Tiny Polaroid Magnets | { Ambrosia Girl } Hi there! It’s felt like forever since I’ve last blogged, and has felt like an eternity since I’ve done anything crafty and nifty. Since my morning sickness has gone into full speed (yes, we’re expecting our third this fall!) I haven’t felt like myself. I came across these DIY Pantone chip magnets on How About Orange and wanted to do something similar. You will need: Cardboard (mine was the backing of a sketchbook — much thicker than the back of a regular spiral bound notebook) or 2-3 sheets of white cardstock or poster board spray-mounted together to use as a sturdy backing to the magnetsOpaque white marker (necessary only if your cardboard is not white) Craft knife Metal straight edge/ruler Clear packing tape or frisk film. Step 1: Download a Photoshop file of the Polaroid frames below. Step 2: Print out photos onto photo paper. Step 3: Spray the back of your sheet of photos and also the cardboard with spray mount. Step 4: Trim out photos with craft knife. 487 Comments
6 Fun Science Experiments for Kids My kids love to work on science experiments so I’m always on the look out for simple kids science projects that we can do at home, using items we have around the house. These science experiments I found look like fun. Remember to provide supervision as needed and keep your kids away from harmful chemicals! Crystal Geodes Here’s one from Martha Stewart that is actually a great way to decorate eggs for Easter too. It does require some skill because you have to use empty egg shells, but the end result is just gorgeous, isn’t it? Learning about Absorption My twins came home from school once with a white carnation that had turned blue as a result of absorbing blue water. Mad Scientist Potion Not only is this great fun for kids, but it’s edible and a great addition to your Halloween recipes collection. Cell biology Here’s a fun one that the kids will enjoy eating too! Tye-Die Milk Baking Soda Explosion Baking soda experiments are usually hit around here.
Homemade Lip Balm | FIMBY You've stumbled upon one of my most popular posts. You might also enjoy let's talk lip balm. After making my own lip balm I will never buy it again. It's easy, cheap, 100% natural and good for your lips, especially this time of year. I tried to figure out the actual cost of this recipe but it wasn't worth counting up the pennies. Let's just say Burt's Bees makes a killing on lip balm! Ingredients 1/2 oz. Directions In a small pot over medium low heat melt beeswax, coconut oil, lanolin and vitamin E. This recipe makes enough for 3 - 3/4 oz tins (see photo for size) and one 1 1/2 oz jar. Notes I prefer to measure kitchen cosmetics with a scale but I included the approximate tsp. measurements for those without a scale. All ingredients can be found at a natural food store or ordered from an online store such as Mountain Rose Herbs. Some people are allergic to lanolin. I always use solid honey, that's just the kind of have.
Color Changing Milk We Were Blown Away “I just tried this with my 4 and 6 year old. We were blown away. I can't believe I have never tried this before. I will use this with my first graders this year.” – Review by Angela Francis (Posted on 7/9/10) Experiment Materials: Milk (whole or 2%) Dinner plate Food coloring (red, yellow, green, blue) Dish-washing soap (Dawn brand works well) Cotton swabs Naked Eggs & Flying Potatoes Not your ordinary book of science experiments - unforgettable experiments that make science fun! Fire Bubbles & Exploding Toothpaste Steve Spangler's latest book of unforgettable experiments that make science fun! Steve Spangler Book Set Two books featuring amazing hands-on science experiments that you can do at home! More Free Experiments Can't get enough of our hands-on science experiments and videos? Experiment Procedure Pour enough milk in the dinner plate to completely cover the bottom to the depth of about 1/4 inch. How Does It Work? Additional Information Science Fair Connection
Homemade Holidays: Crock Pot Candles Growing up in my house, we always made our own holiday gifts. We were pretty poor, and I suppose it was our only option. But it was never presented to me like that (I didn’t even know what ‘poor’ was, really, and I had a stupendously fabulous childhood full of ‘thing finding’ and ‘government cheese’. But that’s another story.) It was all about crafting our caring into something unique, something personal. My mom and I made play-doh ornaments, or baskets of baked goods, or clay coffee mugs. The first holiday season that Damian and I spent together, I was a starving college student. Last year we made all our gifts together – our attempt at canning. Anyway, there I go reminiscing. How To Make Candles In A Crock Pot All you need is some wax, some wicks + wick bases, and some candle-holders. Optional additions include color (candle dye is available at the craft store) and smell. 1) Spoon the pieces of wax into your candle holders and arrange them in the bottom of the crock pot.
