I admittedly tend to shy away from plastic toys, but we recently caved and bought the Perplexus Maze Game, which Laurel couldn't stop talking about after learning about it from classmates. And I have to admit that this game is ridiculously fun. The 3D sphere comprises one long, convoluted maze track including three different entry points -- so, for example, you don't have to start at the beginning if you've already mastered section 1 of the maze. Following the maze requires careful rotation and keeping your eye on the ball.I admittedly tend to shy away from plastic toys, but we recently caved and bought the Perplexus Maze Game, which Laurel couldn't stop talking about after learning about it from classmates. And I have to admit that this game is ridiculously fun. The 3D sphere comprises one long, convoluted maze track including three different entry points -- so, for example, you don't have to start at the beginning if you've already mastered section 1 of the maze. Following the maze requires careful rotation and keeping your eye on the ball.
Today, Kate shares a great resource for getting your craft on:
For much of my life, I could sew on a button and mend small tears, but I didn't have the slightest idea how to tackle a real sewing project. My grandmother sewed and my mother occasionally used her sewing machine, but the skills and interest seemed to have skipped my generation. And then, two years ago, I suddenly became intrigued by the idea of learning to sew. I read up, bought a simple sewing machine, and plunged in. My projects to date have included several sets of napkins, a simple bag, a pillow, some basic summer dresses for my daughter...and lots of crooked seams and asymmetrical corners. I love the work, though, and the joy of picking fabrics and watching them come together into something both pretty and useful.
My friend Amy recently sent me a teething toy that perfectly marries Violet's insatiable oral fixation with our love for simple, eco-friendly toys and musical merriment. Handmade of locally sourced hardwood and crafted with a smooth, sweet silhouette, Little Alouette's wee guitar teething toy is perfectly constructed for little hands and busy mouths. And when Jon, Laurel, and I are rocking out together on guitar, mandolin, and keyboard (Laurel is teaching herself Beatles songs!), Violet really seems like part of the action while munching on her wee guitar. There's so much cute stuff at Little Alouette; definitely check out the collection when you're next gifting expecting loved ones.
Today, Heather recommends a toy that her brood never tires of:
Magna-tiles may very well be the best toy purchase I have ever made. My 7-year-old and 4-year-old triplets never get bored with them, and, well, neither do I. We purchased the 100 piece translucent set that includes square and triangular tiles in a variety of sizes. The tiles attract on all sides and in all combinations, helping children move easily from two-dimensional to three-dimensional creations.
Natalie Zee Drieu and I are virtual kindred spirits around all things stylish and crafty. In addition to sharing fabulous finds at her blogs Coquette and Coquette Maman, Natalie is the editor-in-chief at the fantastic website Craft, where I have had the honor of sharing some of my crafty tutorials. Natalie and I both have crafty daughters, and since I've been thinking of ways to keep Laurel happy while I'm busy tending to her new sister, for today's four favorites guest post, I asked Natalie to share four favorite crafts to entertain older siblings.
My friend Amy Turn Sharp is a talented writer, a mamapreneur -- she and her husband craft lovely little wood toys for wee ones via their indie, eco business Little Alouette -- and she also has a baby in the house. So for today's four favorites guest post, I asked Amy to recommend four favorite (indie and eco-friendly) baby things that she and her son Scout are digging right now.
During a recent play date at a friend's house, Laurel fell in love with playing marble solitaire. I had never seen this game before but I loved the simplicity, compactness, and natural look (it's simply a wood base + marbles). And admittedly, I wanted to have a crack at the game myself. I ordered the game to include in Laurel's big sister gift bag from Violet and we've since had a great time playing, whether together or in solitary form. The concept is simple -- set up the marbles with an empty space in the center and every time you jump a marble (as in checkers), place the jumped marble in the circular holder rim. The object is to clear the board. The best I've gotten to so far is five marbles remaining; I hope to improve on that soon!
Laurel definitely has the design bug, and when she recently became obsessed with and started sketching wedding dresses, part of me couldn't believe she'll be one of those girls who will be able to say, "I dreamed about my wedding dress since I was six years old!" and part of me was stunned by the creativity, color, and detail she includes in her designs. Even so, Laurel knows that white is the norm, and given that she has has asked me if it's OK that her dresses are super colorful, I was thrilled to find this Brides from Around the World Paper Dolls book while shopping around for a few "from baby sister" gifts.
