Pinwheel Kids' Craft - and Day Four of Giveaway Week!

Xyron is proud to sponsor Second Saturday Kids' Crafts at the Fascinate-U Children's Museum in Fayetteville, NC.  So once a month Don and I tricky trot ourselves on down there for a fun and easy kids' craft.  It can be a challenge trying to find something that will appeal to toddlers and teens alike - but we have a blast, and last time we were there we went totally old school and made PINWHEELS!  It is SO SUPER easy and inexpensive to put together - and coloring their own pinwheels allows each child's individuality to shine through which of course we totally love. Scroll down to the bottom of the blog post to tell us about your favorite "back in the day" craft project and win some fabulous prizes!

Want to make these for a centerpiece or other home decor/party idea?  Use double sided patterned paper and a small nail (to hold the heavier paper in place).  Simply bend the nail flat on the other side of the skewer and cover the nail head with a button!

Supplies:
construction paper
crayons
scissors
WRMK Crop-A-Dile (or hole punch)
wooden bbq skewers
push pins

Cut construction paper in to squares and fold on the diagonal (so you will have an X pattern through the center of the paper).

Let the kids color to their hearts' content...don't forget to do both sides!

 Cut at the diagonal folds to about 1.5" from the center.

 Punch one hole per corner.  Choose the same side of the cut corner for all holes (you only want one hole punch per "triangle").

 Fold the punched corner pieces in towards the middle.

 Secure with a push pin.

 Press firmly in to wooden skewer - leaving room for the pinwheel to spin.

 Take a deep breath and blow!

 Don and I had SUCH a good time with this fun and easy project - and many of the parents said it brought them back to their childhoods as well.  Tell us about your favorite "old school" project - either one you did as a kid or one you do with your own kids/grandkids - and one lucky winner will receive a fabulous prize pack containing paper packs from DCWV, Colorbok and Core'dinations, and a Mega Runner and 1.5" create-a-sticker from Xyron!

I'll announce the winner on my FB page tomorrow morning - Happy Thursday everybody!

Sparkly Snowflakes - Kids' Crafts Saturday

No...today isn't Saturday, but we made these on a Saturday - does that count?  :)

Actually - I call it Kids' Crafts Saturday because Don and I volunteer at the Fascinate-U Children's Museum in Fayetteville, NC on the second Saturday of every month (sponsored by Xyron - yay!).

We create fast and easy craft projects and have a BLAST doing it! I'm going to start sharing these projects here with you - maybe on Saturdays, maybe on other days, but I hope you'll be inspired to make these with some of your favorite little ones!

Supplies:
foam shapes (we got boxes of these snowflakes for a RIDICULOUSLY low price because all the stores were clearancing out holiday stuff)
markers
Xyron 5" Creative Station (also known as the 510)
glitter
tupperware container
scrap paper

Set out your scrap paper, markers and foam shapes on your craft space. (Tip - if your foam shapes have punch-outs in the middle, do NOT punch them out until after the glitter process. Trust me.)

Let the kids color on the foam shapes to their little hearts' content! (Another tip - if they color it TOO much the adhesive won't stick as well because the foam will be saturated.  We had more than 50 kids come through and it was really only an issue for about 4 of them - we solved that by just putting glitter on the non-colored side.)

 

Run your foam shape through your 510 (of COURSE I don't have a photo of this part!) with the colored side facing down. The 510 is easy enough to use that kids can help crank the handle! Peel off the top film, then peel the foam shape from the backing and place adhesive side down in your tupperware container filled with glitter.  You need enough glitter in the tupperware to make sure the bottom of the container is completely covered.

Help the kids move the foam shape around in the tupperware to cover the foam shape with glitter.  The beauty of Xyron is that if you pick it up and realize that you missed a spot - you can just stick it back down in the glitter!

And voila!  Sparkly snowflakes!  You can keep the foam shape intact,  or punch out the center for a cool shape.

Oh...and uhh...I held a snake.  :)  This has absolutely nothing to do with crafts - but it sure was awesome!

Happy Crafting Everybody!

Easy 4th of July Kids' Craft!

Looking for a last minute craft to entertain the kiddos or get them ready for the neighborhood parade? Put together this fun flag (this is a great project if you need to make multiple flags) using just a few scraps and your Xyron machine!

Supplies:
white cardstock cut to 4 1/4" x 5 1/2"
5 strips of assorted red patterned papers and cardstock cut to 1/2" x 5 1/2"
blue cardstock cut to 2 1/4" x 2 3/4"
star patterned paper cut to 2" x 2 1/2"
Xyron Magic Sticker Maker (or any other Xyron adhesive machine)
WRMK Crop-A-Dile
wooden BBQ skewers
patriotic stickers (if desired)

If you are working with small children, pre-run the pieces needed for each flag through your Xyron machine (older kids will enjoy running the paper through themselves).  Apply the red strips to the white cardstock first, then add the blue cardstock in the top left corner, then add the star paper on top of the blue cardstock.

