What I made
1025
days ago

Twitter factory

Twitter factory

In an effort to breathe new life into my Twitter account I created this Twitter Factory background image. It took me about 10 days to complete and is designed to seamlessly repeat. To see the full effect please check out this Twitter Factory background page.

Oh… and don’t forget to follow me on Twitter @whatimade.

Creating your own individual Twitter background image can be a lot of fun, why not give it a go? And, if you are out of ideas check out Themeleon – a cool little tool that makes creating interesting backgrounds a piece of cake.

What I made
1048
days ago

Three fun ‘finish your food’ cards

Finish your food cards - Monkey bottom

1) “I’m no monkey’s bottom – give me another mouthful”

Finish your food cards - Stealing your food

2) “No one’s stealing my food – pass me the ketchup”

Finish your food cards - Space race

3) “No one’s going to beat me – where’s my pudding”

Finish your food cards - kids

4) “Hmm… I think Mummy’s tricked me!”

My two boys are constantly on the move, even at meal times, which makes getting them to finish their food almost impossible. So with this in mind I decided to turn eating into a challenge, something that would appeal to their sense of competition. The result was the rather unusual plate accessories you see above. They clip onto the edge of the plate and carry different messages, all aimed at getting kids to ‘finish their food’. And they do work – I’ve tested them!

How to make one

Finish your food cards - How to diagram

The trickiest part will be making the clip attachment. I used a bulldog clip, thick wire and some pliers. Just follow the diagram above – the goal is to firmly attach one end of the wire to the bulldog clip, and then bend the other end in such a way that it can grip the base of the cards.

As for the the card designs, they don’t need to be highly finished, the idea and message is more important – just have fun. But just in case you are out of inspiration, I have made colour and black and white versions of my designs available for download (see link below).

Download project files›

Includes:
1) Colour versions of artwork – just start assembling
2) Black and white versions artwork – have fun colouring them in first
3) Collectable instructions – they look nice in a folder
212 downloads so far, thanks everyone!

I’d like to thank Diane, owner of the excellent Craftypod website. I recently purchased her Creating a blog audience e-book, and it has been a great help to me. Diane was also kind enough to offer me some advice – so this post is dedicated to her!

What I made
1080
days ago

Dangerous alphabet for kids

Alphabet for kids - A is for ants

Alphabet for kids - Letter B is for bumper cars

Alphabet for kids - Letter C is for castle

Alphabet for kids - Letter D is for dinosaurs

Here’s the first four letters of a dangerous alphabet for kids (well, mainly boys). I thought it would be fun to have each letter depict an amusing scenario containing a touch of violence or misfortune, nothing too serious, ants getting burnt with magnifying glasses, that sort of thing. Eventually I thought I could use the letters to create name plates or greeting cards. So if you like them give me some encouragement and I’ll persevere with the rest of the alphabet. Oh… and I’d also be happy to take suggestions for the other letters.

Now you make one

It turns out that this is also a fantastic kids activity, my son (Dylan) has really got into it. You might need to help them choose and spell the words, but after that it should keep them busy for hours, well, there are 26 letters! For further ideas and inspiration check out Dylan’s alphabet for boys.

Dotted lines
Dotted lines