‘Crafts’ Articles at Sweetnicks

Craft Time: Chinese New Year City Skyline

January 26, 2017 · Craft Ideas, Narrative

A super simple and inexpensive craft to celebrate Chinese New Year.

A few weeks ago, I taught a kids’ workshop that focused on celebrating Chinese New Year, which kicks off this weekend. We made two crafts (this being one of them), and the Asian Quinoa Salad recipe that I shared recently. I love this craft because it’s so simple to make, uses (mostly) items you have around the house already, and it makes for a beautiful piece of art.

I can’t take all the credit for it, as I stumbled on it while falling down the deep rabbit hole of Pinterest, but love how it turned out, and the kids loved it as well. You can, of course, change up how YOU make this craft, putting your own unique twist on it as I did, but however you make it, you can’t go wrong with it. Easy + forgiving = a crowd pleaser and that’s pretty much a recipe for success.

Here’s what you’ll need:
– background paper (I love the one I used; it’s not exactly patterned, but definitely not solid, so it gave it a look of being textured)
– wine corks
– Chinese newspaper (of course you can use a “regular” newspaper, but when we’re celebrating Chinese New Year, it seemed more appropriate to use a Chinese newspaper and I got them for free at a local Asian grocery store)
– paint
– black Sharpie
– glue stick
– scissors

Cut the strips of newspaper for the city skyscrapers. I suggested that the kids alternate some of the print between ones that were more straight text with ones that had more of the bold, blacker backgrounds. I also told them to feel free to use some of the newspaper print that had pictures on them because it would kind of look like billboards. Make them varying heights on glue on your background sheet from left to right. Although it isn’t reflected in my sample above, I went back with a black Sharpie and drew some rows of black squares to mimic windows on some of the skyscrapers.

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Crafts: Scrabble Tiles + Magnets = Alphabet Magnets

August 30, 2011 · Craft Ideas, Narrative

Remember that game in school where the teacher would give you a big word and you had to see how many other words you could make out of it? That was always one of my favorite games in between tests and lessons, and I was really good at it. Still am. Not that I get a chance to practice that very often, mind you. We had a contest in 8th grade to see how many words we could make out of the word Washington. I won. The prize was a Snickers bar. The only reason I remember this is because I forgot my lunch that day, and without Washington and that Snickers bar, it would have been a very long day.

For as long as I can remember, we’ve always had alphabet letters on our fridge. When Nick was much younger, we had those Leap Frog sets where it will say the letter and sound it out and give example words, and then you could use the letters on the refrigerator to spell out words. Love Leap Frog! The Ex and I would make words and leave messages for each other. Now, you know, since we’re divorced, we kinda don’t do stuff like that. But I still do it all the time with the kids. And now Mystic.

The Leap Frog set long gone, we now have this weird collection of random wooden letter magnets that I got from a garage sale a few years ago. It wasn’t a full set at the time and with two moves since then, it has become even less full. So the challenge is even more fun. How many words can you make out of some crazy assortment of mismatched letters and not enough vowels? Mystic holds the record with six words.

I was itching to buy a new set of letters so we could all play along and spell out way more than Siam, and then I thought I would make some. In fact, I bought a package of wooden discs and some transfer letters and was just about to get started on it this weekend, but then inspiration struck. Scrabble tiles!

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Craft Time: Thanksgiving Day Banner

November 24, 2009 · Narrative

Usually when Nick finishes his homework after school, he wanders into my office, asking me to find him a craft online to work on. He hasn’t completely grasped the concept that crafting sometimes take a little bit of preplanning … to find the craft, to make sure we have the right supplies. It’s not usually a spur of the moment thing.

Imagine his surprise the other day when he asked about doing a craft, and I was ready for him! As much as I love the holidays, every last one of them, and the associated decorating that comes along with them, we don’t have very much in the way for Thanksgiving. I wanted to change that. Enter the Thanksgiving banner.

The craft was very simple to make, and I love that it’s something that we can pack up and use again and again, year after year. I did the cutting, and Nick was responsible for the gluing, taping, hole punching and ribbon stringing. We made a great team.

I used foam sheets in a deep chocolate brown color for the base of each letter. They run about 30 cents a sheet, and I was able to get several pieces from each sheet. For the layers, I used sheets of scrapbooking paper, choosing different colors and patterns, but all keeping within the warm colors of the Autumn palate. On top of the patterned paper went a piece of plain ivory, again using scrapbook paper. For the letters, I chose a font in Microsoft Word and found the size I wanted (175). Once printed, I cut out all the letters to layer on top of the ivory piece of paper.

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Memorial Day Crafts: Fireworks Flowers

May 19, 2009 · Narrative

Oftentimes, when Nick is done with his homework in the afternoon, he wants to do a craft. Whether it’s painting, coloring or creating, he is definitely artistic, something he gets from his grandmother. It sure as heck doesn’t come from me.

Usually he ask me to do a search on the computer to find him something to make, but without a well-built arsenal of craft supplies, I don’t always have on hand what he needs for the craft he chooses. I have been working on stockpiling some basic craft supplies though, and now have a few crafts at the ready for when inspiration strikes; so the other day when he asked, I was totally ready.

With the Memorial Day weekend looming, and plans to head down the shore underway, when I saw these fireworks flowers, I knew they would be perfect. Simple to make, supplies on hand and a perfect way to celebrate the patriotic holiday. He did such a fantastic job, I know he can’t wait to see them on the dinner table this weekend … neither can I!

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