We’ve made no secret of our love of eco-friendly subscription services. Nothing like receiving a surprise in the mail every month, and even better if that surprise can help swap out some of our less-green products. We’ve highlighted Jessica Alba’s eco-friendly baby goods delivery service, and Eco-Emi’s, an eco-beauty subscription service. And now eco-craft kids are joining in on the trend. Welcome to Green Kid Crafts, a delivery service that sends your kid three new projects a month that are not only earth-friendly but also inspire kids with nature.

Past projects have included a train, a Japanese windsock, a train whistle, and a tambourine. All materials are included except for scissors and glue. Supplies are made from recycled materials whenever possible, and most projects are fully recyclable. Things like plastics and foams are avoided, meaning playtime is sure to be completely nontoxic. While most of these projects any creative parent could conjure up with materials around the house, it’s nice to have a monthly influx of inspiration when you’re short on time. Mostly, we just love something that keeps our kids engaged every month. Nothing beats getting a special present in the mail to raise awareness about protecting the planet.

Of course, you can incorporate earth-friendly ideas into craft time every day. Give your kids scrap paper to draw on  or old magazines to make collages. What earth-friendly ideas do you incorporate into playtime?

“Surrur” is the sound that a sewing machine makes, if you are in Finland. It is ok if you can’t pronounce it, as 40% of Fins including their President, Tarja Kaarina Halonen, can’t trill their “Rs.” It is also the title of the amazing new “make your own Marimekko” book that I had to have from Crate and Barrel.

Marimekko is known for their bold printed patterns, but it really is more about lifestyle items – fabric, house wares and clothing— that echo the joy of life.

This book celebrates Marimekko’s 60th anniversary with over 60 fun-filled projects. “Surrur” was made by two Marimekko designers Mari Savio and Kati Rapia. They asked seven other Marimekko designers to design “whatever they wanted” (sounds like a fun job, huh?) and then they would then document and explain how to make it. Kati took the photos and did the illustrations while Mari wrote the instructions. The projects the designers made run the gamut from simple to way too complicated for me. Several of the projects involve sewing machines, which I won’t be attempting and come with patterns. Others are more user friendly, if you are like me, and involve fabric, paper, tearing, cutting and weaving.

A few of the projects are fun DIY clothing designs, others are more decorative and a handful are very playful like puppets or a gigantic car-cozy. Some are just silly, like Mika Piirainen’s “bad hair day hat,” which is basically a huge hat with holes for the eyes. It could be an excellent Halloween costume. Tuula Pöyhönen’s “chief collar” can be done by anyone. All it involves is cutting fabric into long strips and tying it into knots on a cord. I did it and it was easy and looks great. I gave it to my Mom and she actually gets compliments when she wears it. I bet that kids can do it too.

The seven designers were photographed in their living space with their kids and their finished designs. After seeing their houses and the décor, it is easier to understand how they could come up with such fun creations. It makes you want to take a sewing class and make something.

Observing my young cousins today, they’re all really good at being on trend, but none of them seem to actually make anything to share with their peers anymore. Their time is spent virtually hanging out with their buddies and ordering things versus actually hanging out in real time together, making things. Since summer’s about more  friends and family togetherness, I thought you might enjoy doing the following activities with your young roommates:

The Purl Bee: Molly’s Sketchbook: Friendship Bracelets – I spent hours after school weaving friendship bracelets for anyone who wanted to trade them with me. They were bright and colorful and pretty easy to make. They lasted a long time and were easy to replace. Best of all, the bracelets were very affordable jewelry and I always had something to match my favorite JAMS shorts and Rugby shirt!

lovelydesign: Making Personalized Children’s Buttons – Buttons are an easy and fun way to customize an outfit (or as previously mentioned, a favorite tote bag). lovelydesign made buttons for a birthday treat giveaway which I think makes a perfect any-day gift giveaway.

TLC: How To Make Beaded Pins – The easiest craft for kids who were all thumbs. All you had to do was stick beads on to safety pins and hand them over to your besties.

Do you remember the universal bead color code? Me neither. So I had to look it up! And exactly how important was it to receive these little sneaker decorations? Read Life as a Supermom‘s comical post and relive some teen angst.

Parents Magazine: Get Your Groovy On – How to Tie-Dye with Kids! – This is an outdoor activity both parents and kids love to do together. Parents love the flashbacks — not those kinds! And their sexy hippie years never seemed closer. For kids, it’s a fashion-science project: dye clothes, create spectacular patterns, and have lots of colorful and fun fashion for the year ahead!

If these activities made you nostalgic, then consider my work here, like, totally done and a great success!

Are there any crafts or DIY activities you like to do in your household? If so, please share them with us!

[Special thanks to my friend Fiel who inspired me to write this post!]