KidsHaus

The Small Object

The Small Object has got a few new clothespin people that are absolutely darling -- and I don't often use that word. There's something about the Cherry Dress that struck a chord. It reminded me of summers as a child when my mom would hang a pair of cherries over my ears pretending they were earrings...which reminds me that I haven't shared this tradition to my daughters' yet!

While on the subject...I was quite honored to read that Sarah Neuberger from The Small Object took my post about Ms. Bean's toothpick & marshmallow sculpture and revised it into a more permanent sculpture. Yes, I'm sorry to report that Ms. Bean's sculpture had slowly...slowly collapsed until I secretly disposed of it. Sarah used highly toxic epoxy (not recommended for children) instead of marshmallows but readers had suggested using blue poster putty that would be a kid-friendly solution and should be more durable than marshmallows. I think we're going to give it a try. By the way, if you've never read The Small Object's Steno Pad -- it's become one of my new favorite reads. Loads of inspiration and amusement.

Concentration Game

Remember the craft swap I signed up for (see the flag banners)? I wanted to share Jana's craft idea since I'm compelled to make it a summer project for Ms. Bean. Jana's son loves to steal her camera and photograph everything, including posed stuffed animals -- remember doing that as a kid? So she put those photos to good use and made a concentration game out of them. Jana glued Karsten's photos onto a thin cardboard stock and voila...a fantastic, homemade game that would add a sense of pride. To finish it off, she also made that pretty little bag to stash all of the pieces in.

DIY: Flag Banners

I got an email from Jana about an organized craft swap for kids last month. So, without hesitation, I signed Ms. Bean up -- knowing that I would need to motivate and keep her on task (no problem!). We were assigned 2 girls ages 9 & 11...and that's when I froze. What does a 9 & 11 year old like? In then end, I recalled being that age and loving the freedom to decorate my own room. With such inspirations as Miko Design, I decided to make flag banners and Ms. Bean instantly agreed; however, it was hard to convince her that we had to send it to another little girl. So, I gathered whatever scraps of paper I could find around the house, found a ball of twine and started cutting and gluing triangles of paper onto our string. It was a fun project that we managed to throw together while Clara took her afternoon nap. Ms. Bean and I had an hour to ourselves where we got to be creative together.

Crea Baby Shoes DIY Kit

Crea Shoes DIY Kit is a concept that allows you the creative outlet to create a pair of baby shoes (0-3 months) without the learning curve. The kit is made in Italy and comes with pre-cut shapes, stitching and embroidery tutorials and suggestions on how to personalize your own baby shoes. These would be a fun baby gift to put together yourself and you can take (most of) the credit. I'm particularly fond of those little pom poms!

Chalk fun...

I didn't even know that chalkboard fabric existed (did you?) but Jessica Levin has taken this unique material and crafted some of the cutest dolls and mats to scribble with chalk. A fantastic idea for travel! Jessica's 6 year old daughter, Ayva Sunshine, even illustrated the rocket and fire-breathing dragon -- a little artist in the making.

DIY: Little Book

I was at the bookstore this weekend and found this nicely done craft magazine "101 Hip, Handmade Gifts" from the editors of Creating Keepsakes. The first several pages of the magazine were geared toward fun crafts that you could make for or with kids. This mini board book will be the perfect project to do with Ms. Bean during winter break (she is unstoppable when it comes to drawing and making her own books of paper and staples). You can purchase blank, pre-made mini board books from Creative Imaginations. All you have to do is come up with the artwork. Step 1. Create your own cover and inside images. Step 2. Cut to size. Paint boardbook edges with acrylic paint to match your cover. Step 3. Use adhesive to secure the cover and the pages to the book. (Easy!)

The Pull String Person

With the holidays underway, this adorable Pull String Person from The Small Object is perfect for storing twine or string to wrap those packages. This could also make a great gift for Ms. Bean to add to her arsenal of art supplies.

Maki Squarepatch

You could easily spend hours perusing Maki Squarepatch's site with all of their quirky, hand-made items. They've got everything from stuffed toys, purses, small pouches, clothing, holiday ornaments and so on. All of their goodies are about recycling discarded, unwanted items and breathing new life into them so that they become treasures for someone else to love. You can't help but feel happy when looking at everything that they've created.

Holiday Gift Idea

I would selfishly love Ms. Bean to  love this Brio's Weaving Loom but I just don't know if she's ready for it yet. She's five and gets distracted easily and may not have the patience required BUT she's capable of surprising me and proving me wrong. I may end up getting it anyhow and if she doesn't like it then I'll just weave some napkins or make doll blankets (right?).