Rare Animals Papercraft

Jenn C just sent me a link to these amazing paper animals — and there are instructions! and lots more animals than I have room to showcase!



The site is hosted by Yamaha Motors. I'm not clear on what the connection is between Yamaha and these gorgeous paper creations, but I've decided I'm not going to think too hard about it. Thanks Jenn!

Cookie's Nesting Blog

Check out the great PoppyTalk article I featured over on Cookie's Nesting blog today. It's all about creating a temporary outdoor kitchen. And here's a peek at some of the other fun stuff I've posted at Cookie lately:



-The Rapplekist Bunk Bed. So amazingly cool.
-Gorgeous Nanimarquina Rugs. Dozens of beautiful choices.
-And a how-to on how your kids can make their own Modern Art Masterpiece.

Maude's Cloud Photos

Unexpected flight entertainment: Maude kept busy with the camera phone shooting the gorgeous pink tinged clouds out the window. There's something grainy and otherworldly that's lovely about them.

Geometric Spheres

Check out this very cool art project that my mom planned for my kids. First, she copied a circle template with fold marks onto a stack of 8.5 x 11 cardstock. Then the kids went to town cutting out circles.



Once the circles were cut — some as rings, some as solid circles — five edges of each one were folded along a dotted line. Then folded edges were matched up and attached. The kids tried a glue stick, a stapler and double-sided tape to attach the circles to each other. They preferred the tape.



Once the spheres were constructed, they experimented with adding tissue paper rounds (attached with a glue stick) to the empty circles. And then they hung them over Grandma's kitchen table.



This was definitely a big kid projects. It's not a short one. Maude had the most fun with it because she loves making things and working with her hands. Ralph loved the idea but lost interest after a while — it required too much patience and fine-motor-skills to keep his attention.

I think these spheres are so cool-looking! They'd be fun as party decorations in muliple colors. Or hanging over a dresser in a modern or space-age looking kid's room. Oh. And they're big! The small ones are as big as a child's head. And the big ones are maybe 15 inches across. Which makes for a big impact.

Note: I'm looking for an online source on the template my mom used. In the meantime, the Make blog has a similar idea here.

My Favorite Things: Framing Fun Stuff — by Guest Mom Jane Maynard

As I was getting my act together for this guest mom gig, I realized that I’ve framed a few interesting items over the years. Thought I’d share my favorites with you. (Pssst…they’re super affordable too!)




Vintage Flash Cards.
I found these vintage flashcards in an antique store in Solana Beach, CA years ago. As soon as I saw them I knew they needed to be hanging on my wall. That store has since stopped carrying them, but if you frequent antique stores, keep an eye out for me — and for yourself, of course!




Art Museum Post Cards
This is CHEAP and EASY. I bought a bunch of postcards from the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. I then framed my favorites in cheap black 5X7 frames. Simply tape the post card to a 5X7 piece of black paper, pop it in the frame and you’re done! Since you end up with a bunch of small frames, you can arrange them on your wall in interesting ways or use as filler with bigger frames.



Fabric.
This is not the most original idea, but I still love it. Framed fabric. I recently put these frames together for my girls’ bedroom. I went with similar patterns and textures but in three different colors. You could come up with all kinds of combinations!

I need to give a quick shout out to Jonathan & Hannah from FabrixAndMore.org. They have access to high-quality fabric samples that they collect and distribute for FREE every month. You can’t believe how much STUFF they get. That’s where I found these great fabrics. If you’re in the Bay Area, check it out. If you’re not, I recommend going out and trying to get your hands on samples wherever you live! Think of the fun you could have…

Stitch It Kits

These stitch-it kits are super charming. Raccoon or Snail by egg press. You can find them at the Curiosity Shoppe. Each one is hand-screenprinted on two pieces of canvas, complete with sewing instructions and name tag. Cut out the pieces, sew them together, stuff with the filling of your choice and cuddle up!

Know what else is charming? Enkay just listed Design Mom at spot 21 on her list of the Top Female Bloggers. Thanks Enkay! I'm honored to be listed among such great company.

