Crafternoon: Yarn Sticks

My 'sample' yarn sticks and the calm before the storm.

I work in a great place. A place of learning. A place of exploration. A place of inspiration & community. It makes me so happy when I get to plan something that brings a little bit of all of those together. One of my favorite most recent forays has been Crafternoons. 

2 of 3 beautiful sticks a pre-schooler & her mother were working on. They planned on tying them together to make a mobile. This was so pretty. 

Crafternoons is a aft/craft program aimed toward pre-school through elementary aged kiddos. I try to tie projects into a book, a specific artist but sometimes I just follow my gut & go with a project that looks fun & fits my budget (this project was essentially, free). 

We made Yarn Sticks. I didn't know if they would like it. I didn't know if it would capture their imagination and I didn't know if it would hold their attention. But boy did it.  Kids & parents alike enjoyed searching through the yarn bin, the beads, the pile of sticks I had collected the night before. I was so impressed & amazed with their beautiful creations. The color combinations, the layering, the use of beads (or not). And the stories the kids came up with...what were they going to DO with their sticks? Where would they display them? And the parents "Why haven't I thought of this before?"

A student picks just the right beads to finish off her project. 

It was validating & very fun. We had over 70 people at this program! And all with a few collected sticks, some donated yarn from staff & some very hands off guidance from me. I'd call that a win-win.