Divi's Sketchbook

A new blog-Mommiepedia

2011-06-14T17:40:00.001-04:00

In past I have been writing about ideas/inspirations both suited for adults and children. But then I realized I have so much to share and say when it comes to creative ideas for kids and this might not be the right blog to share all those ideas on. So I started a new blog called "Mommiepedia". In this blog I plan to share ideas about creative ways of teaching kids. I hope it will become an encyclopedia (sort of) for imaginative and out-of-the box teaching ideas.

Some images from Mommiepedia

I hope you guys will check it out. Suggestions and stories to share are welcome. Also if you like it please share it. Thank you for reading.

Easter craft fun

2011-04-22T20:21:00.002-04:00

Easter crafts

My daughter enjoys crafts as much as I do (no surprises haan!!). And Easter around the corner it is the perfect excuse to decorate some eggs. I am not sure if I should introduce my daughter to dyeing egg yet (considering I have never done that myself I am doubly unsure). So our egg decorations were done on foam cut-out shaped as eggs.

Easter Craft

Material used:

Foam Sheets
Ribbons (whatever kinds or pieces you have in your house)
Googly Eyes
Flower brads
Flower Buttons
Glue
Scissors

I made a paper template shaped like an egg, then used it to cut several foam sheets in different colors. Then I punched out several flowers using Stampin-Up punch, and Saanvi used them to decorate the egg shaped foam sheet. She used ribbons and pasted them on another egg shaped foam sheet. I drew some other simple designs and cut them out of other foam sheets which Saanvi used to decorate more pieces. But her favourite part was pushing flower brads on the egg cut outs. She must have spend half hour doing that. This was our Easter celebration and fun, whats yours??

Have an, Egg-ceptional, Eggs-traordinary Easter everyone.

Pink Princess Diaper Cake

2011-04-18T21:23:00.000-04:00

Pink Princess Diaper cake

May you touch fireflies and stars, dance with fairies and talk to the man in the moon,
may you grow up with gracious hearts and people who care,
welcome to the world little one, it’s been waiting for you... quotes

I know every Mom-to-be is praying the same, waiting for their little princess to arrive. And this cake is for those eagerly awaiting moms (to-be) and their baby girls. Pretty in pink with lots of feathers and sparkles.

This cake was specially designed for a lovely friend who is ready to leap into motherhood. Her baby shower theme was Pink and White. So here it is, a diaper cake for the new princess-to-be..

Pink Princess Diaper Cake

This diaper cake is avaiable on my etsy shop "Saanvi". Have a look..

My Etsy Shop "Saanvi"

2011-04-16T10:36:00.000-04:00

Saanvi

After an year of pondering over the idea of opening my own etsy shop I finally opened one. I have been making all sorts of stuff and my frinds have been pushing me to open a store for a while now. So I decided it is time and here goes my very own Etsy Shop called Saanvi (named after my daughter).

Saanvi

For now I have listed things that I made past 1 year for my friends. I plan to expand it in the future with more products. I have some diaper cakes in the shop now and I plan to add more products with themes related to these diaper cakes in the shop. I also have a wedding bouquet with blue and white handmade paper flowers. I will soon be adding flowers for decorating ones house too.

I hope you will like my work and stop by to view and buy some of my products. Thanks for all the support and encouragement.

Origami for Kids

2011-04-14T21:53:00.000-04:00

Origami Bird

My daughters school is very open about parents volunteering in the classrooms to teach the kids something or come and read them a book. And needless to say I love it. I enjoy playing with her and her classmates and teaching them something new is double the bonus for me and for them I hope.

Feburary was China month in her school (it was beacuse Chinese New Year was in Feb). The only thing I could think of related to China that I can teach them was Origami. I know that Origami (pronounced or-i-GA-me) is the Japanese art of paperfolding. "Ori" is the Japanese word for folding and "kami" is the Japanese word for paper. That is how origami got its name. However, origami did not start in Japan. It began in China in the first or second century and then spread to Japan sometime during the sixth century.

