Fun Ways to Celebrate National Craft Month with Your Little Sidekicks

 

The month of March brings with its arrival immeasurable joy for so many reasons. First of all, March 19^th marks the first day of the long-awaited Spring months. Secondly, it marks the end of the cold winter months that enveloped us for far too long in blankets of powdery white snow. Third, it marks the arrival of National Craft Month, with National Craft Day falling on March 14^th. What better way to spend National Craft Month than by participating in some fun, easy and simple craft ideas with the kids?

Kissy Kissy thought it would be a fun idea to explore what National Craft Month is, and give you some ideas regarding how you can best celebrate the month and National Craft Day with your little ones. Get your kids started with crafting, and find details on some of our favorite picks for kids crafts based upon age.

National Craft Month: A Brief History

In 1994, the National Craft & Hobby Association developed National Craft Month to spread crafting awareness and get more people involved in the beloved hobby of crafting. The term ‘crafting’ became commonplace amongst scrapbookers in the 1800’s, and since then, has evolved into a worldwide phenomenon that most women and children alike can’t deny.

Crafting Events in America

Many craft and hobby stores, such as Michael’s, JoAnn Fabrics, Hobby Lobby and the like have begun offering specialized crafting classes and free kids crafts for the month of March, and oftentimes have ongoing crafting classes available throughout the year.

Michael’s is probably your best bet for finding free and fun kid’s crafts and project events, which are usually held on Saturdays. You can check their classes website for more information, or give your local Michael’s store a call for more information. Another great place to look for craft inspiration on their website is their Projects page for kids. There are some fun project ideas, such as Felt Donuts, Troll Headbands and fun birthday craft ideas!

You can even attend an online webinar with Cratejoy, absolutely free of charge, and learn from some of  the best experts in the crafting business! There are incredible ideas presented at each webinar, and each will provide fresh inspiration for crafts with kids and other crafting ideas.

Another great place to look for craft inspiration for kids, is by finding local craft groups for kids in your local area by doing a quick Google search. You can also check with local churches as many of them offer craft groups for children and even women’s crafting and quilting groups. 

Places to Find Craft Inspo

Another great place to find craft inspiration is Pinterest. Pinterest has been around for a while now, since January of 2010, to be exact, and has become every woman in America’s go-to inspiration bible for all things cute, crafty, and DIY. There are thousands upon thousands of craft ideas for kids to be found on Pinterest, such as Forky from Toy Story,  Glow in the Dark Dino Lantern Lights, Tie Dye Shoes, and many, many more.

Another great place to find the best crafts for kids is YouTube. Youtube is chock full of ideas, video tutorials, fun family vlogs detailing the whole family getting in on the craft events, and more. You can find tutorials for just about any craft idea you want to make, from slime recipes, to cool soap hacks and crafts, to toddler crafts and much more.  Crafts are an integral part of a child’s learning process, while spending time with those they love and care about. It’s a precious time they enjoy immensely, but truth be told, it’s us parents and adults that truly embellish these moments onto our hearts.

Ideas for Crafts Based on Age

Crafts are only fun for kids if they meet the required age for each individual craft. Some of the most popular and trendy craft ideas are below, broken down by age.

Babies – 0-12 Months

Hand/Foot Impressions in Salt Dough

One of the best crafts for baby ideas comes in the form of a keepsake that mama can keep for years to come. We’re talking about a footprint or hand imprint, something mothers have been relishing for decades. This is so much fun to make, and you can create the medium to use for the footprint or handprint yourself or purchase a hand/footprint kit from your local craft store or WalMart. To make the salt dough for baby’s footprint, all you need is flour, salt, and water. You can find some pretty simple instructions to make this precious baby craft here.

DIY Sensory Projects

Another fun baby crafting idea is to create DIY Sensory Projects together. You can do this by taking things like Ziploc bags, shaving cream and small toys with various textures, and placing the shaving cream and toys into the bags, ensuring they are sealed well. Baby can feel the toys through the bag and have fun while doing so, and at the same time, learn all about various textures and develop fine motor skills. Total win!

