When Willow asked for a clown wig, however, I was stymied.

Post-Halloween, I can’t thing of a single brick-and-mortar store within driving distance that would stock clown wigs. And even pre-Halloween, I sincerely doubt that I would have paid full price for a brand-new acryclic/polyester clown wig, anyway.

It took me AGES to think up how to make a clown wig from materials I already own, some of it trash. However, since then I’ve been called upon to make several more, each with some further distinguishing feature (make this one all pink, Momma! Give this one girl hair!), so much so that I am now an expert at making yarn wigs from trash.

Feel free to piggyback on top of my expertise below:

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You have the sleeves, for one thing, and the shoulder and neckline that connects those sleeves.

And that, my friends, is exactly what you need to make that nice kid a nice pair of matching leggings to go with her skirt or her diaper covers.

This tutorial utilizes the crotch curve line from a pair of your kid’s own well-fitting pants–using that curve, and applying your kid’s waist and length measurements, you can create a warm, comfy, nicely-fitting pair of leggings that would go well layered with anything else in your winter wardrobe.

Here’s how:

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For my younger daughter, Sydney, who is as roughneck as any little kid but who adores skirts and dresses, this lack came about with the chill autumn breeze, when I realized that she didn’t have any skirts or dresses that were made for cool weather.

Fortunately, if there’s one thing that I have a shameful stash of, it’s vintage or thrifted fabric and clothing for reconstrution.

Sweaters are so nice and soft and comfy, why on earth should they be worn only on one’s top half? I often felt wool sweaters that I thrift or am given to make everything from stockings to stuffies, but for the sweaters that are especially beautiful or especially soft (mmm, vintage cashmere), I have a special use—if they’re big enough, and while my girls are small enough, I make skirts for my girls out of the sweater torsos.

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For that reason, kids’ clothes are very well-suited for sewing with recycled materials. I’ve sewed smocked sundresses for my girls out of pillowcases, a pants and kimono shirt outfit for a newborn out of one blouse, two sturdy diaper covers out of a felted wool sweater.

I was afraid of sewing from a pattern when I was a novice seamster, ironically, but now that I sew well, I enjoy using patterns to create more complicated clothing with attractive detailing and sophisticated elements. And so, although they’re pricey, I do buy some of the children’s clothing patterns from Oliver + S each season.

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Unlike the sawdust dough, the sand dough, and even the oil dough, the cornstarch dough uses no flour, but instead calls for cornstarch and salt. This makes a good play dough for someone who might be sensitive to most flours, or perhaps to use up some more of that cornstarch that I keep making you buy for other art supply recipes.

Unlike the other dough recipes that I’ve shared, as well, this dough does require cooking over low heat, which actually most play dough recipes do require. It’s just something to be aware of when you have little helpers on hand.

You will need:

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You can make play dough a gazillion kabillion six million ways. Trust me—I have made play dough from laundry lint, and thusly I know my stuff.

As the packrat/eccentric lady/aficionado of bizarre craft projects and art experiences, I am the designated inheritor of a myriad of passed-down recipes for homemade art materials from both sides of my family. And having two little girls with a lot of time on their hands and a love for anything messy and hands-on, we have taken it as a project to make pretty much every recipe at one time or another. For my next few posts, I’ll be sharing with your our favorite and most unusual of the recipes we’ve collected.

First up: Do you have any sawdust?

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I could tell you all the educational reasons for making soap crayons—children’s learning should be experiential, experience with art should be as varied as possible, following a recipe utilizes math concepts, making something that you can use builds self-confidence and self-sufficiency, having a brand-new experience along with an adult adds adventure and models coping—but the truth is just that soap crayons are fun. You’re in the bath, so you’re supposed to be getting clean, but you’re drawing! With color! But the crayons, they’re soap! So you’re still getting clean!

Who would not have fun attempting to wrap their head around that?

To make soap crayons, you will need:

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Often when my daughters were very, very young, and even now that they’re older as a special treat, I like to set them up to fingerpaint in the bathtub. It’s certainly an art activity that’s more about the process than the product, since the fun is in smearing around and mixing and getting oneself all paint-y and colorful. And when they’re done painting, there’s more fun involved in using the handheld shower nozzle to give everything a good rinse before settling down for a nice bath.

To make clean-up just that much easier, or just to provide a different sensory experience or have a fun time following a recipe, you can also try making your own fingerpaints from soap. 

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How amenable is the book to using (or how easy are the instructions to modify to include) natural or recycled materials?

How appropriate is the book’s sizing for my body, if it includes adult clothing projects (I have a 42″ chest, a 36″ waist, and I’m 5′2″)?

How reader-friendly are the instructions (I have at least the basic skills for any craft, with my best skills being in sewing, probably, but since I’m self-taught in everything there are often huge gaps in my knowledge)?

