Our new baby girl loves looking at the Modern Paper Mobile for Babies that I made awhile back, but her favorite place to relax is in her bouncy seat. So I made this simple stand with some scrap wood and wire. It’s very lightweight and sturdy, so I can carry it around the house along...Continue Reading

Etsy just posted their How-Tuesday video recently filmed in my studio! We made a Paper Bird Mobile that works nicely as a Mother’s Day present. I’ll attach the template below, but you can view the entire Etsy post and more info here. Thanks, Etsy! [vimeo 23216545 640 360] “This week’s Etsy how-to unfolds in the...Continue Reading

I’ve seen people make trees of thanks and thought it would be fun to make a mobile of thanks. It was a fast and simple project, similar to the nature mobile I made a few months ago. We just cut out pieces of paper, drew or wrote things that we were happy for and taped...Continue Reading

I’ve been wanting to try a paper cut-out mobile and ended up making this owl.  It was an interesting design challenge, trying to make it look good no matter how the pieces spun, and the mobility gives the owl a lot of character.  I think I’ll put it in the kid’s room. I only used...Continue Reading

The kids love collecting things while playing outside, so we made a little mobile with some of their treasures.  It was very easy to make.  I just used thread to tie the items onto the stick, then tied fishing line to each end of the stick to hang the mobile from.  We had fun pressing...Continue Reading

When the twins were one month old I made them a mobile like this and hung it over their crib.  Looking at it was my daughter’s favorite activity for almost 6 months.  The contrasting black and white shapes are perfect for infants’ undeveloped vision.  It’s also very simple to make, using only cardboard, paper and...Continue Reading

Flapping Paper Bird Toy Post AM Northwest TV Show Post Paper Snowflake Holiday Music Video Post Dinosaur Music Video for Kids Post Dinosaur Paper City Post Night Sky Music Video Post Animated Walkthrough Paris Card Post Copterman Post Paper Circus Rider Toy Post Tumble Bunnies Post Vintage Pull Toy A Quick Look Inside my Studio...Continue Reading

A lot of people have been saying that they’re excited for their baby to get older so they can start making crafts with them. But the crafting excitement starts now! Here is a round-up of 5 baby crafts that I’ve posted. So take a look and start making something for any babies you know! Great...Continue Reading

Here is a simple poetry river craft that I made for the newest Issue of LMNOP Magazine, which is all about books. We’ve been enjoying the book, A River of Words, which is a brilliant introduction to the poet William Carlos Williams. This book contains many of his wonderful poems and talks about beautiful things...Continue Reading

After only three weeks, the Made by Joel Facebook Page is off to a booming start. It’s rapidly turning into a fantastic resource for all kinds of art, crafts, and kids activities. Here are a few of the photos that people have shared (used here with permission). A ring toss toy with multiple targets! Great...Continue Reading