Magazine Review on Bravery’s Frida Kahlo Issue

Towards the end of June and early July, I read my daughter Lily books on Frida Kahlo. I choose this time because Frida’s birthday is on July 6th. Last year, we celebrated Frida’s birthday with activities that included coloring pages, unibrow photo props, and Frida tattoos. 

 

Our Frida activities from last year.

I taught Lily about Frida Kahlo when she was two years old. She was able to recognize Frida in illustrated form and in photographs. We own a small collection of Frida books. We also check out books from our local library. This year instead of adding a book to our Frida reading collection we added a magazine - Bravery Magazine's third issue featuring Frida Kahlo. I stumbled upon Bravery Magazine on Solly Baby Wraps Instagram account. When I saw Elle, the owner of Solly Baby Wraps, flip through the Frida issue in her IG Story, I immediately knew I had to have one for myself. I mean of my daughter. When it arrived, my daughter saw it and asked me to read her the “new Frida book” right away.

Bravery's Frida issue includes beautiful and colorful illustrations to go along with Frida’s life story, DIYs, lots of activities, kids art submissions, and an adult section at the end. Since we celebrate Frida Kahlo’s birthday with fun and creative activities, this magazine has become a great addition to our library. 

Below are a few of the activities Lily did from Bravery magazine.

DIY Textured Painting







Lily's finished textured piece.

 Kids Submissions & Lily’s own rendition of Frida Kahlo

Frida Flower Crown

Instead of using real flowers as the magazine suggested, I cut out some scrapbooking paper flowers and had Lily glue them on Frida’s hair. 

We combined the textured painting and the Frida flower crown activity to create this cool Frida piece above. Lily insisted that I draw another ear and earring on Frida because they were missing. I can't wait to frame it and hang it in her room.

Frida Coloring Page 

I made copies of the activities to preserve the magazines condition because I absolutely love Bravery’s issue of Frida Kahlo. I’m looking forward to seeing the issue of Frida Kahlo grow with Lily and see how each activity she does changes with each coming year. 

My favorite part of the magazine are all the illustrations, even the kids art submissions. I enjoy seeing how each illustrator uses their own style to portray Frida. I also love the overall message the magazine coveys. If your are a Frida Kahlo fan like myself you’ll love Bravery’s Frida Kahlo issue; I promise, especially if you have kids. 

Ashley and Elyse, creators of Bravery magazine, were nice enough to send Bee Creative Swap a copy of their Frida Kahlo issue to go along with our Viva La Frida Giveaway. Click here to enter the giveaway or enjoy your own copy right away and purchase it here.

Bravery Magazine Website

Bravery Instagram

Bravery Facebook

DIY Bobs Burgers’ Linda Belcher Footprint Art

Alriiight! First, I would like to wish my dear friend and partner in crime in co-hosting Bee Creative Swaps, a very Happy Happy early Birthday! I hope you have a wonderful birthday on your actual birthday, Emily!

I decided not to participate in the Animation Celebration Swap that Emily and I are currently hosting. I wasn’t sure if I would have the time or energy to make goodies with my due date being in October. I did, however, still wanted to make Emily something special for her birthday based on her favorite animated show - Bobs Burgers.

This is the Bobs Burgers inspired birthday gift, Lil and I sent Emily. Condiments and fake burger not included. 

Emily had included this Bobs Burgers’ cross stitch in her swap mosaic and I knew right away that I wanted to make it for her. I contacted the maker of the cross stitch pattern, StephXStitch, and I emailed her since she no longer sold the pattern on Etsy. Luckily, she was nice enough to sell the pattern to me. Thank you Steph! It was a very easy pattern to follow and I’m happy with the outcome. 

I’m not a big fan of unfinished wooden hoops, so I painted the hoop lime green. The lime green worked out perfectly because it’s one of Emily’s favorite colors and it’s the color of the Bobs Burgers building.

The hamburger socks, I found at Joann’s. They were the perfect little extra to go along with this themed gift. 

Okay, now to the fun part…Lil’s Linda Belcher’s Footprint Art.

Supplies: 

A foot (lol),

Yellow cardstock,

White, Red, Orange, Black, Green, Yellow, Brown, and Pink Paint,

Paint Brushes,

Water,

Pencil (not pictured). 

Paper towel and wipes for clean up

Sharpie Markers

Step 1: Do this part on the floor. It makes it easier to get a better print of your child’s foot. Paint the heel and a little past the middle of the foot white (Linda’s face), the rest of the midfoot red (Linda’s shirt), and toes orange (burgers).

Step 2: Let the footprint completely dry. Lil wanted to make another print with her other foot. That’s why we have two footprints pictured.  

