Cork Your Excitement! It's Pumpkin Painting Time!

Calling all crafty kiddos (and grown-up helpers)! Fall is in the air, and that means pumpkins are everywhere! But this year, why not skip the mess of carving and try a fun, textured pumpkin project using everyone's favorite leftover - wine corks?

Looking for a fun and festive fall craft for the kids? Look no further than cork pumpkins! This project is perfect for little hands and even littler attention spans. It's easy to set up, uses recycled materials, and lets kids unleash their creativity. Plus, it's a great way to introduce them to painting in a tactile way.

Here's what you'll need:

• Wine corks (enough for each child to make a pumpkin)
• A paper plate
• White paper
• Orange paint
• Paint brushes
• Green paint
• Black paint 

Pour a quarter sized drop of paint onto a paper plate.

Offer your little artists the corks, and encourage them to begin by stamping a circle shape with one color of orange paint.

Encourage the kids to now fill in the large outline of a circle by dipping their cork into orange paint and stamping it in.

When the pumpkin is filled in, dip the side of the cork into the green paint.

Slide the cork upwards to form a stem. 

Let the kids dot the stem with the wine cork.

Allow to dry and display on the fridge.

These are so cute and fun that you might want to make a few and share with a special neighbor or a grandparent.

Building Fine Motor Skills

Grasping a wine cork is a great way for little hands to develop the strength and dexterity needed for important tasks like writing and buttoning clothes. The wide, rounded surface is easy for children to hold, allowing them to focus on the creative process rather than struggling with grip.

Encouraging Exploration and Experimentation

Cork painting is all about having fun and getting messy! There's no right or wrong way to use a cork stamp. Kids can experiment with different dipping techniques, applying pressure to create lighter or darker prints, and even using multiple colors at once. This freedom to explore fosters a love of learning and experimentation, which are essential for a child's development.

Find more favorite cork painting projects here:

Cork and Button Apple Tree Art

Christmas Tree Stamp Painting

Hungry Caterpillar Process Art

Corked Stamped Corn Craft

 

More Than Just Brushes: The Fun and Learning of Painting with Unconventional Tools

Painting is a beloved activity for kids, but it can sometimes feel limited to just brushes and paint palettes. Here's a secret: there's a whole world of creative exploration waiting to be discovered with everyday objects like wine corks! In fact, incorporating unconventional tools like corks into your child's next art project can be both fun and educational.

This is such a fun project for little ones, and the results are simply stunning. You will love adding this cork stamped corn art to your refrigerator.

Why Unconventional Tools?

• Sensory Play: Wine corks provide a unique texture for little hands to explore. The cork's bumpy surface creates interesting marks on the paper, adding a new dimension to sensory play, which is crucial for early childhood development.

• Fine Motor Skills: Grasping and maneuvering a cork requires focus and hand-eye coordination. This strengthens the small muscles in the hand and wrist, which are vital for tasks like writing and buttoning clothes.

• Problem-Solving: Using a non-traditional tool like a cork encourages kids to think outside the box. They'll experiment with different ways to hold the cork, apply pressure, and achieve desired effects on the paper.

• Creativity Boost: Stepping away from the standard brush opens the door to a world of artistic possibilities. Kids can create unique textures, patterns, and shapes with the cork, fostering their creativity and imagination.

The Case for the Corked Indian Corn

Your corked stamped Indian corn craft is a perfect example of the magic of unconventional tools. It combines the classic appeal of a seasonal craft with the exciting exploration of using a cork for stamping. This project allows kids to:

• Learn About Nature: Indian corn, with its vibrant colors and unique shapes, can spark conversations about nature and harvest traditions.

• Practice Colors: Painting the corn provides an opportunity to explore different colors and how they mix together.

• Develop Pattern Recognition: The repetitive stamping with the cork creates a pattern, helping kids develop basic pattern recognition skills.

Supplies:

Paint in red, orange, yellow, green and brown colors.

A paper plate

A cork

Paper

Directions
Pour a quarter size dab of paint in each color onto a paper plate.
Using a cork, begin to shape the green husk of the corn. To make it easy

for little ones, you could ask them to stamp the shape of a U onto the paper. 

Now, ask the artists to begin stamping, using one color at a time, to fill in the ear of corn. Ask your artist to use each color several times.

Allow to dry and display.

Beyond the Cork:

Wine corks are just the tip of the iceberg! There are endless possibilities when it comes to unconventional painting tools. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Nature's Paintbrushes: Use leaves, pinecones, or even feathers to create unique textures and shapes.
• Kitchen Creativity: Spoons, forks, and even rubber spatulas can be transformed into fun painting tools.
• Recycled Fun: Give plastic bottles, cardboard tubes, or even bubble wrap a new life as creative painting tools.

So next time you're planning a painting activity with your kids, ditch the traditional brushes and explore the world of unconventional tools. You might be surprised at the fun, learning, and creativity that unfolds!

Find more cool crafts for kids here:

Hungry Caterpillar Process Art

Cork and Button Apple Trees

Sunflower Stamped Apples

Sunflower Stamped Apples

 Kids are going to love this hands on art project that incorporates nature to make a fun print that looks great when displayed! It is easy, needs the most basic supplies and turns out to be so cute!  Make this apple stamping art project after a visit to the orchard, or just as a fun craft to do together.

