eco crafts for kids

diy toilet roll knitting nancys

It's school holiday time here and soon to be down south too! With 5 nieces under 10 "Aunty Crafty" likes to be prepared in case a crafternoon is in order! I picked out a few of my favourite projects, the projects that I know I will have things lying around the house to pull them off at a moment's notice (and that I know the girls will think are "cool").

 

 diy toilet roll knitting nancys

I almost bought some knitting nancys recently for the girls and now that I've seen these awesome diy toilet roll ones I'm so glad I didn't! My Material Life has some great resources for how to make them, how to use them and what to do with your knitted 'sock'. Start at this post and work your way through the links.

 

weaving with a cardboard loom

Weaving is trending big time at the moment and I am loving the re-use of cardboard to create a quick loom of any size! This is a really sweet craft that the older girls will love. Made by Joel has an excellent photo tutorial here.

diy god's eye

Since we're talking all things yarny and weaving I have to mention God's Eyes! And if the girls really feel the need to leave them hanging around my little home that's totally fine ;) There's a super simple photo diy with some pretty girly pics at Coyote Negro. Made with sticks here but also a great way to re-use paddle pop sticks and left over bits of yarn or string.

 

toilet roll heart stamp

Another cute re-use for toilet rolls, pretty heart stamps for the littlest, need I say more :)

Rust & Sunshine has the low down here.

bottle lid stamps

This is one of my latest faves and I'm so happy to have found a re-use for the little styrofoam trays we seem to have accumulated at home. I also have loads of jar lids which I'll use instead of the bottle caps. Check out super clever A Little Learning for Two for all the details.

 

wrapped washer necklaces

And finally because I know there are usually loads of washers down at Reverse Garbage these necklaces are super cute, I'm pretty sure there will be more design ideas that come out of this one too! Check out the photo tutorials at Design Mom.

There's lots more great ideas for re-using bits and pieces around the home on my Kids Crafternoon Pinterest board. 

Have fun and let me know if you have any other great eco crafts for kids or if you try any of these at home!

my creative space

I’ve been playing with some great colours in my fabric collection that I’ve picked up recently from a friend’s de-stash and at a couple of local op shops.

Plus a huge pile of new designs were pulled out this week for the GoMA Winter Design Market on Saturday.

It’s been really nice working with different styles of stitching lately, so many ideas, so little time, only my most favourite will make the cut.

For more spaces or to show off your own head here. It's a great way to regularly document your process plus meet like-minded crafty peeps.

making changes: what 'handmade' means to me

Guess what! I have a slightly new direction for my blog and it’s about time. I’ve been holding a lot in and it’s time to let it out in a really good positive way before I explode. It’s all about making little earth friendly changes in my own handmade practice and hopefully inspiring others to think about doing the same. I’ve already started in my own little way by using almost all thrifted and organic fabric in my products. Sure, I have a massive fabric stash and it will take a bit of time to phase out anything ‘un-eco’ but I’m going to start making a more conscious effort.

I go to a lot of markets, mostly as a shopper or a looker or to say hi to crafty peeps. I also buy a lot of handmade stuff online. Sometimes when I’m looking around I feel like we’re getting a little further away from what I think is authentic handmade. I love finding the products where I can see little stitches, or a little bit of ink gone astray, a wonky edge on an item that is hand cut, even a dropped stitch makes me smile. And I’m happy to pay a little more for it because I know what went into it. And I know there’s something inside that person who made it that’s the same as what’s inside me. I want to profile those people in this little space and share their story.

I also want to learn more about materials and resources that can be used to tread more lightly on the earth. The thing I love about running the Brisbane chapter of Brown Owls is that lately we are almost always using up bits and pieces of scraps to make stuff. I love the dialogue that goes on during that process in the group about what could be re-used in place of something else. So I’m going to post more tips, tricks, resources, how-tos and more about what we can make at home, what we can re-use as well as a collection of resources for handmade businesses to be more eco-conscious.

Sometimes people ask me where the name edward & lilly came from. To be honest there was no thought put into it back in 2007 when I started this little blog. They were just my two favourite names. I never dreamt I would actually sell anything I made. It was really just my way into an awesome handmade community. I’d like to get back to the roots of what this space was originally intended to be and what the term ‘handmade’ means to me.

So how about it?

Are you interested in getting more eco in your practice?

Do you have an awesome earth friendly material or product that you use that you would love to share?

Are you already an eco friendly crafter yourself?

I would love to hear from you either in the comments below or email rebecca (@) edwardandlilly.com

Ok, I better get back to writing my new blog plan so we can get this show on the road!