Beginning Scrapbooking for Children

Scrapbooking may be something that you are already into. What a fabulous way to spend time with your child(ren)... while helping them learn the art of scrapbooking. If you are just exploring the idea of scrapbooking, what better way to do that than exploring it with your children!

Scrapbooking has been around for ages, but it has recently experienced a surge in popularity. People from all walks of life have discovered the joys of creating albums to showcase their treasured photos and keepsakes. But with all the elaborate scrapbooking techniques and myriad embellishments available, getting started can be intimidating.

The truth is, anyone that can use scissors and glue can scrapbook. And you don't have to spend ridiculous amounts of money to create attractive pages. With some basic supplies and a little imagination, you can create lovely scrapbooks that will be adored for years to come.

What You Need

You can get started scrapbooking on a small budget. Here are the things you'll need.

• An album - Scrapbooking albums come in all shapes and sizes. The most popular are 8 1/2" x 11" and 12" x 12". They can be found at most craft supply stores if you don't have a scrapbooking supply store nearby.
• Paper - Scrapbooking paper can be found in a variety of solid colors and patterns. This will be the basis for each page. You may also use scrapbooking paper for journaling and to create your own photo mats and embellishments.
• Cutting tools - You can easily get by with just a good pair of scissors. But an Exacto knife might make photo cropping easier. And if you're no good at cutting straight lines, you might want to invest in a paper cutter.
• Adhesives - There are all sorts of adhesives one could use for scrapbooking. Glue sticks and double-sided tape are quite popular. Some scrapbookers also use rubber cement or glue dots for certain applications. But when you're getting started, just use what you're most comfortable with.
• Photos - Beginning scrapbookers often start out with old photos that they've accumulated over the years. This makes for a nice, nostalgic album. Of course you can also take new pictures for your scrapbook. A digital camera and photo printer are two modern conveniences that make scrapbooking easier, but they are not necessities. Photos taken by a film camera work just as well.

When purchasing scrapbooking supplies, it's important to make sure they are acid-free. This will keep them from harming your priceless photos.

Basic Techniques

You don't have to know a lot about scrapbooking techniques to create an attractive album. Just a few simple techniques will suffice.

One of the first things many scrapbookers learn is how to mat photos. This can be accomplished by simply cutting a square or rectangle that is about a half inch longer and wider than the photo you want to mat. Then glue the photo to the center. To make a photo really stand out, double mat it by cutting out a shape a half inch longer and wider than the first mat, and center the matted photo on it.

Journaling gives scrapbook pages a nice personal touch. Simply write a note about the photos on a page, telling what was happening or sharing your thoughts on the subject. Use paper that coordinates with the background, and be sure to write with an acid-free pen.

Adding borders to your pages gives them a finished look. You can make them out of strips of coordinating scrapbook paper. You don't have to border all four sides. A strip along the top, side or bottom will do. For easy embellishing, use some stickers.

There's no need to throw in the towel if you don't have the time, money or know-how to create elaborate scrapbooks. Just start off simple, and learn new techniques as you go. The most important thing to remember is to enjoy this time with your child(ren)!

Patriotic Hot air Balloon Decoration

How much fun would it be to have a hot air balloon in your backyard?! Well, maybe just a hot air balloon decoration on your table then... This fun craft will raise everyone's spirits for the Fourth of July.

On the Fourth of July, we often look to the sky to watch fireworks in all shapes, sizes and colors. But in some locations, there’s more to see up above. Hot air balloons are festive and fun reminders of the American holiday.

A patriotic hot air balloon decoration in red, white and blue makes a wonderful Independence Day centerpiece.

What You will Need

• Large, white, high quality latex balloon filled with helium
• Large balloon net*
• Small wicker laundry-type basket with two handles
• Red, white and blue crepe paper
• Basket filler in red, white and blue
• Candy or goodie bags

What To Do With It

1. Drape the balloon net over the helium-filled balloon.
2. Divide the ribbons from the balloon net into two equal sets.
3. Tie one half of the ribbons to one of the basket handles. Tie the other half to the other basket handle.
4. Decorate the basket with red, white and blue crepe paper. Wrap it around the basket and secure with clear tape, and/or tie streamers to the handles for decoration.
5. Fill the basket with the patriotic basket filler. Add candy or goody bags, and place in the middle of the table as a centerpiece.

