A Crafty Soiree #119 with a Crayola Review & Giveaway: Digital Light Designer & Marker Airbrush

Hi Crafty Friends!  We're so glad you joined us for the first Crafty Soiree of December.  Especially because we've got an awesome giveaway to jump start your child's creativity from Crayola, featuring two of their hottest holiday gifts.   The winner of this week's giveaway will receive a gift pack with both exciting new products.

First up is the Digital Light Designer, recommended for ages 6 & up.  Suggested retail value $49.99.  With this toy, children use the digital light stylus to create, animate, and play on the 360-degree doomed drawing surface.   In our neighborhood it is quite the hot toy, with several parents getting requests for it.

There are three stages of play.  The one my daughter likes the best is draw.  In the photo above she is accessing the menu with her stylus during the set up phase.  You use this tool to choose colors and draw on the surface, switching colors with a few clicks to bring up the menu and change between colors.  Once you figure out how to use the interface, it's relatively easy to use after a bit of practice.

ER has drawn a series of butterflies and with a few more clicks she can animate them, sort of.  When she uses this mode the picture splits in half, with the top portion going one way and bottom the other.  It's a neat effect.  We are still exploring the toy and learning how to get the most out of it, but every time we discover something new she is very excited.

For parents, the things of note I think are important to consider are the price,  the cost of the required batteries that might become expensive with a lot of play, and that it's kind of noisy.  Also, be prepared for a great deal of parental assistance during set up and to help your child figure out how to navigate the different modes. 

That being said, if your child loves art and is looking for something unique and different he or she will love the Digital Light Designer.   It would've been on my child's wish list had we not received it for review.  My daughter old thinks this toy is just wonderful.  She wants to play with it all the time and really likes the rainbow draw.   I think it's a little sophisticated for her, but she's 6 and at the start of the suggested ages.    I feel that this toy will be one that gets better and better as she gains more familiarity with it and is able to use all the different features.

Also included in the winner's gift pack will be a Crayola Marker Airbrush, also recommended for age 6 and up.  It has a suggested retail value of $24.99.  I have to say, I thought this was quite neat.  It's also a lot of fun and easy to use, right out of the box.

I especially liked how it does not require any batteries.  Your child simply pumps it to create the air pressure, very easy to do.  Another plus is that within the set is everything you need to get started.  Besides the Airbrush Sprayer, 8 washable markers, 4 fabric markers, 4 stencil sheets, and 20 pieces of blank paper are included.  If your child were to unwrap this say, at Grandma's house then they could use it to keep busy the rest of the day. 

We have used it a few times and are excited to try the included fabric markers to decorate a shirt.  We also plan to use some window markers (available for purchase separately) to make cool designs on our glass door wall.  I hope that Crayola will begin to offer different stencils, it would be nice to expand our collection.  There are a wide range of design themes included from space, ocean, general - with a sun, clouds, dragon, fire, thunder bolt, and the girly one ER used.  The last stencil is the one she is most interested in, the other ones will only get limited use.  So may have to look into getting more for her. 

This was ER's first attempt at using the Marker Airbrush, and as you can see figuring out the right amount of pressure and correct distance to maintain between the sprayer and paper takes some trial and error.  I suggest practicing on paper before you try using it on fabric.  The learning curve is pretty quick, and I think this is a great art set will appeal to many.

Learn more about both these and other great Crayola gift options on the Crayola Holiday Gift Guide, available at www.crayola.com/gifts.  You can also connect with Crayola on Facebook & Twitter.

Are you ready to win a Crayola Holiday Gifts Pack, worth approximately $75?  Please use Rafflecopter below to enter, good luck!a Rafflecopter giveaway

Now that we've shared our exciting giveaway, let's get to some features from last week. It's time to bring on the Christmas projects!

Sparkle, Shimmer, & Twine Candle Wraps from Altered Artworks look like a fun way to customize your decor.

Scripture Ornaments from Family, Home, and Life are an elegant addition for your tree.

If you're looking for something a bit cuter, then the Recycled Snowman Ornaments from Inspired by Family Magazine are perfect.

Having trouble getting your graham crackers to stay in place will making houses?  Try the Chocolate Rice Krispy Treat Houses from Over the Big Moon for a sturdier base for your "Gingerbread" houses.

Use your fingerprints to make a one of a kind DIY Personalized Reindeer Plate with Semi Homemade Mom. 

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Party Guidelines

1.  Link up to four of your creative projects (No Etsy stores or other linky parties pretty please).  

2.  Add your link to the specific posts not the main URL.

3.  Add a "Crafty Soiree" button to your blog or posts.

4.  Please comment on the post linked up in front of you.  All partygoers love meeting new friends... don't just stop there...if you see something that catches your fancy-- stop by and say hi!

5.  Your hostesses would love it if you'd follow us. You can find Malia here.

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Disclosure: The Crayola product to try, information, and additional gift pack have been provided by Crayola.