Believe it or not, summer vacation just started for students attending Chicago public schools. Last fall’s highly publicized teacher strike, which affected nearly 400,000 students, forced kids to stay in school through the end of June.
But, now they are free and can join the rest of their compadres in making the most of summer… or what’s left of it.
If you are looking for ways to keep your kids busy during their break from school consider the following simple and affordable projects:
FLOWER POWER
Rather than letting fresh flowers go to waste after they’ve sat pretty in a summer bouquet for a while, turn them into beads. Roses work well for this project, though all you need is a flower with wide petals.
To start, simply pluck the petals from the rose and place them in a food processor. Next, pulse the petals until they are the consistency of rough sand. Then, place the pulsed petals into a pot and cover with water. Simmer the mixture for one hour, turn off the heat and allow to cool completely before placing the pot back on the heat and simmering again. Continue this process until the petal and water mixture turns into a soft pulp.
When the mixture is cooled, place it in a sieve and extract all of the water. You can save the water to add to a bubble bath or make your own perfume. Once the pulp is dry; pinch off a little bit and roll it into a ball or square. You determine the size and shape. Put the beads on a cookie sheet and let them dry for a couple of hours. Before they are completely dry, pierce them with long wire so that you can thread them on a bead wire later. Keep the beads on the large wire for two days before using them to make bracelets, necklaces or earrings.
DIY SUNGLASS CASE
Visit your local fabric store and rummage through their scraps. You should be able to find a cheap piece of leather or vinyl. Take it home and cut it into a 7-inch square. Next, fold the leather piece in half, and secure the three open sides with clear masking tape. Then, use a heavy-duty hole punch to make evenly-spaced holes around one of the long sides and one of the short sides of the fabric square. Tie a piece of leather cord on the hole closest to the folded side, add a glass bead, and then loop it around and come up through the next hole. Continue doing this until you reach the last hole. When you are done, knot the cord and cut-off the excess. You now have a pretty case to house your sunglasses.