4/14/11

Crafting with Kids Book Review & Giveaway

Book Review Project
Thursday afternoon I started a little craft project to entertain us all. I've been flipping through Jennifer Casa's new book, Teach Yourself Visually Crafting with Kids, ever since it arrived earlier this month and got excited about this fridge magnet match up right away! While Ruby was distracted with her snack I snuck into the studio to make sure I had everything I needed on hand for this quick project.

Crafting With Kids Book Review
I located one of my favorite photos of Sebastian from when he was two and a half years old, my sticky magnet paper, and my paper cutter. It literally took me three minutes to round this stuff up and have it finished. I imagine doing this project with Sebastian would take longer but I'd love to see what photos he'd pick out and how we could mix them all up to create hybrid faces. Ha!

Book Review Tester Outer
It wasn't long before Ruby found me. She decided to lay down on top of my project like a cat might. If it's soft, she's laying on it.

Book Review Tester Outer
I had her follow me back into the kitchen and stuck the magnet pieces on the fridge while I called Sebastian in to see. He told me he was busy. Yep. Busy.

Book Review Tester Outer
No problem. It didn't take long for Ruby to figure out that the image was scrambled and after watching me put it back together and scramble it again, she got the idea.

Book Review Tester Outer

Book Review Tester Outer
Here she is pointing out Sebastian's nose.

Book Review Tester Outer
And showing me where hers was. I let her play with the pieces for awhile and rearranged them for Sebastian. I found him in there later staring at it and then suddenly his little hands started to rearrange the photo to it's original state. He couldn't help himself. I love that such a simple, visually interesting project is going to keep us entertained for awhile. I think we'll have to do mug shots of everyone and see how many combinations we can come up with!


Crafting With Kids Book Review
I've admired Jennifer as a crafter, blogger, mother for almost four years now and wasn't surprised in the least when she shared this exciting project! She's got the kind of gentle spirit that stirs up the best in other people. Her interest in not only passing on a love for creating to her girls but teaching them lessons through play encourages me regularly to take advantage of this time with my own little ones.

Crafting With Kids Book Review
Her book contains 75 projects organized by season as well as a list of tools you may need and ways to alter the projects for different ages. A few of my favorites include the flash card case (above) and the family sign (below).

Crafting With Kids Book Review
It strikes me as such a great resource book to have on your shelf for rainy days when you can't think of anything obvious to keep the kids entertained. I can see home school families using it to enrich their curriculum or camp counselors who are planning craft time. It's well organized with easy to read instructions and in many cases, step-by-step photos to help you along the way.

Neither of my kids are old enough to read but I have a feeling Sebastian could easily handle some of these projects without much assistance. Ruby, well...she'll just have to enjoy the ones I make for her to play with (Lift-a-Flap Storybook, Story Puzzle Blocks).

Jennifer and Wiley Craft are offering a copy of Teach Yourself VISUALLY Crafting with Kids to one lucky reader! Leave your name and a comment about a project you did as a kid that stands out in your memory. Winner will be drawn on Sunday, April 18th.

Keep up with the rest of the book tour and more chances to win below!


Monday, April 18 - Elsie Marley

Wednesday, April 20 - Maya*Made

Friday, April 22 - Stitches in Play

Tuesday, April 26 - Aesthetic Outburst

Thursday, April 28 - Artsy Crafty Babe


Congrats, Jen! It's such a lovely piece of work!
xoxo,
Rachel

141 comments:

delliechan said...

I remember having to do many projects when I was young. Id always go to the newsagent and pick up the large piece of cardboard for your poster / project.

I remember doing one in particular on the Cobra and the mongoose based on the story Rikki-tikki-tavi. I drew a picture and glued it on along with my story.

I was so proud of my homework, I remember talking about it for many months afterwards...

D said...

That looks like a cute little project that my five year old would love. I may have to look into getting that book.

Joy Frameworks said...

I'm sure it has a name, but I can't recall it. What pops in my head is the craft where you color an entire sheet with crayons, then color over it again with a black crayon and lastly scratch to your hearts delight. Now they have kits for this, but the hard work & prep was half the fun!

