I wanted to share a simple holiday project we did last year that resulted in some very successful gifts. This was truly a hands-on project for Jack, with impressive results. It's often hard to strike that perfect balance between a kid-friendly process and a gift-worthy product, but this little project definitely fit the bill (and was a great learning and fine motor activity to boot!).
It started with a little planning and some basic set-up on my part. I bought a bunch of blank note cards (with envelopes) in bulk from the craft store. Then I looked for a stamp that was frilly but not too fussy (I found this stamp) and chose a sparkly gold ink to make it fancy. The stamp was one of those clear ones that you're supposed to attach to an acrylic block, I think, but instead of buying one of those, I just attached it to one of our little wood blocks with some rubber cement. (Oh, and I use the rubber cement away from the kiddos -- it stinks!)
We used the same technique to make a personalized initial stamp for each person on our list, using clear alphabet stamps. This was the learning part. Jack was at the stage last year where identifying starting letter sounds was the just-right challenge for him. So figuring out that Anne starts with "A," Fran starts with "F," Maria starts with "M," or Susan starts with "S," was an activity that fit him to a "T."
Then, on to the fine motor part.
He pressed the design on to each note card, and then, when it dried, pressed each person's monogram on to their cards using black ink.
The great part about the design is that it left plenty of room for error. If the design was off-center, it still seemed to work fine. So we didn't have to worry at all about perfection (because that is VERY frustrating where kids are concerned) and, frankly, being too picky spoils all of the fun. So we just let the design fall where it may, and surprisingly, it all just seemed to come together.
This monogrammed stationery made perfect teacher gifts last year, as well as being thoughtful little gifts for people we wanted to acknowledge in a special way. I wrapped them simply in clear cellophane, and got Jack involved in helping me tie the bows. He enjoyed putting his finger on the knot as I tied the bow, and then snipping the ends of the ribbon with a scissors to even them out.
The best part? I felt like we weren't just giving a handmade gift, but we were also passing along our love of writing. One of those gifts that keep on giving, you know? We've even gotten some of them back in the mail as thank you notes, or notes just to say "Hello!" Jack gets a kick out of opening a card from someone and realizing, "Hey, I made that!" And I'm happy to see that people are putting our presents to good use. What fun!