From the Archive: Rock Climbing Birthday Report

I realize I never reported on Maude's birthday party, so here's a little recap:

The party favors turned out wonderfully. My original vision was wide-mouth Nalgene bottles that I could fill with rock candy and a bandana. The final version was a variation of this, but still very cute — and coordinated with the invitations.

I picked up the water bottles at Target. I liked their sporty straps, but the mouths were too narrow to stuff the favors into. No biggie, the kids just received an empty water-bottle with their other favors on the way out the door.


I found an excellent online source on the rock candy, but because I didn't order until the last minute, I couldn't get the candy delivered in time with out paying more than the candy was worth in shipping charges, so I used Gold Nugget Bubble Gum instead and repackaged it as Rock Bubble Gum.


Instead of bandanas, I packaged up bags of 5 sticks ofsidewalk chalk renamed as Climbing Chalk. And I attached the chalk and gum together with carabiners picked up in the Target sporting goods department. So each child went home with chalk, bubble gum, a carabiner, and a water bottle.

Two hours before the party started, the climbing gym called and said they had to shut down for the day because of a gas leak.

I'm not kidding.

Alternative plans had to be made. And fast.

If you're dying for details, I wrote up all the drama in my latest post at NY Metro Parents.

Originally posted March 30, 2007.

From the Archive: Sketch Swap

Have your kids do this instead of their homework.

What it is: you go to the site and make a sketch. (It doesn't have to be a good sketch. Mine was a profile of an elephant.) Then you click "submit sketch" and you get someone else's sketch in return. The two best parts are 1) you can't erase and 2) you get to watch the sketch you receive being drawn. So genius.

Someone compared it to fortune cookies, and for me it's true. I wonder who will receive the elephant?

Originally posted September 29, 2006. It's a perfect summer-boredom-buster!

From the archive: Rose's Lime Syrup

After reading The Jolly Porter's post on drive-inns, my burger cravings have been in full-gear. Drive-inn options in the New York metro area are basically non-existent. I have to head upstate about an hour and a half before I hit a good one. And even then, their offering never quite lives up to my daydreams of a Ripples Lime Freeze.

And so, I've taken to making Lime Freezes at home. Vanilla ice cream, Sprite and Rose's Lime Syrup make a pretty close approximation to the genuine article. Bonus for me: the bottles are so pretty to have in the pantry.

Originally posted on August 1, 2006. Also. Very much looking forward to enjoying a genuine Ripples' Lime Freeze in a couple of weeks. Yay for summer ice cream concoctions!

Funny Food Day

Knowing this summer was going to kick me in the pants, what with Girls Camp and BlogHer and a family vacation to Utah and on and on, I arranged for a friend, home from college for the summer, to be the family nanny/mother's helper/babysitter/what have you. Her name is Lisette. And she is wonderful. We've made a big calendar of projects and adventures for this summer, and Lisette is helping me make it happen.

On the schedule for yesterday was Funny Food Day (my kids were inspired after seeing the fine food work featured here.) Lisette orchestrated the whole thing and my kids were beyond happy with the results. Fruit Faces in the morning. Weiner Dogs around lunch time. And Crazy Cupcakes in the afternoon.




The thing that surprised me the most about this day was that my kids were as content and happily worn out at the end of the day as if we'd spent the whole time at the park. There was hardly a stitch of fighting and they were creatively engaged the entire day. Funny Food Day was a huge hit! Who knew?




I also want to note that one of the funnest parts was testing out our brand spanking new pocket camera — the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W120. It's a sleek little number and I'm loving how clear the images came out, especially considering they were shot at low-resolution.



The memory card arrived in the mail today and I look forward to testing out the camera at high-resolution as well. And experimenting with all the features. According to the instruction booklet, there's one setting where the camera will automatically take the shot when it senses a smile — I'm so curious to try it!

Cupcake Party!

