The September school holidays have arrived and while it’s only a short one-week break, this is a welcome opportunity to get in some quality time with the kids before the madness of the year end exams begins. If you’d like to avoid the crowded playgrounds and would like to spend a relaxing week at home taking it easy, we’ve got you covered with fun and productive activities to try out.
Here are some simple, mess-free art and craft ideas to keep the kids engaged during this school holidays.
1. Cross Stitch
Cross stitching is a perfect introduction to sewing for kids. It is a form of counted-thread embroidery, which uses X-shaped stitches to form the artwork on fabric. Cross stitch kits usually come with foolproof charts that are easy to follow but you can go without it and let your kids design their own patterns.
Cross stitch projects can take a while for beginners to grasp so be patient with the young ones. Once they get the hang of it, the rest should be a breeze!
2. Origami
Most art projects tend to make a huge mess and cleaning up is a headache. Origami projects however, are an exception, and a huge plus is that the only material you need is some paper, and maybe a pair of scissors.
An iconic, old school origami art project is the rotating paper fan. Both easy to make and also fun to play with, it is a great way to introduce paper crafts, especially for the younger ones. They can also use interesting paper designs, or draw and decorate their paper fans to produce something unique for themselves. Check out this tutorial here!
3. Friendship Bracelets & Finger Knitting
Friendship bracelets have been a long-time favourite arts and crafts activity to do with friends. They are easy to make, customisable to your kids’ liking and double as a sweet gift for your kids’ friends. Adding charms or alphabet beads to friendship bracelets are a great way to express their individuality – and you can take their eyes away from the screens as they focus on producing their own bracelets.
For extra challenge, try introducing your kids to finger knitting. Yes that’s right, it is knitting – but with your fingers! You use a ball of yarn to make loops and knots around your fingers, ultimately creating a weave of your desired length. It is a less common form of knitting, but it can create bracelets and even beanies without the complexity of traditional knitting. Check out this step-by-step basic guide for finger knitting and try it out with the kids.
4. Clay Making
Using pre-made dry clay is a fuss-free and relatively clean way for the kids to explore pottery. This is where their creativity can run wild, for they can choose to make anything under the sun – even their favourite cartoon character!
For this activity, being involved in the process works best to guide your kids and also bond with them. It’s as easy as purchasing a few colours of dry clay from any nearby Popular or Artfriend store, and you’re good to go. Tip: Grab more colours for more fun!
5. Perler Bead Crafts
Perler beads have been with us for decades now and it’s safe to say, they ain’t going away! These perler beads are tiny cylinder shaped beads that can be used to form a pixel-art style craftwork. The part everyone loves is ironing the beads to melt the arranged beads together, forming the complete artwork. Kids back in the early 2000s loved to make keychains and even coasters, but most simply liked to collect these pieces for themselves, or as a small gift for a friend.
Challenge the kids by getting them to recreate their favourite cartoon characters, or even better, to create their own!
5 Easy Ways to Get Creative
Getting creative doesn’t have to mean paint stains or muddied hands – it can be as easy as cutting out shapes from coloured papers. With these 5 mess-free craft ideas, you can now incorporate art into the daily without worrying about clocking in hours for preparation and clean-up!
