Today I’d like to share a great new book called Make Stuff Together: 24 simple projects to create as a family by Bernadette Noll and Kathie Sever. (And by share I mean give-away a free copy! Details at the end)
A few years ago I came across Future Craft Collective, Bernadette and Kathie’s website. Basically they believe in building family connections through crafting and I couldn’t agree more with their philosophy! Lucky us to have access to two women who share this idea through their blog, camps, classes and now a beautiful book! And lucky me, I was honored to be asked to write the foreword to their book, which is just what I did…..
As long as I can remember, I have been making stuff. Growing up in the 70’s, most of the stuff consisted of macramé bracelets, paper maché piñatas and sand candles at the beach on summer vacation. I was greatly influenced by family members making stuff around me. My mother sewed, my grandmother knit, my father caned chairs, my brothers drew and built and created stuff constantly. My fondest memories are those sitting around the kitchen table with my family crafting.
Today, all grown up with two boys of my own, I’m fortunate to carry on this family tradition. We live in such a busy time with so many distractions (much of them electronic), often rushing from one activity to the next. It’s more important to me than ever to spend time unplugged and in the moment with my kids.
Make Stuff Together offers fun and creative projects that foster building family bonds while making cool stuff! The authors, Bernadette and Kathie, share their invaluable experience and insights about sewing and crafting with children, what’s realistic and what doesn’t work. Their projects utilize reclaimed materials and are often themed around values like showing appreciation, exploring nature, and celebrating milestones.
As I strive to create connections through creativity with my children, Make Stuff Together is just the book I need at my fingertips. Time spent together and the process of making is the best “stuff” I could ever hope to give to my children.
If you’d like to read more about Make Stuff Together, feel free to follow the book’s blog tour. If you’d like to win a copy of the book (and who wouldn’t!?) please do the following:
* comment on this post by midnight EST Friday July 8th
* tell me about your favorite crafting memory from your childhood
* be sure to leave your contact info in case you win
* US shipping addresses only please!
In the meantime, I can’t wait to get started on a few projects with my own kids. Summertime is a great time to re-connect and make stuff together!
***comments now closed. Thank you! I have notified the winner: Congrats to Lisa P of Illinois!***
My grandmothers taught me to embroider and crochet and my favorite crafting memories involve my paternal grandmother sewing a denim cap out of old jeans and my embellishing it with embroidery…then winning an award at a local craft fair.
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My favorite childhood crafting memory is of me, my two sisters, my mom and my grandmother all crowded into Grandma’s kitchen making traditional felt poodle skirts for the school sock-hop. I loved seeing my mom and grandma work together, loved listening to them talk about their memories of poodle-skirts-gone-by, and felt sooo important and big when I got to help in the task. It truly is important to pass on craft and handiwork skills to the next generation and doing so creates opportunity to share old memories and build new ones at the same time. Thanks for this post, Betz!
I cherish the memory of our neighbor Diane teaching me how to embroider. I sketched out a heart design on blue fabric and used yellow and red thread. I still love to embroider! should I win you can reach me at tthorme at yahoo. Cheers!
I loved crafting In the back of the car on a long drive. I remember having a stuffed mouse for which I made crocheted clothes. She was so cute in her little bikini set!
I love my memories of making halloween costumes w/ my mom and grandmother.
butler83ataoldotcom
I was very lucky to have a mum, a granny and aunties who helped me learn various crafts. I remember learning to knit from my auntie at about 5 – it was very exciting as it was past my bedtime but I was allowed to stay up with her. And I haven’t stopped knitting since!
We grow up in the sticks and were always being creative with what nature gave us. My two favorite things we crafted were dream catchers out of twigs and flower crowns out of daiseys!
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When I turned 5, my mom made a barbie house out of a cardboard box for my birthday (they didn’t have a lot of money). 30 years later I can remember that box down to every detail, and from that I have always been intrigued with how you can turn nothing into something…that you love. I’ve shared that story with my girls and am happy to say they to have the creative gene!!!