Lucky me. A couple of weeks ago I was invited to a luncheon at Tavern on the Green. Tavern on the Green is practically a New York institution. It's a classic restaurant right in the middle of Central Park. Kind of old school and proper. It's a favorite place to take your mother on Mother's Day. And I had never been before. So I was delighted by the invitation, and the chance to see the famed fabric-covered-garden-lamps that I'd heard all about (they are charming by the way).

But even more fun than the location, was the fact that the gathering was all about cupcakes. For reals. A whole bunch of ladies in summer party dresses, eating a whole bunch of cupcakes at Tavern on the Green. How girly is that?

The purpose of the event was to get the word out about a noble cause: Cancer Care for Kids. What an organization! Any family, finding themselves dealing with cancer, can call this non-profit group and get real, free, professional support for their children — including counseling, education, financial assistance and practical help. And to raise money for this important group, Duncan Hines is sponsoring a huge National Bake Sale Contest — with proceeds going directly to Cancer Care for Kids.

You can find more contest info here, but the basic 411 is: host a bake sale in your school/neighborhood/community center/etc, donate the proceeds to Cancer Care for Kids, let Duncan Hines know about it, and possibly win some cool prizes. Awesome!



In the Tavern Garden, some adorable girls from a high school in Long Island were hosting a bake sale just for party attendees. And I have to say, there were so many pretty ones, and they looked so lovely there on display, that I bought an entire tray. (Isn't it nice to have a bunch of kids that I can use as an excuse to buy sweets?) There's just something about cupcakes. I can't get enough.



For party favors, we were sent home with a box of Duncan Hines yet-to-be-released Decadent Carrot Cake (it launches July 8th, you can see it pictured at the top). Carrot Cake is beloved at our house — yummy. And a darling book, Hey There, Cupcake! by Clare Crespo — a creative cooking genius and one of the contest judges. Clare attended the luncheon as well, and taught us how to make these adorable cupcake hamburgers (directions on page 56 of her great book).



Yay for great organizations! Yay for cupcakes!

cupcake images via Nichelle

ART — Painting, Coloring and All That Jazz — by Guest Mom Burgin Streetman

Create an art space for your child that is permanent, varied, and always open. Pick a spot. Mount an easel. And leave all the supplies out. So what if the paint dries up because junior’s been too busy building train tracks all week. If the supplies are open and there, there is no schedule and a kid can create when the mood strikes him without having to wait for mommy or daddy to ready the spill proof cups or debag the crayons.



And speaking of crayons, I am sure these are made out of some toxic chemical that is going to peel back the ozone layer, but what’s up with Crayola’s new Twistable Slick Stix Crayons? The colors are amazing. They are almost like paint, but they are definitely crayons. Everything August draws with these is so vibrant and alive; I wanna mount them on the hood of my car for the world to see.

Welcome Burgin Streetman!

It's going to be a great week! Burgin Streetman is here. And she's taking over. Three posts a day. Monday through Friday. I've already had a sneak peek of the first 3 days and I think you're going to love what she has to share.

I hardly know Burgin at all. But it's hard not to love a lady that admits she blogs from the bathroom now and then. I can also see from reading the posts she's sent over for this week, that she has completely dedicated her life to raising her beautiful son. Which is wonderful.

And while you're in Burgin's capable hands, I will be taking the week off from Design Mom, so that I can focus on some kirtsy stuff. And getting ready for summer to officially begin at our house — the last day of school is Friday!!



Speaking of getting ready for summer, before I go, I have to share this wonderful idea from clever Lisa, to help keep boredom at bay this summer. She made a huge poster to hang on the pantry door. And filled it up with everything her kids could imagine wanting to do this summer — hunting for snakes, selling Kool-aid, climbing a tree. Now, when they get bored. Because they will get bored. She can look to the poster for inspiration. Brilliant.

I love the idea so much we made our own poster this weekend. I'm telling you, it has me super-psyched for the summer.

So. I hope you have a wonderful week. I hope you help Burgin feel at home. And I'll see you on Monday. (Except really I'll check in on Friday, because I have an amazing Giveaway on the schedule. And I'm pretty much addicted to this blog.)

