Father's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Circuit Board Pencil Holder

This was a fun stamping project Clara enjoyed, and we made a Father's Day gift from it as well! We used some Mega blocks as stampers with white paint on green paper (to mimic the look of a circuit board). She had so much fun!!

Stamp, stamp, stamp!! I cut up some pieces of masking tape for her to add to the design. 

We used all sides of the block to make different designs. She added some scribbles with a white crayon too.

When she was all done painting, I let the paint dry, and then wrapped it around a tea tin to make a fun pencil holder for Mark's desk. I think it will look nice next to his brag book made from computer disks.

Clara was quite proud of herself! Have fun!!

Father's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Fish Magnets

For some reason, I tend to associate fish with dads. I think it's because of Mark's fish tank, and also my own father's love of fishing. Emily and I had so much fun with this simple and frugal project -- fish magnets! They are made using handles of old paintbrushes. In mind was this cute fishing game, so I sawed off the handles, and Emily got to work with the sanding!

Next, it was time to paint our beautiful fish!

Attach some magnets to the back, and give to Dad to admire proudly on the fridge!

Father's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Fish Card

This Father's Day card was inspired by Mark's fish tank! To make your own, fold a sheet of construction paper in half as shown.

I cut some blue construction paper and made waves for water on the top edge. Emily used some masking tape to adhere it to the paper.

Lookin' good!

Next, we used color coding labels and cut them up to look like fish!

Use a marker to add the eyes (eyelashes are optional), bubbles, fins, etc. Aren't they so cute??

Don't forget to add a special Father's Day message on your card to give to Dad!

So colorful, and so much fun!!

Father's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Colorful Coaster Set

Emily and I had a great time making these colorful coasters for a Father's Day gift for Mark -- and they are super-frugal to make!!

We used plain bathroom tiles from the hardware store, some Mod Podge, and tissue paper to make the set. I found the tiles at Home Depot for just $0.16 each, and we usually get packs of tissue paper at the dollar store -- very inexpensive!

Invite your child over to paint a layer of Mod Podge over the tile.

Decorate with cut up pieces of tissue paper! We chose green & blue -- two of Mark's favorite colors.

Apply another layer of Mod Podge over top to seal the coasters. 

Please note -- If you happen to be working with Mod Podge and then do something like say.... Oh, I don't know....sneeze. DO NOT grab a tissue before washing your hands, or you will make a great big sticky mess all over your hands and face. Not that it happened to ME, or anything.... I'm just sayin'. Ahem.

Notice the snickering from Emily after said Mod Podge/tissue incident.

Allow the coaster to dry completely. Flip the coaster over and stick a felt pad on each corner. We made a set of 4 of these because we were having far too much fun!

Give to Dad on Father's Day to enjoy with an ice cold beverage of his choice!

Have fun!!

I added this post to:

Sunday Snapshot -- Happy Mother's Day!

................from my brother's puppy, Storm!!  

Last Minute Mother's Day Gifts Round Up

In case you missed some of our FUN Mother's Day gift idea posts, here's a quick round up!



From Left to Right:
1. Super-Fun Tea Tags
2. Lavender Scented Bath Salts
3. Chocolate Nut Bark



From Left to Right:
1. Hand-Painted Pendants
2. Ceramic Trivets
3. Flower Printed Wrapping Paper



From Left to Right:
1. Reusable To Do List
2. Laminate Bookmarks
3. Recipe Journal

Wishing you a wonderful Mother's Day!!

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Personalized Pendants

Mother's Day is just around the corner, and we have been crafting up a storm in our household! Emily made a whole tray of these personalized initial pendants for her grandmothers and several friends, and I made a bunch too. They are lots of fun to make!

First smooth out some oven bake clay to about 1/4 inch thickness between two pieces of waxed paper. One package of clay can make a LOT of necklaces!






Next, we used alphabet stamps for the letters! If you don't already have these, they are worth investing in as we have gotten so much mileage from them for various craft projects and for handwriting practice. We use Melissa and Doug's set, found here. Melissa & Doug Deluxe Alphabet Stamp Set

Feliz Cinco de Mayo

Clara's Top 3 Frugal Fashion Tips for Cinco de Mayo:

1. Cinco de Mayo is the perfect excuse to dress up in bright colors and fancy shoes! Yellow is very hip this season. Be confident -- Walk that catwalk and strut your stuff.






2. A smile is the best way to dress up any outfit, and it doesn't cost a penny!

Quick Craft -- Piñata Suncatchers

It's almost time for Cinco de Mayo -- one of my favorite holidays! I love the food, the music, and all the bright beautiful colors! We made fun pinata suncatchers today to make our kitchen look a little more festive. I drew an outline of a donkey onto some construction paper, and Emily cut out the shape leaving the outlined frame.

Lay down a sheet of clear contact paper, sticky side up, and place the outline on top. Then let the kiddos go to town placing bits of tissue paper confetti on top!!

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- To Do List

These To Do Lists are such a useful gift for Mom -- plus they are reusable! The girls had so much fun making these, and you only need a few materials to make one of your own.

I took an ordinary sheet of construction paper, folded it in half, and drew a 1 inch margin around the border. Then I let the girls decorate them with some markers!! 

