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Fun crafty things from Pan Macmillan to do with your kids!

As a mom finding fun activities to do with my children is important. I love that the Pan Macmillan line-up includes story CDs, drawing activities, finger prints, colouring in, slime, puzzles, and even a fun pop up book. These are all great ways to have fun with your children this year and encourage time away from technology too. So get ready for 2019 and stock up with these fun crafty things!

Check out my top crafty picks from Pan Macmillan for children of all ages below. Which is your favourite?

Kaleidoscope Colouring Mermaids

This beautiful colouring book features over 30 stunning underwater illustrations of magical mermaids as well as enchanting shell patterns and sea creatures. It also includes four pastel markers (green, blue, pink and purple) and two glitter glues (pink and silver) for you to colour in to your heart’s content. The pad is safe inside a hardcover, which also stores the markers and glitter glues, and you can even tear out the pages if you’d like to display your new creations. If you have a child who enjoys colouring in they will love this book, just make sure they know beforehand that they may have to share with mom!

Pop-up Carousel Fairy Forest 

This Fairy Forest is both beautiful and innovative, and would make the perfect gift for a little girl who loves fairies and being imaginative. At first glance the Pop-up Carousel may look like a normal book, but you’ll be amazed as it opens up into three magical pop-up play scenes. You’ll be able to press out the 25 play pieces (which store neatly inside an enclosed envelope) and your child can then engage in creative play as they explore the different scenes. Once finished the book can be closed carefully with a pretty ribbon, with the scenes all safely inside again. There is also a Mermaid Kingdom title available in this series.

Picture Perfect Finger Prints 

Kids love being creative and being a little messy, making this finger prints kit perfect for some crafty fun! Children will be encouraged to use their imagination as they print, stamp and decorate the different scenes inside the book. The kit includes five bright colours to use to create their own masterpieces on over 35 activities. From making a garden full of bees and adding scales to mermaid tales using their fingerprints, then adding details with markers to complete the picture, to making potato stamps to add porcupine spikes and owls to branches on a tree, this is a great kit to let your little ones be creative.

Make your own Mermaid Slime

Kids love making slime and this awesome kit gives you the ingredients and instructions to make your own magical glittery mermaid slime.  You’ll love making this slime as much as your kids, who will spend many hours stretching, squeezing and playing with it. The book includes fun ideas of how to make different kinds of slime, like snowflake slime, stretchy slime or fluffy slime, and it has interesting facts about mermaids too. It’s glittery, it’s teal, it’s magical and mythical slime! It’s also a great way to introduce children to STEM learning, which is the academic disciplines of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Make your own Dragon Slime  

If you have a child who loves the mysteries and legends of fierce dragons then look no further than this awesome slime kit. It includes the ingredients and instructions to make fiery red-orange glittery slime. You’ll know that dragons breathe fire, can fly and have strong scaly bodies, but did you know that these magical beasts have fiery slime that shoots from their nostrils? It’s true, so be prepared to stretch, squeeze and play with this gross, glittery but totally awesome dragon slime. There’s also a book with fun ideas of how to make different kinds of slime, like snowflake slime, stretchy slime or fluffy slime, and it has interesting facts about dragons too.

The Gruffalo’s Child Stories CD 

We love audio CDs in our home, my children can sit for a long time listening to stories while colouring or crafting in their bedroom. They are also great for keeping kids entertained on car trips. This stories CD is the perfect choice because you’ll also enjoy listening to the Julia Donaldson’s stories, complete with music and sound effects. The CD includes The Gruffalo’s Child, Room on the Broom, The Snail and the Whale, and Charlie Cook’s Favourite Book, and has a running time of one hour. In addition to the stories it also includes four songs of each of the stories.

Let’s Pretend Doctor’s Bag

What child doesn’t like to pretend to play doctor? This creative play pack features a story board book with 6 pages and 15 sturdy cardboard pieces. Your children can practise their puzzle skills by fitting the pieces into the correct spaces, while learning more about doctors from the busy scenes on the pages. The pieces all store neatly inside a compartment inside the Let’s Pretend set, and the whole book can fit nicely on a book shelf. It’s great for creative play and for encouraging hand-eye co-ordination and problem solving skills. Plus it’s handy for trips away because it’s a puzzle and book in one!

Let’s Pretend Chef’s Kitchen 

If there’s anything children love more than playing doctor it’s pretending to be a chef! My children have spent many hours baking and cooking in their pretend kitchen and I’ve been served a multitude of pretend snacks over the years. This Let’s Pretend set is perfect for future chefs, it features a story board book and cardboard pieces. They will enjoy puzzling over fitting the pieces and reading more about being a chef too. Once again the pieces all store inside a compartment in the set, making it perfect for home or away, all the while teaching your children valuable skills.

Learn to Draw Baby Animals

If you have an artist in the making then they will enjoy learning to draw these six baby animals, including a puppy, kitten, bunny and chick. Each drawing features seven simple and easy-to-follow steps to help your child create and then colour in their own pictures. They will also be able to learn more about the baby animals through the fact boxes on each spread and the short glossary at the back.

  1. Pop-up Carousel Fairy Forest, R245
  2. Learn to Draw Baby Animals, R210
  3. The Gruffalo’s Child Stories CD, R190
  4. Picture Perfect Finger Prints, R95
  5. Kaleidoscope Colouring Mermaids, R175
  6. Mermaid Slime, R150
  7. Let’s Pretend Doctor’s Bag, R175
  8. Let’s Pretend Chef’s Kitchen, R175
  9. Dragon Slime, R150

 

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4 Comments

  • Reply Nerisha January 17, 2019 at 8:34 am

    Perfect timing, the little one turns 7 next week and there’s a few things on here she would love. My girls love crafts

    • Reply Lisa Trollip January 17, 2019 at 9:03 am

      Yah, that’s awesome Nerisha! I hope she has a lovely birthday and has fun crafting with her new presents. My daughter also loves crafting, everyday!

  • Reply Melissa Javan (@melissa_nel) January 20, 2019 at 7:59 am

    Wow this is such a cool way to get kids into books – or to stay in books. Thanks for sharing.

    • Reply Lisa Trollip February 20, 2019 at 9:26 am

      So happy you liked the ideas, I hope you have tried a few!

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