Little Matisse

Check out the children's art project I posted about yesterday on Cookie (including instructions). It's fingerpainting multiplied by cool.

Ask Design Mom Week: Toddler Dress Pattern

Ask Design Mom Question:
Hello Design Mom. I’m wondering if you might know where I can find a pattern to make a simple toddler’s a-line dress. Thanks, Kimi

Design Mom Answer:
Thanks for your question, Kimi. I've been told there are many experienced seamstresses that visit this blog now and again — I hope they'll chime in with their suggestions.



While they ponder the question, I'll send you to two places: you could pick up this vintage pattern on etsy. Or you could visit Oliver + S to see if any of their darling toddler patterns will work for you — like this swingset tunic.

More Refurbished Plate 411

I've received a few emails asking for more information on the plates I posted about last Friday — the plates we made at the Method Party. And happily, I've rounded up a few great photos so you can get a better idea of how it works. By the way, the photo at the top is from Danny Seo's home. He made a whole series of plates and displayed them in his workshop — aren't they fabulous? And don't you want to move right in to his workshop?

Here's how you can make a wall of plates for yourself:


Come up with a silhouette. You can draw it from scratch or trace an existing one. Or maybe just do a bunch of circles or stars. Whatever you envision, it needs to be outlined on a sheet of computer sticker paper.


Cut out the silhouette.


Pull off the adhesive backing and place the sticker on your plate. We used old plates that had been picked up at Salvation Army. A great way to reuse!


Choose a color (I still can't remember the name of the paint. Anyone else?), and cover the entire plate surface with paint. You may need a few coats to achieve the color and coverage you're looking for.


When the paint is dry, use a pair of scissors to carefully tug/scrape the sticker away from the surrounding paint toward the center of the sticker. You will want to work carefully or the paint edges can come up. Don't panic if they do — you can touch them up with a small paint brush.


When the sticker is removed, bake the plate at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. (No word yet on how durable this ultimately makes the plate.)

And that's it. Now. Why not host a plate party and make your own collection? Like the idea, but not up for making your own? Check out the work of Sarah Chiat. Refurbished plates with all sorts of good-looking, sometimes edgy silhouettes.

One last note about the party. We were lucky enough to be joined by Amanda from Goody Blog. She is darling and friendly and I loved the post she wrote up about the event. Many of these great photos were taken by her — thanks Amanda!

Party Hats Hurrah! — Guest Mom Amy Sharp

I love finding wonderful birthday party ideas for the wee ones on the web. I often find moments of bliss here on Design Mom and other places like here, here and here.

I ran across an amazing idea today on this lovely blog — a Robin Hood party! How Charming!!! Here is a video tutorial on how to make the Robin Hood hats.

Imagine if we could harness all of the creativity and pizazz of all of these super awesome people...we could power the world!



And here's my sad little goodbye:

I have had a wonderful time here this week on Design Mom. I felt at home and welcomed by all of you. Gabby has such an amazing site and equally fabulous readers. (I am so jazzed about all of the new blogs I am discovering!) Merci! It was good to relish a bit on creativity this week as I think it is so important for our souls as mothers. We are the keepers and nourishment of our children's bliss...

Picasso said, "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up."

I encourage you to talk to other mothers about creativity and inspiration as we have so much to share with each another. Big kisses to you Gabby — you inspire us all!

As Ever, Amy

Simple Art/Learning project for the summer — by Guest Mom Amy Sharp

A really simple project Finn and I worked on recently was to make a feeling/emotion wheel.

We took two pieces of cardstock, no actually we cut two identical circles from our cereal box and used the blank sides. I used my xacto knife (don't ya just love any excuse to get it out?) to cut a two inch square on the top circle near the edge. We then attached the circles together with a paper fastener or a fancy brad if your a scrapper.

We marked with pencil several squares as We turned the top circle and then took the circles apart to fill the squares with photo feelings. Finn choose the feelings and on that particular day they were nervous, happy, loving, angry, peaceful, and junky.

