Metamorphosis- Change Your Outside

This is the section of the summer reading manual that features my contribution: Barbie Makeover.
I had this event in Boone NC at the Watauga County Public Library. It was a huge success! We bought dollar store Barbie dolls and asked the girls to bring in their old ones (if they were ready to part with them or even still had them around). We got all kinds of supplies and we made Barbie more realistic. We gave her grey hair, zits, used different flesh colored clay to make her body more realistic and cut of her feet and reattached them so she didn't have to walk on tiptoes. While we worked on Barbie we showed a documentary calledI, Doll which takes a well rounded look at Barbie and how she influences peoples lives.
We had wonderful discussions and the girls loved it!
The best part was our display of our work.




I have also conducted a mehendi program and it was very successful as well. Again, this program was at the Watauga County Public Library.





Another wonderful program idea for teen girls would need to be advertised as "a program to bring out your beauty". Teens will think they are coming for make-overs, but they will make this:

You can buy rolls of chain and necklace closures, bags of small keys and the bottle charms at craft stores. print out the word confidence, throw in some glitter and everyone is gorgeous!

I also had an idea for a program based on the book,
The Plain Janes. In the book, PLAIN stands for people loving art in neighborhoods and was formed by Jane to make the world more beautiful, noticable and happy. I call these Inspiration Cards. They don't really change your outside, but rather your world. This could also be used along with the book, Stargirl

They are collages made on playing cards with words and phrases designed to inspire and encourage. The purpose is to make them and leave them in public places to make someone smile, or think, or feel warm and fuzzy.


Teens always love my collage programs. It's so creative and easy and open ended. You can buy the metal words and phrases in a craft store along with great paper. It's really easy to collect great collage supplies and it really doesn't cost anything! Save your weeded magazines and old foreign language newspapers.



The very first program I did when I began working in Wake County was a Tshirt Surgery program. There was a HUGE turnout and they keep asking for another. There are great books out there to give you directions and tips, including Generation T.






Our TAB group also make Tshirts using stencils. If you have a graphic image you would like to use, print it out, tape a piece of overhead projector acetate sheets to the image and use an xacto knife to cut out the stencil. We love our shirts!




Up Next: Change your Inside