Build Your Own Mouse Trap (with LEGO Chain Reactions from Klutz)

LEGO Chain Reactions will blow the mind of anyone who enjoyed playing Mouse Trap or setting off a row of dominoes. To turn bricks from kids’ own LEGO collection into ball-moving machines, all they need is this book — along with the cardstock ramps and other punch-out parts, plastic LEGO balls, and 33 essential, hard-to-find LEGO pieces packed inside.






Watch and learn! 



And now for a closer look... 

See the Quintopple in action!



See the Dominoes in action!



See the Seesaw & Ramp in action!



See the Pop-Up Flag & Falling Hammer in action!



See the Board Bouncer in action!



See the Slow Spin in action!



See the Elevator Ramps in action!




See the Pulley & Bucket in action!



See the Funnel Ramp in action!

Star Wars Reads Day Strikes Back! (with Star Wars Folded Flyers, Draw Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and Star Wars Thumb Doodles)

Fall is here and that familiar chill has crept back into the air. It’s time for boots and scarves and, for me, hiding indoors with a good book or a fun craft. But this weekend, there is another Force at play, beckoning me back to my two favourite activities…

That’s right, tomorrow is the 3^rd annual Star Wars Reads Day! This amazing initiative is the joint effort of Lucasfilm and its publishing partners. It's celebrated in every which way, from simply sitting down with a good book to some pretty amazing events at bookstores, libraries and other venues around the world!

I’ll be celebrating by bringing copies of Star Wars Folded Flyers, Star Wars Thumb Doodles, and Draw Star Wars: The Clone Wars up to my family’s Thanksgiving weekend celebrations. After all the fun we had with playing with Paper Dragons, I can’t wait to see what great ideas this wacky bunch will come up with this time!

So, get reading, drawing, Thumb Doodle comic booking, or try out one of these cool crafts from the official Star Wars Event Kit, cause it’s time to celebrate!

Happy Star Wars Reads Day!

LEGO Fangirl (with Crazy Action Contraptions from Klutz)

I have loved LEGO for as long as I can remember. From my first DUPLO set to The Movie and videos games I love so much, this timeless toy has always found it's way into my free play. My love for LEGO is so well-known that a friend once commissioned the making of a giant LEGO Hogwarts Lynn for my birthday!

 

So, when Klutz and LEGO paired up to create Crazy Action Contraptions, it was pretty much a match made in heaven for me! I rushed home and Mike and I raced Super Charged Speedsters up and down the halls of my apartment all afternoon long.

Last week, as I packed for a cottage weekend, I was thinking back to some of those fun times so I threw Crazy Action Contraptions in my suitcase for a second round of brick-filled fun. And on Saturday, over veggie pizza and big mugs of hot chocolate, we built LEGO-made machines that zipped, bumped and spun all over the cottage!

Merry Christmas Mischief (with Gotcha Gadgets)

Dear Santa,

I have been such a good girl this year — doing all my work, keeping my room sparkling clean, even being extra-nice to my little sister — that I think I’ve earned myself a place on the nice list. So I hope you’ll forgive me this wee bit of naughtiness in the last weeks of December, because I've got a Christmas gift that's sure to get me into some mischief!

Gotcha Gadgets is a practical joker’s dream. This boxy beauty comes complete with four customizable electronic gizmos and a book filled with tons of mischievous ways to put them to use. Make a door alarm, motion sensor, sound machine and more to play pranks and jokes or catch people in the act! And with four hilarious sounds to choose from, like a bloodcurdling scream or a silly sound from the bathroom, the opportunities for hilarity and hijinks are pretty much endless! I’ve safeguarded my diary with a light sensor, planted a gaseous sound machine under my Lil sis’s dinner chair, and watched and waited for the mischief to go down, laughing all the way (ha! ha! ha!). And, hey, I even learned a little bit about the science of electronic circuitry along the way!

If you catch a glimpse of me setting a sound trap or playing whoopee cushion pranks, please try to remember the angelic Lynn of the last 11 months, and not the prank master that I’ve become.

