Mark Icanberry says the words every parent loves to hear: "You don't have to spend money for your kids to have fun."

And then he shows them how. An inveterate tinkerer, the 37-year-old Kensington resident is standing in his garage-turned-workshop, where a variety of hand-made projects are on display. Ever since he was a boy, Icanberry has loved to build all sorts of things-toy ships, forts, bird feeders.

He was the kind of kid, he says who was given rolls of masking tape for Christmas.

Icanberry is still at it today. In fact, he's parlayed his love of building things into a series of children's books. The brightly illustrated volumes tell a story while at the same time teaching kids about hands-on projects they can create.

Take the bevy of miniature ships in his workshop. These toy models are made with the simplest of resources. A river barge is created by taping together parts of four milk cartons. Sailboats are formed with cartons, straws, shish-kebab sticks, string and plastic baggies. The main component for tiny rowboats are toothpicks.

"Masking tape is a great tool for toy ships," Icanberry says. "If you wrap the tape really carefully around the base, it creates an overlay that looks like boards and planks."

Then there is an aircraft carrier-the USS Fly. It's been built with the top of a cardboard box (painted gray). Dixie Cups, colored masking tape, duct tape, an empty tea box, an empty staple box and an array of 10-cent airplanes that normally serve as party favors.

Other how-to projects that Icanberry details in his children's books are little greenhouses, birdbaths, bubble blowers and compasses.

Such projects can keep kids entertained and engaged for hours, says Icanberry, father of a 14-year-old son. Creativity and resourcefulness is more important than any so-called art skills, he adds.

And practically anything around the house can be used for handmade projects. Milk cartons, boxes, packaging, string, chopsticks, cardboard, caps, cans, toilet-paper rolls-a whole slew of things that people would otherwise throw in the garage.

It's endless, "Icanberry says of the available resources.