Arts & Crafts

Bubble Making

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Not only do kids of all ages love to blow bubbles there are many activities they can play
that revolve around bubbles too. And one of the activities is to make the actual bubble
solution. If you decide to skip this step and use store-bought bubbles that is fine too.

Everyone knows that to make your own bubble solution you mix dish detergent and water
but here is a recipe that will yield bigger and stronger bubbles:

  • ½ cup of dish soap
  • 1 ½ cups of water
  • 2 teaspoons of sugar


Mix it up in a large container and you are done.

If there are quite a few kids playing, make a large batch of the solution and fill up a kiddie pool with it. No spilling or waiting turns to use the bubble solution.

If you are making your own bubble solution, you will also need to find or make bubble wands too. Here are some ideas to use items around the house that kids will get a kick out of:

* A (clean) flyswatter
* Straws
* Turkey baster
* Slotted spoon
* Funnel
* Use the lid to a yogurt or margarine container with a hole cut in the middle
* A piece of string tied together into a loop

Have a bubble blowing contest, see who can blow the biggest bubble or see whose bubble lasts the longest. Have a counting contest, challenge the kids to see who can blow the most bubbles in a predetermined time frame. Or shout out a number and see who can blow that many bubbles at once, no more or less.

And just let them have fun, kids love to have bubbles blown for them and then chase them down and try to pop them all. You be the bubble blower and send them running to burst all of your bubbles.

Sun Art

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This is a craft where the sun will do most of the work. You will need to find the sunniest
spot in your house or yard and it will take some time – at least three hours of full
sunlight. You will need brightly colored construction paper and various shaped objects.

Lay the piece of paper in the sunny location first and then place the objects on the page.
Be sure to leave space around each object, they should not be touching. Items such as
leaves, coins, utensils, or anything else with an interesting shape can be used. Then you
have to wait, but it will be worth it.

After a period of time, the sun will fade the paper that is not covered by the objects that
were place on it. When you take the shapes off you will have made a picture with the
sun. To make it more interesting you can use different shapes or objects to create a
picture or a scene instead of only trying to get shapes. Good materials to use for making
a sun picture are different shapes of pasta, string, and other household items such as
cotton swabs and cotton balls.

It is best to use a bright colored piece of paper, or this craft will not work properly. The
quality of paper used should not be poster board. The poster board or similar paper will
still fade but it will take longer (maybe more than one day in the sun) to get the desired
result.

Be careful with the finished artwork. If you hang them up in a sunny spot in the house,
the sun may continue to work on the paper and fade away the hard work that was put into
the craft. The best way to preserve it is to tuck it away in a scrapbook or art folder.

Making a Kite

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Flying a kite is good exercise and a lot of fun (even if you don’t get the kite up in the air).
Instead of going out and buying a kite, make one instead. You will need fabric (or very
strong paper), strong glue, two wooden dowels and string.

To begin, lay the two dowels in a cross position and use some of the string to lash the
sticks together into that position. You will do this by weaving the string in and out of the
dowels. Once the dowels are secure, put glue on the string and leave it to dry. Once this
is done you should have a strong frame for your kite.

The next step is to create a frame around your dowels using the string. To make sure the
string does not slip, cut a small notch at the end of each dowel. Starting at one end, wrap
the string around the dowel where the notch is and then bring the string to the next dowel
while keeping the string taut wrap it around the next dowel. Continue until string is
connecting all four dowels. Again, put dabs of glue on the string where it meets the
dowels and leave to dry.

Once your completed frame is dry, lay your fabric on the kite frame and cut it with an
extra one inch on all sides to wrap around the frame. Use glue to secure the fabric
around the kite frame.

The last step is to attach the string to the kite. You will need to make what is called a
bridle by attaching the string to the kite frame in two locations (they should be on
opposite sides) in a loop formation. Then attach the string you are going to use to fly the
kite to the bridle.

Now Go Fly a Kite

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