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It’s not difficult to create your own dried flowers. The best time to pick them is in the morning, but be sure any condensation from the night before has had time to evaporate in the sun.

The best flowers for this purpose are fully open, past the bud stage. Long stems are the best.

You can bundle them together by their stems, tying them with string or a twisty tie from a bread bag. Hang them upside down in a place that’s dry, like an attic. They shouldn’t be in direct sun or the colors will fade sooner.

When they’ve completely dried, put them in attractive vases all around the house. A mantle or shelf is an especially nice location to display your natural creation!

You can make your own necklace from melon seeds! It isn’t hard; all you have to do is wash the seeds you get from a watermelon or cantaloupe then string them using a waxy thread like dental floss.

It works best when the melon seeds are damp because it’s way easier to pierce them with the needle.

String them up then hang them to dry. This would be a great project during the summer to get a jump on some home-made holiday gifts! Inexpensive gifts , especially when crafted from the heart are fun to receive.

It’s not too difficult to learn some basic embroidery stitches from a book. Most kids over the age of 8 or 9 have the dexterity to hold a needle and run it through cloth in a few basic stitch types.

Sewing by hand is a handy skill to have anyway. And once the basics are down, you can create some masterpieces in thread! Embroidery thread comes in a rainbow of colors; it’s relatively inexpensive and not too hard to come by.

Purchase some muslin and an embroidery hoop- these are indispensable. Draw something in pencil on your muslin- a tree, a house, a pet or anything you want- even a simple design. Now outline your work with some simple stitches. You may end up with something worthy of framing! At the very least, you’ve created something on your own instead of following some other artist’s design.

Good Job!

If you have a stack of old magazines, particularly interesting and colorful magazines like National Geographic, make use of them. Even a fairly young child can cut out photographs and make a collage.

Use non-toxic glue and be sure and pick a place to work that you aren’t worried about getting a little cluttered and “gluey”. Encourage your young artist to be super creative!

This could be a fun thing to do on a rainy day, or anytime when you want to do something a little different with a child. And it can be fun for you too! It’s a good way to experiment with colors and designs.

To me, nature is very inspiring. I can walk around the block and have all sorts of interesting thoughts that might lead to who knows what!

My personal opinion is that people spend way too much time in front of the television. Why watch other people live when you can start doing it yourself? Now I realize that the actors on a TV show are artists themselves. I’m just saying limit yourself a little bit!

After all, when you’ve reached a ripe old age, what will you be proudest of; how many episodes of American Idol you watched, or how many songs you sang yourself?

There are so many wonderful instructional books out there that teach how to make jewelry. One of my favorite things to make is earrings. They can be crafted from a million different things- even found objects like beach glass can make nice earrings.

If you have a craft shop near you, spend an afternoon looking around at all the things they have to offer the budding jeweler. You don’t have to be a silver or goldsmith to make attractive earrings , either. All it takes is experimenting with different things and you might be able to launch a new career, who knows?

Kids naturally have a lot to say. Sometimes it’s hard for them to express their thoughts, but why not give them a journal as a gift and encourage them to write their thoughts down.

They could even illustrate it as they go along. What a wonderful thing this is to encourage their creativity! As a side benefit, when they grow up they’ll have a recording of what they were thinking about and interested in as a child.

One thing I would caution parents about is don’t read your child’s journal unless they’ve given you permission to. This contains their private thoughts and if you want your children to trust you, let those entries remain private!

I have a little cousin who just turned 8 last year. Every spring we celebrate my birthday with a big party (actually, our family has big parties for everyone) but this particular year I was thrilled with the gift given me by Theresa.

It was a painting she’d done of herself and her pet dog! It was quite beautiful and meant more to me than a diamond ring. I received other gifts of course- a new watch, a CD player and some books I’d been wanting to read.

But that lovely painting in blues and greens is hanging in my bedroom and it gives me pleasure whenever it crosses my line of vision.

I wish everyone would make gifts to give to their loved ones. There’s nothing in the world like creating and giving something made by hand.

I think so! Probably the only reason everyone is not creating something is because they’ve been told they can’t.

Well, how about telling yourself that you can? You can simply change your mind and start making something, anything. Try writing a poem. There is so much inspiration all around, even in your everyday life to draw from.

Have you noticed how children are so naturally creative? Their drawings are a riot of color and fun. They aren’t worried about impressing anyone, at least not at first. Why not recapture that joy for yourself? Creation is a gift to yourself and the world and people around you.

Isn’t it great when people feel creative and make things that totally express themselves? When children are encouraged to fulfill themselves by being creative it really leads to a better world, starting with themselves, their families and spreading into the community.

Some children enjoy working with molds to make little 3-D shapes, animals or people. Others prefer activities with paper and cloth for their craft fun.

Taking a child to an art museum to appreciate the work of great artists is a wonderful way to get them started on the road to creation. It’s always good to start by having someone observe and appreciate art that is truly great.

It’s amazing how artistic children are naturally. If you hand a young child a piece of paper and some crayons, chances are he or she will come up with something astonishingly beautiful without any pushing.

Jewelry making can start with something as simple as a piece of strong yarn or string and some wooden beads. You never know where this early encouragement will end up!