Create-Celebrate-Explore

Kidzui Blog: Handmade Thanksgiving Cards

Have your child stitch some pretty Fall cards to send to relatives this Thanksgiving.  My tutorial for these is over at Kidzui.

Halloween Silhouette

Last year I won a lovely silhouette of Flynn from Simply Silhouettes.  I wanted to give it a little makeover this year so it didn't have the date and could be used every year as part of our Halloween decor.

Here are the step-by-step instructions to create this.  First off let me tell you that I purchased the embroidery hoop for 50 cents from a thrift shop last month.

1. Cut out the silhouette using an X-ACTO knife.
2. Lay the inner section of the embroidery hoop over a piece of paper and cut to the exact size.
3. Using a little Elmer's glue the silhouette to the paper and then the paper to the embroidery hoop.
4. Lay a piece of rope across the upper corner of the picture and attach small triangle flags (cut from scrap paper) using glue.
5. Using a black Elmer's painters pen paint the from section of the outer frame.
6. Once dry insert the inner section of the frame into the outer section.  Hang on the wall.

Disclosure: This project has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Elmer's #gluenglitter #collectivebias.  You can view my shopping trip here.

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Craft

Back To School Tips

This year will be a big one for us, the twins are starting kinder in the fall and Jay will be in 10th grade starting at a new school.  They don't start back until September, but we have friends who started back at school this week.  It's hard to believe that summer vacation is already over for some of our friends.  Soon enough though I will be packing lunch boxes, and picking up school supplies lists.

Horizon Organics have enlisted the help of a group of ladies (including myself) as Community Leaders for the Horizon Healthy Families Back To School Community being hosted by BlogFrog.

The other lovely ladies heading up this community are:

• Ewa of Delishh
• Wendy of Wendolonia
• Cheryl of Tidy Mom
• Dagmar of Dagmar’s Momsense
• Liz of This Full House
• Sommer of Green and Clean Mom
• Crystal of The Thrifty Mama
• Rachel of Surviving the Stores
• Cat of 3 Kids and Us
• Sara of Saving for Someday

We know that all of you with school-aged children have some great back to school and summer vacation tips to share so we invite you to join the community and help support other parents.  Here are some of the topics we are discussing:

• Back To School Shopping
• Healthy Snacks / Lunch Ideas / Family Dinner
• Making Memories
• Money Saving Tips
• Organizing
• Summer Fun

There are also homeschooling families in the community who are sharing their tips too.

Last week we had a fabulous live chat where tons of fantastic ideas were shared.  I cannot remember who shared this one, but somebody mentioned making a paper chain countdown for kids.  This was the perfect activity for us.  The twins are so excited to start school and have been asking every day when their first day will be.  So we made the paper chain and hung it in their play room.  They remove a link each day and then count how many are left.  Not only did they learn how to make a paper chain, but they are working on their numbers (including subtraction) each day and I no longer have to explain how many days they have until school starts.

We hope you will come by and share your tips too. 

Here are some helpful links:

• Join the Horizon Healthy Families Back to School Community
• Enter for a chance to win a $500 Back To School Shopping Spree.
• Follow Horizon on Facebook
• Follow Horizon Dairy on Twitter.

Disclosure: I am being compensated for my role as Community Leader in the Horizon Healthy Families Back to School Community.

Paper Poppy Wall Art

Create lasting memories with your child this Mother's Day and make a wall worthy masterpiece with them.

You will find a complete tutorial for this project on my post over at Multiples and More Crafting with kids: Mother's Day art so please swing by there and say hello.

 

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Make and Takes ... The Long Thread

Bunny Ear Headbands

We had a pot-luck style Easter party today that was organized by one of our friends.  My contribution to the party was not cake (because my fabulous cake decorating girlfriend was supposed to be there and my cake decorating skills are shameful compared to her), but instead it was a craft project for the kids. 