Vera said...

i remember that my mom made little bags for my birthday party and used the iron to get the image from Madonna on. We had so much fun with coloring the Madonna with special textile paint & making our own cute little bags :)

thanxx for this cute giveaway!

Anonymous said...

At some stage in my childhood, my Mom and I developed a pom-pom making obsession. We made tons and even connected them into doll-shapes. It was so much fun. I recently tried making pom-poms with my niece and nephew and was shocked by how much they loved it (and even more shocked by the fact that I hadn't thought to do it earlier). So now I'm on the lookout for more creative activities for them to do - this book would be perfect!

Unknown said...

omg i would love to get this book! i dont really remember projects from my childhood.. i should ask my mom;D

ladybug said...

love love love this book!
when i was a little one i used to make cookies or little cakes with my mom :)

Talia Christine said...

So cool!

I was a crafty crafty kid (and still am) but my most memorable craft was a nativity scene I made from construction paper, glitter, clothes pins, and toilet paper rolls. My mom kept it all these years, which is funny and sweet. God bless my parents always encouraging me to be crafty.


Talia Christine
http://taliachristine.blogspot.com

Vita said...

It was a hush times when I was a kid. There was just two sorts of dolls, one plush dog and couple of cars in the shop for kids to buy. A doll house was something from onother world and space :) I saw it in my aunts german magasine (such a magasine was olso a miracle at that time) I remember myself doing doll houses from all kind of stuff: shoe boxes, carton paper, school books (ups..), I drew thwm myself, used to make fabric curtains, pillows and ect. My kids will not understand that, there are plenty of toys now at the shops... but I have these memories and they are so warm :)

Tin said...

How cute! I would love this for working with kids who have just moved to England and can't speak English properly, it's fun to do little projects with them that don't challenge their language barrier too much to get them to feel comfortable in our classes and keep them talking! Looks great! My mom once got us to paint our hands and print them onto a white rug...cute until the neighbours dog decided to get involved...still, she displayed that messy rug with pride for years.

- Tina

jill funkhouser said...

I always wanted to be a fashion designer when I was little. I remember making a closet out of a shoebox and then designing clothes with construction paper and hanging them on little craft hangers. I never matched as a kid! Thanks for the giveaway. I hvae 4 kiddos that love to craft!
Jill
www.campfunk.blogspot.com

Tameeka said...

Cute book and cute project! I remember making many a pet rock as a child. they needed to be painted and have a face and hair of course! hehe
Tameeka :)

Unknown said...

This looks like a great book! My baby is only 8 months, but I have high expectations for his craftiness. I can't wait to do lots of projects with him. Of course, he has to stop putting everything in his mouth first.

I never stopped doing projects as a kid. My mom was never one to let a moment pass. One of my favorite things to do was make hand stitched sleeping bags for my dolls to take to slumber parties. At least they got some sleep!

Zoe said...

My favourite craft as a kid was making puppets with my mum, out of anthing we could find like spoons, felt lolly stick.
We wuld then take turns at doing shows behind the sofa. SO much fun :)

Zoe xx

http://blessedbeeapothecary.blogspot.com/

Kt said...

That is a cute little project. My stand out activity would be making party hats for my birthday. My dad and I cut and stapled crepe paper into crowns and decorated them with silver and gold star stickers.

Anonymous said...

what an awesome looking book...leaves me tempted to 'run out' and buy it immediately!

As a kid I had a cabbage patch sewing machine...I used to sew up clothes for my barbies and cabbage patch kids...it was a regular weekend thing for me as a kid

Tatum xx

April said...

What a great project. My mom was a SAHM when we were little, and we used to do all sorts of fun projects together. Every Christmas, as presents to our teachers, she would help us make handmade tree ornaments for them.

p.s. LOVE your daisy blanket. My mom has the same one. Hers is backed with a soft yellow sheet. We used to cuddle up under it all the time.

My Modern Day Little Women said...

In grade school, we were learning about Indians and made beaded purses. That was my fav. Both my grandmothers were seamstresses so I was always doing something neat with them.

Thalita Dol said...

I don't remember one particular craft, but I remember that when I was in 3rd grade, my mother was chosen to be responsable for the decoration for my school festival. I helped her a lot and loved it! I also loved to help my nana preparing stuff like drawings and stories for sunday school (she was a teacher)

hugs from Brazil!

