Clothes Pin Bag

When I was a little girl I remember hanging out the laundry with my mother and my grandmother. I think I probably was more in the way than anything but it’s a happy memory and now, I hang my clothes out to dry by choice. Just not in the winter because that is just crazy. My grandmother had a little clothes pin bag that was made out of a baby girl dress. Since I don’t have any baby girl dresses around, I had to improvise. Materials Wire clothes hanger fabric I bent my hanger up a little so it wasn’t … Continue reading →

Fun With Flip books

Flip books are a fun project that a lot of kids haven’t seen. Flip books even teach a little about animation and perception. They do take time and patience to complete, but aren’t messy, and don’t need many supplies. A flip book is simply pages with a series of drawings. Each drawing is changed incrementally, so that when the pages are flipped it looks as if the drawing is moving. What happens is that the image your eye sees stays in your perception a fraction of time longer than the actual picture does. This is called “persistence of vision”. Because … Continue reading →

Fall Crafts: Three-D Tree Project

Yay! This project doesn’t involve finger paints, or paint of any kind! Just as much fun but a lot less mess, so it’s as mom-friendly as it is kid-friendly. Well, there is still glue involved and it is a little messy, but not nearly as bad as dabbling in paint! This time, you’re going to make a tree first, and not just any tree. It’s going to be the coolest, 3-D tree ever. Then, when you make hand print leaves, all you’re going to do is trace your hands onto colored construction paper or fabric, cut out your prints, and … Continue reading →

Growth Charts

Kids grow up way too fast. You can keep a record of just how fast if you and your children make one of these growth charts. There’s nothing difficult about these projects. In fact, they take more time than craft-making ability. Anybody can make one, so come on, let’s get started. The first design starts with a flat piece of wood trim found in any home improvement store. A six foot piece of trim should work, but if you have really tall people in your family, you might want to go six and a half. You can also pick up … Continue reading →

Coordinated Craft: Decorated Tins

You and your kids can make cute, coordinated containers for their room or any space in the home. This is a great way to continue a theme in a bedroom or playroom to add a few more touches of the theme throughout the space. If you have leftover fabric, that will work great, but you can also use wrapping paper, posters, and other paper products that contain images that go with your theme. Whether it’s a trademark character, or a favorite animal, you can use several different materials to decorate your containers, and they will make great storage for crayons, … Continue reading →

Arts and Crafts: Silhouette Images

Your kids may have done something similar in school, but these are variations of the typical silhouette projects you’ve seen before. Have your child stand near a blank area of wall, in a profile position. Set up a lamp or shine a bright flashlight toward your child. You can certainly try the typical head shot silhouette, but you can also do a full body drawing or something in between. Instead of a plain head shot or bust, you might want to try an action pose. Have your little cheerleader pose with arms up, holding pom-poms, or draw your little dancer’s … Continue reading →

Fall Crafts: Framed Poetry and Leaf Art

If your child likes to write poetry, that’s great. If not, no problem. You can go online with your child and help him or her find a cute autumn poem or an inspirational message to use for this project. Pick up sheets of cardstock or pretty computer paper that is the proper size and weight for your printer. Choose an attractive font, and print the poem in the center of the page (or off to one side, wherever you don’t plan to decorate). Trim the page down to 8” x 10” or be sure to select a larger frame. Take … Continue reading →

Make a Scarecrow

Now is the time to start collecting long grasses or harmless weeds and drying them so you can use them to make fall projects, including scarecrows. While there is plenty of hay within easy access of my home, and it can even be purchased nearby, in some areas, it’s not going to be easy to find. You can make a substitution for hay by drying out grasses. A simple way to make a scarecrow is to use things you have lying around your home and yard. Fill up plastic grocery sacks with leaves and grass clippings and use these to … Continue reading →

Textured Vase or Bowl

You will need a glass or heavy plastic vase or bowl, some white glue, and some string for this project. Add some glue to the lower 2” of the container. Beginning wrapping string around the piece tightly, and pushing each layer together with a toothpick. Try to get the string as tight as possible. Don’t worry if some glue seeps through the string (it will). It should dry clear. Allow the first section to dry and then begin the next section, following the directions above. You can use different types or colors of string if you would like to, or … Continue reading →

Try it with Twigs

You can make lots of cool stuff from twigs you find around your yard. Have you ever made something from twigs, sticks, or small branches? Super Simple You can simply clean some twigs, bundle them together, and tie them with ribbon, rope, or string. This will make a nice autumn decoration, indoors or out. You can also fill a basket with larger twigs to set near the fireplace, or roll long twigs (softened with water) into balls, like a ball of yarn, to bring the feeling of autumn inside. Willow Welcome Mat Weeping Willows have long, skinny “branches” that hang … Continue reading →