I remember seeing an episode of Mister Maker about a year ago in which he crafted a table golf set in a minute, and thought that it would make a great craft for Father's Day, and never got around to trying to make one. Yet when I saw an old jar lid the other day it popped back into my mind so I dug out our air-drying clay and sought to recreate the project. It took me more than a minute, though. I used a jam jar lid for stability. It … [Read more...]
Which Came First Chicken and Egg Pie
After the #margaritaparty I had a reasonable amount of Chicken Salad left over. It really is quite delicious and I wanted to find a way to use it. So I grabbed pastry and eggs and made a Chicken and Egg pie, a twist on the traditional bacon and egg pie, which I call the Which Came First Pie. To make it, I used the ring moulds I have from my catering days but you could make them in a dish if you wanted. I cut out pastry circles using a … [Read more...]
Teacher’s Gift plant markers from lollipop sticks
As we head into half-term I have been thinking about the Teacher's Gifts needed for the end of term. Handy then that Maggy at Red Ted Art put down a Coffee Stirrer/Lollipop Stick craft challenge this week, which gave me the idea for my contribution to our Craft Hangout. I made plant markers from the coffee stirrers I have. They are some of the simplest things you can make with lollipop sticks. All you need is either a picture of what you are … [Read more...]
How to make a Chinese Pellet Drum
If you are of my generation you will remember the scene in Karate Kid II where a Chinese Drum is used to great effect in the climax of the story. Actually I've just checked Wikipedia and seen that the one in the movie is a Den-Den Daiko, which is Japanese, but pellet drums exist across vast swathes of Eastern culture, so I'm guessing I can call this a Chinese Drum. Anyway, the Karate Kid inspired my father to make my brothers and I some pellet … [Read more...]
{Review} Vitamix Cocktails and Board Games Party
I had every intention of making things ahead of time for my Vitamix #margaritaparty, but my day went a little like this: 7am wake up late. Rush to get Girls ready for school. Remember car is at garage so call friend to take us to school. 7.55am leave house. Remember Tesco delivery on the way to school. Realise phone is where I left it next to my rapidly cooling cup of coffee. 8.35am get back to house post school run to find a note from … [Read more...]
{Review} KiddyCharts.com have a chart for everything
When LBG was smaller we spent a long time one day making her a progress chart or reward chart as a tool to encourage her to sleep in her bed rather than on the floor. It was a big success and we have subsequently introduced reward charts for good behaviour and so on for both girls as we have needed them. But they get tatty quite quickly from daily use so I have been looking for a better option. Wouldn't you know that Kiddy Charts … [Read more...]
The sun is out, let’s have a picnic.
This month's Tots 100 Center Parcs Challenge is all about picnics. We had family visiting from New Zealand over the Bank Holiday weekend, so took advantage of a break in the clouds to get out for a picnic at our local park. The thing about picnics is that they can be as simple or as complicated as you want: my Girls often have a carpet picnic for tea during the week- just sandwiches, crisps and fruit, for example, which takes little effort and … [Read more...]