Mad Scientist Potion When I was in Kindergarten, I remember our Halloween party so clearly. One of the room moms brought apple juice and dry ice for a witch’s brew and it has stayed with me to this day (I say that like I’m not 30…and if you think 30 is old, then I am sad and hope no one calls you old when you’re 30. Or maybe I do…) Even though it was just apple juice and a black plastic cauldron, we were all blown away. Fast forward 17 years to my senior year of college when I was doing a presentation on Frankenstein and I brought the same magic potion to a room full of college kids. This year, I decided the witch’s brew is fun and cute, but we should up the ante. There are lots of misconceptions about dry ice (who knows, some of them may be true in some places), but these are my experiences: -Dry ice is not outrageously expensive. -It’s not sold everywhere, but it’s not terribly hard to find, either. -It doesn’t keep for very long. -It will hurt you if you’re not careful. Serve immediately.
How to Decoupage Decoupage can sometimes be deceptive. By looking at a finished project, you would think this craft technique would be complicated, but it isn't. It is actually quite simple. If you can cut and paste, you already know most of the techniques involved. Basically, you cut out pictures; you glue the pictures onto an object; and then cover the object and pictures with a few coats of glue/decoupage medium to protect it. Go gather together your supplies and start crafting... Supplies You Need Of course, you can buy supplies and other items that are made specifically for decoupage, but you can also use supplies that you probably have lying around the house right now. Step-By-Step Instructions Follow these step-by-step instructions to make your masterpiece. Free Craft Projects If you want to try your hand at decoupage, but you aren't exactly sure what to make, try one or more of these projects. Decoupage Tips and Hints Make your next project more successful using these tips and hints.
{Play} Science Experiment for Kids: Celery Capillary Action | The Outlaw Mom® Blog - Tips for Raising Thinking Kids + Creative LivingThe Outlaw Mom® Blog – Tips for Raising Thinking Kids + Creative Living For some reason, this experiment stands out as one of my favorites from childhood. I’m not sure if it’s because I thought Celery Capillary Action was magic or that my mom had magical powers. It was probably more of the latter, which is why it was so exciting to recreate this “magical” absorption experiment for the kids – and they were no less in awe of the results! This science experiment is so easy: Stick your celery stalks in a glass of colored waterCheck in on your experiment every few hours and observe capillary action at work I let Jane set up the experiment herself. Then we observed at about 12, 18, 36, and 48 hours to see what had happened to the celery and where the water went. How the water moved up the celery stalksHow we could prove the water was moving up the celery stalksWhy the water in the glass reducedWhy the color became darker as more time passed We also noticed that the celery stalks became more fragrant and the stalks became softer as the hours went on. LEARN!
DIY Gross out: How to make a horror-tastic intestine wreath If you want your house to display an original decoration, perfect for Halloween (or anytime of the year if you and/or the kids are horror fans), try making an intestine wreath. My husband was inspired by a posting on BoingBoing which described how to use your standard "crack filler goop" to make realistic intestines rupturing from a dummy. We decided to skip the dummy and make a wreath complete with eyeballs purchased from any craft aisle. Warning: this project is definitely messy. Materials: 1 tin foil pizza pan 1 bottle of crack filler Acrylic paints and paint brushes Utility knife String or rope Optional: plastic eyeballs or something equally disgusting Optional: varnish to make the wreath slimy-looking Directions: Step 1: Cover your work area with newspaper to protect from the unavoidable mess. Step 2: Make several diagonal cuts into the pizza pan while leaving the outer edges intact. Step 3: Curve each of the triangular pieces to form a convex wreath shape. Step 7: Decorate!
Early Reading | Baby Reading | Teaching Baby to Read Introduction Babies reading? Like many people, your initial reaction may be one of skepticism. But not only is it possible to teach your baby to read, it's also easy to do (easier than if you wait until your child is five or six years old). More importantly, your baby will love it! If you've never encountered babies reading before, you probably have some questions or doubts about whether this is something you'd like to do with your baby. "I don't believe it!" If the idea of babies reading seems far-fetched to you, check out the Baby Reading Videos page. Why teach babies to read? If you think babies are too young to learn to read, or wonder why anyone would teach a baby to read, you might be interested in the article Why Teach Reading Early? Shouldn't I teach the alphabet first? Babies can learn to read whole words without knowing the letters of the alphabet. What if my baby doesn't enjoy reading? Step back, and look at what you're doing. What are the learning methods for babies?
Wipe Off Weekly Menu Board I am a meal planner. I refuse to go grocery shopping without my week’s worth of meals planned out and list made. (It’s either that or wander aimlessly around the grocery store for two hours and then make ten more trips back during the week to get things I forgot.) Once I get the groceries unloaded, I usually forget what I planned for, so I put together this super easy wipe-off menu board to keep track of what’s for dinner each night! Wipe-Off Menu Board Tutorial Supplies: Picture frame with glass front (I love these 12×12 frames I found at Ben Franklin for only $7!) 1. 2. 3. 4. Now everyone in the family knows what’s for dinner each week! I decided my frame would look better black in my kitchen, so I spray painted it black. Little Birdie Secrets are regular contributors to Make and Takes and was born from the crafting obsession of three friends living in the Pacific Northwest.