Here are some great craft ideas!

Safe finger painting
I use Jell-O mix and water to make safe paint. I like using this for the kids because I don't worry as much when they put their hands in their mouths. It is also easy to clean up, doesn't stain clothing, and they don't seem to notice that it is different from other paints.
~jenbug2522
You can also make a safe finger paint with plain yogurt. Just add  food coloring. Make sure you only use this with kids over 12 months, as dairy poses a hazard to babies
~demure_143

Finger paints
You will need:
   1/2 C. cornstarch
   3 TBLS. sugar
   1/2 Tsp. salt
   2 C. cold water
   food coloring
In saucepan mix all of the ingredients together. Cook over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes until the mixture is smooth and thick. Stir while the mixture is cooking. After it has thickened, let it cool. Divide the mixture equally into air tight containers.(baby food jars work great) Add a little bit of food coloring to each container. Stir the coloring in first, then decide if you want to add some more. Cover tightly to store!
**A great idea for painting paper is paper bags from your grocery store folded out.
~jenbug2522

We used empty baby jars to make snow globes. We painted the back 1/2 of the jar and put stickers on the inside of the jar. Inserted a little toy fish, added about 2 tablespoons of glitter, filled the jar with   water. Then put the lid on very tightly. This makes an inexpensive & fun snow glob. I did the painting, the kids helped with everything else.
~jenbug2522

Take one large plastic bottle (a 1 litre coke bottle is a good size) and  carefully cut off the bottom at around 2 or 3 inches up from the bottom.  Fill a bucket or basin with water and place lots of different things at the bottom (plastic fish or pebbles and stuff).  If the child places the bottle into the water and looks through, they should be able to see the objects. You could make a game by guessing what's there.
~fiona_m_99

Take one large(ish) plastic bottle (a 1 litre coke bottle is a good size) and  carefully cut off the bottom at around 2 or 3 inches up from the bottom. Cut it in half so that you have two identcle bits. You should cut from the bottom up rather than round the  middle so that both bits have half of the neck. This will act as a handle.   Turn it so the neck part is downwards. Cut out some holes for eyes and a mouth. Decorate with wool for hair and colour with marker pens. And there you have a mask.
~fiona_m_99

Children love to make something they can wear. Using yarn, string, or a shoelace, your child can make a necklace out of Cheerios, Fruit Loops, pasta, or any other non-toxic item that is not too small for them to choke on.
~parentsoup.com(elkayem)

Native American Necklaces
   Supplies needed:
   - Paint (tempera or acrylic)
   - Noodles (dry, mostaccioli or other small tube shape)
   - Colored beads (various sizes, wooden or plastic)
   - Four-inch circle of white tag board or poster board
   - Newspaper
   - Colored markers
   - Hole puncher
   Directions:
   Lay out newspaper on a table. Paint noodles desired colors and let dry. Punch three holes in the bottom of the circle and two holes in the top. With markers, decorate medallion in Native American designs such as zigzag lines, teepees, and arrows. Next, thread yarn through the top of the medallion, centering the medallion. From either end, thread beads and noodles in a pattern you like. Then tie the ends in a knot, making a necklace. To complete your necklace, thread three 3-inch pieces of yarn in each hole in the bottom of the medallion and tie in a knot to secure. Now tie on a bead to hang at the bottom of the yarn, so that three beads are suspended from the medallion.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)
You might want to consider sealing the painted noodles. I have found that with toddlers the noodles somehow get wet and then the paint will come off or the noodle will get soggy and icky. Also be careful that no one will step on noodles because they have a tendancy to break and sometimes have sharp edges.
~elemessa

1. You will need paper
   2. A glue stick
   3. Cotton balls
Cover a piece of paper with the glue stick, then let your child stick the cotton balls onto the paper to make their own clouds. This is an inexpensive and simple project to do. My 2-1/2 yr old loves to make clouds (I keep running out of cotton balls..lol)
~jenbug2522
We used to use cotton balls, but we kept running out as well. Then during one of my sewing projects and an incident with cotton stuffing, we switched to the stuffing. I don't buy my stuffing-too expensive, I recycle old pillows!!!   We have use the stuffing to make so many fun things!! Clouds but also mini-pillows for the car, stuffed animals, snow and even spooky spiderwebs!!
~elemessa