So I decided to teach them origami. I picked out few easy designs that a pre-schooler can make with little help. I also made some more a bit complicated but fun designs like flying crane, frog, airplanes etc to show them what all they can make by folding paper. Kids were so excited about making cats and glueing googly eyes on their cats. The paper planes and birds caught their attention as well. It was so much fun seeing them having fun. Everyone of these kids were happy and excited to show their creations to teachers and parents.

I used simple materials like construction paper from dollar store (you can use Origami paper as well), craft glue, googly eyes, marker to make eyes etc, and I used a paper cutter to cut the cardstock in squares. You can get all the supplies in a local art store or by the links on this page.

I always think about the result of every activity. What did these kids learn out of it? What benefit they got out of learning origami.

My Analysis:
Not only did they learn a new technique of making objects, they learned about the association of that art form with a country. They practiced 'Folding' which is an important motor skill for their age along with learning to follow simple instructions. Having to wait for their turn to do the project also is an important lesson for their future.

I love to see kids have fun and if they are learning some imp. lessons on the way then that is just the best thing ever. I hope you will try it too.

Creative Learning

2011-03-07T10:00:00.000-05:00

After teaching my 1st Class I'm convinced that the best way to learn is by teaching. Sharing knowledge is the best way to grow and learn.

I learned a lot this past weekend in my class about Abstract Art. All I did was to share the techniques I use to create Art. What I got in return is much more. To name a few I learned how many creative ways there are to interpret the same plain board. How differently one can use the same technique and come up with a totally different product. How moods of every individual reflects on the piece they are working on. I also learned how I should progress a class (participants were very cooperative and supportive, Love them for that).

Overall I loved the whole process of painting sample pieces, making a presentation, teaching and seeing everyone enjoy themselves. Here are few of my favourite pictures from the class.

Everyone at Work

Adding finishing touches

Proud Artists and their Work of Art

I plan to teach and learn a lot more in the future. And I hope you do too. It is the best feeling ever.

Abstract Art Workshop

2011-02-17T21:20:00.000-05:00

So after much push from friends I am hosting my 1st workshop. As the name says it is about Art... Abstract Art.

I love color (am sure you all know that by now), recycled materials, anyhting creative and unique and most of all I love Inspiring people to be more creative and to think outside the box.

In this workshop I plan to teach a little bit about abstract art, composition and color combinations. I want to share what my Art and drawing teacher taught me when I was in college "TO SEE".
To look at everyday things around us and find color combinations and compositions. To see the beauty that surrounds us. And use that beauty and the color schemes in nature that we get inspired by and make a unique piece of Art.

Last year I shared a painting with you in my blog post 'Color Therapy'. This painting was painted on a reclaimed piece of MDF that has a pattern engraved on it. This workshop will use a similar piece of reclaimed MDF and turn it into a Unique and One of a kind Work of ART.

I am very excited about the workshop (well and nervous too)... If you live in and around Atlanta and want to attend this workshop then email me at divissketchbook(at)gmail(dot)com.

Thank you all my friends, family and blog readers for Inspring me to host this workshop. I promise there will be lot more coming up.

Love you all.

Divya

Creative Gift Tags

2011-02-04T13:04:00.002-05:00

After buying a tons of Art supplies from Art Store or Stampin Up I am always trying to come up with projects where I can use them (I know a difficult task right, it is or me). I have recently invested (at least that's what I like to think) in tons of new art supplies.

Color pens

Paper Punch

Various stamps.. etc etc..

We all add Thank you cards or Gift tags to Party Favors right, so why not make them ourselves?

Here is what I did for my daughter's birthday party favors. I made some simple and easy Gift tags. I used several punches to punch out different shapes in various colored cardstock. Then mixed all the colored punch outs to make unique birds and glued them to the wrapped gifts. VERY VERY EASY, but unique.

I hope you will try it out something like this soon.

Here are some of my recommendations if you would like to buy some supplies.

