Children's Craft Ideas: Fantasy House

Now Autumn is truly here lots of rainy days present themselves asking to be filled up with simple, easy to initiate things-to-do.

I thought that I would share with you a recent activity that has been entertaining my children for hours, which is basically your average cutting and glueing exercise, but maybe also fuels the young/old imagination a bit! 

You need:

Large piece of paper with a house outline drawn on - either by you or your child depending on the age. Add some floors, wall divides or encourage them to do this.

People - you can print out favourite characters from CBeebies, cut them from magazines, draw them yourselves. In our pictures you will see the family from a Milly Molly Mandy Book which we enlarged on the photocopier.

Furnishings - here you need old magazines, catalogues or furniture pamphlets. We also like random bits of fabric, scraps of coloured paper, glitter glue etc.

Glue
Safety Scissors
Coloured Pencils/Crayons
Talk!! This is a great activity to give for them to get on with alone, but if you talk with them about what they are doing and ask their opinions on the house layout etc you will have some delightfully screwy chats I guarantee. 

I hardly need add instructions, apart from to say to any perfectionist adults out there - don't let the kids rampant disregard for scale and domestic order upset you too much! A bath in a tree outside, doors on the roof, birds in the lounge, it's all good - take a deep breath, and admire the finished fantasy dwellings......

Defeating the Holiday Boredom Demon

Warning this is long - but there is a useful free download near the bottom so persevere!

Almost as soon as the Summer Holiday begins, I start hearing a terrifying moan; 'I'm Bored!'. 

Without the strict and predicatable routine of school, my children, suddenly oppressed by the choices available to them, do NOT know what to do with themselves. Don't get me wrong, I love my kids and spending time with them, but all three of them, all day? For 6 weeks?! Some days they don't get on with each other, and some days they don't get on with me, but then, some days we all love each other and rainbows come out. Also, on those days, bluebirds do my dishes.

If you have a teenager, or small someone with very keen ideas about what they what to do, that is GREAT. Pour a Pimms and watch them go about their business. Mine, on the other hand, hang around in my peripheral vision making weeping noises, waiting for me to switch on an interactive whiteboard. Of course, this summer, you hopefully will manage to leave the house on a few days out, and if you are very lucky, relatives will take the children for some of the time (!). Then there's the possible week/fortnight family holiday. That still leaves a looooong time to occupy them. 

It isn't going to be pretty, unless you roll up those sleeves and tackle the issue head on. They do need some guidance about what to do, and some freedom to play like children are meant to. You know your own child. I have both the lovely 'reads all day' kind, and the less lovely 'take your eye off me I want to unleash hell' kind, so I have been playing about with some ideas that enable me to suggest and support activities that also encourage creativity and free play.  

I have found that a small amount of preparation and planning at the beginning of the holiday can go a long way. Make sure that the games, play equitment and toys get a good sort out so you all know what there is. My favoured early holiday activity is a trawl for the charity shop box and ritual throwing out of broken toys and old drawings/work. Our problem is we like to keep all our old pictures! If you do this clear out the kids are bound to have a better idea of what there actually is to do.

Sign Up for to your local library. This year The Reading Agency is offering a great reading challenge called Spooky House for all school kids via the library service. It is free and the artwork is all done by the excellent Chris Riddell. Check out the website, there's also a writing competition and lots more.

But! There will still be plenty of dull moments where you are trying to pull washing out of the machine whilst being gnawed by a toddler when your hollow eyed tweenager appears in the door way and you hear the wail 'I am bored Mum!'. Don't PANIC.  Just whip out the Emergency Toolkit bag and (breathe) suggest an activity.

My Emergency Tool kit is: 

A small bag of preprepared cards, which you are welcome to download if you want

Any supplies I will need to fulfill the promises on the cards I have made. If you use my cards you will need playdough, a bag of collected junk such as you might be planning to recycle (boxes etc), a few extra baking supplies, paints, glue, blankets, a ball, dressing up stuff, plastic dinosaurs. 

AND a 'bonus' box with a small item in it. You can replace the item each time the box is opened. I might alternate between unexpected snack foods, drinks, vouchers for 'read a story/play a game' with mummy, or little toys like a bouncy ball etc. Doesn't need to be something you spend money on. 

I hope you find my attempts of use, or at least, consolation. I hope you have a fantastico summer. Don't be surprised if I hardly blog over the next few weeks, but I will be back!

Bon Voyage!

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In case of problems: Here's the link to my Boredom Cards again on Google Docs. Sorry about the duff formatting I am NOT a whizz at Publishing! 

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1tRFCeVuuQ1eFhmd0JvQXJpTFE/edit?usp=sharing

Easter Fall Out

And so after the long weekend where everyone, despite just having recovered from noxious tummy bugs, loaded up on chocolate. Children are great, aren't they, as bounce-backable as a rubber ball. Basically, almost nothing could hold them back from enjoying Easter!

