CubbyKit Mushy Martians - FAIL!

Today me and Jack decided to make Mushy Martians which came in our CubbyKit.
I think Jack was more excited than I was - we have never made play dough before.

All the ingredients we used were supplied in the CubbyKit, along with instructions.
2 pots of flour
1 pot of cream of tartar and salt mix
oil and food colouring mix

We added the cream of tartar and salt mix and added the 1 cup of water along with the food colouring mix and warmed on the cooker.

Once the liquid had warmed we removed from the cooker and proceeded to add the 2 pots of flour. It became just a pan full of flour gloop!

Either the amount of water stated was wrong or there wasn't enough flour. What a shame as Jack was looking forward to creating a martian.


I have found a play dough recipe online which we will be making and hopefully this time it works.


Play Dough Recipe (involving cooking)


Basic ingredient ratios:2 cups flour2 cups warm water1 cup salt2 Tablespoons vegetable oil1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)food colouring (liquid, powder, or unsweetened drink mix)


Mix all of the ingredients together, and stir over low heat. The dough will begin to thicken until it resembles mashed potatoes. 

When the dough pulls away from the sides and clumps in the centre, remove the pan from heat and allow the dough to cool enough to handle.

Keep stirring and cooking until the dough is dry and feels like play dough.
IMPORTANT NOTE: if your playdough is still sticky, you simply need to cook it longer! 

Turn the dough out onto a clean counter or silicone mat, and knead vigorously until it becomes silky-smooth. Divide the dough into balls for colouring.
Make a divot in the center of the ball, and drop some food coloring¹ in. Fold the dough over, working the food color through the body of the playdough, trying to keep the raw dye away from your hands and the counter. You could use gloves or plastic wrap at this stage to keep your hands clean- only the concentrated dye will color your skin, so as soon as it's worked in bare hands are fine.
Work the dye through, adding more as necessary to achieve your chosen color.
¹ If you use unsweetened drink mix for color, test on a small ball first- it won't go as far as the "real" food colouring.


Play with your play dough- I really don't need to help you there. It's entirely edible, if a bit salty, so it's kid-safe.
When you're done, store your playdough in an air-tight container.- If it begins to dry out, you can knead a bit of water in again to soften the dough back to useability. Once it's dried past a certain point, however, you'll just have to start over; thankfully it's not terribly difficult.- If it gets soggy, you can re-heat it to drive off the extra water the dough absorbed overnight.  This is usually the result of high humidity, but is fixable!You can also bake it in the oven to make hard dough figures and ornaments, then paint or otherwise decorate the surface.

CubbyKit

“What a brilliant idea!”

If either a lack of inspiration or a lack of pva paint, glue and glitter prevent you from doing arts and crafts with your little ones, CubbyKit is here for you.  All boxed up and with free delivery, the hard work has been done for you, so that you can get straight on with the business of creating fun projects with your child.  CubbyKit themes have been carefully selected and our activities are tried and tested. 

So how does CubbyKit work?

Join up at www.cubbykit.com by selecting which age range you’d like.  CubbyKits come in two age groups: 3-4 years and 5-6 years.  Every month your CubbyKit arrives at your house addressed to your child and contains 3 separate activities with all the materials you need.  Everything is measured especially for your kit, saving you time and reducing waste.  Our themed picture guides enable you to produce creations you and your child will feel proud of and play with for hours.  We include extra crafts bits and bobs and plenty of ideas.

Drawing on memories of fun from their own childhoods the creators of CubbyKit have designed Kits with a different theme every month: it might be Outer Space, the Olympics, Kings and Queens or the Great Outdoors. All ideas are inspired by projects children will revisit when they start school.  So you’ll be giving them an introduction to those ideas whilst enjoying easy, hands-on fun together.  You can be assured that before CubbyKits are sent out, they have been reviewed by advisors and tested by children themselves.

Lisa, mum of two and CubbyKit creator says she believes that the educational aspect of CubbyKit is what makes it so exciting.  “Each CubbyKit encourages children to immerse themselves in something new which will complement what they learn in school.  Whether they are exploring the wonders of Outer Space or playing traditional (but home made) instruments from around the world, they’re using their own imaginations to get there”.

At £19.99 a month or £199 for 12 months (a saving of £39.89 or 2 months free), CubbyKit is great value.

To meet the creators of CubbyKit, see inside a sample Kit and to subscribe today, visit www.cubbykit.com or email cubby@cubbykit.com for more information.

