present idea: on-the-go doodle kit

It feels like I spend a LOT of my time thinking about presents for kids, and I’ve been so happy that lately I’ve been making craft kits, sticker books, and t-shirts instead of buying toys that may or may not ever see the light of day. I recently came up with another idea: an on-the-go doodle kit. We have a little flexible plastic pencil tote that contains a lightweight sketchbook (I bought a ton of them at Muji when we were in Taiwan) plus some oil pastels or crayons. I usually throw this kit into my purse or under the stroller when we go out to eat or when we are running errands that require waiting. It has saved us tons of times during long and otherwise restless waits at restaurants, and I thought other kids/parents might enjoy the same.

I wanted to have something a little special in our kit, though, and I decided that it needed a fun drawing tool. Otis and I recycled some crayons that we acquired at East Bay Depot by breaking/cutting them down to small chunks and melting them in a star-shaped silicone cake pan. It’s a great way to use up old, broken crayons, or even the crayons that you get free from restaurants. You can use any shape you want – use an old muffin tin, or even melt it in a big sheet and cut them into shapes while still warm with a sharp cookie cutter (though I’m not sure you’ll want to bake anything edible in the pans afterwards). We broke up the crayons together and Otis arranged them in our cake pan. Then we sat in front of the oven and watched them melt very slowly. (We baked them at 200 until they were melted, about 15 minutes.) It was a fun project to do together, and he found the cutting of the crayons quite satisfying:

yes, there he is with the superman outfit again

I found a great substitute for our beloved Muji notebooks in these fantastic little sketchbooks from Moleskine. I love their regular sketchbooks, and they make these thinner versions in a variety of wonderful colors. They fit just right into a clear plastic “binder pouch” that I found at Target (I need to go back and buy a bunch before all the back-to-school supplies are gone!) and I added a star shaped crayon tucked into a little sewn drawstring bag. I will attach a little tag that will inform our gift recipient that the crayon was “Made by Otis.” I know some prefer to limit their use of plastic, and you can definitely sew a larger drawstring bag instead; there are so many possibilities.

I love this little doodle kit! And I hope our gift recipient will, too.

 

present idea: mix CD

One of the best presents I received after Otis was born was a collection of three CDs made by a couple of our friends who happen to be really knowledgeable about music. I am pretty clueless myself, and would probably still listen to Duran Duran if I could, so I like learning about other music. And I appreciate the time and thought that goes into making such a present. It’s like sewing or knitting a present.

We are attending a mini-family reunion of sorts, and I made copies of these two CDs for Otis’s cousin. One is good for sleepytime, and the other is good for all-around fun. We like he likes it. I thought I’d share it with you, too. You’ll recognize much of it, as I did, though I never thought of much of it as good kids’ music. And I’m not necessarily saying that Otis prefers listening to this over music about monsters and animals, but I sure do like it, especially the Asleep collection, which I would play when Otis was screaming in the car. If you have other grown-up favorites that are good for kids, I’ve love to hear about them.

Otis Awake:
Ooh Child – Nina Simone
Blackbird – The Beatles
The Lion Song – Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Three Little Birds – Bob Marley and the Wailers
Cupid – Sam Cooke
Car Song – Woody Guthrie
Buckets of Rain – Bob Dylan
I Had A Good Mother and Father – Palace Brothers
Make Me A Pallet On Your Floor – Woody Guthrie
Paradise – John Prine
Joshua Fit The Battle – Elvis Presley
What The Deep Sea Say – Woody Guthrie
Loves Me Like A Rock – Paul Simon
Blueberry Hill – Loretta Lynn
Dock of the Bay – Otis Redding

Otis Asleep
To Know Him Is To Love Him – Dolly Parton
Love Me Like A Song – Willie Nelson and Kimmie Rhodes
Can I Sleep In Your Arms – Willie Nelson
How’s The World Treating You – Allison Kraus and James Taylor
Hobo’s Lullaby – Arlo Guthrie
Over Yonder (Jonathon’s Song) – Steve Earle
Birds and Ships – Billy Bragg and Wilco
First Time Ever I Saw Your Face – Johnny Cash
This Side Of The Blue – Joanna Newsom
La Noyee – Carla Bruni
Rene and George Magritte With Their Dog After The War – Paul Simon
Prelude No. 7 – Chopin
Gymnopedie 1 – Satie/Jean-Yves Thibaudet

See you next week!