Laura said...

What a great book to do crafts with kids!
I remember loving paper mache projects when I was little - I was fascinated by the whole process!

Crystal - crafty ave said...

I remember having a 'rainy day craft' book when I was young and I loved all the projects in it, I also remember making a doll house and cutting up carpet with our only pair of scissors and getting in trouble ;) (back before dollar stores and cheap scissors I guess)

I think me and my kids could have lots of fun with this!

Unknown said...

Cute project! We crafted with my Grandma every Saturday so I remember a lot yarn projects as a kid.

Jennifer said...

The book looks like so much fun! My Grandmother taught me how to embroider and cross-stitch. I remember when I was little she and I would make magnets for the fridge out of plastic canvas. We had one whole side of her fridge covered.

katielicht said...

i could use a book like this to keep us occupied today! rainy and windy and definitely too cold for the park.

i was obsessed with crafts as a kid. embroidery floss friendship bracelets (of course!) beads, paper dolls, and for a while I was really into paper mache. hmm, now that I'm a mom it makes me happy that my own mom let me work on such a messy project.

Sylvia said...

I will never forget my first big sewing project when I was about 7. I made a pink cat shaped cushion, but it ended up looking more like an owl. Either way, great for cuddling and I still have it :)

Kelly said...

What a thoughtful question! When I first started thinking of how to answer, I couldn't remember anything (and felt sad). But then memories started coming back...

I made Barbie furniture and even tried making my own Barbie clothes. There were also various school projects...one of which I made an oven backed clay replica of my hand. I then glued little bits of tissue paper in a ring & colored it red. I was doing a report on ringworm for health class. It was an awesome hand.

My kids are crafty now (we have a whole cabinet full of stuff they can use at their whim). I would love this book!

Thanks again for the nostalgia!

Corey said...

I used to pore for hours over the Childcraft "Make and Do" book. I tried lots of projects in there, but was always in awe of a big cardboard "life-size" submarine. We never did make it,but oh, how I wished we could!

Sarah M said...

This looks like such a fun book and I love the magnet picture puzzle!
I learned to embroider when I was about 7 and remember making everyone embroidered tea towels for Christmas that year. I was a bit of an over-achiever :)

Sarah M

sarah said...

i wrote a book when i was little ... it was about beth the butterfly. then i made a book- in the shape of a butterfly- and transferred my story over. i still have it. <3

Unknown said...

Looks like a great book!!! Since we grew up in the country we always were doing nature hikes and crazy scavenger hunts in the woods... My mom would make up a list that would keep us busy for a while.. Loved it!!! Great giveaway!!

Kelly K. said...

What an awesome book! Crafting was always one of my favorite things to do and I hope to do lots of projects with my own kids as they grow up too. One of my favorite crafting memories was learning how to knit. My mom started me on one of those loops and I made a hat. I was SO proud of myself. Making something that I got to wear was so fulfilling.

Lindsay C said...

I feel like I am still a kid haha, but when I was younger I used to paint rocks and sell them at the market with my grandmother. I used to look around for rocks that looked like animals so I could paint them.

Fingers crossed !
098585c@acadiau.ca

Courtney said...

What a great book! I would love to have some new inspiration for kiddo crafting time. One project that stuck out to me the most was making our own wrapping paper with wax paper and crayon shavings. You put the shavings between 2 pieces of wax paper and then iron them together. It makes really cool paper.

jaderox213 said...

my mom was going to school part-time for a bachelor's in english and for one of her classes she had to compile a selection of short stories and then have them bound as a book. she read the stories to me (i was maybe 5 or 6) and then told me to draw a cover for her book. she still has it packed away somewhere in one of the many boxes we accumulated moving around as much as we did. that was my favorite craft project. i don't have kids, yet, but my bff is a first grade teacher (and the best teacher i know!) and i would love to be able to give her this book. she's very good at keeping her students interested in learning, and this book would just give her some fresh ideas!

-candice

ginnysaurusrex said...