We took photos of him acting out these feelings and printed them out and pasted them on our squares. The whole project was quick and really rewarding as we talked a lot together about emotions.

Wouldn't it be nice if we had a wheel attached to our faces? It would be great to just adjust an attitude by a simple turning motion near the ear and jaw bone. Even if it couldn't change your mood, it could announce to the world the real way you're feeling. :)

I like this wheel template for learning colors, letters, weather, words, and just about anything for any age. I plan on using it for our garden lessons by having Finn learn plants and vegetables! What would you make with the wheel?

If you like the idea of talking about your feelings you can always buy one of these bad boys. I love these Kimochi Emotion Dolls. I know they are pricey but how much are those darn American Girl Dolls? These sweet weirdos spark real conversations I think. Cool!

Grow Them Well — by Guest Mom Amy Sharp

There is something amazing about the introduction of summer. The knowledge that is is right around the corner is enough to make us purr. The sunshine rubbing all over me last weekend reminded me of how very special this summer will be. My son is old enough this summer to really invest in summertime, but I am old enough to be tempted to stay inside in the air conditioning if I don't let the inspiration flow.

My family is working on a garden this spring/summer and it is proving to be very exciting to learn to tend the earth. I started off here at you grow girl and here at kids gardening to learn some basics and soon found that gardening can be so addictive.



We are working on the garden as a whole concept. We planned, shopped, started seeds, planted, and now are tending as a family. We have started to journal daily about our garden and plan to run to the garden before breakfast in our pajamas. We pray it goes as well as it sounds in our minds :)

There are so many activites and lessons that go along with summer and gardening. Check out these books and even if you live in the city and have no land to dig- there are books like this to help you catch the gardening spirit.



Wondertime has a great article on gardening and kids and the awesome Artful Parent blog has a lovely interview with Sharon Lovejoy on Gardening with Children.

Simple or elaborate, you can learn a lot this summer if you dig together in the dirt. Teaching your children to respect the earth and care for mother nature is a fabulous gift. Follow your bliss this shining summer!



And speaking of all this...mama likes:
this and this and this and this and this.

Create An Artsy Fartsy Summer for your Family! — by Guest Mom Amy Sharp

Some sample art projects I've done with my kids.

Virginia Woolf said, "Odd how the creative power at once brings the whole universe to order."

Art is a natural tool for teaching. Children are open and creative without effort and adding art into their life can only increase and stimulate their young brains — and work on matter of fact parameters like hand eye coordination and motor skills. Art rules! Come on, even if you worry that you are no artist, you must still love to color. You must still love that fresh new marker from a box?

This summer why not plan a great art camp experience for your child at home? And in this beautiful blogosphere there is no need to re-invent the wheel. I have been checking out some amazing blogs and all of the cool ideas they have for us:

Camp Creek blog is a stellar site that revolves around the authentic art education of a family. Check out the great lists and tips for creating art at home!

Courtney over at Two Straight Lines is super artsy and gives us creative crafts and tutorials! You might have seen her in Wondertime Magazine!

The Crafty Crow is an organized and lovely spot to go and find tons of art projects!

Book Hour Craft Projects provides beautiful craft tutorials.

There are so many wonderful sites out there for ideas. A great choice for an art scaredy cat parent is to hook up with another parent and host a mini-camp-like-experience this summer. I am working on one at my blog and am going to join other folks in my town to virtually create a great summer experience for my boys.

Just remember that young children don't know that you "can't" draw. They just know that you are spending time with them, they just know they are having fun with you! Get out your Crayolas and explore! Grab a sketch book and hit the zoo! Have a colorful summer together!

Inspire Yourself — by Guest Mom Amy Sharp

I try and live a wonder filled life. I try and stay true to my artist soul. My family typically creates something each day together. It may be an art project, a poem, or a cake, but we try and use the spark daily. I think the spark is the magic in your day, the energy that can make a bad day good, or a hard day easier.

