Little
white daisies cut out of craft foam, braid etc
Tulip
shapes from craft foam
Easter
egg shapes from craft foam
Yellow
or lime green gingham ribbons
Rickrack
braid in spring colours
Strips
of fake grass! (sometimes you can beg this from an old-fashioned
greengrocer)
For summer
Ribbon
and rickrack braid in summer colours
Little
silk flowers in summer colours
Tiny
plastic toys
Bright
foam shapes – create some yellow smiley faces with black pen,
perhaps, or cut out some ice-cream cones
Corks
(an adult can cut these in half length-wise if preferred)
Driftwood
Shells
Sand
(stick on thickly like glitter, perhaps in two layers)
Strips
of cork cut from a cork floor tile
For autumn
Autumn
leaves
Conkers
Orange
and yellow rickrack braid
Tiny
pine cones or acorns or nuts (brazil nuts work well)
For winter
Cotton
wool
Silver
glitter and sequins
White
pearly buttons
White
feather edging (from craft shops)
White
snowflake shapes cut from paper doilies (you may want to put down an
edging of dark blue paper or fun foam first
General
Buttons
Small
fabric squares cut out with pinking shears for a patchwork effect
Jelly
beans in bright colours (warn children not to try to eat them once
they have been stuck on!)
Bright
paper shapes (you can buy these pre-cut or make your own)
Squares,
rectangles and triangles cut out of fun foam or felt
Feather
edging (be careful: lots of people have allergies to feathers!)
Mini
pompoms (this one is not cheap but children love it!)
Bright
stickers
Bottle
tops
Beads
and sequins
Tiny
toys (fast food toys, small plastic animals or insects). You may be
able to pick up a complete “dolls house” set or farm set in a
dollar store
Pretend
coins (or loose change!)
Pasta
pieces – leave them plain or paint them first for even more fun!
Golf
tees
Corks
Lolly
sticks – plain or colored
Nuts
and bolts, washers or raw plugs, scraps of electrical wire – or a mélange
of tool-box scraps!
Old
jigsaw pieces
Counters
or gambling chips
Dice
(again not a cheap option, but great fun)
Plastic
straws
Plastic
picnic cutlery
Mosaic
tiles (start in the centre of the row and work out)
Old
teaspoons
Stamps
Pipe-cleaners
(stick them on straight or coil them into shapes first)
Paper
cut-outs – from gift wrap, magazines, old cards etc (or have a look
at our scrapbook paper page for ideas)
Pieces
of coloured raffia
String
– all sorts of possibilities here!
Sewing
supplies – scraps of braid or ribbon, a thimble, safety pins, part
of an old cloth tape measure (or find a little sewing set cheaply in a
dollar store)
Bits
of scourers, sponge cloths and dishwashing cloths – fun for the
kitchen or to make a hard-working mummy smile
Bright
plastic clothes pegs
Cheap
toothbrushes or combs!
Old
coloring pencils or brand new crayons. This looks very cheerful and is
especially good for framing artwork
Office
supplies – rubber bands, paper clips, pencils, a pencil sharpener
Old
game pieces – perhaps scrabble, mahjong or bingo pieces from an
ancient set, or one found in a junk shop or charity shop. This is very
effective.
Children’s
magnetic letters
Strips
of corrugated paper or card
Valentines Day, or for those you love!
Small
red or pink hearts – wooden or cardboard shapes, or stickers
“Loveheart”
sweets
Heart
buttons and beads
Red
or pink ribbons and bows
Pink
or red feather edging
Birthdays
Birthday cake
candles
Mosaic-sized
pieces of old birthday cards
Small boxes
wrapped as presents
Cut-outs from gift
wrap
Birthday ribbons
Small brightly-coloured
balloons (not inflated!)
Balloon shapes cut
out of craft foam
Any of the above
with an “it’s my birthday!” badge in one corner
China Crafts
We have some wonderful new craft ideas - everything from a pretty Chinese fan
to some Terracotta Warriors and Chinese dragons of all sorts!
