Bottle Cap Pin Project

April 25, 2013

Ever wondered what you could do with the metal bottle caps form bottles?  Make a pin.  You can make a customized art pin using your favorite pictures and handmade art.  Give as gifts, collect or trade with your friends.  It is a good thing!

Items Needed:

  • metal bottle caps – cleaned
  • magazine or decorative paper
  • scissors
  • white glue
  • pin back

Directions:

  1. use the bottle cap as a template and trace around on a small picture or detail from paper
  2. cut it out
  3. trim if necessary so that it fits nicely inside the cap
  4. add glue to the backside of the picture
  5. place it in the cap and press down
  6. you can add decorations such as glitter, beads, sequins, etc
  7. glue the pin back to the back of the cap
  8. let dry completely before wearing
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Sampler Pillowcase Project

April 10, 2013

This project takes an ordinary pillowcase and transforms it into an embroidered sampler. 

Materials Needed:

  • pencil
  • tracing paper
  • white cotton pillowcase
  • needle
  • embroidery floss

Directions:

  1. draw a simple design on a piece of tracing paper
  2. put the drawn side down on a hard surface
  3. take a soft lead pencil and rub over the back of the drawing until it is completely covered
  4. place the tracing paper with the pencil rubbed side facing down on the pillowcase where you want it
  5. use a pencil and retrace the design onto the fabric, pressing lightly as you trace
  6. remove paper when finished
  7. embroider your design as you wish
  8. when done, wash in cold soapy water to remove pencil smudges

 

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Kids Lunch Money Wallet Project

March 24, 2013

This handy little wallet is a perfect size for kids to put their lunch money, library card and anything else they may need to keep safe.  They can personalize it to their own liking and treasure it for years to come.

Items needed:

  • pencil
  • ruler
  • pins
  • scissors
  • 8 x 3.25″ piece of felt or fleece
  • large eye needled
  • embroidery floss
  • 2 buttons
  • 4″ piece of thin string or ribbon

Directions:

  1. cut out a 8″ x 3.25″ rectangle from felt or fleece
  2. measure 6.5″ up from the bottom short edge and draw a line straight across
  3. fold the bottom edge up so that the edge is on the line drawn
  4. made a crease on the fold so that it stays
  5. pin the sides together to form a pocket
  6. thread the needle, tie a knot in the end and sew around the all outside edges of the pocket and then across the flap using a blanket stitch
  7. fold the top edge down so that the fold is where the top of the pocket is – make a crease
  8. sew a button in the center of the top flap and a button in the center of the pocket so that when the flap is down, they line up
  9. tie one end of the thin ribbon or string around the top button – this is the tie wrap to secure the wallet – to secure, crisscross the string and the bottom button and then wrap twice around the top button to close and secure it

Voila!  A special handmade wallet for your kids.

lucnh box

lunch box

 

Browse our selection of kids lunch boxes at http://www.cowandlizard.com/category/lunch-boxes

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A Train of Envelop Animals

March 18, 2013

Is it raining out and looking for an activity for your kids to keep them busy?  Try making an animal train made from leftover envelops.

Items Needed:

  • envelops
  • pencil
  • colored pencils, markers or crayons
  • scissors

Directions:

  1. use one envlop for each animal
  2. with the side of the envelop down,draw your animal on the right side of the envelop
  3. color your animal
  4. cut out the shape leaving the top or flap fold of the envelop uncut

open and display

Circus Mobile
Circus Mobile

Soothing tunes complement mobile design, North American Bear Company mobiles come complete with wind up music box and easy to assemble crib arm attachment.  Check out other baby musical toys and mobiles at http://www.cowandlizard.com/category/baby-musicals-mobiles

 

 

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Spring Ahead – We Lose An Hour Today

March 10, 2013

Last night we set our clocks ahead one hour and we lost an hour.  The good news is that it stays light an hour later in the evening, but the bad news is that it is dark again in the morning when we get up.  I prefer the Fall Back instead of the Spring Ahead as we gain an extra hour.  That extra hour of sleep is wonderful and getting up in the morning is much easier.

spring a ling wire & bead maze

spring a ling wire & bead maze

 

Totally Amazing!  These hand powered wire & bead mazes encourage fine motor skills, creative problem solving and early critical thinking.

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Be a Nut and Make Decorative Jewelry out of Acorns

March 1, 2013

Feeling a little nutty?  How about gathering some fresh acorns and making some decorative necklaces and bracelets.  You make have to wrestle with the squirrels to get some, but there should be plenty leftover for them to store for the winter.

Items Needed:

  • old board
  • acorns
  •  hammer
  • nail
  • large-eye needle
  • heavy string
  • colored beads

Directions:

  1. collect about 20 or so acorns that still have their caps on
  2. put the acorns on an old board and gently pound a nail through the side of the acorn just beneath the cap to make a hole
  3. thread the needle with a piece of string about 18″ long, leaving a 2″ tail on both side for tying
  4. tie a knot at one end
  5. string the acorns and beads in a pattern of your choice
  6. when done, tie the two ends together

    Folkmanis Squirrel Puppet

    Folkmanis Squirrel Puppet

 

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Moon Journal – Keeping Track of the Moon Phases

February 28, 2013

Today we use a calendar to keep track of the days of the week, but in years gone by, they didn’t have calendars to do this.  Native Americans used the moon as a guide to track the time of year and season.  The Moon makes one orbit around the Earth about once every 27.3 days but since the Earth is orbiting around the sun at the same time, it takes about 29.5 days for the Moon to show the same phase to the Earth.  The Moon phases are from a New Moon to the First Quarter to the Full Moon to the Last Quarter and back to a New Moon.

