Archive for Crafty!
November 16, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, Family Fun, Kids, Kids Crafts, Molly · Tagged easy kid crafts, family activities, lunch bag crafts, rainy day crafts
A couple of weeks ago, Rosa came home with this sweet little house she made at school (the middle house pictured above), and I promised her I’d feature it here on Charlotte’s Fancy. I’d already lined up the two weeks of holiday gift guides, so she’s been waiting patiently for awhile now.
Rosa, today is the day!
This is a very easy, quick and fun craft that kids can do, with lots of opportunity for fun embellishments, depending on what supplies you have lying around the house. Here’s what you need:
SUPPLIES
- Lunch bags (brown, white or whatever color you’d like)
- A few sheets of newspaper
- Construction paper
- Markers
- Glue
- Stapler
- Optional: tissue paper, scrapbook paper, felt, etc.
Step 1. Cut out the roof and a strip of paper for the chimney.
I took a piece of scrapbook paper, cut it to about 8″ x 12″, folded it in half and cut it like a trapezoid (make sure the fold at the top is the shorter of the two parallel sides). Set aside the roof and chimney for now – you’ll attach those at the end.
Step 2. Decorate your house.
The paper bag is going to stand, so you can draw the door (or a person standing at the door, as I did) and windows right at the bottom of the bag. Draw a 2nd story of windows about half way up the bag. Make sure not to draw windows too high up on the bag, or the roof will cover them up. I used sharpies to draw on the bag.
Step 3. Add a door and shutters and any other decorations.
Rosa’s classes used that corrugated bulletin board decorative border. I didn’t have any of that lying around, so I used felt (glued it on). I used regular construction paper for the door and glued it on. Rosa’s class also used tissue paper to make grass. I didn’t have any green tissue paper, so I used construction paper for that too.
Step 4. Take some pieces of newspaper, crumple them up and stuff them inside the bag, then staple your roof and chimney on (no need to fold over the top of the bag – just staple it shut).
Elena decided she wanted to get in on the action too. Here’s a close up of her house:
Wouldn’t you love to live in this sweet little village? I bet all the little people who live here are happy and nice to each other.
October 26, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, D.I.Y., Holidays, Kids, Molly · Tagged Cardstore, easy halloween costumes, no sew Halloween costumes, sushi costume
This sushi costume (all Elena’s idea) is the easiest Halloween costume I’ve ever made, and it’s probably also the one I’ve gotten the most compliments on, too. No sewing necessary.
Here’s what you need (feel free to experiment with colors!):
Enough of each to wrap around your kid’s body (like maybe a yard and a half):
- Black or dark green fleece
- White fleece (the kind that has some texture, like a sheep, to resemble rice)
- Salmon colored fleece
Some large safety pins
A couple of strips of the black fleece for tying the roll around the body
Put the layers of fleece on top of each other (black on bottom, then white, then salmon), pin them together at the ends (not totally necessary, but just in case), roll them around your kid’s body, then tie with a couple of strips of the black fleece (which is stretchy and makes an excellent tie).
Add some chopsticks and a wasabi colored t-shirt and you’re good to go!
With my permission, the Cardstore entered this costume (and Rosa’s Super Mario costume) into their Silliest Costume Contest. If you like it, vote for it on their Facebook fan page (see the link in their blog post – and you have become a fan of Cardstore on Facebook to vote). The costume with the most “likes” wins a $100 Barnes & Noble gift card. That would be a nice thing to have, but you have to vote today (and you have to vote a bunch, because so far it’s only got a couple of votes!)
Happy Monday!
October 19, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, Family Fun, Good Books, Kids, Kids Crafts, Molly · Tagged DIY projects for kids, doll clothes, simple craft ideas
I bought this D.I.Y. KIDS book by Ellen and Julia Lupton for Elena awhile back, and she occasionally opens it up and does a little project. Yesterday, when I got home from the grocery store, she and her friend Haley surprised me with a wardrobe of clothes for their stuffed animals, made from fabric scraps. I promised them I would feature the clothes on Charlotte’s Fancy today.
Everyone’s favorite is this ridiculously fashionable Panda with her scarf, vest and skirt. Elena made these from jersey fabric. What the girls found is that jersey was the easiest and best to work with because it stretches to fit different stuffed animals.
Don’t you wish you looked this good?
The top is the skirt – cut a round piece of fabric, then a hole in the middle
The middle is the vest. Start with a rectangle-shaped piece of fabric, snip the two upper corners, then cut two holes for the arms.
The bottom is the very versatile scarf, with two holes for the ears.
Because all arctic hares need ponchos and rain hats, right?
The poncho is a square-shaped piece of fabric with a hole in the middle.
The hat is a circle-shaped piece of fabric with two holes for the ears.
Miss Foxy thang and her double ruffle skirt. The girls created this clever ruffle look by cutting out two skirts (one a little bigger than the other) and putting them both on. Miss Foxy is also sporting a vest and tiny hat.
You may know her as Linny from the Wonder Pets, but now you’ll know her as an up and coming runway model. Purple couture scarf, hat, vest and skirt by Haley.
