art

Photo from one of Donna's workshops to be taught at Scrapbook Corner

If I could  ask God for a favor, just a small request….I would ask for one-tenth of the talent, imagination, motivation, skill and/or life force of Donna Downey.

Never heard of her? If you are not a scrapbook maven or rafter, I’m not surprised. But if you scrap or craft, no doubt you’ve seen her column in Simply Scrapbooks, been uber-inspired by her blog, or sat in awe while looking through her galleries and shops on website.

Donna is the type of scrapper/crafter I yearn to be: a true mixed media artist, manipulating paper, paint, ink and photos into albums, 3-D art and whatever else pops into that wonderful head of hers. I know I’m talented on some levels, but this lady takes the cake.

Well, anyway, the reason why I’m telling you this is because DONNA IS GOING TO BE IN LITTLE ROCK!!!!! Ahhhhh!!!!

She will be at Scrapbook Corner April 30-May 1 to teach four different workshops. You can see workshop descriptions and photos on their blog. Deadline to sign up for the classes is April 15. I hope to see some of you there!

From the Eric Carle blog

I have always loved Eric Carle. I’m not being trivial…since I was a little girl, like 4 or 5, I’ve loved The Hungry Caterpillar and his other books for their vibrant color and wonderful texture that is trademark Carle.

Click on the photo to read his post about everyday art and making a mess.

Wonder what was on my mind?

Months ago, when I knew I was going to be blogging some sort of crafty bit for LRM, I was listening to NPR when this little bit about children’s book author Mo Willems’  (Don’t Let Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Knuffle Bunny) crusade to get adults to draw came on the air. Here’s part of the piece-

One of the biggest reasons children stop drawing is that they see that adults don’t do it, Willems says. When he goes into classrooms, he says, teachers often ask him to get the kids to draw. But when he does, many of the teachers don’t participate. “Well, now the kids realize that this is just a baby activity,” he says.

(more…)

My Pollock-in-training's handiwork

I don’t know about you, but I get REALLY excited about my kiddo’s artwork. I study the washable-paint swirls, looking for the makings of an artsistic genius lurking in those messy masterpieces.

I hate to part with anything he’s colored/painted/drawn, so when the pile was so high that the husband began to drop hints like, “Is that really necessary?” I had to come up with a new idea.

He does the majority of his painting on an art easel with a roll of paper, so most of his art ends up measuring 18  by 20 inches. That is just enough paper to wrap a box!

So I took all of his loose artwork and rolled them together, and put them with my rolls of wrapping paper. When I use one for a gift, I try to center the top of the box on a colorful part of the paper for maximum impact. I don’t add any ribbons or bows, and either write the child’s name on the box or attach a gift tag.

I love this idea threefold: it goes along with my 3 R’s obsession, it showcases my budding Signac at work, and allows me to continue to hoard. What more could I want?

photo from Parents.com

Ran across this super-cute placemat on Parents.com website. What a great and EASY craft to whip up with your kids for the big T-day!

I can also see some seriously cute handprint turkeys on these….

Photo from Makeandtakes.com

On a whim we visited Battle’s Cadron Crest Orchard in Guy about a month ago, right at the tail end of the peaches and the beginnings of the apples. Being a city kid, I’d never been to an orchard before and thought it would be a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I did not expect to have SO. MUCH. FUN. pickin’! There were hundreds of trees, and the fruit was literally falling from the trees as we walked through the rows. And they were so beautiful…natural, unwaxed, and DELICIOUS. The best fruit ever. Period.

After I did my Potato Stamp post, I remembered hearing about apple prints….using apple halves as stamps. As this craft is on my mile-long list of ideas for the blog that have not yet come to fruition, I could not wait any longer to share!

Make and Takes has a great photo tutorial for making Apple prints (cute site!), and of course my beloved Martha has some of her own examples of apple prints.

My idea is to stamp the apples onto some napkins and use them for fall…maybe I will get to it in a few weeks…before Thanksgiving is my goal.

Thanks for stopping by, and have a BEAUTIFUL weekend!

Leigh

Photo from Melbourne Public Library

When I picked up the kiddo from school today, an adorable card was sitting in his cubby…a not-so-subtle reminder that Grandparents Day is this Sunday. Yeah! Another forgotten holiday to chastise myself about. He had drawn a picture of himself, Grandma and Grandpa, topped off with a blue handprint. A seriously cute card, which got me thinking…

Honestly, this holiday is not on the same level Valentine’s Day in terms of popularity. But it would be a great opportunity to help the kids make a sweet little something for their g-rents and to spend some quality time together.

A handmade card is always a sure fire, easy craft that grandparents luurve. Take the kiddo’s classroom example: all you need is construction paper, a marker and some paint. There are, of course, more intricate and pretty ideas out there. These Valentine’s Day card ideas from FamilyFun could be easily altered for Grandparent’s Day.

