Can you believe the month of April is half over? It’s amazing how much time flies when you’re creating. I don’t know about you, but for the majority of April I have been trying to do my part to make our Earth a cleaner place. I have really made an effort this year to recycle more, and craft with recycle items. Recycled items are great to use for kids crafts. This recycled box zoo project is a great example of this. Make this fun kids' decorative accessory from an old box top. Cathie and Steve designed this project. Have you recently created any recycled projects with your kids? Supplies and instructions are below.

PLAID Supplies

·       Plaid ® Wood Surfaces - Letter Packs - Bold

·       Plaid ® Wood Surfaces - Painted Shapes - Monkey

·       Plaid ® Wood Surfaces - Painted Shapes - Giraffe

·       Plaid ® Hot Glue Gun Helpers

·       FolkArt ® Artists Pigments™ - Lemon Yellow, 2 oz.

·       FolkArt ® Artists Pigments™ - Pure Orange, 2 oz.

·       Mod Podge ® Matte, 8 oz.

Other Supplies
Old cracker box
Newspaper
Hot glue
Foam paintbrush
Scrap paper
Button

Instructions

1. Tightly stuff the box with newspaper. Hot glue the flaps closed.

2. Paint the box with Orange paint until the printing is completely covered.

3. Paint the wood letters with Lemon Yellow paint.

4. Use hot glue to attach the letters and animals to the front of the box.

5. Cut a simple door shape from scrap paper. Attach it to the front of the box with a thin layer of Mod Podge. Hot glue a button to the door to serve as a handle.

It's Monday. Did you have a good weekend? They go by so fast don’t they? Oh well, the weekend will be here again before you know it. Over the weekend I came across a cute craft project on the blog Katydiddys. Laura Bray designed this bowling set project and the thing I love most about it, is that it’s a learning craft project. She not only decorates this bowling set with Plaid simply stencils and FolkArt paint, but she uses this project to disguise a few math lessons. Click here to see how Laura made this project, and to see the math lessons she created to go along with this project.

TGIF! Wow this week really sped by quickly. I guess that's what happens when you’re having fun crafting, and creating. Do you have any craft plans for the weekend? Well if you are looking for something to do with your kids, try this plate-painting project. This is an adorable and simple project that your kids will definitely love. The supplies for this project can be found at any craft store, and you may already have some these in your home. Unleash your child's inner painter, by letting them paint a plate. Now normally you would never actually want them to paint the fine China, but this is an exception. I found this project over on the blog, LoisPearl. I love seeing what people create with FolkArt paint. There are so many different uses for this type of acrylic paint. To learn how this project was created click here. Enjoy and have a great weekend.