Expert tips on creativity

We all want our kids to be creative, but may not have the know-how. Here are some expert tips on how to get their creative juices flowing!

Electrolux Singapore is sponsoring an art competition open to children under 12 years old, to educate and highlight the very real issue of marine debris and its impact on marine life and the environment around the world. The top three entries win a total of S$8,000 worth of eco-friendly kitchen products.

Click here for more information on Dreaming of a greener Singapore competition

To get our budding designers started, Senior Interaction Designer at Electrolux, Tan Chin Chin shares these tips:

• Create the right environment for children to be creative; make sure they have a clear table to work at and remember to protect it either with newspaper or a plastic dustsheet
• Encourage them to look at the environment around them and draw what makes them happy and what they wish to keep forever e.g. trees, parks, a clean seaside, happy and people and pets etc.
• Children work better on large pieces of paper, as they tend to draw large scale; give them at least A3-size sheets of paper to work from to achieve the best results
• Provide young designers with as many different types of paints, brushes and crayons you can get your hands on – as far as they will be concerned, bigger is always better
• Encourage your little ones to have a few practice attempts and remind them that they do not have to produce the final version in the first sitting – that way you spread the fun and they will enjoy the exercise even more

When you are ready, help your child tap into his/her creativity by following these instructions…

Step 1. Don’t be afraid to let your imagination (and pen or brush) run wild –close your eyes and draw the first thing that comes to your mind. Art can be an expression of yourself – what you are thinking about, what you feel, what your dreams and aspirations are. Draw whatever you think about when you imagine a Singapore that is friendlier to our environment.

Step 2. One of the best ways to be inspired is to look at the environment around you- draw what makes you happy and what you wish to keep forever e.g. trees, parks, a clean seaside, happy people and pets.

Step 3. Be creative – anything goes! Substitute your brush, crayon or colour pencils for shapes cut from potatoes (potato stamps) or dip some dried leaves in paint of different colours and print them all over your canvas. What better way to express yourself than to use what is natural.

Step 4. Remember, practice makes perfect – Have a few practice attempts, or as many as you want to! You don’t not have to produce the final version in the first sitting – that way you spread the fun and you will enjoy the exercise even more!

Step 5. Last but not least, have fun! Your artwork doesn’t have to be a masterpiece, as long as your painting makes you happy, be proud of it! Enjoy yourself and put your heart into it.

This post first appeared in theAsianparent.com

Halloween in Singapore: costumes and supplies

There's nothing scarier on Halloween night than a bunch of little devils, ghouls and witches roaming around your block, demanding for treats.  

The Bride of Frankenstein and the Evil Witch 

Typically falling on the last day of October, Halloween has become a huge event in Singapore.  Kids and adults alike love this occasion where they get to fantasize, put on make-up and play dress up in their favourite characters and let their imagination run wild.

The Devil and The Angel

Most adults usually make do with Halloween accessories which they can easily get at any supermarkets (NTUC, Cold Storage or Carrefour) or department stores like Isetan Singapore or Robinsons.  Or they can rent a costume from speciality costume shops like Number 1 Costume Costume, Talent House Studio, Foreigners House of Costumes (Tel: 62823110) and one of the oldest suppliers in town, Costumes & Mascots (Tel: 62990882).  Depending on the quality of the costume, rental costumes may cost you between $50 to $200 for a 3-days period, and terms and conditions vary with each company.

For children, it is simply easier to purchase costumes as you don't have to worry about wear and tear and the forfeit of your deposit.  Also, if the costumes are of a more generic nature (like princess or pirate), they can be re-used on other occasions (birthday parties or school performance etc).  Plus, it is also economy of scale if you have kids of the same sex - you can recycle the costumes for the younger ones or exchange with friends who have children of the same sex.

So, where can you buy costumes for kids in Singapore? 

1. Almost any places that sell party supplies will have some costumes or accessories for you.
2. Toys "R" Us - catering to the various needs of kids, this toy retail chain offers a range of costumes for children the whole year round.
3. Spotlight - you can buy a range of costumes here, or if you are good with needles and thread, get the materials and make one yourself.  In addition, Spotlight has a range of supplies and decorations for you to choose from; a definite must-visit when preparing for Halloween.  
4. Mini Princess - a great concept store that lives up to its name, this store sells the prettiest dresses for your little girls, including princess and fairy outfits at very reasonable prices.  You will also love the lovely 'girly' shoes and accessories to complement the outfits.
5. The Internet is a wealth of resources for your shopping needs.  Check out these websites to get your costumes.

• www.ebay.com.sg
• www.bugsparty.com
• www.halloweencostumesonline.com
• www.buycostumes.com

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Tips for shopping online

1. Give yourself sufficient shipping time for the costumes to arrive.
2. Make sure the website you are purchasing from has good on-line safety features to protect your credit card and personal details.
3. Clarify the return policy before making a purchase.

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Even if you are not a big fan of dressing up, you may wish to decorate the entrance of your home to join in the fun. Click here for the list of party supply places and have fun when the little tykes come around with their face-painted or masked outfits begging for tricks or treats.

Happy Halloween!

Record Breaking Event - Longest Line of Flower Pots

If you are sitting at home, and bored of watching the same re-runs on cable, and don't want to do the usual shopping and dining weekend routine. Why not do something that will make history?

Singapore's first eco-friendly mall, City Square Mall, is hosting a record breaking event for the Singapore Book of Records - "The Longest Line of Flower Pots".