Make your own Halloween costume!

Here are some ideas for some inexpensive home-made costumes.

Bat costume

• Black hooded top
• Black Umbrella
• Black Felt
• Safety pins or needle and thread
• Scissors

Start by removing the handle from the umbrella and then cutting the umbrella in half. This will make the bat wings. You may need to use some tools or even a saw to disassemble the umbrella.

Sew or use safety pins to attach the cut edge of the umbrella to the back of the arms of the hooded top. Make sure there are no sharp edges on the wings.

Cut ears out of black felt and use a needle and thread to sew them onto the hood of the top.

If you don't have an umbrella you can cut mini wings out of felt and pin them in place.

Ghost costume

• White cloth fabric (about 3 yards)
• White top with hood
• White and black make-up
• White glitter body spray

Make a poncho out of the white cloth fabric by cutting a hole in the middle of the material (make sure it is large enough to slip over head).

Put on the white top and poncho. Paint face with white make-up and spray hair with the glitter body spray. Rub a little black make-up safely under eyes. 

Your ghost costume is complete!

Mummy costume

• White top
• Large white sheet
• A helper
• White and black make-up
• Baby powder

Put on the white top and tear strips from the large sheet. Ask someone to tie all the strips around you. Paint face with the white make-up, adding darker circles around eyes. For a more realistic effect, sprinkle baby powder in your hair and add a little on your sheet strips!

Cheap Halloween Crafts!

Make Monster Feet!
Your toddler will have great fun stomping around the room in these monster feet! They will suit all ages as you can make the feet as fantastic and details as you like.

• 2 tissue boxes (big enough to fit a foot in)
• Paint
• Stickers, sequins and other decorative bits
• Craft foam or coloured card

First you need to paint your tissue boxes any colour you want and leave it to dry.

Cut triangles from the craft foam or coloured card. Glue them along one of the short edges of the box to create claws!

You can now decorate your feet how you like using the stickers and sequins. Maybe even use some fake fur to give them a real monster look!

Handprint and Footprint Ghosts!

These hand and foot print ghosts are so effective; remember to date them as they are a great way of "capturing" a memory of your child. You could even use them as invitations for a Halloween party!

• Black paper
• White paint
• Glitter (optional)
• Black pen

Paint your child's hand using the white paint then print it onto the black paper; make sure their fingers are kept together. Make sure you leave some space for the footprint! Paint your child's foot using the white paint and print it onto the black paper.

Once the paint is dry, draw some ghostly faces. You could add some glitter to give the ghosts a touch of sparkle! The fingers and toes form the bottom of your ghost.

Cut out the ghosts, leaving a thin rim of black paper around the edge.

You could even punch holes through the top, tie some string and hang them as Halloween decorations!

Paper Place Spiders Web!

Another fantastic idea for a Halloween party decoration. Younger children will enjoy lacing activity. A perfect place for a little spider to live!

Let's start with the spider.

• 2 black pipe cleaners
• A black pompom
• A pair of googly eyes
• Glue

Cut the two pipe cleaners in half. Lay the the four halves of pipe cleaner side by side and twist them together in the middle.

Glue the pompom to the middle of the pipe cleaners.

Stick the googly eyes near the top of the pompom. 

When you are sure the glue has dried; you can bend the pipe cleaners to create the spiders legs.

Next, the web!

• A paper plate
• Black paint
• Black string or wool
• Hole punch

Paint the back of the plate black and leave to dry, then cut the middle of the plate out. Making sure you don't cut the edges. Using the hole punch, punch holes evenly around the inner edge of the plate.

Cut a length of wool or string. Tie it to one of holes and then weave through the others to make a spider web pattern. When you are close to the end, tie to a hole and cut away the excess wool or string. Start with a new piece of wool or string and repeat until you are happy with your web. It's easier to use several small pieces of wool or sting as the ends won't fray.

Place your spider in the web!

Handprint Spider!

This spooky little spider does double duty - first as a quick and easy fun craft for children of all ages, and second as a keepsake for mothers (or grandparents) to store away and bring out each Halloween!

• Black paper
• Googly eyes
• Black wool
• Glue

Draw around both hands with fingers spread out and thumbs tight against index fingers.

Cut out the hands and glue them together so that the palms form the spider's body and the finger's create the spider's legs.

Glue on the googly eyes. Make a small hole through the centre of the body and thread the wool through and tie the end into a knot.

You can hang these spooky spiders from doorways or windows!