As a designer by trade I am often focused on how things look in 3 dimensions, and today I’m excited to translate a 2 dimensional activity, drawing, into a 3 dimensional project…with Doodle Cubes. Depending on the age of your children this can be as basic as drawing on our template and/or it can be as complex as trying to match up 2D pattern sections to create flowing colors and designs. And doodling is such an important pastime to foster in kids, to see why scroll to the end of this post!

Doodle Cubes           

Materials

• Cube Template- download here
• Paper or Cardstock
• Markers, paints ( I used these wonderful tempera cakes), ball point pens, Sharpies
• Scissors
• Glue and/or tape

Instructions

• Step One Print out the template. If you are going to paint your cubes print them on cardstock. If you are going to use pens you can print them on regular paper.
• Step Two Doodle! Or paint or draw…but here’s the BIG TIP: Try and start a line or color block on the tick marks along each side of the cube. This will guarantee that the lines will continue around the side of of the cube and appear to flow. You can also use the letters to find the matching side of the cube.

• Step Three Cut it out. Fold along the light lines with crisp folds and cut along the solid lines.
• Step Four Add glue to the tabs, tuck them UNDER the cube sides and press together. Alternatively or in addition to the glue you can add tape to the sides. The cubes are delicate so parents may wish to do this step for younger children who might crush the cube while trying to glue it.

You’re done! Make a few of these and explore how 2D patterns translate into 3 dimensional objects!

Looks Like

Doodle Cubes reminded me immediately of Superstudio. Superstudio was an Italian architecture firm founded in the 1960s. Their work was primarily conceptual, meaning it was never actually built but instead they explored radical architectural ideas on paper. Their most famous work is The Continuous Monument, a monolithic grid structure that they proposed would circle the entire world, that’s right, the ENTIRE WORLD, in an attempt to instill unity. Pretty heavy stuff, huh? The 1960s was a great moment in architecture; designers like the members of Superstudio explored unique and impossible ideas as a way of both questioning the status quo and proposing solutions to world problems. And here’s one more reason I love Superstudio, one of their founding members, Cristiano Toraldo di Francia, was my professor when I spent a year studying in Florence!

Our Doodle Cubes reminded me of The Continuous Moment and the idea of taking simple basic forms like the grid and using them to connect and explore form and space.

The Power of Doodling

Do you and your kids doodle? While doodling may seem like just a way to pass the time, I believe in the power of doodling to engage the brain. Several research studies have been done that suggest that doodling actually helps people commit to memory the ideas that they are listening to while drawing.  Doodling is said to help people retain information and foster creative thinking and believe or not, HELP people focus. I also find doodling incredibly relaxing. I hope you will give doodling a try with our Doodle Cubes and turn mindless sketching into a little 3D surprise!

If you liked this project I hope you’ll come visit me at Babble Dabble Do where I have loads more creative ideas for kids and the young at heart! Start with our 12 EASY ART IDEAS FOR KIDS post!