I’ve got an approach though, and I’m going to make this announcement before anyone opens gifts, “Okay everyone, this is how this is going to work. We’re going to each open up gifts one at a time and you’re going to love them. If you don’t, I’ve brought along these Gift Complaint Forms for you to fill out if you are unhappy with what you’ve received.”

I have no idea if it’ll work, but it’s worth a shot, and my nerves already feel better since I have a plan.

Even though kids are struggling with new emotions and probably quite anxious themselves, it’s good to be reminded to enjoy the moment, even if you really, really dislike your present.

Download the Gift Complaint Forms for your kids or friends (PDF)

Download the Gift Complaint Forms for your kids or friends (PDF)

My mother, who has been a teacher for about a zillion years, created this great activity that takes advantage of this concept—building an ocean under your kitchen table! On these freezing winter days, we can always use an activity to keep us invigorated indoors.

Simply cut out fish in many different colors, create some underwater plants, and hang them from under the table. In our house, some of the kids are too young to cut fish, but they eagerly get involved in drawing eyes, fins, and decorating. Add other marine life if you feel inspired!

Once you’ve created your ocean, hunker down for some play. Sometimes the kids just like to hang out under there, on their backs, taking in the scene. Other times, everyone gets on bathing suits and suddenly we have deep sea exploration on our hands. Turning out the lights and giving everyone flashlights adds a whole new dimension of fun.

Think you’re incapable of cutting out a fish? We’ve included a template for big fish, little fish, and seaweed. For the seaweed, simply cut the spiral, and then pull one end to unfold. Create a bigger spiral for longer pieces of seaweed.

Then crack out your goggles—you’ve got an ocean to explore.

DOWNLOAD TEMPLATE: PDF format

So today we combined all of our arrows (along with some vector cursors) and are posting them here for everyone. Sure there are others available around the web, but we made these from scratch and zoomed in real tight to get the details bang on. Feel free to use in whatever project that might need some… pointers.

DOWNLOAD ARROWS : Illustrator, Freehand and PDF archive.

These files are provided under a Creative Commons License!

It’s isometric!

We start by drawing an object straight up in a vector program, then transform it with the methods below to extrapolate each element. (It’s always a good idea to copy your flat artwork off to the side while you work on the isometric piece. Just in case).

There are several ways to go about this:

The Easy Way (with Illustrator)

If you don’t have Adobe Illustrator or prefer more manual control, fret not.

There are other ways.

The Long Way

So that’s the basics. You can do rectangles and other objects this way. To make a cylinder it’s simply a matter of duplicating a top and bottom piece and connecting them with vertical lines.

BONUS LINKS:

Still using Freehand? See how to make isometric transformations in Freehand
Looking to get more advanced? Check out this extensive tutorial on VectorTuts