Friday, February 27, 2015

Easy Tissue Paper Art

Ah tissue paper.  It's colorful, cheap, and I've recently discovered, also great for making art!  Recently Chuck and I both used it to create some new tissue paper artwork for his room.

Easy Tissue Paper Art

Can yon tell which one Chuck made?

easy tissue paper artwork to be made with the kids

Thursday, February 26, 2015

Shark Binoculars

We are in LOVE with shark crafts over here.   Love, love, love them.

So when I was sent a bunch of free craft materials from Horizon Group awhile back, I knew what we had to use them to make.... Shark toilet roll binoculars!

Toilet Roll Shark Binoculars 


Here's a fun take on toilet roll binoculars- turn them into sharks and add some lovely decorative beads!

Aren't they adorable?  They are my favorite shark-themed craft so far!


Wednesday, February 25, 2015

St. Patrick's Day Pot of Gold Craft

Looking for a fun St. Patrick's Day Craft?  How about making a rainbow and pot of gold with your little ones?

St. Patrick's Day Pot of Gold Craft

st patrick's day craft- Make a Pot of Gold and Rainbow!

You can check out how I made this cute  St. Patrick's Day Pot of Gold Craft on MollyMoo!


Looking for other St. Patrick's Day crafts?

Then check out these links below!




Let's keep in Contact!

Like kids crafts and activities?  Then you'll definitely want to check out this awesome craft ebook!
   
And, you can always find  fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

Happy making, friends!

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Make Sand Dough Sculptures and Ornaments

Whenever we go to the beach and build with sand, I always feel slightly sad knowing that our creations will eventually wash away.  Do you ever feel that way too?  I recently found this great book at the library Kids' Crazy Concoctions (affiliate link) that shared a recipe for making homemade gluten free sand dough!  Yup.  You just need 3 ingredients to whip up a batch of this stuff.  Then, once you're done making your creations, wait over night and they'll dry nice and hard.  Isn't it cool? You can make your very own long-lasting sand dough sculptures and ornaments!

Make Sand Dough Sculptures and Ornaments!

Make sand dough! Great way to bring summer into kid's play
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Monday, February 23, 2015

Build Your Own Collapsible Cardboard Tent

What happens with camping meets crafting?  I'd like to imagine something like this....

Collapsible Cardboard Tent  

DIY Collapsible Cardboard Tent Craft


Can you tell that I'm not a camper at all?  I've gone 3 times in my life.  It rained on us 2 times and our tent got soaked!  Blech.  Now I'm a bit leery of sleeping outside.  But, I still really love the idea of a tent for kids.  They can be secret forts, comfy book nooks, or special magical hideaways.  

To see how I made this lovely tent from recycled materials, check out my tutorial for a collapsible cardboard tent on Handmade Charlotte!

As a side note- Aren't giant cardboard boxes great? We still have a ton left from our move.  So far I've transformed them into  


Let's keep in Contact!

Like kids crafts and activities?  Then you'll definitely want to check out this awesome craft ebook!
   
And, you can always find  fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

Happy imagining, friends!



Friday, February 20, 2015

Fairy Tale Mad Libs

As a child I loved reading books.  Now that we have Chuck, I'm so glad that he enjoys listening to stories too!  This week's Creative Preschool Collaborator's theme is fairy tales.  So be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page to see four other fun fairy tale related crafts and activities!  

Now you know that I LOOOOVE me some crafts.  But, this time I wanted to switch it up.  Instead of doing a fairy tale related craft with Chuck, I thought it would be fun to do a joint-storytelling activity with him.  

Fairy Tale Mad Lib-esque Activity for Preschoolers!

Here's a fun preschool activity- try filling out this fairy tale mad lib-style activity with your child to create a unique storytelling experience
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Thursday, February 19, 2015

Easy Spinning Top Marker Art

Recently Chuck's been interested in making things with me again. (Phew.  I thought our dry spell would never be over!)  He seems to enjoy using materials in different ways (like this rainy day process art activity).  So I thought it would be fun to combine a toy with an art item to make it more fun for him.  Tada... here's our spinner marker top!

Easy Spinning Top Marker Art!

Mix science and art with this great activity!  Simply spin the markers and watch them go!  Great activity to do with the kids!
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!


This activity is just so cool because it combines science and art.  You can actually track the motion of the spinning "top."  (Just wait till you see the cool spirals it makes!  Wow.)


Wednesday, February 18, 2015

DIY Disney Character Snack Bags

As a child, I LOVED watching Disney Movies.  I watched Little Mermaid and Beauty, Beast and the Beast a million times (no kidding).  In fact, to this day I know 80% of the lyrics by heart.  (But ask me any question about US history and I'll totally draw a blank.  Crazy how the mind works, right?)

Why all the Disney talk?  Well, today 7 other kid bloggers and I challenged ourselves to come up with easy, Disney Inspired Crafts.  But wait, there's a catch... we have to make the crafts with... kitchen items!  (Duh, duh, duuuuuh!)   So stick around to the end of the post to see the other ladies' great ideas!

I thought it would be fun to make Chuck some Disney Character Snack Bags.   They took a couple of minutes to make, and really make the bags special for kids.


DIY Disney Character Snack Bags! 


Add Disney Characters to any of your snack bags using this quick and easy method!
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Easiest DIY Wine Cork Stamps ever

Last week I made the easiest DIY stamps ever.  Seriously.  And that's saying a lot, because I've made potato stamps and styrofoam stamps.  But these wine cork stamps take the cake.  They take only minutes to design and minutes to make.

