Hanukkah Popsicle Stick Craft

Hanukkah is just around the corner and this craft is super easy for your little ones to create. You just need popsicle sticks, yellow construction paper, craft glue, and paint.

1. Cut paper into small flames.

2. Paint sticks any color you like and assemble to make a very festive menorah!

Give Thanks: A Cute DIY Thanksgiving Board

Can you believe it’s November?! It seemed like as soon as Halloween was over the holiday ads started up. I love this time year and all the holidays that come along with it. Thanksgiving tends to kind of be forgotten holiday, but it’s really one of the most important and a great time to relax and enjoy a day of family, food, and blessings. Making turkeys, pilgrims, and other cute crafts with your children is always fun, but this Thanksgiving board is something a little different and just as fun and easy to create. All you need are left over scraps of scrapbook paper or wrapping paper, index cards, ribbon, and a large piece of poster board or cardboard. Use the scraps of paper, along with glue, to create pockets (one for each day of the month). Then fill each day with something you and your family are thankful for. You’ll all have a great time sharing what you’re thankful for each day!

Fall in a Bottle!

image via

We’re all about decorating for the season, especially when it’s something that can be enjoyed and remain out in your home for a lengthy period of time (and surpass the Halloween craze). We absolutely love these cute fall bottles. They are super simple DIY project that can be done in minutes and at a low cost. All you need are four amber bottles from a local craft store (or maybe you have some at home– left over from a girls wine night?), vinyl stick on letters from your local craft store (we happen to heart Hobby Lobby), and some super fallesque wheat stalks or any fall floral you like (also from your local craft store). We think these cute fall bottles would look amazing on your mantle, entryway table, or dining buffet. Happy fall decorating!

What We Love Right Now October 19, 2011: Spooky Spider Pumpkins

Halloween is coming up soon and we’ve got all things scary on the brain. We love the idea of DIY, simple projects that you can do with your kids and these cute, spooky spiders are perfect. We love pumpkins because they make for great fall decor that can last from September to November, but these fun spiders will add a little extra fun to your displays around Halloween time.

What You’ll Need:

6 mini pumpkins (or as many as you like!)

black glitter glue

small paint brush

googly eyes

black pipe cleaner (for spider legs)

craft glue or glue gun

How to Make it:

1. Hold pumpkins by the stem and cover in black glitter glue. Allow pumpkins to dry.

2. Apply googly eyes and (shaped) pipe cleaner legs to pumpkin using craft glue or glue gun.

What We Love Right Now June 22, 2011: Decorating with Seashells

If you’ve already been to the beach, plan on going, or have a collection of shells lying around from past vacations you might be wondering what in the world to do with those shells. Seashells make beautiful decorative accents, no matter how big or small. We love these ideas for decorating with seashells.

Fill a vase with your favorite shells. This works best with a lot of small shells. You can fill several vases of different sizes and then place them on a buffet table, mantle, or in your bathroom. This could also make a wonderful table centerpiece. Just remember, shells of different sizes and colors work best. You can also add some sand to the bottom of the vase to give the shells a little base to sit on.

For your bathroom…During the summer months seashells add a wonderful decorative touch to bathrooms. You can use large shells you may have as a soap dish or even a catch-all for jewelry or loose change you might remove while at the sink. If you have a flat framed mirror and a lot of small shells, arrange the shells around the mirror and glue into place with craft glue or a hot glue gun.

Create a little door decor. Wreaths are a wonderful addition to any door in your home. If you want to add a summery feel to your entryway create a seashell wreath, perfect for greeting guests during the summer months. All you need are your shells, a blank wreath from your local craft store, and any other nautical items you may want to add, such as netting, starfish, etc. Arrange the pieces on wreath. Once they are placed how you like, attach with hot glue or use wire, depending on how your pieces need to attach.

Outdoor lighting. If you want to jazz up your screened porch or back deck, you can create a string of seashell lights from a string of small white lights. To do this, you’ll need flat, thin, clam-like shells. Just lay the string of white lights on a table and apply epoxy to the straight edge of a shell. Then, attach the shells to the base of each light on the string. The light from each tiny bulb will shine through the shell setting off a nice glow, perfect for creating a nice summer mood at your next BBQ!

Beach Craft Activities

If you’re lucky enough to hit the sand this summer, collecting shells and other beach treasures will more than likely be one of your child’s favorite activities. All those shells will probably make it home with you and then you may be left wondering what to do with those them. Here are some super cute and easy seashell craft ideas.

1. Seashell Mobile

This would make a great addition to your child’s bedroom or playroom for the summer!

What You’ll Need:

Shells

Two dowel rods equal in length

String

Craft Glue

Make it Fast:

1. Use the string to make the dowels into an X shape.

2. Glue the shells onto different lengths of string.

3. Allow to dry several hours to ensure the shells will hold on string.

2. Beach Memory Jar

Fill a large jar with all your treasures and keep them (safely!) forever! Best of all your child can rearrange and move things around whenever they like, creating almost a whole new look.

image via Martha Stewart

3. Shell Frame

If you are going to the beach chances are you’ll snap more than one Kodak moment! Your child can put their favorite picture in a great seashell frame.