Where to begin! I remember my mom making me some awesome clothes when I was growing up- including my outfits for roller skating. I remember all the friendship and gimp bracelets my sisters and I made. I think my favorite things to make back then though, where bottles of Sand Art. We would got to a fair and my parents would drop me off at the sand art table then come back for me an hour or so later. Sometimes I would be finished 🙂
I love creating with my daughter- her favorite is braiding t-shirt strips into bracelets and headbands.
I used to LOVE making paper snowflakes to fill the house with – even dad got in on the fun.
Andrea
alscoville at gmail dot com
My favorite crafting memory is learn to crochet with my Mom. She was left handed ~ I’m right ~ it was a bit of a challenge but I figured it out. She was a very talented crafter and gave me a love for making things. Very grateful to her for her creativity and encouragement.
Thanks for the memories and the giveaway!
elsa dot hart at gmail dot com
paper dolls and paper villages were my favorite childhood crafting memory! I loved making new outfits for my paperdolls. I also remember being really into friendship bracelets.
Thanks for the chance to win! this book looks awesome!
[email protected]
-tony(a)
My mother taught me so many crafts it’s hard to pick out just one. Part of our Christmas tradition was making something festive – candles, ornaments, etc.
I loved making friendship bracelets and shopping for new colors of floss… and hoarding them in my craft box!
Like you, I have been making/crafting for as long as I can remember. I was the only one in my family that was creative. Some of my favorite memories are getting all excited about sewing/designing the right Christmas gifts for all my family. I also would make afgans that are still loving used today. I once made my Grandma a pencil holder from concentrated juice can, crushed egg shells gold spray painted with a gros grain ribbon around. It sat on her telephone stand next to the heavy black dial phone from that day on.
Thanks for featuring this book. It looks really interesting. As a mom of two girls I’m always looking for something interesting for us to do together.
I always liked to craft as a kid but I think my favorite memories were staying up most of the night sewing because it was just too hot to be at the machine in the daytime. It was nice to have the quiet and coolness of the night.
Hello! I made a family (3) clay hedgehogs at school over a whole day, by finding clay in the soil, shaping it and baking it dry in the sun! Ingenious! (I was about 8)
oh, this book looks like fun! all three of my littles love to craft (in fact, the 2 year old started chanting “craft!” over the weekend).
my favorite memory of crafting was machine sewing together a patchwork quilt for a 4th grade history project. the machine kept getting unthreaded, and my very patient mama kept rethreading it for me 🙂
This looks just right for our family as well! My favorite crafting memory…hmm, that is tough. You reminded me of watching my grandma cane chairs, which was amazing and also with my other grandma, making these little Easter eggs of fabric scraps and batting, my mom still has them on her Easter tree.
The most exciting and crazy craft adventure that I ever went on was with my mom. It was a stormy summer afternoon and we decided to do some project that required Elmer’s glue. It was a Sunday, and I remember this because there used to be a state law in North Dakota that no retail stores could be open, so we did what all Eastern ND folks did…we went to the Minnesota side of the river! On our way we went across a bridge that was almost totally flooded, and I remember saying, “um, mom? It’s getting a little wet back here.” We may have ruined the carpet in my mom’s car that day, but we made the best crafting memories ever! (whatever it was that we made!).
The most exciting and crazy craft adventure that I ever went on was with my mom. It was a stormy summer afternoon and we decided to do some project that required Elmer’s glue. It was a Sunday, and I remember this because there used to be a state law in North Dakota that no retail stores could be open, so we did what all Eastern ND folks did…we went to the Minnesota side of the river! On our way we went across a bridge that was almost totally flooded, and I remember saying, “um, mom? It’s getting a little wet back here.” We may have ruined the carpet in my mom’s car that day, but we made the best crafting memories ever! (whatever it was that we made!).
Not a single memory, but my mom teaching me how to follow a commercial sewing pattern. What all the funky terms really meant, what you could safely skip, etc.
when i was 12, my father started making a dollhouse for me. it was so cool-with working electricity and everything! my brother was a model-maker so he and i made some furniture. some from kits, some from scratch. and mom? she picked out and hung the teeny tiny wallpapers and curtains!
although my kids are older now, we always enjoyed crafting together and i think they will always like to tinker with their hands and know the joy of making stuff.