Easiest DIY Wine Cork Stamps


Instead of purchasing stamps at the store, save a couple of bucks and make your own from wine corks. This is a fun project to make with kids!


Monday, February 16, 2015

St. Patrick's Day Clover Sun Catchers

Looking for an easy St. Patrick's Day craft? Well, today's your lucky day.  Here's a simple St. Patrick's Day Clove Craft to make with young children!

St. Patrick's Day Clover Sun Catcher Craft

St. Patrick's Day Clover Sun Catchers
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!


Friday, February 13, 2015

Preschool Weather Science: How can we stay dry?

I'm always looking for really easy ways to help Chuck learn science and math concepts.   We've been fighting colds these past two weeks, so activities that are easy to throw together and take little time to prep have been on the top of my list.  That's probably why I really appreciate good ebooks like STEAM: Preschool Activities for STEM Enrichment  (affiliate link). It's co-authored by one of my blogging buddies, Jamie from Handmade Kids Art and contains over 30+ simple and fun ways you can teach young children about science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics!

I recently received a free copy to review and ear-marked several ideas that I'd like to try out with Chuck.  Inspired by one activity in the book, here's a fun Preschool Science activity that we did to look at how we stay dry during the rain.

Easy Preschool Science:  How can we stay dry during the rain?

Preschool STEM science weather activity
This post contains affiliate links.


Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Paper Airplane Valentines

We're just "plane" crazy for planes and transportation crafts over here.  And if you're looking for a Valentine that soars above the rest, then you'll love these awesome paper airplane Valentines.  They don't take very long to make and would be perfect to hand out to classmates!


Paper Airplane Valentines

Paper Airplane Valentines- You make my heart soar!
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support.



Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Piranha Plant Valentine Card box

Note: This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

Recently Plaid Crafts sent samples of craft paint and Mod Podge to a couple of craft bloggers.  They challenged us to create funky, fun, and unique Valentine Card Boxes.  Paint?  Mod Podge?  Fun Card Boxes?  Oh yeah.  You can bet that I was all over this challenge to celebrate Valentine's Day with Plaid Crafts!

Ok.  So it's been a zillion years awhile since I've been in school.  I really wanted to make a box inspired by my own childhood, so I went old school and made a Piranha Plant Valentine Card Box.  (I think my younger self would have totally dug it.)

Piranha Plant Valentine Card Box

DIY Piranha Plant Valentine Card Box


Special promotion code from Plaid:
Before I forget, Plaid Craft is offering a special coupon promo code.  If you use the discount code LOVE2015, you'll receive $10 off orders over $35, plus free shipping*.  You can save on tons of Plaid brands like Apple Barrel, Mod Podge, Martha Stewart Crafts, and more.  The code is valid through 3/31/2015 and can only be used once.  Just visit their site for more details!  *Free shipping is not available in areas where ground shipping is not offered. 

Monday, February 9, 2015

DIY Bat Signal!

Does your child love superheros?  We've officially entered the superhero phase!  Yay!  Chuck was Super Man for Halloween.  Now he constantly requests to wear his favorite Batman shirt... with a clip on tie (go figure) and requests superhero books from the library.  I really wanted to encourage his imagination with a fun superhero craft, but wasn't sure what I could easily (and cheaply) make.

Awhile back I made him a no-sew Superhero cape that he still wears around the house.  But after remembering that I had a bunch of red contact paper lying around, I realized that I could also make him a DIY Bat Signal too!

DIY Bat Signal!  Ka pow!


DIY Bat Signal for kids using their flashlight
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Friday, February 6, 2015

Easy Kid made Valentine Chocolate Gift

Handmade gifts rock.  This week's Creative Preschool Collaborator theme is Valentine's Day!   Since hubby REALLY loves chocolate, Chuck and I made him a special chocolate Valentine's gift.  Shhh. Don't tell him about it.  It's a surprise!

Kid Made Valentine Chocolate Gift  

Here's a fun and easy kid made chocolate gift!
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!


Aren't they cute?  They look so fun and colorful... almost like cupcakes!  We had a ton of fun making this plate of goodies.  Chuck even enjoyed it more than our Kiss Wrapping Paper!  So  keep reading to see how we made this lovely gift and check out 4 other great Valentine's activities and crafts from the other members of the Creative Preschool Team.


Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Super Easy Cardboard Biplanes

The plane obsession continues over here!  Just when you think we're done with transportation crafts... oh no... we've got another one up our sleeve.

Awhile back Chuck and I made this toilet roll biplane.  But sadly, that plane broke.  Chuck still loves biplanes, so I came up with this super easy practically unbreakable cardboard biplane craft for him to make and then fly.

Super Easy Cardboard Biplane Craft

Super easy cardboard and popsicle stick biplanes
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!


Sunday, February 1, 2015

Chinese New Year Dragon Puppet

Chinese New Year is coming soon!  We've been so engrossed in Valentine's day crafts lately, that I almost forgot about the holiday.  But today we're rectifying that mistake.  Last year we made these 2 really easy dragon puppets.  (Definitely check them out because they were super cute and super easy.  Plus, I included free printable templates!)

This year we're keeping with the dragon theme and making this Chinese New Year Dragon Puppet from recycled cardboard!  It's an upgraded version of last year's craft because you can actually move this dragon around!

Recycled Chinese New Year Dragon Puppet



recycled craft- Chinese New Year dragon
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!