Dino Party Time!

Recently, I was asked to help plan a dinosaur party for one of our Kaleidoscope Kids. Of course, I jumped at the chance! I knew it'd be a ton of fun to make this little girl's 3rd Birthday a blast!

Her mom is pretty darned crafty, so for an activity she created dino tails for each attendee. She used brightly colored sheets, which she cut into triangles and sewed together. Along the top seam she sewed ribbon in, to look like spikes. She stuffed them with newspaper and attached ribbon to hold them in place around their kids' waists. At the party, everyone used sparkling foam stickers to decorate their tails. It was a big hit!

To complete the dinosaur outfit, I made a pair of dinosaur foot stamps. I simply used a template of a foot to trace the shape onto some scrap plywood. Then I used a jigsaw to cut it out and a bit of sandpaper to take off the rough edges. I painted the tops of the feet with acrylic craft paint. Once that was dry, I traced and cut the template out of craft foam. Using E6000, I attached the foam to the bottom of the feet and trimmed as needed. I weighted these with a book and allowed them to dry overnight. In the morning I just attached elastic with a staple gun, so that kids could slip their feet into the elastic and wear them as "shoes."

At the party, I squirted Crayola Sidewalk Chalk Paint onto plates and had the kids step into it while wearing the dinosaur feet, then they stomped around making footprints on the pavement. The younger children needed some help getting the hang of it, but once they did, they created tracks everywhere!

After we were done playing dinosaur, it was time to dig for dinos. First we cracked open "rocks" that contained miniature dinosaurs inside! To make the rocks, I used a recipe I found at Surviving a Teacher's Salary. Simply combine the following:

1 cup used coffee grinds

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

1/4 cup sand

up to 3/4 cup water

I doubled the recipe to make 12 rocks. Be very careful adding water! I added too much at first and had to add more flour. To make the rocks, I just grabbed a chunk of dough in my hand, placed the figure inside, and wrapped the dough around. It'll be sticky. Then I shaped it and place it on a lined cookie sheet. I baked them at 170 degrees for about an hour, flipping them once, until they were dried well.

The day of the party, we used tongue depressors to crack open our rocks and find the prize inside.

The last activity was a dinosaur treasure hunt. I used a long, low rubbermaid bin (the type for storing clothes under a bed) and filled it with two 50-pound bags of  multi-purpose sand. Then the all kinds of dinosaur figures, special rocks and plastic plants were hidden in the sand. Our young paleontologists just LOVED this activity. The older kids enjoyed identifying all the dinos!

When the fun was winding down, the mom brought out her fabulous dinosaur cake. She cut her's free hand, but there are great cake pans available that make it even easier.

Finally, we handed out gift bags. The bags were just plain white paper gift bags, which I sprayed with liquid watercolors (green) and some Perfect Pearls Mist (heirloom gold). Then I used a metallic bronze Sharpie to write each child's name on the bag. I used dinosaur foam stickers to decorate the bags. Inside I added a "Prehistoric Fern" plant and a handful of stickers. 

Mom also made sure each attendee got a super cool dinosaur temporary tattoo as well.

It was a really fun day, and I thank the Kelleher Family for making me a part of it!

Ten Easy, Cheap Crafts for Fall

At the Farmer's Market this week, I was asked if I had ideas for simple, inexpensive crafts kids could do at upcoming Halloween and Thanksgiving events. Are you kidding? Of course, I do!

So here we go: Ten Easy, Cheap Crafts for Fall!

1. Paper Plate Scarecrow Faces -- Make them pretty, or make them spooky; either way this craft is a ton of fun for everyone. Just use standard paper plates as the head. Cut triangles of colored paper for the hats. Googly eyes add a lot of fun, and the rest of the face can be drawn on. Strips of paper or some raffia make great hair. That's it! Let the kids get creative!

2. Paper Plate Jack-o-Lanterns -- This is a classic, but I have an update to make it so much easier and less messy! Usually you'd paint the plate a bright orange, let it dry, and then attach the elements for the face. But that takes a lot of time. Instead use squares of tissue paper attached with a glue stick! You can buy them precut or make your own easily. Then just add construction paper eyes, nose and mouth. So easy!

3. Toilet Paper Roll Owls -- Folded and cut cupcake liners become wings and feathers when added to a toilet paper roll using a glue stick. Use markers to add a cute face. And of course, googly eyes. I just love googly eyes. A little black paint or a black marker, and these make great bats too!