Keep a Moon Journal and keep track of the phases of the moon every night for the next month.  Draw pictures.  Record what you observe – is the moon close or far?  Is it big or small?  What color is it?  Where in the sky is it?  Is it bright or dull?  How well does it illuminate the night sky?  Can you see the man in the moon?

Goodnight Moon Game
Goodnight Moon Game

Goodnight Moon is a beloved children’s book that has been read to children for generations now.  For family night, try playing the Goodnight Moon Game for a good time. 

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Make Your Own Frosting Bag

February 27, 2013

You don’t need a pastry bag from a store to decorate your cakes, cookies and cupcakes, it is real simple to make your own.  It is disposable, very inexpensive and can be made from items you probably already have in the house.  Make your sweet treats extra special with your own special decorative touch.

Items Needed:

  • new letter sized envelop or parchment paper
  • scissors
  • frosting
  • food coloring

Directions:

  1. For an envelop pastry bag, use the scissors and cut off part of the lower left corner – the smaller the opening, the finer the line
  2. For a parchment paper pastry bag, cut and 8.5″ x 11″ sheet or parchment paper in half diagonally, roll it into the shape of a cone and use the scissors to cut off the bottom, again, the smaller the opening, the finer the line
  3. To decorate your sweet treats, color the frosting with food coloring, fill the pastry bag you made, press lightly until the frosting starts to come out of the tip
  4. Hold it above the treat and gently squeeze while making your design

It will take some practice to get the right amount of pressure on it to make the desired lines.  But that is okay – it will still taste great!

 

Cake Set
Cake Set

Play along with Plan Toys wooden cake set.  The set includes a cake with toppings, a cake turntable, a cake server and an icing bag.  The cake can be cut into 6 slices.  Perfect for imaginative play or teaching fractions.

 

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Colored Sugar – Bedazzle Your Cookies!

February 26, 2013

When making cookies, you can add extra dazzle with this recipe for colored sugar.  Make your favorite color, mix a new color and blend them all together.  They will look too pretty to eat!

Items Needed:

  • food coloring
  • water
  • 1/4 granulated sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. light corn syrup
  • small paint brush
  • small plate
  • fork
  • small glass
  • small bowl

Directions:

  1. in a small glass, add 3 drops of food coloring and  3 drops of water – mix together
  2. put sugar in a separate small bowl
  3. add 1 drop of the food coloring mixture to the sugar
  4. press with a fork to combine
  5. keep adding more drops until you get the color you want
  6. pour corn syrup on small plate
  7. dip paint brush in syrup and paint your design on the cookie
  8. press the cookie into the sugar mixture
  9. shake lightly to remove excess

 

Plan Toys Tea Set

Plan Toys Tea Set

 
Serve your cookies with tea and have a tea party with your friends!
 
Happy Day!
 
the folks at Cow & Lizard
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Make Your Own Ornaments

February 25, 2013

Simple ornaments are sometimes the most beautiful ornaments on the tree.  Homemade ornaments are even more beautiful as they often tell a story.  When you see them on the tree, or taking them out of storage after being tucked away for a year, they can bring back such wonderful memories.

Here is  an activity where you can make simple ornaments with your kids.  They don’t have to be just for the Christmas tree – use your imagination and hang them elsewhere.  Perhaps create a mobile to hang above your bed, or hang them in the window  – look around, and I’m sure you will come up with a ton of places where you could hang your decorations.

Items needed:

  • tracing paper
  • scissors
  • tape
  • pencil
  • hole punch
  • large-eye needle
  • embroidery floss or yarn
  • card stock
  • string or ribbon

Directions:

  1. look thru magazines, books, old cards, etc. and pick a shape as a template
  2. use a pencil and the tracing paper to trace the shape or you can draw your own shape if you prefer.  Remember, pick a very simple shape that you can distinguish what it is and it will be easy to cut out and sew
  3. cut the shape you traced out of the tracing paper
  4. tape the shape on to the card stock and trace the shape again
  5. remove the tracing paper template
  6. cut the shape out of the card stock
  7. using the hole punch, punch holes evenly around the outside of the shape, being careful not to get too close to the edges
  8. thread the needle with the floor or yarn and tie a knot at one end
  9. starting at the top left, pull the thread up from underneath the first hole – bring the needle over the edge and come back up again through the same hole – this will secure the knot and keep the stitching from unraveling
  10. insert the needle down thru the next hole
  11. continue sewing around the entire shape
  12. when you come to the end, weave the thread through the last stitch and tie in a firm knot
  13. cut off the ends
  14. thread a thin ribbon or string through one of the holes on the top to form a loop – tie the ends in a knot or bow so you can hang it up
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