Egg Carton Flower Pins

I love seeing kids' homemade gifts.  Don't you?  There's something beautiful about receiving a gift made by tiny hands.  Today several kid-craft loving bloggers and I took on an egg carton craft challenge.  We came up with different ways to craft with  egg cartons.  Since Mother's day is coming up next month, I thought it would be great to make some egg carton flower pins!  Like our styrofoam mosaic tile picture frames, this craft turns "junk" into lovely gifted treasures.

Egg Carton Flower Pins

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Crayon Hugger Cards

This past week Chuck attended his friends' (twin boys) birthday party.   I was all set to have him cards for them.... but then we totally ran out of time.  (Does that ever happen to you?  It happens to me all. the. time.)  So the morning of the party, I came up with this really, really, REALLY easy set of birthday cards for the two boys.

Inspired by Lia Griffith's super cute Valentine's Candy Huggers (which by the way, you should totally check out because she includes free templates for them), I doodled up some crayon hugger cards.

Melted Crayon Hugger Cards

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Aren't they adorable?  Here's the super quick tutorial showing how we made them!

How to make a DIY Computer Wrist Rest (Kid made gift idea!)

Do you use a computer a lot? Do your wrists feel sore?  Lately hubby's been working long hours on his laptop.  Chuck and I were worried because he started noticing that his wrists hurt.  Yikes.  So we whipped up this computer wrist rest for him for FREE!  Yup!  We didn't need to buy anything super fancy because we already owned all the materials.

DIY Computer Wrist Rest 

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Wouldn't this make such a cute and useful DIY gift for kids to make?

Origami Artwork With Kids

Ever have just a crazy, crazy, week?  I'm sure you have... and last week was mine.  Chuck was sick the entire week and hubby had to work late hours.  So at night I found myself trying to relax by catching up on my favorite shows (currently Brooklyn 99) and folding origami.  Yup.  I'll hopefully have some cool origami projects  (like these origami black cat, origami jack-o-lantern, and origami vampire lips) to show you in the next couple of weeks.

I'm not an origami ninja.  A lot of times projects just don't turn out quite how I imagined.  Lines aren't folded correctly and have to be refolded (again and again).  When imperfect projects are finally finished, it always seems like a shame to toss out the paper.  So I thought to myself, "Why not turn my old origami projects into art?"  And that's how this idea was born!

Make Origami Artwork with Kids

This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for your support!

3 Ways to Make Fruit and Vegetable Prints with Kids

Hey!  Are you going to throw away that shriveled carrot?  Got a few limes rolling around in the fridge and not sure what to do with them?  Then today's post is for you!  Today I'm going to share 3 fun ways to make fruit and vegetable print artwork!  And just to give you a heads up... one of the methods combines art AND science together to create prints that .... MAGICALLY APPEAR when you heat them.  Whoa.....

3 Ways to make Fruit and Vegetable Prints!

                          This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Today several other kid craft-loving bloggers and I are sharing cute and fun crafts involving fruit and vegetable prints.  So scroll down to the bottom of the page for 10 MORE fun and crafty fruit and vegetable print ideas!

Let's get started!

The Artful Year and Melted Crayon Friendship Rocks

Chuck doesn't always enjoy making things with me.  (What? Yup.)  A lot of days he would just rather that we read books or race airplanes together.   And I'm really trying harder to let go and follow his lead.  But I love crafting.  So I keep putting out those invitations in hopes that he'll join me.  And on those special occasions when he's interested and involved in a craft... boy oh boy... those days are really magic.

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

We recently received a copy of Jean Van't Hul's The Artful Year to review.  Jean is an artist, mom of 2, and author of the amazing kids' art blog Artful Parent.  (She's also the author of another great kids' art book The Artful Parent. ) 

In her newest book, Jean shares a whopping 175 family-friendly crafts, and recipes!  The photos are dreamy and beautiful; the crafts span through all the seasons and holidays of the year; and the recipes look really, really yummy.  I love this book.  But those things aren't what I love the most about her book.

