dinosaur galore kit : a product review!

October 25, 2013 by mama lola

my boys have been obsessed with dinosaurs since the beginning of summer. they have devoured over books at the library, learning all about the different kinds of reptiles that once roamed our planet millions of years ago. they have drawn their own dinosaurs, built dinosaurs out of lego, and played a variety of imaginary dinosaur games.

so, when kelly at two kids cooking & more contacted me to do a review of their kids painting kits, i was delighted to see the dinosaur option! but, if your kids are interested in other things there lots of other kits to choose from, check them out HERE.

then one day we received a package in the mail and as soon the kids ripped it open, it was time to start painting! the dinosaur galore kit includes 4 wooden dinosaurs, which the boys divided among each other. my 3yo lion picked up a dinosaur and said “this is a triceratops”, so sweet! the other kinds of dinosaurs include a t-rex, a stegosaurus and brachiasaurus. (i had to ask my kids to list them, i cannot tell dinosausrs apart! haha!)

the kit came in a sweet burlap bag, with instructions, googly eyes, lots of paint and paint brushes! we laid down plastic on the kitchen floor and the kids got busy. the instructions recommend painting one side at a time, so that’s what we did.

look how cute everything in these photo’s are!

we let the paint dry and then got to work on the other side, and then the details.

these dinosaurs are a fantastic craft, but once they are done they are the perfect size for playing with. my kids have created all sorts of games in imaginary worlds with their dino’s! they are so reasonably priced and kelly was so helpful with all of my questions!

i love supporting small business, especially as we head into the holiday season! these painting kits would make a wonderful, unique gift for any budding artist OR you could gift the final product to a friend, cousin or doting grandma!

(i received this dinosaur galore kit as a gift from two kids cooking & more, but the views expressed are my own.)

toilet paper roll spiders for halloween!

October 21, 2013 by mama lola

it is almost halloween, which means we are in full spider, witch, pumpkin’ craft mode!

last week i splurged and bought some silly supplies from the craft store… things like more googly eyes, tons of pipe cleaners, black felt and orange glitter! definitely a halloween theme going on here!

so, here is what lion and i made… SPIDERS! this craft is perfect for the younger kiddo’s, as there is nothing creepy or scary about these spiders!

SUPPLIES:

1 toilet paper roll
scissors
white glue
coloured construction paper
1 big pom-poms
2 googly eyes
2 black pipe cleaners
a sewing needle

[ busy at work at our messy , but FUN art table. took this pic with my phone.]

DIRECTIONS:

cut toilet paper roll in half, cut construction paper to fit around each toiler paper roll half
clue the paper onto toilet paper roll, and decorate. lion just used markers, but use your imagination here!
take one pipe cleaner and cut into 4 equal parts (i folded the pipe cleaner in half, and then in half again to get the right size)
poke 4 holes on each side of the decorated torso. i used a larger sewing needle and wiggled it around to make sure my pipe cleaner would fit through. attach legs and bend into spider-y pose!
glue the pom-pom into one end of the roll, then glue on eyes!
voila! a halloween spider!

we will be making lots of these and attaching them to our big cobweb!

make your own sparkly cobwebs!

October 19, 2013 by mama lola

we made these fun cobwebs last year, check them out HERE, and are back at it again for this halloween! the kids love this craft!

SUPPLIES:

wax paper
white glue
sprinkles in your choice of colour
a fridge

DIRECTIONS:

tear off a piece of wax paper. it has to be bigger than your cobweb.
hold your glue bottle upside down, squeeze the glue out and create the outline of your cobweb.

then, fill in cobweb with cobweb like patterns on the inside.
make sure the different levels and sections of the cobweb are all joined.

generously dump sprinkles all over the wet glue

shake the sprinkles around, so that all of the glue is covered in sprinkles.

by gently bending the wax paper is a great way to get the sprinkles evenly to sick to the glue.

once you are satisfied with your glitter cobweb, place wax paper with cobweb onto flat surface in your fridge.
let sit in there for a few hours. it really depends on the thickness of your glue and the temperature of your fridge.
once it is hard and dry gently peel the sparkly cobweb off of the wax paper. it can be brittle so be gentle and slow.

the cobwebs can be used on table tops or you can stick them to windows by dabbing a small amount of white glue into the corners of the cobweb. white glue will easily wash off your windows with a damp cloth!

not your average burlap round up!

October 17, 2013 by mama lola

when dear hubby and i were married, we gave our guests little live spruce trees as favours, because we me at tree planting and it was so fitting! the trees had root pods, which we wrapped in burlap with a simple ribbon! they were perfect. but, when i purchased the burlap i bought WAY too much, and still have an enormous amount! so, i decided to scour the internet for some fun ideas on ways to use up some of it.

there are so many burlap round ups out there, so i decided to NOT include wreaths, christmas stocking or table runners. i love so many of those ideas, but i just wanted to find some other uses for the massive burlap stash in my basement!

BOO pillow from nap time is craft time

pencil case from factory direct craft

burlap ornaments from bliss bloom blog

burlap scrubber from maya*made

burlap stamp from chicken scratch NY

burlap peg bag from homedit

how to: a burlap sunglasses case from crafting a green world

i am in need of a holder for my clothes pegs, and that peg bag looks perfect!
which project caught your eye?

quick halloween ghost project!