Spreading Cheer

2011-01-28T14:46:00.001-05:00

I have been feeling kinda dull and drab lately. After meeting a friend for dinner yesterday night I realized I am not the only one feeling so dead and depressed these days. So its time to spread some cheer.

I cant think of a better way to do that than to introduce you all to my absolute fav photographer- Katie Sokoler.

One cannot help but smile when you look at her work. I absolutely LOVE her spirited and kaleidoscopic pictures. I am a big fan of color anyway, looking at her pics makes me fall in love with colors again.

Her simple yet whimsical ideas brings a wide grin on my face every time I browse her flicr page or her blog "Color me Katie"

So here are some more of her images borrowed from her Flickr account. Be sure to check out rest of her work here.

Something special for Valentine's Day from Katie.

Poll for a new Layout.

2010-11-12T19:17:00.002-05:00

I have been thinking about a NEW LOOK for my blog. Its been quite some time I have had the current layout, and a new look seems like a necessary step. (Agree?? Don't Agree??).

As you guys would know me, I love color, Scrap booking, Crafts, anything and everything creative. But I am also very organized. So keeping those parameters in mind I selected few Free Layouts from Blogger. (I can't afford a custom layout yet, so a free one will have to do for now).

I need your help deciding which one should I pick (also should I even change it?)

So I am Having a small poll here. Please look at the following templates and help me choose.

Option 1 - Color Idea

Option 2 - Sticker Theme

Option 3 - Glory

Option 4 - My Diario

Option 5 - Color O Ring

Please VOTE:

Please vote for the template you think represent this blog the best. I really appreciate the help.

{I want to thank a darling friend who helped me create this poll on my blog post. Thank You sooo much.}

Halloween Pumpkin Party

2010-11-08T21:25:00.005-05:00

"Backward, turn backward, O Time, in your flight, make me a child again, just for to-night!" ~Elizabeth Akers Allen

This quotation sums up my feeling about halloween for kids. What a fun festival to dress up, go trick-or-treating and all the candy.

This year I decided to call all my daughters friends for a Pumpkin inspired Halloween Party. Me and my daughter (oh yes! she is a big helper and to add to my happiness she loves crafts as well) prepared for little little stuff for the party over several weeks. Like filling Favor bags, making food picks, designing halloween cards, carving pumpkins, prepping for the food table etc. Saanvi had loads of fun stamping with halloween stamps on favor bags, helping me make the food picks, filling candy in the bags. What a fun process follwed by a fantastic afternoon spend with creative costumes and great company.

Here is what we did.

Carved Pumpkin faces, Haunted house and
pumkin stickers used to decorate the center piece,
Orange and purple lanterns

Halloween party table setup, Center Piece tree

'Boo' food picks, Pumpkin decorations, Halloween shaped cookie cutter cut fruits,
Eye ball and pumpkin cake

Fly Away favor bags and Halloween Cards

I have added the links to my inspirations for everyone else to try if they like. I added my own twist to everything keeping true to the theme (Pumpkins).

I hope everyone who came had as much fun as we did planning for it.

P.S.- Please let me know if any of you like to know more about anything I share. I would love to help out with any project you guys want to do.

And yaa keep reading..

'About to Hatch' Diaper Cake

2010-10-25T13:00:00.003-04:00

This past weekend we hosted a baby shower for a dear friend. Hostess did a great job with decorations, food and specially the cake (Oh my god I just loved her ideas, I am sharing some pics and her blog link, please check it out).
My little job was to make a diaper cake (I Love it)..
Instructions were simple...

Theme: About to Hatch
Colors: Yellow, Green and Brown
For a little baby Girl who will be named "Meera"..

Here it is... My Little Gift for the Parents to be..

To read about the Cake and decor and party favors please click HERE. Hostess of this baby shower writes an amazing food blog, check it out for some great recipes. Her blog is called Pinch of Sunshine..

Check back soon for detailed instructions on 'How to make a Diaper Cake'. Keep reading..

