DIY Valentine's Day Ideas

I only celebrate Valentine's Day because of Lil O.  Mr. UpCyclist and I rebel.

But.....I do like this wreath we made in the past out of conversation hearts......Find the post here.

For my coffee and tea drinking friends.....This printable to make hot beverage sleeves is a winner.....

These Glow Stick Valentines were a hit at Lil O's school....

As was this paint swatch garland ala Valentine's Day.....

....So, I guess Valentine's Day isn't that awful....

Ha!

Jen

TinEye Labs {for Tech Tuesday}

How am I supposed to get anything accomplished with TinEye Labs (multicolor search) hanging around?  Since last week, I featured Photo Pin for Tech Tuesday, I thought you'd get a kick out of TinEye Labs.  TinEye extracts colors from over 10 million Creative Commons Flickr images and allows you to search images up to five different colors at a time.

In the photo collage below, I searched for images with blue, green and semi-lime colors.....

For this photo collage, I searched for pinks, light reds, blues and purples....

Lil O made a special request for reds, so I searched for images using five shades of reds.

Once you search, you can then click on a photo and it hyperlinks directly to Flickr where you can decide (or not) to download the image (of course, using Creative Commons parameters).  

See what you think of TinEye Labs.  I have a feeling you are going to smile and be unproductive like me.

xoxo,

Jen

Present for Mr. UpCyclist (or Jedi)?

Mr. UpCyclist has a birthday coming up.  Do you think he might like this Sphero as a present?  It isn't a bike, but really, how many bicycles can one human have?

Plus, if he doesn't like it, I think Jedi would :)  And PS - You only need to watch the first minute of the video above to get an idea of what playful Sphero does.

Jen

Love. This. Quote.

From this Pinterest Link

Need courage and time.  

Want this quote to come true.

Have advice to share with me?  Where to begin?  How to make time?  How to muster courage?

Will 2013 be the year I start writing?  Would this be better as a group effort?

Ugh.

I love this quote and idea.  Love. LOve. LOVE.

Jen

Creating an Innovator in Lil O

So, I need your help.....

If you follow Upcycled Education on Facebook or Instagram, you know I was reading the book, Creating Innovators by Tony Wagner.  I finished the book a week ago and I am now in the processing stage post-read.  Yep, I am one of those folks who needs a bit of time to process and make sense of a book's message.  It generally takes me several weeks to make sense of it all.

So far I can say, Creating Innovators is a thoughtful book - ideal for parents and teachers (and assorted allies).   Though there are several take-home messages in Wagner's book; one stands out to me immediately.  Overwhelming, it seems, most creative and innovative children and adults become passionate about something as a child.  Wagner's advice is to let kids "play" with that passion and to fuel the child's natural desire to learn more about their interest (without judgment).  

With that being said, I am looking for opportunities for Lil O to see real fashion design in person as you know that is a top interest of hers.  I've already contacting a local design and manufacturing company who specializes in women's clothing; Lil O and I are meeting the head designer and taking a tour of their factory in mid-February.  I would love to expose her to more of those real fashion opportunities.

If you have a lead, contact or "know someone" in the fashion industry in the Mid-Atlantic region, would you please share this blog post with them and/or share their contact information with me?  You (or they) can email me directly at jen at upcyclededucation.com or you (or they) can leave a comment below.

As I continue to process Wagner's work, I will share more so we can all create more innovative children and students.

My best,

Jen

PS - If you have a budding fashion designer in your class or home, Lil O really enjoys this sketchbook and stencils pictured above.