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- 2 Ideas for Laminate Samples

Here's another fun post for our series of Inexpensive Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make (using items found at the hardware store)!!

Mark doesn't know it yet, but I'm secretly plotting to have our kitchen countertops re-done. I picked up some samples, and a few price quotes the last time I was at the hardware store. These pretty bookmarks were made from leftover laminate samples, which makes them very sturdy. Added bonus -- they were so easy to make!

If you don't have laminate samples at home, they are available for free at any hardware store. I used old kitchen scissors to trim the sides of the sample, and I was surprised how easy it was to cut through the laminate!

Crafting with Recyclables - Design a Robot Kit

In honor of Earth Day, I thought we would do another fun craft with recyclables -- a kit to design your own robot! Of course, we craft with recyclables year round, since it's better for the environment, plus I consider them to be free art supplies. Emily has been on a robot kick lately, as seen here, so this craft was a big hit at our house!

To make the robot, I used an empty potato chip bag, washed it thoroughly and allowed it to dry completely. Then, I turned the bag inside out, and cut several shapes for the front and back of the head, body, arms, and legs. I ran each piece through my sewing machine with a zig-zag stitch around the outline, and trimmed them with pinking shears.

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Recipe Journal

While Clara was napping, Emily and I made this very special recipe journal for Grandma. Emily thought this would be a particularly useful gift, and I had to agree! Added bonus -- We recycled some beautiful paper that was FREE!!

Not many people seem to know about this, but if you're looking for some gorgeous good-quality paper a great source is your local paint store. I went to our local Sherwin-Williams and asked if they had any wallpaper sample books that were discontinued. Many times they are more than happy to pass them along to someone who could use them instead of having them sent to a landfill. I got three HUGE books!!

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Ceramic Trivets

Another post in our fun series of Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- if you haven't already done so, send your husband over here, and maybe he'll take a hint. (wink, wink!) Most of these projects will feature very inexpensive items you can find at any hardware store, so manly men don't need to make another trip to the craft store.

The girls made these beautiful hand painted ceramic trivets this afternoon, and I thought they would make wonderful Mother's Day gifts! They were super-inexpensive, easy, and FUN to make!!

We used imprinted ceramic tiles from the hardware store ($2.64 each), and I let the girls have a go at painting them with acrylic paint. They had so much fun!!

Mother's Day Gifts Kids Can Make -- Hand Painted Pendants

I thought it would be fun to do a little series on frugal Mother's Day gifts kids can make, so all you Dads out there... pay attention! (hint, hint)

We enjoyed some warm sunshine this afternoon along with some messy art to make these BEAUTIFUL hand-painted pendants!

You can find large washers like these at any hardware store, and they are super-inexpensive (about $0.20 each)! The girls painted theirs using make-up sponges and acrylic paint. Allow to dry, and then coat them with some clear nail polish.
Attach some matching satin ribbon, and you have a very unique gift for Mother's Day! The paint on Clara's was still a little wet when she flipped it over to paint the other side. I LOVE how it turned out!! It looks almost like flames!

Added Bonus -- Getting to see these adorable barefoot toes while she was busy crafting in her monkey pajamas!

Have fun!!

Cheap Thrills -- Poolside Edition

It was such a sunny and warm day, Emily decided to take a dip in the pool.

Ahhhh... refreshing!

Happy April Fool's Day!!

Quick Craft -- Bunny Handprints

Emily loved making this adorable bunny handprint this afternoon, and I think Clara will want to do one when she wakes up from her nap too! It was a super quick and easy project. I'll be making color copies of them to turn them into Easter greeting cards!

To make your own, you will need blue and green construction paper, white paint, a paint brush, and a black marker. Have some baby wipes or paper towels on hand too!

I tore a piece of green paper to form the grass for the picture, and invited Emily over to glue it down on the blue background. I didn't have to twist her arm!

Next, I painted the palm of her hand with white paint. This forms the body of the bunny. Emily pressed this down firmly on the paper to make a good print.

To form the bunny's head and ears, I painted Emily's palm, first, and ring fingers with the white paint.

Press down to make a good print!

Once the paint is completely dry, with a black marker, add the bunny's eyes, nose, and mouth.

Add an outline around the entire bunny, and don't forget to sign your artwork!

Why buy greeting cards when making your own is this much fun??

Felted Easter Eggs

The girls and I had so much fun making these CUTE felted Easter eggs! To make your own, you will need some wool roving. If you have trouble finding wool roving, you can purchase it online here.

Start by filling a pitcher with some very warm water, and add a few tablespoons of dish soap.

Stir up the water in the pitcher until the soap is well-combined.

With a small amount of wool roving, get it wet and start rolling it into a ball in the palm of your hand. Clara was eager to keep up with her big sister, and with just a tiny bit of help from Emily, she was able to make a few eggs of her own.

Add more wool roving, bit by bit, until the egg is the desired size. Add stripes or dots to your eggs, make them multi-colored! Go CRAZY with your wild egg designs!

Once your felted ball is the right size, gently shape it into an egg shape.

Wow!! This is so much fun!!!

I see some felted Easter egg hunts in our future!

So pretty! Added bonus -- kids with clean hands!

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