{Guest Post} Make an Owl Family

Hello friends! Today I am honored to share with you an amazingly fun tutorial from the lovely Jo of My Pangaloon. She is going to show you how to create your very own owl family from toilet paper rolls!

In Jo's Words:

Here is a quick and super fun craft activity to do with your little ones. It is suitable for any age, and can be made more challenging depending on the age of your child.

you will need;

 Here goes

1. pinch the top of the toilet roll together, then gentle push down into a curved shape. It is self securing, but add tape or glue if you want to.

2. Let the kids lose with the paint. Allow to dry completely

3. Cut out some feather for the little ones, and some beaks ( not shown here, but I used yellow felt) and glue on.

4. Encourage your child to pick out their own buttons for the owl's eyes. My three year old enjoyed this the most. Add a big dollop of pva glue. Sit them out in the sun to dry.

My 5 year old and I made a few fabric covered toilet rolls, which added a whole new look. You could add sequines, and ribbons too. It's really up the the child.

Havre fun

Crayon-ning Moment

Last week before we cut Emory's hair we played with crayons for the first time. Giving Emory time to just explore the crayons, their shape, color, texture was probably just enough for this budding toddler. He is at that age where they love to just inspect an item completely. The focus he gives things that he finds intriguing is always a quiet moment for me. I pause. I watch, and too get to explore something for the very first time again.

In an attempt to show him what he could do with the crayons I taped a large piece of butcher paper to our kitchen floor, Drew a few doodles and then placed the crayon in his hands for him to try. He looked at me, smiled, and then continued to place the crayons in and out of the cup I was using to contain them.

Unlike the chalk, which he just began using right away, the crayons offered Emory a more contemplative time. I used Crayola's crayons for 18 month+. They are are triangular shaped and fit well into a little baby's pudgy hands well. I am hoping that our next experience with crayons will produce some coloring action on the paper...and not on my walls. Happy Monday friends.

Introducing: Emory & Olly

I have been vacillating on this for a while. Should I? Shouldn't I? Well, the other day...February 15th to be exact, I went for it. I started a NEW and yes, ANOTHER shop, on Etsy titled: Emory & Olly. Named kindly after my son, his favorite stuffed pup, Olly-Jolly Dog and given the feel of what we love the most: Nature.

So, you may have noticed my new craft-cult rolling segment at the top of my page I added a few days back, I couldn't help it as I just was too excited! My GoatNotes shop will remain open and will focus more on my paper artwork and cards, while Emory & Olly will share more of my jewelry and vintage finds.

The new shop has also spawned a revamp of this here blog, one of many to come I am sure. Bare with me as I adjust. Mess with pictures, colors, and the all too important info section. So, if you are in need of some new accessories check out Emory & Olly. All proceeds are headed straight to my son's college..or whatever his" future may hold" fund.

Collaged Heart Valentines Card Tutorial

I know, I know another Valentine's Day Card in the same week. What can I say? I heart Valentine's Day. Whether you do or not here is another quick and easy VDay card tutorial that is perfect for anyone with toddles. I came up with this card for the play group we belong to and we will be testing it out next week. Emory had a blast ripping all of the paper for me. I did most of the construction, but he had some fun interacting with the paper and trying to stick it into the heart shape.Hopefully your toddler and older children have as just as much fun as we did.

 Materials:

• Red, pink and purple construction paper
• Writing pencil
• School glue or glue stick
• Pre-made card or folded construction paper

 Step 1: Rip the paper into small chunks. Toddlers are great at this! Then using a pencil draw free-hand or use a stencil to draw a heart shape onto your card.

 Step 2: Fill in the heart with a glue stick or with school glue. I used school glue for this tutorial, but have used a glue stick in the past.

 Step 3: Begin to place the pieces of paper chunks inside the heart. You can alternate the colors in the heart or fill your heart in using just one color. As you can see, I used both red and pink paper.

 Step 4: Place some glue around the outside lines of the heart and place skinnier strips of purple paper to make the outline pop more.

And now you have a stunning hand made Valentines to give out! Enjoy!

XOXO,
Julia