Today we have a book that is sure to beat the boredom blues, when the kids are off from school and claiming there is nothing to do'. It's also great to incorporate into home-school curriculmns!
Synopsis: From sewn and stuffed musical instruments to interlocking paper building blocks and wooden animal figurines, the projects in this book are meant to encourage open-ended play. Organized by kid-loving subjects, the toys here follow the themes of Zoo; House; Blocks, Cars & Trucks; Dress-Up; Music; and Art. All are meant to stimulate imagination, build confidence through success and enjoyment, and enhance the bond between family and friends through the creation of unique, artistic handmade toys and crafts.The thirty-five projects in this book include a variety of crafts, from drawing to sewing and light woodworking. The toys are made out of repurposed materials like fabrics, wood, and paper--and invite opportunities for creative and imaginative play. Every project is easy to complete, made with accessible materials, and requires little time to make. The projects are simple enough that endless variation can come from the making of each, leaving enough room for you to make the item to suit your own personal interests.
About the Author: Joel was drawn to painting as a child, inspired by his grandmother, a painter herself. She taught him ideas about color and design, and eventually coached him on his earliest paintings. These childhood experiences lead him to pursue a B.A. in Fine Art and Philosophy. Becoming a parent was, for Joel, another way of looking at art in the world. As a young child himself, he made many of his own toys. As a father, he began making toys for his young twins.
He began to see that a beautiful, minimal, well-crafted object allowed his children to use and develop their own imaginations, rather than having an object tell them how they must play with it. Moved by his children's interaction with art, Joel began documenting these crafts on his blog, Made By Joel. Joel lives with his wife and three-year-old twins in Portland, Oregon. See more of his crafts at www.madebyjoel.com, and see more of his art at www.joelhenriques.com.
Review: With a clean, and simple format, this book presents wonderful projects with full-color photos and hand-drawn instructional illustrations and templates, making them all easy to make! As you can see from the drawing at right- even a young child can figure out how to make the finger puppets (pictured on the cover)!
Kiddo is entranced with the spool birds (wooden spools, tape or glue, construction paper, wire (we may use chenille stems instead) and feathers), so we'll be making a flock of them every time I finish a spool of thread while sewing- I am planning on putting a box shelf above my sewing machine and I think they will be a cute addition. Plus a wonderful memento of time spent with Kiddo (and a good tradition- my mother still has a small bird I made her!).
His instructions for musical instruments would be perfect for Vacation Bible Schools- they're easy and can be used repeatedly-perfect for using in your final day production if you have one! In fact, many of the projects can be completed in 15-20 minutes, making them perfect for hand-eye coordination training in a classroom!
For the items that require templates (if you want to use his dimensions), he includes them at the back of the book. This is a great touch, as not all of us can draw giraffes, for example! If you're interested in a cute playland of Paris , check out his recent blog post (in fact he has quite a few paper cities there- perfect for social studies themes!)! It will give you an example of the wonderful items in this book!
I would definitely recommend this book for all home-schoolers and parents who want to bring back the joy of home made toys to their kids! It will be released in October, so be sure to pre-order, or put it on your wishlist!
Disclosure: I receives this book, from the publisher, Shambhala , via NetGalley, free of charge, for blog review purposes. I received no other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post.Nor was I told what to say about the book!
About the Author: Joel was drawn to painting as a child, inspired by his grandmother, a painter herself. She taught him ideas about color and design, and eventually coached him on his earliest paintings. These childhood experiences lead him to pursue a B.A. in Fine Art and Philosophy. Becoming a parent was, for Joel, another way of looking at art in the world. As a young child himself, he made many of his own toys. As a father, he began making toys for his young twins.
He began to see that a beautiful, minimal, well-crafted object allowed his children to use and develop their own imaginations, rather than having an object tell them how they must play with it. Moved by his children's interaction with art, Joel began documenting these crafts on his blog, Made By Joel. Joel lives with his wife and three-year-old twins in Portland, Oregon. See more of his crafts at www.madebyjoel.com, and see more of his art at www.joelhenriques.com.
Review: With a clean, and simple format, this book presents wonderful projects with full-color photos and hand-drawn instructional illustrations and templates, making them all easy to make! As you can see from the drawing at right- even a young child can figure out how to make the finger puppets (pictured on the cover)!
Kiddo is entranced with the spool birds (wooden spools, tape or glue, construction paper, wire (we may use chenille stems instead) and feathers), so we'll be making a flock of them every time I finish a spool of thread while sewing- I am planning on putting a box shelf above my sewing machine and I think they will be a cute addition. Plus a wonderful memento of time spent with Kiddo (and a good tradition- my mother still has a small bird I made her!).His instructions for musical instruments would be perfect for Vacation Bible Schools- they're easy and can be used repeatedly-perfect for using in your final day production if you have one! In fact, many of the projects can be completed in 15-20 minutes, making them perfect for hand-eye coordination training in a classroom!
For the items that require templates (if you want to use his dimensions), he includes them at the back of the book. This is a great touch, as not all of us can draw giraffes, for example! If you're interested in a cute playland of Paris , check out his recent blog post (in fact he has quite a few paper cities there- perfect for social studies themes!)! It will give you an example of the wonderful items in this book!
I would definitely recommend this book for all home-schoolers and parents who want to bring back the joy of home made toys to their kids! It will be released in October, so be sure to pre-order, or put it on your wishlist!
Disclosure: I receives this book, from the publisher, Shambhala , via NetGalley, free of charge, for blog review purposes. I received no other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post.Nor was I told what to say about the book!
I'm always looking for new ideas for craft weekends here! I think this one will go on my to-buy list! Thanks for the review!
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