Crafts and Ideas

Hi, I’m Ivy.

And I’m Bean.

We’re going to tell you some crafts you can do. Also some ideas, but crafts first.

Okay. Crafts. Except I don’t really know any.

Sure you do. You know how to make stars.

Hey, you’re right! I do. Here’s how you make stars. Draw five dots in this shape:

Then you just connect the dots in order. The tricky part is that you have to remember to draw a line from the fifth dot back to the first dot.

I have something, but I think it’s a science experiment.

That’s okay. Science is good.

This is really fun. You have to have a grown up help you because there’s fire in it, but it’s really fun anyway. You get a hardboiled egg and peel it. Then you get a glass bottle with an opening that the egg can rest in. An apple juice bottle is good. But don’t put the egg in the opening yet. Poke a little bit of newspaper down to the bottom of the bottle and then drop a match on it so it lights on fire. Once it’s almost burnt up—quick!—put the egg on top of the opening. You won’t believe what happens.

What happens?

I’m not going to tell.

Oh, come on.

No. It’s really great, though.

This is something I do when I’m bored. Here’s what I do: I get some Scotch Tape and I tape my face.

What?

I tape my face. Like this: I put one end of a piece of tape on my cheek and then I pull it up as far as I can and hold it there by attaching the other end to my nose. Then I try to stick my lip to my chin. Then I usually tape my ears down to my cheeks. Then I walk around the house and sneak up on people.

Does it hurt when you take it off?

Not that much.

I practice fainting sometimes. Is that a craft?

I’m not sure. I guess if you have to practice, it is.

You have to practice or else you’ll just slam to the ground like a rock. I read in this book that a lady should faint like a ribbon dropping to the ground.

Wow. A ribbon? So you have to fold?

That’s why I practice. You have to bend your knees and then your back and land in a heap. It’s good if you try falling on a bed or a sofa to start with.

Let’s do it now.

Writing on a banana is fun.

What?

Have you ever written on a banana?

No. What do you mean?

You write on a banana with a ballpoint pen. It’s fun.

Why?

It just is.

What about how to bug an older sister?

Is that a craft?

I’m not sure.

It’s probably an idea.

Here’s what I did yesterday: It was taking forever at the grocery store. I found some red twisty-things—you know, those things they use to close bags—and I hung them over the edges of my mouth, so it would look like I had blood running down my face. Then I walked behind Nancy with my arms out and my head kind of drooping over to the side, like a zombie. She didn’t notice for a while, but when she finally did, she freaked.

That’s definitely an idea.

You know what else you can do to bug an older sister?

What?

Tell her you’ve learned French and then start saying things in English with a French accent.

Why would that bug anyone?

I don’t know why, but it does.

I can show you how to draw a horse

No way. I could never draw a horse. Horses are too hard.

No, they’re not. I can draw a perfect horse.

A perfect horse is totally impossible!

Not if you draw it from the top, looking down. Look! Here’s a perfect horse:

And now here is a perfect rabbit:

And a perfect baby. Cool!

That’s perfect!