 

present idea: craft kit for kids

A while back, I put together a craft kit for Otis that was filled with all kinds of crafting knick-knacks. It was a great way to organize and contain all the tiny little pieces that were becoming hard to keep track of. Happily, it was a big hit. He loves to pull it out to string together necklaces or to find that special something to add to his artwork, and it’s even better when he gets to do it with friends. It wasn’t until recently that it occurred to me that perhaps this would make a good present for other kids as well.

We got to test it out this past weekend when we celebrated our friend Amelia’s 3rd birthday. We bought a small plastic organizer (the kind with the compartments that you can change as you wish) and filled it with goodies. It was fun to search for materials, and Otis is pleased as punch to get a fresh infusion of supplies. Along with dyed pasta that we made for Otis’s birthday party (great tutorial here — the rubbing alcohol really helps!) and sparkly lanyard for necklace/bracelet making, we also included feathers, pompoms, pipe cleaners (cut down to fit), colored popsicle sticks, googly eyes, and sparkly and self-sticking foam shapes. Finding the perfect glue was a challenge – it needed to be liquid glue for the materials I bought, but it also needed to fit in the box! The piece de resistance would’ve been a pair of folding scissors, but I had no luck in that department. I love how self-contained the kit is. Hopefully, things are open-ended enough to provide lots of creative fun.

The birthday girl loved it and I was really happy to hear the news, since I was suffering from one of my usual bouts of self-doubt over yet another homemade present. I can’t wait to see her new creations. I’ve been making lots of sticker books for our friends, but I think I see a few craft kits in our future.

 

skirts!

I’ve made my latest lazy sewer’s discovery: elastic-waist skirts. I came across a free pattern from Oliver + S, who makes really adorable kids’ patterns. It’s not a pattern, exactly, but more like rough guidelines for how to make an elastic band skirt from a simple length of fabric. It was really fast and easy.

Here is it is with a Etsuko Furuya fabric that I love:

I think I used maybe 1/2 yard? It’s a great way to use a small amount of pricey fabric. Their directions call for using ribbon on the hem, which makes things fast, but I used my serger and a blind hem stitch instead.

I also made a variation:

Instead of sewing the entire width of fabric into the skirt, I first cut out strips to sew straps. This makes for a dress that is a less full. I used a longer piece of fabric (I happened to find a 7/8 yard remnant for $1.80!) and used a wider width of elastic. I added buttons and the straps to make it a jumper. The straps have a few different buttonholes so hopefully we’ll be able to use it as Bee gets taller.

 

present idea: shirts for kids

We’ve been thinking a lot about birthdays here, as we are ramping up for Otis’s birthday party this weekend, and I wanted to share this idea with you. I find present buying absolutely torturous, as it would be for any criminally indecisive person. But for kids, it’s especially hard since 1. kids have such specific interests; 2. I hate buying junky or plastic toys, but feel self-conscious about buying old-fashioned toys because of reason #1; and 3. I always feel guilty if I don’t give a handmade present away yet I am pretty sure that kids would prefer something junky and plastic. How does buying a birthday present for a 4-year old devolve into a circle of guilt and self-hatred?

One day, I was thinking about the birthday of a fashion-conscious classmate of Otis’s who is very dear to my heart. She always engages me in discussions about my clothes, and was particularly interested in me when I was pregnant, since I wore dresses all the time. I proposed designing a shirt together that I would then sew for her. She came up with a design, I let her choose her own fabrics from my stash, and then mere weeks later, she had this:

Word to the wise: if you’re doing a project with a pre-schooler and you want it to have meaning, don’t wait four weeks to finish your project because they will forget. She looked blankly at the shirt when I gave it to her, but soon after, with some prompting from her mother, she was very appreciative.

And then I made one for our good friend, Emmett:

He’s obsessed with the Cal Bears (from UCBerkeley, from those who don’t know). Happily, I’ve seen him wear it a few times. Evidently, it is one of the few things that he will wear that does not bear the Cal logo. I got lucky, I guess. The kid won’t even wear red socks anymore — you know, because of the old rivalry between Cal and Stanford.

What’s amazing is that the kids are so impressively decisive about what they want. And they stick with it, too. Totally foreign to me. If you’re interested, I drew my designs backwards onto iron-on adhesive paper. Then I cut them out and pressed them onto pre-washed shirts (I found Target to be a good source for cheap, basic shirts). Then I topstiched the designs down. Simple and easy, and it was fun for both me and for the kids to work together on a project. This is the perfect age to start doing projects like this.

