Craft Books

How to Make a Leaf Rainbow – A Year of Nature Walks and Games

September 29, 2023 by penny Leave a Comment

This week sees the launch of the brand new book A Year of Nature Walks and Games and we are delighted to showcase the book as part of their blogger book tour. It is written and photographed by child wellbeing author Becky Goddard-Hill from Emotionally Healthy Kids and gardening expert Catherine Hughes from the blog Gowing Family

The cover of the book A year of Nature Walks and Games. The book has the subtitle "52 things to see and do".

A Year of Nature Walks and Games is designed for 6- 12 years olds and packed full of fun activities kids can do whilst out and about in nature. The activities are all eco and budget-friendly and will entertain all year round. With ideas such as making and flying a kite and elderflower foraging to make shortbread this lovely contains 52 things to see and do will inspire children to go on a nature walk and have fun outdoors!

Today we are sharing one of the activities from the book to encourage kids to embrace an Autumn nature walk

How to make a leaf rainbow

Take 5 bags with you as you walk and collect different coloured leaves (remember to only take fallen leaves) Make sure it’s not windy or this community art project will just blow away!) 

Brown 
Green 
Yellow 
Red 
Orange

When you feel you have enough leaves and find a big enough clearing to make your rainbow it’s time to get started. Leave this where as many people as possible can see it but not on a pathway that will make it slippy if it rains.

Begin the outer arc of your rain with red if possible (just like a real rainbow) then orange then yellow, green and lastly brown  

It’ll be great fun to make and is sure to make passers-by smile.

A rainbow on the ground made up of leaves and seeds of five different colours with res, orange, yellow and green leaves and brown seed pods.

Blogger Book Tour

To see more wonderful activities from A Year of Nature Walks and Games follow the blogger book tour!

Becky and Catherine are also the authors of A Year of Nature Craft and Play, (awarded Highly Commended in the 2022 Creative Play Awards)

AD: A Year of Nature Craft and Play

September 29, 2021 by penny Leave a Comment

Out this week A Year of Nature Craft and Play is a brand-new activity book written by Becky Goddard-Hill and Catherine Hughes and published by Harper Collins.

It contains over 50 seasonal crafts, gardening projects, games, art and science activities for children aged 7+ and their families that are fun and eco-friendly.

This review is part of their blogging book tour to celebrate the of launch A Year of Nature Craft and Play.

You would pretty much have to have been living under a rock for the last couple of years not to have had a point where you stood outdoors, whether that be in your garden, on the street, on a local footpath or in the middle of the moors, taken a deep breath and gave thanks for nature and fresh air. It’s been a pretty horrific 18 months for so many of us and the signs are that lockdowns have made us stop and appreciate what we have around us.

Becky Goddard-Hill’s previous books have spoken about paying attention to the small things in nature and taking time be mindful and appreciate them, and she has now joined forces with fellow blogger Catherine Hughes to take this to the next level with their fantastic new book; A Year of Nature Craft and Play.

With an activity for every week of the year, A Year of Nature Craft and Play is packed with crafts, gardening, games, art and science activities for all four seasons. For each week you are provided with a list of what you need, clear instructions, useful diagrams and inspiring, colourful photographs.

Cloud Watching

With the weather being so all over the place at the moment we took at look at some of the summer and autumn activities as we reviewed the book. A sunny day at a local community event gave me and the youngest the perfect opportunity to do a spot of cloud watching whilst a football game was going on. Lying on a picnic blanket a the side of the pitch we stared up at the clouds and she took great delight in spotting a dinosaur, CBeebies’ Bing and a “scary monster” in the sky. Such a simple way to pass the time, but one that sparked so much creativity and laughter as we saw different things floating above us.

Making a Journey Stick

The typical British weather worked against us a bit in our attempts to create a journey stick as an autumn activity. A shame as I had visions of it being such a photogenic activity.

Used by Native Americans and Aboriginal people to record a journey this is such a simple way for a child to pick up “treasures” along a way and use them to remember their journey. They can be made using either a stick (as the name suggests) and string, or a piece of cardboard and double sided sticky tape. I thought the latter might be easier for a two year old, but I can confirm that cardboard becomes really soggy if it starts raining on your journey and your toddler tries to “stick the rain on the stick”. My only tip for making your own journey stick is to choose a dry day on which to do a cardboard one! Once the rain abates we’ll be heading out to try this one again.

