It’s coming! Spring! I can hear it in the birds, see it in longer days, find it in the snowdrops peeking up through the cold ground.

Along with ordering vegetable seeds, restoring garden tools, cleaning out closets, I’m getting my kites ready for that very first spring-like day.

I’m even planning my annual CELEBRATE SPRING party. We’ll eat sandwiches and cookies shaped like kites, release our creativity in kite making and end with fun contests. Everyone has to bring one item for decorating the kites. I found some great stuff to create my flying masterpiece—I want to win most beautiful kite!

Contact us if you want help planning a CELEBRATE SPRING party.

Kites…on a Roll® News

The Malay Bird, the third of our Kites…on a Roll®, will fly this spring. This easy-to-make, easy-to-fly, 2- stick kite makes the perfect addition to the Sled and Delta. It’s a great kite for kids 8 years and up.

The kite is 24” x 24”, comes with a tail, (part of the pattern) and is imprinted on writeable plastic. This allows kids to use crayons as well as permanent markers for decorating.

Each of our patterns will make a terrific activity for your National Kite Month celebration. For five weeks, from March 31 ---May 6, there are kite flying and kite making events scheduled throughout the country.

For further information, to find a kite event near you, or to discover how you can participate in this wonderful welcome to spring, visit the American Kitefliers Association site at http://www.aka.kite.org.

We would love to receive pictures of your flying masterpieces to display on our web site. Check the Contact Us page for the address.

Hints for an Easier Activity

Crayola makes wonderful crayons for writeable plastic called Construction Paper Crayons. Their color is more intense which makes any design really stand out on the plastic.

Some kite makers draw a blank when it comes to a decorating idea. I’ve found two ways to bring out creativity: tracing line drawings and using images from clip art. Here’s what you do:

The plastic covering for any of our patterns is translucent. Make a drawing on a sheet of paper large enough to fill the kite sail. Outline it in bold, black marker. Place the image under the sail and trace.

OR

Find clip art in your word processing program and print the image that appeals to you. Draw it free hand to fit the size of your sail. Then transfer that image onto the kite sail. It’s that easy!

If you have any suggestions or stories to share with others, please let us know. You can send us your story to newsletter@kitesonaroll.com We will feature them in a future issue.