After School Crafts

Some days, homework seems to take up the entire time between school and dinner. Other days, the kids are done and looking for action 5 minutes after the bus drops them off. Last time they were craving something to do, I pulled out this Puppet Craft Kit from Martha's line.



Maude and Olive did the whole thing without any assistance. And then surprised Oscar and Betty with the completed set. Which pleased Oscar and Betty to no end (see below). So now I have my eye on other Martha sets. Maybe we'll get this Monster Puppet kit for October.



Speaking of Martha, here's something fun: Design Mom was listed as one of the Martha Stewart's Best of the Blogs Editor's Picks. Sweeeet! Design Mom is the absolutely last blog listed. Which sort of feels like I barely made the cut. But I'll take it! With a big thanks to the Martha Stewart Editors. And a big blush that I'm included among such good company.

Interview at Coveiter

Lindsey and Julie, two designers who edit the lovely blog Coveiter are featuring a
frank little interview of me this afternoon. I feel like a super-star with all this attention.

And I love it.

I Heart Real Simple

Have you picked up a copy of the March issue of Real Simple? I swear I have devoured it. I think my very favorite part was the "product of the month" article featuring 4 problem-solvers for $15 or less. (It's on page 70, if you happen to have your issue in hand). I could definitely use all four products in my exact life and was so glad to discover them.




The story isn't listed online yet, but the products are: a recycled plastic cutting board, a paint brush that attaches to your faucet to rinse itself out, a clothing hanger that doesn't leave bumps in the shoulders of your tops and some cute little paper clips with a space for a note attached. All smart, easy to use, good-looking items.

Even more fun than discovering these products? Hearing from a Design Mom Reader that Real Simple had named Design Mom one of their favorite blogs! I'm blushing — and delighted to be listed among the company of some of my own favorites, like Decor8, Design*Sponge, Shelterrific and BabyGadget. Thank you Real Simple!

Call for Questions

Lucky me — I get to be a guest on Kristin Chase's, aka Motherhood Uncensored's podcast this Wednesday! We'll be talking about fun holiday traditions, decorating, celebrating. All sorts of good things. And the networks won't be censoring any of it.

But I need your help. I'm looking for a few Design Mom Readers to call in Wednesday night with holiday related Ask-Design-Mom questions. Here's the dealio:

If you'll be near a phone Wednesday night between 9:00 and 9:45pm EST, and you've got an Ask-Design-Mom-Question, then I'd love to hear from you. Please email your question to me at gabrielle@designmom.com. I'll pick a few of my favorites and invite the questioners to call in on Wednesday night.



Even better: Craftsbury Kids, one of my favorite vendors, will send you a $25 gift certificate if your question gets picked! Not too shabby. You could use your gift certificate to pick up the fantastic frog hat in the photo, or one of dozens of darling things in their shop.

I'm really looking forward to chatting it up with Kristen. And I'm really looking forward to reading and answering your sure-to-be-brilliant questions. For the curious, you can find all of Kristen's excellent podcasts here. Then. Tune in to the same place to hear us Wednesday night.

Welcome NY Daily News Readers

If you're visiting Design Mom today from the Daily News article about crafting with your kids: Welcome!

You found my blog on an especially good day. We've been having amazing Holiday Giveaways here all week and there are 5 that your can still enter. To find the Giveaways, just scroll down.

But this blog is more than fantastic Giveaways. You'll find at least three great posts every weekday. I'll introduce you to cool new products and companies. Answer your Ask-Design-Mom questions. Share my favorite children's books in my Book-of-the-Week feature. And invite Guest Moms and Dads to share their point of view as well.

It's all about the intersection of Design and Motherhood. If you'd like to get a better sense of what it's like at Design Mom, please check out these links to some of my favorite past posts:

Porch Makeover
Little Red Lighthouse
Betty's Birth Announcement
Headlight Dancing
What to Wear to Kindergarten

Ask Design Mom: Child's Playspace

Ask-Design-Mom Question:
Hi Design Mom, Love your blog. Love your advice and thinking and all your links too. Thanks for your help! I live in a city (San Diego) with my husband and 11 month old daughter. We live in an 1100 square foot condo and we have an alcove that was meant for a built-in deskm but I want to make it into a play/toy stash place for my daughter, but don't know where to begin. Thanks! Melissa

PS — Here is a picture of the space:


Design Mom Answer:
Oh Melissa, what a fun project! I love the idea of a small space set aside just for the kids. And the lower walls in the alcove will make it feel just their size. Perfect.

Since you live in San Diego, I'm assuming you have an Ikea near by. This is an ideal Ikea project. If it were my alcove, this is what I would do:


1) On the section of wall with the plugs, I would put a child-size table with 2 chairs. There are many, many cute versions of child-size tables available. At our house, we have two sets of this table. It's good looking and easy to paint. Our tables are painted a terrific shade of blue and our chairs are orange.


2) Against the wall where Elmo is, I would put a small bookshelf. Something with 3 shelves. It doesn't have to coordinate exactly with the table and chairs. I would fill these shelves with good-looking bins for toys, children's books, and a few good-looking classic toys for display. I like the shape of these shelves, and because they're raised off they floor, it's easier to keep the area clean.


3) To make the space feel really special, I would create a small series of framed-artwork to hang at kids-eye-level. This sounds more complicated than it is. Get six pre-made matching frames with pre-cut mats. You'll hang two on the wider sections of wall, and 1 on the shorter sections. Hang them all at the same height, so they create a visual line around the space. These frames are great, and they don't require a mat. I would use brightly-colored artwork to contrast with the frames if I went with these.


For artwork to put in the frames you've got several good options. Buy a spare copy of your favorite picture book and cut out 6 of your favorite images. Or find six happy, child-like postcards. Or have your kids create six masterpieces by their own hands. Or take images from an old calendar. Or use great close-up shots of your kids.


4) Along the section of the wall between the bookshelves and table, set a large basket or bin on the ground to collect bigger toys or awkward shapes. Big trucks, or bouncy balls, or stuffed animals. Maybe something like this.


5) On the ground, to help define the space, put a small area rug. I love this one. In fact, this would be a could piece to using as a color scheme for the space. (Artwork colors, furniture paint colors)

6) I don't mind a clean, neutral wall, but a coat of colorful, kid-friendly paint in the alcove would also be an easy way to help define the play area.

The whole thing could come together easily in a weekend, and your kids are sure to LOVE having their own space. Because I've picked items from Ikea, I've given the space a more contemporary feel. But if your taste runs more traditional, you could implement the same plan, but just pick our more traditional furniture, bins and frames. I hope that helps, Melissa!

Design Mom Readers, if this were your space, what would you do?