DIY Yarn Bowls

By Tonia Larson of The Gunny Sack

This activity is fun for kids of all ages and is something they’ll use after it’s finished. It’s made of a few simple materials that you most likely already have in your home, and can include a range of creativity in design, color and shape.

Materials:

  • 2 bowls
  • plastic wrap or a gallon-sized Ziploc bag
  • glue
  • newspaper
  • water
  • yarn
  • scissors

Instructions

  1. Step 2Choose one bowl to use as your mold, keeping in mind that the shape of this bowl will determine the shape of your yarn bowl.
  2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or use a gallon-size Ziploc bag—just stick the bowl in the bag and tuck the ends inside when you place the bowl upside down on your work surface.
  3. Cover the work space with newspaper—this craft can get messy!
  4. Step 6Pour some glue (we used Elmer's White School Glue) into the second (unwrapped) bowl and add a little water to dilute it. Mix up the water and the glue.
  5. Once you've lined up the cotton yarn ball, glue bowl, and bowl mold, unravel the yarn and dip it in the glue. (Note: Don't cut it yet!)
  6. Pinch the yarn between your fingers and slide them along it to squeeze off the excess glue.Step 7
  7. Then, just wind the yarn back and forth, over and around the outside of the bowl mold.
  8. Continue until the bowl is covered the way you want it and then cut the yarn. Press the yarn down gently to help the strands stick together.
  9. Last StepAllow the yarn to dry. If you are in a hurry, use a hair dryer to speed things up.

    10. When the yarn is dry, remove the bowl from under the plastic. Then, gently peel the plastic off the yarn bowl. Kids will love to display the bowl and keep trinkets in it—it's a great way to hold chunky items that won't slip through the cracks.

Tonia Larson, a wife and mother of 3, blogs at http://www.thegunnysack.com. She is an aspiring photographer and lover of chocolate and coffee who enjoys crafting, cooking, DIY and sewing.

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  • KDCredible

    Graham crackers are known to rot teeth.  Unless you intend on brushing your child’s teeth soon after, I wouldn’t advise them.  In fact my child’s preschool does not allow dried fruit/raisins for the same reason (although graham cookies are worse).  And why pudding and graham cookies when there are so many other options?  Fill them up with good/whole foods– they eat so little as is.

  • http://gulfcoastlocalfood.org/ Ang J

    What about regular old popcorn? Stove top or air popped is healthier than the microwave variety.

  • Danielle

    Hmmm.  A little suspicious of these suggestions.  Children (particularly very young children) need much more fat than adults so I would not suggest any kind of fat-free food (what’s in them anyway?)  Sugar, on the other hand is something that should be avoided and many low-fat foods have increased sugar content to make up for the flavor lost in the fat.

  • julio – productos omniliofe

    Gracias por las ideas para variar y nutrir la merienda de nuestros hijos.

  • Sandrah201

    Graham crakers are fine in moderation in my opinion. The melt easy in the mouth and they taste good period.

  • Sisternadirah

    Un schooling, hunh? I think this Way of educating a child will make them mediocre in their education in the long run. In addition it does not teach them about structure. Education does not have to be very formal, but no structure to their day?…no structure to their learning?… will set them up for difficulties,i believe, in their adult lives. Performance on the job, completing tasks etc…

    • Win

      Unschooling is on a bit of a spectrum. Some families do have unstructured days, but our kids choose to participate in numerous outside activities, and they enjoy learning in a structured way, so we actually have a pretty predictable routine. Just because one unschooler gives the impression of “no structure” does not mean that is how it is lived by all unschoolers – unschooling just means “not school,” and that can look different for each family.

      My oldest kids are in their mid-twenties and they and their many unschooled friends are succeeding in life very nicely – nothing mediocre about them. At a time when we’re seeing the highly structured schools have about 1/3 of their students failing to graduate (as high as 1/2 in urban schools), I don’t think we can see that structure of school has protected any one from “difficulties” in their adult lives. My oldest son has repeatedly joked about how he is the only person in his work place who did not go to school – but has never missed a day of work and has never been late. These things are not taught only by school attendance; in fact, I think that “avoidance” is frequently taught by school attendance.

      Open your mind; check on your automatic defaults and biases. Unschoolers are everywhere; as my oldest kids say, people don’t pick them out as a bit different than anyone else, except perhaps as more engaged – but no one “credits” unschooling for that — because no one knows they were unschooled!

      • Oopsiepoopsies

        In reality there are broad spectums of every situation so is there really an real right or wrong way of teaching a child. There are so many different ways and different styles what is right for my kids may not be what is right for your kids and vise versa so should we really be judging the other way so long as that is what you belive is right. What the true problem is is when the goverment sticks there noses into it all and say that yes there is a one true way and try to make us all conform.

        • polkm123

          You’re right they will have a hard time being a wage slave, no doubt they will own their own businesses, and all of the kids that go to school can work for them.

      • SB

        Then what’s the difference between “home schooling” and “unschooling”? I thought the core philosophical difference was that unschooling is unstructured and entirely student lead, while homeschooling involves the direction of the parent and a schedule and curriculum.

    • pbskid

      I was unschooled and did not have any structure, but as soon as I started going to public school I was an all “A’s” and “A+” student and I still am.

