I went to a leader weekend treat this past September and the first night they had many different outdoor crafts that you could do with your troop. My favorite craft was stamping the wood slices and turning them into lanyards. It was such an easy craft to do and it turned out so pretty, I knew I wanted to do this with our troop.
Ornaments were the perfect way to incorporate this into a keepsake they can keep for years to come!!
I'm so excited to share my latest project. It's been so long since I've done something big like this and it felt great! I love transforming pieces into something new and refreshing. Since I acquired this china cabinet from my uncle I've been dreaming of the different ways update it to my style.
I'm really excited to share with you Mamas this easy and fun activity your kids can do by themselves! My 4 year old was able to do this so the younger age's can do it too!
I hinted to the girls that symmetry might look best but really let them design/color their own shoes. I do recommend sticking with 4-5 colors. You don't need to press in hard but you do want to fill in all the areas that you don't want white. This will give it the best tie dye look.
I recommend doing this outdoors or in a well ventilated area. If you don't have a spray bottle you can use a dropper as well. Spray until you get the desired look. This might take a couple rounds of spraying.
The girls REALLY enjoyed this activity! It was super easy for them and left room for creative mistakes. The best part, they did it all by themselves! They have been wearing these shoes nonstop and have been receiving so many compliments!
So to be perfectly honest, I'm not a fan of leaders giving out end of the year gifts and I totally think it should be the other other way around but I really couldn't resist these! lol
The idea is pretty simple and affordable. It could also be used as a jewelry making badge if you have the girls make their own!
Optional:
Print out your image on photo paper. Regular paper will not work and it will get wet. If you have a circle punch small enough for this that would be idea but I used scissors. Use E6000 to adhere your printable to the bottle cap. You can also use rubber cement but I find that E6000 works the best. Allow it to dry. It can take a couple hours. If you are doing it with a troop and are pressed for time you can use rubber cement but make sure you don't get it on the front facing image.
Word of advice, dispense a small amount of the dimensions goo on a piece of paper first to avoid air bubbles. Start in the center of the cap and in a circular motion fill the entire bottle cap. If you go a little over that is okay. When the dimensions goo dries, it sinks a bit. Use a tooth pic to get out any air bubbles... if you see below, the air bubbles will dry like air bubbles so get them out. Allow this to dry for 3 hours or overnight.
If you purchased the bottle caps that already have the punch with the jump rings then this will be easy. You can cut your ball and chain cord to the desirable length your girl prefers. I recommend 18 inches long. Attach your connectors and voila!
If you want to go an extra step, you can add colored dangle beads link in the picture below. If you have a stamping set, they you can also add initial plate charms too.
Woo Hoo it's finished! We are so excited for our Kids Garden reveal! Did you catch the live reveal on Facebook this past Saturday? If not you can see it here: Mighty Girls Rock
That was our first live broadcast. I can't tell you how nerve-racking it is doing a live video. If you didn't notice, my kids starting a sibling rift in the middle (insert laughter/crying emoji)! You should watch it again. At one point Bella just walked off... That is typically how we operate these days.
Moving on... here are the before pics so you can get an idea of the transformation. We converted a muddy corner of our yard. It doesn't get much sun and it's more of a pain when it rains and the dog tramples through it. We knew we wanted some sort of ground coverage. The kids typically play back there anyways so I thought why not make it theirs?
In the early stages of planning I knew I wanted a path to wrap around the tree. We used some old tree branches and large river rocks that we had around the yard. We filled in the rest with some smaller river rocks and gravel.
These super cute lawn gnomes I actually found at Target's Dollar Spot!! The girls named them Frankie and Ella. The little mushroom spikes are from Menards.
Yes, there is a peek a boo grass patch because mushrooms don't grow in mulch. I want to say that was intentional but it we ran out of the landscape liner. It will eventually die....
Our garden wouldn't be complete with out these buddies! This was Ryleigh's favorite part and I waited until the next day to surprise her. I told her I thought there were dinosaurs out there eating our hostas because they looked munched on. She ran out there and came back yelling...
"Mommy you tricked me!! But they aren't really eating the plants because they are fake!"
