My
Anywhere, Anytime Autograph Book
Klutz
Does your child like to gather memories, whether they are pictures, novelties, knickknacks, whatever, then they will enjoy this novel concept book. Don't let the title throw you off course, this is not so much an autograph book as a creative writing center. It encourages children to write with a series of unique pages that can spark imagination. That said, it does quite a nice job of collecting autographs from friends especially at birthday parties, the end of school, camp etc. The hard plastic cover helps to keep the book in good shape no matter what it confronts in a backpack or duffel.
Recommended Age: 8 and Up Retail Price: $12.95
Dinosaur Fossil Activity Kit
Life of the Party
The fascination with dinosaurs and the clues they left behind about their lives here on earth never dies. With each generation there is renewed interest and excitement about the mysteries of those giants that roamed the earth way before man made his first appearance. This craft kit allows children to make and then decorate their own fossil with plaster, a plastic mold and a choice of paints. The kit is easy enough so that anyone, even the most craft-phobic, can make a fossil they will be proud of.
Recommended Age: 8 and Up Retail Price: $15.99
The
Spiral Draw Book
Klutz
Remember Spirograph? Regardless of how far back your memory goes, once you see this wonderful art-kit-in-a-book from Klutz, you'll discover how much fun it is to make virtually perfect geometric designs. Testers who claimed that they had no artistic ability ended up absolutely delighted with the results and themselves. What makes this book so wonderful is the encouragement and help that you and your children will find inside. There are only a couple of pages dedicated to showing you how to get started, instead most of the instruction is focused on explaining that there is no right or wrong way to make Spiral Art. There are no mess-ups, just unique creations waiting to be discovered.
Recommended Age: 8 and Up Retail Price: $19.95
Frendz Pakz
Swingset Press
How well do you know your friends? Maybe not as much as you thought, or maybe way more than you imagined! These fun activity packs in a box open up avenues for exploring, sharing and fun. Friendz Pakz are perfect for slumber parties since each participant is assigned a unique, yet anonymous sticker so that secrecy can be maintained. The designs of the Pakz are delightful with a slight retro feel. You can select from a variety of themes such as Friendships, Showbiz, Love and the Future. Our testers mentioned that for under $5, these Pakz are a perfect add-on for birthday gifts.
Suggested Age: 9 to 13 Retail Price: $4.95 each
Origami
Klutz
Klutz has created a wonderful craft kit and to make things better they have packaged it neatly into a book. This introduction to the world of Origami gave our testers all the material and instruction they needed to take their first tentative steps into this ancient Japanese art. The instructions are wonderfully illustrated and supportive with each fold broken down for those that crave easy-to-follow directions (which for beginners is just about all of us). The results were thrilling and from penguins to cranes to boxes and more, testers were turning out beautiful designs that they were delighted with.
Suggested Age: 9 and Up Retail Price: $16.95
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Last Update: April 16, 2003