4. Toilet Paper Roll Mummies -- I found this idea on Pinterest, and it's just TOO cute! Just wrap a toilet paper roll in tissue paper, gauze or, well, toilet paper, using a glue stick to keep it attached. Use twine or yarn to add texture. Top it off with googly eyes. Ta da! Perfect little mummies!

5. Duct Tape Spider -- Everyone loves duct tape crafts! This one, from Leisure Arts, is so simple, just about anyone can pull it off. Use newspaper or a plastic bag to create a ball, about the size of an adult fist. Squish it a bit to flatten it. Use a bit of masking tape to secure this ball. Cover with duct tape. Take four pipe cleaners and twist them together in the center to form a bundle, then tape them to the underside of the spider. (Cover them with additional duct tape for extra drama.) Add googly eyes and your have a great creepy creature. Tip: Use solid color duct tapes if you're on a budget. You get more tape per roll.

6. Pine Cone Turkey -- Dip colorful feathers in Elmer's Glue and attach them to the wide end of a pine cone. Use a little Model Magic clay to form a head. A small piece of corn makes a great beak. Attach eyes, have a great decoration for your table! Don't have clay? Try this version of a turkey without it.

7. Lots of Leaf Crafts -- You can do SO many things with just the leaves from your back yard! Just collect a tons of pretty dried leaves. From there you can create a tons of great crafts. Start by pressing them in between sheets of clear contact paper for bookmarks or punch a hole to string them on yarn as a necklace. Or use glitter glue to lightly coat the leaves for sparkly garland or necklaces. Or lightly coat the leaves in paint and press them to paper as stamps. You can also place them under paper, vein side up, and use crayons to create rubbings. Cut the center out of a paper plate and use glue to attach leaves around the rim, creating a pretty wreath. And then there is my personal favorite: Attach the leaves to mask shapes, cut from card stock. Add feathers, plastic jewels and stickers to create fabulous masks. Use ribbon wear it, or attach to the popsicle stick for a held version.

8. Corn Prints -- Kids love breaking out the paint. Why not give them something fun to paint with? Try taking dried corn on the cob (like Indian Corn), rolling it in paint, then rolling it or pressing it onto paper. You can make tons of great patterns this way. While you're at it, cut open an apple and use it as a stamp. Try using things like gourds and acorn squash as stamps too.

9. Corn Bin -- This one is great for younger children and provides a wonderful sensory experience. Just fill a bin with feeder corn (a.k.a. deer corn) and hide all kinds of fall themed items in it. Then they can go on a treasure hunt.

10. Monster Paper Bag Puppets -- This craft couldn't be simpler. Give kids lunch bags. (I like the plain brown or white versions, but colored bags, sold as party gift bags are lots of fun too.) Print out some fun monster face pieces, like these free ones. You can just use regular paper and a glue stick to attach, or print them onto sticker paper. Use additional stickers, markers, sequins, plastic gems, feathers, etc. to add bling.

So I hope these fun crafts make your holiday parties and events more fun and creative. Enjoy!

Fiber Arts at the Highlands Festival at Waterloo

KLC was lucky enough to attend the Highlands Festival at Waterloo last weekend. In addition to bringing great crafts to the Festival, we met some amazing crafters. One of my favorites were the ladies from the Simpatico Fiber Collective. Rebecca and Julianne are handspinners, knitters, weavers and felters working in rural Hunterdon County. They sell beautiful, wearable fiber art and supplies for knitters and spinners.

Rebecca Dioda

 Julianne Targan

In addition to their lovely wearable art, they're happy to share their knowledge with those who would like to learn. Those are my kinds of people! So enjoy this short video of Rebecca explaining how her parlor spinning wheel works. (There's a good bit of simple machines science in there.)

I've tried my hand at spinning, and let me tell you, it's not as easy as Rebecca makes it look! She uses that amazing yarn to create all kinds of wonderful knitted creations, like the shawl below.

In this clip, Joanne explains the basics of needle felting. This is a really relaxing hobby I've recently discovered. She creates amazing projects with her felting, and she felts woven fabrics that she creates as well.

Birdseed mosaics

This is simple craft to let children explore patterns, make some lovely artwork and sustain the wild creatures -- like birds, chipmunks and squirrels -- in their yard as well. We're going to make lovely mosaics out of seeds!