She squealed with laughter and ran back out to the garden. My little 4 year old logical thinker.
Our fairy garden was probably the best part for the girls. They have been begging to create one for the past year! Not only did they pick out the accessories but they help in creating it. I told them that if you create a welcoming garden the fairies will come. We are waiting for sime fairies to drop a little surprise to let us know they settled in. The majority of the fairy accessories came from Hobby Lobby. They have a great selection!
While we were adding the fake moss sheets we actually discovered REAL moss in our yard! So some of those little bits are the real thing.
The main fairy house is my favorite! We placed it on one of our very flat river rocks.
I used an artificial succulent stem to create a small little bush. It's right behind the smaller fairy house and fits perfectly.
A Pinterest success! This is super easy and so much fun! With a couple cans of spray paint, some outdoor paint, and a foam brush you can easily create this in a couple hours.
We had an old Minnie Mouse watering can that the kids kept kicking around so this was a perfect solution. Once the flowers start to bloom bigger it will look gorgeous.
Our little toad stool was a total last minute find at Walmart. It's meant for sitting on and I think we are going to get a second one and create a little tic tac toe area for the kids to play.
What do ya think of our kids garden?
Have you seen our A-frame tents from our camp-in retreat!
The girls flipped out when these came out. They couldn't wait to find out what they were. To start our evening off, I handed out the tent "kits" and gave them some ground rules...
I've been meaning to post these pictures for some time now. I'm lucky to get it in before the snow starts to fall. It's amazing how the time flies when you have a newborn!
It took several weeks to complete this project as we were trying to beat the rain for 4 weekends in a row, but we finally finished our playhouse for the kiddies just in time for summer and the arrival of our baby!!
We wanted to go for a Key West theme with the colors, sort of like a beach cabana. The girls love it and picked out the colors themselves. Now we just need to cover the grass with sand and make it a beach! Right?
We found some plans online to help guide us. Here are the plans we referenced: The Handmade Home She has an amazing website! We did have to do some modifications to best suit the look and structure we were looking for.
Some structural differences to note are...
Cement block anchors
Extra support braces
Enclosed front entrance at the roof
Climbing wall (built from scratch and used these climbing stones)
Ladder (used scrap wood)
Siding of the house (much easier to put up and saves a ton of time)
This baby is solid! When I mean solid, I mean it doesn't move an inch. We fit 8 adults and a couple of children up on the deck and it still didn't budge! We get a lot of rain and I wanted to make sure the wood pillars didn't rot while touching the ground so we used the cement support blocks.
I really like how we used the white translucent corrugated fiberglass roofing. It lets in more light than the metal roofing does and it gives it a softer touch to go along with the beachy theme.
We even added some plant hooks at the front of the structure to hang some planters for the extra girlie touch! Since my daughter loves to play teacher, we definitely needed to add this chalk board that we secured on the back wall. I used the back side of the leftover siding and chalk paint.
My daughter's 6th birthday party was this past weekend and I'm excited to start sharing some of the deets with you. The first detail I wanted to share in a post all its own was the tissue tassel garland!
I've been dying to make one of these and the color scheme just seemed to fit so well. This is also something perfect for spring, Easter, or an "
" baby shower theme! I love the pastel rainbow colors!.
Materials used
tissue paper in assorted colors
crafting thread
scissors
hot glue gun
Step One:
Fold your tissue paper in half twice.
Step Two:
Along the second fold cut tissue paper in half. Put one half aside. Fold the other piece of tissue in half length wise aka hot dog.
Step three:
Fold over a 1 inch flap. This is to help guide you when cutting so you don't cut too much.
Step Four:
Cut length wise starting at the folded corner. Cut about a 1/4 - 1/2 inch apart. Do not cut into the folded area.
Step Five:
Open up the folded tissue and cut on the folded edge from top to bottom to form two separate pieces of tissue.
Step Six:
Set one piece aside and unfold the other piece of tissue.
Step Seven:
Roll the tissue paper.
Step Eight:
GENTLY twist the tissue starting at the center and twisting an inch in each direction.
