The arrival of a new baby is an exciting time and definitely one that needs to be documented. Most of the items such as baby announcements and then the birth announcements will be arranged in a scrapbook. However, some items will not fit in a scrapbook. A shadow box is an ideal solution for displaying memorabilia such as these. A shadow box is simply a shallow box with a frame on the front. Items are arranged inside and a glass panel is placed across the front within the frame like a window … [Read more...]
Quick Christmas Crafts
This week we all were sick so we had a couple sick days and a we had a snow day. Needless to say I had some time to kill with the kids! Luckily I also have some random crafty things hanging around the house so we were able to come up with a couple fun activities.First we made Santa hats. This is super easy, all you need is red construction paper,cotton balls and glue. Since our refrigerator isn't magnetic we decided to hang … [Read more...]
DIY Candle Project
Wondering how to make a great-looking present for birthdays, holidays or housewarming parties? Making your own floating candles at home is an incredibly simple project that looks fantastic and can be done with ingredients you likely already have around your home!To get started, you'll need:Paraffin wax or old candles. Play dough. Cookie cutters. An old, clean tin can. A saucepan or pot. Candle wicks. A pencil, pen or Popsicle stick.1. Shape your can. Pinch the sides … [Read more...]
Santa Bread
Today's recipe was visually an epic fail! But my girls LOVED it and it was yummy, so it was totally worth it! I know what changes I'll need to make the next time we make it- and there WILL be a next time! It was so fun!Gypsys Melting Pot gives a recipe for the dough that I’m sure is delicious, but I’m a lazy chef, so I just bought Pillsbury Simply Rustic French Bread Dough instead. (I used 2 of the Pillsbury containers) “Divide into two portions, one slightly … [Read more...]
Gyspy Melting Pot
Okay folks, you know how I feel about creative and simple recipes! I just fell in LOVE with Gyspys Melting Pot! They do an awesome job compiling super cute and totally adorable recipes and crafts that are so simple and so creative! I was so excited to share them with you! I’ll post 2 today and 2 more on Thursday.Christmas treeGypsys Melting Pot made it with veggies, (Click here to see theirs!) but my kids are MUCH more likely to eat fruit! And our family tradition is a Christmas … [Read more...]
Bowling Pin Snowman Tutorial
I like to have a mixtures of holiday themed and winter themed decorations in my home as we head into the winter months. I know Snowmen are pretty popular with a lot of people so I wanted to share this darling craft my sister introduced me to. It was easy to make. After gathering the supplies it doesn't take long. The longest part is waiting for the paint to dry.Check out this bowling pin snowman. Hopefully you have some left over bowling pins from making the Halloween Mummy and Ghost I … [Read more...]
Poinsettia Craft
Getting in the mood for Christmas!! Here's a cute craft for ya!What you'll need: Green Paper, Red Paper, Yellow Paper, Paper Plate, Scissors, Pencil (or marker, pen, etc), Glue (or tape or stapler) First thing they'll need to do is trace their hands several times on both green and red paper. Depending on the their hand size- I'd say they'll need 10-12 of each color. My kids got seriously sick of cutting out hands, so I cut the plate to … [Read more...]
Pumpkin Jars Tutorial
So one of my favorite Halloween crafts is making Pumpkin Jars! I love these cute pumpkins because unlike real pumpkins they are not going to rot! They will be as cute in a month as they are the day you pain them! Here is what you'll need for this easy craft:Glass jars of different sizes. I only had a jam jar laying around so I went to Goodwill and bought 3 more. 1 for everyone in my family. Orange and Black paint. We used acrylic because that is what I had on hand. Paint brushes- both … [Read more...]
Bowling Pin Mummy and Ghost Tutorial
These cute Halloween decorations can be made very quickly and very cheaply. I am a HUGE fan of a 30 minute or less craft! They are simply used bowling pins (donated to me by my local bowling alley) white spray paint, cheese cloth, black paint pen, mod podge, and brown stain. It is as easy as it looks.GHOST When you acquire used bowling pins, they are usually pretty banged up. I don't bother filling in the wholes or gashes, but I do spray paint them all white. Most of my bowling pin … [Read more...]
Autumn Letters Tutorial
Autumn makes me feel crafty! I think because the weather is cooler I feel more inclined to do things rather than just sit in front of the air conditioner! I was searching on pinterest for some easy fall decor crafts and found a couple things. Here is the easy tutorial for my first autumn craft!I searched several craft stores for some wood letters in a font that I liked. Finally I came to Michael's and liked this font the best. I also settled for the paper that was on sale. I didn't get … [Read more...]
Ghostly Halloween Tree
My girls have been asking to do a craft, and since I’m starting to put Halloween décor everywhere, it’s getting me in the mood for some spooky crafting! I decided to take a page from the Easter crafts we did and just make it Halloween-ish. While the kiddos were at school, I found a gnarly branch in the front yard, spray painted it black and stuck it in a pot on the front porch.When the girls came home from school, I had our stuff ready: a box of tissues, yarn (you could always use ribbon- … [Read more...]
Fabric Flower Tutorial
We are about to leave on vacation to go to Seattle for my Brother's-in-law wedding. For this wedding my Mother-in-law made my daughter a dress to perfectly match their wedding colors. She then sent me the scraps of fabric and asked that I make a hair accessory for her. I've never made a fabric hair accessories so I searched online for some easy tutorials. This is what I came up with! My favorite tutorial came from Wise Craft. She provided a template to download, so you could cut out the flower … [Read more...]
Homemade Doll Tutorial
My very first introduction to etsy was while I was watching Martha Stewart several years ago. The owner of the etsy shop TheBlackApple was on Martha's show to demonstrate how to make her handmade dolls. I fell instantly in love with these super adorable dolls and set out to make one that very morning; I printed out the template and got to work.My sister saw the doll I made and decided to make one for our niece's first birthday. The fun thing about these dolls is that everyone can be … [Read more...]
Flip Flop Tutorial- Guest Blogger
Hi, I’m Erin! I was asked to post a tutorial on how to make Fancy Flip Flops and I am excited to share!When I first wanted to make the flip flops, or “Fancy Flops” as my daughter and I call them, I had difficulty finding a tutorial of any kind. The process of which I make them now has taken two years of trial and error. We had a lot of “flops” until finally I came upon a few ideas! This is what I will share with you today and hopefully you can save a couple years by my sharing what I’ve … [Read more...]
How to Make Chocolate Curls
So on my lovely Chocolate Cream Pies I put some chocolate curls! It made it look really pretty, perhaps like I had bought the pie! Now you too can fancy up your cream pies with some chocolate curls. It is really simple.First you put 1/2 cup of chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate chips because those are the only ones I like) into a DRY microwave safe bowl. (Make sure the bowl is completely dry because water will separate the chocolate and you will have to start over.)You … [Read more...]