Our planned year of nature craft and play

I’m determined that now the older kids are back in school, the youngest and I need to get into more of a rhythm with our days rather than just frittering them away with chores and kids’ tv. What better way to establish a rhythm than by following the rhythm and seasons of the year? I’ve made a list of the autumn activities in the book and stuck it up on the kitchen cabinet so we can quickly pick something before heading out once a week for an outdoor adventure. I’m even going to try to be organised and share what we get up to over on Penny Blogs. Fingers crossed we find our rhythm and that the weather cooperates.

A Year of Nature Craft and Play – Book Details

A Year of Nature Craft and Play by Becky Goddard-Hill and Catherine Hughes is published by Harper Collins and is available to buy online here, RRP £12.99.

Nature Craft and Play Book Tour

If you would like to visit the other Nature Craft and Play Book Tour bloggers you will find them here

1st October – www.emmaand3.com

2nd October – www.whattheredheadsaid.com

3rd October – www.mummymummymum.com

4th October – www.whatkatysaid.com

5th October – www.monkeyandmouse.co.uk

6th October – www.wemadethislife.com

7th October – www.thriftymum.com

8th October – www.rainydaymum.co.uk

9th October – www.goingonanadventure.co.uk

Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of A Year of Nature Craft and Play for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links. If you buy anything through these links it costs you no more than if you had arrived at Amazon on your own, but I received a small commission. Thank you for any purchases that you do make.

Ladybird Tuesday – How to Make Flying Models

August 18, 2020 by penny Leave a Comment

One thing I love in particular about vintage Ladybird Books is just how specific they were. This week’s choice, Flying Models, is very much that. Part of the How to Make sub-series that was a 1970s addition to Series 633 it really is quite narrow in what it covers compared to so many craft books of today.

Vintage Ladybird Books The Cover of How to Make Flying Models as part of Ladybird Tuesday

Published originally in 1979, and so full of some great kids’ late 70s fashion, a note inside the front of the book makes you feel slightly like it is trying to justify its existence from the very start:

The flying of model aircraft is recognised as a spot by the Sports Council, and the governing body of the sport is The Society of Model Aeronautical Engineers Limited.

Vintage Ladybird Books Some dubious 70s fashion from the book Flying Models as part of Ladybird Tuesday

As far as craft books go, Flying Models doesn’t really strike me as one for a complete beginner. Instead it is geared much more towards an older child, or one with lots of help, who has maybe done some model making before, and who certainly has access to a variety of materials and tools.

Starting with an introduction into the various parts of an aeroplane and how it flies, the book aims to provide some background theory about flight before lunching into how to actually make flying models. Balsa wood is introduced as the most common material used in model aircraft and it’s something I recall quite a bit of from my childhood, but now in 2020 I’m not at all sure where I would buy it if I didn’t have a good model shop nearby, or access to the internet of course!

The book has several pages detailing balsa wood, the different types available, the various adhesives you might need to use and the tools you need to make your models. It seems a shame in a way that it goes through all that before introducing the first model – a paper plane – which only needs paper, scissors and PVA glue to make. Maybe this is a reward for those children who have managed to stick with the book until page 18?

Once the paper plane has been mastered the book then moves on to boomerangs made of plywood and a balsa wood glider. Both the sorts of wholesome projects that you can really imagine a Ladybird era child embarking on on a weekend with their Father in the shed whilst Mother makes dinner in the kitchen.

Vintage Ladybird Books Technical intersections for making a flying model as part of Ladybird Tuesday

In fairness though Flying Models is a brilliant book for children who are really interested in aerodynamics and making aircraft whilst understanding some of the principle behind them. There are detailed drawings showing what you need with all the measurements on them. It’s not everyday that a children’s book has diagrams labelled with terms like “wing dihedral diagram”. For anyone wondering dihedral means “inclination of an aircraft’s wing from the horizontal, especially upwards away from the fuselage”. Even having a degree in engineering this was something I had to go and look up!