It's been absolutely freeeezing here, but what a joy to get out, see some flowers, frogs mating ('mummy - look that big frog is giving the little one a piggy back') and spring lambs.

Top days out at Hinton Ampner where the National Trust were doing their now traditional Easter Egg Trail. Thankfully this year, not only was there a quiz for the older children, but the trail allowed younger ones to just stamp the boxes. A relief - I can't count the number of quizzes and trails I have been forced to almost entirely do myself because whoever set the quiz didn't quite manage to appreciate the academic level 3 year olds work on. No, they can't spell 'medieval' and neither can they say what type of stone this is built from. Can we just have our chocolate egg now please?

Another interesting place we discovered this holiday was Butser Ancient Farm. A recreation of an Iron Age farming compound, complete with frozen-to-death volunteers huddled around a smoky fire dressed in woollen capes, and some rare breed sheeplings.  Brilliant. Such a great place to show your kids the (very) past. Oldest daughter looks around one roundhouse, at the cooking fire, at the wooden benches and manky furs and promptly says 'I'm so glad I live Now'. They also celebrate some of the pagan rituals there like Imbolc and Samhain, which I imagine is pretty fun if you're into that kind of thing, although I don't know how 'historic' those are. There is also a reconstructed Roman Villa which has a working hypocaust heating system in one area. Nothing says 'ahh finally, civilisation' like finding a heated room on a -2 degree day! If you want to know more about the place, the link above takes you to their website, or you can go to the Wikipedia entry highlighted in the photo caption. It really is a fascinating place, and the staff and volunteers there are obviously really into it too.

Via Wikipedia

Now husband is back at work, the sun is shining and I have all 3 kids for the rest of the holiday on my own. Deep breath! And continue...........

Half Term Hands On

Well snatching a few moments of my own on the computer, I thought I would check in, just lay a few ideas your way for Half Term.

We've been hangin out at one of those great mobile farms today, enjoying/being intimidated by ducks, kune kunes and the most adorable donkey. Also yesterday we went to the Zoo - what else can we do that does NOT involve animals?

The half term started early with a free day on Friday, which I foolishly decided to fill with a whole bunch of biggest daughter's friends. Still they had a great time making these:

The ones that didn't make it to photograph were even more laden with haribo and millions. This time, they have defeated me, as even I with my horrendous sweet tooth didn't want them! Still, look at that glorious pink icing. I made it using only icing sugar and blood orange juice. Tasty. Tasty AND no additives. Smile. The blue was .... blue food colouring of course. Bleurg.

What are you up to this half term?

Folksy Friday - Spanish Steps

If you check out my previous post this theme becomes self-explanatory. Happy Half Term x

Bull Print by Emma Lee Cheng

As seen through the lens by Kelly Powell

Bottle Top Virgin Mary by artofficial

Mi Amor Pendant by Whimsical Wren

Espana Cushion by Goldie Frocks

Yarn Pouch in Senor Burrito by Bothered Owl

Crate of Oranges by Grandma's Miniature Market

La Flor De La Vida by Hysterie of Art

Happy Holidays

Too busy enjoying my holiday to blog - or figure out why I can't format the pictures in a pretty way. But anyway here is a snap shot of our week. Stay Merry xx

Eat your heart out Annie Liebovitz

Big Rudolf

Little Rudolf

Actually White Christmas

Her First Christmas

Vintage at Goodwood

was so awesome. They even had den building, a sand pit and a roller disco, so the smalls were well entertained. Got lots of inspiration, saw loads of great outfits (!) and had a giggle at the Chap Olympics. Wonderful stuff.

Doodles doodles

We've been having lots of fun doing the doodle challenge over at Betty's Place. It's taken over our lives! Everyday DDsnr asks 'What has the lady drawn for us today?' and I have to go and print it out................ So far my favourites are the Aliens ones, as you will see we did not collaborate but selfishly did our own versions. I am rediscovering drawing which is completely ace, as I have not done any for ages, or had a reason to do so.

Oxford Museums Trip

On the home front this week we have been on a mammoth trip to Oxford to 'do museums'. Mainly for DDSnr to see dinosaurs, but we did all get to have a quick look around the Pitt-Rivers (what a treasure trove) and the Ashmolean, which is lovely after it's overhaul. Also had an unexpected visit to Wadham College porters lodge to shelter from the torrential rain. Due to the rain the museums (which are free) were very very busy! But it was a great day and when I get the opportunity I would like to return to the Ashmolean and have a good poke around without crying babies.... I can say at least it has a good cafe, but beyond that I saw little as we spent all our time there in the Education Suite watching DDsnr do a picture!

