That's a Wrap!

The gift-giving season will soon be upon us. I'm already doing quite well on my shopping, thank you very much! I always like to tackle a crafty project to give as gifts and I have some fun ideas on that this year. Hopefully, things will go as planned and I can share that as well.

But for now, I'll share a gift wrap idea that my friend Margaret gave me:

Reuse your child's artwork!

I love this idea for so many reasons:

No guilt about throwing away the multitude of paintings and drawings that we don't have room to keep.*

By not purchasing wrapping paper, I'll save money.

It's an opportunity to reduce and reuse.

It adds a personal touch to a gift.

And, it's a special way to showcase your little artist's work. He or she will be thanked for the present and complimented on its one-of-a-kind wrapping!

~~~

*Of course I'll keep the really special ones. :) I've also been religiously photographing the art creations J brings home from preschool. At the end of the school year, I'll create a Shutterfly book of them as a keepsake.

MOO!

For my birthday last year my parents got me the coolest gift. A mosaic photo frame from moo.com. It's hard to believe almost a year has gone by and I've not posted about it.

MOO is a site that takes your photos/designs and prints them on a variety of products, one of which are the mini-cards. These cards are approximately 1 inch by 3 inches and are the perfect size for storing in your bag (inside the handy MOO holder) and whipping out to share when asked for recent pics of your kids. But, they also fit into a mosaic-style picture frame to make really cool, interchangeable wall art.

Right now I'm having trouble deciding which of my cards I want displayed, so I've been playing around with different themes and layouts... I could go with calming scenery stills:

...or showcase the many {silly} faces of my kiddos:

I also think it could be fun to scan in J's artwork and create a mini-card mosaic of his masterpieces! Like these watercolors he painted this week:

I really like that idea, actually! Arranging the tiles would seem to him like putting together a puzzle, only there is no "right way" to do it, so the process would be completely open-ended and creative. Then, there's the added bonus that the images he's manipulating are his own creations. And, once he's older he would have ownership over swapping new images in and out of the frame--creating sort of a fluid, fluctuating portfolio!

What do you think? How would you MOO?

{And, whether you're new to MOO or not, check out their blog for inspiration!}

painting!

If he could, I think J would LOVE to reenact the story of I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! He's been painting up a storm during the last few weeks, a real flurry of watercolor artwork that in the past he hadn't been so interested in. I'm content to watch him mix colors and experiment with the different brushes...

but, he prefers Daddy and me not to be just bystanders. Which is fun, but I am not much of an illustrator. Rainbows and flowers and shapes and then I'm pretty much out of material. C is good, though. He makes these cute cartoon-y characters and animals.

I think J's watercolors look so pretty, almost like suncatchers, hanging on our sliding glass door.

C and J dove right in when I suggested we try the salty watercolor project I saw on The Artful Parent. It was very cool!

J's creation:

And, C's creation:

And, now for a confession. Am I a bad mother because just this week I *allowed* J to finger paint for the first time? He's 2 and a half! How could I have denied him this classic toddlerhood fun all this time?! Well, I just expected it to be such an ordeal. Long, involved set-up. A big mess. Paint flying onto the walls and into my hair and onto the dog. A big cleanup. A bath. Another load of laundry.

But...(oh, you knew it was coming)

It was FUN! At one point, J stopped, looked over at me and said, "Isn't this crazy?! No brushes!!!" The poor guy. Look what he's been missing. I did cheat a little and had J use his watercolor paint set. We didn't go all out with the big bottles of tempera I have downstairs. I had to ease into this, mamas!

Anyone else want to enlighten us with some fun easy kiddo crafts? Or, do you have a crafty confession--something you've not yet attempted with your kids even though you know they'd probably love it? Don't worry--no judgement! Maybe just some encouragement.

kiddie art

I love easy crafts! And, I love to find tons of easy crafts all in one place! The Artful Parent turned me on to the fantastic books of MaryAnn Kohl awhile ago. We've done some of her projects and had a lot of fun.

But, check out this great website I found a couple weeks ago. First Palette provides tips and ideas to get those creative juices flowing and inspire kids (and adults) to create artwork together! A few were familiar but there are lots of ideas that are new and unique. They look interesting and fun without a huge mess or hassle. The crafts are broken down by age or by theme: nature, food art, alphabet/numbers, world and travel, etc. Each craft also includes a link to an Earth-friendly tip.

