TRADITIONS...Crafting with kids!
Crafting with kids this time of year is great...its a win-win! Even if you don't like to craft try it. The kids get to do the work and you get to make them into gifts that people (like your family members) will love! My friend Mishawn was just telling me they make an ornament every year for the grandparents and write the kids names & the year on the back. Now it's a tradition that everyone looks forward to! So get creative...have fun...and enjoy! And be sure to check out the dollar stores and dollar sections of stores like Target...they usually have great ideas like these "stain-glass window" ornaments!
Here is one where I had to get really creative...my snowman is on the left and Paige's is on the right. I just grabbed a few random things and we made it work. If you have not used oil pastels you should check it out...they work great on colored paper because the colors stand out more than crayons. This is just plain old black construction paper. Paige's snowman family consists of a "pom-pom" child, a mommy (made with the cotton disks used to remove make-up), a "button" child, and a pastel drawn daddy! There is not wrong way to do it...with a little guidance and open mind you can have fun!
Wrapping paper fun...
If making the crafts into gifts is too much of a stretch for you...why not make the wrapping paper? Just add pretty ribbon! Elsie helped me make this wrapping paper a few years ago...it's just brown paper on a roll and finger paints! You can do this with sponges or stamps. You can make stamps with corks, apples and even potatoes cut into any shape you like! Play around with dipping different textures like wadded up plastic bags or Brillo pads or even loofah's in the paint and make a pattern. Throw some stickers on there and call it good!
Finger paints are so fun that Paige and i did this last year...these became little pieces of wrapping paper for books and CD's...I just figured stripping her down was the best way to go to avoid going crazy if she stained something!
Some Ideas from www.realsimple.com
Annie Schlechter
Build snowmen without bundling up. For a holiday party, give each child three oranges,
some toothpicks, a sturdy plate, and store-bought frosting. Stick the large orange to the center of the plate with a dollop of frosting. Poke a few toothpicks halfway into the top of
the fruit and spear a smaller orange on top. Repeat with the third orange, and layer on frosting, a vanilla wafer, and peppermints to make a hat. Use candy-cane pieces for arms
and a nose, cloves for the eyes, and red licorice for a scarf.
Here are some other fun ideas from Blogs that I like:
Happy Crafting this weekend! xoxo - *laura*