Halloween Cards

2010-10-15T15:16:00.003-04:00

With Halloween right around the corner and kids coming over for a costume party I had the perfect reason to take out my crafting supplies and make some handmade cards. A few months ago I had taken a workshop at a friends place to learn a few tricks for making handmade cards. What better reason to brush up those skills and make some cards. Here are few glimpses of my Halloween cards.

Stampin Up is a great company that has amazing products for card making and scrapbooking. A friend of mine is a demonstrator with them and she showed me various techniques and fun ideas. Here is her blog/website have a look.

I have been working on some fun stuff for my halloween party. Will share more soon. Keep Reading..

Personalised Book for Kids

2010-10-12T22:14:00.001-04:00

I came across a wonderful website the other day. A company that can create a book specially for my daughter. A book in which she is the star. A book about her, printed specially for her. It looked intersting so I decided to get Saanvi her own book.

The First Adventures of Incredible You, is about the most memorable experiences of early childhood. By answering a few questions, I could personalize these experiences so that this custom storybook includes specific people from her life like me and my husband, places and things that are unique to us and her.

The illustrations in this book are so colorful, bright and whimsical. Each page accomanied by a written rhyming text telling a story about her life. What she likes to eat, who tucks her in bed, what beach or zoo she likes etc. I love it.

I hope she will find reading interesting when the book is about her. I would recommend this book to everyone who likes personalized gifts. Click here for the comapny's website.

DIY Chalkboard

2010-08-21T17:42:00.001-04:00

I am always looking out for FUN ways to teach my kid to write, read, draw, anything and everything. One of the things I distinctly remember is using a small chalk board as a kid. I used to love drawing on it and I think I 1st started learning to write on it. I have seen this chalboard paint in the stores which I always wanted to try. So I decided to MAKE a Chalkboard instead.

My Supplies:

Chalkboard Paint .(I used a spray kinds, easier to use.)
One Picture frame any size you like. Mine is 26" x 20". (I bought a clearance piece from an Art Supply store without the glass in it but if you find one with the glass in it that works as well.
Plywood or ACM (I used a piece of Aluminium Composite Metal) or the Glass the picture frame came with. (I would avoid using glass for a chalkboard for kids.

Bunch of carpenters Nails.

Painting the board:-

I followed the instructions on the spray can (very carefully). It is important to shake the can well before painting the plywood or ACM or glass.
If you choose a Plywood as the board, then you need to sand it 1st with a fine grit sandpaper and make sure you sand along the grain.
If you are using Metal piece or Glass then you can spray right after you clean it with a wipe or cloth.
Then I sprayed the paint on the board. Once horizontaly then vertically covering the entire surface.
I left it to Dry and then sprayed another coat. (If you feel the need then you can spray the paint 1 more time on the plywood)

P.S.- I prefered to paint in an open area because of fumes and wanted to stay away from my kid. Please read the safety instructions before you paint.

Then I inserted the painted ACM inside the frame and secured it with carpenters nails.

ALL DONE!!! :-)

It was easier than I expected. My daughter spend hours drawing and writing on it. And I love watching her play with it.

In case you would like to buy a Chalkboard instead, here are some that I would recommend click here, here and here.

Fabulous Find

2010-07-14T23:37:00.003-04:00

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all."

— Jacqueline Kennedy

I have to share this fantastic book that I recently found in costco.

"Bee n Me" is a charming story of a young boy who is scared of bees, full of movable pictures (through polarization) (in publishing world it is called "Ani-motion" technology). My daughter loves this book. The ani-motion is awesome and really keeps her attention while we are reading it. The story is very cute and educational and there is a list of bee facts in the back.

I like the word indolence.....

2010-07-11T21:26:00.002-04:00

I like the word "indolence". It makes my laziness seem classy... Bern Williams

I know.. I know.. I have been pretty lazy last few days (ok! ok! weeks...). And I have tons of excuses for not writing regularly.. like we moved into a new place, been unpacking, organizing, my demanding kid etc etc.

