DIY Cork Boats

One of the activities during Dylan's Pirate Birthday Party last month was creating Cork Boats. They were very easy to do and a lot of fun. Here's how to create your own:

Supplies

• corks (ours were purchased from The Scrap Exchange)
• foam sheets
• wood skewers
• foam stickers (optional)
• hot glue

To keep the craft simple & do-able during the party, I did a bit of prep work beforehand. I used hot glue to attach the corks together in sets of 3 to create the base of the boats. Then quickly sketched a sail pattern onto a piece of scrap paper and cut it out to trace onto the foam sheets. I precut all the of sails.

The skewers purchased from our grocery store were far too long so I cut each in half with a pair of scissors and poked them into the sails. Then separated all the pieces into plastic containers and set out on our Little Tikes picnic table for the kids to have easy access. We put together one boat so they could visualize the project.

Admittedly, craft projects with young kids can be hit or miss. Depends on the personality and interest. These cork boats were a huge hit. I think the simplicity and quick assembly helped. Plus, the allure of water is always a huge hit with boys. We had a low container filled with water just to the side of the picnic table so they could test out their boats.

After the party, we found Dylan happily playing with all the leftover boats. A lot of fun pirate play resulted from this simple craft.

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Ivory Soap Experiment

A bar of Ivory soap was included in the recent Influenster #TLCVoxBox I received and reminded me of an experiment I had meant to try for some time. A friend actually gave us a bit of Ivory soap as part of a "Mustache Bash" birthday party to try the experiment a couple of years ago. I set it aside for a rainy day and darn if it didn't get misplaced during our move. But now we had an entire bar to play with.

Supplies

• bar of Ivory soap
• microwave safe plate (we used a paper plate)
• microwave

We unwrapped the bar and I asked Dylan to uses his senses (well, not taste - that wouldn't be nice!) to inspect the Ivory soap. We looked at it reading off the letters, touched it and smelled it.

Then I carefully cut about a quarter of it off stashing the rest in a plastic bag for another day. We put our piece onto a paper plate and put it into the microwave.

We microwaved it on high for about 20 seconds and it quickly began to expand! As I opened the door to look closer, the "cloud" of Ivory soap deflated a bit, but was still much greater in size than the small piece we had started with.

We carefully removed the soap from the microwave and began to inspect it. Looking at and feeling the changes. It was larger and softer in texture. If you squished a bit between your fingers it turned into flakes.

We carried the entire plate upstairs to the tub and got his bath prepped. Then it was play time.

Dylan squished it and placed handfuls in the water observing how they floated.

Lots of good clean fun! Thanks Influenster and Ivory Soap for helping us play and giving us an easy weeknight kids' craft.

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Draw a Dinosaur Day 2014

For the second year, we're participating in Draw a Dinosaur Day. I'm loving Dylan's creation. He's blue, spiky and has a heart.

Last year he made a green, spiky dinosaur that I used to created a pillow. So fun to see how his drawing skills and imagination have changed.

This time, I joined in the fun too. Dylan helped me out by adding the tongue and green leaf in his mouth.

Want to join in the fun? Draw your own dinosaur and, please, share a link. We'd love to see.

Looking for more dinosaur themed fun? Check out our Paper Plate Dinosaur tutorial; succulent Dino Garden; and Dinosaur Snow Globes.

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Painted Comets

It's been a while since I shared a kid craft. Here's a new one we tried this past weekend at Astronomy Days at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences - Painted Comets.

Supplies

• white paper
• paint in 3 colors
• small plastic scraper or squeegee 
• cookie tray (or cardboard to push paint onto)

Select paint colors. We used three. Squirt a small dot with the first color. Then create a ring around it in the 2nd and 3rd colors.

Take a scraper and pull the paint across the page onto the tray to create the comet.

Set the painting aside to dry. Enjoy.

I would share a photo of our completed painted comet, but it had a little mishap on the way home. Guess we'll have to give this one another try.

