Tennis Crafts for Kids

It's been a record breaking year already at Wimbledon and the sun's out too - what a bonus!

Now's a perfect opportunity to add a tennis spin to one of your children's craft sessions.

Our tennis crafty bugs are ideal for both kids home and group craft sessions, packed in sets from one to 100 bugs.

We also have lots of other sporty themed crafty bugs for kids in our shop, plus our sunshine crafty bugs too.

Good Work in Ghana

This week, we thought we would share with you some crafty charitable news.

Crafty Capers were approached before Christmas by Andrea Ku, who was going to Ghana for a month over Christmas to help in a children's orphanage. She wanted to take some crafty items with her for the kids to make.

We were delighted to supply crown making supplies (even if they were worn upside down!) and gingerbread men bookmark kits for the kids to make and we understand from Andrea that these were a huge success and very popular with the kids.

The orphanage is in Bawjiase, the Central Region of Ghana. It was founded by a local Pastor and his wife who live there with the children. There are, on average, 35 children at the orphanage.

They are there for various reasons, such as their families are unable to support them, parents are very ill or have passed away or the children themselves were found in villages when they were very young.

The orphanage has no running water and the children sleep in 2 very crowded rooms which is not good if one of them is ill. Currently, the lease is about to expire on the land the orphanage is based so money is being raised to continue with a new building. This is almost half way through construction and is looking good so far!

Giving up her home comforts for Christmas and sponsoring herself to get there once wasn't enough for Andrea. She is just about to return to the same orphanage for another period to help again. This time though, Andrea is chaperoning four girls from a school in Liverpool who also want to help in the orphanage. They will be teaching the kids English and mathematics as well as creating and making things on a World Cup theme - there's no getting away from it!

How could we refuse a request to help again?

This time the kids will all be making a World Cup five a side football team in our crafty bugs, all in the colours of the Ghana team strip. Andrea's hoping to source (i.e. have donated!) some portable radios, so that the kids can listen to some of the matches, hoping that Ghana will still be in the tournament then. If you know anyone that could help with this before she leaves at the beginning of July, please email her at andreaku@hotmail.com

Obviously, they can't just have one team, so they will each also be making a five a side football team in the England colours as well!


In addition to the craft goods that we are donating, Andrea would also be delighted to receive any additional craft kits and supplies as they are going to endeavour to set up a craft station in the orphanage for future use. If you would like to help you can either contact us at info@craftycapers.co.uk or Andrea at the email address above.

We hope that you will agree that this is a really worthwhile venture and a really direct way to make a difference to the quality of these kids lives.


· Orphanage website: http://www.ghanaorphanage.org/
· Contact: Andrea Ku andreaku@hotmail.com
· Blog: www.offexploring.com/andreaku (it has the details of Andrea's trip from last year)

Pipe Cleaners for Kids Crafts

At littlecraftybugs we sell a huge range of pipe cleaners for crafts in single colour and mixed colour packs.

Available in pack sizes of all sizes, including bulk packs, you are sure to find what you are looking for.

Mixed Colour Pipe Cleaner Packs

Single Colour Pipe Cleaner Packs

Bulk Pipe Cleaners

Tinsel Pipe Cleaners

Extra Long Pipe Cleaners


What can I make with pipe cleaners?

No matter whether you call them pipecleaners, tinsel stems or chenille sticks, they are the same thing really and can be used in so many different ways in the world of kids crafts.

We have given a few ideas below on how you can use pipecleaners for children's crafts - imagination and creativity are probably the only limits in pipecleaner crafting!


Wobbly Pencils

Give a child some pencils, pipecleaners, pom poms and wobbly eyes together with some craft foam or card and they can have a bumper crafting session.

To start these crafts, we would suggest that you wind a small amount of double sided tape in a spiral at the top of the pencil and then, after peeling off the tape backing, you then wind the pipecleaner over the tape.

Keep the pipecleaner spiral tight and leave a section overhanging the ends if it can be used in the decoration, as in the examples above. The decoration will then wobble on top of the pencil when being used.

See below for the best glue.


Alien Monsters

Giving kids a pile of craft supplies and expecting them to create something can have varying degrees of success.

Why not choose some supplies that you know will work together to make a model on a theme. In this example we have made an alien monster using a selection of neon pipe cleaners and pom poms, which you could add wobbly eyes and craft foam to.

This makes a great craft party idea and is also perfect as a team building activity.