I saw these fun bunny ear headbands at (a fellow military wife) Candace Lindemann's blog Naturally Educational and thought these would be fabulous for the party, especially with the various age ranges that would be attending.

I left a tape dispenser out and found that the older kids were more than happy to tape their bunny ears to the headband themselves, but for the little ones I quickly stapled them on as I noticed any new crafters sitting down at the table.  I also set out two different types of glue, the Elmer's School Glue for attaching pom poms and the Elmer's Glue Sticks for attaching the colored section of the ear to the white background.  The kids had alphabet foam stickers, assorted Easter themed foam stickers, glitter glue, pom poms and crayons to decorate their headbands.

Spring Memory Books

I'm over at Multiples and More today sharing a tutorial to make a Spring Memory Book with your kids.  They can fill the pages with writing, drawing, dried flowers, photographs, anything they want to remember their spring adventures.

 

This post linked to:

 

 

Spring Flower Straws

With Spring just around the corner, it's time to pull out the pretty craft supplies that have been tucked away during winter.

Let's start with straw flowers.  The kids will love to help you make these.  Wouldn't they make a lovely addition to a Spring  or garden party.

Check out my Crafting with Kids post over at Multiples and More for the full tutorial.

Let the crafting begin!

This post linked to:

Handmade Art for the Play Room

You have seen a photo of the kids play room here, but one thing that has been missing is artwork on the walls. 

I whipped up this piece yesterday.

Materials:

• square canvas
• acrylic paint
• scrapbook paper
• ribbon
• sand paper
• 2 x screw eyes
• mod podge

How to make:

Coat the front of the canvas with a layer of mod podge.  Smooth the scrapbook paper over the top.  The paper will appear to bubble a little but don't worry.

Paint the sides of the canvas.

Lay the canvas front side (scrapbook paper side) down on a flat surface.  Place something heavy into the recess of the canvass on the back side to apply pressure.  Wait until dry.

Once dry, trim any overhanging sections of scrapbook paper (I had a few millimeters around that needed to be cut off).  Apply the second coat of paint around the sides of the canvas.  Leave to dry.

Take a piece of fine sandpaper and very gently sand the edges where the scrapbook paper meets the painted edges.  It will blend the paper into the canvas and paint and give it a worn look (see photo below).

Apply a layer of mod podge to the painted sides and over the front of the scrapbook paper.  Again, the scrapbook paper will appear to bubble, but don't worry, as it dries it does smooth out.

Once dry, wind the screw eyes into the top of the canvas and attach the ribbon. 

Preschool Valentine's Day Crafts

For my littlest Valentine's to hand out to their school friends.

Necklaces

Bags to hold Valentine's Day cards

I was inspired by this project from Wise Craft.

The kids had a great time crumpling all the tissue paper into tiny balls.  Thank goodness I'm a hoarder and had piles of used tissue paper in the garage.  We mixed and matched colors and patterns.  Nearly every bag and necklace made was a little different from the previous one.

They also gave these gifts to their teachers.

Christmas Crafts for Kids

Do you remember the mask kit my parents sent to Marisol for her birthday - the one that she made on Halloween day?

I loved the kit so much that when my parents asked what the kids would like for Christmas I practically begged for more craft kits from Figtree Hollow Crafts.   So last week when my brother was visiting he brought with him our Christmas gifts from Australia and in amongst them was a gift for each of the twins to be opened early December.  Yesterday while decorating our Christmas tree I gave them their gifts.  They were Christmas Kids Craft Kits, and yes they were from Figtree Hollow Crafts.  Inside each kit were craft supplies to make ornaments and reindeer and also stationery to make gift tags and write a letter to Santa.  Today they worked on the ornaments. 

They make a beautiful and very special centerpiece on our table.

 

If you would like more ideas for hand-made ornaments.  Here are a few I have made previously:

Polymer Clay Ornaments

Wood Ornaments

Beaded Ornaments

Knit Stocking Ornaments