a peek inside the fishbowl

30 Jun, 2009

Paint-by-numbers for rainy days

Posted by andrea tomkins in: Easy ways to make kids happy|Oh! Things!|Photography

It’s day two of summer holidays but my work goes on. I have deadlines galore. Sadly, I require near complete silence to write/think/do anything work related. (Seriously, even someone chewing on a banana in the same room makes me want to pull my hair out sometimes. Gah.)

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve already had to remind the girls that MUMMY IS WORKING RIGHT NOW. (Um, except for right now. This is officially-sanctioned break time.)

So I got out the big guns … a paint-by-numbers set Mark and I bought the girls at the Musee des Beaux Arts in Montreal last summer. It was (and still is) by far the best and most interesting paint-by-number set I’ve ever seen. No lame-o horses or unicorns with flowy mains or peace signs or anything obnoxiously cartoony. Just lighthearted and sweet. The colour palette is hip and modern. What can I say? I like it.

paint by numbers

They must have spent 90 (NINETY) focused (AND QUIET) minutes diligently painting within the lines.

paint by numbers

paint by numbers

And now they’re done. I think I’ll pick up a couple of frames for them today. Right after I finish my work, of course.

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11 Responses to "Paint-by-numbers for rainy days"

1 | julie

July 1st, 2009 at 7:35 am

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Oh – I feel your pain! I am wondering if I should set up a tape recording that barks out “Mommy is not on holiday! Mommy needs to work!” in five-minute intervals. I do love this paint by number magic – great idea. Somehow I’m not sure it could even quiet my resident 6-year-old chatterbox though.

2 | BeachMama

July 1st, 2009 at 7:58 am

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Oooh, I love that paint by numbers set. So different than the usual horses or superheroes.

3 | julie

July 1st, 2009 at 8:29 am

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Add-on to previous comment so I avoid looking like too much of an ogre: My husband is on holidays caring for the kids, but my daughter just can’t seem to resist coming into my office to tell me, well, just about everything. Okay – off now to buy me some groovy paint-by-numbers! :)

4 | andrea

July 1st, 2009 at 3:30 pm

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The manufacturer is a company named Djeco. I can’t seem to find much about them online.

(Although I did find this very sweet “Magical Dresses” stamping kit. Loooove!)

5 | andrea

July 1st, 2009 at 3:30 pm

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Julie, I know what you mean. I’ve been there too. Especially when there’s a deadline looming!!

6 | andrea

July 1st, 2009 at 3:33 pm

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Found it! Would love to know if there’s a Canadian retailer carrying it too.

7 | Javamom

July 2nd, 2009 at 5:15 am

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You have just given me a fantastic gift idea for my 6yo niece who loves this kind of thing. BUT, as you say, many are kind of icky. The ones you feature are great! I’ll go check the link. Thank you for this post!

8 | Loukia

July 2nd, 2009 at 11:29 am

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That’s awesome! And yes, way better than those unicorn/cats paint by number kits!

9 | Julie

July 2nd, 2009 at 9:02 pm

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Andrea – thanks for tracking down a link for me! My gal is a crafty kid and she would love something like this (AND a birthday is coming up around the corner!). Jules

10 | Julie

July 2nd, 2009 at 9:18 pm

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Found a Canadian company that sells Djeco! http://www.hottoads.com

11 | A perfect gift for a little artist >> a peek inside the fishbowl

April 15th, 2010 at 8:11 am

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[…] purchased paint-by-number kits from Djeco before, and enjoyed them very much. This one comes with felt-tip markers instead of […]

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My name is Andrea and I live in Ottawa with my husband Mark and our dog Sunny who is kind of a big deal on Instagram. During the day I work as a freelance writer. I am a longtime Ottawa blogger and I've occupied this little corner of the WWW since 1999. The Fishbowl is my whiteboard, water cooler, and journal, all rolled into one. I'm passionate about healthy living, arts and culture, travel, great gear, good food, and sharing the best of Ottawa. I also love vegetables, photography, gadgets, and great design.

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