Crafts
Halloween Bat Mantel
A couple of weeks ago a strange man at the train station offered my kids packages of Starburst candy. I’m sure the man was just trying to be nice and the candy was unopened, but still. In context, it was an uncomfortable situation. It was one of those lessons in “we don’t take candy from strangers.” Except on Halloween, right mom? GAH! My kids are wild about Halloween. They’ve been planning their costumes for months. And they really, really, really like it when we decorate the house for Halloween. Just because one year I went a little crazy with Halloween book covers and such and now they think we should decorate…
How NOT to Make a Book Pumpkin
This is a cautionary tale should you fall down the Pinterest hole of comparison inspiration and decide you too need to join the throngs of DIYers making book pumpkins. As I did. Please heed these warnings. STEP 1: Put one foot on the slippery slope to a moral abyss. To cut a book apart you’re going to have to throw your moral compass out the window. Let’s just be frank about that. It doesn’t matter how bad the book is, one simply does not cut a book apart. To loosen yourself up for the slide down this slippery moral slope, might I suggest doing something equally egregious, like double-dipping your chip in some…
Halloween Countdown Lunch Notes
I first published this post last September. It is pretty hilarious to note that despite so much changing in our lives this year, the day-to-day has stayed pretty consistent. My children still forget to put on socks. Every. single. morning. And they’ve been asking since August if I’m going to do Halloween countdown notes in their lunch boxes. Why, yes. We are definitely counting down the days for that one special evening when it is suddenly okay to take candy from strangers. Free printable below! My children’s selective memory is quite excellent. Case in point. They have been asking me for at least 3 weeks if I am going to do the Halloween countdown in…
Perler Bead Pokemon Coasters
I’ve wrote before about how much I adore perler beads. One day, a couple of years ago, I bought a container of 10,000 perler beads for my daughter. It was a great deal! Clearly, I did not understand how many 10,000 perler beads actually was. I’m guessing we still have 9,217 perler beads remaining. Last weekend, I left Handy Husband and our daughter home for ONE HOUR while I took our son to his fencing practice. One. Hour. Imagine my horror when I got home to see the tray from our entryway being used like this… When I accusingly calmly asked who released 6,000 perler beads from their secure containment facility (aka…
Display Shelf from a Silverware Tray
Our kitchen in Ireland has no shallow drawer to hold a silverware tray. It’s a conundrum. Instead of throwing the silverware tray away, it was still sturdy and useable, I decided to put it in a box and wait for a silverware drawer to magically appear inspiration. Most of my good ideas, like this one, came to me in the shower. We’ll just stop there because I don’t want to scar your mind. My idea? I could turn that silverware tray on its end and make it into a shelf. SHAZAM! Then I did a little dance and almost slipped in the shower. The first thing I did was notice how truly…
Matchbox Car Magnet
Guys! I did some crafting! First time since we moved to Ireland. It felt good. So good. Plus, it was a 2-minute project, which is my favorite kind of craft project. Do you remember the sheet metal United States map I made for my son? It’s still one of my favorite projects. At the time, I thought it would be cool to make tiny magnets that my son could put on the map to show all the states he had visited. I just wasn’t sure how I was going to execute on that idea. Then we moved to Ireland. I should have made a world map. Ah, hindsight. It’s always there when…
Clothespin Holder
I know this is no way to start a Monday, but I have laundry on my brain. I trust yours is all done, folded and put away. Mine is hanging on the line. For the first time in my life, I bought clothespins to use for their intended purpose: hanging clothes. What a novel concept! (These are just like my clothespins.) It got me to thinking about the Junk Whisperer’s (aka my stepmom) laundry room. She has a super cute vintage clothespin holder made to look like a dress. It’s darling, right? When I visited her home earlier this summer, I mentioned off-hand that it would be fun to make a clothespin holder like…
Embroidery Embellished Shirt
My wardrobe is pretty basic. Lots of solids, not a lot of prints. I’m trying to branch out more, but the practical side of me says I can wear a white t-shirt with a lot more than I can wear a wildly-printed one. My practical side speaks REALLY LOUDLY. Perhaps this project was my impractical side finding its voice. I wanted to see if I could use embroidery thread to embellish an old t-shirt. Sew new life into it, so to speak. The problem? My experience with embroidery thread is limited to the friendship bracelets I made when I was 12. I’m a little rusty. Just a little. That’s why…
Tips for Paper-Mâché School Projects
Three times this year my laid-back 3rd grader came home from school with a list of projects she could choose from: make a model/diorama, dress up as a historical character and reenact a key event, do a powerpoint presentation, etc. Me: Powerpoint presentations are fun! How about a Powerpoint? Daughter: I think I’d like to make a paper-mâché model of (insert whatever topic it was). Me: Great! Super great! That’s cool too, I guess. You’re really missing out on this PowerPoint thing though. Daughter: I don’t think so. Me: (thinking to myself) The ONE time I don’t want her to be an over-achiever and she picks that moment to be one. Well, that backfired.…
Upcycled Tic Tac Toe
My son’s kindergarten homework for the week of Earth Day was to: 1) play outside 2) do a project that involves reusing or recycling I was ALL on board with #1. In the interest of full disclosure, I had every intention of ignoring #2. It’s kindergarten. It’s not even required in our state. I know, I know. Mother of the year. Don’t worry. I have not sent my son down the path of underachievement…yet. We pulled the project off – even if it began accidentally. Here’s how it went down… While the kids were outside playing, I decided that would be a good time to apply a coat of stain…