This one is really easy. Just spread vegetable shortening, lard or peanut butter onto bread. Then use a variety of chopped nuts (be careful if there are allergies in your house),seeds (nyger, safflower, sunflower, both hulled and unhulled), grains (like millet, milo, cracked corn, rolled oats, lentils, etc.), dried vegetables, dried fruit, etc to create pretty patterns. Before you worry about feeding bread to birds, just read this post, showing that it isn't any worse for most of them than it is for us. You can use bread as a base safely, but if you prefer not to chance it, use a bit of found tree bark instead.

You can always go for the classic pine cone birdfeeder as well. For this you just spread your shortening on a dried pinecone and rolls it in seed. Then tie a piece of twine to the top and hang it near home. (Hint: For a more decorative option, try using small grapevine wreaths from the craft store!)

So what seeds should you choose? Good question! You can just select things you find pretty or grab a premade mix. But if you want to feed or attract specific birds, you'll need to do a bit more research. No matter what you choose, it's guaranteed that you'll find feathered friends to enjoy it!

Making Matters: 5 things to do with paper towel rolls

We all know that toilet paper and paper towel rolls are one of the all-time classic craft supplies in the typical classroom. Which is awesome -- I love toilet paper owls and other fun projects made from these upcycled marvels. But what about using such humble supplies for science? Here are five projects
to try at home.

Ok. One toilet paper roll owl. I can't help myself.

1. Marble Slides -- Break out the masking tape and get ready to have some fun! Using whole and halved rolls, junior designers can attach tubes to any wall creating multi-layered slides for marbles to zig-zag towards the floor. If you want to get some motion going, try attaching rolls to foam board using brass brads or tacks!
2. Spectroscope -- Find all the colors of the rainbow in white light. Using black construction paper, cut a circle the size of the paper towel roll opening. Cut this circle in half. Tape half of the circle to one end of the roll, being sure to tape well around the edges. Attach the other half circle to the same end, leaving a narrow slit across the center. Again, tape well at the edges. Now,with your eye at the open end, look at a CD held near a light source (an incandescent bulb just behind the bulb is great). The CD will diffract the light, breaking it into a rainbow that you can see through the slit. Wow!
3. Kaleidoscope -- Cut you paper towel tube to 8 inches. Longer will make it tough for enough light to travel to the eye. Use black construction paper to cover one end of the tube. With a pencil, poke a hole in the paper. Use clear tape and apiece of clear cellophane or acetate (a report cover, a transparency, etc.) to create a triangular tube that will fit inside the tube. Slide it in. Cover the other side of the tube with plastic wrap, pushing it down to make a little pouch and securing it with tape or a rubber band. Add beads, sequins, gems or anything small and shiny. Cover with another piece of plastic wrap and secure in place. Now hold it to the light, look through the hole and enjoy the power of reflected light as it creates an amazing display!
4. Telescope -- Using construction paper create a roll that can just fit inside the paper towel roll. Ideally, you'll want two double-convex plastic or glass lenses, one 150 mm and the other 300 mm. If you can't come by those, try magnifying glasses - one larger and weaker and the other smaller and more powerful. You may have to experiment with different options. Tape the smaller lens onto the construction paper tube. Tape the weaker one onto the cardboard tube. Then fit the open end of the construction paper tube into the open end of the cardboard tube. Look through the stronger lens. Move the construction paper tube in and out until the object you're looking at is focused. 
5. Pulley Towers -- Grab some old thread spools, bamboo skewers, cotton string and toilet paper rolls to explore one of the most fun simple machines. Use the rolls to make two towers -- feel free to go big, stacking two of three rolls together. To form the base, cut slits into the bottom of the tower, spread out the "feet," then tape them to a table. Thread the spools onto the skewers and place them between the towers, poking holes into the cardboard as needed. Then it's time to play! Use the string wound in various ways through the pulleys to see how the number and placement of affects the what you can lift.

   

   That is one complicated pulley system!

Whew! That's a lot of fun with paper towel rolls. I'm going to take a bit of break. Come back later this week for 5 MORE fun ideas!

Happy Halloween Lunch!

As I believe I have mentioned before, I LOVE Halloween. So of course, I wanted to do something special for the girls when I packed up their lunchboxes on October 31st!