Have the child choose two different colors of crepe paper, put glue all over the paper plate to cover the plate entirely, rip off a small piece of colored crepe paper and scrunch it up to make a small ball, glue one   color to the middle of the plate and one color around the edge making sure to cover the whole plate using the small balls of crepe paper. Once the plate is covered add a strip of green crepe paper to the outside edge   to make a stem use another color to make leaves, glue the leaves onto the stem.
~jenbug2522

Staple index cards together and cut out pictures from magazines, catalogs, or newspapers. I usually cut out the pictures ahead of time after the kids go to bed/when I watch tv. We use glue sticks & paste on the   pictures to the pages of their little books. They really like it when we use pictures of babies--all of those parenting magazines are really being put to good use
~jenbug2522
another way to bind them together is with a hole puncher and then use a (key) ring to attach them.
~elkayem

Tie a knot on one end, string the beads... as long as you like, mine were about 2 1/2 inches making a small loop on top to place a ring for keys to go on.
~mamapixie

You'll need two pieces of white paper the same size, some colored chalk, one wax crayon, some tape and a pencil. Lay paper out with widest side at bottom.
1st piece of paper- color the page in thick (about 3cm) vertical strips of different colored chalk (i.e one color for each strip) Try to make sure there are no white spaces.
2nd piece of paper- Color one side only with a single color of crayon. Make sure you get complete coverage.
Then place the two pieces together with the colored sides facing each other. Line up carefully and secure each side with a bit of sticky tape. You should then have two clear sides of paper.
Place it onto the table with the paper that was crayoned pointing upwards. With an ordinary pencil (it helps if its slightly blunt) draw a picture, just the outline and press firmly. Keep the drawing very simple,  say a fish or cat.
Once done, carefully separate the picture. The drawing should have transferred onto the chalk side and leave a negative on the crayoned side.
~fiona_m_99

  Supplies needed:
   - Cap off liquid detergent bottle
   - Glue
   - Strips of trim, bread, lace or rickrack
   - Crayons
   - Tiny stickers (any designs)

   Directions:
   Wash and dry cap. Decorate with open end of cap upward. Glue lace or trim around outside of top ledge. Next, glue strips of trim, to fit from top to bottom. Glue these vertically all around cap about a 1/2 inch apart. Let it dry. Next, stick several small stickers in between each line of trim. Fill with crayons.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)

Supplies needed:
   - Plastic hairspray cap
   - Small bag of plaster of Paris (found in craft stores)
   - 3 x 5 card with a recipe written on it
   - 1 plastic fork (any color)
   - Small artificial flowers or small greenery (Christmas trim, ornaments)
   Directions:
   Have fork and small artificial trim ready. Set cap flat end down. Mix small amount of plaster of Paris with water until thick and fill cap 3/4 full. Next, stand the fork handle into the center. Stick the bits of trim into the wet plaster, all around the fork. Let it dry. Clean cap with a warm wet cloth if any plaster spilled over the side. Put recipe onto first and fourth fork tongs so that the recipe is held straight and easily read for cooking. This recipe holder makes a nice gift for birthdays and Mother's Day.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)
You could use it to hold a photo. For example, you have a picture of your child in a park and you colleted flowers, twigs, etc- use those instead of decorations. Or, if you have a fishing picture you can use hooks (not sharp ones!) or lures. Great keepsake!
~elkayem

  Supplies needed:
   - Egg carton (paper, not plastic)
   - Scissors
   - Paint (tempera)
   - Black marker
   - 1 x 2 inch strip of red construction paper
   - Pipe cleaners / or hair curler plastic picks (two for antennae)
   - Cotton balls
   - Dry paint (optional)

   Directions:
   Use the bottom portion of a paper egg carton. Cut it in half, lengthwise, to make two caterpillars. Paint the carton in bright colors and let it dry. Next, glue cotton balls down the length of the caterpillar. Apply dry paint to these if desired, or dab with a little wet paint. Next, poke two small holes at one end of the top to hold the pipe cleaner or picks for the antennae. Glue in place. Next, draw two black eyes on the front of the carton just below the antennae. Curl the strip of red paper around a pencil. Slide it off the pencil and glue it to the center of the face beneath the eyes.
~tipomatic.com

Supplies needed:
- Coffee filter
- Two black pipe cleaners
- Glue
- 3 or 4 baby food jars of water with a few drops of food color in each
- Paint brushes
- Two ft. piece of fishing line or thread
- Newspaper