Today, Kate shares a craftastic fantasy that now is a reality:
Allow me a moment to admit to a fantasy. In my fantasy, I own a small and pretty shop that allows me to combine my love of baking, sewing, knitting, and beautiful things in a single place that is warm and welcoming and also somehow turns a profit and allows me to live stress-free and in creative happiness. For me, this is but a fantasy, but the creators of Gather Here -- a new 'stitch lounge' located on Broadway in Cambridge -- have managed to turn it into a reality.
Today, Heather recommends a welcome household bug:
My four kids are have gone buggy over Hexbugs -- little robotic creatures that behave like real bugs...but without the germs! Emma received a Hexbug Original as a gift and because her younger triplet siblings would not relent when it came to playing with it, the "colony" has now grown and my house is officially infested with nanos and ants.
Since her birthday in September, Laurel has had her heart set on acquiring a Doinkit Dartboard, and she was fortunate to receive one for Christmas from one of her aunties. And the dartboard has been a big hit, not just for Laurel, but, well, for the grownups too. The lightweight board's magnetic darts make dart tossing safe and kid-friendly, and the magnetic attraction is wonderfully forgiving for those with less than stellar aim.
One thing that I quickly learned with Laurel is that her level of content is completely different depending on whether I'm doing something not-so-present such as, say, checking my e-mail vs. crafting alongside her. Of course, her favorite kind of time is when we're working on the same project (e.g., we're finishing a really crazy quilt right now -- Laurel has become impressively facile with my sewing machine!), but when she's working on something like latch hook or pot holders, I'm kind of left hanging. So I've been thinking of -- and getting excited about -- revisiting knitting.
Laurel recently has become obsessed with jumping rope, which has proven to be fantastic entertainment and exercise both on the playground at school and at home (often times indoors even, which I am OK with right now since it helps Laurel burn off energy). I bought her a lovely, eco-friendly Green Toys jump rope this past summer while we were in Maine and admittedly was a little disgruntled when she instead wanted a sparkly, pink, plastic jump rope that her friend had, even though the natural coils in the plastic made it harder to jump with.
Last week on Life.Style, as I discussed inspiration points for easy and inexpensive gift wrap, I shared a link with photos of lovely recycled paper garlands. I decided to craft these garlands the other night and it was so easy (3 steps!) and they came out beautifully; I love that you don't have to be too precise with the measurements and they still look so geometric and festive. My friend Christie asked for the how-to since a tutorial isn't available at the original inspiration link. Here's how to make them:
Given that my parents used to subject their household visitors to impromptu recitals by me and my six siblings (at a point where none of us were exactly musically proficient), I tend to cringe a little when I think of family recitals. However, recently I was overwhelmed by the awesome that was Laurel's assembly of a family recital, thanks to these fantastic Kidsplay handbells that my mother-in-law had on hand.
If you didn't have a chance to watch episode 5 of Life.Style live on Thursday, I highly recommend you check it out! It was a fantastic eco and budget friendly episode, in which Marie LeBaron of Make and Takes shared ideas for turning trash into craft treasure as well as nature inspired projects, and Allison Czarnecki of Petit Elefant offered awesome how-to's on home beauty remedies using five ingredients or less. I also shared some terrific video submissions showcasing clever ideas for inexpensive gift wrapping, as well as a few of my own inspiration points. Check out the segment to see additional images, video, and inspiration, but as promised, for easy reference below I link up leads shared by me and my guests. Enjoy!
Hands down, my best investment this year has been my DSLR and 50mm lens; having a great camera has inspired me to learn a new craft and take more photos of my loved ones. (Also, my camera/lens is known amongst my friends as the "hot camera" since everyone looks utterly fantastic photographed through it.) And so it's no wonder that I've been keen on protecting my investment. I adore the beautiful women's DSLR handbags currently on the market, but they do feel a bit permanent for someone who likes to switch bags as frequently as I do. So I recently decided to create a little bag (a camera cozy as it were) to tote my DSLR in bag du jour, and I'm honored that my DSLR camera cozy tutorial is now featured on the lovely Craft website. Enjoy!
Thanks to Kate's recommendation, it looks like life list item #6 ("learn to sew a piece of clothing, i.e., something that doesn't only involve right angles") is within my grasp:
I never really got on the Martha Stewart bandwagon so I didn't suffer disappointment about the whole tax-evasion/time-in-prison thing. When I decided to take up sewing last year, however, a favorite blog led me to an announcement about Martha's new compendium on fabric arts, so I decided to give her a try. And wow, was I ever impressed.