My mother was & still is a teacher so we did tons of fun projects together when I was a kid. We still do! haha. I remember making pop-up birthday cards, hair bows made out of balloons, puff paint shirts for every season, Easter egg trees, Christmas ornaments from pine cones.. so on and so forth. :] My mom rules.

ginnykathleen at msn dot com
ginnykathleen.blogspot.com

:D

ladybirdloves said...

We once took a small sheet of some sort of thin light metal and traced pictures over it making the picture engrave in the metal. Then rubbed some liquid over it making it looked distressed. I am sure there is a proper name for it but I can't remember, I do remember that is was really fun and kind of mixed art with science. We nailed it to a plaque and I still have it to this day!

Kristin said...

This book looks fantastic.
Something I used to do as a kid was hollow out eggs and decorate them. I tried this recently with Isaac, my five year old, and he was so fascinated by the process and loved painting them.

CV Love said...

Good ideia! I like

Unknown said...

Looks like a great resource!

At summer camp one year, I made a picture of a sailboat by wrapping string around nails hammered into a block of wood. I still have it somewhere.

Also camp favorites...anything made from popsicle sticks, especially dream catchers and god's eyes.

Sarah said...

I would love that book!
One of my favorite crafts when I was little was making a clay hand print when I was in kindergarten! That was 20 years ago and I STILL have it!

~Heather said...

Learning how to knot together daisies and make a crown.

mek said...

This is kind of a silly craft to remember, but in kindergarten we glued yarns of various colors and thicknesses to tin cans to make pencil cups for our dads - a Father's Day craft. But, it sticks out in my memory because my Dad used his - at work for the first couple years, and then at home on his desk for several more. Guess whose sentimental streak I inherited?

Ruthie said...

Cute, cute, cute pictures! I love the craft idea. When I was a kid, I really loved making necklaces out of beads, noodles, rocks... whatever had a hole in it!

JJ said...

We made "stained glass" with construction paper and tissue paper. They were laminated and I still have all the ones I made as a child. A beautiful simple craft that has stood the test of time!

nicole said...

I remember making flowers out of egg cartons. You know the bottom cups where the eggs sit? That was one of my favorites. Made a bouquet for my mom for mother's day one year!

patty a. said...

Potholders - we had a kit (had to share with my sister) and we made lots and lots of potholder.

Katie said...

What an awesome book!! I was lucky enough to have a crafty mom who did lots of things with us. I still have the embroidery hoop Christmas wreath that we made by stamping green handprints in a circle and adding red thumbprints for berries.

Unknown said...

This looks fun even for adults :)

marisa said...

great book! I loved taking shoeboxes and making little rooms or scenes in it with stuff around the house.

Becca said...

I remember making a paper mache otter in 5th grade...not sure why I chose an otter but it stayed with me until I moved out to go to college. Ha!
I would love to try these projects with my son!

letter A studio said...

For every birthday, my mom would whip out packages of pink & white tissue paper & proceeded to make each of us (& our friends) sweet hats that she fringed on top to look like a pom pom. It was something we always looked forward to.

Great giveaway, by the way! I would love some crafty ideas to do with my kids right at my fingertips.

melonkelli said...

I built a log cabin out of a cardboard box. I was enjoying Little House in the Big Woods, so I built it out of cardboard for a book report.

kristen mcashan said...

This looks like such a fun book!! Can't wait until my daughter is old enough to do things like that with me!

I did frienship bracelets like it was my job back then. :)

Ashley said...

I remember making intricate things out of paper as a kid. I'd make little houses complete with furniture and accessories completely out of white paper and tape. I had so much fun.

I'd love this book to think of ideas for my little girl (once she's old enough).

♥Lizzy said...

I was probably five or six, but I wanted to make my own rollerskates. I glued two cardboard tubes from toilet paper rolls to the bottom of my sandals. It took me a few minutes to figure out why I wasn't rolling! And yup, I came up with that all on my own, haha!:)

Emily said...

I loved to color most with my Mom. We would sit at the kitchen table and work so fervently on our pages, when we were done I would always looks at hers with envy because it was so perfect!

Celeste said...

My mom managed a needlework shop when I was growing up, and she taught me to cross-stitch when I was quite young. I used to love sitting and stitching with her in the evenings.

 Amy said...

