Cheap Kid Crafts

Let’s just get this out here from the get go.  I do not craft.  I will staple something together before I ever attempt to sew it {see :: Addy’s baby doll stroller}.  I do not have a craft room. I do not care about Modge Podge or glitter.  But I do have a toddler, and to be fair to her, from time to time I try to do as the Internet commands and get crafty.

It was a Sunday afternoon and the Texans played early.  This meant that when YaYa {my mom} brought Addy back home, we would have some time to kill before it was bedtime.  “This is it!  This is time to be crafty,” I thought.  I really wanted to go to one of those paint your own pottery things.  Problem with that was that it was Sunday, so they close early.  And toddlers are temperamental and completely flaky.  So even if she came home smiling, by the time we got to pottery place I could have spent a lot of money for a plate with three speckles of paint.

Solution?  Mugs.  Total cost :: $5

Michael’s has these paint your own mug kits.  Comes with a little ceramic mug, a paint brush, and 4 pots of paint.  The mug?  $1.99.  I got two.  And a Dollar Store tablecloth to cover the floor.  I suppose if I had a craft room, I would have saved a dollar on the mat.  Pro Tip :: Michael’s ALWAYS has a 40% off coupon online so you could save a little more money.  You can just pull it up on your smart phone in line.

YaYa was gracious enough to stay and paint a mug with Addy.  So I put the mat out, set up the mugs, and grabbed the camera.

They both had a great time.  Addy was very into her mug painting, as was YaYa.  Addy was going for the “mix every color and cover every bit of surface” motif that’s all the toddler rage these days.

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After they were all done, you just pop the mugs in the over for 30 minutes. {Just don’t do it before dinner if you’ll need the oven!}

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It was the easiest thing ever.  No fighting with the kid to get into the car.  No paying ridiculous prices.  Clean up was incredibly easy because who cares if you toss out a $1 table cloth?!  Pro Tip :: Have YaYa give the kid a bath afterwards too.

I totally plan to go back and stock pile these things for when it gets cold…or rainy…or heaven forbid, the cable goes out.

What kind of crafts do you do with your kids?  Anything cheaper {and easier} than a $5 set of mugs?   Please give me all your secrets.

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Breonna B
Breonna was born and raised in Houston, Texas. She is recently married to Tyrone, a graphic designer. They currently reside on the West Side of this great city. A big fan of movies, books, photography, and Starbucks, she currently finds herself knee-deep in the throes of being a mommy to Addy {Feb 2011}. Breonna spends the typical 9-5 doing yadda yadda yadda at her job {yes, it’s that nondescript and uninteresting}. She started blogging as a way to do movie reviews, but that gave way to pregnancy blogging. She eventually landed her own space of the internet on BreWrites as well as on Twitter and Instagram {@brewrites} where she talks about everything from the sassiness of her child, to the most recent concert tickets she got her hands on, to the occasional piece of short fiction.

9 COMMENTS

  1. #1- your photos make me want to take a class
    #2- I wish I knew about these kits for Father’s Day
    #3- addy….I know we all know this, but the child needs an agent.

    • Thanks! Most of the photo tips I learned are from blogs anyway :). Plus if you just go ahead and get mugs now they’ll still be around for Father’s Day. or Grandparent’s Day or whatever other holiday people like kids crafts for.

  2. You are crafty, don’t sell your self short there friend. And holy moly that girl of yours. I am with Jessica, get that girl an agent! We will totally be doing this one soon. Stocking stuffers for the grandparents here we come!

  3. I am definitely grabbing a few of these next time I’m at Michaels. Can you tell us where in the store they are located? Thanks for sharing!

    • They’re on the aisle with all the Crayola goods at the Michael’s I went to (Westheimer and Eldridge) but I assume they’re all pretty much set up the same.

  4. I NEED to pick these up the next time I’m at the craft store! Hayes knows my mom loves to drink coffee, and he would get a kick out of making a special coffee cup just for her!!

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