All posts filed under: DIY

Rainbow Fun Foam

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This is a great activity for toddlers/preschoolers (or really any kid who likes bubbles). It was easy to make and also worked as a fantastic learning tool as we were able to experiment with mixing colours.  Materials Dish Soap Water Handheld Mixer Food Colouring Large Bin Glass Bowl   Directions Using the handheld mixer, mix 2 tbsp of dish soap with 1/4 cup of water in a bowl. It will take about 2 minutes for the foam to form, at this point you can mix in some food colouring. Scoop out the foam and dump it in your “sensory bin”. For each colour I mixed two batches of the foam. The 1/4 cup of water and 2 tbsp of dish soap actually make quite a bit. I do suggest using this as soon as possible to avoid the bubbles from disappearing.

Edible Flower Cookies

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Not only do these look beautiful but they happen to taste great too! To top it off they are very easy to make! First you need a sugar cookie recipe (I tried making these gluten free as well and found that the cookie was a tad too crumbly). Materials Sugar Cookie Dough Edible Flowers (after searching high and low I found some at The Harvest Wagon) 1 egg beaten Paint Brush (used for food only) Directions After you’ve made your sugar cookies you want to put them in the oven for about three quarters of the time the recipe suggests. Once they’ve come out of the oven and cooled down a bit you will need to beat your egg in a small bowl with a fork. Then using your paint brush you want to coat your cookie with a bit of egg. Then place a flower on top of the cookie and brush it with some more egg to get the flower to lay “somewhat flat”. Sprinkle with a bit of sugar and voila! Put …

Making Mistakes

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So this month my son is really into markers, particularly the lids (which is definitely better as it means less marker on the walls however, it does mean that we constantly have marker on our hands). I’m not sure why anyone ever thought that non-washable markers was a good idea (or really my thought should be about what possessed me to buy them in the first place). My son’s absolute favorite thing to do is put the marker lids on his on his fingers (which he then appropriately calls marker fingers) and then tries to play with his toys which inevitably results in frustration since he can’t accomplish anything with markers on his fingers. What gets me, is that he still tries every time. My son is a clever kid, I know all parents think that about their own children, so I’m ok with the eye roll at your computer screen. My question is that how come toddlers will try something over and over again regardless of whether or not they keep getting the same …

Craft Ideas for All Ages!

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I just did a talk on how to nurture creativity within yourself and with your little ones. It was for a great group of moms who were really keen on getting their kids crafting more (my kind of moms). Creativity is so important and will be more and more in the generations to come as standard employment positions will cease to exist and we’ll need to think more creatively in the job market, or for resources, etc. Being creative to children is so natural. Ken Robinson describes creativity and children so perfectly in his famous quote: “we don’t grow into creativity, we grow out of it”. It’s important we nurture creativity in our little ones as much as we can and we can do so by encouraging them to think outside of the box, to explore and to use their imaginations. Find a space in your house that you can designate to “creating”. Ikea sells the perfect “craft” table for little ones and let them get started! For those of you that have kiddies who …

How to Make a Piñata!

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Ever wondered how to make a Piñata? Well wonder no more, it’s actually much easier than you think and it’s a great activity to do at a birthday party, or really any celebration for that matter. Here’s a list of supplies: 2 pieces of Cardboard Mural Paper (slightly thicker than regular paper) Masking Tape Crepe Paper (aka streamers) Candy/or your choice of small objects for the inside of your Piñata Step 1: Decide what you want your Piñata to be and then draw an outline of the shape onto the cardboard. Cut out the shape and trace it onto the second piece of cardboard, when finished cut out the second shape. Step 2 For the next step, the width of the paper you use will determine the thickness of your Piñata. We used about 2.5″ wide mural paper for this step. You’re going to cut a strip of the mural paper and tape it onto one of the pieces of your Piñata, following the outline of the shape. Once you’ve secured the mural paper to …

Creative Mondays!

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We’re launching a fun new project here at Seasons. It’s called Creative Mondays! It’s a really fun game that not only will help to inspire and encourage your creativity but, will also give you some great craft ideas. Creativity has been defined in numerous ways however, it is usually always based on coming up with a new and novel concept that has value. Being creative is about thinking outside the box and training your mind to look at things in a different way. Our Creative Mondays will encourage your mind to think outside of its box! Bet you’re wondering how it works! Allow me to explain the very easy, three step process. 1) Identify what the object is. 2) Come up with a different use for the object. 3) Suggest a craft that can be made with the object. We’re going to start our Creative Mondays off with a very easy pic! Please comment below by numbering your answers in correspondence with the step number above. Good luck and happy crafting!

Increasing our Creativity!

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Creative projects have an endless amount of therapeutic benefits. Creating something with our own two hands leads us to sentiments of accomplishment and pride, these feelings are present in us even from the age of two when we draw our first circle or when we colour in our first picture. As we grow, our projects may increase in complexity but the feeling of achievement remains. Taking nothing and molding it into something allows us to gain confidence. We begin to value our self-worth and individuality the more we create, the more we put our ideas out there, the more we grow creatively. Creativity can help to foster: Self-esteem Imagination Determination Assertiveness Courageousness Perhaps some of us are scared by the word creativity because it is often associated with artistic abilities, however, creativity and artistic ability are not necessarily a complementary pair. One can be extremely creative in something and yet have no idea how to hold a paintbrush. We can be creative in our finances, in sports, in problem solving, in writing and even in …

Enchanted Forest & Mexican Fiesta!

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This past weekend we hosted two drastically different birthdays, an enchanted forest and a Mexican Fiesta! We had such fun planning and preparing, we made all the decorations ourselves and thought it would be great to share in case you are feeling so inclined to host your very own Fiesta Forest! The Enchanted Forest We found this great tree at DeSerres and it only took about 5 minutes to assemble. We hung the tree on the “birthday wall” and decorated around it using tissue paper butterflies and our birthday banner. To make the tissue paper flowers we found some great instructions on Pink Paper Peppermints. We then used kraft paper to make another tree, we decorated the tree with butterflies and mushrooms. The butterflies were made out of tissue paper and the mushrooms out of Bristol board. For the craft we made Modeling chocolate the night before. When the kiddies arrived it was all ready to go and they made beautiful creatures. We also used water colour pencil crayons on canvas boards to paint backdrop …