#30daysofreuse day 19 was so fun with a visit to Chaparral Elementary schools Green Club where we talked about the inspiration recycled materials provide and made these snappy little spinning tops from container lids.
Its #30daysofreuse day 18! We have to shout out to the students of Oakwood School who made awesome arthropods in a totally reuse minded way!
#30daysofreuse day 16 was great! What better way to be in the reuse spirit than giving kids the opportunity to be resourceful.
Give them just a few kinds of materials to work with and see what they create! Unstructured time is good for the mind, body and soul. Thanks to Madrona Elementary for having us!
Don’t dismiss the dishpan!
This simple container does way more than dishes. If you keep an open mind it contains; wonder, curiosity, freedom, play, discovery, order, assistance and inspiration because it can contain things that ignite those happenings. It’s tidy, easy to clean and very easy to use.
We use these bus bins at CReATE and LOVE them. We’ve seen first hand how many uses they can have. They are a great creative tool for the family home that suits a variety of needs and interests for babies ages 6 months (*under parent supervision) as in-the-tub wash up for little ones who sit up all the way to teens who want to make slime all the time!
We use them as “bus bins” for quick table clean-ups, they are our toddler hand washing and water play go stations, we mix slime in them, we make shredded paper-mache in them, this month we are making paper in them, we use them in our splatter room with water colors and we have mixed all kinds of creative combinations in them. They clean up easy, they are light weight and storable. At home you can put dry ingredients like rice in them for kitchen play while you cook, dolls can be bathed in them, chalk can get soaked in them for creamy sidewalk coloring and the possibilities go on. They are lightweight with built in handles so that even little ones can carry their toys in them. They are great for use inside and outside too.
As parents we are all always hearing about the new great things we have to get but, this is an old one that is tried and true. Add a Sterilite Dishpan to your parenting tool box. They run about $3 a tub and can be found in the kitchen section of stores like Target and Wallmart that carry Sterilite products. Once you have one you’ll wonder how you ever didn’t. I promise
* For more on water safety for kids of all ages visit https:/kidshealth.org.
Reminiscing over yesterday’s Messy Toddler Morning where the sweetness of the present moment unfolded with salt dough in the pasta maker, a little spray painting, a friendly chat and some bubble manufactur
ing.
#30daysofreuse day 13 on instagram @createstudio says reuse your old crayons for a different kind of color fun by melting them to make art!.
This is a great idea for old crayons that just don’t have pizzaz anymore. Try gluing them whole or in bits to a canvas (we used hot glue) in different patterns, then use a blow dryer to melt them in their place. The results are sure to be wow worthy!
#30daysofreuse day 8 says, save the other sock!
There are a few ideas here so stay with me, it circles around.
If your pair becomes separated, no matter, make it into a new friend. This is a great creating at home idea for kids and families using minimal materials with a big emphasis on reuse and new possibilities.
Keep it simple. Take the lone sock and draw a look of some sort on it with a marker to make a puppet. Stuff it with waded paper, cotton balls or another lonely sock to make it into a 3D character. When finished, make it a family affair, put on a puppet style show with the new character.
The inspiration for this post was sparked by a conversation with the Girls Scout Daisy who made this sock pup today. She was inspired by a sock puppy she saw in the studio and wanted to make her own. We talked about how she may have lone socks at home that could become sock friends. She could even use just paper to stuff them. She told me that her dad had throw away socks she could use and the imaginings of what was possible with just a sock started to turn, fast. We talked about puppet shows and characters and the wonders that now existed with just a plain sock.
Daisy Girl Scouts were visiting the studio to work on the “Reusing Resources Wisely” patch today where they learned about making any number of things from a Kleenex box. The next natural step was to explore materials that inspired them and that’s where this sock-friend was born. Our conversation and the Ah-Ha moment that was heard about lone socks was just what the Girl Scout Motto sought to inspire, “use resources wisely”.
My conversation with my Daisy friend made me think that this is the path to Sustainability. As Henry David Thoreau said in part, “Nothing in nature is exhausted in it’s first use”. Just because a sock set becomes one, it should not become none. The lone sock is an inspiration to young Daisy’s and to funny comedians like Seinfeld- have you seen his latest stand-up special, Jerry Before Seinfeld on Netflix? I was dying about the lone sock in the dryer!
However you slice it, just because a sock is single doesn’t mean it should be banished. Rethinking the sock is a step toward sustainability, a step toward rethinking what we already have, that is where sustainability lyes in our consumer era. Use stuff a few times before you let it go but, don’t throw it away, pass it on to a donation center or CReATE or recycle it. Thoreau will thank you and so will I. Maybe Seinfeld will too 🙂
Hurray for recycled style and community service. Our Recycled Fashion Show was a success today, a Win/Win for all!
It’s almost here!
Come see our Recycled Fashion Show tomorrow at 2pm.
Eco is the word!
Nothing like good ol’ fashioned finger painting. Children seem so in tune with their senses and being in the now.