I was a pretty intense little author when I was little, and my favorite project was the first book I ever wrote AND illustrated in second grade. I wrote about my black lab named Amos, and I still have it to this very day!

My nephew would love this book so much. They are such creative little fellers, and I would love to do these projects with them!

Amy
amymorby(at)gmail(dot)com
amymorby.com/blog

thearthurz said...

The project I most remember as a child was when my dad built a dollhouse for me (including real wallpaper and carpet from samples at a store). I loved that dollhouse so much and played with it all the time. It meant so much more because he took the time to make it for me. Thanks for the chance to win! That would be a fantastic book that I could use often with my two girls!

Tanya said...

First off, love the black, white, green and yellow color combo in your photots. I remember making a milk gallon Abraham Lincoln in school that turned out pretty awesome. I remember making our own kites and flying them. I did all these at school. My home life had no art in it besides coloring books (my parents were immigrants trying to learn English and make enough money to feed us), so I try to do arts and crafts with my own kids so they have those memories. This book would be perfect for that.

Meg said...

The first crafts I think of are those looped pot holders that are super easy to do for youngsters. I would have a load of them and do them some every day...I wonder if my mom ever got tired of those things???

Lora said...

I remember Christmas crafts in school. There was one bird's nest thing that hung on our family tree forever! I hope to start making crafts like this with my kids so they can remember all the fun times, too! :)

Jordan said...

we did TONS of projects as kids, my mom's an artist and so we had tons of craft supplies..something I definitely want to pass on to my two boys! One that I remember right now is those "hours of enjoyment" books where you cut out billions of paper pieces and then glue them back together to make something...we made a theater, viking ship, and even a human skeleton, full size! It didn't last too long, since our kitten got into the rib cage and shredded it....

Sharla said...

In grade 1 we made playdoh dinosaurs that had straws and toothpicks in the legs to keep them standing (which never worked to well as my legs kept falling off). I was SO SO proud of my dinosaur and I gave it to my mom for mother's day. Well every Mothers Day after that I would wrap up that same dinosaur and give it to her for a present. Every year she acted just as happy and suprised as the first year she recieved it. We still laugh about it, and I can't wait to see what my little munchkins make for me.

jaime said...

we used to mske a christmas ornaments - from pine cones to tp to pipe cleaners. my mom raised 6 kids, so we always had some little proj to keep us busy.

LauraP said...

I remember doing lots of plastic canvas projects when I was young, because that's what my mom was into. I had all kinds of Barbie furniture and play food made out of the stuff!

Marya said...

I would cross-stich platic canvas style. And still do. I would just make stuff and give it away to the point everyone I knew had a piece of cross-stich. :) I showed my 6 year old daughter how to do it. And now shes making everyone stuff. :)

MargaretB said...

What a cool project! I've had more time at home with my fella and have been looking for some projects for us to do together (and for me to do for him). This book looks perfect! Thanks for sharing!

Jenn Webster said...

I made an ornament with glitter paint that still hangs on my Christmas tree.

Wendy said...

That looks like such a fun book!! I used to make puppets out of old orphaned socks. Mom bought me a sewing basket for Christmas one year, and I carried that thing everywhere (still have it, actually), dragging projects with me wherever I went. Fun!

Gina said...

i loved paper macheing a balloon then "cracking" it down the middle to look like a cracked egg. Filled it with Easter grass and candies. Thank you!!

Megan said...

i am excited to check out this book looks like such fun!!

I remember making our very own pinatas and there were so many steps until the finished product but man it was sure messy fun! mine was a silly old snowman. i cant wait until my kids are a little older to do some of these fun crafts but wait i can wait cause it seems like they're growing up so fast already!!

jessie b said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jessie b said...

wow, so many 'creations' pop into my head from childhood, though most of them i went off and created on my own verses being guided by a parent. i loved hand-sewing (since i wasnt allowed to use my mom's sewing machine yet) barbie and strawberry shortcake clothes. i also use to love to make little miniature everything for my doll houses. I used anything and everything i could get my hands on.

Shanny said...

I remember we used to make ghost paintings by dipping our feet in white paint and stepping on black paper. Messy and so fun!

Tania Shaw said...