My favorite crafting memory is of my grandma teaching me how to crochet! I recently taught my granddaughter to crochet…I’m hoping that it will be a fond memory for her when she is grown as well! I would love a copy of this book for more ideas of project to make with my grandkids! Thanks for the chance to win!
I have lots of crafting-as-a-kid memories, but the one that stands out is when, feeling crafty one day, I asked my mom for two old washcloths. I embroidered a turtle eating a flower freehand on one with acrylic yarn, whip stitched the two washcloths together with some stuffing, and voila! Had a pillow. I still have it, signed with my initials and dated, “’77.” Love that!
Sounds like a great book! My favorite crafting memory as a kid was this one time when we did a life-size paper cut-out of my body and then I got to paint in my clothes, face etc. I’ve still got the cutout somewhere in a box! Great times!
I don’t have one specific crafting memory, I’ve done every sort of craft that I could since I was a little girl. I guess the best memories I have are when my mom or dad worked on crafts with me.
As a child I used to make my own hairbands on my mothers industrial sewing machine. Soon the girls in my class were placing orders and I was selling them for 50p each. Unfortunately the sewing then stopped for a few years as I discovered boys!
My grandma taught me to sew when I was only 6 or 7. I can’t imagine the patience she had. Our first project was a simple apron with lace trim. she let me look through all of her enormous fabric stash to pick just the right fabric I wanted. She let me sew most of it and I was so proud when we finished.
My daughter plays with that apron now.
My mom taught me to knit as a young girl. I was also in 4-H knitting groups. I fondly remember my mom always making me tear out rows to undo a mistake and saying, “If you are going to do it, you have to do it right.” I hated having to do that, but always remember that saying today when I tear out rows of knitting to fix a mistake. My mom passed away last summer and throughout this year one of my best ways to remember her is everytime I pick up my knitting. I now have a granddaughter and I hope to instill a love of creating in her.
My favorite Crafting moment from my childhood(late 70’s early 80’s) was making newspaper pompoms with my mom and a friend. We even took a picture of us cheering with them on the front lawn! I come from a family of crafters and am having a hard time getting my son interested in crafting, even boy things. It is really tough to compete with video games and a “Gamer Dad”!
It’s difficult to choose just one as a favorite. I was blessed with such a crafty Mom and she still crochets at the age of 95. She did teach my sisters and me to sew and by the time we were in high school, we sewed many of our own garments. I loved cutting out beautiful pictures from magazines or sead catalogues and pasting them into scrapbooks. And I learned the art of cooking and baking from Mom as well. Oh what fun.
When I was in third grade, my Mom was the “room mother” and she would bring in fun craft projects every month. I remember painting winter scenes with a paste made from detergent (it does sound weird now), making collages with cancelled stamps, and making an Egyptian pyramid with doors that revealed artifacts. I loved making the projects and it also made me happy that my mom was so cool.
I remember my first sewing project with my grandmother and how excited I was to re-purpose some cute dish towels as pockets. Now I love crafting with my kids and seeing the same excitement in them when ordinary items are used in a new way. I’d love to check out this book!
Learning to crochet from my Grandmother is a favorite memory for me
I belonged to the local 4-H club and that is how I learned to love sewing and crafting. One of my favorite projects was making aprons. I’m a life long crafter and am always looking for new ideas to share with family. Thank you for this opportunity.
Wow, I really can’t narrow it down to one experience. My entire childhood involved crafting and creating on so many different levels. My mom taught me to always “trust my gut” with arts and crafts, and not to worry about what my neighbor was doing – I think that is what has stayed with me the most. She taught me how to make my own toys and jewelry around the age of 7, and my grandma taught me the art of spinning wool and knitting at 9. By the age of 11, I never went anywhere without my sketch book. I really feel giving children the tools and space they need to create is a vital part of growing up. I’m a mom of two (about to be three!) little ones, and it’s my hope I can give them what was given to me.