Here, then, based on those criteria, is my review of Weekend Sewing, by Heather Ross:

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I’ve seen a tutorial or two for reverse appliqué, and one of the best things, that everybody always mentions, is how terrific reverse appliqué is for repairing small stains or holes in clothes. Unlike traditional applique, which puts the applique material on top of the article of clothing, reverse applique puts this material underneath, and the clothing on top of it is cut away. Applique, in all its design cuteness, works especially well for children’s clothes, I think—I’m kind of butch, so I’m hesitant about putting a reverse appliquéd flower or heart or whatever into my own paint-stained jeans, but I’m totally fine about putting all that, and silhouettes of ponies or butterflies or dinosaurs or whatever, into my girls’ clothes.

The technique for putting a reverse appliqué into jersey or T-shirt material, however, is a little different from your run-of-the-mill reverse appliqué, and the technique for putting a reverse appliqué into a narrow piece of material, such as a sleeve or a pants leg or even a small child’s T-shirt, is trickier yet. Here, though, is exactly how to go about it:

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And then, my friends, I bought some big books of outdated upholstery fabric samples at my local thrift shop (its name, I swear to you, is Thrift Shop), and I have just been crafting the crap out of that stuff!

Birthday crowns, crayon rolls, scrapbooking embellishments, wall art, bookmarks–upholstery samples are the perfect size for any of these small projects, their paper backing renders them stiff and sturdy and less prone to fraying, their gorgeous patterns and textures give impact and personality to small-scale creations, and they’re sold in books of complementary fabrics and colors, allowing you to make a huge number of mitchy-matchy items.

Here are some tricks I’ve found for sewing specifically with upholstery samples–I swear, you’ll love it!

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Admittedly, I just love to sew for my kids, but even if you don’t, this method of lengthening your kiddo’s pants will give you months’ more service out of pants that are too short but still fit fine in the waist, and it really is quick and pretty easy. Of course, get ready to do it again in just a few months, because kids? They grow like weeds.

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One of my favorite places for sewing is Burdastyle, an open-source, copyright-free community of people who love to create and use sewing patterns. Out of their entire site, here are my favorite of their easy-peasy freesie patterns for kids:

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Dear Senator Lugar (I wrote each member individually, but Senator Lugar went first),

I’m a stay-at-home mom of two little girls, and in my free time I make hand-crafted toys  out of recycled and/or natural materials. I sell my work at craft fairs and online—my girls are able to be with me, playing happily, and the small amount of money I earn is one of the things that enables me to stay home with them.

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In my daughter’s Montessori classroom, the children are crafting shoebox busy boxes for the CASA children’s advocacy group. Each shoebox, which will also be decorated by the preschool children, will be filled with craft kits, books, and small toys. These shoeboxes will be given throughout the year to CASA advocates, who in turn will give the shoebox to the child for whom they are advocating, at their first meeting. The shoeboxes will serve as an icebreaker, provide cooperative activities to help adult and child bond, and relieve boredom for children who must sit through court trials and meetings on their behalf.

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So of course the news about a dye being used in temporary tattoos that is, you know, POISONOUS, scared the crap out of me, and got me thinking, as well.

What IS in your run-of-the-mill temporary tattoo, anyway?

Apparently, a legit temporary tattoo contains FDA-approved ingredients and must have its ingredients listed on its packaging. An illegitimate temporary tattoo, however–gee, I wonder how hard it would be to come across one of those? Hey, do you have a quarter for the vending machine?

Or, you can shortcut past the entire chain of manufacture and just make your own freakin’ tat.

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There’s a phenomenon in the blogging community that I like to refer to as The Artful Parent: in this blog, parenting and the booming DIY/handmade/arts and crafts movement interconnect. Both activities are discussed in equal measures, although the real emphasis is more, perhaps, on the status of both parenting and crafting as meaningful (if usually unpaid) work, the lessons that can be taught to and learned from children while crafting for and with them, and how creativity and inspiration are rewarding mindsets that can be taken from and brought to both parenting and crafting.

Most of these blogs also share a focus on the handmade over the store-bought; the use of natural, found, and/or recycled materials over brand-new and/or synthetic ones; and the act of parenting as a gentle, positive, attached life’s work. Here are a few of my favorites of these blogs:

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In many parts of our world, my fragile baby would have been born and then would have died for lack of necessary medical care; in one part of the world, you and I as crafters can help these babies live.

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You will need: one piece of 8.5″x11″ cardstock (here’s an example), new or recycled from a cereal box, old book, sturdy magazine cover, etc.; 5 pieces of 8.5″x11″ typing paper, new or scrap; needle and thread or sewing machine with a sturdy sharp needle installed

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