Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Mrs Accident is a crafty minx


Peanut has decided she is ravenously hungry today. So, instead of my usual wordy post, I am going to give you a tour of our arts and craft centre. That way, when I jump up every three seconds to make her yet another sandwich, I won't have a complicated train of thought to derail.

To make it interesting for those less kid-craft-inclined, I'll insert the content of Peanut's snack breaks at the intervals they interrupt me trying to write. Cause that will be sure to keep you reading...

First up, lets talk location. Banana.


Our craft table is on tiles, and close to the kitchen. This makes clean up wayheyhey easier. Craft and carpet don't mix. (Unless your craft is carpet weaving.)

We have a kid sized table that can be wiped clean, and four kid sized chairs. Bug can use them comfortably already, and I can still sit on them too. They're just the right size. For women. Mr Accident looks like he's Gulliver on a good day.

In the photo up there you can also see a wipe-able, splash proof picture I have stuck to the wall by the table. It's saved our wall from sticky fingers and flung paint many times over.

Now, onto the contents of our shelves.


When it comes to art supplies, I like to give the girls the real deal. Glue that actually sticks, real oil pastels, proper water colour paint. I also give Peanut real scissors, mandarin, but I keep them up out of Bug's reach.  


Here's our paint stash. I normally keep it in one of Mr Accident's old protein buckets (man drinks a lot of protein) but I took them out today to show you. We have poster paint and finger paint. I always buy the biggest bottles I can find.


The girls love this shelf. Cotton balls, match sticks, foam shapes, patty cases, paddle pop sticks, feathers, pompoms and beans. Some of the containers are divided, so we also have googly eyes, glitter and pasta hiding back there. Peanut-butter and sultanas on a big corn cracker, times two.


Our play dough shelf. We're using pink at the moment, you can probably see some caked on the utensils there. I wash the gear when I change the colour, it's a good prompt. 


Chalk, crayons, textas and pencils. Another cracker like before - that makes three! I'm going broke here, people. Our pencils and textas are well used, and as a result they have been decimated by Panzer. Seriously, that dog has chewed one in ten. It's impossible to expect Bug to keep them all on the table, but every one that falls to the floor is cactus. You can see a lidless marker in the box there. I HATE LIDLESS MARKERS. I can feel an eye twitch developing...


Our nature shelf. There is normally a magnifying glass here too, but I have no idea where it's gone. Perhaps off studying nature on its own. Maybe on the front lawn. Probably starting fires... I might need to go find it before we have another sunny day.

The little tin boxes hold our seed and nut collection. I try to keep the decayables out, but it's a challenge. Only the vigilant will win! I did find a worm in there one day, that was a treat. Cashews.


Our stamp collection. (The interesting kind, philately was never my thing, although my mother tried to encourage me. I like the messy ones better.) We have big stamps for little hands, littler stamps for the more dexterous, and a random Hello-Kitty-in-a-plane. I have no idea where that one came from. I should check the airport arrivals board. 


Brushes, sponges and other paint smearing utensils. I keep the shaving brushes there for Bug, she finds them easier to manipulate. On the paper, that is, she's too young to shave. 


Apple and a chocolate cookie. Finally, we have the easel. It's a whiteboard on one side, chalk board on the other, and I keep the clips to hang large paper when we head outside and paint "plein air". Ahem. Bug has eaten more chalk than she's even drawn with, and I fear the day we see her on "My Strange Addiction." 


And that concludes today's tour. Thank you for joining us, and I hope to see you next time, when I show you the contents of our bathroom cupboard.

Kidding!

You hope.

30 comments:

  1. Aarrhhh...I love you!!!
    No I don't mean that literally of course...our 'craft cupboard' is a big 'ol mess, and I love, love, love the old chinese containers that...well...contain everything!
    I'm stealing that idea!
    As of the weekend the kids and I will sort the craft cupboard.

    Joy of joys I love a good organise!

    (Hmmm ok maybe I do need to get a life!)

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    1. I picked up a new pack of containers from woolies last week, and they had split ones! same size as normal, same price as normal, but two segments instead of one. Yeah, I got a bit excited ;)

      I love nothing more than a good organize! You're in good company, here.