If you prefer, you could add real or silk flowers to the basket instead of candy or goody bags for a unique floral centerpiece. You can also adapt the project to use as a gift holder for birthdays or other holidays by using different colors of crepe and basket filler.


*Balloon nets may be available from a local party supply store or florist. If you can’t find any for sale, here’s how to make one.

Supplies

• 150 feet of decorative ribbon in red, white, and/or blue
• Scissors

Instructions

1. Cut strips of ribbon long enough to drape over the balloon and tie to the basket, making sure they will keep the balloon at the desired height. Add a few extra inches for tying and to leave room for error.
2. Lay a strip of ribbon flat diagonally. Lay another strip parallel to the first one, about an inch away. Keep laying down strips of ribbon until you have enough to cover the top of the balloon. If using two or more colors, alternate them in a set pattern.
3. Lay a strip of ribbon across the first strip, going diagonally in the opposite direction. Repeat until you have a square of a fishnet pattern large enough to cover the top of the balloon, with enough ribbon hanging to keep the balloon as far as you desire above the basket.
4. Tie knots in the ribbon at the corners to secure the pattern.

Star Studded Door Hanger

This door hanger craft could be altered for any holiday or season, but why not start by trying out this one for the Fourth of July! Spruce up your house with some red, white, and blue, and get ready to celebrate our country's birthday in colorful style!

Independence Day isn’t one of those holidays when most of us go all out with decorations. But why shouldn’t it be? Decking your home out in red, white and blue is lots of fun, and it’s a great way to show your patriotism. This simple yet lovely door hanger is a great project to start with, and it’s so simple that even young children can participate.

Supplies Needed

• 2 small paper plates
• Star-shaped sponge or foam stamp
• Acrylic paint in red or blue
• Red, blue and gold glitter glue
• Shiny red and blue garland
• Craft glue
• White yarn
• Scissors

Directions

1. Cut a piece of yarn approximately a foot long.
2. Cut garland into several pieces, each about 16 inches in length. Five to eight pieces should suffice.
3. Put a thin layer of glue just inside the edge of the top side of one of the paper plates, going all the way around. Place the other plate on top face down, and press the edges together.
4. Place one end of the yarn between the two plates. Place the other end between the plates an inch or two away from the first end to create a hanger.
5. Directly opposite from the middle of the yarn hanger, place the end of each piece of garland between the plates. Press the edges together all the way around to reinforce, and let dry completely.
6. Put a small amount of the acrylic paint in another paper plate or on a piece of newspaper. Dip the star stamp into the paint, and then press the stamp gently into the center of the plate. Remove carefully to avoid smudging.
7. Trace around the star with a contrasting color of glitter glue. Use another color to create a border around the hanger. You could make a solid line or do a zigzag or curlicue pattern. Or, if you prefer, make a border in red and another border inside of it in blue.
8. Use the glitter glue or paint to add a message to your door hanger. “Welcome” and “Happy Independence Day” are two phrases you could use.
9. If desired, wrap the garland tightly around a pencil in a spiral, then let go to make it curl. Let paint and glitter glue dry completely before hanging.

This simple yet festive door hanger is a great way to welcome guests and celebrate the Fourth of July. It also makes a great family project. Each of the kids could make one for his or her bedroom door. And if you don’t have paint, glitter glue and garland on hand, markers and crepe paper can be used instead.

Create an Independence Day T-Shirt

Treat yourself and your family to fabulous shirts to wear for the Fourth of July this year! Children will love to get involved in creating their own designs for their shirts, and designing them for everyone else too! What could be more fun than for the whole family to be sporting original patriotic shirts at the festivities this year, whether it is the town parade, the family barbecue, or the evening fireworks at the park!


T-shirt painting is a craft that almost anyone can do, and it’s lots of fun. So if you’re lacking Independence Day apparel, why not get out the fabric paint and make yourself a patriotic tee? Or better yet, get the family together and let everyone make their own!


There are many ways you could design your Independence Day t-shirt. In general, you’ll need a plain white t-shirt, a t-shirt board or piece of stiff cardboard to place inside the shirt, newspapers, fabric paint and a paintbrush. Before you begin, wash the shirt and do not use fabric softener. Dry and stretch the shirt onto the board to keep it straight and prevent paint from soaking through to the other side.