I started with the citrus. It's really easy to use a sharp knife to carve little jack-o-lantern faces into the rind of oranges or clementines. They'd dry out if you left them out for too long, but they'll survive to lunch time without a problem.

Next up, the main event: a classic PB&J turned into a spooky ghost. I just made my usual sandwich, being sure to use gooey strawberry jam. Then I cut with a favorite cookie cutter. Use a little peanut butter to stick on dried cranberries as eyes and place into the reusuable container with black bean chips to create a backdrop. (I used scraps of wax paper to secure everything into place when I packed it up.)

On to the treats! I pulled out my cookie cutters again to cut a piece of cheddar cheese into the shape of a bat. Then I wrapped up some roasted pumpkin seeds in a bit of wax paper (secured with invisible tape) and topped the packet with a cute sticker.

Once that was all packed up, I made some quick Happy Halloween cards. I just ran premade cards through my embosser, inked the front to add depth and then added some sparkly stickers. I stamped the inside with a sentiment and wrote in "Love, Mommy and Daddy!" I slipped that into the lunch box and called it a day. Happy Halloween!

We have to do something equally fun for dinner. We're planning Hotdog Octopi in tomato sauce, served with sliced orange and green bell peppers. Should be pretty creepy and super quick, so we can get out to trick-or-treat!.

Reflections on the Farmer's Market

This summer and fall, Kaleidoscope has had a tent at the Blairstown Farmer's Market, hosted by the Foodshed Alliance, in the heart of our town. It's a small market, but well-loved. Every week I schlep in our canopy, tables and assorted craft materials to share freely with children at the market.

I got to experience first-hand what Michael Pollan, popular author of In Defense of Food and The Ominvore's Dilemma has been holding up as a gold-standard for local food. As he explains "By shopping at a farmers market, you support local agriculture, which has a great many benefits. You keep farmers in your community. You keep land from being sprawled with houses and shopping centers. You have the experience of shopping in the farmers market, which is the new public square. You support a lot of values when you shop at the farmers market."

See, my favorite thing about a farmer's market isn't the just food, it's the people. Everyone has a story. Take Lou Tomasso as an example: he's the owner of LL Pittenger Farms and the only man from whom I'll buy beef. Lou knows his cattle, his farm, his heritage and his food. He's proud of what he does, and it shows. Heck, the man posts pictures of the new calves every year on Facebook! I can skip the market for weeks, and he'll remember my name and favorite cut. He'll give me a break on a porterhouse, because I'm a regular. He'll tell me the best way to grill my London Broil. I know how he raises his animals in open fields. I know how he grows the hay they get in winter. I feel connected to my food, and I feel blessed to have it and the people who raise is.

But I don't just talk to the farmers. When you go to a market like ours, you'll find that there is always some friend there to chat with. Maybe you haven't seen them all winter, but now you can stand in the sunshine, fresh leafy produce in your canvas bag, and catch up. You can extol the many virtues of kale, taste test cheeses for an upcoming party, and figure out what the heck you do with bok choy. The market is a powerful place of connection.

To be a part of the market every week has been so exciting. We painted, colored, collaged and stamped. We explored fossils, built catapults, played games and compared leaves. We blew bubbles, chalked the parking lots and dressed up in costumes. And we did it under both blue skies and gray (including one hurricane named Irene). I made friends with whole families of farmers and market shoppers, because my tent provided a fun, safe place for their children to create.

My daughters were able to wander the market independently, trying the samples (sometimes two or three times at Sugh's Southern Sweets), meeting the farmers and playing with other children. My 8-year-old soon took on the task of planning the meal and buying food for our Saturday night dinner, with a budget and guidelines from mommy, of course. (Two veggies, only ONE dessert.) The market became a kind of home for the kids, and in that way, it became my home too.

Even more impressive was watching a group of "market kids" (children whose parents worked at the market) provide support for others. They helped set up tents and tables, manned the Foodshed Alliance's booth to sell shirts and even stood in for a farmer one day and sold produce on his behalf. (And, man, could those kids haggle!) These children all stepped up and became responsible for their market, for their local food economy, for their food. What better lesson could they learn?

So, I'm looking forward to this weekend's All Hallows Harvest Festival complete with pig roast, hayrides, cider making and music. And in November, the area's first winter farmer's market will be coming to Newton! We get to keep the fun going all season long! Suffice it to say, it'll be worth schlepping tables around Warren county.