Mess Free Painting ~ Stormy Rain Clouds

It has been raining so much here lately that we decided to make some Storm Clouds.

This is one of our (my) favourite activities. I love that the kids get all the enjoyment of paint and I don't have any cleaning up to do!!!

Put two big dollops of paint (blue and white to make them stormy) and then a small amount of Glitter Paint (optional but a hint of sparkle is nice) into zip lock bags. Squeeze out as much air as possible and let the fun begin. 

What we started with, blue and white paint, large zip lock bags, cardboard I had precut into cloud shapes and some silver glitter paint. 

Paint added ready to explore.

It is a really great way to have the sensory fun of finger painting but without the mess!

Some of the finished masterpieces. I love the way the colours have blended making so many more shades and adding much more depth to the painting. 

Easter Threading ~ Straw and Pipe-cleaner Rabbit Ears

The Toddler Timers are Easter obsessed and the weather here is atrocious at the moment so we have been up to heaps of Easter Crafts.
This one is super easy and cheap.

What you will need:

Straws (Cut into short lengths ours were approx 2cm)
Pipe-cleaners
Scissors

We started by twisting two pipe-cleaners together to form a long length. You will need to do this with 6 pipe-cleaners forming 3 double length pieces.

Thread away until your heart is content, leaving about 1cm at each end.

Twist the two ends together to form a ring. This will be the headband part used to attach the ears.

Thread the other two lengths of pipe-cleaner again leaving roughly 1cm at each end. This time bend to form more of a tear drop shape. Use the exposed ends to twist and fix on to the headband. Repeat to create the other ear and then you are done.

Master E being a very cute bunny!

Miss M, she was more of a floppy eared bunny, but loved it all the same!



These were quick and easy and required hardly any preparation and clean up. Love a mess free craft for a change! Was great for fine motor too!

Hope you enjoy and Happy Easter!

Easter Fun ~ Print Making

I have been hanging on to some Styrofoam meat trays for ages waiting for the right activity to pop into my head. Finally it did and today we made some Easter Egg Prints using the meat trays.

Here is what you need

Meat trays (or any clean stryofoam tray)
Skewers
Scissors
Paint
Paintbrushes or Rollers
Paper or Card to print onto

First trim the edges off the tray so you have a flat surface to work with. I then drew some egg shapes and cut them out with scissors, I had large trays and could fit two eggs per tray.

Using a skewer draw your design.

The harder you press the deeper the lines and better the print. (Be sure not to press too hard though, as you will end up with a broken tray!)

Once we were happy with the design we painted over the egg shape using thick paint brushes.

Flipped our egg over and pressed it down on to the cardboard. Making sure to press all over the egg to leave the best print.

We found that less paint left clearer prints, more just went a bit messy.

Master E, working on his print collection.

Some of the finished prints.


We were really happy with how these worked and were super easy. We are planning on cutting them out and turning them into Easter Cards soon!

Two Ingredient Playdough

On Monday we were lucky enough to have some lovely friends over. I had seen a post on making playdough using corn flour and conditioner over at Laughing Kids Learn and decided we should have a go.
The weather was lovely so perfect for some outdoor (less mess to clean up then) fun!

Here is what you need

2 1/4 Cups Corn Flour
1 Cup Conditioner (we used the cheapest sort I could find)

We spent awhile measuring out and smelling the ingredients and then had a free for all with the mixing!!
It took awhile for the mixture to come together but when it did it was the most amazing soft and sweet smelling playdough. We didn't find that it was stretchy, but wonder if we added more conditioner (something to try next time) it would be. It was super easy and the kids had a great time creating with it. We didn't keep this batch, but think it would last just fine if stored in airtight container. (ours ended up with lots of sticks, leaves and dirt through it)!

Glad we gave this one a go and will try it again with some more conditioner and maybe some food colouring!

We love playdough and here are some links to more of our playdough fun!

http://creativetoddlers.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/jelly-playdough.html

http://creativetoddlers.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/playdough-tracks.html

Valentine's Day Tape Resist Canvas Heart Art

We are loving all things Valentine's Day at the moment. There is just so much fun crafting to be had with hearts! Today we made some Valentine's Day canvas prints for Daddy to take to work.

Here is what you need:

Dot Painters (We used Paint Box Brand)

White Paper

Canvases (I brought some from a cheap shop for $3 each)

Scissors

Sticky Tape

Pencil/Crayon/Marker

We started by drawing hearts on some paper and cutting them out. I then used some low tack tape to tape the hearts in place on the canvas so they wouldn't more around.

I then let the toddler times loose with the dot painters.

It is important to remember to make sure the is an overlap around the edge of the heart so that when you remove the heart, you can see the resist line.

We then made sure that we filled as much of the canvas as possible with more dots for extreame effect! Once we were happy with the way the canvases we removed the hearts. 

Miss M and her very spotty heart resist ready to give to Daddy.

Master E and his brilliant Heart Art!

Hope you enjoyed! Happy Valentines Day!

Valentine's Day Tissue Paper Hearts

Valentine's Day is almost here again. Not a holiday celebrate in our household but one that lends it self to lots of fun craft activities for the kids.
So we are embracing Valentines Day for all of it's wonderful crafting oppotunities!

This week we made some super cute Tissue Paper Hearts which we might use to turn into cards or bunting or just use as window decorations.



Here is what you will need

Paper or Cardboard

Tissue Paper (various colours, we went with hot pink, light pink, purple and red with spots)

Texta (permanent marker)

Glue (we used glue sticks)

Scisssors



What to do

I started by drawing hearts on white paper for the toddler timers using the black marker. We then covered the hearts in glue and tore off pieces of tissue paper to cover/fill the hearts.
We weren't bothered if it went over the edges as once they were dry we cut them out all ready to be used for decorating.

Happy Crafting!!!

Australia Day Cooking ~ Cheese and Vegemite Scrolls

I have seen the recipe for Cheese and Vegemite Scrolls around for awhile and have been meaning to make them. Since today is Australia Day it seemed only fitting to make them today!

The were super easy and the Toddler Timers had fun making them.

Ingredients:

Puff Pastry Thawed (we used 2 sheets)
Vegemite
Grated Cheese

Spread as much or as little vegemite as you like across the thawed pastry sheets.

Sprinkle with cheese.

Sprinkle until covered.

Master E quite impressed with his work!

Roll to form a spiral. (Next time we might not roll them so tight!)

Place on a baking tray covered in baking paper and bake at approx 180 degrees Celsius for about 15 minutes or until golden.

Allow to cool and enjoy!