Search Results for: blog yarn crafts

Winter Woolens: Making Wool Crafts With Kids

I love wool. I love it in the morning and the afternoon, and I love to get it for Christmas and for my birthday. This Christmas, I got a bag of wool from my sister in law. I have a bag of unwashed wool in my workshop from the sheep at the local petting zoo. I just really, really like wool. Oddly enough, I also dislike knitting. I’m very left-handed, so doing anything with my right hand is a bit of a challenge. I much prefer crochet, since it only involves one hand. So what do I do with wool, … Continue reading →

Branching Out: Winter Crafts With Tree Branches

What a wonderful time of the year. A time of storms. A time of fallen branches. A time of crafts to make with those fallen branches. Ok, maybe the song doesn’t quite go like that, but there are an awful lot of branches about. Before you take them to the chipper or the compost, bring them indoors and use them for winter crafts. These bare branches are good raw material for craft projects that open up a conversation about forests and forest animals. One of my favorite simple branch crafts that is floating around Pinterest is a designer’s delight. Take … Continue reading →

Going Batty? Bat Nature Crafts

As I mentioned yesterday, I’m going a little wild on the craft ideas for my daughter’s Sparks group this year, and I wanted to share some of these ideas with you. Since Halloween is coming up and the girls have an outdoor badge to complete, I started to think about bat studies. We’ll do a night walk and hopefully we’ll see some bats: there are many of them that love to eat mosquitoes right behind the school where the children meet. To complement the walk and discussion about bats, here are a few batty crafts. The Bat Pumpkin Combine pumpkin … Continue reading →

Autumn Crafts for Kids: Fun with Leaves

Fall’s cooler temperatures have been delayed a bit here in the Upper Midwest. I, for one, couldn’t be happier, but I know many people are anxious for crisper days and the sight of trees exploding with vibrant yellows, oranges and reds (that is until they have to carve time out of their busy schedules to rake those gorgeous leaves off their driveway). Regardless of when fall finally rears its head in your neck of the woods there is nothing like soaking up the season with family members and friends. Use the time to go on a nature hike and make … Continue reading →

Simple Valentine Crafts for Preschoolers

I swear it was just last week that I was mailing out Christmas cards (okay, maybe it was two weeks ago). Now, Valentine’s Day is just 11 days away, which means there’s no sense in putting away my craft bin at this point. This, of course, is welcome news to my preschooler, who is always ready for new craft projects. The following Valentine art projects are ones we made last year when she was 3 years old. They are appropriate for ages 3-5, provided an adult is present. Older kids could make them on their own. Besides being easy to … Continue reading →

Hop Aboard the Candy Train and Other Festive Crafts for Kids

Now that the kids are out on winter break your home is probably not as quiet (or clean) as it was a week ago. To regain some semblance of order you might consider emptying your craft closet and assembling the following kid-friendly holiday crafts. Not only will they help your children channel their energy into something worthwhile, but also your home will be filled with festive decorations. Note: Adult supervision is required on projects that involve hot glue. CHRISTMAS CANDY TRAIN Materials: Hot glue gun 1 unopened roll of hard candy (Lifesavers) 4 wrapped peppermint candies 1 wrapped caramel 1 … Continue reading →

Holiday Crafts for Kids: Cards and Ornaments

The countdown to winter break is on for hundreds of thousands of students in our city. Friday is the last day of classes for public school kids, and then it’s fun, fun, fun until the first week of 2009. If you are looking for a way to occupy your kids while they’re home on break, consider the following simple holiday crafts: HOLIDAY THANK YOU CARDS These homemade thank you cards help eliminate the need to purchase costlier versions. The instructions are straightforward; the only challenging part to creating these thank you cards is the carving process. You will be carving … Continue reading →

Simple Halloween Crafts: Fun with Paper Plates

When I was in second grade my older brother (by 11 months) was dared by a kid in the school cafeteria to eat a paper plate. My headstrong sibling didn’t blink twice and devoured about half the plate before a teacher saw what he was doing and took him to the infirmary. He survived and to this day we still laugh about the incident. Strange anecdote aside that’s not the type of “fun” with paper plates I have in mind for your children. With Halloween fast approaching and the economy in the dumpster I’ve been looking affordable ways to decorate … Continue reading →

Patriotic Crafts for Veterans Day

Here are some more crafts to help celebrate Veterans Day: Veterans Day Wreath You may have never heard of making a wreath for Veteran’s Day, but that’s okay. Wreaths can be for any occasion. Things you will need: Smooth wreath form Glue Cardstock or construction paper (red, white, and blue) Scissors Ribbon or yarn Small flag or flag picture *An embroider hoop or even a sturdy foam or paper plate will also work in place of wreath form. You can also decorate a grapevine wreath if you like. What you need to do: First, you’ll want to cut out lots … Continue reading →

Fall Crafts: Hand Print Projects

Handprints can be used to make all kinds of cute projects. The hand print shirt for Mother’s Day is one example, and it can be adapted for lots of other occasions. You have probably seen hand print turkeys and hand print Christmas trees, which we can go over further as we get closer to these holidays. You may have even seen plaster casts of children’s hand prints. Maybe you even made your own as a child. These are all great projects. They are a lot of fun, they are simple enough that even the smallest children can do them, and … Continue reading →