In conjunction with the National Environment Agency (NEA), the mall has organized a series of "Shiny Eco Workshops" over the last 2 weekends to encourage the public to display their creativity by decorating reusable plastic containers.

At the same time, to commemorate the Mid-Autumn Festival,  the flower pots will be transformed into lanterns for shoppers to bring home after the record breaking event,.  

“We are encouraged by City Square Mall’s creative idea of using these reusable plastic containers to engage the community for the Mid-Autumn Festival and fully support them in this green cause. Furthermore, these containers will be used to form the longest line of flower pots to set a record in the Singapore Book of Records and NEA will also be sponsoring the plant stakes with dengue prevention messages. We hope that through this initiative, shoppers at City Square Mall can help spread this important message and take up personal responsibility to clear any stagnant water in their flower pot plates at home to prevent breeding of mosquitoes,” said NEA's Central Regional Office Senior Manager for 3P, Mr Brandon Low.

When: 10 September (Sat)
Time: 8:30pm
Venue: City Square Mall's Basement 1 Fountain Square

Here are some of the quirkiest records made by Singaporeans:

• Tampines West Constituency Sports Club broke the world record for the most number of people sitting on a chair with 1,058 participants. (2008)
• 1,314 Singaporeans, including Greenridge Primary pupils and staff held the record for the most number of people drinking milk at the same time (Sep 30, 2009) 
• Biggest number of Singaporean students (1,082) performing a Bollywood Dance (May, 2009)Longest Karaoke Session 
• by Eunos Citizens' Consultative Committee (CCC) and its Grassroots' Organisations (GROs) - The residents sang for 50 hours 50 minutes and 50 seconds -  13 Aug 2010

As part of the festivities, there will be exciting stage performances, games with prizes and 600 goodie bags to be given away. Whether you want to part of history or to see history in making, head on down to City Square Mall this weekend.  

City Square Mall: Easter and Earth Day

Come to the island's only eco-friendly mall to celebrate Easter and Earth Day this weekend! Shop at the Earth Day Flea Market and enjoy free activities for the kids.

To celebrate Easter and Earth Day, City Square Mall will attempt to set a new record in the Singapore Book of Records for the Largest Egg Cartons Display. Shoppers can contribute by painting on egg cartons which will then be assembled to create a mosaic image of Earth.

Date – 24^th April 2011

Time – 4pm

Venue – City Square Mall, Level 1 Atrium, 180 Kitchener Road, Singapore 208539

Admission/Tickets – Free

Enquiries – www.citysquaremall.com.sg

Additionally, from 22 to 24 April 2011, there will be an Earth Day Flea Marketfeaturing handmade arts and crafts from non-profit organisations like WEworkz, Mother and Child, Breakthrough Missions and Moses Project and City Square Mall’s tenant, Sunflower.

While you shop, your children can paint on recycled egg-shells at the fun Eco-Egg Painting Workshop. No registration is required and all activities are free.  So, mark the dates on your calendar and head on down to Level 1 Atrium, City Square Mall.

This post first appeared in theAsianparent.com

Earth Hour: fun and freebies

Where will you be during Earth Hour? Join GV Yishun or the City Square Mall for fun activities and premium collectibles, and show your support of Earth Hour.

Earth Hour is an annual global event organized by WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature, also known as World Wildlife Fund)  to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change. It is held on the last Saturday of March with the sole purpose to request households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour (at 8pm) on that one day.

If you are not an environmentalist, but support this cause and are environmentally friendly or are interested to know more about this movement, here are some of the places you can go on 26 March, Saturday, to have fun and show your support.

Best of all, these events are FREE!

GV Yishun supports Earth Hour!

In support of Earth Hour, GV Yishun will stop movie screenings and turn off all lights from 8.30pm to 9.30pm on this day!

Join them for an hour of fun with an intimate unplug performance by Butteribs of SUPERBAND 2008 fame and stand to win prizes from Hasbro!

In addition, snag up their Limited Edition Earth Hour Snack Pack, on sale for the one hour at only $8 (U.P $12.30)! Snack pack includes 64oz Popcorn, Mentos, Pocky, Glaceau Vitaminwater and Popcorn Bucket! Available only during the one hour!

And that’s not all – purchase a pair of tickets to any movies screening at GV Yishun after 9.30pm, present your ticket stub to redeem for a set of GV premiums! Whilst stocks last!

Here’s the itinerary:

8.20 – 8.30pm = gather outside GV Yishun / Collection of GV premiums

8:30 – 9:25pm = Butteribs performance / Sale of Earth Hour Snack Pack

9:30pm = Movies resume

Go Beyond The Hour with City Square Mall

From 7pm to 9.30pm, City Square Mall will host a series of activities to celebrate Earth Hour with its shoppers. Some of the activities include:

• “Kite-Making with Glow-in-the-Dark Paint” session using recycled paper
• “Candle Making” workshop with recycled materials
• “Message on a Tree” booth where shoppers can leave their best wishes for a greener Earth.

At 8.30pm, City Square Mall will dim the lights and screen the documentary “Home” by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, showing aerial footage of Earth taken from 54 countries.

Venue - City Square Mall, Fountain Square Basement 1, 180 Kitchener Road, Singapore 208539

For more information, log on to www.citysquaremall.com.sg

This post first appeared in theAsianparent.com