Art Wagon

CREATE more opportunities to CREATE!

We love to CREATE outside & I want my kids to feel like it's easy to CREATE anywhere!

I also want it to be easily accessible, portable, & inexpensive for me & my family...

So, to do this I created the ART WAGON! 

Instead of lugging all of our supplies in & out of the house by hand we just use the wagon!

Using a wagon we already had (or you can get one through Craigslist) & supplies around the house, the cost is $0!  The ART WAGON is always stocked & ready to go whenever we want to head outside for some creative fun! You can fill it with whatever supplies you want.

Here is a list of basics that we usually have inside of ours.

Art Wagon Supplies:

~ different sizes, shapes, & colors of paper &/or stretched canvas

~ variety of paint brushes

~ variety of paints

~ colored pencils

~ sketch book(s)

~ jugs of water for rinsing brushes, cups, & people

~ cups/bowls/styrofoam trays for the paint

~ metal/wire basket(s) for containing items outside of the wagon when creating

~ wood, rocks, nature items (to paint on or sketch)

~ drop cloth just in case (we get the vinyl/cloth table cloths at the end of the season when they're on sale)

~ easel, sometimes our smaller, table top, easel fits but most of the time someone carries it out by hand

~ anything else you can think of! We add to & subtract from the wagon all the time.

Everyone can help with bringing out the Art Wagon!

Just a glimpse at what's in our wagon today

It doesn't take long for the easel(s) to be set up, paint to be poured, & the creating to begin.

When you are creating outside it's easy for artists to take a little nature break in the midst of their creating.  Who knows what kind of inspiration they may find while climbing a rock, dancing in the grass, or playing amongst the trees!

These artists discover an interesting moth they've never seen before while taking a nature break.

This artist is inspired to paint a picture of the moth!

 The Art Wagon is always nearby with any needed supplies.

The Moth & Fire Engine

Castle At Sunset
"These are mountains at sunset behind a castle.  The sun is going down so the mountains look reddish. Sometimes they look purple when the sun is up. The yellow spots are the sparkling sun beams - you know how you can see that sometimes?" (artist quote)

I'd love to hear from you about your outdoor creating adventures!

Future Designer in Training

So, I have a son who, since the time he was born, has been interested in dolls & dresses.

He's constantly taking any available blanket in the house & designing it into a dress.

We, of course, embrace his passion for design &, rather than deter him from an art that may be considered "girly", we've decided to help him explore this further.

(Heck, he could end up becoming a successful designer some day & be able to hook me up with much more hip clothes than I'm currently wearing! Ha!)

Since I was learning how to use my sewing machine, I decided I'd bring him along for the ride & try to teach him some basics (keeping in mind that I'm not sure I really know what I'm doing).

1st we traced a dress we already had, creating a pattern. This, of course, lead to discussions of measurement (bonus).

Next, the pattern was cut out...

... & we compared the pattern to the doll. 

I held the fabric while he traced the pattern onto the fabric.

I pinned the fabric along the lines he traced & then he cut along the lines.

Fabulous cutting!

He was so excited to be in charge of the pedal while I fed the fabric through the machine.

We tested out the sewn fabric on the doll to see if we needed to do any trimming & decided that adding some Velcro was essential (Although I am not a serious sewer, I am a full-time teacher.   So of course I had some Velcro on hand!)

We thought a zig-zag stitch would make it more fancy.

Here we are wrapping her up & checking our handy work.

Here, he's showing other family members his first creation & how the Velcro works. (Smile) 

Ta-Da! Here she is!
(FYI, since this picture was taken the skirt has gotten a lot shorter.  He discovered my pinking shears & just wanted to "give it a trim", but then kept going - ahaha, gotta love an artist at work!)

Loving-Kindness Jar

So those of you who know anything about children know that the early years can pose their own challenges, specifically naughty behavior. Time-outs sometimes feel like they are eating up the days! 

So, to help all of us recognize, acknowledge, & really appreciate each other's positive behaviors we started the "Loving-Kindness Jar".

It's easy & can be used by even the busiest of families!

This jar is almost full to the top!

How it works:

Specifically at dinner (especially during the work week) but it can be at any point during the day, we catch each other showing loving-kindness.  

First, keep all the marbles in a separate container. 

While the jar is empty, decide, as a family, on a special treat for the family (i.e. family movie night, trip to the beach, game night, hike, pool party, etc.). We try to make it something that we can do together as a family as opposed to a material item. Write this on a small piece of paper & place on the bottom of the jar.

Next, whenever we (kids & adults) see someone from our little family unit showing loving-kindness we put a marble in the jar.

{The rule is that you can't ask someone to put a marble in for you.}

Each night at dinner (at least) when you're chatting about your day ask if anyone saw someone in the family showing loving-kindness.  We started by really modeling the recognition, making sure to say something about each other as well as the kids (i.e. "I love how Dad made such a delicious dinner," "It was so nice how (child's name) helped you pick up your toys even though she didn't play with them." "(child's name) used such nice manners when she needed another drink.", etc). Try to recognize anything & everything, especially in the beginning. You're really teaching them how to notice positive behavior as well as what you expect & recognize as positive behavior. 

Be prepared for smiles & lots of recognition as the kiddos learn to love giving compliments to others. They also love hearing how others have noticed them throughout the day! When it really takes off you'll have children who are noticing positive behavior all around them throughout the day!

