When I really start to think about Barbie, her impossible proportions, and her obsession with beauty, I’m quite disturbed. As I’m scrolling through the selection of shows with my kids on Netflix and they see the Barbie icon, I always hear “that one, that one.” And I’m talking about a 3.5 year old boy and a 2 year old girl. The first time they asked for it, I thought it was cute so I said okay. And then I watched the thing. The entire episode was about flirting and shopping and bragging and over-consumption in general. In that moment, I actually felt I’d rather let Oliver watch Transformers (which he’s been dying to watch) over this.

And then yesterday I saw this awesome contest for the Lottie doll on Cool Mom Picks. As CMP put it, Lottie is all about girls being girls and having a positive body image. She looks like a girl, bends like a girl, is a great size for little hands, and can stand on her own two feet — a pretty useful function. No stilettos for her.

And here’s why we over at Project Kid got excited…the makers of the doll are having a contest for Lottie’s superhero outfit, and they are calling for submissions from kids 10 and under to design this costume. Check out the app on the Lottie Facebook page for instructions. How cool would it be for your child’s design to get manufactured for Lottie dolls everywhere? It’s like Project (Mini) Runway. I love the drawings at the top that I found on Facebook.

You only have until May 7th, so download the template and design away!

CBS46 News

It was a whirlwind 3 days, but totally worth it! I travelled (with husband and 2 kids in tow) to our hometown of Atlanta, GA for 3 Project Kid craft events and book signings. Along with that came 2 local morning shows where I got to show off some crafts from the book! On Better Mornings, I made the Bottle Rocket craft from the cover of the book with Jennifer Valez, and on Atlanta & Co, Christine Pullara and I made the paper flowers that I crafted with the kids at the local venues.

Here are some pics of the cute kids making flowers all over the metro Atlanta area. Many thanks to Little Shop of Stories, Seed Factory, and the Children’s Museum of Atlanta for hosting me and supporting the book!

When I first told the publicity team at Artisan about Seed Factory, they said their website looked like a page from my book. A bigger compliment could not have been paid. Rachel styles that store like nobody’s business, and I spent 2 of the most relaxing hours greeting, crafting, signing, and visiting with old and new friends.

After seeing the amazingly creative facility at the Children’s Museum of Atlanta, I couldn’t imagine that any kid would stop whatever awesome activity they were doing to come and craft. But we had a nice little crowd over at the red tables, making flowers on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Picture this…Friday afternoon, 75 degrees, sunny, 4:30pm at a bookstore. Sleepytown you might think? But no! Little Shop of Stories brought a packed house of young crafters to make flowers as a pre-weekend treat. The books sold like hotcakes! One of the employees of the store spent quite a bit of time making a crafty window display from the book. I was super-impressed (and glad to see that my directions were clear!).

I know, I know, it may be a bit cliche to post about flower crafts for Mother’s Day, but I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for flowers and a big-time sucker for kids’ crafts (duh, I wrote a book about ’em). While I won’t deny that I’d love a massage, a clean playroom, and breakfast in bed on May 11th (Michael, are you reading this?), I still crumble at the sight of a homemade gift.

Keep your eye out for fun gift ideas over the next few weeks! And feel free to send me your partner’s email address and I’ll be sure to keep him informed!

ps…The best present of all for Mother’s Day is a gift that keeps on giving—a mega craft book that keeps the kids happy and busy for months!

1 Creature Comforts  /  2 Oh Happy Day  /  3 Urbanic Paper-Parcel Post

My Project Kid book tour would not have been complete without a stop in Atlanta. And not only do I get to share my book at one store, but 3 awesome venues…a bookstore, a clothing/toy and all-around amazing shop, and a kids’ museum!

I’m really excited to see friends and family…faces that I miss on a daily basis and people that I haven’t seen in years. And of course any new folks that come just for their natural love of craft.

Friday, April 25 at 4:30 pm: Little Shop of Stories

I’ve never been to Little Shop of Stories, but judging by the look of the place, I don’t think I (or my kids) will want to leave! A perfect activity to do to end the week.

Saturday, April 26 at 1:00pm: Seed Factory

Seed Factory is one of my favorite stores for kids in Atlanta…I even bought the dresses for my flower girls there! Here’s my advice…leave your kids to me so we can craft while you shop.

Sunday, April 27 at 3:00pm: Children’s Museum of Atlanta

What better place to craft than at the Children’s Museum of Atlanta? Explore the exhibits and then come make fun a lovely paper flower. Or vice versa.

Plus, on Friday morning, tune into Atlanta & Co on NBC at 11:00 am and Better Mornings Atlanta on CBS at 9 am for a craft demo from Project Kid!

Get it? Earth Day – Birthday? In celebration of the year’s most important commemorative holiday (yes, my friends, our planet needs some massive TLC), here are 3 projects that help put an end to one of the most wasteful craft exploits of our day—gift wrap.

Instead of wasting money and trees on something that is going to be ripped and tossed in 32 seconds flat, use something colorful that you have laying around in spades: magazine and catalog pages. Here are 3 stylish and totally beautiful ways to give your FamilyFun Magazine a second, albeit short, life.

1 Maiko Naigo   /   2 Decor8   /   3 Zakka Life