Punch two holes on the left of the flag with the Crop-A-Dile and thread the wooden skewer through the holes.  If you've got leftover patriotic stickers from your scrapbooking/cardmaking, the kids will love putting those on their flag as well!

Happy 4th Everybody!  Have a safe and wonderful holiday!

30 Days of Xyron - Paper Plate Menorah Kids' Craft!

All month long the gang from Xyron has been creating some gorgeous holiday projects - and today its my turn!

You all know how I feel about paper plate kids' crafts - I especially love to share them (and be mocked by everyone) when I'm on HSN! This menorah became a little infamous on 24-Hour Craft Day when my fabulous friend Bill Green and I were demoing the Xyron 9" Creative Station (if you want a giggle go to HSN.com, click on the video link on this page, and go to the 11:00 mark) - and so many folks asked about it that I made a quick video tutorial!

If you've missed out on some of the other fun holidays projects the Xyron Design Team has shared this month just head on over to the photo section of the Xyron FB page and prepare to be inspired...and tune in all this week for even more great ideas!  Did I mention that EVERY project has a tutorial?  Wahoo!

Speaking of inspired - I hope you will tune in to my Facebook page starting December 11th - this time of year always inspires me so I am celebrating the season with a Twelve Days of Christmas giveaway!  I'll be giving away some crafty goodies EVERY DAY from the 11th - 22nd from my friends at Teresa Collins, Epiphany Crafts, Cricut, Xyron, Craftwell, Maya Road and more! EVERY DAY!  Can't wait to kick it off with you!

Kids Crafts Saturday - Felt Garlands and Necklaces

Ok...it wasn't a Saturday - but for some reason any time we do crafts with kids I feel the need to call it that. I came up with this idea as a way to entertain the neighborhood kids one afternoon during Winter Break, but both of these projects would be FABULOUS Valentine's Day ideas!  All photos courtesy of Busy Bee Photography.

Felt Garlands
Assorted colors of felt
Die capable of cutting felt - I used Sizzix Circles #2*
Die cutting machine - I used my Xyron Creatopia with Shapez component
Xyron Creative Station with permanent adhesive - any size 5" or larger
Baker's Twine
*For the instructions I will refer to the circles, but they can literally be any shape you want.  How cute would hearts be!!

Using your die cutting machine, cut your circles out of felt (two per color/size).

Run one set of circles (one of each color/size) through your Xyron Creative Station.

Lay the other set of circles out in a line across your work space in the order you want them to be on the garland. Leave as much or as little space between each circle as you like - we left about an inch between each.

Lay the Baker's Twine across the center of your line of circles.

Take your set of adhesive backed circles and "match" them to the set of circles on the table.  When you press down to adhere the circles together, this will also hold your twine in place.

Custom Necklaces
Go to the jewelry aisle of any mass craft store and you can find pendant trays of every size and variety, as well as the glass cabochans (toppers) and chains that go with them.

You can also buy them in bulk on etsy and other online sites if you want to use them as a fun birthday party craft or school activity! I bought (and will refer to) 1" square trays.

Pendant Trays
Glass Cabochans
Photo, patterned paper, cartoon pages, etc
1" square punch
Xyron 1.5" create-a-sticker
Clear drying liquid glue - I used Diamond Glaze

Punch out your image from photo, patterned paper, etc and run through Xyron 1.5" create-a-sticker with image facing up.

Place image in to pendant tray - adhesive on the back will hold it in to place.

Place a small drop of liquid glue in the center of the image and quickly press glass cabochan in to tray. Hold for 10 seconds and then set aside to dry.

Several of the kids made these with their own photos inside for grandparent gifts.  What a wonderful idea!

One of the moms brought a toy catalog and the boys LOVED making necklaces with pictures of their favorite superhero.  I thought that was genius!

Last but not least - our neighbor Eleanor wanted nothing to do with crafts but is so stinkin' cute I'm just going to give her a shout out anyway.  Those sunglasses are the best quarter I ever spent!

Kids Crafts Saturday - Potato Painting for St Patrick's Day!

Looking for a fun and easy St. Patrick's Day crafts for the kiddos?  A potato, some paint and paper, and a little creativity makes for the perfect project!

SUPPLIES
potato
knifewhite cardstockmarkersWRMK Crop-a-Dile (or hole punch)ribbon
washable craft pain
paper plate/bowl 

Cut the potato in half, then carve your shape on the exposed edge (we used a chipboard heart for a template but you can also cut your shape freehand).


Use a bowl (or plate with raised sides) for the paint, so excess can be wiped off before stamping the potato on to the paper.

To create a clover - get paint on the potato, stamp the heart, then rotate 45 degrees for each leaf.  The kids used their fingers to create the stems - their favorite part!




Working with younger kids?  Don cut out a "handle" on one of the potatoes by cutting away the sides of the potato about halfway, then cutting a hole through the center.






To complete the project, let the kids write their names on the paper, then punch holes at the top, tie with ribbon, and set aside to dry.  Happy St. Patrick's Day!