(Get your tissue ready b/c it's really sweet & you'll have tears of joy in your eyes)

Here comes the additional fun part, once the jar is filled up (after a few days, or weeks depending on how things are going & how big your jar is) empty all the marbles back out.  The little note you placed at the bottom will fall out & you'll be reminded of the family treat you have earned together! 

Put it on the calendar right away (so it doesn't slip away from you - not that you would forget or anything) & write a new treat on a piece of paper to place at the bottom of the newly empty jar  & the positive fun starts all over again!

Examples of behavior to recognize:

* cooking dinner

* using kind words

* helping around the house

* sharing

* taking care of the Earth

* helping without being asked

* helping someone feel better when they are sad

* ... endless possibilities! Just think about what is positive to you & what kind of behavior you wish to see more of in your own children.

I'd love to hear how it goes if any of you try this out at your house!

Sewing Project #2 - cute little bag

Inspired by Amanda Blake Soule in her book, Handmade Home: Simple Ways to Repurpose Old Materials into New Family Treasures, I chose her pattern for the "Treasure Bag".

Gathering my materials

After cutting several strips of muslin 2"x5", I used the stamps to measure out the space.

To prevent the stamp from getting all goopy with fabric paint, instead of painting the paint directly onto the stamp I decided to use a small paint brush to brush on a small layer of fabric paint onto a plastic lid. 

This allowed a reasonable amount of paint to sit on the stamp.

You can see how clearly the letters came out

I couldn't resist making a few more. I had a feeling I was going to love this little project & want to make more than just one bag.

I just love burlap, don't you? 

I couldn't resist making my first little bag out of it.  Somewhere I had read about a great way to help cut a straight line out of burlap (If I find the link I will post it). 

You find one string of the burlap & pull it out. This will leave a straight line to cut along.

I'll admit, it was a little more of a project than I expected (it doesn't just pull right out), but look at the amazing results! 

A very straight line indeed!

A straight line is created by pulling a thread from the burlap.

I sewed the "read" stamped fabric to a piece of 7"x7" scrap fabric.

Then I sewed this piece to the burlap, folded it - right sides together, & sewed the sides of the burlap.

After turning it right side out again, I added bias tape to the top with a zig-zag stitch.
A couple things here, (1) I have never used bias tape, (2) tricky, hmmm..., (3) I didn't measure correctly so I ended up with a inch on the back of the bag with no bias tape, (4) next time I cut the bias tape only after I was finished adding it :) Much better results!

I used ribbon for the handle. You can see how amateur my zig-zag is - there is no denying that this is a handmade product!

Voila! I love it, my kids love it, and we are all so proud of mama! I love that they got to see their mom through the whole process of setting a goal, getting an idea, learning, & creating a finished product/project!
{f.y.i. - Nearly everyday since I finished this they've been talking about their own "projects", what they are creating next, and the types of materials they need. Love it!}

Onto the next bag! I am making 2 bags out of window screening (Amanda Blake Soule's idea).

Stitching on the stamped muslin piece

Checking the placement of the fabric square prior to stitching it all up

Stitching the fabric to the front of the screen

Here are the finished products! 

On the left we have a bag that will be used to carry our books back & forth to the library. 

On the right we have gift bags.

The "create" bag was filled with artsy-craftsy supplies.

The "play" bag was filled with trucks for the sand box. My hope is that the screen will allow for sand to easily shake out.

Sewing Project #1

I've begun my practice! I've got my manual & I have some scrap fabric.

Project #1: Learn how to do some basic sewing with my machine.

In order to get used to this old beauty I decided I'd just practice with some scrap fabric I had from a project a few years back. Once I began I decided to, at least, try to turn it into something close to real.
 

 Well, I was able to turn out 2 little cloth bags. When I presented them to my kiddos they jumped for joy & told me the bags would become their "Nature Bags", & I got a lot of thank you's & hugs! 

I was so pleasantly surprised because this was not a beautiful piece of work though I got such a nice response! Talk about motivation to keep sewing!

My next project will be 2 small bags for a birthday party we are attending soon!

Pallet~Boat~Stage~Creative Work Space

So, I've been eyeing this pallet we have at our house.

{Don't you just love the look of aged wood?!}

I started envisioning painting it & turning into a piece that my kids & their friends could use in a number of different ways (i.e. a boat, a stage, a place to sit & draw...). So I grabbed some cans of paint that we had left over from some house painting we'd done, & I got to work.

Left over paint.  {FYI - The Freshaire paint was a no-voc paint that Home Depot had carried but the company no longer makes it :( }

Some waves to float upon

Here is my attempt at adding some depth/texture 

I cut a circle from some styrofoam packaging. Here I am measuring it to be sure it is the size that I want it to be.  I plan to use it to make a stamp to create portholes for this make believe ship.

The porthole stamp is done. I added some tape to the back for easier application.

Here I applied some left over, outdoor, porch paint.

Due to the texture of the wood the stamp didn't go on evenly.  I added a little paint by hand (but actually I kind of liked the rough look & didn't get too caught up in making it perfect.)

The boat/stage/creative work space is complete!

We just happened to have an old boat steering wheel that had been given to us at one point.  We didn't attach it b/c the kids like to use it inside the house as well.