My Mom and I used to make the ribbon barrets, where you weave ribbon into the french barrettes. I think they were french barrettes anyway. I had a set of barrettes for every outfit of course.

Mattila said...

Two projects stick out right away... I used to help in the kitchen whenever my grandma was baking. When I was 7, she taught me how to make things with frosting such as flowers. One time we made a huge castle shaped cake with waffle cones and I made people to go in the castle windows. It was so fun! Also, making easter decorations with balloons and string and sugar water was a super fun project as a kid.

Rachel said...

I made a snow globe with some glitter and a big jar.

margie said...

Looks like a lovely book with many do-able projects!

I have warm memories of making newspaper trees as a kid. also, a paper mache face mask...

Heidi Lassila said...

This book sounds awesome! I remember so many fun art projects as a kid...sculpting with clay, 'coloring' pictures with yarn, mixing paint...I love art!

Sara said...

We used to make paste papers a LOT with my mom. Such a fun activity for a rainy afternoon!

I'll be taking a look at the library for this book!

Tracy said...

Long time fan of your blog Rachel :) I remember baking and kitchen making the most but not so much crafting.

Unknown said...

Ruby is so cute, she looks a lot like you! I signed up for the homestyling course yesterday, I can't wait til the payment goes through and I get to see it!

OT and ET said...

Hi! I found you on HH's mama style and I want to win this (can you please rig something) haha! Ummm, my favorite project as a kid, which was super super ugly but I cherished it, was a 10" x 10" fabric piece that I used to practice button sewing. It ended up 100% covered in a bunch of different buttons. I loved that thing!

Tawny said...

Do you remember Shrinky Dinks? I had such fun decorating those and having my mom put them in the oven to shrink. I think I had some Strawberry Shortcake ones that turned out pretty awesome. I think I'm going to have to track some of those down soon.

thedalyn said...

I LOVED fashion plates, but the project I remember the most was making a lamb out of recycled materials (tomato paste cans, papier mache) for the Trash to Treasure contest in 5th grade--mostly because I'm competitive and I won.

miss moonspinner said...

i remember making sock puppets with all their accessories. my brother was supper creative and he made "sock"rates.

missmoonspinner(at)gamil(dot)com

Crissy said...

When I was in 3rd grade, I made a pop-up book about birds based on the rainbow (Roy G Biv). I remember being a little upset, because my classmates weren't falling for "orange" ducks, otherwise, every other color and bird combination worked out.

Kira said...

My friends and I used to make little doll houses out of shoe boxes. We would pick out fun papers to glue on as floors and wall paper. I don't even remember what we did for furniture, but I assume it was made out of cardboard or popsicle sticks.

Robyn Devine said...

when i was super young my mom taught me the crochet chain stitch, and i would take a ball of yarn and chain away, trying to make a chain long enough to wrap around our house!

i'd love to have this book, as we've got a little one on the way in just a few months!

Michele said...

One summer my sister and I made dozens of potholders out of those fabric bands on little plastic looms. We loved it!

She said...

I was 10 or so and it was Thanksgiving day. I decided last minute I had to make something for the table. I used dixie cups and neon colored paper to make napkin holders. I remember sitting on the floor in my room with the door closed only letting my younger cousin in to watch. We sat there watching Martha Stewart while I worked. I remember my cousin telling me I was just like Martha. I remember being so proud of my napkin holders and being compared to Martha. (I made like 10 napkin turkey shaped napkin holders that day. My mom kept them till they fell apart).

elana said...

my favorite project as a kid was cardboard box decorating! we'd use a big refrigerator box and my dad would cut holes and we'd make ourselves a whole house!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the giveaway! That's an awesome project and I'll have to make some for my LO.

Snazzle said...

I was an artsy-fartsy little thing and almost always had some sort of crafty thing going. (Some things never change.)

I think my favorites were the very simple ones that could be done a million times and always end up different. For example, I LOVED having someone trace my body for me and then I'd spend hours filling in details.

I'd love to win a copy of this amazing book for myself and my 3 boys!
--Erin

Holly F. said...

I remember shying away from most crafty things as a kid, but I loved to bake chocolate chip cookies with my dad and sisters!

Sarah said...