Fireworks Design Instructions

To make a fireworks t-shirt, use fabric paint in a squeeze bottle. For each firework design, draw a horizontal line in the color of your choice with a break in the middle (in other words, two short lines of the same length side by side). Then make a vertical line that intersects with the horizontal one, again with a break in the middle. This will look like a plus sign with the middle removed. Use another color to make an X in the same manner, but make the lines slightly shorter. Add some dots at the end of each line to finish.

Stars and Stripes Design

Extra Supplies Needed

• Masking tape
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Star-shaped sponge or foam stamp
• Rectangular sponge or foam stamp
• Plastic plate, bowl or lid

Directions

1. Stick a strip of masking tape across the shirt from seam to seam, starting just below the neck opening. Place another strip below that one, overlapping slightly. Repeat until you have taped off a stripe approximately 1 ¾ inches wide.
2. Measure 1 ¾ inches below the stripe you made, and make a light mark with the pencil. Make another stripe just like the first one.
3. Continue placing stripes of tape 1 ¾ inches apart all the way to the bottom of the shirt.
4. Put some red paint in a plastic plate, bowl or lid. Dip the rectangular sponge into the paint, and dab it onto the areas that are not taped off. When finished, let the paint dry completely.
5. Put some blue paint into a plastic plate, bowl or lid. Dip the star-shaped sponge into the paint, and press it carefully onto the shirt anywhere you like. Pull straight up when removing to avoid smudging.
6. Continue adding stars to the shirt as you like. When finished, let dry.  Remove the masking tape.

If you’re particularly artistic, you could try your hand at a Statue of Liberty t-shirt. If you’d rather not paint, try using markers! For a different twist, make a tie-dyed Fourth of July shirt with red and blue dye. For your children's safety you may want to try your hand at creating your tie-dye with food coloring or Kool-Aid! Use your imagination and create a patriotic tee that’s as individual as you are!

Patrotic Necklace

This is a perfect craft for this time of the year! Your child(ren) will love being able to wear jewelry that they had a hand in designing and crafting.


Independence Day is a wonderful time to show your patriotism. In the weeks before the holiday, you can find red, white and blue t-shirts, hats and jewelry in almost any store. But it’s also easy to make your own patriotic clothing and accessories. This patriotic necklace is easy and inexpensive to make, and it’s sure to be quite the conversation piece.

What You Need

• 1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• ½ tbsp. water
• ½ tbsp. salt
• Toothpick
• Acrylic paint
• Paintbrush
• Nylon cord or strong fishing line in desired length, plus about 8 inches (for an 18-inch necklace, the cord should be about 26 inches long)
• Beading needle
• Small red, white and blue beads
• Clasp
• Scissors

Directions

1. Mix flour, salt and water until dough forms.


2. Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.


3. Model dough into a star shape for the pendant. Make it at least ¼ inch thick. You should have some extra dough when you’re done.


4. Poke the toothpick through the star about ¼ inch from the top, going from side to side so that it will face forward when placed on the necklace.


5. Bake the pendant for 2 to 2 ½ hours. Let cool completely.


6. Paint the pendant with acrylic paint. You could make it solid red, blue or gold, or paint designs on it. Let dry completely.


7. Thread the nylon cord onto the beading needle. String beads onto the cord in the pattern of your choice. Keep stringing beads until the necklace is half done.


8. Add your finished pendant to the necklace. Then continue beading in the same pattern until you’ve added enough beads to make a necklace in the desired length. Make sure you have several inches of cord left on each side so that you can add the clasp.


9. Hold the necklace up to make sure the pendant is centered correctly. If it isn’t, remove beads from one side and add them to the other until it is centered.


10. Tie the eye of the clasp onto one end of the necklace, getting it as close as possible to the last bead. Knot securely, and cut off the excess cord. Tie the hook of the clasp onto the other end, knot and trim.


Want a matching bracelet? You can make one in no time! Just cut a piece of nylon cord about 16 inches long, and string beads in the same pattern you used for the necklace. Make the beaded portion about 7 ½ to 8 inches long. Then add a clasp the same way you did with the necklace, and trim the ends. Now you have a matching set of patriotic jewelry!

This craft could be easily adapted for toddlers by using just elastic cord and beads!

July 4th Themed Utensil Holder and Matching Napkin

Gatherings of family and friends is quite common for the Fourth of July. As you talk about the importance of the holiday with your child(ren), why not enjoy preparing a craft with them that can be enjoyed by all at your gathering!


Independence Day is associated with many things. Most importantly, it’s the day the Declaration of Independence was signed. It’s also a day full of fun and festivities, including parades and fireworks shows. And for many Americans, it’s a time for a picnic or barbeque with family and friends.


