While water play is a wonderful activity to enjoy with your children all year round, the summer months are an especially great opportunity to encourage new sensory experiences for your little one, by bringing your playsilks along to the beach or pool, or filling up a tub with water in your front yard.
We've been so inspired by customers sharing photos of their children using their silks in the bathtub at home or at the beach that we wanted to create an entire Sarah's Silks playdate around the idea of silks and water. Armed with a wagon full of playsilks, cooking utensils, lots of beach blankets, and a washbasin, we took to the Russian River with Mia, Letti, and Avery. We were so excited to see what magic they could make when let loose with only the river bed, playsilks, and their imagination at their disposal!
The girls immediately gravitated towards dragging the playsilks (a regular sized playsilk for Mia, and minis for Letti and Avery) along behind them in the shallow water, ooohhh-ing and ahhh-ing over how beautiful the colors looked in the sunkissed river water. There's something so magical about watching the silk transform in color, shape, and texture as its dipped in the water and goes from dry to wet. The sensation of fully drenched silk against their skin is such an exciting tactile experience for children, and something you can easily set up in your kitchen sink or in a large bowl for them to enjoy with their hands, or in a bathtub if they want to submerge themselves entirely. Add in some bubbles (we used EO Kid's 3-in-1 Soap) for extra fun and easy cleaning! Avery loved dipping her giant starry night silk into the sudsy water, and then squeezing the bubbles out, making all kinds of yummy, squishy noises.
Water play is so beneficial for young children--it's a great way for little ones to practice fine and gross motor skills by actions like dipping, squeezing, and pulling. The unique tactile experience of manipulating silk in water is stimulating and relaxing for developing minds, making it a great therapeutic practice for little ones who crave or benefit from tranquil, meditative play.
Beyond tub play, you can set up jars or bowls for your child to fill with playsilks, and then pour water into as if they're mixing up "magic potions". The bright colors of our primary playsilks mimic clouds of dye when swirled around in clear water! Older children could even experiment by adding other "special ingredients" to their playsilk-and-water mixtures, like food coloring, flower petals, or magic glitter. Little ones like Letti and Avery will love whisking up "silk soup" in a bowl full of water, at home or at the beach, in lieu of plastic sand toys!
There are plenty of great ways for children to practice cooperative play with silks in the water, by working together to make a huge air bubble with a giant playsilk, or having an underwater tea party, and so much more! Wrap a "Sea" playsilk around their waist to pretend you're Mermaids sunbathing on a rock, or hold a playsilk between two people, gathering a small pool of water in its center and then bouncing it upwards to create a mini rainfall.
Don't forget to bring a giant playsilk and your play clips to make some shade on-the-go, wherever your Summer adventures take you! Here is some DIY beach fort inspiration, courtesy of our amazing customers:
Tag us on Instagram @sarahssilks so we can see all the wonderfully creative things your family is doing with your playsilks this Summer.
xoxo,
Sarah