What I love the most about the book is her voice.  In the beginning she shares this beautiful quote-

"We need to be more intentional than ever as we carve out quality time together, celebrate in meaningful ways, build traditions and memories and create stronger families.  It's not about doing more.  It's about making choices, fostering creativity, and building family connection."  

Wow.  That just hit so close to home.  I don't want to just make things with Chuck.  Things eventually break down, get lost, or tossed away.  I want to foster creativity.  I want to build our relationship.  I want to make lasting memories.

Ok.  This was a super long intro, I know. But I just had to get that all out there.  Because it really is a beautiful, beautiful book.

Here's the craft that we chose to try out first from the book:

Melted Crayon Friendship Rocks

Bunny Toilet Roll Napkin Rings

Does your family have fancy Easter dinners?  That was never really the tradition in my family.  Once I got married, we started attending hubby's aunt's Easter meals.  Boy, oh boy- they were really, really special.  We dined with fancy cloth napkins, silverware, and china.  And we gorged ourselves on yummy ham, savory side dishes, and a large sampling of desserts.  (Wow.  I can't believe I'm actually drooling just thinking about that meal.)

Try as I may, I don't think I'll ever achieve that kind of amazing Martha Stewart-esque domestic achievement.  Cooking for large groups of people freaks me out.  But if we were to ever host a large Easter meal, it'd probably involve paper plates, plastic cutlery, paper napkins, and maybe these bunny toilet roll napkin rings.   (You know, to fancy the meal up just a tad bit.)

Bunny Toilet Roll Napkin Rings

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 

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

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! 

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

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  

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.

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

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Valentine, you set my heart aflutter

Last week I shared about our new fascination with butterflies.  (You can read about it and see our fluttering butterfly kid craft here.)  My mind was still on butterflies when I came up with this idea for a DIY butterfly notebook.  

You can easily make this butterfly notebook from items lying around your home.  Plus, it would be a nice handmade gift to give someone for Valentine's Day too.  (It even fits into our 10 funny pun-y Valentine's Day craft series!)

Funny Pun-y Valentine's Day Craft 2:  "You set my Heart aflutter" Butterfly Notebooks!

You can see my first funny, pun-y craft here (Craft 1: "You Rock My World" Rocks).

 

DIY Colorful Shoelaces!

Lately I've been thinking about super simple Christmas gifts that kids could make for their friends.  Last year Chuck used Sharpies to make his own Sharpie Tie-Dye Shirt.  This time I thought I'd have a turn using Sharpies to turn plain white shoelaces into cute and colorful shoelaces!

DIY Colorful Shoe laces

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

This was a super fun project with colorful and unique results!

Let's get started!

Rainy Day Process Art

We got rain!  We got rain!  Whoopie!  This was a pretty big deal here in SoCal because we've been in the middle of a drought for a looooong time. Since I love trying easy art projects with Chuck, we took advantage of the rain and collaborated with Mother Nature to create some beautiful rainy day process art.

Let's Make Rainy Day Process Art!

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

This was a really fun and easy art project.  I really enjoyed it because we didn't concern ourselves so much with the final product.  Instead, we just really enjoyed making art together and then watching Mother Nature add her bit too.

Here's how we made our rainy day process art!

Toilet Roll Biplane Airplanes Craft

Although Chuck isn't always so keen to craft with me (sad, I know,) he fortunately loves making cardboard toys with me.  (Yay!)  Currently he loves planes.  But since we've already crafted toilet roll planes, toilet roll helicopters, and cardboard roll space shuttles... I was at a loss as to what we could make together next.  One day he suggested that we make a biplane together.  So we went with his suggestion and did this toilet roll biplane craft!

Toilet Roll Biplane Craft

Note:  This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you so much for your support!

I think he looks a little like Leadbottom from the movie Planes, don't you?

Check out how we made this simple plane from recycled materials below!

Halloween Sensory Activity- Let's Dig out Bones!