Even my friends have started asking 'When will we get the RSS feed of your new blog post?' or 'What is the new project you are working on?'. Reality is I haven't touched my crafting supplied for over a month now. In fact they are still packed in boxes stored in the new computer/craft room. The new netflix account is not helping much either. So today I decided to write and break the block.

All I need now is a good topic, but somehow searching for a topic to write about is very difficult in this state of laziness. Although I do have some projects that I worked on earlier that I never got around sharing with you. One being the exhibition where I displayed my handmade clips at.

A couple months ago a friend suggested that I should participate in a buyers exhibition called Americasmart. It sounded like a good idea to see the business side of crafting and design. I accompanied her in her stall for a day. My first reaction when I entered the ginormous exhibition space extensively packed with exhibitors and buyers was of shock and fear. I felt lost looking at all these people who knew what they are doing in that popular exhibition that I had never even heard of. I was standing there with a boxful of my creations mocking myself for being so clueless. I displayed my hand made designs on a small table which felt like a pebble in the pond.

It all started with me trying to make a few clips for my daughter. I was enjoying the process so much that I kept making more and more and more. I designed several templates on my computer and began making these goodies. Trying to find color combinations to go with the cute outfits of my daughter. I made a small bib style necklace for her (can't give her the beaded necklaces, choking hazard) and several other clips. Then I displayed them at the exhibition hall scared that no one will notice them. But to my surprise most people were supportive, they were trying to motivate me and navigate me in the right direction. I got a few inquiries too which made me ecstatic (they couldn't materialize though, as I am not ready to handle big orders yet).

In the future I am tempted to try a bigger stall in another exhibition with more designs and products. For now my creations are for my little princess and are for the baby girls in our family and friends.

Wedding Bouquet

2010-05-25T16:15:00.006-04:00

One of my collegues is getting maried to his High School sweetheart this week. This is his second marriage and his fiances 3rd one. To keep it simple (and romantic, I guess) they are going to have a small ceremony at Gatlinburg (Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee). I hear it is the 2nd most popular place to get married after Vegas. Is it??

What wedding ceremony is complete without flowers right. So here is my gift for their new beginning.

Wedding Bouquet with white and blue paper flowers matching brides beautiful gown.

Matching boutonnière for the Groom.

And a handmade card for the new couple.

I wish them the best for this new chapter in their lives. All the best Mrs & Mr. Dodson.

P.S.-I know I have to give a lot of updates about what I have been up to. Including a cardmaking class-event a friend hosted (was so much fun and I learned a lot). Will be writing soon on that.

P.S. (2)- I found a great tutorial on making paper flower bouquet (its not how I make Paper flowers, but it is damn neat and easy). For the tutorial check here.

Thanks a lot for reading and for writing such wonderful comments.

Paper Masks

2010-05-14T16:01:00.004-04:00

I was looking around for Animal shaped paper masks and see what i found...

Amy Flurry and Nikki Salk are two artists based in Atlanta that create some fantastic pieces of paper craft art.

As GA City Style quotes about them -All of these outlandishly perfect creations are made of paper but look like they would make it through a serious day of adventure. They are “fueled by a love of fashion and an appreciation of the grace and nuance of this humble material.”

Aren’t these gorgeous?? I love the style, creativity and the layering of paper. Check out their website, more designs and illustrations here.

Color Therapy..

2010-04-25T19:07:00.003-04:00

A few weeks back we had to take a personality test in the office. The purpose of it was to understand each others personalities so that we all can work better as a team. Try to see the potential of people and to ignore the obvious negative personality traits in each other. Did it work? Yes to my surprise it is working. I wish we could do the same thing in our day to day lives with family and friends too. Try and forgive each other for the fall outs and admire them for the efforts they make.

In my painting I wanted to express people with different personalities. Some vibrant, assertive, energetic, some soothing, sympathetic, some deep and intuitive, others happy and radiant.

Our life is just like this painting an organized chaos of color, a family of different personalities that come together to complete the picture. Each individual with its own story, own likes, dislikes, positives and negatives. Some compliment each other some stand alone. But we need every one of those colors to make it a spectrum, to make life more FUN.