What You’ll Need:

5×7 Frame or larger, with wood trim

Small shells

Hot glue gun

Make it Fast:

Arrange shells on frame and glue. Let stand several hours so glue can set.

*for added use foam pieces or letter stickers to personalize with your child’s name

Summertime Paper Plate Crafts

We love anything you can make with things you have around the house. Some of the best crafts are made from paper plates. If you don’t have these at home-stock up! Here are a couple of super cute paper plate beach crafts.

Sea Turtle

So simple! Simple paint your paper plate or cover in torn pieces of construction paper. Then make some legs, head and tail. Add a wiggly eye and draw a mouth!

Fish

Again, all you need is your plate, some paints and paper!

Sun

Make this cheery sun with handprint rays. Sure to brighten up your child’s day!

Egg-cellent Egg Decorating with Chalkboard Paint

Home Made Simple has some great egg decorating ideas that are unique and different. We loved one in particular. All you need are some hard boiled eggs, chalkboard paint, and your favorite colored chalk. Paint the eggs and let your kids do the rest! They’ll have fun decorating and then redecorating their eggs over and over again! The eggs will make the perfect little centerpiece  for your Easter brunch table created by your very own Picaso’s!

photo courtesy of Home Made Simple

What We Love Right Now December 8, 2010: Christmas Crafting

Crafts are always fun, but they are definitely more fun for kids, and even adults, when they are tied to a holiday. Christmas is a one of those “big” holidays that really lends itself to some good crafting. Here are a few easy crafts for you to make this holiday season.

1. Pom Pom Ornaments

This craft is ridiculously simple. All you need is a some cardboard (maybe from an old shoe box or moving box). Then, simply create your ornament template (candy cane, wreath, snowman) using the cardboard. Next, glue on the pom poms to cover the cardboard. Attach ribbon as the ornament hook. You can even add other adornments like rhinestones, sequins or glitter.

2. Pine Cone Christmas Tree

You’ll need a small tip paintbrush, sequins and green glitter glue for this craft. Spread the glitter glue onto the cone using the paintbrush and add sequins as “ornaments” before the glue dries. You can even add a construction paper star to the top of the tree as a finishing touch.

3. Reindeer Food

You might leave out cookies and milk for Santa, but what about his trusty reindeer? Sure carrots are good, but this version of “reindeer food” is much more fun! You’ll need raw oatmeal, glitter (red, green, gold or silver), a brown paper bag, and ribbon. Let your child decorate the paper bag for their favorite reindeer. Then place about 4 tablespoons of oatmeal and a teaspoon of glitter in the bag. On Christmas Eve sprinkle the reindeer food in your yard for Santa’s reindeer to eat once they get to your house!

Don’t forget to check out our Cute Candy Cane Reindeer and how to make an Easy Advent Calendar.

Cute Candy Cane Reindeer

This craft is SO simple and great as a treat for your child’s classmates or as an added addition to your tree.

All you need are…

Candy Canes

Wiggly Eyes

Brown Pipe Cleaner
Small Red Puffy Balls
Craft Glue

1. Glue wiggly eyes and red puffy “nose” on candy cane.

2. Bend Pipe Cleaners into “reindeer ears” and wrap around candy cane.

It’s that easy and the finished product is adorable!

Get Back to Nature with These Crafts Inspired by the Outdoors

The weather outside is cooling down, it’s back to school time, and that means one thing: Autumn is approaching! This is a wonderful time of year to get outdoors with your family. While you’re out playing and exploring, you can pick a few things mother nature has to offer and use them for crafts later on. Not sure what to make? Read up on our craft ideas.

Pinecone Birds

We’ve all heard of making pinecone bird feeders (which is still a great little craft), but what about a pinecone bird? It is so simple and the kids will love displaying them or playing with them when they are complete. You’ll need orange pipe cleaner for feet, orange and brown felt for the wings and beak, wiggly eyes, small pom-poms, and a glue gun or craft glue.

To make the bird, glue the wiggly eyes onto the pom-poms and glue them onto the top of the cone. Then cut a small triangle out of the orange felt. Cut two trianlges our of the brown felt for wings and bend the pipe cleaner to make two feet and wedge into the cone. Let all glue dry before your children use them for forest fun!

Pumpkin Seed Art

Besides roasting the seeds, do you ever wonder what you can do with all those pumpkin seeds you’ve scooped out after all the carving is done? Seed art is a great way to have some fun and use those seeds wisely. Wash all the seeds and let them dry out completely. Then using green, orange and black paint, let your children color and then glue the seeds onto paper to make a seed pumpkin. You can also use other paint colors and use your imagination to create other things too-an apple tree, tractor, flowers…the possibilities are endless!

Shell Creatures

It may be too cool to head to the beach, but if you traveled to the beach over the summer and picked shells you have all you need for our next craft idea. Use shells and wiggly eyes to create shell creations. Your child can use their imagination and think outside the box, creating any kind of creature of the shells. Use craft glue or assist with a glue gun to help your child make these cute creatures.

