Handprint Christmas Tree Skirt

Last year, in the reader response section of Real Simple magazine, I read about a mom who painted her children’s handprints onto their Christmas tree skirt each year. Not only was it a creative way to display their growth, but eventually, all of the handprints started to look like big snowflakes scattered around the skirt. I LOVED the idea, and made a version of my own.

The skirt was made using Simplicity pattern 1234, version C. Because there will eventually be handprints all over it, I simply used solid red and green fabric.

I then painted each of my son’s hands with white fabric paint and pressed them onto the skirt side-by-side. I was afraid he’d wiggle around, so we cut out hand-shaped holes into wax paper as a barrier. This turned out to be overkill – but better safe than sorry! The year was written next to the handprints using fabric paint pen.

It looks a little barren right now with only the two tiny handprints on the entire skirt, but I’m excited to see how it will change as the years pass by and he grows and grows!

Footprint Christmas Cards

I did it again: I found something I loved on Pinterest (follow me!), pinned it, and then made one of my own! Yippy! 

This project was deliciously simple and turned out beautifully! I started by grabbing some white paper and acrylic paint. I painted the bottom of my son’s feet green and his little toes red; there were lots of accompanying giggles. I pressed each foot onto a separate piece of paper and then let it dry while I carted him off to the tub.

Once the pages were dry, I scanned them and then manipulated them into overlapping images that looked like a Christmas tree in Photoshop. I drew the trunk and star in Photoshop as well.  That’s all! I printed the cards on Avery Half-fold greeting cards, which I’ll admit were expensive ($13 for a pack of 20), but I think the end result was worth it.

Now I need to start planning for next year’s card. After this handmade gem, a store-bought card just won’t do!

Handmade Wrapping Paper

Inspiration struck at Lowes. You read correctly: Lowes. A few times a year, Lowes publishes a magazine of seasonal project ideas. This year, their holiday edition featured hand-painted wrapping paper that I fell in love with! Of course, they used materials from the store while I raided my local craft center – but the end result was the same.

For supplies, I used basic brown craft paper, acrylic paint (in red, green, white, and black), and sponge brushes.  I used circular-shaped brushes for the smaller dots and hand-drew the circles using standard brushes for the larger dots. The free-handed circles aren’t perfect, nor are they all the same size – but I like the hand-made feel.

To keep the rustic-looking motif, I used regular twine in lieu of ribbon. I must admit, the really cleverly wrapped gifts in the photographs were the creations of my husband. The man is a gift-wrapping artist!

Kids' Table Fashion

We’re headed to Nebraska for Thanksgiving!

To really get into the spirit, I used the last of my freecycled fabric to make Nate and his cousins matching turkey tee shirts. I used the same, patterned fabric to stitch their names on the back. They were a big hit on Thanksgiving day! In fact, as I watched cousins pouring into the house (there were over 15 kids in the “great grandchildren picture), I found myself wishing I’d made shirts with names for ALL of the children!

Pumpkin Carving Party

Here are a few pictures from the pumpkin-carving party. It was BYOP (Bring Your Own Pumpkin) and my husband wisely set up the Gutting Station in the garage. We had another kid-sized table set up in the basement along with patterns and an assortment of carving tools. As pumpkins were finished, they were scattered around in the front garden for display.

As favors for the kids, I made “Ghost Poop.”  I’m completely in love with Pinterest (follow me!), but want to actually MAKE the things I pin – not just pin and pin and pin. So this was my first effort. Is it cheating that my first project was to put mini-marshmallows in a bag and write “Ghost Poop” on it? I say no! I said I wanted to create the things I pinned … not create the difficult things I pin. So the Poop counts! J

Finally, I have to show off my husband’s Death Star pumpkin. He found one online and was dying to give it a shot.  The online version was impressively detailed and probably took weeks of planning and carving. Evan was able to bust his out in just under an hour! The bright red light is achieved by using a road flare inside the pumpkin instead of a candle. It’s one of his favorite tricks!

Friday in Heels: Googley Eye Pumps

I covet  these  in a major way! The pair below are called Deja Vu by Christian Louboutin and retail for a paltry $1500.00. However, I found a handmade pair that was equally as adorable through Pinterest. Pop over to Glitter N' Glue and check out what she was able to do with standard pumps, a few bags of eyeballs, and some glue. Adorable! And such a fun way to be festive on Halloween at work without dressing up!

There are still three days until Halloween – give these beauties a try!

Photo courtesy of HIGHSNOBETTE.

Decorating for Halloween

This week I discovered an art form I didn’t know existed: The art of hanging spider web.

We’re having a few friends and neighbors over for a pumpkin carving party next weekend and I wanted to transform the basement into a super-spooky zone for the kids.  I did this by covering everything that wasn’t moving in spider web. As I worked, I learned a few valuable lessons:

1.       Spider web goes a looooong way. I bought five bags. It turns out that’s roughly enough to cover the entire outside of our home.

2.       Scotch tape doesn’t hold the fibers very well – but it’s basically your only option.  I hooked the web onto objects wherever I could, but in some places (especially the ceiling), I needed to tape it. Ensure there’s enough tape on the surface you’re taping TO or it’ll all fall down.

3.       The key to hanging realistic-looking spider web is to stretch-stretch-stretch! If you just take big hunks of it and lay it around, it looks fake. The thinner you can stretch the web, the more it starts to look like actual spider web.  

In an effort to always give credit where credit is due, I must thank my Mom for these lessons. It turns out, she’s a web-hanging MASTER!

On the bookshelves

Stretched all over the staircase