Before cartoons and claymation and CGI made their debuts, motion pictures were often enjoyed with simple toys like thethaumatrope. You can place different images on each side of a round card and when the card is flipped fast enough, the two images combine! This article demonstrates a few ways that you can create one of your own.
Steps
Rubber Band Method
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Cut a circle out of a stiff board material. The stiffer the material, the better. If using corrugated cardboard, you can use this method, or the method below.
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Stick the pictures on the front and the back of the board piece using glue. Be careful about the placement of the pictures in relation to each other. It must align precisely with where you want the moving image to appear on the front image. For instance, here you can see the goldfish bowl and the teardrop aligned carefully on the back piece so that when it is twisted later on, the teardrop appears underneath the eye and the bowl above the cat's head, as if it is a thought bubble.
- To test and make sure that the pictures align correctly, you can attach them with a paper clip and flip the card rapidly a few times to get an idea for how they will match up.
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- Alternatively, you can use string or yarn.
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Wire Method
- Cut corrugated cardboard into a circle.
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Warnings
- Take care not to cut your fingers.
Things You'll Need
- A circular paper box (cheese packages work well–split up into the top and the bottom)
- White paper
- An aluminum wire
- Rubber band
- Straw
- Marker pen
- Pair of scissors
- Retractable knife
- Perforator punch