Directions:
Flatten out the coffee filter on the newspaper. Dip a brush in one color and paint a design onto the coffee filter. The water makes the color spread, much like a tie-dye effect. Do the same with several colors, letting them blend in together. When the filter is dry, pinch the center together and fold one pipe cleaner in half around the pinched center of the filter. This is your wing section. Twist the pipe cleaner twice and curl the ends to look like antennas. Glue the wing section to the other pipe cleaner to form the butterfly body, about in the middle of the straight pipe cleaner. To hang, tie a piece of fishing line around the center and make a loop at the other end for hanging.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)
Here is a simpler way.  Let the kids color the filters with markers and then pinch it in half with a clothes pin. Then they can spray the filters with a water filled spray bottle and made the colors run together and look pretty. They then can add the antennae and string for hanging
~elemessa

Supplies needed:
- inexpensive package of sponges (pre-cut designs may be purchased at craft stores)
- scissors
- tempera paint (assorted colors)
- crayons
- paint tray (small pie pans work well)
- large art paper

Directions:
Peel back the paper on the broad side of a two-inch piece of black or brown crayon. Make tree trunks and branches using the side of the crayon. Lay the crayon flat on the paper and press hard, moving it up into the shape of the tree trunk and branches. Adults, cut sponges into blossom shapes and leaves. Help children dab sponge shapes into paint and then dab the print onto the tree branches. When the painting is dry, children may want to draw additional things, such as animals or grass, on the picture using crayons.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)

Supplies Needed:
Sandpaper
1 board (1x 4) 17 inches long
6 washed, individual Jell-O or pudding cups
Tacky glue or rubber cement
1 Can Spray Enamel Paint (Any Color)

Directions:
Smooth any rough edges on the board. Next, spray the board with the enamel paint and allow to dry. Evenly space the six cups, lining them up on the
board. Mark the places where the cups will be glued.  Glue the bottom of each cup to the board. This portable tray is now ready to be filled with paints, beads, sequins, etc. It can also be used to hold sewing notions, or nails and screws, and serves as a convenient caddy that can be carried directly to your
work area.
~tipomatic.com(elkayem)

Use your word processor and color printer to make that favorite teacher custom-made, holiday-themed, return-address labels. Here's how:
Buy blank labels designed for your printer at an office supply store. Usually, color printers come with graphics and software designed to print various sizes of labels. If not, the major word processors all have easy-to-use label features. Choose holiday graphics and borders or graphics appropriate to the teacher's area of expertise - art, music, math, science. And be sure to deliver the gift early in the holiday season so teacher can use the labels on holiday cards.
-tipomatic.com (elkayem)
If you have drawing capabilities or a scanner, you could use your child's works of art and give it to family members.
~elkayem

Punch a hole in the bottoms of several cans.  Cover all sharp edges with masking tape.  Use cans of different sizes.  Thread heavy cord or braided yarn through the holes and knot securely.  Make a "noisy" caterpillar by threading empty thread spools, buttons, beads, paper tubes, and bells on a length of cord.
~elkayem

Use about one-half to one-third yard of sturdy cotton fabric to make a toy apron for your toddler to wear.  Cut this fabric in the shape of an apron.  Attach fabric ties at the neck and waist.  Cut two or three large pockeds and sew them to the apron front.  Put several small toys in the pockets.  Would make a great craft apron.
~elkayem

8 purple chenille stems or pipe cleaners
Tacky glue
1 large purple pom-pom
Scissors
White felt (1" x 1")
Black felt (½" x ½")

1. Have your child make eight long curls from the chenille stems by twisting the straight stems around a pencil.
2. Let your child glue one end of each chenille stem to the purple pom-pom to form the spider's body and legs. Hold each stem for several seconds until the glue sets.
3. To make the eyes, cut two ½-inch circles from the white felt and smaller circles from the black felt.
4. Glue the white circles to the front of the pom-pom and attach the black dots to the white circles.
~CTW Family Workshop(jenbug2522)

2 1/2 cups flour
4 tsp. cooking oil
2 pkgs. koolaid
1 cup salt
2 cups boiling water

Mix dry ingredients. Add oil to boiling water. Mix wet ingredients with the dry ones. Mix and knead until smooth. It will be hot. The clay doesn't stain!! And it smells great!!! Store in air tight container. Keeps for a long time.
~undonestitches

1 cup plaster of paris
1/2 cup water
2-3 Tbls. liquid tempera paint

Mix together. Add a little more water as mixture thickens. Stir well. Pour into ice cube trays or whatever you want to use as a mold. Dry thoroughly. Pop out and color!!
I like the neon color tempera!
~undonestitches

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