Idea Box has several easy and cute gift ideas, generally using only three to four supplies. I love the“My Grandkids Walk All Over Me!” apron, the little scoops of love, and the keepsake handprint craft.

No time for a craft? I truly understand. Give the g-rents a call and see if they can get together with your family Sunday, then get the kids to help you make lunch or dinner, or at least a pan of sweets. The Veggie Tortilla Lasagna and Strawberry Bars from the Kids Health website are very easy and sound super delish.

Creating memories of the time spent together as an extended family is an especially heartfelt way to celebrate Grandparents Day, one that can be enjoyed for years to come.

While you’ve got the family together, get out the ol’ school cassette recorder and capture your parents and child as they play and talk. If your child is a bit older, ask them to write down some questions to ask their grandparents and record the “interview” session. You could also use a video camera or a digital recorder, so you could upload the session to your computer and make copies to share with the grandparents or other family members.

Go to the store and pick up a couple of disposable cameras and ask the kids to take pictures of your afternoon together, or snap a few pictures on your digital camera. Have the printed and send them/drop them off to the grandparents with a note from your children, thanking them for the time spent together.

On the other hand, if your children’s grandparents are no longer living, contact an assisted living facility in your area to see if your family could visit on Sunday to celebrate Grandparents Day with their residents. Go ahead and make that pan of brownies and some small “Happy Grandparents Day” cards-made perhaps on index cards with crayons and stickers-to bring with you. Just having a child in the room can be therapeutic for an elderly person, and the visit will enforce a sense of generations and community in your child.

I hope everyone can find a moment to celebrate Grandparents Day with their families this weekend! Talk to you later-

Leigh

This weather has so put me in a fall state of mind…I can just smell the chili on the stove, feel the crisp in the air, and I am itching to pull out the down comforter for the bed.

I thought I’d compile a few quick and simple ideas from the web for you to do with your kids after school or this weekend:

Photo from kaboose.com

I love this hand print tree from kaboose. It’s good for kids three and up, and would be a great classroom project, too.

DLTK’s hand print wreath would look super cut on your front door this fall! A great craft for children of any age.

Photo from FamilyFun.com

FamilyFun.com has a section of crafts and projects just for fall. I am a big fan of any project that gets you and your kids outside, so I love these Foliage Friends and the Walking Stick Grip. The Pumpkin Roll  is super cute and is an homage to my TP Roll series. You can get the kids to help cut out the apples and thread the pipe cleaners on the Funny Fall Napkin Rings.

Kinderart.com has another great TP roll idea…a bird feeder!

I hope you guys have a little fun today with these ideas!

Leigh

And now, as promised, more toilet paper roll goodness:

The supplies

Windsock it to me Locate your hole punch, some yarn, lots of ribbon in all different colors, and paint, markers, crayons, whatever!
Get your kiddo to cover the roll with their artsy goodness and let it dry completely. Punch two holes in the top of the roll, straight across from each other. Use a ruler as a guide if you need to. Cut an 8” piece of yarn and tie each end to each hole in the top.
Punch six to eight holes evenly spaced around the bottom, depending on the width of the roll. Cut one to two strips of ribbon per hole, between 10” and 12” each. Thread the ribbon through the bottom holes, centering the hole on the middle of the ribbon, and tie in a double knot.
For fun, you could tie lightweight baubles to a few of the ribbons: small buttons, paper clips, charms from broken bracelets (another collection of mine), and smallish beads.

Catchin' a breeze

Hang outside protected from rain, or inside your child’s room. This one turned out rather fun; thanks to my own kiddo for painting the toilet roll!

So here’s my plan tonight: kiddo in bed at 8:30 pm, husband out at Vino’s to hang out with some friends, and me, feverishly sewing new crayon rolls to share with you guys. We’ll see how it goes! Til then friends-

Leigh

So this is why I laud the wonderful and humble toilet paper roll. When it comes to kiddo crafts, you can do almost ANYTHING with one. Over the next bit I will share my favorite ideas, but here are two for starters:

argh, mateys!

Eye spy-glass We did this one for the kiddo’s third birthday pirate party. Find some clear cellophane or a very thin and pliable plastic sheet, either from some packaging or gift wrap cellophane. It can be colorless or tinted, whatever you can find, and cut out one 4” by 4” piece. I took the toilet paper roll and spray painted it black, but you can have your kiddos color/paint/mark it up, or leave it plain. Cover one end with the cellophane and secure with your handy dandy rubber band or tape. Viola! A spyglass fit for any first mate on ye ol’ pirate vessel.

Getting ready to stamp!

I love how the colors are all mixed together....

Stampin up The cheapest and easiest way for kids to make circle shape. Squirt a couple of colors on a plastic plate and let them go to town! Also great stamping items: yogurt cups, pencil eraser tips, water or the open neck of a pop bottle (and bottoms), corks, those rectangle plastic baby food containers, the list really is endless!