The World of Kids' DIY

Parents will run a mile at the suggestion of putting the word 'kids' and the acronym                               'DIY' in the same sentence. Images of electric drills, power tools and nasty sharp things are                             no doubt conjured up like the ghouls in an episode of Scooby Doo – but don't worry, this                                 article contains a far less worrying set of ideas. Behind the mask of the ghoul, as the                               comedian Tim Minchin wonderfully once put it, is inevitably to be found the smiling face of                             the local janitor. It is in the dissection of the acronym 'D­I­Y' that the key to solving this                                 mystery is to be found.

Do It Yourself. There, now – it is not too worrying when it's put that way, is it? The                                     festive seasons – Christmas, Easter, Halloween and so on – are a great opportunity to                           do things a bit differently and engage in some creative fun with your kids. Costumes,                           snacks, decorations and pretty much every other aspect of festivities that we normally buy                         ready­made can actually be a source of hours of fun and creativity for you and your little                               ones – and you could even save yourself a trip to the supermarket to boot!

Naturally you will have to get your kids to share this sentiment. This can be a little                                 difficult if they are too young, too old or more interested in watching the TV, but a good                                 show of enthusiasm on your part should usually do the trick. If not, the fear not: once cajoled                                 into getting involved, kids will get into whatever it is you embark upon before long. You will                               more often than not end up having to persuade them that it is time to stop and go to bed.

So, kids having been successfully convinced (or reluctantly recruited by way of                       bribery or parental pleading) you have a whole spread of different things to choose from. At                             Easter, it is often great fun carefully extracting the contents of eggs from their shells – you                               can get quickly good at this – and, after a meal of scrambled eggs, creating the most                               charming painted decorations your house has ever seen. Christmas brings with it the                       possibility of laurel and ivy wreathes, festive logs, paper chains and christmas tree                       decorations made out of clay or more paper (hanging a box of chocolates on the tree by                               means of sticking little bits of string on was always a personal favourite). Halloween – well,                             Halloween is perhaps the best opportunity for muddy­ducks of all.

Carving pumpkins is     great fun. Toffee apples are       magnificent. But the crown jewel       of all festive DIY has got to be the               Halloween costume. Why settle     for some limp, plastic­wrapped     thing from your local supermarket       when you can make your own?         For starters, you can be infinitely         more creative than your     supermarket can. Out with 'Tesco       Value Zombie'. In with 'We       Started Off Making A Witch But         

Somewhere Down The Line It Became A Giant Chicken'. Much more fun, is it not? In fact,                               you could even arrange themed parties for your kids and their friends. Even adults will enjoy                             it. Why go for the old, stale 'vampires and priests' routine when you can organise a 'window                               cleaners trade union' party? You won't forget that in a hurry. Although, admittedly, you might                           struggle to put the costume to use a second time.

So, there you have it. DIY and kids need not be two words that when juxtaposed                               with one another strike fear into the hearts of parents. Unless, that is, you start thinking                             about the clean up operation…