Crafts | Skip To My Lou

Felt Groundhog Finger Puppet

posted by cindylouh on February 2nd, 2010 | children's activities, crafts, kids crafts |

Celebrate Groundhog Day with a felt hiding groundhog puppet.

A few pieces of felt, a 5 oz cup, wiggly eyes, thread (for whiskers), large Popsicle stick and glue is all you need.

I made groundhog finger puppets for my crafting partners. To give the ears dimension, I folded the sides of the ears to the center and place them between the two body pieces and machine sewed around the edge.

Add some facial details and you have a groundhog finger puppet. To use the finger puppet for the hiding groundhog just place it over a large popsicle stick.

My crafting partners also made their own groundhog puppets. To make it simple for them they glued their groundhog pieces directly to the popsicle stick.

Then they added the face.

Cut a hole in the bottom of the cup for the popsickle stick to fit through.

Next they glued felt to the outside of the plastic cup.

Then they cut slits in the felt around the top edge.

Fit the groundhog through the hole. Now you see him.

Now you don't.

Happy Groundhog Day!

Just when you think you have thought of the most clever craft ever, you then find others have thought of it also. I have seen similar groundhog puppets around the web. If you have a similar craft or fun idea to celebrate Groundhog Day please leave a link in the comments so everyone can check it out!

Can you believe this is a groundhog shaped meatloaf? It was made by Sommer, a Skip to my Lou reader.

Sommer said she was surprised at how easy and fun it is to shape meatloaf. She says if you bake your normal meatloaf on a foil covered cookie sheet, you can pretty much shape it into whatever you want. The eyes are olives and the whites of his eyes and teeth are mashed potatoes. Her family calls it the Ground-Groundhog Meatloaf. I think she should be a food sculptor. Sommer has some skills!

I have linked my hiding groundhog puppets to Today's Creative Blog's Get Your Craft On! Go check her out and be inspired. Don't forget link up a project and show her what you've got!

Thanks for taking the time to visit me today!

Egg Carton Caterpillars

posted by cindylouh on September 14th, 2009 | crafts, kids crafts |

Kate and Bella have been crafty! Their craft is perfect way to use up those egg cartons and also a great activity to go along with the book The Very Hungry Caterpillar(and some others at the end of this post).

We gathered our supplies.

After I cut the egg carton in half lengthwise, they painted and painted.

With a sharp object I punched two holes in the top end.

The girls then threaded a pipe cleaner through the holes. We added a dab of glue to the underside to keep the "antennae" in place.

The girls then added some wiggly eyes and I hot glued some pom poms to the tops of the antennae.

Now were off the read The Very Hungry Caterpillar and give our caterpillars some embellishments! You might also enjoy reading Clara Caterpillar ,Gotta Go! Gotta Go! and Charlie the Caterpillar.

Today is National Make Your Bed Day…

posted by cindylouh on September 11th, 2009 | children's activities, crafts, kids, kids crafts |

...so we are celebrating with custom pillowcases and made beds (well some of us are -- remember I also have teen boys)!

To make our custom pillowcase we used Crayola Fabric Markers (I found them at Michael's Arts & Crafts and used a coupon) and a plain white pillowcase.

These markers are great! Bella literally spent hours working on her pillowcase. She is really into hearts as you can see! She asked me to draw a heart shape. The pillowcase was thin enough that I slipped a paper with a heart drawn on it in the middle and she could see it well enough to trace. It would be fun to use coloring book pictures as templates also. A child could easily decorate anyway they like, but if they seem intimidated have them make a drawing first on paper and then they can trace it.

** Make sure you place a piece of cardboard inside the pillowcase to keep the markers from bleeding through to the other side. Read package directions for setting the fabric.**

Really the possibilities are endless for this craft---- slumber party or birthday crafts, gifts, etc.. They could even be further embellished with bits of fabric, trims and embroidery.

Bella loves her new pillowcase!

If you would like to try out these awesome fabric markers please leave a comment on this post before Tuesday at midnight CST. Crayola is giving FIVE lucky readers a set of fabric markers!

How to make a notepad

posted by cindylouh on September 9th, 2009 | crafts, handmade gifts |

Here is a simple little project to turn that awesome Mom's Got A Latte Do Today List into a magnetic notepad that would make a cute gift! You can actually buy a special glue for making notepads called padding compound. I was not able to find it anywhere locally so I tried silicone sealant (found at Wal-Mart or a home improvement store) and had great results.

To make these fun notepads you will need:

two clamps

two pieces of wood

100% silicone sealant

cardboard for the backing (I used a cereal box)

paper for your notepad (I made 12 copies of the download so my pad had 24 sheets)

Cut the paper and cardboard to the desired size. Line up paper sheets along with your cardboard backing and place between two pieces of wood (I used my child's blocks). Place clamps on each side of the wood. Once everything is clamped, place the silicone along the edge. Wet your finger and smooth a thin coat of silicone along the top. Allow to dry and then add a second coat.

Once silicone is completely dry remove from clamps. If you got some silicone on the wood make sure to remove the wood carefully. It might help to run a sharp knife along the edge to release the paper from the wood.

The sheets tear beautifully from the pad.

Add a magnet to the back of the notepad and you have a great magnetic notepad for your refrigerator.

Crochet Mosaics

posted by cindylouh on August 17th, 2009 | children's activities, crafts, crochet |

Just a heavy piece of cardboard, some scraps of yard, a crochet hook and glue provided some fun today!

I crocheted some chains in different lengths (actually the girls told me what color and how long). If they were older it would have been fun to have them crochet their own chains.

They put glue on the cardboard.

Then they expertly arranged the crochet chains on the glue.

Ta Da!

I think this activity would be great for older (Kate and Bella are 4 1/2) children too! It would be easier for older children to fill in the whole space and it would also provide a fun way for them to practice crochet skills.

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