For whatever reason, my boys love collecting rocks. It isn't unusual for me to remove several of them from their pants when I'm about to do laundry, and if I'm not careful they occasionally will make it into the wash. I don't really no why they love rocks so much, but I do think this project is a great activity and a way to transform a picked-up rock into a true 'pet-rock'. This is a great activity for camp crafting, and fun to do with themes as well like animals, aliens and people. Enjoy! 

You are sure to love this cute little pup- and if you look closely, you'll see he is made with a few egg-shaped Styrofoam pieces and other cut outs. This is just one example of the many animals you can create with foam and Apple Barrel Paint.

We're in love with Apple Barrel Colors and STYROFOAM™ Brand Foam for Kids Crafting. So much, in fact that we've created a whole swarm of animals and insects out of foam. Visit Plaidonline.com to get directions for all our animals. These make great cummer camp and party crafts.

This project is super fun and great for younger kids. Plus, it uses items found around the house. Apply this 3-D diarama idea to create all kinds of projects, like farms, villages or sea scenes.

Cute and easy fun for little kids. This project is great for smaller kindergarten aged kids and is really fun. Just use small paper cups, a few pencils and foam. They make cute gifts and party favors, too!

Mini cereal boxes become fun robot crafts with just a little paint. See the project.

Cute and quick ornaments for the holidays. We used unfinished wood surfaces from the local craft store and only needed a few paint colors. This is a great project to complete while the kids are home.

December is counting down and it is getting closer to Christmas! As the big day approaches and the kids go on Christmas break, keep them busy with easy crafts that don't take a lot of time, but are fun to do and easy to clean up after. Check out this adorable Santa Claus project from About Kids Crafts, made with Acrylic paint and popsicle sticks! See it here!

Looking for ideas for the great unfinished ornaments and wood you've found at the craft store. make it snow with a bit of texture paint. 
This is a great project for your child's class or even on a snow day home from school.

What could be easier than these super cute, super easy trees. Use them as a classrooom decoration or on your favorite tabletop.
Tissue Paper, yarn and styrofoam forms..what could be easier?

I love penguins, next to fuzzy white polar bears, they are definitely my favorite holiday critters. That's why this penguin frame is so cute. Kids can make these for gifts for teachers, grandparents and friends.

Those tiny little pots that you can find in the craft store for way less than a dollar can become the perfect surface for minature pilgrim hats. These litte hats can be hung like ornaments or used as place settings on a Thanksgiving day table. However you use them, they are super fun and easy to make!

It's turkey time and Mr. Gobble here is ready. He was made with texture paint. He would make a great class craft
or even a fun centerpiece!

There is nothing more fun or easier than using Stiffy-Plaid's fabric stiffening product. Looking to make ghosts or mummies for Halloween?
This is the product for you! Check out this ghost ornament and modify the instructions to fit your project!

      
The little Jack-O-Lantern with big smile is one of my favorites and a great project for older kids. We used square ornaments, but you can
use the shape of your choice.

Pretty and Fun project featuring Mod Podge! Visit Make and Takes for instructions!

Our friends at Craftier blog have a great back-to-school tutorial on personalizing a clip board that features Mod Podge!
See the project.

 

      
Gallery Glass is very easy to use and especially great for making window clings like these. The cool thing about Gallery Glass is that you can remove and reuse the clings in another place. Cling projects are great for classroom projects, birthday parties or any time you want to craft with a group. Just pre-lead, and let the kids fill in color. Learn more

 

      
Turn a basic binder into a fab folder with a little Mod Podge!

 

      
This is a great afternoon project for tweens and a fun way to turn a inexpensive folder into something fun.

Make this fun  paper mache caterpillar with Mod Podge. See instructions on Fiskars' website.

We have always been big fans of Kids Crafts Weekly. Kids Crafts Weekly is one of the top crafting sites for kids, and the wonderful theme ideas, downloads and creative ideas never cease to amaze us. Check out the article on getting the most mileage out of your crafting themes. See the article here.

These are the all new Activity Stencils from Plaid. They feature the most popular designs for school-themed crafting, like sports, recycling and nature.  A must have for your craft closet! Go to Plaidonline.com to see more

 

      
Turn old clothespins into cute clips with paint, googly eyes and craft pipe cleaners.

Egg crates and paper plates transformed into cute little creatures! Let your kids craft these easy and fun project.

Vacation Bible School project ideas!


'Jesus Loves Me' Door Hanger
Vacation Bible School Frame
WWJD Door Hanger
WWJD foam visor
Faith Doorhanger

 

Hate bugs? Check out the newest addition of
Kids Crafts Weekly for a whole lot of bugs projects you are
sure to love!

These beautiful Eric Carle inspired cards are easy to craft with kids. Why not read your favorite Eric Carle book and then create this fabulous Valentine's Day project? You can use Mod Podge, tissue paper and a few other materials. Thanks to Jessica of Art Smart for Kids for this project. Jessica blogs about art and education for kids and has many art and project posts. Click here to see all directions and photos for making cards. 
  

Be inpired by these fun Advent Calendars. Advent Calendars make great craft projects for kids
to make, plus they offer a special treat for the days counting down to Christmas. Here are some of our favorites.

Advent Origami Cups by Kids Crafts Weekly

Pretty In Pink 
Paper crafted calendar.

Deborah Kent's Class 
Santa Claus beard calendars

Crafty Craft Gal 
Scrappy fun!

Help your children show how thankful they are with this great little turkey with grateful feathers. This projected was posted by Parents.com. The Turkey is made with yarn, scrabook paper and a few other supplies. See this project and other great project ideas here.

Little Elephants

These beautiful snow globes make a great group craft project as well as splendid Christmas gifts. Get details how to make 'em on littleelephants.typepad.com. The author also includes links and lessons she learned from experimenting with different materials.

Our first fall craft roundup includes fun, simple projects for younger kids. These project are great for classroom settings or at-home crafting. Enjoy!

• Fall Leaves Recipe Holder Craft by Apples4teacher.com
• Craft projects for smaller kids by DLTK
• Fall Door Hanger by Mycraftbook.com

The photo above shows easy-to-make recipe holders from Apples4teacher.com.

Craft Elf has a database of halloween craft projects. Most are great for young kids and use materials you probably already have around the house, like this Pumpkin light madw out of acrylic paint and a Mason Jar. See the Halloween projects.

Its almost time to start planning for school in the fall. In addition to the regular back-to-school supplies that your child will need for school, consider creating a stash of extra supplies especially for special projects, reports and extra-credit assignments. Here's a list to get you started:

• Old Magazines-Great for making collages
• Poster Board
• Mod Podge - The all-purpose glue and adhesive is great for decoupage, assembling collages and makes a great sealant.
• Texture Paint -Check out Plaid's new texture paint, great for making models, maps and more.
• Crayons
• Permanent Markers
• Chalkboard Paint -Makes any surface a chalkboard-writing surface.
• Report Covers-Keep a stash so you don't have to purchase them each time a report is due.
• Construction Paper
• empty bottles and containers of various shapes