If you've been apple picking this fall, you probably have more apples than you know what to do with (unless you are a really good baker and can make super good apple pie or your own apple sauce). Let's turn those apples into some super fun crafts like apple painting! My daughter and her friend had a ton of fun painting with apples and there are a few different ways you can do it. Any way you decide, you'll need: Apples Paper Paints Toothpicks Paper towels A small towel Small cookie cutters (optional) Gummy worms (optional) Leaves (optional) Step 1) Cut your apples in half. If you cut the apples vertically, they will come out looking like an apple. If you cut the apples horizontally, They will come out looking round but with a star in the middle. Take the seeds out and set them aside for later. Optional step: Use cookie cutters to press shapes into the apples. (See the green apple above) You won't be able to cut out the shapes, but they will … [Read more...]
Book Pumpkin- Pinned It, Did It
Last year I saw, in a great magazine, the steps needed to make adorable Christmas trees out of old paperback books. I made about 3 or 4 of them and made sure they were different sizes too! I had such a blast making them and my kids like them too. This year when Fall came around (well, here at least) I found the best idea yet! Pumpkins made out of old paperback books! I just love it when I get to reuse something, or try a new twist on something. This pin made me run to my stack of old books and grab the necessary tools to make one for my fall decor. My oldest son really enjoyed watching me make it. It was pretty funny to hear him say after each piece "ooooh, a little closer mama!" Easy enough! All you need is a little pumpkin half shaped piece of paper and a craft knife or razor blade. Wanna know why I am showing you scissors? Pay attention to the later photos. Trace your half pumpkin shape on the first and last page of the book. Cut around 5-8 pages at a time, no more or your … [Read more...]
Fall Sun Spiral
My girls love anything you can hang from trees. They love wind chimes, sun catchers, and wind socks. Tottie and I had some time together this morning before preschool so I thought it would be fun to make a fall sun spiral with her. When it was finished and hanging on the tree, she was so excited to watch it twirl around and catch the light! To make your own fall sun spiral you need: Clear contact paper (2 pieces, equal sizes) Small leaves you find on the ground Glitter Any other flat, small decorations you may want (we used foam shapes) Sharpie Scissors 1) You'll start by drawing a spiral on one piece of your contact paper. Make sure it is on the contact paper side and not the backing side. Also make sure your lines are wide enough apart to fit your leaves in between them and have a bit of room left. 2) Next, peal the backing off the contact paper and add the leaves, glitter, and other decorations to the sticky side. Make sure to keep the decorations … [Read more...]
Paper Pumpkins
This is a really easy and pretty cute little craft project you can do with your kiddos. Cut several strips of colored card stock paper into 1 inch strips. I used my paper cutter cause it ensured they were the same width each time. Using your paper puncher punch a hole in each end of the strip of paper until all of your pieces of paper have two holes. String a green or brown ribbon (of your preference) through one end of the strips and knot. Pull the ribbon tight so that you create a C-shaped stack of paper and knot the other end of the ribbon. Fan out each piece of paper until you have a pumpkin shaped craft. Add more ribbon on top to create the leaves, if desired. (This project is great for little hand that need more fine motor skill activities). … [Read more...]
Christmas in July- Christmas Tree Handprint
This just so happens to be an all time favorite Christmas present and is one of my all time favorite projects I have done with my kids. It's really easy and turns out just adorable! Gather the following supplies from your craft store or craft closet: 1 piece of white paper (large) (or a canvas-which is what I used- you can get them for pretty cheap) Green, yellow and brown paint 1 kid willing to get ooey and gooey carefully paint your child's hand with the green paint- make one row of 4 hand prints Then paint your child's hand again and make a row of 3 hand prints Next you will make a row of 2 hand prints on top of that Finally, 1 hand print on the very top Brown paint makes a stump and the yellow to make a star on the top. (Have your child autograph the tree with the year to mark the date) These make GREAT presents and they are always adored by grandparents. While making the tree I thought to myself....hmmm, what if I traced a circle really lightly in pencil … [Read more...]
Pop Cap Necklaces
It all started when Nutty saw (and liked) some pop cap necklaces online and I got a hair-brained idea that we should make them for party favors for her birthday. I searched all over the internet on how to make them and found that in theory they'd be super easy for me us to make on our own! Hubby and I drank a few (ahem) beverages and we saved up enough caps to make the necklaces... The first problem was getting the plastic, rubbery thing out of the middle of the cap. Those buggers are harder to get out than they look! I (and when I say I, I mean Hubby) resorted to burning them off with his torch. It worked great except for the smell, but it created another problem. See the color? Never mind, I was going to paint them anyway...after all, the caps are from (cough) adult beverages. Next came flattening the caps. No problem right? We'd just take a hammer and flatten them. I saw plenty of people do it online... Ok, so they're a bit mis-shapen but that just adds … [Read more...]
