Season of Light - Making Candles

Recently, A Toy Garden sent us a candle-making kit to review. The girls were so excited when they heard we were going to make candles to decorate the Thanksgiving table.

Multicolored Beeswax Candle Making Kit ($19.95)

After my little "we can only have fun if we listen" speech, I handed each girl a sheet of beeswax.

"This is going to turn into a candle?!?"

Linnea smelled hers....mmmmm....beeswax. There's just a touch of honey scent.

I showed them how to roll the wax.  Our house is chilly, so we warmed the sheet with a hair dryer first.

Look how careful Arielle is.

Linnea is all done.

"Look, Mom!" She was so proud.  This is a great project for preschoolers like Linnea who like quick results.

Arielle was still working.



 

A Toy Garden also sent Stockmar Wax Sheets ($31.95)

We used small cookie cutters to cut out leaves and other shapes.

 

 We just wrapped them around the candles and pressed them on.

 

Beautiful!!!

The girls got lots of compliments on their hard work.

This is a great holiday craft.  You could make it a family tradition.  I think we will. The candle making kit is also available in Christmas or Hannukah colors (make your own Hannukah candles - cool!) and in natural beeswax.

And, check out A Toy Garden for stuffing stuffers and unique holiday decor. Arielle loves the child-sizes cardinal wreath ($14.95) that decorates her door.

Thank you, A Toy Garden! This was a super fun review.  We'll definitely do this again.





We Love Stubby Pencil Studio and a Holiday Coupon Code!!!

Not only has Stubby Pencil Studio donated an awesome arts and crafts gift bag for our auction on December 1-7, but they have a most amazing selection of eco-friendly school supplies and art supplies that are guaranteed to make even any little student feel a little better about going back to school after the holidays.

I don't know about your children's school, but Arielle's school had a very specific supply list and I was a little disappointed that I couldn't make everything as eco-friendly as I would have liked. But, I did what I could.

Arielle took KUM Correc-Brick Erasers ($2.50) and Wildlife Colored Pencils ($7.95) to school. I put a small recycled paper notebook in her backpack, so I could write her little notes to look at while she's at school.

Birds Aqua Notebook ($4.50)

Linnea doesn't need school supplies, but she loves the little mushroom erasers.

Mushroom Pot Erasers ($3.95)

She calls them "Mushroom Babies" and can spend hours taking care of them or carrying them around in a little purse ($6.00).

This year, Linnea is spending two mornings a week at a neighborhood preschool. The other three mornings, I give her "work" to do while I try to get my own work done. Sometimes her "work" is drawing and sometimes it is about learning. She learns a letter a week at school, so I always write out the letter and let her decorate it with something apropriate - apple chunks for "A", buttons for "B", next week we'll make a "C" out of tiny cookies. She also decorates a letter with stickers.

She also loves to string beads. The wooden beads at Stubby Pencil Studio are safely colored using child-safe, water-based paints or natural oils. And painting is always a favorite - the triangular paint brushes ($7.95) make it so easy for Linnea to get paint exactly where she wants it.

I thought it was funny, but the staff at preschool is really impressed with Linnea's ability to color, draw and use scissors.  We've always had art supplies available to her (I have tables set up for art in both the kitchen and in my office), and I think that makes a difference.  Art isn't just an activity, but a part of our lives.

Crayon Rocks ($6.95)

I'm totally bragging, but here is her picture of five monkeys jumping on her bed. I love it!

If you are ready to get creating in an eco-friendly way, check out the all-natural art supplies at Stubby Pencil Studio  There are plenty of great stocking stuffers and party favors.

Sara's Toy Box readers may discount code STBSAVE10 to save 10% on purchases through 12/31/10. Happy holiday shopping!!!

Sarah!

Sorry that the Made By Me car disappointed. I guess how appropriate it is would depend on your child. Linnea has been making them for about a year. This picture is from last year when she was about 27 months old.

We love Mary's Soft Dough so much...

that we are reviewing it again!

We first reviewed Mary's Softdough in March 2008. Arielle was 3 1/2, and Linnea was 16 months old. We loved it then, and we love it now.

Normally, I mix dough myself. But, sometimes I'm busy or I don't want to do the dishes or I need an emergency gift or something fun to pull out right away.

Mary's Softdough is just as healthy and natural as dough I make myself. It has the perfect dough texture and it smells good.

It is made of flour, water, salt, cream of tartar, soybean oil, food coloring (all stuff we have at home) and sodium benzoate (a food preservative that keeps it from getting moldy so it can be used for up to a year). It comes in so many colors and scents and even with sparkles.

The Playful Pink Glitter Softdough is the favorite here.



Mary's Softdough is available in a big, 18 oz,. rainbow tub ($8.95), big single color tubs ($9.95), and small 4 oz. single color tubs ($3.35 plain, $3.95 for glow in the dark or scented).

Linnea just came up to me, "Mommy, I'm good! Can I do play dough? Pease pease pease pease?" Playing with dough is one of her favorite things. And, now that she doesn't eat the dough, it means she stays in one place for an hour or so... long enough for me to write this.