My favorite crafting moment…yikes – there are so many!! When I was five and I didn’t know how to use a sewing machine yet, I used to sneak up to my mom’s sewing machine. She was in the process of making a log cabin quilted vest (very 70s!!) for herself. I decided to make one too – for my doll. So everyday I’d sneak up, see what she had done on her vest and do the same to my doll’s vest – all without her knowing I was using her sewing machine. When my mom finally saw what I had been doing she said “well, I guess it’s time to show you how to use the sewing machine!!!” I’ve been sewing/crafting ever since and am now teaching my 4 and 6 year olds to sew and craft.
Anya
[email protected]
Learning to cross-stitch was the best! It’s a great way to get your feet wet with stitching/sewing and be able to see quick results.
Thanks for the giveaway! Would LOVE to share this book with the kiddos in my nest! 🙂
My favorite memory was learning to sew – how fun it was to make doll clothes and little blankets my the dolls. I still have some of them and treasure them dearly.
One of my favorite memories is my Grandmother and Aunt trying is teach me to crochet and knit. They were left handed and I am right handed, so long story short, is was funny! I finally ended up learning to chain and single crochet. I made a lot of lopsided wash clothes. Now that I am older and my grandmother and aunt are gone, I knit like crazy. Silly, but I think they would like it!
kellybenzin@gmail
I remember making macrame planters and jewelry with my sisters (30 years ago!), sweet memories of us doing something together even though they were much older.
Neat book! I loved crocheting with my grandma when I was a little girl. It was our special time together.
I remember making slippers out of paper and staples (so painful). But the one I remember most is painting some wooden doll beds with tole paints at my aunt’s home. I picked primary colors, my sister chose pastels. Even then I knew I loved bold colors. 🙂
FunnyfunnymotherATgmailDOTcom
Yay- can’t wait to read this book!
Lots of crafting memories here too- making a wooden dollhouse and furniture for my little orphan Annie doll is right up there – my dad patiently helped me saw and hammer. Wonder what happened to that house…
I have so many crafting memories as my mom is an amazing craftsperson when it comes to sewing, decorating, painting, and other arts. I think my most significant memories are of hovering around and helping my mom sew new gingham “skin” on my favorite dolly whenever I wore her threadbare. It meant the world to me. PS My dad is very crafty too. This winter he made himself “snowshoes” out of plywood and old strapping. Hee, hee! Quite a sight for the neighbors.
My mother sewed clothes for us and quilted A LOT when I was growing up. I remember doing cross-stitch and making friendship bracelets most!
Thanks for the chance to win!
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What a great looking book! Hmm, I made all kinds of things and all kinds of messes. My favorite memory is a great day working with finger paints, long after I was past the little kid stage. My sister was the little kid playing with the paints and I was making “real” pictures, all the while enjoying the tactile experience as well as the time with my mom and sister. We hung those pictures all over the place and they stayed up for so long.
My very first embroidery project was a little cross stitched owl that I made in girl scouts. I can still see the basement we met in! My mom and grandma are crafty too, so they kindled my newfound love. Embroidery is still one of my favorite things to do.
Thanks for the giveaway!
My mom helped us cut out felt animal faces and limbs, cover a jar with a felt “body,” and glue the faces and paws to the jar. Mine was a bunny. The project was immensely fun and I kept little treasures in that jar for years!
Thanks for the chance to win.
ammieloris at hotmail dot com
As kids we would go to my grandparents for weeks. We would swim, cook, and craft everyday, barely ever leaving the house the whole time we were there. We made christmas gifts every summer: paper, soap, painted silks, rose notecards using celery as a stamp, decoupaged cigar boxes, watering cans…. My grandmother passed away the year my first daughter was born and now as a mom I do many of those same crafts with my kids, while telling them stories of my summers with my grandma. She will forever be my crafting inspiration!
What fun it is to think back on projects with my mother! My favorite was taking gumballs, those spiky things from the gumball tree, and dipping them into glue before sprinkling them with glitter. We tied tiny bows on the top of the stem and used them on the Christmas tree. They weren’t beautiful, but we surely had fun.
My parents weren’t very crafty people but boy oh boy my grandmother was. I vividly remember a Dr Seuss craft book she had and making these tall newspaper shreddy things called flibbers.
