Framed Tangram

You may already know that I love tangrams.

It’s probably because they are one part puzzle and one part art. What’s not to love about that?

I decided it would be fun to make a tangram into changeable art for our living room. Art we could rearrange and “play” with.

The process is very simple and the project is quick.

You need:

1 – 5×7 piece of galvanized steel (Lowe’s sells packs of 10 for $2 – make sure it’s galvanized)
1 5×7 frame (mine is the $2 frame from IKEA)
hot glue gun and glue
magnetic paper
color printer
mod podge or gel medium
scissors
craft foam brush

* A note about magnetic paper. The kind sold in office supply stores that are specifically designed for printers are very pricey. Depending on what kind of printer you have, you may be able to get away with this brand (pictured) that I found at Michael’s for about $4 before coupon (? it’s been a while since I bought it).

First, glue one steel piece onto the frame backing. Discard the glass and mat it comes with.

Second, print out your tangram image. 

You can get a copy of the sized tangram image I created HERE.
If you do not have magnetic paper, you can print it out on regular paper and then mod podge it to a refrigerator advertisement magnet that likely comes with your phone book. See this post  for more information.

You can also make your own to match your living room, using my blank tangram file HERE.

You can see that I encountered issues with my first couple attempts at printing. My sized tangram file has the tangram formatted to print correctly though. If you decide to create your own. Keep these things in mind:

– Remember that the tangram may look small in square form but if you try to create other shapes with it, it expands in size. Use my sized tangram file as a guide to ensure it will fit within the 5×7 frame.

– The colors will look different printed than they do on the screen. You may want to do a few test prints to make sure you get the colors you desire.  My teal and yellow version looks bright blue and garish yellow on screen, but just right in print.

– How you add color is up to you. I created and colored my tangrams in a combination of Photoshop Elements 8 and Word.

You could also hand paint the different pieces as another alternative.

Third, cut out your tangram square and apply a top coat layer of mod podge or gel medium. Once it’s dry, cut the tangram pieces out.

Now, display and enjoy!

It becomes interactive art that almost the whole family can enjoy!

I hope you have a lovely day!

If you try this or any other tutorials, I would love to see them! Upload them to my flickr pool (I’ll feature my favorites on Facebook a couple times per month).

And if you want an easy way to buy the materials for this project through Amazon. com go here: