Craft World

You Could Make These!If you are a sock knitter, it is the question which is eternally asked of you.  "Why bother knitting socks?" must surely be the second most asked knitting question.  (Second only to "Can I take my knitting needles on the plane?"  Yes, you can take your knitting needles on the plane.)

On the face of it, there are a lot of reasons not to knit socks.  For one thing, it takes a ridiculously long time.  A knitter I know who primarily knits socks can knock out a pair in about 20 hours.  I now take about 30 hours for a pair.  But my first pair took at least 50 hours to finish!  (Memo to new sock knitters: you do get faster!)
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This summer, if there’s one thing I really want to do with my kiddo (besides plant a butterfly garden, grow strawberries and visit the City Museum of St. Louis), it’s make our own Toad House!

We’ve built fairy houses before out of sticks, stones, and other yard stuffs, but we’ve never tried for a toad habitat. When we do make one, here’s how we plan to go about it (though I’m sure my four-year-old will be changing the plan as we go along!):

We’ll use my old coffee cans for the homes themselves. My daughter and I will paint them with fun, earthy colors—nothing to bright to attract predators, but also nothing too dull, either. Maybe we’ll paint some fun symbols on them; she really likes the ones we did on her rain stick. Read more

It’s time to make your house green, invite leprechauns in to play, and create a memorable St. Patrick’s Day for all! Here are some simple crafts you can do (with your kids, friends, or yourself!) to help invite the month of March into your home with open arms this month.

Make clay clovers: These will be easy enough to form with little hands and they are so versatile after finished. Simply use some green clay (or play dough, if you like) and form fun four-leaf clovers with your fingers. You can use air drying clay if you’d like a more permanent result. Then use the clay creations for paperweights, centerpieces, or any other decoration you’d like to have. Poke a hole in the top to hang the clovers from a tree or on the wall. Dangle them from bookshelves or other overhanging furniture for a fun, festive look. Read more

It’s the year of the tiger (cue Rocky III soundtrack) and time for kiddos to get in on the fun of making Chinese New Year crafts! My daughter and I just finished a batch of some really fun projects that are completely easy and simple for preschoolers to make. Here are just a few of them.

Year of the Tiger Finger Puppet: This easy craft can be done in minutes, yet it yields plenty of play time. Cut out a small strip of orange construction paper that’s big enough to circle your child’s hand. (Measure it with the paper first and mark it with a pen if necessary.) Lay the paper flat and let your child help you decorate the cat with stripes and a face; use googly eyes if you have them. Cut out two tiny triangles and tape them on for ears, then tape the whole tiger around his or her finger for an instant puppet! Read more

Valentine’s Day is often labeled a grossly commercial holiday—though I’ve always argued that it’s no worse than Christmas in that sense—but it’s actually a great time for teaching and craft-making with those you love. Here are a few very simple yet fun crafts to make with your favorite preschooler this Valentine’s Day.

Lace Hearts 1: These are literally hearts with lace on them. You can buy heart-shaped paper doilies for this purpose, or some real glittery lace at the craft store. Help your preschooler cut out hearts from red or pink construction paper—show him or her the “secret” way of folding a piece of paper in half to cut out a heart, or if that’s too difficult, simply draw a few for him or her to cut out. Then either glue the paper doily on the front of the heart so the color shows through, or line the edges with the ribbon or lace. Ta da—instant Valentines! Read more

Everyone loves a letter!The art of writing a beautiful letter is not unlike the art of conversation. It takes practice, elegance, humor, wit, and intimacy. The best way to begin is to study. Read some of the most well-noted love letters and letters of import or significance throughout the history of human civilization. Humans have been communicating by hand written letters for thousands of years. It is only in the last 20 years that we have begun to communicate electronically with increasing reliance on technology to do the talking for us. As a result of text messages, emails, and social networking sites we are able to stay in touch more regularly- but, the quality of information, intimacy and depth of meaning, is completely lost. It simply cannot exist by the very nature of electronic communication which was built for brevity. Read more

Though New Year’s Day is past, we still have almost a month until Chinese New Year; and, like many life coaches claim, the entire month of January can be dedicated to starting anew rather than simply the first day. That’s why we still have weeks of New Year’s goodness left to do all kinds of cool things with our kiddos.

Goal Book: A book of aspirations, dreams, goals, whatever—I call mine a Magnum Opus (like Charlotte calls her web in Charlotte’s Web)—it’s both fun to make as well as keep. Sit down with your kids and make a list of ten things you each wish to accomplish this year. They can be silly—make a crown out of aluminum cans, freeze bubbles in midair—or serious—improve your algebra knowledge, get fit as a family. If you’re feeling super motivated, list twenty or more goals. Read more

Maybe you’ve already made some loud, messy poppers worthy of store sales and country independence celebrations. Perhaps you created the cutest pointy silver hats with stars/ streamers/ 2010 as their prominent feature. You may have already celebrated the New Year in style—but the new year has only just begun. It’s time to make something really fun and festive! Here are just a few ideas. Read more

100% Newfoundland Dog YarnIf you are a knitter or crocheter who keeps an eye on cutting edge fiber trends and fiber oddities, you may have heard of "chiengora," or yarn spun from dog's fur.  My neighbor breeds Newfoundland dogs, and saves their shed undercoats to be spun by a local spinner.  She recently dropped off a few skeins of dog fur yarn, which I will be swatching up this weekend.
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Martha Stewart's site, back in 2004, was the first place I saw a popcorn wreath mentioned; the directions there are a bit sparse though.

You'll need a paper plate for each wreath, two to four quarts of plain popped popcorn, a needle and a spool of of clear 8lb fishing line or dental floss, and a bright ribbon or other festive item for decoration, and some glue with which to attach it to the finished wreath. Depending on where you wish to hang it, you might use fishing line, or another ribbon.

In very basic terms: Read more