Thanks and Merry Christmas!

Sincerely,

Lynn.

Paper Flying Dragons Photo Diary

I must admit, when Paper Flying Dragons first landed (no pun intended) on my Klutz radar, I couldn’t really get into it. I mean, I love fantasy as much as the next nerd girl; I just wasn’t sure that would translate to paper-dragon play.

On a weekend trip to the cottage with all of my family around, it seemed like the best time to break out the book and rope some cousins into playing with me. My aunt and her two boys seemed totally on board, so we set up at the coffee table and got started. As we flipped through the pages of paper pop-out dragons, I started to feel some excitement. I picked out a purple hatchling, folded her up, then headed outside to put her in flight.

We hopped up on the deck to give us some height, then launched our dragons clear across the beach. These little beauties flew like a dream! As we watched our jewel-toned dragons soar through the sky, I started to feel a chill, so I popped inside to grab a sweater. And what did I find but a few more players at the coffee table, whipping up some paper dragons of their own.

Turns out our whirling, swirling spectacle had sparked some serious interest, and it wasn’t long before the whole family was outside, playing paper dragon battles, target practice, and racing up and down the beach. I wondered to myself how I ever doubted the power of flying paper dragons!

Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer (with The Encyclopedia of My Immaturity)

Has is happened to you yet?

You're sitting around watching TV (which, shame on you, get outside and enjoy the weather!) when out of nowhere it hits you… the dreaded back-to-school commercial!

I mean, come on, it’s the beginning of August! Can’t we just enjoy the last month of summer freedom without having to be reminded that in a short few weeks we’ll be packing our backpacks and returning to the harrowing halls of our educational institutions?

Until that dreadful day, make sure you are spending your final month of freedom being as delightfully juvenile and un-school-like as possible. Frolic through a field in a woven dandelion crown, build a big sandcastle and then kick it down, or have some fun with The Encyclopedia of My Immaturity.

Forget everything you thought you knew about diaries and get ready to ratchet up the silliness with this wise-cracking, fill-in-the-blank activity book where you can record your summer of immaturity. Quizzes, games, silly story starters, and so much more motivate you to unleash your inner kid! 

Want to take your immaturity outside the book? Check out the other installments in this silly series, that feature instructions, illustrations, and diagrams for tons of hilarious shenanigans--like How to Do a Wheelie, How to Hang a Spoon from Your Nose, and How to Really Annoy Your Older Sibling--and spend your last lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer right!

Want even more proof? Just check out these hilarious videos below: 

Daddy-Daughter Day (with Foam Rockets & Coin Blaster Arcade)

For all the ways that I’m just like my momma, I am just as much my father’s daughter, too. Yes, this crafty gal has always looked up to her brainy dad, so when Father’s Day rolls around every year, I want it to be great!

My dad is out of town this weekend, but I’m not going to let a little thing like a continent get in my way. Before he left, I snuck a secret package into my dad’s suitcase with instructions to meet up for a video chat on the big day.

Since we’re celebrating from far away, and because my dad is a bit of an astronomy nut, I broke out Foam Rockets for some Father’s Day fun. They’re so easy to assemble; just punch out the paper rocket pieces, attach them to the foam body, pop it all on the air bulb launcher and 3… 2… 1… blast off! I gave my dad a one-of-a-kind card by attaching my Father’s Day message to these high flyers and putting on an out-of-this-world air show just for him.

Next, it was time for presents! My dad has it all, so I figured the best gift I could give him was an afternoon of fun. Inside his secret package, he found a copy of Coin Blasters—the latest, greatest, kookiest Klutz contraption yet—with more than ten tabletop games you play with a coin. We flipped from colourful, pop-out page to page playing Hot Shot Hoops, Skee Coin and Penny Putt Golf with the cool Coin Blaster—a finger-powered mini-cannon that really sends your coins flying! 

And, okay, maybe another thing my dad and I have in common is our complete lack of hand-eye co-ordination, but we sure did have a blast!

Wanna see what the Coin Blaster masters can do? Check out this video below.