This is my Color Therapy.

P.S.- I am a big fan of recycling and this is my recycled art. Painted on a reclaimed piece of MDF from my office workshop (which normlly gets tossed in the dumpster).

WALL DECALS

2010-04-14T15:34:00.000-04:00

I want to decorate my daughters room and so started looking out for some easy solutions for wall art. Some of my friends have murals made on the walls in their kids rooms. Murals look great but I want something that is easy to use and is removable (painting on walls is not allowed in my apartment complex).
Came across these great products that i wanted to share. Wall Decals.

Wall TAT-"Wall Decals are fun, easy to install and compared to other wall finishing and wall decor alternative. Talk about getting maximum visual impact in a very cost effective manner. The best part of all is that you can install them yourself."

Wall Decals are not only cost effective and easy to install, they can be installed on any surface (walls, glass, floors, ceilings, furniture, cars etc.). These are removable too, so changing them for a new decor is easy.

Also saw these great removable chalkboard wall stickers (Chalk-Decals) by For Walls.

"Inspire the artist within by adding an outlet for creative talents on a patterned chalkboard – perfect for adding a little vitality to your home or inspiring your kids writing skills on walls, drawing tables and more. "-for walls.

My Quotable Kid

2010-04-06T13:27:00.000-04:00

When kids start talking (even jiberish), don't we all feel that they sound super cute and want to remember them later? Don't we all want to save those words, those pronunciations somehow?

When Saanvi started talking I would write them down sometimes or make a small video clip, but most of the times I didn't. But I do want to remember them later. I stumbled upon this cool book called The Quotable Kid.

Love the idea.

I am making a scrapbook for Saanvi, so i decided to make a scrapbook page of what she keeps saying these days. Like Moi, Moi (to call me) or Bi Bi Papa, C U tomorow and Wiwi (Kiwi) etc.

Organizing my creative space.

2010-03-26T11:28:00.000-04:00

My husband has been complaining about my crafting supplies taking over our house. And it is true. Over the years I have collected so many things for crafts and scrapbooks that it is becoming difficult to store them. I want everything displayed so that I can see what I have and get to them quickly. One of the things I had hardest time to organize was Ribbons. I have been searching for a good storage system for all my Ribbons, but most of them are too expensive. So I decided to make one. A box that will not only store my ribbon collection, but will display them and will make it easier for me to use them.

The company I work for also has manufacturing of Aluminium Composite Metal Panels. They were kind enough to let me use some of the scrap material and the CNC machine and helped me fabricate my Ribbon Box. Thank you so much Altech.

I love the metallic blue ribbon box (this was my final design, till now). Red one was an experimental piece. I have one more blue colored one, cut and ready to be fabricated in the shop. I may use that for a special giveaway some time soon.

The display of colorful ribbons inspires me to come out of my color-comfort zone and try new combinations too. Love it...

Creative Lunch

2010-03-24T23:15:00.000-04:00

With a picky eater at home (my daughter), I always wonder what I will do to make her eat when she goes to school.. If she is anything like me she won't want to eat the packed boring lunches.. Then I saw Funky Lunch website... I am sooo in love with these... What awesome ideas..

My favourite sandwich:

And this rainbow lunch {I have to be loyal to my color obsession :-)...}

And it's healthy too.. To see "whats in the lunch bo" click here..
Cant decide whether I would want to eat these or just look at them...

Color my Wishlist

2010-03-23T16:48:00.000-04:00

Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment. ~Claude Monet

Yes, you are right, another post about color, but can I say.. I love Color.. This quote is just so perfect for my love for color.

A latest entry in my wishlist is this beautiful set of 500 color pencils, I cant imagine a shade of color they don't have in this set. As Social Designer says "Introducing 500 Colored Pencils: the only set in the world that matches the span and wonder of human creativity. Each pencil is its own story. A unique hue with an inventive name to inspire the far corners of your creativity." Such creative names.

My favourite one for today is --