 

tuxedo pants

Otis has been growing like a weed lately, and all his pants are starting to look like gauchos. Luckily, I’m still having my love affair with sewing pants, which are so fast and easy to make. Pajama pants are perfect for Otis – he will try to force any and all pants down his hips no matter how tight they are and really, who doesn’t want to be in pajamas all day long?

I find the standard pajama pants a little too tapered, so here’s how I altered them to make a straighter leg:

Trace the original pattern (I already cut out the new pattern in the picture above, but just wanted to show you how they are different). I used pattern paper here, but here’s a tip: the huge rolls of kraft paper near the exit at Ikea works PERFECTLY for patternmaking. And it’s FREE. Grab a cinnamon roll while you’re at it.

I started straightening the pattern at the hip. Since they are pajama pants, you don’t need to worry too much about precise fit, so don’t wring your hands over the exact location of where you start. I added width to both the inside and outside seams, making the leg much straighter (refer to the picture with old pattern on top of the new to see the difference).

Finished. Easy. I think I might try to try another pattern, making the pants a little more slim cut, too.

You know that old adage “Measure twice, cut once”? I think I need to have those words tattooed on my arm or something since I seem to spend a whole lot of time either with my seam ripper or in the car, returning yet again to Home Depot. I ran the pant legs through my serger before I realized that I sewed the wrong pieces together. So I had to cut them apart serge them together correctly. At which point, these pants were headed straight for wedgie city. So the solution:

I added a strip down the side. Since they were too tight on top but OK down the leg, I made a pattern for a wedge so as not to add too much fullness to the bottom. It is the same length as my pants pattern, and 4″ on top and 2″ on the bottom (these measurements include seam allowance). I used a contrasting denim for the stripe and topstitched with denim thread. Although these pants took much longer than they would’ve if I’d just been more careful, I actually love the way they look. And this would be a great way to extend the life of any pair of pants that have grown a little too tight.

 

how to: sticker book

Remember the fantastic sticker book that my friend, Carey, made for Otis? Well, she’s been kind enough to work out some of the kinks, and together we worked on a tutorial for the new and improved sticker book (so SO much fun to craft together). It’s a really great present (Otis adored his) and as an added bonus, it’s actually a pretty easy project. Put your hands together for Carey!

materials:
cover stock for the cover of the sticker book, cut to 7.5″ x 12″
contrasting cover stock for the pocket
plain white paper, cut to 6.5″ x 11″
waxed paper
fabric to use as a press cloth (I used some extra flannel I had sitting around)
binder clip (optional)
ruler
x-acto knife
awl
bookbinder’s thread (although really thick, durable sewing thread might also work)
needle with a long, flat eye (like a tapestry or chenille needle)

to finish:
stamps
stickers

directions:
(I give you directions for a 7.5″h x 6″w book, but it’s pretty easy to adjust the measurements if you want to make changes – just cut the white paper 1″ shorter in width and length than the cover stock.)

1. Sew pocket onto cover, using long stitches when you sew. (This prevents weakening the paper by punching too many holes) Use an old needle for this job, because sharp needles are not required and the paper dulls them very quickly.

2. Layer your white paper between two sheets of wax paper. It doesn’t matter what size the wax paper is now because you’ll trim them later. Iron the pages on medium heat between press cloths. Ironing from the center towards the edges will help you get rid of bubbles that may form. I found that ironing both sides of the paper helped me get the smoothest results.

You may choose the number of pages that you’d like for your book. I used 4 sheets of paper to make an 8-page book.

3. Match up the corners of the white paper inside the sticker pages and fold them in half.

4. Stack the pages inside of each other, matching up the edges and keeping the pages as close to each other as possible. You may use binder clips to help hold them tightly together at the spine.

5. Trim all the pages at the same time so that they are straight and even. Make sure to leave at least 1/4″ of wax paper – it’s what’s holding the pages together.

6. Unfold your pages and lay them flat, making sure they stay lined up. Use an awl to punch 4 holes at the following measurements: 1″ from bottom of wax paper; 2 5/8″ from bottom; 1″ from top of wax paper; 2 5/8″ from top .

7. Fold your cover in half. I find it easier and more precise to use my awl to score the cover before folding.

8. Use the holes from your sticker pages as a guide for making holes in the spine of your cover, making sure that everything is centered.

9. Sew the cover and inside pages together, using the diagram below as a guide for how to sew. Make sure your stitches are taut, but not too tight.