“Fashion Animals” as the girls called them.
You can find a very simple tutorial for a circle skirt on the D.I.Y. Kids website as well as a handful of other fun projects from the book. If you have a kid who likes to make things, this is an excellent little book.
October 16, 2009
· Filed under Birthdays & Parties, Crafty!, Etsy Finds, Molly, Pretty Things · Tagged birthday party decorations, fairies, kids birthday party ideas, woodland animals
Things I already know:
1). It’s only October, which is a full 2 months before Rosa’s birthday and 3 months before Elena’s.
2). I’m nuts.
In my defense, if I don’t start thinking about the girls’ birthdays now, then I run out of time to do something fun and interesting. I don’t know if you know this, but Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s really get in the way of planning two girls’ birthday parties (or one combined party).
So, I’ve been collecting pictures/ideas of what’s inspiring me for this year’s party – a woodland themed party, since we’re all about animals and trees and fairies in this house. Do you have any ideas for me?
Pom Pom decorations by Party Poms
Forest Friends Rubber Stamps by Niko Art
The Tiniest Garden scrapbook/design kit by A Print A Day
Felted Acorns by Fairyfolk
Shades of Fall cookies by Eleni’s
Bird Whistles by Bake It Pretty
Forest Party invite by Paper Culture
Hoo’s Having a Birthday invite also by Paper Culture
Owls Invite by Letterspace Paper
October 12, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, Family Fun, Holidays, Kids Crafts, Molly · Tagged easy crafts for kids, Halloween crafts, lift-the-flap craft
This lift-the-flap haunted house craft is something I used to do all the time when I was a kid. I don’t know if I learned at school, or I made up on my own, but it’s a fun and easy craft.
You’ll need:
- Construction paper
- Glue
- Scissors
- X-acto knife, or small sharp scissors
- Markers/crayons/colored pencils
- Stickers (optional)
Step 1:
Draw freehand, or use a template to cut out the outline of a haunted house. I printed this one out, then drew it freehand on a piece of black construction paper
Step 2:
Take a white or silver colored pencil and draw some windows in the house
Step 3:
For some windows, use an x-acto knife or small sharp scissors and cut out three sides (for the lift-the-flap windows). If you want to have open windows too, just cut out the whole outline. Once you have cut out the windows/doors, flip the house over (so you don’t see your pencil lines) and glue the house onto another sheet of construction paper. Orange makes it spookier, but white makes it easier to draw the crazy characters who will appear behind the flaps.
Step 4:
Draw your scary creatures behind the windows and doors and decorate the rest of the page too. We used a combination of drawing and stickers. I resisted getting out the glitter.
This is a fun book for learning how to draw goofy monsters:
Here’s Rosa making her haunted house:
Creak creak creak creak! Go away!
Of course, this same idea can be adapted for other designs: a gingerbread house, a cute country cottage, an apartment building in the big city. I have in mind the idea to make a little woodland animal/fairy cottage scene for Elena.
Elena, meanwhile, was not so much into spooky Halloween scenes. She was too busy making portraits of her Little People (of the vintage Fisher Price variety). How cute is this?
One of the easiest ways to get crafty with the kids is to take a big roll of white paper (I get mine at the teacher supply store), tape it to the top of the table and let them draw whatever they want. They love it.
When the trees and sun are happy, the whole world is happy.
October 9, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, D.I.Y., Kids, Molly · Tagged crafty kids, creativity, do it yourself
Here’s an extra post for this Family Friday. I was cleaning up the girls’ room yesterday, and I found this little bookmark holder that Elena (who’s 8 years old) made.
I hadn’t seen it before. Don’t know when she made it. But I thought, “Well, heck, this is pretty darn clever.” She and her sister have lots of bookmarks – why not make a bookmark holder to keep them all in one place?
One of the things I admire most about Elena is that when she doesn’t have what she wants/needs, she tries to make her own. I’ve seen her do this time and again with magic wands, notebooks, fishing poles – you name it.
Here’s hoping that she will always be this crafty and creative.
October 9, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, D.I.Y., Family Fun, Karin, Kids Crafts · Tagged crafts, rainy day crafts
Karin’s got a fun rainy day project/recipe and links for us on this Family Friday:
Chasing Cheerios is a blog about homeschooling from a Montessori approach. My daughter loves Silly Putty, so this craft idea I found there is something that we definitely plan to try. Seems especially perfect for some rainy day this winter when we are climbing the walls wondering what to do with ourselves.
The ingredients are pretty simple:
- two parts multi-purpose white glue
- one part liquid starch
- food coloring
You can also check out the Silly Putty tutorial on YouTube.
October 5, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, Etsy Finds, Gift Ideas, Molly, Pretty Things · Tagged Crafty Bastards, Etsy, handmade gifts, holiday gift ideas, Indie Fixx
So, before I go whole hog into Crafty Bastard photos, I’m wondering if you saw my Top Ten list (“Top Ten Things I (and Maybe You) Can Never Resist“) on Indie Fixx on Friday? If so, what did you think? Are there things on the list you loved too? I was *very* excited to be featured.