I have two little boys, and I desperately need ideas for quick and simple craft projects to do with them. This book sounds perfect.
When I was a kid, I made a Christmas tree ornament with pictures cut out of old Christmas cards, glued back to back with toothpicks sticking out around it like spokes. It hangs on my own tree now.

Dawn Trest said...

So fun! I don't remember doing a lot of projects as a kid. One of my favorite crafty things we did was making paint by number Christmas ornaments.
Would love to win this book to get ideas for crafts with my four year old.
Dawn
www.hellodearie.com

mandi said...

Oh! We are a homeschooling family and we would LOVE this book!

My favorite thing to make as a child was books. I would take cardboard, cover it in fabric and write stories for my mom.

Lora said...

What an amazing book! Although I haven't any children of my own I would love to do some of these projects with my cousins, nieces, and nephews!

I remember being in a play at school and my mom and I made my costume together. It was the best costume of my class :)

<3 Lora; feltslc@plu.edu

Unknown said...

Me and my best friend collected lollipopsticks, you know those flat wooden ones, then we draw faces and clothes on them and made little familys. We really loved playing with those "dolls" and we kept playing with them long after we were too old for dolls! :)

Formerly.Lisa.S. said...

I remember these wall-hanging ceramic things that you could paint. They looked like flowers in a basket...very tacky!

The best part about crafting as a kid is all my friends remember that my house was the place to go to make fun crafts!

Autumn said...

As a child, the thing that I most remember making was a tie-die shirt. It was a MESS but it was so much fun. I wore that shirt everywhere, even though it didn't turn out right. lol

aecopley at gmail dot com

Summer said...

When I was little, I used to spend summers with my grandparents. One summer when I was about nine my grandmother taught me how to sew, and by the end of the summer my barbies had the most amazing technicolor felt wardrobe ^^

That book looks adorable.

Eileen said...

Such a beautiful, easy craft! Running out to by magnets!

Kristen said...

I would love to win this for my daughter and I. She just loves art and it would be fun to try some new ideas!
One of my favorite crafts to do with her is making play dough.

Danielle said...

I love this idea and I'm totally going to give it a go.

The Smith Family said...

I grew up in Ohio and the winters were long and cold...my twin sister and I could sit down in our basement with our mom and paint ceramic ornaments...it was so much fun!

Lorie

marcandlorie@embarqmail.com

Angela {fussycut} said...

this book looks great! and as for your question, my mom taught me to crochet when I was 7 or 8, so I always did a lot of that. :)

TheBlueHeartedBird said...

Such a great idea! My mother taught me how to sew when I was a child. Always letting me make dolls and to this day I still have one! haha
Thanks for the giveaway!!

larissa said...

This book looks fantastic! One of my favorite childhood projects is a still life drawing of sunflowers. My three brothers and I all went to the same elementary school and in first grade, the art teacher there introduced still life and had everyone paint a vase of sunflowers however they saw it. My brothers and I all have our paintings and it is amazing to me how different they are in color/scale/compostition. I plan on doing the same thing with my children!

Melissa @ knit purl baby said...

Weelllll I was in high school but I made this super awesome rain stick (ya know, when you turn it, it sounds like rain) in ceramics. It looks like a tree and I made a little koala bear that is clinging to it. I gave it to my dad and he still has it. I loved ceramics.

Roda said...

I remember in elementary school creating art by putting square pieces of colored tissue paper on the eraser end of a pencil, dipping it into glue then attaching it to paper...to make a headband or whatever image on paper. The tissue paper sticking up created a "grass" texture.

Leah said...

My craft shelf is calling for this one! Thanks for the chance to win it!

Pattij said...

When I was little, my grandma taught me to crochet and I picked up on knitting from a book. I spent a lot of time making things for my Barbie!
Evin5 at aol dot com

Anonymous said...

as a child, i was always constructing haphazard clothing for my american girl doll. silly! cutting off sleeves for skirts, etc.

pulchrabliss(at)hotmail(dot)com
-krista

heather anne. said...

My favourite thing as a child was making dreamcatchers, they were so tricky at first but as I grew older they got easier and easier and now I have quite the collection!

Little Miss Whisk said...

