I need to admit something. Unlike many of my girlfriends, who also home school, I lack whatever the skills are to come up with my own art projects. I’m just not a crafty mommy—and I’m finally ok with that.
Years ago, I would leave my MOPS meetings, embarrassed. I’d be hiding my never-completed decoupage flower pot or picture frame under my jacket, with full knowledge that I’d more than likely never finish them at home, either. It was at some point around this time when I finally realized that if I wanted to give my kids “art time” at home, I would need to find outside resources!
With the holidays approaching, I’m hoping that many of you might find some of my secret resources a fun addition to your own at-home art time. Perhaps, even if you are already an artsy-crafty-person, some of these ideas may inspire your own creativity!
Artsymommy.com is a place where I have found many wonderful ideas for our craft projects. Art projects which even someone as glue stick-challenged as me can successfully complete with my kids!
Deb (the Artsy Mommy) has been an art teacher for years, so she is able to share an abundance of information and knowledge via pdf and video tutorials. Pictures are hugely helpful for me! I absolutely love her philosophies on art, as well! Most importantly, she believes in a “no-fail” outcome! She doesn’t want to change how kids (or even non-artsy mommy’s) create their art–she gives us suggestions, but thinks that the child should take those suggestions and have fun with them! She also allows for a lot of choices in the elements used for each project. This is very helpful because art concepts will change depending on the age and sex of the children. Plus, we must take into account the supplies that we have access to in our art closets at home. Deb also provides many printable pages for each project! That element alone saves a huge amount of prep time!
Another thing that many of you parents may appreciate about artsy mommy is that many of her projects are ready to be displayed immediately after completion. She makes sure that most of the crafts are 5×7 or 8×10, so framing is easy. My already fully decorated refrigerator thanks her!
Since the holidays are around the corner, I’d like to share with you a craft tutorial from Artsymommy.com, called The Paper Bag Thanksgiving Booklet. It gives the kids a chance to use their individual creativity in explaining what they are truly thankful for. This booklet can be shared by the child at the Thanksgiving table, and then put away in a memory book, to be a treasured in years to come. Most of the pages used in this tutorial project can be printed out using this link. Note: She does suggest card-stock as opposed to regular weight paper be used in this project.
If you have a favorite, kid-friendly Thanksgiving craft, that either has a video or pdf tutorial, send us a link via the comments section. I’m sure for the six weeks many of us will be kicking up our art projects a few notches!
I hope you enjoy this week’s art class! Let me know what you think.