The site includes instructions on some "classic" art projects: like dioramas, leaf prints and rubbings, and vegetable prints. And lots of funky ones like a Sand Cake, Seed Mosaic, and Jingle Bell Painting! Two crafts really jumped out at the librarian in me. They'd be perfect activities to follow up on a couple of J's favorite books.

First, the Alphabet Coconut Tree looks like lots of fun to make. And, could there be a better story extender for Chicka Chicka Boom Boom?!! Read it and try it. Cement that Letter Knowledge into your kiddos' brains! "A told B, and B told C, I'll meet you at the top of the coconut tree"

This other craft looks silly and fun, just like the book I'd pair it with. I think J will get a total kick out of coloring and illustrating a Body Flip Book. (Actually, I think my husband and I will have just as much fun with it.) Design a book filled with wacky wardrobes, cut your pages into thirds, and flip to see the crazy combinations. When we try this one, I might use a photo of J's face on each page to add to the silliness.

Doesn't it remind you of that book Ribbit! which could hardly be found on bookshelves last year? J got an autographed copy for Christmas and at first I don't think he quite got it... I think he thought, "where is the story in this book?" But, soon he started to see the hilarity in the way this poor frog (or frogs?) is costumed.

Oh, I almost forgot. Another great thing about First Palette is that they love to see what their crafts have inspired your kids to make. So, if you give one a try, you can also upload a photo of your work to be displayed on the site! Please stop back here too, and let me know to look for it.

Do you have any great arts and crafts resources to share?

:: connect the dots ::

Here's a fun random post with a kind of connect-the-dots logic to it.

Last week, C and I celebrated our ninth (!) wedding anniversary and spent a fun and casual night out in Short North Columbus. We had dinner at Marcella's, which I had been dying to try, and is absolutely positively my new favorite restaurant. Italian tapas, great wines, and a killer dessert menu!

After a nice leisurely meal that did not involve me rummaging through my bag to find a toy or a crayon or a sticker or a lollipop, we strolled the Short North checking out the shops and the galleries. At one of the galleries, and I hate to say that I forget which one it was, we came across some wooden carpets, like this one. Apparently, they are made in Israel. They're vinyl-backed and fold up accordion-style. Several coats of a laquer are applied so that the design is protected and it can be easily cleaned. Beautiful, don't you think?

Next, we stumbled upon this really cool boutique called Tigertree. Wow, I seriously coveted just about every item in there. Particularly, the gorgeous Orla Kiely wallets and totes in this fabric.

Also, the shop had tons of little trinkets, bags, notecards, and accessories done by an artist named Shinzi Katoh. The shopkeeper told us he's a Japanese picture book artist. C and I loved his style and have since been scrolling through his online shop. I want to get some of this tape and do something crafty with it. Take a look at his shop--it's endless!

While obsessing over this new-to-me artist, I read that he's one of the premiere Zakka artists. What is Zakka? Maybe some of you hipsters already know, but the word was new to me. I Googled it and found this helpful page on Squidoo:

In Japan, all the 'small, various products used in everyday life' are commonly called 'zakka,' a term which encompasses household goods, daily necessities and sundries. However, zakka has also come to represent a style of art and craft that is simple, charming, and of Japanese esthetic. Most items in the zakka style are handmade, but there are commercial companies that mass produce items using the style. The Japanese dictionary describes zakka as "general merchandise", "miscellaneous goods", "sundries", "sundry goods" including interior goods, kitchen goods or even cosmetic product.

I think that's such a cool concept. And, it's the concept that is the basis for an amazing blog I discovered this week. Zakka Life features a craft project of the week, as well as helpful book reviews of fun and crafty new books. Several crafts have been posted recently with Mother's Day being the theme. I liked this tea cup card. It could be a gift card holder. It could adorn a breakfast-in-bed serving tray. Use it as a place card if you're hosting a Mother's Day brunch.


My best friend's mom has been like a second mother to me all my life and she is soooo into tea! I think I'll be making one of these this weekend to send to her as just a cute "thinking of you on Mother's Day" token.

And, Happy Mother's Day to all of you mamas and mamas-to-be out there. I hope you get a chance to enjoy some of your favorite things and reflect on the amazing things that being a mother brings.

XOXO

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tomorrow is Turkey Day! I wanted to have a little something to give to the grandparents and great-grandparents, so tonight J and I made hand turkeys. He loves to color right now and also likes for us to trace his hand, so this seemed the perfect *easy* Thanksgiving craft, since it combines both worlds.

Once I scanned the image, I inserted it into a Word document, shrunk it down a little bit, and added the text, "Happy Thanksgiving!" below it. Copy and Paste a couple times, and voila! Adorable (if I may say so) 4x6 handmade turkey cards to print and sign.