Before I share a lot of specific projects or ideas that I have for parents and children, I would love to think about inspiration. People email me and ask me how I think of cool art projects and educational lessons and I always reply that I read and I look each day. I am rarely doing anything revolutionary, simply filtering all the amazing inspiration that is out there through my life.

I like to go to this site and dream about mood boards, which can help you come up with magical ideas! The flickr pool for inspiration boards is amazing and I dare you to not start your wheels a turning while looking. I go to the library weekly and check out tons of activity, art, craft, and lesson planning books like these:
Under Chinaberry Tree
Ginger Carlson
Making Stuff Kids

I keep a basket under my desk of ideas and future wishes and dreams. I tear out magazine articles or scribble ideas and tuck them in there for safe keeping. You cannot do it all at once, but in a year you can do a lot with your child!

I love to browse the web for lovely things to kindle the wonder. I love to go to flickr pages like this one and browse, and flickr is so cool as you can just type in a word like a color or an emotion and just swoon. I love to go to youtube and listen to music from my past as it always makes me feel delirious with passion and ready to tackle a new day.

And then there are the blogs! It is at times too much to think about all of the creative buzz that is flowing round this web. I love to visit my favorite blogs daily and soak up the eye candy and wisdom. I love how I feel when I read my favorite blogs, or discover a new fabulous blog. I feel energized. I feel full of possibility.

Each day is filled with the must do's of life. We must work, run errands, care for others, cook, clean, pay bills, and so on...Why not make creativity a must do for your day too? We are all creative and capable of fostering a sense of wonder in our lives. We must not be afraid to play and learn with our children. We must not be afraid to take the time we need to nourish our souls first. Fill your mind and soul with inspiration and watch it run over into all the parts of your life.

What do you do daily to inspire yourself and your family?

photos from flickr that are lovely/inspire me:
one two three four five

Kids' Art — by Guest Mom Allysha

My daughter. . .

We do a lot of drawing at our house. I don't think a day goes by that the kitchen table isn't covered in paper, pens, pencils, crayons, and markers. Despite the cluttered aura of my table, I really enjoy seeing what my kids come up with as they experiment with different ideas.

I have this idea that I want my kids to be able to come to a blank piece of paper unfettered by any sort of convention. They will get more technical instructions as they start school, which is fine. But I want them to learn to trust their own artistic instincts first. And so I buy paper by the box (hooray, Costco) and let them go at it.


. . . and her art.

Here are a few basic tips I use for managing my kids' art:

~ I have plastic containers for crayons and markers. It's much easier to get everything cleaned up when they don't have to be placed row-by-row into a box.

~ Maybe twice a year I sort through my stash to find the markers that don't work and the crayons that are too small, and replace them. Back-to-school sales are a prime time to stock up. And you can recycle those too-small crayons. Gabby posted about it here.

~ For painting I usually have my kids stick with watercolors, although I do have some cheap acrylic paints they can use once in awhile. If I'm feeling extravagant, I buy little canvas boards for them to paint on.

~ We use slightly over-sized t-shirts as smocks — easy on, easy off, easy to throw them in the wash (There. Did you like that little rhyme?)

~I also always use a flat-bottomed mug or bowl for their rinsing water because it helps prevent spills.

~ I like to have some heavier paper on hand for painting (some card stock or actual watercolor paper cut into smaller sheets) and some colored craft paper for special projects.

~ And of course, have a place to display the art work! A bulletin board works great. And the fridge is always an option!

~ Also, be reasonable. Don't even attempt to save everything. Though it's tempting when your child's unique way of looking at the world begins to emerge. But unless you plan to a) only let your children paint masterpieces or b) wallpaper your kitchen in 8.5 x 11 paper drawings, then throw most of it away.

~ I have a file folder for each child where I keep their very best stuff, and they each have a place in their room for the drawings they want to keep. But most of it either gets tossed or gets re-used (we try to draw on both sides of the paper).

