Caine's Arcade

I LOVE this! It's a good reminder to leave some time and space for free play (and have plenty of boxes around). You never know what may happen.

Shop of Awesomeness!

If you have ever been to the Long Beach Depot for Creative Reuse, you know that they are all about encouraging, inspiring and promoting fun ways to reuse items and materials "too good to throw away." Encourage and inspire they do. With product labels like "Circles with Possibilities!!!", "Orange Ya Glad We Have These Containers?" and "Box of Awesomeness!" how can you not get inspired. If you are not sure where to begin, there are a myriad of items created by local artists and patrons to spark your creativity, or to purchase if you are more of a patron of the arts than artist.

While it is a great place to get creative inspiration, it also is a great place for kids to learn about other things. My first grader is learning about money in school. At The Depot he is able to apply his new knowledge, calculating and budgeting his $1.00 in coins to buy innumerable treasures (is there any other shop where you can still buy something for 1¢?). There are also opportunities for learning about conservation, recycling, donating, and community.

If you spend any time talking with owner, Lisa Hernandez, you know that she is more than an advocate for creative reuse, she is an advocate for small business, artists, and community. To that end, last year The Depot applied for, and was awarded, a Pepsi Refresh grant. To celebrate, they are hosting the Pepsi Refresh Creative Reuse Day on Sunday, February 27 from 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm. There will be creative reuse crafting, instrument making/playing, a bike rodeo, rock climbing wall, a free bike valet and more, including all of the boxes of awesomeness and possibilities! Instead of providing refreshments, they are encouraging attendees to support the many local coffee shops, restaurants, markets and other small businesses in the area. As a small business owner, I think that is inspiring!

Pepsi Refresh Creative Reuse Day Celebration
Sunday, February 27, 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm
The Long Beach Depot for Creative Reuse
320 Elm Street, Long Beach, CA
Regular store hours Monday - Saturday, 11 am - 6:00 pm


The Long Beach Depot for Creative Reuse window, ready for the Pepsi Refresh Creative Reuse Day Celebration

Cardboard Tube Pen Holder

Here is a great way to sort pens and other writing implements in the family craft area while reusing plentiful cardboard tubes. Griscel Diaz mounted hers on the wall, but I think it would work as well in a box or drawer for storing a wide variety of craft supplies (pencils, pens, brushes, Q-tips, and more). Another advantage of this design, if you get a new set of pens, just add a tube.

via inhabitat

Art Display and Storage Box

Children are prolific artists. It can be challenging for parents to figure out where to display and store even a few of their masterpieces. Here is an inspired idea from Maya Donenfeld. A way to highlight your child's most recent work of art, while archiving some of your favorites. You can decorate the frame however you like, but keep it simple so that it doesn't compete with the art itself. And do not forget to write the child's name and the date on the back of the art. This will make it easier for future collectors and art historians to identify.

You can find complete instructions on the bookhoucrafts blog

This would also make a good gift for grandparents, or doting aunts and uncles, with new work delivered on special occasions, or whenever inspiration strikes.

Cereal Box Marble Run

I love this simple cereal box marble run from Made by Joel. Check out Joel's blog for detailed instructions (and lots of other creative projects for kids). It fits perfectly into our ongoing series of posts celebrating the creative reuse of cardboard packaging and would be an easy project for a lazy summer morning.

Cardboard Tube Marble Run

We finally got a chance to put together the cardboard tube marble run that we saw in a recent issue of Family Fun magazine (click the link for complete details).

We cut up some 8.5x11 magnet sheets that we had sitting around to attach to the tubes, but you could also use those pizza delivery fridge magnets that you probably have too many of. In addition to marbles, we used round bells that added a fun sound component to the maze. We are trying to come up with some additional objects/shapes to add to keep the maze interesting. We would love to hear any ideas you may have in the comments.

