Posts Tagged ‘glue’
Egg Carton Turtle
Posted July 1, 2009
on:(Another egg carton craft. After making spiders, caterpillars, and bugs {I’ll get to those at another time}, I wanted to make something other than a bug for once. So I came up with this turtle. This is another easy craft where you can pick how you want to decorate the carton. The boys loved making them and playing with them. The first time I didn’t even want to throw out the turtles until an unfortunate smooshing accident. Remember Styrofoam egg cartons cannot be colored or painted on, so use cardboard.)
Things you need:
- Cardboard egg carton
- Scissors
- Crayons, markers, and/or paint
- Pen
- Green construction paper or green craft foam
- Scissors
- Glue
- Optional: things to glue on to decorate the shell
Cut out a cup from the egg carton.

Egg carton cup (again)
Trace four feet, using a dime, on the green construction paper. Make a “U” shade using the dime for the head, and make an obelisk shape for the tail.

The body parts
Cut out the shapes. Have the child draw eyes on the head. Have the child decorate the shell.

So I used the photo. We made them on the same day.
Have the child glue on the feet on each corner of the cup.

Adding the feet
Then glue the head between two feet, and glue the tail on the opposite end of the head.

The turtle brothers

One of the first turtles
Easy Egg Carton Bug
Posted June 30, 2009
on:(Another favorite craft medium of mine is the egg carton. You can make lots of things with it. You can paint them, color them, glue them. But you have to get the cardboard kind because you can’t do anything with the Styrofoam kind. I like to let the boys’ imagination run wild sometimes, so I let them make any kind of “bug” they wanted. We have painted our bugs in the past, but I let them use markers and then dive into my goody box of randomness. Evan chose to use little tiles from a stepping stone kit.)
Things you need:
- Cardboard egg carton
- Scissors
- Markers, crayons, and/or paint
- Googly eyes
- glue
- Any decoration you want to use (shells, buttons, marbles, noodles, etc)
Cut a cup from the egg carton.

Egg carton cups
Have the child color the egg carton cup.

Coloring the master piece
With the opening down, have the child glue the eyes on the carton.

It has eyes!
Have the child glue on extra decorations.

Evan's is the right one, the "lady bug." Sean's is the left, going for minimalism
A Better Pompom Frog
Posted June 29, 2009
on:(After the sad misery of a failed project, I worked out a better frog. It took me a few days, but I came up with a better idea. The boys love these frogs just as much as the Ugliest Frogs in the World. Maybe more because the Ugliest Frogs in the World have taken a vacation, trying to find out where everything went totally wrong. This was an easy craft, and depending on the gluing skills, it could be relatively mess-free.)
Things you need:
- 2 in green pompom
- 2 small green pompoms
- 2 googly eyes
- Green craft foam
- Glue (school or craft)
- A pen
- Scissors
Glue a googly eye on each of the small green pompoms. Allow them to dry.

Who's looking at you, kid?
Cut out a circle out of the green foam to make a lily pad. I used the top of the juice can to make my circle. Cut out a triangle out of the circle.

The lily pads
Have the child glue the 2in green pompom. Have the child glue the frog eyes to the top of the 2in pompom.

I can see! I can see!

Sitting like two frogs on a log
The Ugliest Frog in the World
Posted June 29, 2009
on:(The boys loved them. They loved making them. They loved playing with them. I found them to be the ugliest frogs in the world, which is why I give this craft thumbs down. You know what you get when you make eyes by using a small pompom and then glue a mini pompom on top? You get what looks like white breasts with green nipples. I secretly threw these away and came up with my own version of the craft, which I’ll post on the next post. If you can figure out a better looking frog, let me know.)
Things you need:
- 3in green pompom
- 2in green pompom
- 2 small white pompoms
- 2 green or black mini pompoms
- Green craft foam
- Glue (school or craft)
- Scissors
Cut out of the green foam two frog feet. I used a quarter to trace around and added three triangles to the top.

I know. They're ugly feet.
Have the child glue the 3in pompom to the feet. Have the child glue the 2in pompom to the first one, making the body and head. On the top of the head, have the child glue the white pompoms to make eyes.

Gluing the eyes
Have the child glue the mini pompoms to the small white ones.

