terrarium

Here is a fun little project for a spring day. The girls had fun collecting all the supplies at a local forest preserve. It all came together in about 20 minutes... plus clean up.


Supplies:
glass container with lid (this beauty was $1 from the thrift store)
rocks
soil
plants (we used moss)
small toys for decorating

Fill the bottom of the container with rocks (for drainage). Add a layer of soil. Top with moss and plants. Add little toy people or animals to live in your little world. Add a little water. Place out of direct sunlight... and enjoy.

Polly Pocket looks so happy driving through this lush landscape.

the finished horse

I bought this bisque-fired ceramic carousel horse at a thrift store in Chicago. It started out shabby... with lots of potential.

I covered the entire horse with gesso (acrylic primer) and then painted in the details with acrylic paints. I had hoped to finish it for Christmas, but let's face it, we just moved and things have been a bit busy here... so it was more of a Presidents Day gift.

The girls love watching me paint, but more than that, they like to help. I gave them each a small portion of the saddle to paint however they wanted.

I like how it turned out. Alli and Ruby and June love this horse. I often find stuffed animals on its back. Maybe the next project will be making a more sturdy base for it.

cleaning is more fun...

It's called a "Shark." And so I made it a bit more shark-ish. I glued large googly-eyes to the top. I cut a row of fierce teeth out of white adhesive vinyl.

And now sweeping is that much more fun.

You should hear the girls squeal and scream as the shark chases them around the kitchen... gobbling up bits of crumbs.