Many thanks to Jen of Indie Fixx.
Ok, on to Crafty Bastards. Ready for a whole lot of photos?
As you can see, it was a beautiful day. And it got crowded very fast.
Karin and I both really loved this pillow by trees3. I wonder if anyone snapped it up?
We also both loved this skirt – also by trees3
This portable play mat with winter trees is a special gift for Charlotte. Shhh! By Helicopter Studios.
When folded up, it looks like this. How cute? Super cute.
At the Hello Craft table (I really wanted one of those posters), where we used stamps and stickers by Craft Pudding to decorate our own little notebooks
Wool baby booties by Wooly Baby
Plush onion by Sewing Stars. And Karin bought a few of these cute fruit stamps from her:
Karin scored two great prints by Strawberry Luna
And this beautiful “Diving Whales” print by Tugboat Printshop
I bought the necklace with the red flower (second from the right) by Elisa Shere. Love it.
Beautifully printed fabrics (we loved this chair), towels and lampshades by Home Sweet.
Didn’t take a pic but bought this t-shirt by Moth Written (which says “Breakfast” in Arabic):
LOVED this recycled rolodex, by My Ugly Kitty (but didn’t buy it)
Eat Yar Peas and Carrots t-shirt for Rosa by Red Prairie Press:
Cupcake t-shirt by Pinecone + Chickadee for Charlotte:
And assorted lotions (Masala Chai, Mango Lassi, and Currant Obsession) by Bunny Butt Apothecary
Also bought a t-shirt for Elena from Bubbledog (if you look at the shirts at the top of the page, it’s the whale shirt). All kinds of cute stuff there – definitely thinking about some Christmas gifts.
We also liked Sweet Pepita, Brainstorm, and Your Secret Admiral. Take a look.
This is a good way to start your Monday, right? I think so too.
September 28, 2009
· Filed under Crafty!, Holidays, Molly · Tagged Better Homes and Gardens, Halloween crafts, Halloween decorations, Martha Stewart
Ugh. That’s how I’ve been feeling for the last three days, in bed with a nasty head cold. Thank you, back-to-school germs!
I had a Halloween craft that I wanted to do with the girls this weekend, but couldn’t gather enough energy to do it, once it became apparent that I didn’t actually buy the pad of construction paper that I thought I’d bought. So, that’s going to have to wait.
Instead, here are three simple Halloween crafts/decorations you might like to try.
First, these Mummy pots from Better Homes and Gardens are very clever and simple:
Martha has a zillion ideas. I like this glittery skull and bones idea – plus, it doubles as decoration for your Indiana Jones themed birthday party…
And from Make and Takes, these mini witch brooms. I just like how perfect they look, and I’m also thinking that these are just about fairy size too.
Speaking of fairies, I haven’t talked about Elena and the fairies lately, but she has been preparing for their return (if you recall, they spent the summer in Canada, safe from lawnmowers), by sprinkling copious (and I mean COPIOUS) amounts of glitter all around the yard, as well as a potion (colored water) to keep the evil goblins away.
I can’t really complain about having a sparkly lawn. But I might keep complaining about this stupid head cold.
September 21, 2009
· Filed under Birthdays & Parties, Crafty!, D.I.Y., Etsy Finds, Molly, Pretty Things, Projects · Tagged cheap party decoration ideas, diy wedding and party decorations, how to make paper flowers
My brother-in-law is getting married in 5 weeks, so I’ve been thinking about weddings and such. Plus, you guys really seem to like the wedding and party favor posts (here and here) on this blog, which consistently get a lot of views each week.
So you know what? I like you. Here are some more wedding party ideas, of the flower variety, for you.
I saw this tiny paper flower idea from Zakka Life on iDIY. Pretty and cheap. Score! You can find the tutorial here. And check out the tutorial for the centerpiece (below). Gorgeous.
Have I mentioned that I think “I DO- it yourself” is a pretty clever name for a wedding site? Thumbs up.
The tiny flower idea reminded me that I bookmarked these paper flowers by truLuxe on Etsy awhile back. I love this photo, don’t you? I love the combination of the flowers with the silver vases.
Turns out that there are dozens of Etsy shops selling flowers like these in a huge array of colors (search for “party poms” and enjoy the insanely cheerful results). I am definitely buying some for the girls’ birthday parties this year.
While I was looking at the party poms, I couldn’t help but notice these sweet cupcake toppers (which you could also use as table decorations) by Millalove, who has a whole shop full of really terrific paper flowers and cupcake toppers.
I also found this beautifully simple paper roses tutorial by Dozi Design, (which Creature Comforts laid out in this easy to follow grid for you).
And lastly, this is another really pretty (and double-sided) flower garland by Panda with Cookie (check out her hilarious logo) that you could buy or try to make yourself.
Garlands are a good, easy and cheap way to decorate for a party. All you need is a ton of ribbon, some pretty paper (or cardstock or fabric), scissors and a hole punch.
Flowers make me cheerful. I had fun finding all of these pictures.
