Dots of Fun

I love the idea of adding a homemade touch to every gift I give, and homemade gift wrap is such an easy way to do that. It’s a wonderful pre-Christmas activity to share with children of almost any age. But this particular twist works even for the tiniest of Santa’s little helpers…

Bingo Dabber Gift Wrap

You will need…

Plain brown parcel post wrap

Bingo dabbers in your choice of colours

Simply unroll the brown paper across a table, and show your child how to make polka dots (or for older kids, how to make polka dot patterns or pictures) using the bingo dabber. Even very young babies and toddlers can grasp a dabber and tap it on the paper (my daughter has been creating bingo dabbber art projects since roughly ten months of age). The brightly coloured polka dots result in surprisingly stylish looking gift wrap. And because it is quick and easy, you can easily create a fun and colourful roll of gift wrap in ten minutes or less!

Helpful Hints:

·    Plan ahead and buy coordinating ribbons and bingo dabbers. The fancier the ribbons and bows, the more impressive your gift wrap will look.

·    This is a fabulous fine motor activity for little ones at the pre-drawing stage. Just be sure to supervise closely so babies don’t mouth the dabbers.

·    This is also a great activity for preschoolers and school aged kids. For a fun challenge, show preschoolers how to create pictures using dots. Or draw out a pattern for your school aged child and have them replicate it using dots on the paper.

·    Bingo dabbers don’t generally contain washable ink, so be sure to throw an art apron on your child and use the table-saving "no stress mess" strategy.

·    Have fun, and Merry Christmas!!!!!