4 Cool Crafty Reads for Parents

by M. Ranard, M.Ed.
600 words

We have heard it from their teachers and reading experts, but it can be tough to put into practice. To help our kids become better readers, it’s important to model reading at home. If we set an example and allow our kids to catch us reading—even if it’s just a recipe or magazine—we are in essence setting the stage for compliance.

We all get too much screen time these days, especially just before bed, and quiet time spent reading is a much healthier way to unwind. Fiction is great, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, so I found some fun nonfiction titles that go down easy and inspire along the way.

Add Style to Your Home
Kaari Meng has fashioned a book of cool projects guaranteed to inject the romance of France into our homes (we can dream!). The French Inspired Home contains handmade ideas which nurture any dreams you may harbor of living in a cozy cottage in the countryside someday.

From beaded light covers to clothes hanger adornments (these are so luxuriously simple yet charming!) Meng inspires us to embellish our homes with the timeworn and organic touches of French-inspired living.

Even if you typically shy away from crafting, The French-Inspired Home will sufficiently fill up your senses and perhaps re-ignite a passion for thoughtful decorating or collecting vintage wares.

Create Cool Stuff from Crap
And because I personally can't pass up a vintage ware, Fabric Remix: Repurpose and Redecorate by Sandy Stone stole my heart with its sewing and upholstery projects made easy. Ever seen moneybag pillows? Totally genius on page 60. And don't we NEED shopping cart hampers fitted with vintage laundry bags to make laundry time dreamier? Because I’m not so sure I can exist any longer without one.

Stone teaches us (and I am a pathetic sewer!) how to turn vintage fabric, recycled clothing, and old furniture into stylish projects, and you’ve got to admit this is an awesome lesson for your kids.

Apparently my skill is dragging vintage wares home—it’s the repurposing part that always trips me up. Another one of my favorite projects in Fabric Remix is the vintage scarf pillow which makes such a powerful statement with a little effort, needle, and thread.

Make Unique Fashion
Chock full of personality and whimsy Sew Tina: 30 Cute Projects and Adorable Décor Items for Kids by Tina Givens includes Givens' signature go-with-the-flow method. Inside are flying pigs, soft books, puffy necklaces, and swing-y dresses made for twirling. Givens' imagination combined with Lynne Harty's dreamy photography sucked me right in, and I plan to put my insomnia to good use with a few of these stylish DIYs!

Learn from Creative Minds
Projects from these great new titles don’t require a fancy art room, but are you ever curious like I am about the studio spaces of brilliantly creative artists? Where Women Create: Book of Inspiration allows us to peep without breaking any trespassing laws.

Twenty-three amazing women are profiled in this volume by Jo Packham and Jenny Doh, and we are invited to discover their influences and processes which are as diverse as their charming creations. Tips for organization, exercises to fuel creativity, and personal reflections join breathtaking photography of beautiful work and workspaces.

Turning the pages of all four of these inspirational books will accomplish more than you know. You will be afforded the simple pleasure of escaping to inspiration nirvana for a few hours, you may rediscover hidden reserves of creativity, and you will be making a critical difference at home as you model the healthy habit of reading.

The writer? A lover of nonfiction, wife and mom, freelance writer, and blogger at hellolovelychild.blogspot.com and hellolovelyinc.blogspot.com.

Resources:

Givens, Tina. Sew Tina: 30 Cute Projects and Adorable Décor Items for Kids. 2010. Lark Books.
Meng, Kaari. The French Inspired Home. First Paperback Edition, 2011. Lark Crafts.
Packham, Jo and Jenny Doh. Where Women Create: Book of Inspiration. 2010. Lark Books.
Stone, Sandy. Fabric Remix: Repurpose and Redecorate. Lark Books.