Since the kids are out of school, summer is the perfect time to get crafty! While sandcastles can be crafts in themselves, we’re sharing some of our other favorite summer crafts to help inspire you to try your hand at something artsy.

Seashell Mirror: Grab a mirror from the dollar store, go collect sand and seashells with your child, then help them glue them onto a mirror like this one. All you need is a mirror, sand, seashells, decoupage glue, a paintbrush and hot glue.

Start by brushing a layer of decoupage glue around the perimeter of the mirror using your paintbrush. Sprinkle the sand over the glue, and shake off over a paper towel to remove excess. Using the hot glue gun, have your child direct where you should glue the sea shells, then trace the hot glue around the underside of the shell’s opening, and paste on the mirror. Do that for the remaining shells, and let dry before picking up/hanging.

Cupcake Flowers: While real flowers are in bloom, we still love these paper flowers for a fun, simple craft using materials you probably already have lying around the house. All you need are printed cupcake liners, pencils, printed duct tape, scissors, push pins, and a hot glue gun.

Cover your pencils in washer tape so that the entire pencil is covered up to the eraser. For each flower, you’ll need 5 of the same cupcake liners. Fold them in half three times so they are cone-shaped, then cut a U around the top so they are petal shaped, then unfold. Stack and rotate the cupcake liners so the petals are spread out, placing a dot of glue in between each petal. Stick a push pin through the center of all the flowers, then through the eraser of the pencil (feel free to add a teeny dot of glue to make sure it stays in place). Starting with the petal on top, bunch petals with your fingers to get height on petals.

Simple Bird Feeder: Believe it or not, birds love Cheerios almost as much as your kids do, so to make a simple bird feeder is beyond easy. All you need are pipe cleaners and Cheerios (or any cereal with holes in the middle).

Have your children string the cereal onto the pipe cleaners, leaving a small amount of room at the end to tie the pieces together. You can hook the end in the meantime so the cereal doesn’t fall off. Make the pipe cleaner into a circle by looping the ends together. Do the same for the next pipe cleaner, being sure to loop it through the one you just formed a circle with prior to closing it. Continue doing that until all pipe cleaners have been attached. Hang on a branch thin enough that the pip cleaner circles can be looped around.

Tie Dye T-shirts: Don’t we all remember the days of tie dying our own t-shirts? Let the tradition live on, and get tie dying with your kids. Follow these simple instructions for an awesome swirly tie dye shirt. All you need is dye (and a receptacle to hold each of the different color dyes you want to use, rubber bands, t-shirts, and some rubber gloves.

Start with a white shirt and pinch right in the center. Twist the shirt around where you’re pinching, moving your hand in a circular motion until the shirt is entirely coiled around itself. Use rubber bands to secure the shirt in that coiled up ball, then make your dye solutions according to package instructions. Dunk 1/2 the shirt in one color dye and leave for about 15 minutes. Then dunk the other half in a different color dye and leave for 15 minutes. If you want more than 2 colors on your shirt, feel free to dunk different sections, making sure all visible whitespace is covered by the end. Remove rubber bands and run shirt under cold water until water runs clear. You can then wash it in the washing machine (by itself!)

What is your favorite craft to do during the summer? Share with us in the comments below.