April 22, 2020, by Maartje

Kids to stay: 5 crafts that you actually want to have in your home

Kids
April 22, 2020, by Maartje

Kids to stay: 5 crafts that you actually want to have in your home

We want to keep them all, we really do, all those crafts that are dragged home from school, daycare, grandma and grandpa. But... Sometimes there are a lot of them. And, let's be honest, they don't always necessarily deserve the beauty prize. Don't tell anyone. What to do? Do it yourself better of course!

Free face prints via merrilee liddiard shop

Free face prints via merrilee liddiard shop

The idea behind these craft tips is of course to get your eyes off the screen and onto those of your kids and the beautiful works you make that you also want in your home for a change. But still... First take a quick look at the Instagram profile of Mer_Mag, aka Merrilee Liddiard, the brains behind @mer_mag_shop. In that shop Merrilee sells the cutest handmade fabric dolls. Mini people who are always surprisingly fun.

If you are in Merrilee's shop, click your way to the free prints. There you will find, as the name suggests, free drawings that you can print out at home and make into dolls. The result? A doll from daddy, a doll from mommy, a doll from grandpa, grandma, brothers, nieces, the neighbor... Hours of cutting, pasting and coloring fun (and every now and then a burst of laughter for yourself - it's more than funny to notice how children look at others and translate this into the figures.

Empty packaging material always works well! The cans that contain the NutriPops from NatureNes Bio (also read this article about watching videos together, then you'll understand why we're fans) are very sturdy, are excellent material for storing loose beads and other craft materials and become even more fun when you decorate them with one of the other printables from Mer Mag. The cats are of course a 1-2 piece, but you can also attach a pull doll to them! You can find the pins to make the arms and legs move online at craft stores such as Pippos.

And while you're doing crafts, grab a squeeze bag NaturNes Bio bee. From the age of two, they can easily handle this themselves without spilling and ours can even do it at the same time: snacking on the dairy bag (super delicious) and doing crafts.

Carlos Amorales style

Carlos Amorales style

Ever heard of artist Carlos Amorales? The man is a multidisciplinary artist who studied at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy and the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam. He recently opened a hell of an exhibition in the Stedelijk Museum: inspiration at its finest! Even so inspiring that the fun ones @marissa.curated turned it into quite a 'next level' craft project with her children: a butterfly project inspired by the current exhibition by Carlos Amorales on the walls of the house. Cut and paste butterflies and then dream away together about the crafty result (decide which colors of paper you will prepare so that it really becomes a beautiful whole).

nice coloring page

nice coloring page

A good start is half the battle: even if they can still color within the lines (not very well), it is worth purchasing one of the beautiful coloring pages from Alibabette, sold via: Archive Store. They call the coloring pages posters there, and that's exactly right: the black and white drawings can be colored in and are suitable for hanging on the wall.

And, don't tell anyone, if you're smart, put the original under the copy machine first. Then they can practice a few times and you can choose the most beautiful one to get a spot.

It is really nice to choose a beautiful frame for these works of art, even more fun with a chic passe partout, and give them a nice place in your home. A heck of an ego boost for that little one and just super fun to see.

Shadow play

Shadow play

Instagram is and remains a source of entertainment and this is also a small gift: fun to make and then play with: a mini theater to make a shadow puppet show. Extra bonus: you probably already have everything at home!

This is how you make the mini shadow theater:

Cut open a large box, such as an empty cereal box. Open it up and cut out a window from the largest side. If you want, paint the theater in a nice color (doing it together is fun!) and stick greaseproof (oven) paper on the inside of the window. You can cut out stars, moons, animals from the scrap cardboard – as far as your own creativity goes. Stick it on a stick (or a pen), just use tape, which works best, and place the theater on the floor in front of a flashlight. Finished!

The Portuguese @bellacrusou shows it.

nature in the house

nature in the house

The best projects are those that take a little longer... Grab a squeeze bag of NaturNes Bio, put on a coat and look for the most beautiful stones (preferably with at least one flat side) and beautiful flowers. Take a nice basket with you (handy for when the bag runs out) - it makes things a little more official.

Collected? Part 2 of the project is to paint beautiful rainbows and suns on the stones. The most beautiful ones get a place of honor in the house.

Part 3 requires a little more patience: dry the flowers in an old book in a dry, dark place. A few days later you can use it to make coasters, for example, or a sweet phone case for mom (in which case mom will have to buy a transparent phone case, of course).

Image and ideas via LauraundKids

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