I highly recommend checking out Astronomy Days. It's a fun annual event featuring crafts, hands on activities, presentations, etc. The 2015 dates all already posted on the website - January 24th & 25th.

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Toilet Tube Monsters

Inspired by a photo on Pinterest (and as I type this, I realize it links to a tutorial - oops), Dylan & I collected several toilet paper tubes to create monsters for Halloween. I showed him the photo and then set him loose with markers, paint, pipe cleaners and googly eyes.

The faces amazed me. He drew the noses and mouths, then glued on the eyes:

Ok, so these turned out more "cute" than "monster" but we love them and Dylan is very proud of his monsters. He should be. He's 4 and made these entirely on his own minus punching holes in the sides for the pipe cleaner arms to slide through. I helped with that part but under his direction on where to make them.

Looking for more fun kid friendly Halloween crafts? Check out our past project shares: Candy Corn Art, Ghost Footprint Plaque, and Tissue Paper Pumpkins.

Linked up to Pintastic Tuesdays at This Mommy Cooks Dinner.

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Handprint Campfire

I've always enjoyed doing handprint and footprint art with Dylan. His little hands are growing so fast - they are sweet memories along with fun projects. I was excited when this project came home with him from preschool:

All summer they are having a camp theme and a couple of weeks ago that included "camping out" activities such as making handprint fires & napping on sleeping bags.

This simple project paired with a fun treat like a s'mores snack mix could make a great indoor activity to beat the heat or rain (seems like it's been raining here every day for the last 5-6 weeks).

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Wordless Wednesday: Watercolors

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

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Wordless Wednesday: Wall Painting

Linking up to Wordless Wednesday

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Friday Freebie: Easter Chick Craft

Earlier in the week, I shared a photo on Instagram of an Easter craft Dylan made:

I was asked if there would be a tutorial. Unfortunately, no, as it came from a kit I bought last year at a craft store. I have a habit of picking up little things like this on clearance after holidays and saving them for the following year.

The idea stuck in my head though and I came up with a quick freebie. It's an 8.5x11 PDF printable with my own sketch similar to the chick Dylan made. Print it out. Cut the pieces (or let your child if he/she is old enough). Color, paint, use as a template to trace onto construction paper, etc. Lots of creative options! Draw eyes or add googly ones like Dylan chose (another item I keep in our craft stash).

Click here to download the Easter Chick printable

Enjoy and have a wonderful Easter weekend!

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Homemade Birdseed Molds

I've been trying to get a number of items checked off the "to do" list especially ideas I've pinned. This was a project I planned to do a year ago and was shared by Stomping in the Mud blog. Finally, Dylan & I got out on a warm (50s) afternoon and made it a reality.

Supplies

• 3/4 cup of Flour
• 1/2 cup of Water
• Unflavored Gelatin
• 1 cup of Birdseed
• Muffin tin coated with nonstick spray 
• Straws (we used 2 cut into 3 pieces each)

Start by mixing the flour, water and gelatin.

Add the birdseed. We poured about 1 cup into our bowl. I don't have any pictures as we quickly realized it was much easier to mix with our hands versus a spoon. It really has a fun texture and cleans off easily.

After it's fully combined, press the mix into the muffin tin sections. Then insert a small straw into the middle.

Let the molds dry for several hours. Or, if you're like me and forget about them, overnight. Pull out the straws and flip the tin over on a sheet of waxed paper. The molds should slide out on their own and will still be damp underneath. Allow to sit until completely dry.

Add a string and hang for the birds to enjoy!

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Paper Plate Dinosaur

Dinosaurs continue to be a big hit in this house. As part of celebrating Draw a Dinosaur Day at the end of January, we also made a paper plate dinosaur. Here's how ...

Supplies

• paper plate
• markers, crayons or paint to color the plate
• scissors
• brads (glue or tape could also be used)

Start by coloring a paper plate. We used markers, but crayons or paint would also work.