The diagram above was taken from this book. His whole series on non-adhesive binding techniques is amazing.

10. When you finish sewing, tie a square knot and snip the thread, leaving an inch or so of thread so it doesn’t come unraveled.

11. Stamp the name of the gift recipient on the cover and insert some stickers.

12. Give your sticker book to some lucky kid and bask in the glow of all the accolades you will receive for your genius.

 

how to: refrigerator animal game

Whenever I pack for a trip, but especially when coming to Taiwan, I try to be as efficient as possible. After all those years of lugging suitcases full of shoes, toiletries and books, I have finally learned that less is better, especially now that I have two kids in tow. There is, however, one issue that I can’t really skirt: toys. What could we bring to occupy Otis during our three week trip that wouldn’t be too heavy or take up too much space? We were here for a long time last year, and Otis soon became painfully bored, begging to watch TV night and day. The selection of toys available here is limited and mostly plastic, or else wildly overpriced, and we were forced to make a pilgrimage to Ikea, where I knew that at least they would have some wooden blocks and trains. I packed a little better this time.

Here are some space saving things that I brought along on this trip:

• plastic animals. You can never have enough animals, in Otis’s book. In combination with the blocks and train tracks, he can spend a long time building animal habitats.
• materials to make playdough. Here is the recipe I use. I brought a small baggie full of cream of tartar and some food coloring, and the other materials are easily found everywhere. He loves playdough, and the baggie gives me an illicit thrill as it looks like I’ve smuggled something illegal into the country.
• scissors. He’s been learning how to cut paper, and it can occupy him for ages. We brought this book along, but I’m still sort of eh about the whole series. It’s usually enough for him to cut paper into “vegetables” and cook them in a skillet.
• colored pencils, crayons and sketchpads. I usually have tucked into my purse a small plastic envelope filled with a sketchpad and cray-pas. At home, they usually come out during dinner outings, and are a reliable occupier of Otis’s time. I also brought this Ed Emberley book, but we haven’t used it yet since one of the Grandma Aunts also bought a similar book.

Then here’s something that F came up with, both to occupy Otis’s time, and to give him a way to see his Baba every day, which I think is pretty clever. Man, what would you call this thing? “Refrigerator animal game” sounds so generic. Maybe a “magnetic animal habitat?” Here’s how he did it.

F used a photograph from a trip they took to the zoo and printed it onto magnetic photo paper.

Then he found full-body pictures of the whole family and printed them. Unfortunately, the only full-body picture he could find of me has me standing behind a giraffe cut-out. At least it’s keeping with the theme.

He also printed pictures of some of Otis’s favorite animals.

He carefully cut them out and here we have our set! Our refrigerator at home is stainless steel so this would not work, but happily, my parents’ refrigerator holds lots of magnets.

Otis rearranges the animals often. Sometimes, Bee is “in Mama’s belly” (as above) and sometimes she’s floating in the trees because “she can jump really high.” This easy project could be tailored to any kid’s interests and give them something to play with in the kitchen. Anybody else have any suggestions for lightweight, space-saving toys?

 

how to: fishing game

Here’s a shisomama first: a collaborative project between F and me! A little while back, F had this brilliant idea to create a fishing game for Otis. The kid adores sticks and always picks them up on our walks (he even has a bucket outside the door for them), and he often tells us he’s “fishing” with them. So hey, why not make him a game that enables him to wave long sticks around the breakable things INSIDE our house? It was fun working on a creative project together. Here’s what we did (Sorry for the poor quality of many of the pictures – it was relentlessly rainy while we were working this past weekend. Though I guess you could say it’s the perfect rainy day project.):

F bought two 3/8″ dowels (so that Otis could play his game with a friend) and used a hand saw and cut them down to about 28″ inches. Then he used his drill to make a small hole at one end.

On the other end, he used blue duct tape to create a “handle.” (You can also use bicycle handlebar tape, which comes in a variety of colors.) To make it look nice, he cut a circle out of duct tape and then notched it so that it would look streamlined when it was smoothed over the sides.

Then he cut a long strip of duct tape and wrapped the “handle” in one long piece.

To make the “fishing line” he ran a piece of embroidery floss through the hole that he drilled and tied a couple of knots to keep it in place.

At the end of the embroidery floss, he attached a small stack of 1/2″ magnets to create the “bait hook.” He covered them with duct tape as well, using the same notching method as the handle. On the top of the magnets, he slit the duct tape to the middle, to allow for a tidy look where he ran the embroidery floss. After taping the top and bottom, he trimmed a piece of duct tape to wrap around the sides as well.