Rock Painting

Kids seem to love rocks and even start their own rock collections. Jazz up some of those boring stones with a  little paint. All of a sudden the rocks become wonderful works of art and can even become an added decoration to mommy’s garden or potted plants or a new desk paper weight for dad’s office. There so easy to make: paint, let dry, and enjoy!

Egg Carton Caterpillar Craft

This is a super easy spring craft that is great for school age children ages 4-8. Best of all, the end result is cute caterpillar!

What you’ll need:

cardboard egg carton

scissors

green craft paint

6 small yellow pom-poms

pipe cleaners

2 small green pom-poms

2 stick on eyes

Instructions:

With an adult’s help, remove the lid of the egg carton and cut the bottom in half. Trim away excess. Paint the egg carton green and let it dry completely. Glue small yellow pom-poms to the top of each of the six egg cups. Cut two 2-inch strips from the pipe cleaner. Glue the pipe cleaner pieces to the top of the first egg cup to create the antennae. Glue the 2 small pom-poms on the front of the egg cup for the eyes. Finally, glue the eyeballs to the green pom-poms.

Rainy or Snowy Day Crafting

When rainy or snowy weather has you indoors and the kids start going stir crazy, you may begin to wonder what to do. Filling a box with craft supplies is a great way to liven up these boring days. If you’re not sure where to start, check out this craft starter kit by Land of Nod. It’s great for ages 3 and up and is sure to get your child’s imagination going!

Photo Wreath Craft

Take your pictures out the box and create a fun holiday decoration. The wonderful thing about this craft is that it can be themed to any holiday season. All you have to do is change up the craft decor for an instant personal and seasonal wreath!

What You’ll Need
12- or 14-inch Styrofoam wreath form
Colored card stock
3-inch circle template
Pencil
Scissors
Glue stick
Decorative-edge scissors
4-x-6-inch black-and-white photos
Craft glue
Ribbon
Jingle bells
2 T-pins

Make It
Use circle template to cut circles from card stock; cut faces from black-and-white photos into slightly smaller circles. Use a glue stick to attach the photo cutouts to card stock, then trim the card stock with decorative-edge scissors. Glue the photos to the surface of the Styrofoam wreath form with edges overlapping. Thread ribbon through jingle bells and tie bows. Glue the bells in between the photos as desired. Attach a loop of ribbon to the back of the wreath with T-pins and hang.

Easy Advent Calendar

Make a tree by stacking 25 decorated envelopes to a corkboard — a month full of surprises! Get creative with your kids and decorate each envelope with scraps of colorful paper, ribbon and other easily applied craft decor. To make the tree you will need to line up the envelopes in this order: Top row-2 envelopes, next row-3 envelopes, middle row-5 envelopes, next row-6 envelopes, bottom row of tree-7 envelopes, last row (bark)-2 evelopes.

Simple Scrapbook

This is a great gift idea for Father’s Day or Mother’s Day or just for fun!

Sharp Mom Supplies:

• 8×8 Scrap Book Pages
• yarn
• scissors
• glue
• decorations such as stickers, ribbons, etc.
• copies of favorite family photos
• Black Marker
• hole punch

Sharp Mom Steps:

1. Stack scrapbook pages so that each page is lined up.
2. Punch two wholes near the top and bottom of one edge of the paper.
3. Lace yarn through wholes and tie to keep the pages together.
4. Let your child decorate each page and caption the pictures.

3D Drawings

Sharp Mom Supplies:

• Crayons or Markers
• paper
• glue
• scissors
• misc. art decorations (fabric, buttons, scrap paper, etc.)

Sharp Mom Steps

1. First let your child draw the picture.
2. Use embellishments to bring the picture to life (use real fabric for clothes, blue buttons for raindrops). Let your child’s imagination run the project!

Sparkling Art

Sharp Mom Supplies:

• Sturdy tag board or poster board
• permanent markers
• tin foil
• saran wrap
• an easy picture to trace (from a favorite coloring book or story book)
• tape

Sharp Mom Steps:

1. Cut board into 9×9 squares and cover with foil so that one side is completely smooth.
2. Tape picture down to work surface so it can not moved.
3. Tape saran wrap over the picture.
4. Let your child use the markers to trace and color the picture.
5. Lift saran wrap and place over tin foiled board. The foil will give your child’s artwork a sparkling look!

Decorative Mint Tins

Sharp Mom Supplies:

• Empty mint tin
• acrylic paint
• paint brushes, sponges
• decorative items such as buttons, ribbons, pom-poms, glitter glue, family photos, scraps of wrapping paper…the list could go on and on!

Sharp Mom Steps:

1. First coat the tin with acrylic paint.
2. Next, begin decorating your tin with your decorative items. Moms, you may want to use a glue gun, but kids can apply the decorations using craft clue or glue dots.
3. Once your tin is decorated, you can use it for a first aid kit, gift card box, barrette holder, etc. Use your creativity and imagination!