Search Results for: blog thumbprint art easy crafts for children

Art Class Adventures Part II

As parents guided their toddlers to different art stations, I too led my son to something new to do. He chose the stamping station stocked with lots of rubber stamps and many colorful ink pads. After using a few different stamps and a couple different colors, he realized that stamping was more limited than he liked. We moved on. The next station he chose was really quite neat. Large paint brushes were attached to long bamboo sticks creating three very long paintbrushes. A large and long piece of paper was attached to the wall and on the floor were three … Continue reading →

Easy Solar Prints

Today’s wonderful sunshine reminded me of a fun craft project that takes advantage of a sunny day. Solar prints are easy, quick and fascinating. You’ll need to make a trip to an office supply store for blueprint paper. You can also buy it online at Amazon, or buy kits like the Solar Print Kit or the Sunlight Print Kit that do the same thing. When blueprint paper is exposed to sunlight it turns a rich, deep blue. While you are still inside, put your blueprint paper on a tray, or clip it to a clipboard. Arrange all kinds of objects … Continue reading →

Meet a Families.com Blogger – Lauri Griffin!

Welcome to a new series here on Families.com, where you can learn more about the bloggers you read every day. Today we are chatting with Lauri Griffin, who manages a literacy program for struggling readers. Lauri, how long have you blogged for Families.com? I started December 2007. What topics do you blog about? Family Fun and Media Reviews. What is your favorite thing about blogging for Families.com? I love to hear that someone used an idea from one of my blogs. Parenting is hard work. I try to mainly suggest things that don’t take much time or money, things that … Continue reading →

Easy Paper Dolls and Paper Shapes

Here’s a simple craft that’s guaranteed to charm young children. As a plus, it only takes paper and scissors. We called this craft “paper dolls” when I was little, but it’s really paper shapes. To make your own shapes, fold a piece of paper back on itself by a couple of inches. Keep folding until you have a zigzag accordion of paper. On the top of the paper you can draw the shape you want. The simple doll shape is a favorite. But think about hearts, snowmen, gingerbread men, shamrocks, or even dinosaurs. You can also change the look of … Continue reading →

Three Quick and Easy Ghost Craft Projects

Halloween ghosts are very easy to make. Here are three to occupy the kids or to brighten someone else’s day. Ghostly feet Take one small person’s foot and press into white washable paint. Press their feet onto black paper so that the heel is at the top of the paper. The round imprint of the heel is the ghost’s head. On top of the paint put googly eyes, or dots of black paint for eyes. The prints of little toes almost look like the ghosts are floating. These make great party invitations or Halloween cards for grandparents. Tissue paper ghosts … Continue reading →

Three Quick and Easy Spider Craft Projects

Here are three quick and easy spider crafts for fun and decoration. All three need a minimum of supplies. They don’t take much time to complete, and as a plus they aren’t very messy either! Black Widow Take one chocolate flavored tootsie pop. Leave the wrapper on the candy. Wrap four black pipe cleaners around the stick of the pop to make legs. And there you have a spider. It’s that easy. You can glue on googly eyes to the body of the spider (the tootsie pop) or press on tiny eye stickers, too. Ordinary pipe cleaners work fine, but … Continue reading →

Easy Paint Projects for Preschoolers

Take three boys, add a great preschool art program – and what you get is a big stack of art projects. I don’t know what to do with all the papers. My boys are all well beyond preschool age, and I doubt that they will ever want 100 or so decaying tempera paint and construction paper projects. But it’s hard on my mama-heart to throw any of the papers out. They were so proud, and they learned so much. The pictures make me remember their chubby little paint-stained fingers. They really did have a great preschool. Art teaches confidence, problem … Continue reading →

Thumbprint Art – Easy Crafts for Children

Making pictures with thumb and finger prints is easy, even for the reluctant artist. And other than needing to wash hands afterwards, it’s not all that messy! All you need is a washable stamp pad or two and some markers to add detail. A single thumb print can be turned into a bunny, a bear, a dog, a shy mouse, or even a spider. If you start building a design with multiple finger prints you can make flowers, ants, even trains. A row of prints could be a caterpillar, a stack of fingerprints could be a snowman. Your childs imagination … Continue reading →

Busy Bees

With snow and rain saturating much of the nation, it may be hard to believe that spring is right around the corner.  If you are aching for the first signs of the season, but don’t have the cash to spend on a tropical escape, consider these fun and affordable projects that will really get your kids buzzing: Printed Bees:  Your kids don’t have to be mini Picassos to decorate your home with pretty flowers and busy bees.  To make a vibrant spring mural, have your children draw a bunch of flowers with crayons, markers or colored chalk on a piece … Continue reading →

Homemade Valentine’s Decorations

Whether you are hosting a Valentine’s Day party, or you simply want to make your home more festive for your family, these easy Love Day decorations are sure to please. In fact, the paper crafts are so simple to make, your children could put them together themselves. When you are done display your handiwork in open spaces for everyone to enjoy. LOVE BUG Materials: Construction Paper Pipe Cleaners Googly Eyes Black Marker Paint Glitter Glue Doilies Directions: Trace and cut a large heart shape out of construction paper. Trace and cut a smaller heart shape out of a different color … Continue reading →