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  2. Finally I know what to do with all our old formula tins! I've been using them for my crafting but didn't think of saving them for this purpose. I can't wait until my baby is old enough for crafts!

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    1. I started Peanut on crafting very early, probably about four months? As soon as she could sit in her high chair and smoosh paint. She loved it! You probably don't have long to wait! (How old is your baby?)

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  3. Im gonna do a 'Ill show you mine'...or a 'do you wanna see' of my last ten years of childrens craft.............mine is scary compared to yours....completely.....you are so organised...please come and have morning tea at my house.... :)

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    1. I'd love to have morning tea at your house, and strip and reassemble a cupboard or two! My idea of bliss :)

      I'm looking forward to your craft post, I reckon you'd have some sterling ideas I can "borrow".

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  4. LOL ah you crack me up - love the random food inserted there....I found myself holding my breath until the next item was mentioned lol
    Love the craft set up....we have similar but...well....see yours but put in a room, shut the doors and shake room vigorously...then open the doors and there it is....our craft set up lol

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    1. Ok, THAT made me laugh. That sounds like our playroom come 5 o'clock...

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  5. Well now I have a craving for peanut butter and sultanas.

    I love the crafting space. I would like to get J into crafting but I'm not sure where to start. What do you recommend for a ten month old who never met an object he wouldn't try to eat or poke his mother in the eye with?

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    1. A ten month old who eats everything? That sounds like Bug! She was a mouthy kid.

      Craft-wise, we just stuck to home made playdough and non toxic paint. She still doesn't like to manipulate the playdough much, but I give her a whole bunch of things to poke into a lump of it and she's happy for hours.

      Because she ate everything, I would also give her non-permanent craft activities, like paint in a really strong zip lock bag. Sit it flat on the table, and let Tiny J run his finger over it and make patterns. It's good mental and physical prep for "real" craft later. Hope that helps!

      {Also, look at my side bar! Like it? I'm still trying to make one for me that isn't appallingly crap...}

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    2. Oh, thanks for the button there! Fantastic.

      I think I'll give the home made playdough and the paint in a bag a go. I can see that being a big hit with him, he's a pretty tactile kid. Thanks!

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  6. What a fabulous set-up, I felt all my creative juices flowing. Great appetite, that peanut!

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    1. Oh man, tell me about it, today was nuts! Normally she's a three meals plus morning and afternoon tea kid. Today she was ravenous! I would suspect worms, but since my usually very coordinated kid has spent the day running into things and falling off stable, stationary chairs, I suspect it's a case of the grows...

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  7. So neat, so organised. Such a perfect craft space. Puts the little shoe box in which I have some crayons and paints stored to shame. It is inspiring. One day my children will have a setup to rival yours. I'm already starting to collect toilet rolls and egg cartons in preparation (you can make many marvellous things with toilet rolls right?)

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    1. We started with a shoe box. It just grew from there!

      Toilet rolls are the best! Today we used a big old box, five paper towel rolls and a half a roll of tape to make an awesome dinosaur. I just had to convince Peanut it might be a bit uncomfy to take it to bed - it was bigger than her!

      I didn't include pictures of our junk box - it's a 50L plastic bin full of random cardboard boxes, old orange bags, egg cartons, bubble wrap, you name it... but it's also a horrible piled up mess!

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  8. Oh I'm a bad mummy.. we don't have a craft area. We have a toy box with paper and pencils and crayons and probably some glue and scissors shoved into it. I tried, hard, when Aiden was younger, but he was just So. Not. Interested. I gave up even trying to make playdough (am I the only person in the world who can make it separate into crusty chunks and liquid? yes? can I have a pize please) when I discovered he'd play with the stuff Grandma made for about 4 minutes then leave it lying around for hours while he decided to be a train outside and/or play with his lego. Erin is more interested in playdough.. slightly.. but I still can't make it.. and if I try to get her to paint or draw or do anything involving putting any sort of colour onto any sort of surface, she'll comply for about 45 seconds then cry if I try to get her to do more. So we have lots of lego and other types of blocks, and a few bits of drawing material shoved in a box. :(

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    1. So not a bad mummy! It's not like Mini is begging for craft and you yell no and laugh maniacally! You're just smart enough not to waste cash on things they don't are about: clever mummy!

