Thursday, August 26, 2010

my creative space - books, books, books, books, books

It's Children's Book Week (as the parents of school-age children are probably all too painfully aware!)
I love books, and I remember loving Book Week as a child - here I am with my sister dressed up as Mary Poppins (with umbrella out of view) with my sister as Rapunzel (you can see a bit of her "long golden hair" wrapped around her arm).

I also love using books as inspiration to make things - so here's a little collection of some of my favourite book-inspired things:


Not a Box is a simple, stylish, fun to read book that celebrates imagination. Inspired, I took an ugly pink nappy box, and covered it with a brown paper bag and Mod Podge, to make.... umm.... a cardboard box (amazing, I know!). It even has an eye hole for when you want to be a cardboard box robot...

and makes a good Duplo storage box at other times.

This is a book that requires no introduction - a childhood favourite of mine that I have forced upon our child from birth (perhaps even before...). To try and ensure this book remains a favourite, I made a little knitted caterpillar finger puppet - so easy, just a little garter stitch "scarf" folded on itself.

Charlotte's Web is another of my childhood favourites (I'm pretty sure I walked around with a Charlotte's Web sandwich board at a Book Week Parade once upon a time...) and I'm lucky enough to have my childhood copy of the book. The spider and "web" above were actually from a "garden" themed party, but I'm saving them up as an emergency Book Week costume for Book Weeks to come...Finally, one of my favourites - Pigeon, who, while being a somewhat questionable role model, comes out with the best lines... it's always fun to hear a 3 year old say " come on, what's five minutes in the grand scheme of things?".

Inspired by all this book love, I've decided to hold a tiny book inspired giveaway - I'll make a caterpillar and pigeon puppet (as above) for the winner.

The normal rules apply - leave a comment below. Followers get a bonus entry (just let me know in your comment).

Entries close on Wednesday September 8, at 11:59pm Australian Eastern Standard Time (I'll need the 2 weeks to actually finish the puppets!).



Oh, and of course, you know where to go for your weekly creative fix.

10 comments:

Steph said...

You are so very inspiring! And...you would have made a brilliant teacher!! Love all your book ideas but most of all I love the sentiment behind them. Books rule and yay for you passing such a gorgeous gift (the enjoyment of books) onto your little one. Wishing you a brilliant Friday :)

Tania said...

I'm so in trouble. One kid wants to be EXACTLY the Gruffalo, the other The Magic Wishing Chair. Although even as I type I'm, breathing easier. The Gruffalo still scares the bejesus out of me still but four wings on limbs and the other is sorted. Right?

Makeminemidcentury said...

We have all those books. You are all class, my girl! (Hope the husband has them correctly stored/bibliophiled or whatever).

I start to cry when I see the cover of 'Charlotte's Web' ... humility is something we all need buckets of.

'Not a Box' is quite simply ... simple genius! As is your ability to make a box, from a box!

Great post! You look good in green, too.

Carmel's Closet said...

Love the brown box and the caterpillar is adorable. Children's books fabulous.
Have a lovely weekend.
Carmel

Cath @ chunkychooky said...

I live in terror of my small coming home in a couple of years telling me she has to come up with a custume- I am absolutely crap at coming up with ideas like this- my mind goes blank...

mylittlebirdie said...

oh they are gorgeous you're so clever. i have an uncontrollable book addiction, children's books and cook books are my soft spot and as i work in a library i should have no need for purchasing either, yet all the same my collection of both grows. oh well gotta have a vice ; )

emma @ frog, goose and bear said...

I have seen book week costumes all over blogland, my daughters school is obviously on some other planet. Pity, as I love a good dress-up! I remember having my hair in rags all night once ready to be little miss muffet and the next morning, ruined all of my mothers hard work and asked her to wash them out I hated the ringlets so much!
You have some wonderful ideas of things to go with books! Are/were you a teacher or librarian? They are just brilliant. I'd love to win them!!

P.S. I did have quite the chuckle that you went to all that effort to make a brown cardboard box.....such a brilliant book though.

Estelle said...

Great post! I love your book costumes :)I can't wait for Ada to start getting invited to dress up parties and book weeks.

Mrs Button said...

I'm a book week tragic, too. I loved teaching Yr 1 cause I could dress up, too! Just started following and then read the giveaway line in the post above - bonus! Lisa x

becclebee said...

covering a box in brown paper to make it into a box is fabulous! and i do love love love that pigeon. i do enjoy following your blog. its full of lovely and creative things!