DIY: Make your own koinobori fish

Have you ever seen the colourful Japanese carp called KOINOBORI? They are like little kites floating in the wind:

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koinobori

We have made our own little carps from coloured paper and toilet tubes. Just add twinkling eyes and a string and hang it from a pole.

DIY: Fabric doll / Rag doll

This is Linda the new best friend of my daughter. I made Linda from a linen fabric that was still lying around from another project. You don't need much fabric to make such a little rag doll. The hair is probably the worst part. I tried to sew it onto the head with my sewing machine before I put the doll together. But then you have all the hair inside the body while you are closing the seams and it makes the sewing a bit difficult. So maybe it's better to stitch the hair onto the doll by hand. Or you can use a nice fabric that looks like hair...

Here is a free pattern if you want to make your own:

Source: http://www.pinterest.com

Egg carton owl craft

This is a little craft project for a rainy day (or a boring morning). All you need is an empty egg carton some paint and maybe a feather or two.

Here is a very good instruction on how to make your own:

Source: http://repurposedplayground.blogspot.hk

We had a lot of fun making our little owl and it turned out really cool I think!

DIY Teatime

We just made this cute little teaset craft. The inspiration came from a picture I had seen on Pinterest. Bonpoint - the French fashion label - had one for sale. Here is what it looks like:

Source: http://pinterest.com/

First I thought we could do this from paper mache but then I came up with the idea to use party cups and plates. I found small cups for nuts that I used for the cups and to match the plates I just cut circles out of bigger ones. Then we sticked small origami paper circles inside the cups and in the middle of the plates. We also made little spoons from cardboard paper. We just lay spoons on the paper and draw along the outline and then cut them. It was a nice little craft and my daughter is playing a lot with the tea set now.

DIY: Washing machine

We have been busy with crafting lately. Here is another summer fun project. A washing machine made of a cardboard box. First I taped the open side of the box. Then I painted it white with wall paint. Next I used a plate to draw the door and then cut it open with a carpet knife. I also cut a rectangular hole for the washing powder loader which is made of a rectangular tin. I also added a program wheel made of a jar lid. I just punched a hole in the middle and used a brad to fix it to the box. Then came decorations with stickers, tape and colour pens. My daughter was watching every step and took hold of the new toy as soon as I put the last sticker on it. Since then we had quite a few wash days in our living room...

DIY Needlefelting: Make a Bambi

Hello! I am Bambi. I am made of 100 % wool. The other ingredients you'll need are a felting needle and a sponge. Shape the body with the wool (roll it in your hands to form woolen balls for the body and the head, make sausages for the legs) and then start punching the felting needle into the wool (put the sponge underneath so that you won't punch holes into your desk). Now see how the felt starts to form. You'll have to punch for quite a while though... You'll need a good amount of felting (sheep) wool to make a nice dense structure so that the bambi can stand on it's own feet. Once the bambi is more or less ready you can use hot water and soap to continue the felting process. Rub the soap into the body and start rolling and squeezing the bambi. The felt will get more dense like that. Once you are satisfied with the result use warm water to rinse thoroughly. Embroider eyes, nose and mouth and have a contented look at your work!

DIY: Car playmat to go

I made this car playmat from two no longer used fabric napkins and a few other fabric scraps. First step was to sew the two napkins together. Therefore I cut the seam on one side of both napkins and sew the two napkins together. The new seam is covered with black ribbon (or bias tape). Then I cut decorations from the fabric scraps. Flowers, birds, dragon flies, clouds and little houses. I spread them over the playmat and appliqued them with a zig-zag stitch. Then I added a little 'garage' for the toy cars and some wooden play signs. It was made from a rectangular piece of fabric. The open side has a bias tape hem. I fixed the rectangle on the sides and divided it with seams to form four little pockets. Last came the streets. I painted them with fabric paint and fabric markers. And afterwards I stitched the outlines with black thread. Add three cars and a few signs for playing and then roll and fold the mat and put it in a small drawstring bag. Now you are ready to go and play!

DIY: Cardboard doll house

This simple doll house is made of two pieces of A4 size thick cardboard. I simply cut off the corners for the roof and then added a slit as wide as the cardboard is thick (approx 2-3 mm) and as long as half  of the entire height. The first slit goes from roof to the middle on the first cardboard piece. The second slit goes from the bottom to the middle of the second cardboard piece. Decorate the pieces with wallpaper or wrapping paper, stickers, paint whatever you like... Then you only need to put the two pieces together in a 90 degree angle. Make sure that the slit is not too wide because then the two pieces won't stay in place properly. We use our new little house together with the LEGO DUPLO blocks but the options are endless: doll house, circus, garage, zoo, barn yard, coffee shop...

DIY: Mini Zoo

After having been to the Zoo during the last holiday trip our daughter was talking about all the animals non stop. So one day we made this little zoo project. We simply stapled a view cheese boxes together for the cages and then stapled some decoration on the back (we reused the Christmas decoration and turned them into trees and a sun). Last not least we stuck and stapled a few stickers to the front. Then it was time for the animals to move in (ours are from LEGO DUPLO but you can find lots of others in the shops). Now the fun can start...