Covered Finger Paintings

This craft is more for the babies in the 6-12 months old bracket. All you’ll need is a canvas, plastic wrap, and washable paint. Crayola makes some pretty great washable finger paints, and babies love squishing around in it as much as the toddlers, it seems! Give them some bright, beautiful colors to choose from, add some globs to the canvas, and wrap over the canvas with some sheets of loosely wrapped plastic wrap. Then, let baby sit next to the canvas and show them how to squish their hands around on top of the plastic and create their masterpiece! Once they’ve had enough, feel free to peel the plastic off slowly, let it dry, and hang it up in the family room as your newest piece of art!

 

Toddlers 1-3 Years Old

Bubble Soap

Bubble Soap is so much fun to make – and the best part is, you probably have everything you need to make it in your bathroom right now (save for the food coloring, which is hopefully found in the kitchen). Kids 1-3 love playing in the colorful ‘soap’ with their toys, such as cars and trucks for a car wash, or with Barbie dolls for a fun colorful ‘bubble pool’ experience! The sky’s the limit with this fun craft. You simply squirt some bubble bath or body wash into a bowl – roundabout, 2 parts bubble bath or body wash to 1-part water – and then add in food coloring a few drops at a time to make it extra fun. Whip it like you mean business, and when stiff peaks form, voila – you’ve got some uber fun bubble soap! Add it to a shoebox sized clear tote box for hours (okay, maybe an hour if you’re lucky) of fun play! You can even try hiding toys within the bubble soap for the smaller kids, who will get a real kick out of it. 

Painted Pasta Necklace

This one is fun for boys or girls – the color paint makes all the difference. Start off with some large Ziti or Rigatoni noodles and string. Break out those washable paints in various colors, paintbrushes and paper plates for easy cleanup. Place some pasta on each plate, paint in the center of the space with paintbrushes, and let the kids go to town painting each noodle to their liking. Then, allow them to dry (you might need to turn the noodles over to complete the drying process), and once dry, help the children string the noodles onto their string to make a necklace. Tie it, and viola – a cute, colorful pasta necklace the kids will love! 

Painted Flowerpots

With Spring upon us, we no doubt want to fill our homes and outdoor spaces with beautiful flowers and plants, lawn ornaments. This project will allow you to begin doing just that! Terra Cotta flowerpots are incredibly cost effective for this project. All you’ll need are the pots, paint and paintbrushes. Allow your toddler to paint whatever they choose on their pots and let them dry. Fill with potting soil, and plant flowers to attract butterflies, herbs or a beautiful long-lasting spider plant or ivy to add some greenery to your home.

 

Toddlers and Kids Age 4-6

Shoebox Farm Animals

A great way to repurpose those old carboard shoe boxes is to turn them into farm animals! Simply cover the box in construction paper pertinent to the specific animal you are trying to replicate – for instance, pink for a pig, yellow for a duckling, white for a chicken. Then, add googly eyes, beaks, snouts, and ears to each box also made from construction paper or pipe cleaners – whatever you can think to create with! It’s like spending a day on the farm, minus the mud and funny smells! Take turns making the farm noises for each animal to bring them to life. 

Sponge Stamps

Sponge Stamps are loads of fun too make, and they are a cheap way to create fun, colorful crafts together. Simply cut out shapes from sponges, which are also incredibly cheap at stores like the Dollar Store, and dip them in washable paint. Allow the kids to stamp patterns and shapes from the cutouts onto paper or cardboard to create fun pictures.

Tube Rockets

Ever wonder if you could use those toilet paper and paper towel roles for more than anything but pirate telescopes, or creating maracas or kaleidoscopes? Well, you’re in luck. Creating tube rockets is super easy and it’s a craft the older kids will enjoy! Simply cover the tubes with construction paper, and then use foam stickers to create swirls, planets, and stars on your rockets. Don’t forget to cover the top with a pointy type of cap, like the one seen here.

You don’t have to participate in crafts simply because it’s National Craft Month – in fact, we would love it if you made time all the time! You can make time every weekend or even once a month to sit and spend time with your little ones, relishing in these moments and breathing them in. Our little ones are only little for so long. Treasure that time with little things you can create together and keep forever. It’s the time spent in life that leaves the biggest impressions on our heart.