    • Korin Carpenter

      I understand where you are coming from, but as someone who unschooled for the first fifteen years of my life, I would say the only time when I really started to have difficulties was when I started public school. I started in tenth grade, and for that entire year I did extremely well, both because I had actually advanced reasonably far beyond my peers academically due to my own desire, and because I had never had any pressure to learn, so everything we did was fun. On my first assignment for science, I actually chose to right an essay over doing something else because it was a new experience for me, and I did far better on that project then anyone else in my class. Unschooling is definitely not for everyone, as it does require the parents to have an extremely patient, understanding attitude. However, I would say that it set me up for being far more successful and happy in school than either homeschooling or going to public or private school would have done.

  • W8_4lv

    I am a homeschool, I am NOT an unschooler, my kids educational standards exceed that of public or private school.  We work on school 8 hours a day and “unschool” nights and weekend when they take classes and have Extra-curricular activities. 

    • Win

      Wow – a little defensive there. I am an unschooler, and MY kids’ educational standards exceed that of public and private school too! We don’t have any idea how many hours we work on educational things – it’s just seamless – we read good books, attend an academic co-op, do math, explore science, play music, play sports, write songs/novels/poetry, go to plays, etc.. Tonight we read the Declaration of Independence and we will soon be watching a related history documentary.

      Really, we don’t look so different from W8_4lv!

      • SB

        And your childred directed ALL that? Your children suggested reading the Decleration AND watching a related history documentary, they suggested attending the academic co-op, they suggested doing the math…not one of those suggestions came from you? You did not establish their curriculum in any way?

  • Taylor

    How do you feel about red pepper hummus for little ones? My 2 year old refuses to eat vegetables but loves red pepper hummus. Crazy.

  • Kane

    To reduce sugar intake, is it ok to give children stevia since it’s a natural sweetener instead of normal sugar? I used to use crystal light lemonade but I think those drinks are made with aspartame which I know is bad for anyone, let alone children. I try to use healthy cooking as much as possible and always aim to reduce sugar intake. Studies are showing how much damage sugar can really do to the body.

  • erin

    Unschooling is something so difficult to understand and trust unless you have lived it. It works and it is amazing. Life is so much fuller and authentic. We are unschooling again after a year in school for my son and it is even better the second time. My children unschooled and were at the top of their class in school just in case you guys out there think this does not work.

  • erin

    Also, I do not think you can be a part time unschooler/life learner/self directed learner. This is a whole life thing. It is embracing a level of trust that you do not have if you are school at homing. It changes everything. If you think you are unschooling on the weekends or at night etc, you are missing the point.

    • Korin Carpenter

      I agree with this, although I would argue that it is possible to maintain the attitude even if you do decide to try school. I chose to go to a charter high school for 10th and 11th grade, and I think that to a large extent I maintained my attitude as an unschooler. In fact, that is most likely what led me to decide to take extra classes during my free time, and finally to simply attend a community college full time during my senior year.

  • Laura ivansons

    It always cracks me up when people comment on lack of structure and failure. Know why so many traditionally schooled kids drop out of College? The inability to think for themselves and structure their own time, learn and study at anytime, adjust to a change in schedule each semester. Unschooled or not, homeschoolers thrive in college because hey already know how to direct their own learning, research and be responsible for their own time. Traditional schoolers have no power over there day-to-day time usage, must adhere to what someone else tells them they must know…I could go on and on. Think outside the box or be doomed to be sheeple.

  • http://www.facebook.com/cahomebizmom Joanne Utke

    I liked the article. I have been doing some research on unschooling and I like it. We have been home schooling for almost 6 years now but I desire a more natural approach to parenting and my children’s education. I feel unschooling will give me what I am looking for. We started out pretty home school using a Charter but every year that went on we become more and more unschool. I look forward to learning more and implementing the unschool philosophy more and more. My kids have never been to school aside from some events and classes at our Charter program.

  • Cherry Grace Diaz

    I think it is also important to get a mentor who is very successful in the field your kid wants to pursue. Another thing that I see as a priority here is that the parents should constantly try to shield kids from negative influences which may cause addictions, lazyness, perversion or immorality.

    • Cherry Grace Diaz

      In an effort not to sound biased, I am referring to the parents’ own set of values which they want their own kids to develop.

  • Sabrina Edwars

    whats the harm of low fat pudding n a graham cracker get real!

  • KDCredible

    Graham crackers are known to rot teeth.  Unless you intend on brushing your child’s teeth soon after, I wouldn’t advise them.  In fact my child’s preschool does not allow dried fruit/raisins for the same reason (although graham cookies are worse).  And why pudding and graham cookies when there are so many other options?  Fill them up with good/whole foods– they eat so little as is.

  • guest

    Saying graham crackers are known to rot teeth is a bit of an over statement. It’s not specifically graham crackers it’s all foods containing carbohydrates and starches (chips, crackers, cereal) that can promote tooth decay.  They are low in fat and calories and if you purchase ones from a health food store you can avoid excess sugar and HFCS, and benefit from the whole wheat. Children are born with a taste for sweet things and graham crackers is certainly a better choice than loading them up on cookies. Besides, you should be teaching your children to brush their teeth after meals/ snacks anyways.