Photo Credit: Sara Lehman.

Aren't these apples the cutest thing for little hands? All you need is a few colors of paint, a sheet of paper and a dried up sunflower head to make these with your kids. This is great for younger kids.

We visited the farmers market and purchased some sunflowers a few weeks earlier. After they had started to dry out, we plucked the petals off and were left with the heads.

Harp and I thought it would be fun to paint with them, so I grabbed a few bottles of cheap paint and some paper. This is what we came up with.

Supplies:

Paint in red, green and yellow

Paper Plate

Sunflower

Photo Credit: Sara Lehman.

Pour  paint onto a paper plate. You need about a quarter sized drop.

Press your sunflower head into the paint and press it onto the paper.

Repeat as desired.

Photo Credit: Sara Lehman.

Find more fun kids art projects here:
Pineapple Process Art
Christmas Tree Art
Cork and Button Apple Tree Art

Leaf Window Clings

Crafts are always a great way to spend time together on a chilly fall day. This easy leaf window cling craft is perfect for adding some color to your space. This craft is so easy even little kids can do it and best of all, you can get everything you need at Dollar Tree for $2.

We love to craft together. Now that both kids are in school all day, it is the thing I miss the most about Harper being home. We don't have time to make something fun everyday anymore. But, sometimes I can get the kids to take a break from their after school social life to make something fun with me.

This leaf window cling is perfect for adding some color to your house in  between Halloween and Christmas. It is made with 2 simple supplies to create something cute and colorful. I got the supplies at Dollar Tree, and you can literally make dozens of these for $2.

Supplies

Precut squares of tissue paper in red, yellow and orange

Transparent clear contact paper

Scissors

Sharpies if needed

Directions

If needed trace the shape of leaves on one section of contact paper, to cut or just cut the shapes out.

Peel the paper off and lay the contact paper sticky side up.

Begin layering contact paper on the sticky contact paper. Leave just a few tiny spots uncovered to attach to the window.

Press to the window firmly to attach.

Remove when the season ends.

You can find all of my other window cling ideas here
Reader favorites include:
Witch Window Cling

Pumpkin Window Cling

Apple Tree Window Cling

Ghost Window Cling

Easy Paper Apple Craft

Every day, my little girls says, "Let's make a craft!" I love her enthusiasm and always encourage activities we can do together. On this particular day, we were anxious to get into some fall themed crafts, and we are always super excited to kick off fall with the harvesting of apples!

This craft was so incredibly fun! It was a bit of a challenge for my almost 4 year old, but we worked together to get it right.

You will need:
A square of heavy white paper {Ours was about 6'' x6''
A piece of green, red or yellow construction paper
School Glue
A tiny strip of brown paper for the stem

To begin we made thin strips of green paper that were 4 inches longer than the square of paper
Next we began folding those strips of green paper so we had 2 folded edges per strip
We glued these on the white paper
Working in a circle we kept gluing both sides of the strips on to the square, being careful to not disturb the other strips of paper
At the end, we added a tiny stem to the top.

We liked this apple craft because it was challenging, a good exercise in patience for both Harp and I. It was also really cute when it was finished! This was a fun craft to follow up with apple slices as a snack!

Easy Apple Tree Stained Glass Window

Cute and easy to make, this kids craft adds a pretty touch to any window, just like stained glass!

We love to craft with contact paper, it is so much fun to use in so many projects! But, one of my favorite uses for it is to make 'Stained Glass' or window decals! These are so cute!

With fall being on the way, our thoughts drift towards the apple orchard almost every weekend. We head out for the time together as a family, harvesting fruit, eating fresh donuts and playing outside. In anticipation of the fun fall weekends that are to come, we made these easy as pie Apple Tree Stained Glass projects.

You will need:
one square of transparent contact paper per decoration
assorted colors of tissue paper, we used green and yellow
one strip of brown construction paper

Lay your contact paper sticky side up
Place your brown paper on the sticky paper to form a trunk
Next cut small circles of yellow or red tissue paper for apples
Place the apple cut outs around the tree
Fill in the leaves using green tissue paper
Leave a few sticky places without paper to easily affix to the window for displaying.

Apple Tree Window Cling

Fall days are the perfect time to find inspiration from nature and create fun crafts with the kids. This easy DIY window decal comes together within a few moments and adds a colorful touch to your windows. The kids will love displaying their artwork for the world to see!

This is such a simple project you guys! For $2 you can make a dozen or more window decals to add a festive fall touch to your windows! Best of all, this imaginative craft is perfect for the kids!

To make an apple tree window cling you will need:
Transparent contact paper, cut to the size you wish to work with. We used a 6'x4" section.
Tissue Paper Squares in dark green and yellow
One strip of brown construction paper
Scissors

First peel the backing off of the contact paper and lay it sticky side up. Add a strip of brown paper for the tree trunk.

Cut several circles from your yellow tissue paper, place around the tree trunk.

Next lay your squares of green tissue paper over the yellow dots, forming the leaves of the tree. 

Finally, find a window that gets a lot of sun and smooth the sticky side to the window. It will peel off without mess or residue whenever you are ready to take it down.

I love this craft for kids because it introduces them to a sticky texture to work with, and manipulating the paper into the right placements is great for fine motor skill development.

You might also enjoy this Fall Tree Silhouette Placemat Craft for kids.