As with all pipecleaner activities, you need to choose the right glue - see below. This will particularly apply where you want to attach pipecleaners to other things. A top tip here is to rest it on a flat surface whilst a tacky PVA gets a firm grip.

Pipecleaners for Christmas, Easter & Halloween

Every kids craft season comes with it's own colour themes, which is reflected in our range of pipecleaners for Easter, Christmas and Halloween.

The traditional colours of yellow and white for Easter, red, green and white for Christmas and black, orange and purple for Halloween do not need to be the only colours you use in these seasons.

The Christmas reindeer bug above is made using brown pipecleaners but you could also use gold. Similarly, green pipecleaners are great for Easter or Spring themed crafts, making excellent flower stalks.

Hairy & Loopy Pipecleaners!

Loop pipecleaners, where the chenille is looped on the wired centre, rather than cut at the ends, come in a great selection of colours and can be used for hair on puppets, pom poms, monsters and much more.

If you're making people or animals, choose the natural coloured ones, otherwise choose bright or tinsel for monsters etc.

Peg Dolls

When making peg dolls, you will obviously need the wooden pegs and possibly stands. We also use tulle nets, cutting a hole in the centre to thread the peg through) and ribbons.

In addition, you will need natural coloured pipecleaners for the arms. The chenille stems can be used to help secure the dress in place under the ribbon if you wrap it tightly.

Take a look at all of our peg doll kits and supplies at the littlecraftybugs company.


Something More Complex

As with all kids crafts, you can make pipecleaner craft ideas as simple or as complex as you like.

Taking a simple idea like wrapping pencils with pipecleaners and adding foam, eyes and pom poms can result in some very basic finished crafts or can be more detailed, as the giraffe topped pencil above.


What glue should I use with pipecleaners?

The difficulty with sticking pipecleaners to other pipecleaners or anything else is that sometimes they have a mind of their own.

Pipecleaners themselves can be joined by twistng them together. However, kids normally want to add other bits and pieces as well.

To best stick chenille and tinsel stems we would always recommend a high tack or fast tack glue.

Our popular tacky glue is perfect for this job as it is immediately more tacky than normal PVA and will have a good strong bond within 10/15 minutes.

Browse by pipe cleaner colour

Beige pipe cleaners
Black pipe cleaners
Blue pipe cleaners
Brown pipe cleaners
Gold pipe cleaners
Green pipe cleaners
Grey pipe cleaners
Mixed pipe cleaners
Neon pipe cleaners
Orange pipe cleaners
Pink pipe cleaners
Purple pipe cleaners
Rainbow pipe cleaners
Red pipe cleaners
Silver pipe cleaners
White pipe cleaners
Yellow pipe cleaners

Rocker Crafts for Kids & Adults Too

We have some new rocker crafts to our shop this week, these all rock to and fro when assembled in the style of a rocking horse.

These are in two styles, the first are designed for adults and older kids to make.

Younger kids could make these but would need supervision.

All of the parts in these are die-cut, so no scissors are required.


We have also added some crafty rocker bugs to our shop, packed for children's group craft sessions.

These are based on our very popular and exclusive crafty bugs.

These can be used as name cards, crafts to make and give or just as part of a children's themed craft session or party.

Please view our range of rocker craft kits.

Decorating Flower Pots for Kids

The Basics

It may surprise you to know that the foam stickers we sell will withstand the elements, including rain and snow - all the usual Summer weather we enjoy in the UK! Although the stickers may fade over a few seasons, they do not lose their adhesion and they really do fare very well.

They are great for kids to take home and plant up or to give to Mum or Nan as a gift.....

If you use pots without holes in the base, they make lovely containers for indoor plants as well, or perhaps even as a pencil pot.

Don't Forget the Boys!

Pot decorating isn't just for girls......

As you will see from the example above, the pots can also be embellished with boys themed stickers - great for getting boys involved in crafting and gardening at the same time...

For more detail, why not also use some foam sticker sheets? The crafters can cut these up to add further embellishments, such as the grass on the football pot above.

They are also great for a completely freestyle design for more creative and capable crafters.

Foam Letters
Pots can be personalised with foam letter stickers, which are also available in our shop in both tubs and packets. Make sure you get enough so that everyone can spell their names though....

Just in case you do have a shortfall of letters, you could have a back-up of sticky foam sheets.

New Kids Craft Kits & Supplies

Wild Animal Crafty Bug Kits

Our unique crafty bug kits are extremely popular and our range is continually growing.

