board of three times. You'll cut out three of
the shapes and glue them together because this will
make a slightly thicker, heavier top that
spins for longer. You can experiment with using more or less layers of wood
when you're making yours. If you start on
the edges like IM, you'll need to make
fewer cuts altogether. Also. You'll see that I'm going to line up
my shapes next to each other so that they share edges that will
save cuts as well. Don't forget to mark the center. And it's important
to get the center exactly in the middle.
So you're top spins. Well, I'll speed this
next part up for you so you don't have
to watch me trace out the rest at normal speed. Now, take the ruler and the exacto knife and start cutting along
the straight edges. Using the ruler can help
make straighter edges, especially for longer cuts. You'll see me going over the cut multiple times because the board is thick
enough to require it. I'm only going to make you
watch me cut one of these out since it goes the
same way for all of them. Let's speed this up. And that's it. The next step is to
glue it altogether
3. Gluing: In this step, we're going to
glue the pieces together. I have wood glue the three
pieces that I cut out. I have a sponge and
I have two clips. I'm just going to put
a glob of glue onto the piece and spread it
around with my sponge. I make sure that I
cover the whole thing, especially around the edges. Once I haven't even layer, I'll place another piece
on top aligning the sides. Now you should make sure
the side where you mark the middle ends
up on the outside so you can still see the mark. Repeat this step
for the last piece. Try to get the edges to line
up as much as possible. But if there's a little overlap or they aren't completely even, that's not a big
deal because we're going to be sending
in the next step. Finally, clamping down on both sides and
leave it overnight. You can use a heavy
weight as well. If you don't have clamps, just try to make
sure the pressure is as even as possible. Now this step is
done. We'll leave it overnight and the next step
will be to send the edges
4. Cutting the dowel: To make the axis for the top, we'll use a towel to
prepare the devil. You'll need sandpaper. Then you'll need
bypass printers. They're designed for cutting
through small sticks, which makes them ideal
for cutting dowels. But you can use an exact knife if you're
Dallas thin enough. We're using a
quarter-inch towel, but other sizes will
work as long as you have the right size
drill bit to the next step. You'll also need a ruler
and a pencil sharpener. First, you want to
measure your dowel. We're going to cut
this one to 4 ". Now cut it with the
bypass printers. Once it's cut, sand
off any rough edges. Next, use the pencil
sharpener to put a point on the end of the dowel to help the top to spin better. It's a good idea to leave a bit of a flat surface on the tip. Otherwise, it won't have enough of a surface
to balance on. Once you've got that done, you can move on
to the next step.
5. Sanding: In this step, we
will send the edges of the top two even
and smooth them out. You'll need the top that
you glued together. And that piece of sandpaper first released the clamps
and set them aside. Next, sand the sides or the top. If you had lots of overlap
when you glue them together, this process may take awhile, but really just send
them until you're happy. We'd like to round the corners as well, but you don't have to. We're using 150 grit sandpaper, but the exact number doesn't matter as long as
it smooths it out. In this step is done. Next, we will drill a hole in
the center at the top
6. Drilling the hole: In this step, we
will drill a hole in the center of our top for
the Delta go through. You will need a drill
with a drill bit that is the same
diameter as your dowel. We're using a
quarter-inch scale, so we have a
quarter-inch drill bit. You'll need your standard
top and we're using a block of scrap what
to protect our table. You'll also need your Dowell
to test if it please, your top onto the scrap of wood. And make sure when
you're drilling, you go right through the
center and straight down. Otherwise, the top may
wobble as it spins. Check the fit, then give it a test to make sure it's spins nicely. And that step is done.
7. Staining: In this step, we will be putting a base coat of color on top. You'll need some kind
of paint or wood stain. Here, I'm using
liquid watercolor, since it's nice and vibrant and let the wood
grain show through. I also have a brush, some paper to protect my table. The two pieces that
will become the top. There's no big technique here. Just brushed the
stain on and try to keep your hands as
clean as you can. Something to mention about
liquid watercolor is that it can reactivate when you're putting the glaze on top. If that happens to you, you may need to touch
up the declaration after you seal the top. We've tried oil-based would saints and found they
do not have this issue. So that's an option as well,
if you'd like to avoid that. In this step is done, let it dry and then we can move
on to decorating the top
8. Dot art decoration: In this step, we're going
to decorate the top. For this top, we're
going to do dot art because we liked
the effect that it creates and the top is spinning. You'll need a
pencil and a ruler, a palette, some dotting tools. You can get those
at a craft store. You'll need the stain top. And then our case, we're
using acrylic pouring paints because they're
thin enough to work well with the dotting tools, but thick enough to be opaque. We're also using some
napkins or paper towels. The first step is to
mark out a pattern. Here. We're going to mark out lines from the center
to the corners. Then we measure 1 cm increments along the lines which
will connect later to get concentric rings will be using those marks to help
space the dots evenly. The steps in this lesson
can take some time. So between the instructions for each step, we'll speed it up. So you won't have to watch
the whole thing in real-time. Once all the lines are drawn and you have your 1 cm
increments marked. Connect those marks together so you have lines to help
you space your dots. We're using daughter
techniques that we learned from the
authorise class, beginners dot art
from Skillshare. The link to that class is
in the course description. And you should
really check it out. Especially if you want to
create more intricate Dada art. Now, you can choose
whichever colors you want. For this one, we're choosing a color scheme
centered around blues, silver, and white, so
that it's all harmonious. We'll go through a few
editing techniques now. To make even sized dots, you have to read up the
tool between each dot, like we're doing here. Wipes a tool. Every time you change colors, you'll get progressively
smaller dots. If you do not read up the
tool between your dots. The tools come in lots of sizes to get
different sized dots, but they all work the same way. Here again, we're doing
multiple dots after each tip and you'll see the dots getting progressively
smaller as we go. This step is done.
Remember to erase any visible pencil lines
once the paint dries
9. Glazing: In this step, we're
going to glaze the top. You'll need your decorated
top with a dowel in it. You'll also need something
to protect your table. You'll need a brush. And I'm going to use
podge for this step. There are many different
glazes and you can use, but I'm going to use this
dishwasher safe budget. Now the instructions on
my iPod say to roll it rather than steer or shake it to avoid getting bubbles
and when you mix it. So that's what I'm doing here. The first thing you're
going to want to do is pull the dowel
out a little bit. Because this podge acts also as a glue that will hold
the two pieces together. I'll put a small amount
of podge on the dowel. Next, I'll move it
back into place. I'm going to continue to
glaze the rest at the top. With any type of glaze, you'll probably use
multiple coats. With this particular pod. I'll be using three coats, although I'm only
going to show you one. And I'll speed it up for you. In the next step, I'll show you the finished product and we'll talk about
the class project
10. Class project: Thank you so much for watching this class unmaking
spinning tops. Here are some examples of
what we were able to do. Now it's your turn in
the class project. Try experimenting with
different color combinations or even different materials. We're excited to see what
you can come up with. Please share your creations
in the class project section