-K.Lee
viedansant(at)comcast.net
I remember taking a sewing class, must have been about 8th grade, in which I made the world’s ugliest wrap skirt that I proudly wore for the entire school year. I have two sisters who are close in age and I remember us making corn husk dolls and apple head dolls around the kitchen table. We made many a macrame plant hanger. We took needlepoin classes together and the purple yarn was cheap so we all did something purple. Mom still has those pieces in her home 30 years later.
kamerriganathotmaildotcom
Most of my favorite crafing memories involve my aunt. I loved spending time with her and learning about her latest crafting adventures, like under water basket weaving, stenciling on T-shirts, or whatever struck her fancy. I also loved that my mom was always supportive of my crafting and signed me up for ceramics lessons, oil painting class, etc.
I made a 6 foot tall macrame plant holder & table for my favorite Aunt when I was 10. It took me 2 months and I won a purple “Best of Show” ribbon in the fair. My Aunt loved it and my mother didn’t even complain too much about the cost of all that rope. I was actually planning on making macrame lawn furniture after that success. 🙂
My Aunt proudly displayed that monster in her living room until her house burnt down. She had to redecorate after that and I never managed to make her another.
There was also the crocheted wedding gown for a Princess Diana doll. How did I never finish that one?!
Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I will have to check out that book. My kids and I have recently started making fairy furniture together. It is so much fun.
Fruitey_girl at hotmail dot com just in case!
I loved summers at my grandma’s house making stuff for the court fair. She mostly taught me to knit, sew and cross stitch and we also canned and baked together.
My favorite crafting moment was on Christmas morning, I had crafted Koala pillows for my mother for Christmas, and she “Loved” them. My favorite memories always come from giving something to someone that they love.
[email protected]
my favorite memory is learning to sew with my mom.
yanuzo at hotmail dot com
My sister & I made up “The Purse & Packing Company.” We made paper purses and pouches colored with crayons. They were paper punched and sewn up with string. We would play for hours, taking pretend orders over the phone. And now we have our own one of a kind handbag business. Our parents were very good at fostering creativity.
Natalie
[email protected]
i remember making doll “furniture” from the pastel cupcake liners. And my mom teaching me to crochet – we both were so frustrated! 🙂
My fondest memory of crafting as a kiddo, was gathering up all the bits and pieces from my mothers sewing scraps and fashioning up some tiny Barbie clothes. She’d make some darling dress or trousrs and such for us girls and I’d make a matching doll outfit. Really just spending time at her side with the whirrrrr of her machine and all my finger pricks will always make my heart smile.
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Seems like I have more memory of the things my mother would craft for us versus things I would craft myself. I have so many unfinished cross stitch projects from when I was a young teen (large ones that are more complete than not), I would get so discouraged. We complete projects around our house now, this book would be a great thing to inspire me and my three little ones.
My most vivid crafting memory is making a dog house out of a cardboard box for my little red stuffed dog. I even painted it, and put a wooden name plate over the doorway. Another vivid memory, from when I got a little older, is taking a craft class at the local fabric store and learning how to cross-stitch. What a joy it was to now have the ability to make nice gifts for others, even if I was finishing them up hours before our Christmas get-together. I also now have the “Current” craft books that my mom used with me and my sister when we were young. I look forward to passing on my craft books to my 4 little ones one day, maybe even this new one: “Make Stuff Together”. (Or, I might just have to get them their own copies. Haha.)
As a child I made things for my barbie. my mom would make her clothes. I remember making potholders for Christmas gifts. My mom made a quilt out of the clothing she had made for me. I still have that quilt. My daughter made things for her stuffed animals as a young child. She made lots of paper gifts for me.She and I have made quilts together for ourselves and as gifts for friends and family. We are currently making a quilt out of our old blue jeans. Thanks for trip down memory lane.
Denise
[email protected]
I have spent years crafting with my kids while they were preschoolers until they graduated from high school in 4-H. We learned all kinds of crafts together, made lots of wonderful memories together. I would love this book to use with my grandkids. thanks.