      And yes, there is a prize! How did you know! But you have to come to visit to collect it...

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  9. I love your craft area!!!! Is there a word stronger than love than I'm it!

    I have a spot in mind for something similar but I've been hesitating on setting it up because of a pending move to Sydney in the next 12 months and I would hate to have to get rid of it due to down sizing.

    My 14 month old aka 'Fatty' would love something like this although when ever we do something crafty she thinks it's an all you can eat buffet. It was a fight to keep her away from the red paint at playgroup on Monday.

    I shall file the ideas under perhaps one day

    Thanks for the inspiration

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    1. We're looking at a Sydney move too! And a probable downsize. Boo....

      I reckon just go ahead and make one, it's not hard to get the essentials and you don't need to store them in shelves, or have a special table. You could keep them in a plastic tub and use the dining table to almost exactly the same effect! Better than not having one at all :)

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  10. How are you so NEAT?! That is a mightily impressive craft corner. Love the concept of Panzer getting the pens. They'd be nice and chewy.

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    1. For some reason "all" she does is chew off the lid then nip the end off the felt writing bit, making them completely useless but basically untouched! Cheeky dog.

      I'm impressed you lasted to the end of the post, I stuck the food updates in there especially for you, since I suspect you might not be that interested in paddle pop sticks...

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  11. Oooh ideas I can adopt for when the grandkids come over. What a GREAT idea to use one color of playdough at a time :) Now I have decided that either this took a long time to write or that your kids eat a lot! I love your little craft corner and you are a great mom!

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    1. Thank you for the compliment!

      I actually usually have two or three colours on the go at once, but they do tend to get mixed. For some reason we only have pink now... I think it was a Peanut request? You can give all credit for good ideas to her :) i like having multiple colours, even if they do get mixed - then they can stick a green nose on their red monster, so much more fun.

      A REALLY brilliant idea came from my gorgeous cousin - make carpet coloured play dough. Inspired!

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  12. I want to craft at your house! I don't mind sharing with your children. ;) I may need to teach Bailey-dog how to finger(paw?)-paint so that I have an excuse to establish a similar set-up at our house. I mean, it's awesome. Makes me want to be kindergarten age again!
    ~S.

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    1. We have a spare chair!

      Please do teach Bailey to paint. Then sell it on Etsy. You'll make a million!

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  13. I am totally envious of your craft area - and also envious of your children who will "do craft"! I have 2 boys (5 and 3) who would far rather run around outside, dig in the garden, climb a tree and chase the cats than sit inside and craft. They are just sooooo not interested. Great when it is OK weather, but not so good at the moment .........
    Karen

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    1. Although I started Peanut in on the craft track early, I think most of her enthusiasm stems from the ten months she spent in family day care. Her carer was a graphic designer, and the craft Peanut brought home was FANTASTIC. She couldn't help but be inspired and excited about it. Bug just follows along with the status quo....

      {Please note, I wouldn't recommend putting your child into care with a random graphic designer in the hopes that a passion for art is developed. The majority of graphic artists spend more time in flannel than is strictly necessary, and I doubt that a child care course is included in their required training. Besides, leaving Peanut in care broke my heart.}

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  14. You know I love me a good art space! I never realised that that picture was for splash-catching! I just thought it was purdy :D

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    1. Purdy? You're nuts :) I made it one afternoon after I had scrubbed the wall for the third time that day. It was sorely needed! It's just contact on chopped paper. I should get the kids to make a better one, now I have the laminater.

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  15. This was a great post! So funny, loved all the snack breaks, you write with such a great sense of humour. :) And this was some good inspiration for me. My little Bird is only 2 and still likes to eat most of her crafts, so we're mostly still doing coloring, playdough and stickers, but its just about time I start to venture out a bit with her into some other things. THanks for sharing!

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