I hope Santa was good to everyone. Around here we are up to our ears with blocks, pirates, puzzles and more. Santa also replenished the kids craft stash. Using a holiday or a birthday as an excuse to load the kids up with craft supplies is always one of my favorite ploys. Just because Christmas is over does not mean you are too late on this gift idea. Spend the money Aunt Gertrude sent on a slew of paint and glue and make it your New Year’s Resolution to get your kids crafting.
Looking for a little inspiration? Here is a list of what Santa brought my kids....
PAINT
Finger Paints
Paint Dot Markers
Glitter Poster Paint
Neon Poster Paint
Pack of Paint Brushes (be sure to include round sponge brushes and a roller brush)
DRAWING
Crayon Rings
Plain Markers
Plain Crayons
Window Markers
Colored Pencils
Scented Markers
Fabric Markers
THINGS TO PAINT
Small canvases
Wooden Frames
Paint with water books
Jumbo sized coloring books
Blank canvas tote bag
PAPER CRAFTS
Toddler Scissors
Array of foam stamps
Scented stamp pads
Stickers (TONS of stickers)
Construction paper
Craft Glue
Glue Sticks
Glitter Glue
Blank Cards
Pre-inked stamps
BLING
Glitter
Colored Sand
Pom Poms
Feathers
Santa also brought a few things that are not exactly craft supplies, but are intended to spark creativity...
Tallulah asked for a Doodle Bear. This is a stuffed animal that comes with a washable fabric marker. Doodle the bear, wash and repeat.
Santa wanted to have the elves make a light table for the kids, but alas it was cost prohibitive. Instead a small table top version was delievered that is actually a light tracing box. Sure we will trace, but we are also doing things like playing with our Magna Tiles on top.
Choo-Choo's are big around these parts. Santa brought a giant cardboard train to paint, color and adorn on a rainy day.
Aqua Doodle is a big hit with Baxter. We received a small lap top shaped mat for our birthday last year and I found a giant floor mat at a thrift store this summer. Santa brought a variety pack of sponge brushes, sponge tipped pens and stencils especially made for Aquadoodle. Not familiar with this toy? It is a piece of fabric that changes color with water. Let the fabric dry and start all over.
Play Doh. Last year I made my own, this year Santa brought the real stuff. Two kits were also stuffed down the chimney. One makes Play Doh candy and another makes Play Doh jewelry.
Pre-assembled card making kits. Tallulah loves to decorate cards. Santa stuffed 10 popcorn bags with a random assortment of stickers, blank cards, colored pens, stamps and more. This is much easier than handing over a giant box of stickers and paper that Baxter inevitably dumps all over the floor. I keep the finished cards to send for holidays and thank yous.
So what crafting supplies did your kid’s get from Santa? More importantly how do you plan to store it all? Do you keep it tucked away and get it out when the kid’s ask or do you have it accessible for them to get to on their own?
My daughter's favorite Christmas book this year is called Merry Christmas Stinky Face by Lisa McCourt. We read it daily even though we have 20+ books about the holidays currently floating around. In the book the worried little child asks his mother question after question including one about a Christmasaurus.
After a trip to the Blue Genie Christmas Bazaar where I made a couple of purchases from a vendor by the name of Plaid Pigeon an idea was born. Today for I Love to Create I'm going to show you how to make a quick and fun centerpiece for the kids table. Usually kids dream of the day they will be upgraded to sitting with the adults, but with a Christmasaurus as the centerpiece they are never going to want to leave.
SUPPLIES
Plastic dinosaur
Crafty Chica Paint red
Scissors
Scribbles Paint in green
Small bottle brush tree
Aleene's Tacky Glue
Paint brush
Pom Poms
Small Ornaments
Glue gun
When your kids are not looking steal the plastic dinosaur toy that has been floating at the bottom of the toy box untouched for months. Using scissors or a knife cut a small hole in his back. It does not matter if the hole is rough looking the tree will cover it.
Once you have your hole paint your dinosaur. Mine needed two coats of red paint. Allow to dry completely in-between coats. Next go in an embellish with polka dots. I used Scribbles paint because I wanted shiny puffy spots.
When your polka dots are dry shove the base of your tree in the hole and adjust. From here squirt a whole bunch of Aleene's Tacky Glue inside to hold in place.
Decorate the tree with what you have on hand. In my case it was some pom poms I stole from my kid's craft pile and some tiny rogue ornaments that never made it on one of my 38 Christmas trees. I used a hot glue gun to attach. All that is left to do is display your new Christmasaurus.
I recently got to spend the evening at one of my favorite places in Austin - Stitch Lab. Well actually, the old Stitch Lab. It was evening of crafty fun with some fabulous ladies. We all decided to take a class together to learn how to make spangled ball ornaments. You know, like the tacky ones your Aunt Zelma had on her tree. Ya those. Anyway, I made mine into a hot air balloon so today for I Love to Create I thought I would show you how to make your own.
SUPPLIES
STYROFOAM Ball
STYROFOAM Cone
Serrated knife
Aleene's Foamtastic Foam Glue
Fabric Scraps
Decorative Ribbon
Sequins
Pins (sequin style and those with decorative heads)
I don't wanna give away too many of the trade secrets so that people will still take this amazingly fun class. First things first you want to cover your ball with fabric. Use a combination of sequin pins and Foamtastic Glue. Once you have a base on your ball it is time to start adorning and that is where the fun begins. Use trim and ribbon to cover any raw edges you might have. Again a combination of glue and pins can be used. Using sequins, beads and decorative pins add sparkle!
For the bottom of your hot air balloon cut off the base of a small STYROFOAM cone using a knife with a serrated blade. Use another piece of foam as sand paper and smooth out the rough edge.
Cut fabric scraps and ribbon to fit on your base and using Foamtastic glue and pins attach into place.
So do you think you are going to make the 'Naughty' or 'Nice' list this year? Why not make both. Today for I Love to Create we are crafting a list and checking it twice.
SUPPLIES
Tulip Fashion Glitter Shimmer Transfer Shapes
Aleene's Tacky Glue Stick
Crafty Chica Paint - red and green
Old Books
First paint your books, one red and one green. You will need two or three coats of paint. Don't worry no books were harmed in the making of this project, you could still read them if you wanted.
Spell out the words 'naughty' and 'nice' in Fashion Glitter Shimmer Transfer Shapes. They are intended to be ironed on clothing, but they also glue to other surfaces like books perfectly.
When your books are finished set them out on the shelves to display.
I love the way the books turned out, I might go back and add some cute graphics to the front. I'll keep you posted!
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