As a child, one of my favorite memories at my Grandma’s house was when all of the cousins would get together and she would rip off big sheets of butcher paper, fold them in half, and with ease and grace, she would cut out these fantastic cowboys for us to color. I recently found a...Continue Reading
I just discovered a fantastic vintage fabric and craft supply store here in Portland, and made these simple pillow dolls with some of the fabric I found. I embroidered the faces with my regular sewing machine, but it worked pretty well. The twins love to pretend they are putting the dolls to bed.Continue Reading
When I was a boy, I remember making walnut boats like this with my Grandma. My sisters and I would play with them in the bathtub. They were so simple and fun. This morning we had some walnuts in the kitchen, so I made some boats with the kids! Just melt some candle wax into...Continue Reading
I was drawing these little people on the train to Seattle last Saturday (to see the Alexander Calder Exhibit), and thought it would be amusing to turn them into little paper dolls. So I sketched some buildings for them and made a happy little paper city. Yes, you can join in on the fun. There...Continue Reading
My brother-in-law showed me some photographs of Picasso doing light drawings, and I had to give it a whirl myself. I had so much fun, I kept going until my camera battery ran out. All you do is put your camera on a tripod in a dark or dimly lit room and take a long...Continue Reading
This post is a shout out to my sister. She recorded this classical piano album after becoming a mom. I think it’s brilliant, but of course I’m partial. I also did the artwork. It is available on iTunes Music Store, or at lorihenriques.com.Continue Reading
My kids each have a yo-yo but they’re not able to work them yet. So I tried to think of something that could provide a more toddler friendly yo-yo experience. I used some Paul Smith sock material scraps and some cotton canvas to sew a ball. Then attached a length of elastic string. So far,...Continue Reading
I made a little sheep this morning out of wire and scrap material. It’s simple, but it feels good, and it seems to like standing on my Olle Eksell book. I’ll let the kids play with it when they get up from their naps.Continue Reading
We were at the park over the weekend and I spotted some very nice tree branches on the ground and decided it was time to make some fishing poles! The kids each picked out a stick and we carried them home. I took my knife and whittled down the bumps, found some string, a couple...Continue Reading
I just had an opening reception for my art show at the Daily Cafe in Portland. It was a great dinner party. In addition to the art, I designed coloring sheets for kids. If you want to try them out, download below. Coloring Sheets: Click on the images below, then print.Continue Reading
While reading the December issue of Art Forum Magazine, I came across a brilliant Damián Ortega sculpture made of tortillas. Of course I immediately wished I could play with them. So I scanned some recent collage circles I’d made, printed them out, and made these building discs. It’s surprisingly tricky to build with them, but...Continue Reading
Today I made a little cowboy scene out of paper. Similar to the paper animals I made before. These are made from painted paper that I use for my collages, but any paper will do. I also used a black and silver pen to draw on them. I like toys like these because they flatten and...Continue Reading
A few days ago I got to spend some time at the Portland Art Museum on my birthday. I hadn’t been there in awhile and was really inspired by the Native American exhibits. Dance wands, totem poles, jewelry. So I came home and dreamt up the idea for this toy. A kind of interactive art...Continue Reading
I used to do this all the time when I was a kid, but forgot about it until a couple of weeks ago when drawing with Jack and Tess. It’s a great trick, and you can do all kinds of animations. We did a chicken first. If you want to try something like this, here...Continue Reading
This morning we were drawing together and I thought it would be fun to get some material scraps and cut them into clothes so we could dress-up the drawings. Similar to the vintage buttons game we did before.Continue Reading
I finished the dollhouse! At least for now. I’m sure I’ll never stop making furniture for it. It’s too much fun. My son especially loves organizing and arranging the furniture. The guys in the family are playing with dollhouses and the girls are out riding bicycles. Nice.Continue Reading
I’ve started to make some doll house furniture. I’ve been wanting to do this for a few months now. My kids love playing with doll houses. I bent a little chair out of wire, and finally found a use for the awesome hand printed fabric scraps I got from Umbrella Prints. Got out the hot...Continue Reading
The kids got some new construction paper for a Christmas gift last night, so we made finger puppets this morning. You can see on their faces the excitement and wonder they had for the tiny puppets. They had a great time acting out really funny scenes and stories. A super fast craft with fun results!Continue Reading
Now that I’m on an embroidery roll, I decided to make some owl shirts. I think it might be part therapy too, since all three of my owl paintings sold at my last art show. (You can see a video below of me painting them, if you’d like.)Continue Reading