Egg Carton Seed Starters

If you've followed this blog for awhile, you have probably noticed that I like to find creative ways to reuse everyday objects. With this simple little project, you can take an old egg carton and start a garden. It is such a simple project that almost any age child can participate, and in the process learn what's involved in caring for a plant and enjoy the resulting harvest (vegetables always taste better when you've grown them yourself).

For our first planting this year we chose lettuce, but we have also enjoyed growing herbs (they are easy to grow in a small space, they are practical for cooking and they provide a great sensory experience for the kids with their various smells and tastes).

For this project, you will need:
Egg carton
Scissors
Soil
Seeds
A sheet of plastic wrap (optional)

Cut the cover off the egg carton. Since we were going to keep this on the windowsill, we covered the inside of the lid with plastic wrap and placed it under the egg carton to catch excess water.


Put a little soil in each egg carton cup.



Put seeds in each cup, then cover with more soil.



Water.


Water regularly, following the directions on the seed packet.


Once the seedlings are big enough, you can cut the egg cups apart and place them directly into a larger pot or the garden (if they are made of paper pulp, instead of styrofoam, the carton will biodegrade).

iBox is Here

All of the tech buzz may be about Apple's new iPad, but we are pretty excited about our new iBox, a cardboard laptop computer we made ourselves.

We used an old box with a single flap top, an Apple sticker (if you have a Mac your probably have a couple of these lying around), a picture of a keyboard and track pad that we cut out of an old Mac laptop box (though I had planned on either taking a picture of a keyboard and printing it or drawing our own custom keyboard), a letter-sized sheet protector (available in clear or non-glare) to use as the monitor, and screen shots of a few of our favorite applications and websites, that we then printed and slide into the sheet protector when we want to work on a specific application (of course we can also create our own "applications" to put on the screen).







We also added a USB port (a hole cut into the side of the box) to plug in peripherals like a portable cardboard hard drive and our digital camera.

For more fun projects using cardboard boxes, click here.

More Cardboard Art: Building a Robot

Photographs by Greta Eskridge

I knew that long-time client and friend, Greta Eskridge, would be a great addition as a guest blogger here at the Dodgen Photography blog. Seeing her post about the cardboard robot her son made, sealed the deal (in case you didn't know, we're big fans of cardboard creations). In Greta's words:

My son James loves to build things out of cardboard. If he sees a box lying around the house, he is sure to ask if he can use it. This time he wanted to make a robot.

It was a pretty straight forward project.

First, I cut off the back of the box, then a hole for his neck and two holes for his arms. This allowed him to slip it on and off easily by himself. We used an additional box, with eye holes cut out, for the head.

Next, he decorated it. Besides markers or paint, some glue and various shiny things are just right for decorating a robot. Tin foil would also be fun.

He was pretty pleased with his creation.

A little imagination goes a long way with a cardboard box.

Greta

For additional photos, go here.

Recycled Forest

I love artist, Yuken Teruya's work in which he transforms everyday objects (like toilet paper tubes and Happy Meal Bags) into intricate vignettes. I also thought it fit in nicely with our series of posts about the creative reuse of cardboard.

Pizza Box Tabletop Soccer and Cardboard Tube Marble Run

The latest issue of Family Fun magazine has several cardboard reuse ideas that look fun and fit into our series of posts about creative (re)uses for cardboard. Our favorites are Tabletop Soccer made from a pizza box and a magnetic Marble Run made from paper towel, toilet paper and wrapping paper tubes. Click the preceding links for complete instructions.

Cardboard Fire Station

Making believe is the gist of his whole life and he cannot so much as take a walk except in character.

Robert Louis Stevenson

A couple of years ago when Ethan said he wanted to build a fire station, I thought he was talking about a little one for his numerous fire engines. When he clarified that he wanted one that he could fit in, I was not sure where to start.

Inspiration came when we realized we could use his loft bed for the frame and the box from our new wagon for the walls. Curtains the he could open and close, a door through which the fire engines could come and go, and door knobs for the front door helped complete his vision.

