Looking for a last minute Valentine's Day idea for your child's classroom? These Valentines Treats are sure to please. Four different design featuring a snail, grasshopper, ladybug and bee. Simply print off the sheets onto paper or cardstock and then staple or use double sided tape or a tape runner to glue together on three sides. Insert a lollipop, sucker or pencil and you have the perfect treat for your child's friends! You can download these cute printables here. Continue Reading
Valentines Day Boxes: Tissue Box Craft
This year my son's teacher emailed us and let us know that each student should be prepared to bring in a mailbox for Valentines Day. I searched for some ideas for Valentines Day Boxes and eventually came up with my own idea. This Valentines Day Box, made from a tissue box, is easy to make and can be used for treats as well. Materials Needed: Tissue Box (preferably the rectangular box that open on the top) Tissue Paper in various colors Glue (I used a glue stick) Mod Podge Foam Brush Valentine's Day Stickers (mine are from Hobby Lobby) Instructions: Cut the tissue paper into small squares, triangles and other shapes. Glue the tissue paper to the empty tissue box, overlapping the pieces as you go. You can also fold over pieces to reach around corners. Using a foam brush, mod podge the tissue box. This ensures that all the pieces will stay on the box. Let dry. Add Valentine's Day Stickers to the box. Cut a piece of tissue paper to fit inside the box. You can Continue Reading
Give Back by Giving Blood
Last Saturday I had the opportunity to participate in my first blood drive. In the past I have tried to give blood, but I usually come up a little anemic. This time, I passed the test! I have a requested blood type (O-), so I know it is important to donate. The Red Cross set up a donation station at our local church building. Before you are able to give blood, there is a screening process. This screening process is used to determine if there are risk factors that might prevent you from giving blood. Please be honest! Next, your blood pressure is tested as well as the iron content of your blood (they will prick your finger!). Finally, you are taken to one of the gurneys where they insert a needle (not gonna lie here, it does hurt) and the blood starts flowing! After the blood donation, you will be given juice and cookies and asked to rest for 10-15 minutes. If you want to have the best experience possible, remember these tips before you donate: Before You Donate Drink Continue Reading
{Homemade Gifts} Valentines Day Heart
I love to make homemade gifts for Valentines Day. This Valentines Day Heart is a scented, stuffed heart that you can make with a sewing machine or by hand. Plus, it is easy to make from scraps of materials. Materials: Four Scraps of cotton material in different colors or patterns. You should have two pieces that each measure about 8" x 10". 8" x 10" piece of Pellon Wonder-Under Stuffing - about two handfuls Scented Oil (you can find this in the candle making section of your local craft store). Ribbon - two pieces that measure about 12" long each. Heart Pattern (click on link to download) Sewing Machine OPTIONAL - for hand sewing, an embroidery needle and embroidery floss. Instructions: Cut out the heart pattern on the outside lines only. If you want a slightly smaller heart, you could cut out the heart pattern on the inside line of the heart. Do not cut the heart about on the inner lines yet. Pin the pattern to one of the larger pieces of material and Continue Reading
52 Weeks of Money Saving Tips
Who doesn't love to save money? However, it is not as easy as it seems. Often, I find myself spending more than I would like then when I really want to make a big purchase or save for an extra fun vacation, I just don't have the money. This year, I decided as one of my New Year's Resolutions to focus on ways that I can save money. Make sure that you bookmark this post as it will serve as a table of contents for the entire series. As each new article is posted, I will add it here. 52 Weeks of Money Saving Tips Week 1 - 52 Week Savings Plan Week 2 - Saving Money on Laundry Detergent: Make Your Own! Week 3 - Make Your Own Foaming Hand Soap Week 4 - If you have any great money saving tips or articles that you have written, leave me a comment! I would love to incorporate your ideas into my series. Continue Reading
Easy DIY Christmas Wreath
