Author Archives: Administrator
We are very excited for Blue Tree to be included in the summer programs recommended by Rachel of Parents of NY Teens.
She posts on NYC schools and education programs for children of all ages. Thanks for sharing Blue Tree! http://parentsofnyteens.blogspot.com/p/2011-summer-programs.html Continue reading
During the week of February 21-25, we’ll be at The Invisible Dog in Carroll Gardens (Bergen at Smith Street) – join us for the full week or just the days you need! Each day will highlight a different theme: Toy, DIY, Building, Science and Story Arts. This is open to 1st-5th grade girls, and runs from 9am-3pm with late-stay until 4pm. The cost is $425/week or $95/day, with $10/day for late-stay.
No matter how many times we make slime, my girls never get tired of this gooey, wacky activity. If you’re stuck inside on this snow day, download the movie “Flubber” on Netflix and unleash this project. Your kids will be super-psyched. It’s made with common ingredients you find around the house. Borax, a laundry additive, is available at most supermarkets and big box retailers. Instructions after the jump. Continue reading
Miniatures have always delighted me. As a girl, I saved each bit of allowance for rare trips to the little store on Cheshire Bridge Road that housed every type of chair, rug, patio set, curio, lamp, wallpaper, grand piano, and so on – all at 1/12″ scale. I sculpted holiday feasts from colored clay; dabbled in millinery with felt, ribbons, and a messy white-glue solution; wired Christmas trees and hall sconces; stitched rugs in intricate needlepoint patterns, and then backed them with muslin. After years of loving use, my dollhouses and their items were packed in newspaper scraps and stored in the basement of our weekend home.
On the few occasions that I have visited this house recently, my own girls have just as lovingly un-wrapped each worn item and spent hours on their knees, furnishing the rooms, yards and attics. Continue reading
Come find us at the Peridance Kids Fair! Sunday January 23, 11am – 3pm, at the Peridance Capezio Center, 126 East 13th Street in Manhattan. It’s free for families and there will be lots of activities to distract from the cold weather outside! For more: www.peridance.com Continue reading
Curious Jane is sponsoring the first ever SFX Youth Sports girls volleyball clinic, and Samantha is coaching! The clinic runs February 12 – April 2, and is open to 8-11yo girls. For more information and registration, please go to www.SFXyouthsports.com. Continue reading
Join us for Toy Design and DIY After School classes at the Scholastic Store in Soho this winter! See our after-school section for more information. We hope to see you there!
Talya wore Heelies and a pedometer every day to camp. The pedometer was lost twice and found once. The second loss was via priority mail, en route from my office to her house. She emailed inquiring about her pedometer, and she attached a story draft. I suggested her next story chronicle the paths of the pedometer, wherever it landed. Where would 1124 steps take a 37-year-old Chicagoan in the Great Depression? Where would 7085 carry a 14-year-old boy in Brooklyn… in 2045? Where do 2738 steps take you – in any direction – from your bedroom door? Continue reading
In our office – every other Friday is project day. We make sketch models – then, when we come up with something we like, we reverse-engineer it to figure out the best way for young designers to make it on their own and have fun with it!
Last Friday, we started with a grab bag of electronic goodies, a mini-fish (left-over from our monsters project) and some cardboard boxes (medium-size priority mail boxes from the post office, free). I used crepe paper (lying around from a summer party) and it worked so well – young designers don’t need to stress over precision – the loose edges and not-quite-straight lines add to the watery effect. As an after-thought, I added colored acetate (transparency) because it brings color, light and dimension to almost anything. Here’s what we came up with! Continue reading
I’m exploring the tools and resources that Dove (body products) offers through their Self-Esteem Fund for girls. A few years ago, Dove launched their Campaign for Real Beauty. Even if you aren’t familiar with the details, you may have noticed their commercials featuring woman of all ages and body types. Or, you may have seen their powerful one-minute films on beauty standards and the media. The campaign promotes real beauty at all ages, and their Self-Esteem Fund focuses on the challenges facing girls and young women. These challenges are considerable. In the tween and teen years, a girls’ confidence is rocked. Girls may question their self-worth on a daily – if not hourly – basis, and they may not recover their self-esteem until their twenties or thirties. What would you tell your 8yo self, your 13yo self, your 20yo self? You look back and see a bright, beautiful girl who … Continue reading
Samantha Razook Murphy is the founder of Curious Jane and Blue Tree. She was inspired to create these unique programs to give her girls, and all girls, a chance to be creative and inventive in a high-energy, collaborative and gender-affirming space. She loves designing, tinkering and figuring out. Samantha is the mother of two girls and lives in Brooklyn, NY. She holds her BA from Yale and Masters in Industrial Design from Pratt. In her spare time she coaches volleyball and rides her bike around Brooklyn.