But really, you don't need anything fancy at all in order for your kids to create their own art. My girls have spent countless hours drawing to their hearts content with a simple spiral notebook and a pen or pencil.

Sticky Wrapping Paper

I was just introduced to this new adhesive wrapping paper that Hallmark came out with. And I'm loving it. It's basically one big roll of sticky note — the entire backside surface is covered with a re-stickable coating. Brilliant. And available in some cute designs as well.

I wrapped up a package to see how the paper worked, and I definitely had to experiment with new wrapping techniques, although it was lovely not to have any tape on the package.

But my biggest instinct upon trying it out, was that wrapping presents is just one tiny application for this product. How would you use a giant roll of not-too-sticky, re-positionable paper?

Great Kid Crafty Sites — by Guest Mom Marie

Thanks to Design Mom and all you fabulous readers for a wonderful week. I have enjoyed sharing some fun kid crafty ideas and tips. As I leave you, here are a few of my favorite Kid Craft resources that keep the creativity flowing. Check out these great websites and blogs, and you'll be filled with plenty of ideas to spark the kiddies imagination.

Kaboose
The Crafty Crow
Kids Craft Weekly
Family Fun
Scrumdilly-do
Creative Kids Crafts
The Artful Parent
Amazing Moms
My Kids Art
Soule Mama

And of course there's Make and Takes :) Enjoy!

Excellent Templates

Oooohhh. Look what I found on sk*rt this morning. FREE templates for darling tags and labels. I realize that not everyone is a graphic designer, and coming up with the perfect little design details can be a challenge. Use templates like these to save the day. Just right for gifts or when you're throwing a little party.

Tips for Crafting with Kids — by Guest Mom Marie

At times it may seem overwhelming to craft with your kids. You may worry about glue dripping, scissors cutting things they shouldn't, or not having some of the basic craft essentials. Here are a few tips that can help you have fun crafting without the worry.

Basic Crafting Supply List — a few items to always keep on hand. Keep them in a clear plastic tub and label the front with what is inside. All the items should be available at your local craft store: glue sticks, white craft glue, child size scissors, pipe cleaners, crayons, buttons, art paper, tape, clothes pins, popsicle sticks, crafty eyes, felt, hot glue gun (for adult use only).

Glue Tips:
• I prefer to use glue sticks whenever I can. They are easy for the kids to use. Just make sure they put the cap back on tight or it will dry out.
• For white craft glue, pour some out onto a milk jug lid or yogurt lid. Give each child their own Q-tip to dip and paint the glue where needed. I like to let kids do things on their own, they need to learn sometime. Just be prepared with wet wipes or a rag for clean up.
• I will often use tape when glue is asked for, if I can. My kids are younger and much better at placing tape than using glue.




Cutting Tips:
• Start early practicing with scissors. Don't be afraid to let them try it. My 2 year old is obsessed with them, so I have to keep them up high for safety. Because she is excited and ready to use them, we practice.
• We use child size scissors. They usually go on sale during back to school sales.
• We practice on paper that is going to be recycled anyway. Sometimes I just let them cut away, and sometimes I draw lines for them to try to follow.
• For holding the scissors correctly, tell the kids to always give a "thumbs up".
• It may take a child until they are 6-7 years old to handle scissors. I highly suggest doing lots of practice at home, so they can be successful at school.




Taping Tips:
I just wrote a Taping Tips post that can help you when you want to display your child's work and you only have tape to use. It's an easy solution to the "tape tearing paper" dilemma.

I know there are many more Crafting Tips out there. Please share what you do to make things fun for crafting and easier on the clean up.

Shaving Cream Creations — by Guest Mom Marie

Kids love to get messy and Mom's like to keep things clean. Playing with shaving cream is the best of both worlds, getting messy and smelling clean.



For Shaving Cream Creations, we used our handmade placemats that we made for playing with play dough. Placemats work great at keeping the table free from mess and are laminated for easy clean up. By using some type of placemat, you will save your table from any damage and the clean up is a simple wipe up. If you don't have placemats, a piece of tinfoil, plas