Pinecone Owl

After getting some great ideas from my Facebook appeal for fir cone ideas, I had to post up this cute owl that my friend sent me. I think his legs are made from pipe cleaners and his beak/tail from felt. She did some fir cone animals with her class at school but as cones are available right now, it is a good summer holiday activity. Lets face it there are suddenly more hours in the day when the children are at home all the time!!!

Fir Cone Madness

Although it seems a vaguely christmassy thing to do, DD and I have been busy this morning filling a huge bag full of fir cones. The tree on our drive has just gone mental, throwing out hundreds of the things, and just like a dutiful Roo and Tigga as we are, off we went agatherin'. Now I am trying to think of what to do with them. Ideas so far:

package as gifts for people with log fires

christmas wreaths

adding into other christmas decorations, covered in glitter

keeeping them in a big bowl (I have done this there are still a million!)

I love the things but this is ludicrous! There are more still on the ground..................

Oh Brother!

Had a lovely weekend, mostly spent preparing then recovering from Swanmore Carnival. I had made a few more scrappy fabric sea friends to adorn the pushchair and myself with, as you may see here. Despite our valiant efforts with the sequins, the other pre-school in the village won the prize for best float. Oh well, I think the mums cared more than the children. They just enjoyed waving at everyone from the haybales, and then eating a lot of candy floss. PFB was mucho chuffed about winning some prizes on the stalls. As her prizes were a) a large inflatable hammer with 'sexy' written on it, b) an old ragged soft toy lion from someone's trip to Euro Disney in 1998 c) a Refreshers sweet lolly, we were not so happy! It was well over 30 degrees and everyone had a red lobster look by the end of the day. I did not look into the beer tent but I suspect there were a few casualties................

In between home duties I was excitedly tampering with my new toy, a Brother BC2100 sewing beast, which has so many more functions than my old machine it's going to take some getting used to. Best feature is that it purrs at an acceptably low level - I can sew at night with out little complaining voices filtering through the terrible thudding...! Hurrah!

To that end I have listed a new item on Folksy as part of my patchwork flower series. Check out the latest addition: actual Made by Dolly ribbon labels! I love how proper it makes them look. Maybe one day I'll actually sell something. He he he.

Happy Saturday!

Just got back from an almost 100% perfect saunter around Bishop's Palace with the babies, and what was on my mat but the fruits (so soon!) of the Noodle Bubble Button Swap. What a lovely selection and they came with chocolate buttons too! Truely a queen amongst buttoners, she who sent them. Am now having button performance anxiety as I hope she likes the selection I sent her!


Actually had a wobble in the post office as I got to the counter and realised I had parcelled them up in a craply fat way so they wouldn't fit through that stupid 'large letter' slot they make you adhere to now. AAAAGGGHH. I unpicked the package (thank god my Mary Poppins-style handbag contains sellotape) and redid it thinner. When I handed it back to the woman, she deadpanned 'Sometimes you have to learn the hard way'. ???!!!! Thank you So Much For That Completely Patronising Comment. Luckily nothing can steal my sunshine. I have bought bright cake tins, sail boat braid, red salad spoons and no food for tea. La di da.

Holiday Inspiration - Exhibit C - Interiors

While I was in Wales last week I went visiting and had to post up these pictures of the house I stayed at. The lady who lives there is really into vintage and 'shabby chic' stuff and there are lovely ideas to be found all over her house. I particularly loved the combination of modern art, vintage textiles and antique furniture collected over the years. Lush!

Holiday Inspiration Exhibit B - the shopping bit

OK so when in Wales I couldn't avoid checking out the local produce which mainly meant eating a lot of welsh cakes and Aberdyfi sausages. But I also had a fantastic time poking around in Machynlleth town which has a just brilliant fabric shop (massive! 3 floors. drool) called PS Wheeler Fabrics. I managed to get some really great zingy fleece fabric to make some baby sleeping bags from. I also bought a huge wad of handmade buttons from a FairTrade shop. Couldn't resist. Fabricheads should also try and visit on market day (Tues?) as there was a quilting stall selling a comprehensive assortment of quilters fabric. DH rolled his eyes and went to sit in the bus stop nearby. Anyway, now I have so much welsh largess to make things with I don't know where to start. Also I am pretty sure that the cardigan I am currently making needs 6 identical buttons and the ones I have are in sets of 5. Typical!

Holiday Inspiration Exhibit A

So here I am all refreshed after my sojourn to Wales and I have been all inspired by many of the wonderful things that I saw while I was away. Such a great time, helped by the sunny weather: Thanks Wales - for once it didn't rain everyday! While I am busy sorting out pictures, head and laundry now we're back I thought that I would share a selection............ First off some great signs and lettering that I saw at the Talylyn Railway, a preserved steam railway in Snowdonia. Pretty countryside to go chuffing through, wished that I had on a 40's lipstick, hat and coat combo, the gleaming red carriages demanded more glamour than my posset stained cardi could provide.