I needed to make a new Christmas Wreath for my front door. I didn't want to use traditional colors and I was looking to use blues and silvers since that is how I decorated the tree this year. At Target, I was able to find small blue plastic sphere ornaments, glittered pinecones and ribbon. I then picked up a plain green wreath at Michaels. This project was easy and only took me about ten minutes to make! Easy DIY Christmas Wreath Materials: Small Ornaments Ornament hooks in silver or green Battery operated lights Wired Ribbon Other decorations such as glittered pinecones Instructions: 1. I started with the ribbon and wrapped it around the wreath loosely. I then made a separate bow and attached it to the side of the wreath. 2. Add the small ornaments and other decorations using ornament hooks. 3. Wrap around the lights and hide the box on the back of the wreath. I tucked mine into the ribbon in the back to hold it in place. At night, the lights really shine! Continue Reading
DIY Mercury Glass Spheres
I love Christmas decorations and one of my favorite items this year is the Mercury Glass Spheres that I have seen on one of the shopping channels. These glass spheres comes in a set of three and usually run around $50.00. However, I just didn't want to spend that much and I wondered if I could make something similar. I knew that I wouldn't be able to find round spheres for my DIY project, but I did find these round glass vases. Yes, they do have a flat bottom, but that was alright with me. The project took me only a total of ten minutes to complete and the results were amazing! Materials: Three Glass bowls/vases Elmer's White Glue Sponge Paintbrush Fine Glitter (I used silver) Water Lights or battery operated candle tea lights Instructions: 1. Mix 2 Tablespoons of glue with 1 Tablespoon of water. This will make it easy to apply to your glass bowls. 2. Apply the glue mixture inside the glass bowls making sure you cover all the surfaces. 3. Pour glitter Continue Reading
12 Days of Christmas DIY – FREE Printable
One of my favorite songs for Christmas is The Twelve Days of Christmas. I thought it would be fun to make a poster that I could hang on my wall with all of the lyrics from the song. This project is so easy and only takes about 10 minutes to complete (not including drying times). I made this printable with a chalkboard background that you can download for free! Just click on the link and then right click and Save. Materials: 11" x 14" Canvas from your local craft store or 11" x 14" piece of wood. Black Paint Sponge Paint Brush Glue Texture Cream or Mod Podge FREE Printable Instructions: 1. Download the free printable and print at your local Walmart or other store that offers printing services. The print is formatted for 11" x 14" so make sure you pick that print size. The total cost is usually around $5 to $6. 2. Make sure that the print fits the canvas or wood. I found the canvas is not a true 11" x 14" so I had to trim about 1/8" around on all sides of the print. Continue Reading
Christ Centered Advent Calendar
We love Advent Calendars at our house. Each year we have at least two that we hang up. Often I find ones with treats or toys that my kids love. This year, I decided to make an Christ Centered Advent Calendar that focuses on the reason for Christmas - Christ. I based my idea on this one that I found at Sunlight Pages. Materials: Wood Board Pictures of Christ 2" x 2" wood squares (about 1/4" thick) Scrapbook Paper Glue White Cardstock Scrapbook Paper with Advent Numbers Paint Sponge Paintbrush Clear small velcro circles Foam Letters Instructions: 1. I found the perfect wood board at The Wood Connection. This Slat Sign Tall is 11.25" wide by 17.75" tall and is 0.75" deep. The board is cut with grooves making it great for an advent calendar. I painted the board Charcoal (Delta Ceramcoat). 2. Cut up the Scrapbook Paper with Advent Numbers (Echo Paper Tis The Season Line) into individual numbers. After the numbers are cut, you may need to adjust the sizes. I Continue Reading
Decorative Wood Letters – Explore!
This past year I made a nautical style quilt for my son. The quilt, with colors of red, blue and khaki, is a great starting place for decorating his room. I plan on using different nautical directions to give the home an old sea-faring theme. My first project was to take wood letters and apply a nautical theme. I choose letters from The Wood Connection in the Alphabet Andrea style. These letters are 7 inches high and 6 inches wide. They are also 1 1/2 inches deep. The best part - they are only $1.95 each! I bought seven to make the word EXPLORE. Next, I was off to my local craft store to look for scrapbook paper with a travel/map theme. I found a pack of paper from Recollections entitled World Traveler which has a variety of travel related papers. This paper pack is available at Michaels for $19.99, and you can use a 40% off coupon to save money. You could also find old maps that would work well too. Here is a list of the items that I used to create this project: Wood Continue Reading