Do your young children love arts and crafts? Consider embarking on a handmade jewelry journey. Your kids will be able to help pick out supplies, learn how to make some fun pieces that capture their own interests and creativity, and utilize the jewelry in some fun activities, such as playing dress-up. Here are some ideas and tips to get you started on stimulating your kids' creativity.
Shop Small
As you're looking for jewelry supplies, consider shopping small. Pop-up shops are booming, and they are getting more attention from small businesses with a current U.S. market value of $50 billion. Pop-up shops are typically held by small, online businesses that would like to promote their brand as well as engage in physical customer interaction. Many pop-ups, thrift stores, and other small, locally-owned business in your city or town may have jewelry making supplies and other knickknacks that would make perfect additions to the jewelry-making process.
After looking to small businesses, complete your jewelry supply shopping at craft stores. Many craft stores have wide selections of jewelry making supplies, like earring hooks, necklace chains, beads, charms, fake jewels, and more. You and your children may even think of some unique ideas as you're shopping that you'll want to execute while making the jewelry.
Preparations
When it comes to making the jewelry, you'll want to set up a comfortable area for you and your kids to work. A white, plastic table cloth spread across the kitchen or dining room table will make it easier to see all of the jewelry supplies, especially if something is dropped on the table. Arrange the supplies by type of jewelry. Put all of the earring supplies together, all of the necklace supplies together, and all of the bracelet/anklet supplies together. Be sure the beads you've picked out are well-organized so they're easy to find and grab.
Making the Jewelry
Allow your young kids to express their creativity while making jewelry. Perhaps pull up some pictures that can spark ideas on the internet or in magazines that your children can see while they're coming up with their own designs.
There are several designs to play with when it comes to making any piece of jewelry. Consider utilizing charms, beads, safety pins, buttons, paper, ribbon, yarn, or clay to build jewelry. Have your kids come up with designs, and offer assistance when it comes to execution. It may be tricky for little hands to handle sharper objects, such as scissors and safety pins, as well as clipping features on chains.
Did you know that 0.7% of Americans pawn precious metal or stones when they need cash? You may be able to find cheap precious metals or stones at a pawn shop that can be incorporated into jewelry designs. If your kids are older, they may be interested in learning how to wire wrap small stones so they can be used as charms for necklaces. More intricate projects such as wire wrapping require a great amount of skill, patience, and attention to detail.
Playing Dress-Up
Many young kids love playing dress-up. Not only does it allow for children to express themselves, but it lets them dress in clothes they may never wear in "real life," be creative with their actions and words and pretend to be someone they're not but who they may look up to or aspire to be. The handmade jewelry your children make will surely come in handy when playing dress-up, so consider this while making the jewelry, too.
Perhaps your kids want to play dress-up and pretend they're out at sea. If your son dressed up as a pirate, some darker jewelry with big, fake stones would make a wonderful addition to his costume. If your daughter dressed up as a mermaid, some purple, pink, and blue colored necklaces and earrings would make a huge splash. Rainbow pieces of jewelry would look adorable on any child, as they would match a costume of any color chosen to wear while playing dress-up.
Acting Out Scenes From Movies
Taking a step further, perhaps your kids enjoy acting out scenes from movies while dressed in fun costumes and jewelry. Numerous research studies have shown that performing arts education plays an integral role in a well-rounded education. Not only this, but performing arts can also help improve proficiency in academic performance overall. Therefore, acting out scenes from movie favorites will not only allow your children to make use of the jewelry they handmade, but their brains will also be activated and their creativity expressed.
A scene from the movie Brave can be accompanied by an orange wig, a medieval dress, and perhaps a handmade necklace that includes an arrow charm to represent the main character. A scene from the movie Madagascar may include some animal-print pieces of handmade jewelry, such as a giraffe print braided bracelet or zebra charm earrings. Assist your children in coming up with some jewelry ideas based on their favorite kid's movies or characters.
Shopping for and making jewelry as well as taking part in hours of playing dress-up and acting will allow your children to express themselves and their creativity. Encourage your kids to be creative and to play pretend. It will help them embrace the unique parts of themselves.
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