Linnea does mush colors together. This drives Arielle nuts. If this is a problem for your children, I suggest a big, single color tub.



Hard at work.








Masterpieces.





Terrapin Toys offers a Soft Dough Tool Set ($7.95) for extra fun. Like the dough, the tool set is made in the USA. The girls love the roller and cookie cutters. Check out the squirrels.



We also like to use small kitchen utensils (an old garlic press is awesome, as are plastic pizza cutters), cookie cutters, blunt tip scissors, tiny plastic figurines and dinosaurs, toothpicks, textured rollers and sometimes small hammers and golf tees for dough-play variations.



You can purchase the whole line of Mary's Softdough products directly from Terrapin Toys.

Carl and Me is having a competition

Carl & Me: Exceptional Toys For Boys is working with a retired carpenter in Georgia. He is employing a small team of workers from an economically disadvantaged area, and they are making handmade toys like this wooden car carrier which will be sold on the website.


Wooden Car Transporter JIMMY ($39.90)



The transporter is 17" long and comes with three removable cars.



The toys are are made of untreated, natural wood that is sanded smooth and can be decorated using paints, markers or food coloring. A playable art project!

As a way to introduce these handmade products, Carl & Me is sponsoring a competition. If you buy one of these car transporters and your child decorates it, send in a picture. Email the picture to karen@carlandme.com

Carl will pick the winner on January 15, 2010.

Linnea and Arielle got to try this out. Linnea could not wait, so she "borrowed" a purple marker and got to work.


Silly, Linnea. That's not what I planned.
I mixed up some food coloring with water to make a paint. Painting is always fun.


And, it requires a lot of concentration.


"What are you looking at?" Linnea likes to mix her colors.


Arielle likes to focus on details.


It's getting pretty...


Almost done!


Linnea invited her car out to lunch.


All done! After a fun morning, the girls had a fabulously colorful car transporter to add to their car collection. Watch out highway, here we come!

November Savings at Stubby Pencil Studio

Happy November from Stubby Pencil Studio. Until November 30th, they are offering 10% off with the code "HOL10". This code can be combined with our special code for free cards.

Stubby Pencil Studio was our Toy Store of the Year for 2008. I love their selection of eco-friendly art supplies perfect for gifts and stocking-stuffers. Here are a few suggestions.

Star Crayons ($8.95)

Made in the USA from recycled crayons. The National Crayon Recycling Program has prevented more than 45,000 pounds of old crayons from ending up in landfills. All crayons used must conform to ASTM D 4236 safety standards. I like the festive star shapes.

Do-it-yourself Kaleidoscope ($12.00)

This is an easy and fun rainy day project. We tried this last month. It is just challenging enough, and the result is a sturdy kaleidoscope that is fun to look through. Arielle and Linnea decorated their kaleidoscopes with Disney Princess stickers and count them as treasures.

Washable Markers($3.95)


Non-toxic, washable markers made in the USA with 25% recycled plastic. The packaging is 100% post-consumer recycled paper. These are the eco-friendliest markers around.

Finally, we have Calafant!

Calafant are paper toys. They come flat, and the pre-cut and pre-punched sturdy white cardboard pieces can be put together without glue and without scissors scissors. Then the child can use markers, paint, and other art supplies to decorate their creation. Eventually, the toy can be recycled.

Calafant is made in China and designed in Germany. It won the Toy Innovation Award in 2006 for creativity.

We tried out the Palace ($24.99).

The palace came in a big pink box.

"Ooooooooooooh! Whats that?"



"That's not a palace!"

No, those are the pre-cut pieces. The palace was a little challenging and required a mommy to help with assembly. It was definitely too much for a five year old, but I think an eight or nine year old could assemble it with only a little help.



Linnea checks out the pre-cut pieces.



Assembly in progress. The picture-based directions were a little confusing at times, but it was easy to figure out.



All done!



We decided to play first and decorate later. Our small dolls from were just the right size.






But, Linnea couldn't wait to decorate. Ooops! While we were cooking dinner, she got out her crayons and was very proud of the results.




Arielle was not happy. She wanted a real castle made of stones and sparkles. So the next day, I dug through the craft box for suitable materials. Color chips left from last years remodeling and anything sparkly. We cut out lots of stones.



Arielle glued stones to the castle.



Linnea got a very special job.



Lots of decorating...











... and they had a beautiful palace fit for all sorts of adventures.


The castle is for children three and up. It is sturdy for gentle play, but it did come apart (and was quickly reassembled) when Linnea got grabby and rough.

In the last few months, we've traveled a lot. I've had the challenge of keeping little girls occupied while spending hours in a hotel room without a lot of toys. I think a set of Calafant and a set of markers would have been a great solution. Smaller sets like the house ($6.99), farm ($14.99) or pirate ship ($14.99)are inexpensive (so you don't feel bad if you can't take them home) and will easily fit in a suitcase. Some sets even come with markers.

The girls had a wonderful time and worked together very nicely to create their masterpiece. It was a fun art project and a good learning experience. I think we'll do more during the long winter; what a perfect quiet project for a snow or sick day.

Thank you, Moolka!