Basic Spiral Tie-Dye

If you are talking about color, one great and fun way to explore the fun is to tie dye!  Yes, it can be a task, I hope this makes it as fool-proof for you as possible.

What you need: 

Dye - I use Rit liquid  Found many places, $3 and makes a ton.
Squirt bottles
Gallon buckets or bowls
Shirt/Cloth
Rubber bands
Sturdy Ruler/Paint stirrer
Place to let dry

Steps: 

1. Lay out shirt, placing it front side down

2. Find the middle of the shirt, put the ruler end to the middle
3. Begin twisting the shirt, let it twist

4. Place the Rubber bands to hold the shirt edges in place, making a pie shaped wedges

5. Dye with squirty bottle, in pie shapes, with dyed are facing down, in a bowl.
Note: Remember to squirt and saturate BOTH sides of the shirt patty

6. Really concentrate the dye on the inner most part of the pie, saturating the shirt slice, dip the outside edge of the wedge in the run-off color.  No reason to waste it!

7. Continue around for each color of the rainbow

8. Squish, flat like a pancake
9. Rubber bands off
10. Ta da!

Notes: 

- The type of dye also depends on the fiber blend of the shirt.  Cotton works best
- Pay attention to washing instructions
-Some dye has a soda bath needed before beginning.  Read before doing!!!!
-I wear gloves, it helps.
-I just did this with 50 some of our after school program kiddos, K-high school.  So long as they respected the wedges and really saturated the shirt, they turned out awesome.
- I got about 3 shirts out of each squirt bottle (ketchup/mustard bottles from dollar tree), and I had 6 colors.  ($3 a color, 6 colors, $20 not counting shirts, it is pretty cost effective... and that will take care of about 50-75 shirts)

Squid Divers

AKA Cartesian Divers, are a great way to show air/water pressure, have a safe pet and more.

What you Need: 

plastic pipette
plastic glove (color is more fun)
scissors
electrical tape
nut
marker
bottle of water - less bottle design the better
12oz cup
water

Steps: 

1. Cut your plastic pipette near the bottom, with about 1/2" of stem.  I cut mine at the 3ml mark

2. Fold the stem in a 'U' shape (half, and half again) to fit it into the inside of the nut

3. Cut a full finger off one of the gloves.

Note: get powder free gloves.
4. Cut the smallest tip off the end of the finger,

5. Fit the squid body into the cut end, so it is 2/3 down the body

6. Tape the glove to the body.

Note: Don't use too much tape.  Weight is a consideration in this, the more tape, the more it weighs.  For mine 2" was enough.
7. Cut slits up to the tape in the glove.

 

Note: Slits up to the tape so no air bubbles get stuck in the "skirt" Bubbles cause lopsided squids
8. Fill the cup with water, place squid into the water, squeeze head to suck up some of the water.

Note: you want the squid to float just at the surface, if it goes down, it is too heavy, squeeze out a drop or two of water.  If it floats too much, suck some in.
9. Move the squid to the full (To almost the top) bottle of water.
10. Check buoyancy.  Water temperature can play havoc on buoyancy,  If it isn't floating dump water into a bowl, and try again.

11. When squiddy floats just right, tightly recap the lid.  With the lid tightly capped, squeeze the bottle hard.  The squid will sink when you squeeze.