Step 3: Lightly sketch Linda with a pencil. I pinned a lot of images of Linda on Pinterest to make sure I drew her correctly. Don’t forget to draw her signature red eyeglasses and one of her sayings, like "ALRIIIIGHT!" You can always change the toes into wine glasses instead of burgers. Perfect for someone who needs, I mean, likes wine. 

Step 4: Paint Linda. I used thin paintbrushes for the majority of this part, especially for the inside of the burgers. You can always use markers instead of painting her.

The Linda Belcher footprint is my favorite part of Emily’s gift for three reasons. First, it’s my original idea. I didn’t see it on Pinterest or copy it from someone else. Though, I bet these past three years of making footprint and handprint art with Lil was helpful in coming up with the concept. Second, the idea was all based on making a Linda print from Lil’s footprint, so I’m glad she was a part of this project. Now, Lil wants me to finish the other footprint for us to keep at home. I think I’ll add the quote, “Raising you kids is a two parent, two bottles of wine a night kind of job” quote instead. Perfect for this soon to be mother of two. Lastly, Linda Belcher is Emily’s favorite Bobs Burgers character. 

Emily received her early birthday package yesterday and she loved it. She especially loved the Linda footprint Lil made with the burger toes. 

I hope you enjoyed this Bobs Burgers themed post. Now, I’m hungry and want a burger. In and Out sounds good. 

Halloween Crafts: Fun Toddler Cards

I helped Lil make her first Halloween cards and they came out so stinking cute. I just had to share them with you and how we made one - the cat/pumpkin card. Yeah, I know, another toddler, mother assisted, tutorial. I helped Lil make three cards. We made them all pretty much the same way.

Supplies

Scissors,

Recycled Stickers (What’s left of the sticker sheet after you remove the sticker),

Crayons,

Googly Eyes (Everything is more fun with google eyes),

Blank Card (I got Lil a 50 pack of blank cards at Michael’s, last year, to make footprint and handprint birthday cards),

Glue Stick,

Stamp Markers (Purchased at Target’s dollar aisle). 

1) Have your toddler stamp the blank card first. Lil couldn’t get a good stamped image from the stamp markers so I had to help her. They’re not the best stamp markers because they are small but they do the trick for a dollar.

2) Cut around the recycled stickers and place them on the card. I cut a group of pumpkin recycled stickers. I showed Lil how to make a pumpkin face on one of the pumpkins. I was thrilled to watch her draw her first smiley faces on the pumpkins. She added stems and a leaf to each pumpkin. Then, I let Lil doodle the card. I also taught her how to draw a bat. She drew two bats, flying near a full yellow moon she doodled. 

3) Embellish with regular stickers. I added a cat sticker on the pumpkin of Lil’s choice.

4) Have your toddler help glue the google eyes, with the glue stick. Lil has gotten better at gluing small objects because she uses a glue stick regularly, when making crafts at Preschool Storytime, at the library.

I’m sorry for not providing pictures with each step. I wasn’t planning on making a tutorial with these cards, since it was an out of the blue (totally unplanned) Halloween craft. I had so much fun helping and watching Lil make the cards; I had to share our process with you, that way you could make them by yourself or with a little artist too. 

I was going to give the card with the cat and pumpkins to a friend but I decided to keep it. Come on, the card has Lil’s first drawn smiley faces and bats. I couldn’t bare to part with it. I had Lil make another card, the one with the spider, for my friend instead. Lil made these two cards a few weeks ago. 

We have been making many Halloween themed crafts lately; Lil keeps asking me almost everyday what Halloween crafts we are going to do next. On Sunday, Lil decided she wanted to craft again before bedtime. I helped her make the candy/ghost card pictured above. Yes, I’ve created a little craft monster! 

If you missed last week's, Halloween craft post, click HERE to check it out. 

Halloween Crafts: Cat Character Jar Kit

I’m expecting my second baby in October and I don’t feel like busting out all my Halloween decorations this year; I own more Halloween decorations than Christmas ones. The idea of putting a bunch of Halloween decorations away with a newborn and toddler sounds like a bad idea. However, I did put a few decorations up that I had stored in the house, not the garage, and decided to purchase some inexpensive Halloween kits for my daughter, Lil, instead. I love kits because they included all the supplies needed to create the craft. We started making Halloween crafts last month, since I don’t know how I will be feeling the closer my due date gets. 

The first Halloween kit I purchased was this Black Cat Character Jar Kit from Target. I found it in the dollar section at Target, which I hate because I always get in trouble in those aisles. I cant resist the deals and cute stuff! I purchased the kit for $3. They also have a pumpkin, monster, mummy, and sugar skull jar kit too. Lil picked the cat one and I got the sugar skull for myself.

