ToolGirl Mag Ruffman

Not your average growth chart

Last week I built a cool growth chart with my 4-year-old friend Quintyn (with some help from his little brother, Kai).  The design has sandy beaches (made from sanded caulking), sea walls (made from pea gravel), tiny houses (made from 2x2 poplar scraps with sandpaper roofs) and the metal tape from a busted tape measure, which acts as the yellow line going up the middle of the road.  Magnetic cars slide up and down the tape to measure kids' heights. SO FUN! I'm learning so much from these little kids with their fearless approach to design and colour.  No hesitation, EVER!   A video and free plans for the growth chart will be coming up soon on Lowe's Family Fun Projects.

Lowe's Canada invests in kids with new online building series

 

Here's our latest media release...

Lowe's Family Fun Projects pilot series features 20 kid-friendly building projects designed by Mag Ruffman (toolgirl.com) for kids 3 and up.  The first 5 projects are now live online at lowes.ca/kidsvideos. 

From chalkboard tables to hockey nets built with PVC pipe, Lowe's Family Fun Projects give families video instruction AND free downloadable plans.  

“The videos are shot with real kids, not actors, and the free plans are insanely detailed with tonnes of photos,” says Mag Ruffman (Ruffman Entertainment Inc.), series creator and producer, “because text without pictures make learning frustrating, especially for kids.  We deliver an extremely graphical package to make it easy for anyone to make these projects.”

The kids' projects require simple hand tools along with a few beginner power tools.  Kids learn clamping, gluing, sanding, driving screws, painting and taping, while adults do most of the cutting.

“We’ve shot 12 episodes so far,” says Ruffman, “and every one of the kids has asked to come back again.  They love building, they love using their hands, they love being free to make some of their own design decisions, and they love taking home what they built!”

Ruffman and partner Daniel Hunter (executive producer) pitched the series to several television networks last year, but the liability issues around kids using tools became a barrier.  

So they turned to Lowe’s Canada.  “Lowe’s already conducts regular Saturday workshops for kids. They were quick to respond to our proposal and I’m really proud of this partnership.” says Ruffman, whose previous television series taught women and beginners to attempt home repairs and build their own furniture.

Ruffman is on a mission to help children develop their 3D aptitude and design cognition. “We’re at a turning point in history.  There have been 2 generations now of kids who receive little or no encouragement to use their hands.  They’re directed into professions and discouraged from entering trades or becoming artists or artisans.  There will be a shortfall of 1,000,000 skilled tradespeople by 2020 in Canada.  After 4 million years of evolution, today’s kids have the potential to be the best tool-users of all time.  But they’ve got to get it early or key brain development is lost, eye-hand coordination doesn’t develop, and you get students at MIT who have to be hauled out of class and put in practicum courses because they have no idea how to use a hammer or which way to turn a screwdriver.  Human brilliance isn’t only in the mind; it’s in the hands.”

Family Fun Projects will launch officially in mid-June when all 20 pilot videos are online.

 

 

That's My Letter: "P" is for Personalize

via thatsmyletter.blogspot.com

Want to know how to personalize stuff perfectly on wood? This lovely blogger has figured it out.  Hint: Think pointy.

Homemade easel for kids

This was one of the more successful Christmas presents Daniel and I made for our little friend Charlotte (3). 

We used poplar, small hinges and string.  

The red side of the easel is a chalkboard (homemade chalkboard paint, baby), the other side is a dry-erase board cut from a cheap 4x8 sheet of white bathroom paneling.

Charlotte's mum clamps newsprint to the whiteboard side any time Charlotte wants to paint. The easel folds flat for storage.  

P.S. I forgot to take step-by-step photos during the white-hot frenzy of creation so let me know if you want instructions and I'll build another.

DIY Chalkboard Paint

You can buy chalkboard paint in green or black, but why limit yourself to those scholastic-y colours? Maybe you want to make a chalkboard wall in the kitchen for a family communication center, or maybe you're making a kids' art table like this...

...and it would be fun to use a colour other than black or green.  

So get a quart size can of flat paint in any shade you like (I used Olympic Premium Zero VOC because it dries in an hour, has no odour and carries a lifetime warranty) and pour the amount of paint you'll need into a separate container.  Then add unsanded grout powder (available in the tile aisle) with the ratio of 1 rounded tablespoon of unsanded grout to 1 cup of flat paint.  Stir it up well and then roll out 2 or 3 coats on the surface you want to transform into a chalkboard.  You can use a hair dryer to speed up the drying time if you're rushed.  Cool eh?  

Transfer your (or your kids') art onto ceramic tiles

I've discovered a cool new technique. I've been tranferring photos onto wood for a few years now to make coasters and all kinds of fun projects.  But the other day I tried it on a glazed ceramic tile and it worked!

I had a young friend draw directly onto t-shirt transfer paper using a Pilot rolling ball pen.  Then we cut out the drawing, turned it upside down and placed it on a 4-inch ceramic tile, then applied a hot iron to the back of the transfer.  

After we peeled off the backing paper, we had a perfect image on the tile surface. We put some parchment paper (the silicon-coated paper used for cooking) over the image and reheated it for a few seconds with the hot iron just to smooth a few bumps in the plastic transfer film.  Looks pretty cool right?  Which of your relatives wouldn't love a set of coasters from a budding cartoonist?  

You can also use crayons and markers to create images but be careful not to tear the delicate surface of the transfer paper. Also, Sharpies don't work very well - they blur and run under the heat of the iron.

TIP: Apply felt dots to the back of the tile to prevent sharp corners and edges from scratching delicate surfaces. 

This technique also works reasonably well with photographic images printed on t-shirt transfer paper using an inkjet printer.  Make sure the tiles are grease-free by wiping them with a little rubbing alcohol before applying the transfer.