Craft: Rainbow Rice

Make your own rainbow 

My daughter and I saw a beautiful rainbow the other day after a rainstorm. But my camera was not working { user error, so typical}. 

So this will have to do...

Homemade Rainbow Rice

Ingredients:

- 10 pound bag of rice 

- water
- ziplock bags
- watercolor paint {We like this liquid kind}


Directions:
Take your 10 pound bag of rice and separate it into 10 ziplock bags evenly. In each bag put different paint colors as desired (we did a rainbow). Put in some watercolor paint. 
Shake the bag until the color is absorbed onto the rice (we loved this part!).
Let the rice dry overnight. And VOILA!

I love your comments! Please share your ideas!

CRAFT: Bubble Wrap Printing

Don't you just love bubble wrap?

I do. And when I saw this craft idea I could not resist trying it out in our classes. We did some color mixing experiments with the kids so they can start to comprehend how the colors blend! Red + Blue = Purple! Awesome! 

You can do this with even the youngest toddler. We did it with our 15 month - 2 year old class. They got it. So go for it....

Set out large brushes or rollers with brightly colored paint.

Tape bubble wrap to your table cover. Newspaper or a reusable, coated tablecloth work well.

Paint on the bubble wrap until you feel happy.

Press a sheet of paper on top of the paint and rub lightly. Peel off the paper to reveal your print.

Voila!

{ yeah to Clementine Art for having such awesome ideas...and hey! She is another amazingly creative and savvy gal! these are her pics/idea }




Little Birdie Art, Greenwich CT ~ a children's studio (203-869-0925 OR LittleBirdieArt.com)


In Art,

Enjoy your Easter

My friends, what are you doing this weekend? I hope you'll be with family and loved ones. The sun has finally arrived here in Connecticut and I'd like to go for a walk at the beach, carry out our Easter Egg hunt family tradition, and enjoy every minute with my family (and maybe some yummy Easter candy too)!

Cheers to you for a relaxing weekend.

And here is an easy Easter Egg craft to try: 

{ marble eggs are easy to make! photo www.marthastewart.com } 

MARBLE LOOK
Buy the cheap grocery store egg dyeing kit with the cups and dye

1. Mix all the cups of dye
2. Dye all of the eggs one color
3. THEN! Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to all of the color cups
4. Then go back in and dye those same eggs in a different colors
VOILA - Marble eggs

Craft: Homemade Finger Paint

Here is a good one for you to try out! Let me know how you like it!
Homemade Finger Paint

1/2 cup flour
2 cups water
1 tablespoon glycerine
2 teaspoon lemon extract for preservative
small screw-top jars (recycle baby food jars anyone!)
Wilton food coloring paste

1. In a saucepan, mix flour with a 1/2 cup of water to form a paste.
2. Add the rest of the water and cook over low heat until thick and clear, stirring constantly.
3. Let cool. Add glycerine and lemon extract. If mixture is too thick and does not spread easily, add a little more water. Divide and pour into smal, screw-top jars (baby jars are great for this). Add food coloring to tint.
Store in airtight containers. Refrigerate for longer shelf life.


Another suggestion...try adding food coloring to yogurt and you can finger paint like this too. Nom, nom, nom!

{ recipe and picture from Busy Little Elf blog ~ thanx } 

In art,

Craft: Make Your Own Paste Recipe

When toddlers first experiment with paste I find they are more interested in getting their hands in it to feel it. So instead of putting some in front of them to stick together, just make a batch and let them play with it a bit. 

Squish! Squish! Messy fun!

Homemade Paste

1/2 Cup of Flour (we use all -purpose organic)

1/2 Cup Sugar

3 1/4 cups Water

any extract (vanilla, orange, peppermint, etc. for smell)

OR 2 drops food coloring

We combine our sugar, flour, and 1/4 cup of water in a bowl. 

Then bring 3 cups of water to boil in a saucepan. Stir in the flour mixture

and reduce the heat. Cook over low heat for 10-15 minutes (but stir constantly!)

Once it is thick remove it from stove heat + add your extract or food coloring (or both).

We save ours in an airtight container in the refridgerator for up to two weeks when not in use. 

Voila! Try it out and let me know what you think! We won't be selling this (we are starting to sell our organic playdough). But we do use this in our classes. Whatever we can make ourselves or recycle/precycle we do!

I will take some pictures later this afternoon for you to see it's consistency.