We have added three new crafty bugs kits on a wild animal theme this week, which are a lion, tiger and zebra.

All of these bugs available in pack sizes ranging from one kit to 100 kits, for home and group craft sessions.

CRAFTY BUG SHOP


Packs of 25 White Card Shapes - Great Selection

We have introduced some great new white card shape packs to our shop this week.

These packs have 25 shapes in each and come in a range of mixed and single design packs.

Great for decorating with pens and craft supplies from your craft box.

WHITE CARD SHAPES

COLOUR & DECORATE CRAFTS


PVC Printed Aprons, Tabards & Matching Bags

These aprons and tabards will be great for craft, painting and kitchen use.

The range is supported by some lovely matching kit and tote bags, which would make a great gift filled with some goodies.

KIDS APRONS
Split Pins - Back in Stock

Apologies to our regular split-pin shoppers that we had sold out of these. However, they are now back in stock and are available in standard packs and a bulk tub.

Perfect for puppet based craft projects, as well as game spinners and much more.

SPLIT PINS


Father's Day Crafts

Our Father's Day range has increased this week with these "Dad" shaped cards.

Packed in sets of 24, they are perfect for group craft sessions.

FATHERS DAY CRAFTS



Super 6mm Thick Foam Sheets

Normal craft foam is 2mm thick but some craft projects demand a thicker foam. Following many requests, we have now included a range of 6mm foam sheets in the most popular craft foam colours.

SUPER THICK FOAM

Children's Craft Collections £19.99 or Less - Saving up to £22.96

Have you seen our great range of children's starter craft collections, all at £19.99 or less?

The savings on these boxes is up to £22.96 - great value for new crafters and those looking to add to their kids craft supplies.

These sets do not include any expensive throw away packaging so you are paying for kids craft supplies only.

Please visit our shop to view these.

Craft Pom Poms & Pipe Cleaners

Did you know that we sell a massive range of craft pom poms and pipecleaners?

Acrylic pom poms and chenille pipecleaners have so many uses in the world of children's crafts and for adult craft projects too.

Our shop sorts these by colour, style, size and season for you, to make browsing and choosing easier.

As always, if you don't see what you are looking for, please let us know.

Which Glue?

We recommend using a tacky glue for pom poms and pipecleaners.

Normal PVA doesn't really dry fast enough when sticking these acrylic items together but a tacky version of this is perfect for the job. It will be very tacky from the outset and will have a very firm bond within 10/15 minutes.

This is the glue we recommend for our huge range of exclusive crafty bug making kits, as well as more general craft activities for both adults and kids.

It's our best seller, which must speak for itself!

Butterfly Themed Crafts for Adults & Kids

Back in Stock - Butterfly Flower Pot Wobblers

Apologies to our regular buyers of these wobbly butterflies, as these have been out of stock.

The butterflies have now fluttered back into stock and are now available in craft packs for 30 or 100 kids.

Please CLICK HERE to view these.


Butterfly Themed Crafts - Huge Range

We probably have the largest range of kids themed crafts available anywhere.

One of our most popular ranges over the Spring and Summer seasons is always butterflies, as a result you will find a huge range of these in our themed craft shop, most of these are exclusive to us.

Please CLICK HERE to view our butterfly themed range.


Butterfly Themed Crafts for Adults

Of course, butterfly themed crafts aren't just for kids!

Please CLICK HERE to view these.

St Georges Day Crafts - It's All Red & White!

St. George's Day - 23 April 2010

Whilst we're all still surrounded by Easter bunnies and remembering the relevance of Easter, St Georges Day is just around the corner.

St. George, who is the patron saint of England, had as his emblem the red cross on a white background. It is this emblem that was adopted by Richard the Lion Heart, which was brought to England in the 12th century. The king's soldiers then wore it on their tunics in battle to avoid confusion.

The St George's cross is now the English flag and also forms part of the Union flag.

Now we use the St George's emblem, which signifies St George's Day, as the basis of the majority of children's craft activities and adult patriotic English craft projects.

St George is also the patron saint of other countries, as well as being the patron saint of many groups including scouts and soldiers.

St George's Day is a time when the attention of many kids groups in England turn their attention to themed crafts.

We offer a great range of kits, many unique to us. To view these, please CLICK HERE.


The Patron Saints Calendar

Wales - St. David's Day ~ 1 March
Northern Ireland - St. Patrick's Day ~ 17 March
England - St George's Day ~ 23 April
Scotland - St Andrew's Day ~ 30 November