Cut the plate into 3 pieces as shown below by cutting it in half and then cutting one of the pieces in half.

From the one of the quarter pieces, help your child cut a tail. Start at the smooth portion and cut a curve back toward the outer edge of the plate on the opposite side of the piece to create the tail. Don't toss the extra piece. Set it aside. Then take the other quarter piece and cut a neck/head shape. Again, save the remaining portion. Attach the tail and neck/head using brads (glue or tape could also be used).

Take the "extra" pieces left from cutting the tail and neck/head and cut 4 legs. Attach these to the body as well.

That's it - you've made a dinosaur! (How Dylan got his to stand on it's own is beyond me! Preschooler magic?)

A version of this post originally ran on January 24, 2013 for Arts & Crafts Thursday at Notes from a Mom in Chapel Hill blog here.

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Heart Penguin

Dylan created this adorable penguin a couple weeks ago:

It started off as a bunch of hearts. I forgot to take photos of the pieces & process, but if you want to help your child make one it's very simple. Cut 5 hearts of various sizes out of colored construction paper - a large one in black, medium one in white, and three smaller ones in orange. Cut a bow of out another color if you would like. Ours was a blue bow tie, but you could also make it a hair bow for a girl penguin. :)

Let your child glue together the hearts, bow and two googly eyes. Dry and admire!

The idea to make the penguins came from this post at Rainbows within Reach blog.

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Draw a Dinosaur Day

Last year, in February I think it was, I stumbled across Draw a Dinosaur Day. It's an annual event on January 30th where you draw a dinosaur of course. Dylan and I started on our dinosaur fun last week as we stayed in from the cold and recovering from colds. Must do something to entertain.

I started our projects by handing Dylan a sheet of yellow construction paper and his box of crayons. I simply instructed him to draw a dinosaur. We talked about whether his dinosaur would be tall, have big teeth, have spikes, etc. I loved the result ...

He helped explain it to me. The top right is, of course, the face. Notice the eyes, nose and smile. To the left are a series of spikes. As we discussed his drawing, an idea hit me. I had seen a number of pins on Pinterest regarding turning your child's art into a stuffed toy. At first I thought I might try that and then the idea quickly switched to a pillow.

Dylan helped me pick the fabric and trace his drawing onto freezer paper which I used to create a template. I cut out the design and sewed the outline & face. Then created the pillow sham to fit an existing pillow form I had.

Truthfully, I think I'm more in love with it than he is and that's ok. I put it in our family room to photograph (better lighting than his room) and it has stayed. It actually goes well with the color scheme and is a fun little conversational piece.

Supplies: all from stash - freezer paper, cotton fabrics, iron on adhesive and stabilizer, Coats & Clark thread

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Thankful Turkey

I remembered making version(s?) of toilet tube turkeys as a child and decided to try it with Dylan a couple weeks ago. Rather than just making the turkey, we talked about a few things we were thankful for and incorporated them into the design. A simple way to address this season of Thanksgiving with my 3 year old and remind us daily as we see it on our mantle just how blessed we are.

Supplies

• toilet paper tube
• construction paper
• crayon or pencil or pen
• scissors
• glue (we used a glue stick and glue dots)
• googly eyes (optional)
• feathers (optional - could use instead of paper)
• markers (optional)

To start our project, I drew feather shapes onto 4 pieces of construction paper. We talked about things we were thankful for and I wrote one on each feather. (Note here's where I made a small error - didn't plan ahead enough so two of our thankful things are upside down! Oops! My advice, write some on the far left & some on far right to leave enough space to glue and still see words.)

I held the paper while Dylan practiced his cutting skills with his new scissors - he loves any excuse to use them!

Next he glued each of the feathers to one side of the tube.

I helped him add glue dots to the back of the googly eyes. The dots make it so much easier for him to stick the eyes and they stay in place immediately - no waiting on glue to dry.

Then he glued on the beak and wattle I had cut out for him.

