Make a modern wire silhouette for dad

Skip the tie and cologne for Dad’s gift this Father’s Day, June 15. Instead, get outside on a sunny day, grab about 3 1/2 feet of colorful, plastic-coated, 12-gauge electrical wire from the toolbox and create a wire sculpture of your child’s profile.

Discover how easy it is to make this unique display for Dad’s bookshelf or desk.

Here’s How to Get Started

Go outside with your child when the sun is shining, and take a look at his shadow. Turn his head sideways, place a piece of paper on a flat wall and trace the shadow of the profile of his face and head.

Take the electrical wire and bend it to form the shape of the shadow of his chin, mouth, nose, forehead and around the top and back of the head. Use needle-nose pliers to help bend the wire.

Note: When you make a lip, you have to exaggerate the mouth a little more than the actual silhouette reveals.

Poke the two ends of wire, which form his neck, into a small, 6-inch, flat round or square board with holes drilled small enough so that the wires fit snugly. The wires will be inserted about 2 1/2 inches apart. Add some glue where the wire is inserted to keep the wire firmly in place in the base.

For hair, add thinner colored wire and twist it onto the head. For curly hair, wrap the wire around a pencil. Remove the pencil and then attach the “curls” to the head. If you create a ponytail with thin wire, use a hair clip to cinch it together.

You’ll definitely see your child from a different point of view when the modern art silhouette is complete.

Once you get started, don’t stop with the kids in the family. Make one of Dad, yourself and even your pet dog or cat for an “all in the family” display.

Note: If the sun isn’t shining, simply shape the wire directly around your child’s profile. Ask him to open his lips slightly to make the best shape.

The baseboards are available at crafts stores, or you could use a smooth wooden block. The wire is available at most hardware stores.