For the fish, I drew a very basic fish pattern and cut it out in several different fabrics. I stitched them together, leaving a 1/8″ seam allowance and turned them inside out, with the tails open. In each fish, I inserted a 1/8″ x 1″ zinc washer (I chose the ones with the smallest holes to allow for more surface area for the magnets to adhere to).

I tacked the washers in place by stitching a french knot on both sides of the fish, where the eyes would be. (Here’s a great tutorial; I wrapped my floss around the needle 3 times rather than 2 to create a bigger “eye.)

I stuffed the fish and then stitched a decorative tail to close up the fish. You can be as plain or as fancy as you want, though I left them quite simple.

I decided to make a “fish pond” by cutting out a large circle out of my trusty Marimekko fabric (it’s about 21″ in diameter) and zigzagging it onto some nice, thick canvas. And here it is, finished!

We’ve been testing it out, and even with the stuffing, the fish can be caught quite easily by the magnet “hook.” It’s a challenging game that’ll take him a while to get the hang of, and we hope we enjoys it. We’ll be giving this to him as a birthday present, and it may sound like we’re super organized since his birthday is not until late March, but that’s only because we couldn’t get it together to give to him as a present from Santa Claus.

Hey, it just occurred to me that we’re totally this generation’s version of the granola parent – you know the parent who makes their own granola and sprouts when all the kids really want to eat is Twinkies. We’re forcing Otis to play our handmade game when probably all he wants is a Tickle Me Elmo. And unfortunately for him, I make my own granola as well.

Here’s a video of F and me, playing the game. I’m not making excuses here, but let me just remind you that I was holding the camera here:

 

how to: kids’ art table

With the purchase of our latest Craigslist find and the reorganization of my studio, Otis suddenly found himself without a place to draw. He still had his little chalkboard table, but because it was round with a hole in the center, it was not a good space for drawing with pen and paper. So we came up with our own little Ikea hack: a multi-purpose art table. For some reason, I prefer tables to easels for drawing, probably because easels make me think of paint and paint makes me think of Oh My Lord, There’s No Way Kids And Paint Mix In This House!

Here’s the list of supplies we used. Most of it was purchased at either Ikea or at the hardware store.

index curtain rod
index wall hardware
vika olegby table legs
vika persbo table top
magnetic bar (ours was black and named something different, which I can’t find on their website)

paint
unsanded grout
chalk
craft magnets
glue (I used a hot glue gun)
markers
roll of paper (we used Ikea’s Mala)

We used the Vika Persbo table top, but only because we already had it. I was using it as an ironing board, but since it didn’t fit into my new studio, I was looking for a new use for it. It’s quite large, which is good for us because kids can eat at the table when we have friends over rather than worrying about our new table. Any of the Vika table tops that are paintable can be used, and they’re pretty inexpensive. Of course you can also do this to any finished table as well.

Prime, paint and finish the table top according to these directions from Martha and crew. I gave my tabletop two good coats of paint, and chose a dark grey to go with our cabinets.

Turn the table over and install the index wall hardware, centered, along one short edge of the table, making sure that there is enough room between the hardware for your roll of paper. For our particular setup, we also had to make sure that the wall hardware didn’t get in the way of the table leg hardware. Thus I attached the wall hardware after the leg hardware, but before the leg itself. It might make more sense if you look closely at the following pictures.

Hang your roll of paper on the curtain rod and install in the hardware.

Turn the table over and install the magnetic bar, centering it on the table. Make sure it is tight enough to hold your paper down and to use as a tearing edge, but not too tight so that you can’t slide your paper through easily.

Glue craft magnets onto the caps of markers (I used a hot glue gun) so that the markers are attached to the magnetic bar, ready to be used.

Here you can see Otis using his new table (looking like he draws a lot more than he really does). He also occasionally attacks it with chalk:

Pretty simple. The most time-consuming part of the whole project was waiting for the paint to dry. Then you can hang your kids’ finished artwork up on your homasote bulletin board!

*****

edited to add: Many people have emailed to ask me about those multi-colored stools by the table.  We bought those stools, which stack in a cone shape, at a Design Within Reach sample sale.  They were rejects that nobody wanted, and ultimately, they never sold them in their stores.  They are manufactured by Soft Line, a Danish furniture company that makes a few pieces sold by DWR, but it looks like they do not currently make these stools.  Sorry not to be able to offer any good news!