The instructions provided were very easy to follow. This is kit ended up being a two day project since we had to wait for the black paint to dry completely before adding the cat face stickers. Lil added the cat ears first (as the jar soaked in warm water to remove the label), then painted the jar, and stuck the cat face stickers the next day.

I must admit while helping Lil with her cat jar kit, I was getting a bit frustrated because she wouldn’t listen and was putting stickers wherever she wanted. It wasn’t turning out to look like the cat jar in the picture. For example, the cat’s ears weren’t positioned right. Obviously, I had to remind myself she’s just a toddler. Most importantly, I realized by letting her do her own thing it made her cat jar more unique. I absolutely love how one of the cat’s eyes is crocked; it gives the cat character. Doing crafts with Lil has taught me to be patient and forced me to move perfectionism gradually to the side.

Lil loves making crafts. I have been making art with Lil from the very beginning, with footprint art. I’ve always known that not only is being creative with my kid fun but it is also beneficial. I just didn’t know exactly in which way until I read “Why Art and Creativity Are Important” on Parents.com. I was thrilled to learn, Lil was improving her fine motor skills just by manipulating the paintbrush when painting her jar black. I also liked reading that by letting Lil do her own thing, putting the cat face stickers were she wanted on the jar, she was reaping big rewards. Creating art and learning new nursery rhyme songs helps boost Lil’s self-confidence. Every time her dad comes home from work, she can’t help but show off her new creation or sing the new song she learned. 

Currently, Lil’s cat jar kit sits on a table, in our small living room area, along with other Halloween decorations and Halloween picture frames. I gave Lil a LED tea light candle to put inside her cat jar since she didn’t over the jar completely with black paint. Her cat jar looks awesome at night, as the light shines through. She enjoyed making the Cat Character Jar Kit so much; she asked me if I could get her the monster jar kit and get her dad the pumpkin one at Target. The following week, I did. 

Hopefully, if time permits I can share the rest of the Halloween kits Lil and I have completed. 

DIY Customizing Toddler Doodle for Mother's Day

I love giving close family and friends homemade gifts and I found a great way to incorporate my toddler's doodles by making these awesome custom word/name picture frames. Currently, my daughter's favorite new art medium is markers. I try to get her to use different mediums, for example  crayons and markers. Sometimes she does, but she really likes working with just markers right now, especially the scented kind. Making these custom picture frames are my favorite gift I help Lily make. With Mother's Day just around the corner, these custom word/name picture frames would make the perfect Mother's Day gift.

Supplies

White and Black Card Stock Paper, 

Paint, Crayons, or Markers (or all three),

Black Frame (I get mine at the 99 cent store),

Scissors,

Scrap Paper,

Pencil,

X-Acto Knife, and

Cutting Board.

Step 1: Have your child doodle on white card stock paper. I give Lily at least a week to finish a doodle. It goes faster if she is using paint. She's a toddler, so sometimes she can't sit and doodle for a long time. I give her a week because she doesn't doodle everyday and the more she doodles on the paper the more the cut out word/name will stand out. Avoid letting your child use black markers because it will end up blending in with the background when you insert the black card stock paper, at the end.

On a side note, I found this great article on the importance of having your child doodle.  Click here to read it. ]

Step 2: Grab your frame and remove the backing leaving the actual frame and glass only. Move it around the doodled paper until you find a background you like.

                                         

Step 3: Trace around the glass with a pencil. Then cut it out.

Step 4: Using your scrap piece of paper draw out the word/name you want. Cut it out and arrange it on your doodled paper. 

Step 5: Trace the letters that make up the word/name on your doodled paper.

                                        

Step 6: Place your doodled paper over a cutting mat and very carefully cut out the traced word/name with an X-Acto knife.

Step 7: Use the doodled paper to trace over the black card stock paper. Cut it out and insert it behind the white paper. Put the frame back together and TA-DA you're done! 

I have helped Lily make 4 of these custom word/name picture frames for very close family and friends and every recipient has absolutely loved it. When we made one for my parents, my brother suggested I cut out Lily's name on the doodled paper, that way they could display it near her photographs. Other good Mother Day themes for Grandma's would be Nana, Grammie, Grandma, I Love You (use the shape of a heart for love), or any other special word Grandma uses. 

I have been wanting one of these frames for myself and I hope I can finally get Lily to make me one for Mother's Day. I think I want my picture frame to say Mama. 

Please let me know if you find this tutorial useful. Better yet, let me know if you try it out with your child. 

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