October 9, 2013 by mama lola

i found some old white sheets in the basement and decided to get crafty just in time for halloween. this is a super simple, super quick project, but super spooky too!

SUPPLIES:

old sheets or fabric of your choosing
thread, needle
scissors

INSTRUCTIONS:

to give the fabric a rougher, spookier look i tore the sheet into squares

i gathered whatever was left over and made little bundles, that i tied into head shaped balls

i sewed on the faces free hand with a needle and red thread, super quickly. the less precise they look, the better i think
i held the fabric tightly to make the fabric taught and flat, making it easier to sew

my kids love these ghosts! i’ve made four and they are hanging around spinning around on their own. it’s kinda spooky, actually! everyone who has seen them has adored them!

quick and easy and perfect for halloween!

i made a small round-up of spooky halloween decorations that can be found HERE. some of those projects were the inspiration to this ghost!

thanksgiving crafts (gobble, gobble)

October 7, 2013 by mama lola

canadian thanksgiving is right around the corner! here are some wonderful kid-friendly crafts to help get ready for the festivities.

pine cone turkeys from a pumpkin and a princess

thanksgiving thankful tree from preschool crafts for kids

groovy gobblers from let’s explore

napkin rings from easy crafts for kids

stained glass leaves from mom vs. the boys

fall wreath craft from mom of 5 kids

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

DIY stamps!

October 2, 2013 by mama lola

about 10 years ago i made some simple potato stamps and decorated tissue paper with hearts and x-mas trees. every christmas my mum and i still use the few sheets that are left for each others gifts. there is something sweet about the personal, creative touch, don’t you think?
so, now that my 5yo bear is a super-keen-artist-dude, i think he’s ready to make some fun stamps. after researching ideas for this blog post, i too am eager to roll up my sleeves and get creative. we’re going to stamp everything from gifts tags, wrapping paper, cards and whatever we else will find.

you can make stamps for any and all special occasions!

here is a round-up of ideas, how to’s and examples of what other creative types have made.

upcycled wine corks from soap deli news

cork stamp from makita studio

DIY extra large letter [foam] stamps from the cheese thief

festive potato stamps from juggling act mama

carved rubber stamps from minna may

wine cork mustache stamp from bespangled

DIY stamps (random shapes) from play based learning

potato stamps from kanelstrand

rubberband stamps from sas + rose

butterfly stamp from can’t stop making things

eraser stamps from gathering beauty

hand carved stamps from gennine’s art blog

arrow tail shirt print from whimsy box

i’m in stamp heaven: gift tags from caro’s heaven

christmas stamps from claire belle makes

my local grocery store had erasers on super-duper sale, and i bought a large handful of them! i’ll share our stamp creations soon!

spooky halloween decorations!

September 25, 2013 by mama lola

the leaves are changing colour, the nights are getting cooler and that means… halloween is almost here! here are a few super fun, super easy and super spooky DIY craft projects to scare the pants off of everyone!

halloween crafts, halloween wreath, spooky, crafts

snake wreath from apartment therapy

voodoo dolls from felici events

lace ghost from a beautiful mess

spooky terrarium from creative blog

spider sacks from modern parents messy kids

spider crafts, pumpkin spiders, halloween decorations

creepy crawlers from good housekeeping

spider wreath, halloween decorations, scary crafts

arachnophobia wreath from eclectically vintage

spooky, spooky!
get those supplies in order, because halloween will be here before you know it!

wind tubes craft!

August 19, 2013 by mama lola

here is a fun, simple and creative craft project for kids. my 5 YO was happy to do most of the work himself, which was great!

materials:

tube like containers like toilet paper rolls, yoghurt containers, etc
various colours of tissue paper
duct tape & string
scissors, glue, markers, stickers, paper, sparkles

instructions:

glue toilet paper rolls together
decorate the outside of the tube; use your imagination and get creative!
cut tissue paper into strips (about 2cm’s wide)
cut the end off a container that has a bottom. cover sharp edge with duct tape, if necessary
glue tissue paper strips to one end of tubes. this will be the bottom of the wind tube
make three holes at the opposite end of the tissue paper and tie string through them. this is the top and tie the three string together at the ends, so that the wind tube can be hung

we hung our finished wind tubes outside on our front porch and watched the wind make them dance! the kids were super impressed and felt pretty proud. they were able to do so much of this craft on their own!

do you think this craft project is something your kids might be interested in?

teach kids how to sew!

August 11, 2013 by mama lola

sewing is an important skill to have. we don’t all have to be experts, but some basic knowledge of how make things is valuable and helpful. i realize in today’s culture where everything is so cheap and easily replaced, rather than fixed, it might feel strange teaching kids how to darn socks! but c’mon, from there you can make awesome sock monkeys! haha!

here is a small collection of simple, small and lovely sewing ideas for small fingers. some are use a machine, others use hands for threading, some use felt, others denim. i’m sure you won’t regret teaching your kids how to sew, and it can prove to be a very useful skill for them. if you were to be a Cultural Care Au Pair looking after small kids, sewing might be an activity that you would like to take part in with them. as a mama to two boys, i am going to make sure they are exposed to sewing and i will encourage them to learn. bear, 5YO has expressed some interest and curiosity!