A page from the vintage Ladybird Book How to Make Flying Models

I honestly have no idea if you could get a children’s book as detailed as this in modern times, but it really would be perfect for children who are showing an interest in aerodynamics and would definitely be the basis of some physics lessons should I ever need to homeschool again. I just need to find myself a balsa wood supplier and raid the OH’s tool bag first.

About Ladybird Tuesday

Ladybird Tuesday is a regular feature here on Penny Reads, where I delve into my Ladybird book collection and choose a title to share with my readers. The weekly series originally started on my old blog, Being Mrs C, and this post originally appeared on there. I’m now in the process of moving all those posts over to Penny Reads and also adding titles that I have acquired since then. A list is currently being compiled here of all the titles I have in my collection.

Pom Pom Pom – Henry Le. Over 50 mini Pompoms to make

September 27, 2019 by penny Leave a Comment

I’m going to say this upfront. Pom Pom Pom is quite possibly one of the cutest books I’ve ever seen. Regardless of whether I was sent it to review or not. It’s absolutely adorable.

Cover of teh book Pom Pom Pom by Henry Le

Now I’ve done Pompom workshops before. I’ve turned them into garlands and wreaths. Even worn them as earrings. But even still, I have NEVER seen anything quite like what Henry Le has down in Pom Pom Pom.

Henry is a Vietnamese artist and what he has done with Pompoms is out of this world. For a start – hope you’re sitting down for this bit – they’re not all spherical!

After that shock I’d better explain a bit more.

An owl pompom from the book Pom Pom Pom by Henry Le

What Henry has designed is a way of showing you how to build up layers of different colours when you wind a pompom which means that you can actually make the colours of your yarn to turn your pompom into anything from an animal to a piece of food.

Henry uses Clover pompom makers which seem to be the secret to his designs. Now, if you’ve not used one of these makers before then they really do make pompom making so much simpler, and also provide much more reliable results too. Henry makes use of the 3.5cm and 4.5cm ones in this book, but there are loads of different sizes available.

A pig, pineapple and kiwi pompoms from the book Pom Pom Pom by Henry Le

For each design in the book he shows you how to wind your yarn on these makers to get the desired pattern.

It’s also worth noting that he spends a while in the book also talking about the yarn he uses. As someone that has used Stylecraft Special DK to make a million and one crochet blankets over the years, it is lovely to come across another use for the small bits I have left over in an assortment of colours.

Emoji pompoms from the book Pom Pom Pom by Henry Le

As for the patterns in the book. Well, the word wow pretty much sums them up. There’s everything in there from Pompom emojis to cute animals. Pompom sushi to pompom hotdogs. It really is quite incredibly and has to be seen to be believed.

The instructions are incredibly clear and the sections on how to read the diagrams and how to make a basic motif are so straightforward. The only thing from stopping me jumping right in is that I can’t find which box in teh garage has my pompom makers in it!

Pom Pom Pom was published by GMC Publications in September 2019 and has an RRP of £14.99. ISBN 9781784945169. You can buy it online here.

Disclaimer: We were sent a copy of Pom Pom Pom for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links. If you click on it and then buy the book, or anything else from Amazon, I will receive a small bit of money (maybe enough to buy a cup of tea if I’m lucky) and it will cost you no more than normal. Thank you if you do so.

The Horrible Craft Book – Laura Minter and Tia Williams

August 23, 2019 by penny Leave a Comment

It’s rare that I open a craft book that I’ve been sent to review and think of Master C first rather than his sister. But that’s exactly what I did with The Horrible Craft Book.

If you’re looking for a book to help you make cute decorative things that a child might like to display in their bedroom then this is not the book for you. If you’re after pretend poo, cornstarch vomit and things that wouldn’t look out of place at a Halloween party then this IS the book for you!

The Horrible Craft Book is packed full of projects that are quite simply gross. There’s everything from edible Dirt Pies to a Brain Piñata. A Severed Thumb to Guts Pizza. For children with a strong constitution and a love of the disgusting this book is perfect.