~Wishes for a happy, thankful, and yummy Thanksgiving!

Etsy Artists + YouTube = A New Favorite

Once again, Twitter has clued me into something I never would have wanted to miss. Yesterday I saw a tweet from Etsy complimenting littlebrownpen's YouTube video. Curious, I clicked on over to check it out. Here is what I found:

Isn't that just the coolest? I'm such a fan of stop motion animation and I hope someday I'll have the patience and creativity to attempt one. (And, the music is totally rockin'. I'm going to have to find that on iTunes.)

Aside from how amazing the video is, aren't the cards, calendars and gift tags just adorable? This morning I logged on to the Etsy shop and purchased the 2009 calendar. Within 2 hours, I was printing them out and totally loving them. Little Brown Pen emails you a PDF file of whatever it is you purchase. Then, you print as many as you like and can go back and access the file anytime for more! It's an impressive and inspiring concept; one that's economical, innovative, and environmentally-friendly. Bravo, Little Brown Pen! And thank you.

Creative Living

Tonight I dipped into my new stash of library books and read Amanda Blake Soule's book The Creative Family. Soule writes a blog that I've been following, which is how I discovered her book. She is absolutely inspiring. Incredibly creative, mindful, reflective and insightful, inventive, and real. I read straight through the entire book furiously jotting down quotes, reflections, projects, resources, and came straight here to blog about it. Each section of the book opens with a motivating or inspiring quote. Here are a few that really spoke to me:

"Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere."

- Albert Einstein

"The most effective kind of education is that a child should play amongst lovely things."

- Plato

"Every child is an artist. The problems is how to remain an artist once we grow up."

- Pablo Picasso

Soule, herself, is author to some very inspiring words as well. Reading The Creative Family, I felt I was reading part art book, part parenting book, part "green living" book, and part meditation book. Here are some of her gems:

"A large part of nurturing a spirit of creativity comes from being mindful, slowing down, observings, and looking around you at the beauty and inspiration all around. We are blessed as parents to have the best teachers for this - our children." (p. 5)

"Think about letting your child be the guide, director, and teacher, while you try to be the student. Your role is to provide the environment and to watch and learn." (p. 13)

"Practice gratitude - when we feel grateful, we feel full - full of love, full of inspiration, full of ideas, and full of creative spirit." (p. 15)

"Living the creative life is made all the more fulfilling and rewarding when we are creating with, for, or because of others." (p. 191)

Beautiful, no? I am really looking forward to attempting some of her projects and ideas with J this winter. I think they will be excellent learning opportunities as well as creative experiences. And many of the finished products would make excellent gifts.

Library Jackpot

I had to work today and while there I finally picked up the huge stack of reserves that have been patiently waiting for me all week. I am excited to take a look at all of them. There's lots of non-fiction in this to-read stack, and a couple of teen books, including the Printz Award candidate, Paper Towns by John Green.

The complete list of what I picked up today:

The Woman Who Can't Forget - Jill Price

Beyond Time Out: From Chaos to Calm - Beth Grosshans

The 10-Day Glycemic Diet - Azmina Govindji

Reading Magic - Mem Fox

The Creative Family - Amanda Blake Soule

Let it Snow: Three Holiday Romances - John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle

Paper Towns - John Green

Creative Play for Your Toddler: Steiner Waldorf Expertise and Toy Projects for 2-4s - Christopher Clouder

My Stroke of Insight - Jill Bolte Taylor

Apples for Jam: A Colorful Cookbook - Tessa Kiros

Stay tuned to my Goodreads account for my reviews on these. (Assuming I get to all of them, which I highly and unfortunately doubt.)

Snowy Day Drawing

Wow, mid-November and it really feels like winter already. It's a shock to the system at first, and it makes me just want to stay cooped up inside. Part of that is probably due to the fact that J and I are both a little sick right now. Yesterday, I kept him in his fleecy pajamas all day and we watched the snow fall and spent a long time coloring. He went through a crayon obsession this past month, but now he is on to markers. Fun! A little more messy, but fun. :)

He occupied himself for awhile with this drawing, and I flipped through MaryAnn Kohl's book First Art: Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos, and got some great project ideas for the coming months... easy fingerpaint recipes, a watercolor & crayon resist, printmaking ideas, and a pizza box easel! Once again, I'm thankful for the inspiration and book recommendations from Jean, The Artful Parent!

Flannel Board Fun