My brothers and I would collect things we found on the ground around the farm, rocks, shells, marbles, leaves, etc. And things we found on the ground in town. And hot glue them to the side of our play house. Soon it looked like this odd little art piece. It was great.

JakDeeandKids said...

It looks like a great book! Thanks for the chance to win

HillsRus said...

Ohh, I've been looking for a book like this! I remember making bird seed holders when I was little. So much fun! Thanks for this awesome giveaway!

-Anna H

Filipa Sompy said...

I remember at prep school we sometimes painted canvas with a warm paint using our hands - it was smelly but so much fun!

Thank you so much for this opportunity!

cara lou said...

Oh perfect! I'm always looking for fun projects to do with my 3-year-old son. This book looks lovely.

alissa said...

i'd love to win this! i remember making a habitat for for lizards as a kid, and while im deathly afraid of them now, i'd love to build a birdhouse with my daughter :]
hialissa@gmail.com

alissa said...

i'd love to win this! i remember building a lizard habitat as a kid. im afraid of them now, but i'd love to build a bird feeder with my daughter this summer :]
hialissa@gmail.com

MamaG said...

Great book! Would love this! We would get involved in baking with my dad. He would grind wheat to make flour for his bread and we would be happy to take over.
Thank you!!

Melissa said...

I can remember making Valentine mailboxes for school with my Mom, and they were always so creative and different....and there wasn't this vast sea of crafters to get ideas from back then! I need all the help I can get it seems; so, I would love to win this book!

Rachel said...

Here's what's sad.... I don't have many artsy craftsy memories that stand out from my childhood. But I'd like to change that for my kiddos definitely.

I would love a chance to win this book! We really enjoy doing art and crafting in our home and I think this could be a great resource.

charity said...

I remember my Grandma was the best at making up games. I wish I could more vividly remember them. I do remember one game that involved these cards she made that were similar to Monopoly, only you had to make your own town out of popsicle sticks and twigs. I don't remember how you won, but my brother always beat me.

Stephanie C. said...

I remember making Christmas ornaments from various things with my picture on them with my grandma to give to my parents as a kid.

All Done said...

I can't remember much of crafting when I was young, butbi recall pressing flowers between layers of mac-tac for a bookmark. I also remember carefully copying my artistic aunt's beautifully drawn orchids on my hand made birthday card.
Would love to win a copy of Jennifer's book for crafting with my kiddos.

eti said...

I loved the idea of the book.
When I was young I made so many projects. it`s hard to choose one of them. but if I had to write about only one - I remember I made Noah`s ark.

Angelyn said...

My brother and I made wooden crayon boxes, and I still have mine!

Unknown said...

Even if I don't win it, I'm getting this book - I'm always on the lookout for good kids craft books :) Thanks for sharing!!

Kaylee said...

I love it, Rachel! It looks like Sebastion and Ruby had fun! I love the picture of Ruby pointing to her nose :)

One of my favorite projects happened when I was in 4th grade. We got to write an autobiography of everything that had happened in our loves up to that point. Then we got to illustrate it too!! My teacher, Ms. Ashworth "published" it for us. My mom still has it saved for me! It was a lot of fun to write my own story.

Thanks, Rachel!

Jari said...

This looks perfect for our newly homeschooled household!
I was recently told by my 6 yr old that "you are the craft lady and you never do enough art with us." That was followed by a super sad pouty face. This book looks like FUN!
XO.
Jari

3 o'clock walk said...

Whenever my mother would go dress shopping, to pass the time while she was in the dressing room, I would comb the dressing room floors for fallen sequins. By the end of a shopping session I'd have a good handful which I would then proceed to take home and make bracelets out of ;)

Anonymous said...

I remember making caterpillars from egg carton's when I was younger. So much fun! I'd love some new ideas of crafts to do with my daughter!

Jessi said...

what a cute idea - I think my daughters would love this!

Jennifer M. said...

Oh what a cute craft project!

tishous said...

I remember my mom tracing my hand on some fabric and teaching me to stitch over it. That was probably about 2 decades ago and I'm still wild about embroidery :)

Bellgirl said...

What a great idea for a puzzle, we'll definitely be making one of those! I'd love to win a copy of this to try out with my Bug.