Inspiration

It seems that we, and many of our friends, are having trouble finding our rhythm again after Christmas. For instance, Harlan and I have packed away all our Christmas crafts, but it is a little early to start Spring ones yet. As a result, I've been racking my brains and scouring books for ideas and thought I would collate them into a blog post in case anyone else needs some inspiration too!

Bath salts
In a book called "501 TV free activities for kids" I found a recipe for making fizzing bath salts. I figure we could make them in an afternoon then use them at bathtime, plus they would make wonderful gifts in little pots for friends and family.

You need:

Glass jar with a lid
3/4 cup bicarbonate of soda
2 tbsp cornflour
1/2 cup cream of tartar

Stir the ingredients together until smooth. Add a few drops of essential oils, perhaps lavender for a calming bath or something more invigorating like grapefruit. To use, just drop a handful into a warm bath and watch it fizz.

Weather chart

 This is something we will be doing next week, hopefully charting the improvements in the weather! Divide a large piece of card or sugar paper into 31 boxes and number them. An older child can then draw on a sun, cloud, rain drops etc onto each day. Harlan is not a keen illustrator so I plan to make small cardboard shapes to represent the different weather patterns for Harlan to blu-tack onto our weather chart.

Pond/stream dipping

Ok, ok, I know the weather isn't great at the moment, but either save this until later in the year (when you could also go paddling in a shallow stream) or just put coats on and embrace the rain! If you buy a fishing net, try to get one with the finest mesh you can, as bigger holes let small creatures escape but also can damage delicate newts and tadpoles. However, an old pair of tights and a wire coathanger are just as effective if not better. A kitchen sieve works too, if you are able to get very close to the water, perhaps while paddling. An ice cream tub, tupperware container or large glass jar will be perfect for observing your catches, just remember to add a little pond/stream water and always pour the animals back carefully when you have finished looking at them. If you are lucky enough to catch a newt or a frog, ensure your hands are wet before touching it as you can actually damage their skin if your hands are dry. Older children can use a book to discover the names of what they have caught if they are not already familiar with them.

Eggshell pictures

Next time you have eggs for breakfast, save the shells. Rinse them out and use food dye to colour them, before crushing them. If you put them inside a sandwich bag you (or your children) can bash them with a rolling pin until they are the size you want. When I was a child I used them to decorate picture frames, boxes and make pictures. Sand is another good one for making textured pictures - just put PVA wherever you want the sand to stick and sprinkle it on like you would with glitter.

Cress heads

I'm doing these with the children at our local H.E. group next week, as I have fond memories from my own childhood of growing green hair on funny faces. You can either save an eggshell or use a small yoghurt pot for your "head". Decorate this with googly eyes, a funny nose and maybe a ribbon for a bow tie! Put damp cotton wool or kitchen roll into the container and sprinkle on your cress seeds. You should see your cress growing within a week, so it's not too long to wait. Once the cress has grown you can trim it and use it in a sandwich or on a salad.

Pasta shapes

Another craft I did when I was young was crafting with dried pasta. There are different shapes available, and it is a cheap material - I bought some value penne for 24p a few weeks ago! It sticks fine with simple PVA and can be painted too. It can also be threaded onto string or shoelaces to make necklaces or decorations.

And finally, don't forget that if you run out of PVA, just mix flour and water to make a rather effective glue!