I'm a crafter by nature.  I like painting, gluing, and drawing.  Messy sensory activities just don't come naturally for me.  But since Halloween celebrates slimy, icky, things.... I figured we should do a sensory activity.   So tada!  Today's blog post is all about this Halloween Bone Dig Sensory Activity!

Halloween Bone Dig Sensory Activity

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

I watch the tv show Bones, so I definitely channeled Dr. Brennon and her squints while setting up the activity.  Usually Chuck doesn't like getting his hands dirty, but for some reason he LOVED digging out the "bones" and squishing the "blood" around.

Ok!  Let's get started!

Easy DIY Kids Spider Costume

We really love reading and it's always fun to create crafts and activities to go along with our favorite books.  Today I'm joining forces with other kid bloggers to present a Halloween Read and Play Blog hop!    This means that today, over 25 kid bloggers are posting great activities and crafts to go along with Halloween themed books.  (You can see links to all the great ideas at the bottom of the post!)  We made a DIY spider costume for our post.  It was inspired by a beloved book character, Splat the Cat!

Easy DIY Spider Costume

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support.

Have you heard of the Splat the Cat Series?  We love these books. For Halloween, we read Scaredy-Cat, Splat!

I don't want to ruin the story for you, so here's just a snippet to explain today's craft.  Splat the Cat's initial costume gets ruined and his mom has to quickly whip up a homemade spider costume from socks and string.

I love the idea of making something from nothing, so we tried our hand at quickly whipping up a spider costume just like Splat the Cat's mom!

Let's get making!   

Make and Play with Shape Dice!

Are you looking for some fun and educational activities to do with your preschooler?  Right now Chuck's home with me and we try to squeeze in at least one educational activity in each day. So far we've tested out cardboard rigidity by building bridges, explored art materials like scientists, and learned about shapes with a shape touch and feel game.  

While I enjoy thinking up new activities to do with Chuck, sometimes I do get burned out.  It's hard finding new activities everyday day!  So that's why I'm excited to announce a new collaboration that I'm doing with 4 other fabulous bloggers.  Twice a month we will be presenting 5 different takes on preschool learning themes.  Yup.  Isn't that neat?  I'm super stoked.  So in addition to seeing one great idea here, you'll also see links to 4 other really creative and fun preschool learning activities.

Our first collaborative preschool theme is Shapes and here's my activity!  (Definitely check out the 4 other ideas at the end of the post!)

DIY Shape Dice

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Cool right?  Instead of using a normal dice to play board games, here's a fun twist.  Switch out the numbers and use shapes instead!  Now your child can learn counting and shapes at the same time.

So let's make a dice and see how we can play with it!

DIY Kids' Cardboard Art Easel

I love making and creating things with Chuck.  But sometimes I'm surprised by how much arts and crafts supplies cost.   Whenever I go to Michaels or Target I always do a double-take when the bill comes up.   What?  How did we spend so much?  Is this glitter made of 14K gold?  To stretch our pennies (and my own creativity) I love making our own art supplies on the cheap.  We've made our own Paint-With-Water Pages,  2 Ingredient Body Paint, sun prints with construction paper, and even used tortillas as canvases for art!  With dozens of cardboard boxes lying around, I thought it would be fun to DIY Chuck an art easel.

DIY Kids' Cardboard Art Easel

(This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you so much for your support.)  

This DIY easel is so neat because it only took a couple of minutes to make (score!), is made entirely out of cardboard (cheap!) , and can accommodate 1, 2, or even 3 children simultaneously painting.  Whoa! Intrigued?  Well let's get crafting!

DIY Climbing Cardboard Circus Men Toys

I love making interactive toys for Chuck. There's something immensely gratifying about creating something that's beautiful, functional, and fun.... out of recyclable items!  Recently I made these two cardboard climbing circus men toys for Chuck.  You pull on the strings and the men race to the top.

Cardboard Climbing Circus Strong Men Toys

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!

Hee hee.  Do you dig their leotards, chest hair, and handlebar mustache?  Yup.  These manly men exude quite a bit of style, don't you think?

Ok.  Let's get making!