I hope everyone is keeping safe during this difficult time. In this episode below I demonstrate how to make wild flower bombs and a bug hotel! Perfect crafts for these long days on lock down!! Plus let's get our kids to help save our bees!! Happy making and happy days to all xo.
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Hey everyone!... Summer has made an abrupt farewell, with Autumn whispering to us to stay outside, embrace and play in the newness that it brings. My kids really enjoy hiking, and finding cool sticks along the way...yesterday, on a hike we collected the "perfect" stick for that day and I suggested that we decorate them together. The excitement was great...mainly from me!! So off home we went, sticks in tow! This was a really simple craft to do with my 4 and 5 year old. They chose paper and fabric from our scrap box and I cut them into pieces for them and they glued happily, with just a little help from me. We can't wait to go for a hike today with our super cool hiking sticks! . You will need A stick Scraps of fabric, tissue paper, coloured paper, drawings, news paper....anything that your kids feel inspired to use. Mod Podge {this is a great craft glue, I use it all the time for gluing fabric onto things. } Paint if you plan to simply paint your stick but don't forget to prime it first. Non Toxic varnish. Sandpaper Rubber bands Step 1 Explore and find a great stick. Step 2 Give it a clean and a light sanding. STEP 3 Put at coat of Mod Podge on a small area of the stick at a time, then stick fabric, paper or whatever you plan to use, on and around the stick. Continue this process all the way down the stick until complete. Step 4 Give it a coat of Mod Podge and let it dry, add a further layer of non toxic water based varnish . Wrap a few rubber band around the top, where you will hold the stick for extra grip. Ta da!!! Of course, you can decorate it with the designs going horizontal, vertical, cut out shapes, like circles or stars and glue them on. I actually came across some really cool super hero fabric that would look great too. No doubt we will be decorating more of our own custome designed hiking sticks. Happy crafting everyone and thanks for stopping by. Ps...I am having a blast using Stop Motion Studio to create a trailer for my book Muddysocks finds her feet. I will post it here when it is finished!! This is a fantastic game and was inspired by Orchard toys Shopping List, which is a great memory game for kids......and adults! The idea here, in my home made camping memory game, is to collect all the items from your list {which are on one of four bags} and to place them onto your caravan ,tent, Tee Pee or camper van, which ever one you chose. A maximum of four players can play this game here... but you can create more tents/vans etc. for more players. Each player chooses a bag {with the list on it} and a van or tent. You then place all 20 little square images face down on the floor/table. The first person takes their turn by turning over a piece and if it matches an item on their list{ on their chosen bag} then it can be placed onto their camper van or tent. Each player gets one turn, even if it's a match. Who ever collects all their 5 items first...gets to hit the road early!! It's really fun to take turns, swapping tents, vans and lists when it is time for a new game! My kids absolutely love this game because it reminds them of camping trips we took over the Summer. It's a great game to bring with you on a camping trip too!! We really enjoyed making this together, while I did most of drawing and painting, my boys did all the gluing and came up with items to include on the lists. I also let them cut out the tents and vans and I just tidied them in another bit, so it was very much a team effort. Things you will need White paper Paints and brushes Thick card in a groovy colour, but white is good too if that is all you have Craft glue Scissors
Hi all.. With Summer in full bloom - a few days here and there of 20ish degrees!! Gotta love Irish Summers!! I thought instead of bring home stones from the beach, to paint, why not bring paints to the beach? Don't you just love painting on stones? Or using them as crayons to draw on bigger stones or play tick- tack- toe, or stacking them? Skipping them? You get the deal.. Below are a couple of images of the stones we painted to make animals, monsters etc and my favourite..foot printing on stones. What you will need Acrylic paint Brushes Water based varnish (to protect/finish them) Googly eyes Glue Printing my boy's footprints was lots of fun. They loved painting their own feet and when they were ready, I got them to press their feet onto the stones. You could be very professional here and paint their feet for them, if you want a neater print but I liked giving them the freedom to do pretty much all of this themselves. I like resting these stones against the wall by their shoes or on their book shelf, or on the corner of bath, I basically like displaying them in different areas of our home ! These would look really great in a boxed frame too. Muddysocks and Threads love stacking stones!! If you don't already know these guys are characters from my book "Muddysocks finds her feet" You can check it out at
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Muddysocks-finds-her-feet-friendship/dp/1797656333/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3B8ON8K9ONK89&keywords=muddysocks+finds+her+feet&qid=1565368451&s=gateway&sprefix=muddysock%2Caps%2C968&sr=8-1 Thanks for stopping by xo Hi everyone, Deep breath { for me!!} It's really exciting and nail biting all at the same time, for me, to start this blog. As a child, in school, I was the girl hiding behind the person seated in front of me, staying in perfect alignment with her moving body, swaying slightly to the left, to the right, crouching down, constantly trying to avoid being seen by the teacher, for I knew that once our eyes met I was doomed to speak! While that child still exists in me somewhere, peering out at events when I have to say....speak publicly!!!!! I do see it as an endearing quality though, that when embraced, just reveals a uniqueness, a truth that we all have. Having children has definitely encouraged me to release my inner child, to laugh at the big stuff from time to time and savour the small stuff. About a year ago, I decided to start writing and illustrating a children's book, one that I had been dreaming about for a few years.....a full 12 months later I have finally realised that dream. It is a tale of kindness, friendship and adventure. It is for 3 to 6 year olds and will definitely inspire fun and creativity. It is available on Amazon and if Muddysocks looks adorable to you then the link , is below. While I am proud of my book, I am also so excited about the idea, the fact, I should say, that anything you dream of doing can become so much more that just a dream. Once you start discovering anything about an interest you have, you already know a little more than you did a few moments before...Pretty cool concept me thinks!! |
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