Photo credit: Photos courtesy of Art Therapy OC
Spring break and St. Patrick’s Day offer a nice opportunity for some creative family-bonding time with the help of themed arts and crafts projects.
Creating art as a family is a great way to make the holiday feel special and gives you some together time while building a new family tradition. Art can help improve communication and build cherished memories through activities while also fostering problem-solving and cultural expression. It also offers a healthy, affordable way to connect and develop new skills.
Art activities can also be very therapeutic and stress relieving, especially for kids and parents who can both use a break from homework and other stressors. As St. Patrick’s Day approaches, consider some of these fun activities:
Collaborative Canvas
One of the most popular activities we enjoy doing with families at our studio is Collaborative Canvas, where everyone can connect their art to make one image through drawing and painting. Families not only work side-by-side, but they get to share experiences, challenge each other, communicate and push creative boundaries to make one cohesive image — such as a connecting rainbow for St. Patrick’s Day. Feel free to get creative. You can draw various related elements like a leprechaun, shamrocks, a pot of gold, as well as add other crafty embellishments and cut-outs (with glue) to make it into a collage. If you do not have canvases on hand, watercolor or markers on paper work just as well.
Keepsake Boxes
Find any containers or boxes you have lying around at home, or buy some at the craft store, to make some personalized treasure boxes. You can use acrylic paint or markers to color them. Decorate them — with the help of some glue and whatever fun elements you can think of — to create some “lucky charm” keepsake boxes. These themed treasure boxes are ideal for holding special mementos (memory boxes), jewelry or good-luck charms. As a family, you can coordinate adding a special surprise in each box. This activity is perfect for St. Patrick’s Day — symbolizing the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Holiday Wreath
Go outside with family for a fun and healing nature walk while also gathering some materials (think: plants, moss, twigs, leaves, flowers, etc.) for a festive holiday wreath. You can even try and hunt for a four-leaf clover together. Apply items like stickers, pom-poms, feathers, cut-outs and other themed decorations to the wreath. This activity is a great, low-cost and creative option that connects children with the outdoors while giving the family a chance to create unique, seasonal home decor to enjoy all spring.
So, spark your children’s imagination with family art time this season, while educating them on Irish culture and creating expressive, memorable and fun art together.
Diana Shabtai, Psy.D., ATR-BC, (aka “Miss Dee”) created Art Therapy OC in 2012 as a place to explore the world of art.
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