Step Nine:
Make a small loop and begin twisting the already rolled tissue paper together adding a dab of hot glue as you go. Add a dab of hot glue at the start of the loop, at the end, and throughout the twisting to ensure a secure set.
Step Ten:
complete the process with as many tissue tassels as you like. Once you have assembled the amount you desire, fluff them down so none of the tassels are curled up. String them on the crafting thread and hang in a fun place!
This is such an inexpensive and easy craft to add some fun and festive color to your season or occasion. I love the versatility with the colors and you can save the tassels and stitch it throughout the year.
I have been wanting to make one of these rag quilts now for over a year. This past week my brother and sister-in-law had their first child and I knew exactly what I wanted to make for them! It feels great to dust off the old sewing machine again.
I went to two different stores to find just the right fabric for this project. I shopped at Hobby Lobby for the cute pink and grey chevron and damask patterns. I found the pink embossed star fabric(used for the backing) and the grey and white polka dot fabric at Joann's.
Choose color coordinating fabrics that are soft and fluffy!
Baby Rag Quilt
What you will need...
1/2 yard of 5 different coordinating patterns
1 1/2 yards of backing fabric
1 1/2 yards of fleece
Fabric scissors
White thread
Not used but extremely helpful
I wish I would have used these!!!
Rotary cutter
self healing cutting mat
1)
Cut your squares for the quilt in the different coordinating patterns. I would recommend for a baby blanket cutting the squares a 10"x10" or a 8"x8". The baby blanket will be a 6 square by 6 square quilt, totaling 36 squares. You will need about 8 squares each in the different coordinating fabrics. There will be some squares left over but this gives you some options on the overall layout and design. I cut the coordinating fabric squares first.
2)
Once all the coordinating fabric squares were cut out, I matched up the fleece and the backing fabric on top of each other. Then, I pinned the already cut squares on top like the picture below. You will want your quilting squares to match up exactly, which is why I choose to cut them out directly from the already cut squares. This will allow them to match up perfectly!
3)
After all your squares are cut, you should have 36 pinned squares, 3 layers each. So, you will have your coordinating fabric on top, fleece in the middle, and your backing on the bottom. Make sure your backing is facing out ward when they are stacked. You will then cross stitch each square with a big X from corner to corner. This process takes some time.
4)
Once you have your 36 cross stitched squares, you can start to layout the squares in an aesthetically pleasing pattern. I had a lot of grey so I wanted to make sure that the predominately grey squares were not right next to each other. I laid them out every other.
5)
Once you have the layout of the blanket, start with rows. Pin together each square in one row and sew the sides together with a 3/4" seam allowance. In the picture below I have finished three of the six rows.
6)
When you have finished sewing your 6 rows, pin each row together to start assembling the quilt. Use the same 3/4" seam, having the sides fold forward with all of the layers.
7)
Once all the rows are sown together, stitch around the outside of the entire quilt enclosing all 4 sides. Use the 3/4" seam.
8)
Now it's time to clip your excess seam to make that rag quilt effect. I would recommend using a microtip fabric scissor. Make sure you don't cut your stitching! This process also took some time. Over the course of a couple days and downtime I was able to complete the clipping.
9)
Wash your quilt on a short delicate cycle. Dry your quilt on a regular cycle. The drying will help fray your clippings and make it look super cute!
What I like about the rag quilt is that it's forgiving of tiny mistakes that would be very evident on a regular quilt. Since I'm no quilting expert this was extremely helpful. I am planning on making a much bigger one for my girls beds!
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I'm always looking for ways to save money and go a more Eco friendly route with home products. After some research and a little experimenting, I made my very own laundry detergent that works great and is lighter on the wallet! You can also add some essential oil to this recipe to give it a custom scent. I suggest rosemary, lavender or eucalyptus.
Supplies
5 cups of Borax
5 cups of Washing Soda
1 Medium box of Baking soda
I small container of Oxy Clean
1 bar of Fels Naptha Laundry Bar
Grate the bar of laundry bar soap. Combine all and your ready to go.
I use 1 scoop for regular loads and 2 for larger or heavy dirt loads.