One of the things I love about cardboard structures is that they are temporary, so when the kids have a new interest or want a new challenge, the box can be modified, stored or just recycled. To make these transitions easier, I like to use Velcro Cable Ties when attaching the cardboard to furniture like loft beds and table legs. They make it easy to attach and detach cardboard without ruining the furniture or the box. I did not take detail photographs at the time, but you can see the small black straps along the sides and under the main door of our fire station.

What always amazes me (a perfectionist) when creating things like this, with and for Ethan, is how much his imagination will take over to fill in the gaps, look past the inconsistencies in scale and smooth over the flaws in construction. I have to remind myself that it is more important to make it, than to make it perfect.

Now I implore you to go collect the props, set the stage, and open the curtain to your child's world of make believe.

For more creative cardboard project ideas, click here.

Christina Katerina and the Box

I can't write about cardboard box creations without mentioning one of my favorite books, Christina Katerina and the Boxby Patricia Lee Gauch.

When Christina's family gets a new refrigerator, she gets a world of possibilities from the box it came in. The story follows Christina and her friend Fats, as they transform the box from a castle to a secret clubhouse to a race car to a summer mansion where they throw a lavish ball for their stuffed animals and dolls. The box is finally damaged beyond repair when Fats decides to wash it off with a hose. Fortunately, Fats' family just got a new washer and dryer...

The simple line drawings, by Doris Burn (who also wrote and illustrated the wonderfully imaginative Andrew Henry's Meadow, another favorite of mine) provide lots of inspiration for box creations.

Cereal Box Houses

Photograph from Bella Dia blog

Continuing with our series of posts about creative reuses of cardboard, here is a simple box house idea from the Bella Dia blog. When I was a kid, I always looked forward to finding the prize in the box of cereal. Now the box can be the prize. I think mine would have a garage door cut in the side for my Hot Wheels. Go to Bella Dia for detailed instructions.

Todd Oldham's House of Cards

I love this idea from designer Todd Oldham's book, Kid Made Modern, inspired by the Eames House of Cards. Not only is it a unique take on the classic cardboard box house, but it provides lots of "canvases" for kids creativity and can be reconfigured again and again.

Max's Jet Box

I knew when I walked into Max Gibbons' house for a portrait party that his family was hosting, I had found a friend. Upon seeing the jet plane that Max had built out of cardboard with his dad, I was reminded of the hours of fun I have had racing down the track, soaring through the sky and sailing across the ocean in cardboard boxes, first as a child and now with my children. I don't think any of my creations have been as impressive as Max's, but in my imagination (and in the imagination of my children) they were the real thing.

Not a Box

What better way to start a series of posts about the creative reuse of boxes than with a book about a rabbit with a box and an active imagination.

Not a Box is a simple and engaging book (think Harold and the Purple Crayon) that encourages imagination and thinking outside the box.

Save the cardboard

Grown-ups often joke that children like the box more than the gift that came in it. While this is certainly not always the case, an empty box holds enormous potential for imaginative play and creative art projects. If your home is anything like ours, you have a bunch of new cardboard sitting around - from online orders, gifts sent by distant relatives, empty tubes from wrapping paper, gift boxes, etc.

With this in mind, I will be posting lots of creative reuse ideas for all of your cardboard boxes, tubes, bags, and more over the next few weeks. So, before putting your cardboard in the recycling, save it for a little creative reuse first.

Thanksgiving Day Art Projects

One of my favorite Thanksgiving activities as a kid was to sample all of the delicious foods that were being prepared. Of course, I was constantly being shooed out of the kitchen by the cooks. Here are a few projects to keep your young ones busy this holiday. Click the links for instructions and have a Happy Thanksgiving!


Photo-Realistic Paper Turkeys


Cereal Box Turkeys


Fingerprint Turkeys


Pine Cone Turkeys using feathers.
Pine Cone Turkeys using pipe cleaners.