Written by Laura Minter and Tia Williams, the bloggers behind Little Button Diaries, the Horrible Craft Book is packed with 30 horrible projects that you and your kids can create to freak people out. Master C is desperate to make the pretend poo the next time he comes to stay here and I’m thinking that the Tasty Eyeballs and Cockroach Snacks would be perfect the next time I need snacks for a Halloween party. The Bug Soap would also make a great alternative treat at Halloween time.

What I like about this book, along with Laura and Tia’s other craft books, is the way that the list of what you need and the instructions are so clear, with plenty of photos showing you exactly what to do.

The only question the book leaves me with is how long it will be before Master C totally freaks me out by leaving one of his creations from the book around to find unexpectedly!

The Horrible Craft Book is published by GMC Books in September 2019. ISBN 978-1-78494-536-7 Priced at £12.99 It is available to pre-order / buy online here.

Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of The Horrible Craft Book for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links. It will cost you no more if you buy the book through them, but it will earn me some money to enable my son to buy the ingredients for more pretend poo…

Plant, Sow, Make & Grow Mud-tastic activities for budding gardeners – Esther Coombs

April 10, 2019 by penny Leave a Comment

I’m not green fingered in the slightest, but I so wish I was! Walking round the garden centre yesterday I saw so many gorgeous things for the garden, but to be honest I don’t have a clue where to start with our garden. We’ve lived in the house a year now, and apart from cutting a few very obvious things back we’ve done little more than cut the grass in our back garden. I’m really hoping that under the pretence of teaching the kids what to do in the garden Plant, Sow, Make & Grow can help me improve my gardening skills, and get the back garden under control.

Described as a book of “mud-tactic activities for budding gardeners” Esther Coombs has brilliantly written a book that is not only nice and fun to read, but also teaches you a huge amount.

Split up into the four seasons the book contains gardening projects along side crafty outdoor projects to keep kids entertained. This is a gardening book that doesn’t require you to have a whole shed full of tools and an endless supply of seeds before you start, but instead shows you what you can actually do with very little. At the start it sets out the gardening supplies you do need – simple things like a trowel, hand fork, watering can and compost – but also other things like bubble wrap, lolly sticks and netting made from charity shop net curtains!

Plant, Sow, Make & Grow starts in spring, with a lovely little project to make little seed pots from old toilet roll tubes. It’s the perfect way to help children start to get their hands dirty, do a spot of recycling and also learn how to sow seeds. The book then moves on to talk about what can be sown when in the year, and talks you through all the different types of fruit and vegetables that you can grow in your back garden.

I love the way that Plant, Sow, Make & Grow brings together so many more things that just gardening. As well as crafty projects for the garden, that involve recycling lots of things from around the house, I also love the way that the whole book has a thrifty and eco focus to it. It shows you how to make a watering can from an old plastic milk bottle, and bird feeders from the heads of your sunflowers.

Because of the way the book is split into seasons it come back to some of the activities that you did earlier in the year, and shows you what to do next. So for example, you plant your strawberries in the spring, are shown how to cover them in the summer, and then harvest them later on in the summer. It even goes as far as telling you what to do with harvest gluts that you might be lucky enough to have.

The book doesn’t only look after plants though. Included are instructions on making a bug hotel and a page telling you about the sorts of wildlife that you want to encourage to come to your garden to help with your plants.

I’m incredibly impressed with Plant, Sow, Make & Grow and in particular the almost cyclic nature of the activities in the book. I can see us going back to it throughout the year, and each year, to be reminded about what we are supposed to be doing in the garden. If this Easter holiday rain ever stops it will be a great way to get the kids to help us make a proper start to our back garden and help create it into the sort of productive eco garden I have always wanted. And hopefully we can do it all on a budget!

Plant, Sow, Make & Grow by Esther Coombs was published in March 2019 by Button Books and has an RRP of £12.99. It is aimed at aged 4 to 11, but with parental guidance support I think you can adapt many of the activities for younger children too. As an adult I can also see it as a brilliant way of learning a bit about gardening alongside my children. Plant, Sow, Make & Grow is available to buy online here and at the time of writing it is priced at £8.56.

Disclaimer: We were sent a copy of Plant, Sow, Make & Grow for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links.