A month or so ago I made a flannel board for J and started making a collection of flannel pieces that he could manipulate and play creatively with. If my experiences presenting storytimes taught me anything, it's that kids FREAK about flannel stories. They are just drawn to them and you can see in their little faces how hard they are trying to stay seated and resist yanking all the pieces off the board. (But, of course, that inevitably happens sometimes, too.)
Well, true to my experiences, J is really taken by the flannel board. (And Daddy and I are too!) We had a few friends over last week for a playdate, and all the kids (from 1 1/2 to 5) were very interested in it. This winter I am hoping to make a lot more pieces. So far, we've basically just got a starter set of a few animals, a tree, a sun, and a moon.
The flannel board is a 20 x 24 artist's canvas that I covered in brown flannel with spray adhesive and some upholstery staples. Once we borrow my dad's masonry drill bits we'll mount it to the wall in the playroom. Easy peasy.
I chose the canvas as the backing because I found one really cheap. I also considered using heavy cardboard, foam-core board, or even a piece of mdf. (Although, for the latter, I probably would have covered it in some batting before stretching the flannel over it.)

Gettin' Crafty!

I've been on a roll the last two days cranking out some Christmas cards. I'm toying with the idea of trying to sell some... It's been fun working on them during J's naps, and if I could make some money off them, then I may feel less guilty about slacking on the laundry.

A Whole New World

Well, at our house we have entered a whole new arena of play activities for J. He's been so happy with cars and trucks, books and blocks for some time now. However, it's like something kicked in around 20 months and he's become so interested and excited by little art projects: sculpting with playdough, drawing with crayons and stamping animals. In her blog, the artful parent, Jean posted about creating a portfolio/picture book of her daughter's art projects. I LOVE this idea and hope to do it once we have some more artwork from J.

I found a recipe for playdough online and have made several batches of it over the last month. It's very easy and I feel better knowing that if he gets any in his mouth, the ingredients are all edible. I thought perhaps the homemade type wouldn't last very long, but with storing it in a ziploc bag, it's kept its consistency for a few weeks now. The (super easy) recipe is :

1 c. flour
1/4 c. salt

1/3 c. water

1 t. oil

few drops food coloring

Aside from the art projects, the other new realm of play we are entering into is pretend play. It's just little things right now, like J will find an empty cup or a lid to something and he'll pretend to scoop something into it and then eat it. It's so cute and really makes us realize we've got a toddler on our hands now! I'm looking for ways to help foster and encourage it. I think we may get him a play kitchen for his birthday.

ABC's

I am awed by this book. It's a collection of works by Charley Harper, an Ohio artist who just died last year. He called his style "minimal realism" and it is just lovely. The images are detailed, complex, and interesting while at the same time simple. It is a remarkable effect.

The book itself is also effective in presenting the alphabet to very young readers. The simplicity of the text makes it all the more easy for youngsters to make the connection between the letter and the corresponding image on the opposite page. Because of these qualities and just the sheer beauty of the book, I included it in my book review column for the October issue of Columbus Parent. I'm hoping it will be a hit with families who haven't yet discovered it.

J has picked up several new vocabulary words thanks to this book: hen, koala bear, web, and yak! The other day while scoping out Amazon, I noticed that there is a forthcoming Charley Harper's 123's book available for pre-order. I'll definitely be checking that out!

Day 2

Well, being up until 1:30am setting up this blog last night left me struggling this morning to get J and I to a playdate on time. Luckily, he slept in and I was able to get ready quickly, although I had to go a little heavy on my Bobbi Brown under eye concealer!

The playdate was very relaxing, which in hindsight seems miraculous considering there were 7 children under the age of 5 and 4 moms! The rain outside encouraged us to veg out and gab over brunch and lots of coffee. The older kids pretended to be firefighters putting out fires, and the younger ones played with trains, blocks, and pop-up toys.


The mamas talked about motherhood, families, our kids' personalities, transitions like school or a new baby, and some fun stuff, but it was an utterly supportive and nonjudgmental conversation. I LOVE that. I am very lucky to have a great number of friends who can appreciate different parenting styles and dynamics. I am also comforted that they, and their kids, will be a part of J's life.

We came home about noon for lunch and then J wanted to play with his stamps and stickers. He was content in his high chair for about 20 minutes, and I snapped a few cute photos. And, he actually posed! This is a new feat! I asked him to show me his stickers and he obligingly straightened his arms and smiled up at me!