The Ugliest Frog in the World. (I'm a freak of crafting!)
Ladybug, ladybug
Posted June 23, 2009
on:(I always liked pompom animals. They seem so much fun, so cute. Evan likes carrying them around and naming them. So I decided we needed to make lady bug ones. This was an easy, simple craft that both boys enjoyed, which turned out to have no mess.)
Things you need:
- Red 1 in pompom (or 2in)
- Black mini pompoms
- Black marker
- Googly eyes
- Glue
Have the child make black dots on the red pompom. The child might have to swirl around the marker to make a good size dot.

Making spots
Glue on the eyes.

He can see!
Then glue the mini pompoms on the top to make antennas.

Now he is a true bug.
Evan decided he needed to decorate his bug more, so he added a mini red pompom for an earing.

The ladybugs
Magnet Artwork
Posted June 17, 2009
on:(I have read several places about taking those magnet business cards and doing something with them, like gluing pictures on them. I decided on art work for the boys to do. As my b0ys love coloring and stickering, they enjoyed doing this.)
Things you need:
- Business magnets
- Craft foam or construction paper
- Markers, stickers, anything else you want to decorate with
- Scissors
- Black marker
- Glue (craft or hot)
Trace the business magnets on the craft foam or construction paper with the black marker.

Tracing the magnets
Have the child decorate the shape. Cut the shape out.

The artwork
Glue to the magnet.

The magnets
(I have also heard of moms who make a scan of the child’s artwork and print it in business card size. This would work for the magnets too.)
Craft Foam Picture Frame
Posted June 16, 2009
on:- In: Gift Crafts
- 1 Comment
(I was trying to find a twist on the picture frame idea because grandparents and parents just love pictures. The boys really liked decorating the frames. Evan had a unique twist on the stickers as he used Halloween spiders.)
Things you need:
- Craft foam
- Scissors
- Pen
- Markers, stickers, anything you want to decorate with
- Glue (craft or hot)
- Picture
- Magnets
Trace out a square for the picture on the craft foam. Cut out the square. (I left an inch and a half around the picture for the frame.)

naked picture frames
Have the child decorate the craft foam.

The frame, Evan, decorate the frame.

Decorate the frame. Decorate the paper.
Glue the picture in the frame. Glue magnets on the back of the frame. (I picked up decorative magnets for a buck at Michael’s.)

The back of the picture frame

Decorated frames
Lilypad Boats
Posted June 12, 2009
on:( I got this idea at this website, but I decided not to float tea candles on them. I thought we could float frogs, which worked out well. The boys loved them! I made a few of them testing out with different glues. Don’t use school glue, unless it’s a one time use. Craft glue and hot glue worked well. Craft glue gets a little soggy, but it will re-adhere when dried.)
Things you need:
- 2 sheets Green craft foam
- A CD
- Scissors
- A pen
- Hot glue gun with glue or craft glue
- A toy to sail the boat, preferably a frog
Trace the CD on both pieces of craft foam.

Tracing circles
Cut out the circles. Cut out a triangle out of the circles (best to do it with one circle on top of the other), forming the lily pad.

Does it look like a lilypad yet?
Glue the lily pads together. Allow the glue to dry.

It's time to sail.
Take the lily pads out to the pool or bath.

So the green one is the life guard?
Gift Bags
Posted May 25, 2009
on:- In: Easy Crafts | Gift Crafts
- 2 Comments
(Sometimes you just want to spruce up that gift bag, and sometimes you need an activity for a party. I first did these with elementary school children at a Halloween party with all kinds of art supplies. Then we did them at Sean’s birthday party with two three-year-olds and a two-year-old. Every child I have done this with has enjoyed it.)
Things you need:
- Plain gift bags (any color)
- Crayons, markers, stickers, glitter, glue, what ever you want to decorate with
Give a bag to the child. Let the child decorate it. (Totally easy and potentially mess free.)

Can you figure out who did what?

Another example
Rock Paper Holders
Posted May 20, 2009
on:(Did I mention we picked up a lot of rocks on our nature walk? We decided to make some paper weights. We made some a few months ago for their grandparents. We glued on some of those half-marbles. This time Sean decided on shells from a shell lei. This is an easy project for 12 month old on up.)
Things you need:
- Rocks
- Smock
- Paint or markers
- Glue
- Glitter (optional)
- Shells, buttons, plastic gems, beads, whatever you like to add
Go on a rock hunt with the kids. Wash and dry the rocks. Have the child decorate the rock.

Painting and glittering a rock

Coloring a rock with markers
Let the rock dry. Glue on the little knick knacks.

Rock with shells