Play, Make, Create, A Process-Art Handbook

I absolutely loved this book. First, the approach on the process of art over the final product is exactly how creativity is stimulated and kids don't always get to experience it: if the have an art program at school at all, it will probably be more product oriented. So, just on the premise, I knew this book would work for me. But then the book itself is well organized, well explained, packed with ideas, and has great images. A winner on all counts for me and a book I would happily gift to my friends!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Play, Make, Crate describes a variety of fun activities with a focus on creating be the best part of the process. There are a variety f fun projects from simple paintings to more complex paper mache projects. The author tells you how to deal with the mess and the rules she uses in her own house about things such as slime. These guided activities are fun and creative.

I recognize the importance of process art but I don't always know exactly what I need to do to successfully inspire it. This book has given me a lot of ideas and inspiration. I think my biggest obstacle has always been trying to decide and discover new materials to use so I feel like even if we don't do the specific activities described in this book, I now have some ideas for new materials that will hopefully inspire now ideas.

I am always looking for ideas for projects and activities to share with students. Great projects, well done explanations, and wonderful photos make this a great resource.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #QuarryBooks for giving me the chance to read this book.

What a fun book this is! Lots of cool ideas using things you have around the house. Or items that wouldn't take much to find.
The pictures are great. The directions are clear.

Totally recommend this book for anyone with a small child or work with small kids.

Process-Art, what's that? It's art where the process of creation is more important than the result. It's about having fun with materials and colours. This book is full with ideas to use for process art, or as Meri Cherry put it, invitations to create. From collages, to homemade slime, to clay donuts - so many interesting projects.

The book provides materials lists, how tos and information on how messy the project could become. It's clear that the author is a mother and knows how out of hand some hands on sessions can get.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.


There is some GREAT information in this book. Especially for a mom like me who has NO idea what she's doing! My kids loved this book too!

What I liked the most about this book is the fact that it is consistent with its child-focused, process rather than product philosophy. The activities are not ready made lessons for tired teachers and caregivers, but invitations to explore, create and play. Mostly easy to set up, they are open-ended and will engage your children's senses and imagination. I was hooked straightaway as soon as I saw salt painting, cotton pad colour mix and papier mache unicorns. But there is so much more...Draw what you don't see, hammer time, corn starch homemade slime and volcano eruptions? I am going to have so much fun using this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Quarry Books (Quarto Publishing Group) for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

It's very rare for me to be disappointed by a crafts or arts book from Quarto Publishing Group, and this one is yet another winner, full of fun, color, adventure and exploration. And all this from simple ingredients. The book covers painting and crafts projects as well as out-and-out fun projects such as making your own play dough, and your own slime!

An author with the most amazing of names - Meri Cherry - brings over forty projects - she calls them invitations, because really that's what they are: invitations for younger children (and likely older ones as well) to indulge in process art. What is that exactly? The author explains, but in short it really means the point of these projects isn't the destination; it's the journey - the learning of self-sufficiency, the growing of confidence, the freedom of exploration, and the joy of creativity.

The projects include collage, salt painting, self portraits int he mirror, covering a picture with clear plastic and paining on top of that to augment the original image, drawing with eyes closed, creating 'artist trading cards', and oobleck. Yeah, that one caught me by surprise because I'd never heard it called that before and I'm not a fan of Dr Seuss. The technical term for it is a non-Newtonian fluid, which is how I know it, but oobleck works better with kids! The thing is this term was introduced before it was defined (with a recipe!) on page 40, so I was lost for a while on that one!

That aside, the book was amazing, fun, and inventive, with internal links to things that are referenced in the text. These links never have a link back to where you were, unfortunately, but my app has a feature which allows you to return to the original page after a jump like that. The problem is that Bluefire reader - an app I normally swear by for reading ebooks, got into trouble when I reached page forty - I think it was.

It wouldn't swipe past there for love or money (I tried both!) and even when I slid the little bar at the bottom of the screen, the image wouldn't switch to the next page. I don't know what that was all about. I was able to download the ARC to Adobe Digital Editions and finish reading it in there, fortunately. Just FYI! I'm not the kind of reviewer who merits a print book, which is fine with me, but it does occasionally lead to technical difficulties!

The book covers a large variety of projects, including ice sculpture (after a fashion - no chain saws involved!), volcanic eruptions, potions, and crazy contraptions in addition to a bunch of regular art ideas, so no matter what your charge is into, this book doubtlessly has a bunch of things that will interest them. I commend it as fun, educational, and confidence-building. The book even includes tips about clean up (or avoiding it by staying clean, which is even better), so what's not to like?!

We have all been there, school holidays, kids are complaining that they are bored and they have friends over with nothing to do. Well this book will be a life saver, not only will it keep them amused for hours but they will be creative and had fun too.
Great projects, well explained and a bit messy, but what the heck, they will enjoy themselves. I love the papier mache unicorn in particular, but all the projects are fun and many a little less messy.
A great book to get the creative juices following

This book is all about focusing on the process of art making rather than the finished art product. It is a fantastic philosophy to adhere to because we can get so caught up in perfection that we forget about the enjoyment and importance of the creative process itself.
With a range of projects (which clearly identify the materials, top tips, photos, and guidelines) this book is a fantastic place for parents, carers, educational staff, care staff, and anyone working with children and young people to start engaging in the creative process alongside children.
The photos are bold, engaging, inspiring and offer lots of encouragement through the book’s invitiation to create. 4*.

It is a fantastic book for all parents. For me, a big "no TV" supporter, it is a real treasure. The book is reach on a different types of activities, where all you need is 15-30 minutes of your time and as a result you will get a full of joy child with creative thinking and happy memories. The book became our favorite right away. Children want to try EVERYTHING! We are using it constantly working on a new projects and doing again and again the ones we liked the most.
I will be definitely looking for more books of Meri Cherry.
Thanks very much to the author and NetGalley for a review copy, All opinions are mine.

Great ideas for projects for kids and you to try. Age ion projects did seem a little limited, but first time moms especially will likely love this book. Some of the tips on setup and cleanup might seem a bit common sense but again not everyone just knows how to do all things and this is comprehensive and helpful.

This book is fantastic! It is clearly laid out, explains the idea of what process art is and then gives an abundance of ideas to use. I have already set up a coupl of invitation to create ideas for my son from this book and they were simple to do and he had so much fun. I can imagine I will be able to easily adapt some of these ideas to my classroom too. An easy to read, well thought out book.

This book has so much activities to keep the kids busy and creative! Such a fun fun book! And a wonderful resource for even non-artistic parents like me.

A creative and interesting book of art 'invitationals'. These are basic art ideas to inspire kids' creativity. The publishers describe them as "simple, yet powerful, 'art invitations' that are focused on the making and doing" and they really do deliver.