Here's the completed turkey:

And, yes, he thinks the wattle is the mouth. :)

A version of this post originally ran on November 1, 2012 for Arts & Crafts Thursday at Notes from a Mom in Chapel Hill blog here.

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the Studio by Kiwi Crate

Forever searching for fun ideas to entertain Dylan (and help him learn), I was excited to see that Kiwi Crate has a new website - the Studio. It's loaded with project ideas to enjoy with your kids like Halloween crafts, Thanksgiving crafts, kid-friendly recipes, two-ingredient projects, and more. Each project has instructions and photos to make recreating simple. You can also create an account to easily tag projects you want to try or have completed.

Dylan & I made the Flying Bat Ornaments last week and are already marking more projects we want to do. Check it out!

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Candy Corn Art

On a rainy afternoon earlier in the week, I went to Pinterest for a craft idea to entertain us. Dylan was very excited when I said "candy corn." I quickly explained it was an art project and that I didn't have any of the actual candy. I have a feeling it will find our cart during our next grocery trip... That said, he loved this simple craft I found on Mamas Like Me blog.

I hand sketched the outline of a candy corn using a white crayon. Then wrote each color name in its section using a crayon of the same color (ie, I wrote 'yellow' using a yellow crayon). I gave Dylan a small bottle of glue and pieces of white, yellow & orange construction paper. Together we worked on the glue (our gluestick had dried up and this was his first time using a bottle of glue). Dylan carefully placed each colored piece on his own.

He was very proud of his finished project and showed it off to Trent when he got home. Then hung it on the fridge for everyone to see. :)

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Pirate Spyglass

Dylan's imagination has grown in the last few months. He's really enjoying costumes and pretend play so much more that I've started expanding his costume collection. Most recently we added a pirate hat. Of course, all good pirates need a spyglass to help when searching for treasure so we dug around the house for supplies to create one. Here's how to make your own.

Supplies

• plastic or paper cup
• toilet paper tube
• aluminum foil
• tape
• glue (if desired)
• scissors (adult use only!)
• any decorative material you might like (stickers, buttons, etc) 

Start by cutting a hole in the bottom of the cup that is equal size to the toilet paper tube diameter. You can trace the tube outline to help. Note it doesn't have to be perfect.

Cut a few small slits along one end of the toilet paper tube. Have your child fold each of these sections outward.

Now slide the tube into the cup and out. Stop when the folded sections hit the bottom of the cup. Tape and/or glue in place.

Tear small sheets of aluminum foil. Wrap the tube and cup. Use tape and/or glue to adhere. We stuck entirely to tape using masking tape mainly in "hidden" areas and finishing off with black electrical tape. These could be decorated even further by adding stickers, gluing buttons or rhinestones, etc.

When complete, let your pirate imagination run wild as you search for treasure using your new spyglass! Dylan likes to do so from his Step2 Woodland Climber "ship" in the backyard as well as from various locations throughout the house. :)

A version of this post originally ran on August 22, 2012 for Arts & Crafts Thursday at Notes from a Mom in Chapel Hill blog here.

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Fizzy Fun

One of those simple, fun projects I've meant to try with Dylan for some time - mixing colored vinegar and baking soda.

This was a great way to use up an old container of fridge baking soda. It was long past time to switch it out so I just dumped the entire box into a small baking pan. We added a few drops of food coloring to four small bowls with vinegar. (No blue as I forgot we used it up making the "moon dough" for his party favors last month!)

We had a good 30 minutes of play with this project. Dylan loved squirting the colored vinegar into the pan and watching it fizzle and bubble. Then he tried sucking up a bit of the baking soda with the eye dropper and squirting it into the vinegar bowls - more bubbling fun!

He poured colored vinegar between the bowls - mixing the colors. Finally he poured it all into the pan and mixed both with the eye dropper and his hands. It was a brown mess by then, but still a fun textural experiment! We'll definitely try again.

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