An occasion such as the Fourth of July deserves some special table décor. This napkin and utensil holder has a patriotic motif that everyone is sure to love, and provides an attractive and convenient way to store your knives, forks, spoons and napkins.


Supplies Needed

• 4 short cardboard tubes (about the size of bathroom tissue rolls, or slightly longer; but make sure they’re not so long that it will be difficult to remove plastic utensils from them)
• Construction paper in red, white, blue and black
• Blue and gold chenille stems
• 5 ½ inch square of corrugated cardboard
• 4 plastic milk jug lids
• Craft glue or glue stick
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun
• Pencil

Instructions

1. Cut four strips of white construction paper wide enough to cover 2/3 of a cardboard tube and long enough to wrap around it. Cut four strips of blue construction paper wide enough to cover 1/3 of a cardboard tube and wrap around it.
2. Use a thin layer of craft glue or a glue stick to cover each tube with a strip of white construction paper, starting at the bottom. Then glue a strip of blue construction paper starting at the top.
3. Draw a star on white construction paper and cut out. Use the star to trace and cut eleven more white stars.
4. Glue three stars onto the blue section of each roll, spacing them equally.
5. Cut strips of red construction paper 2/3 as long as the cardboard rolls. Glue them lengthwise onto the white portion of each roll, spacing equally to create red and white stripes.
6. Cut out a 5 ½ inch square of black construction paper. Glue it onto the cardboard square.
7. Using the hot glue gun, glue a plastic milk jug lid into the bottom of each tube (the side with stripes) with the flat end to the outside.
8. Arrange the tubes on the cardboard two by two, with the ends containing the lids on the cardboard base. Leave an inch or so in between the rows for napkins. Glue the tubes down. Let dry.
9. Using the hot glue gun, glue a piece of blue chenille stem around the top of each tube. Glue gold chenille stems around the edges of the base.

As you lay out your decorations for the Fourth of July, don't forget to add this to your table. Place utensils in each tube, and stand napkins up in the middle for a beautiful and useful Fourth of July centerpiece.

Calling Guest Crafters!

I would like to offer any crafters out there a chance to become guest crafters on this blog. Anyone is welcome to do so. Please leave a comment, and I will contact you to discuss it further.

Making Musical Instruments From Everyday Objects

Remember how much fun it was to play instruments when you were younger? You might remember gathering with your friends to create a band, and performing for family members.

It is amazing how many simple musical instruments can be made with objects from around our houses or in the recycling bin. I wrote Making Musical Instruments From Everyday Objects over on HubPages to give you a few ideas to start you off. Head over there to check it out and see what else I've been writing about.

I have even had one of my hubs nominated to the prestigious HubNugget Wannabe status!
Voting remains open through June 9, 2009.

Make Sidewalk Chalk In Your Labratory

Making sidewalk chalk in a laboratory is easy to believe, but what if the laboratory is your kitchen?! Check out this easy way to make your own sidewalk chalk, and create your own colors! This project is fun to do, and then the fun continues when you take your chalk out to color with it!

My children loved this project when they were younger. My teenager was on the search for the perfect color for the longest time.

Supplies Needed:

• Toilet Paper Tube OR a paper Towel Tube cut in half
• Aluminum Foil OR Wax Paper
• 1/2 Cup Water
• Food Coloring
• 1 Cup Plaster of Paris

Directions:

1. Seal off one end of your paper tube with a piece of aluminum foil or wax paper.
2. In a medium bowl, mix the food color into the water. Don't be stingy with the coloring... you need a lot to have a vibrant result.
3. Stand your toilet paper tube on a piece of aluminum foil or wax paper. This makes it easier to clean up by containing any spills or leaks. 
4. Pour the mixture into the tube(s) you have set up.
5. When firm, peel off the paper tube. Let the exposed stick of chalk dry overnight. If you let the chalk dry overnight with the paper on, you will spend a good amount of time and effort trying to scrape it off.

Plaster of Paris is easy to find online or at art & craft supply stores. Do NOT put any excess down the drain when cleaning up. Scrape as much as possible into the garbage, as it will solidify in the drain pipes!

Consider using the entire bottle of food coloring in each tube for vibrant colors that last and last!

Keep your chalk in a sealed container between uses.

Don't forget to mix food coloring colors to get a new color or shade.