Merry Christmas from my family to yours! I’m taking a few days off {away from the computer} to celebrate the holidays with my family! See you next week!
Snow Dough {Glittery Play-Dough}
December 21, 2012 posted by
As much as I would like to be “that” class mom, I’m just not. You know the one. Handmade valentines using Martha Stewart scrapbook paper. Healthy bento box lunches. Snacks straight from Pinterest. I try hard, but most of the time, I forget all about my “Class Mom” duties until the night before I’m supposed to deliver them! I think the best I ever did were the Monster Cake Pops for Jayna’s Halloween Class Party.
Normally, I don’t give Jayna’s classmates anything for Christmas. Not because I don’t want to, but I always just simply run out of time. The last day of school (being a full week before Christmas), always seems to sneak up on me! But not this year! I was prepared this time!
{P.S. The dough was white! The lighting in my kitchen made it yellow-y in the pictures!}
I was perusing Pinterest (something new and different….) and found this fun recipe for Candy Cane Play-Doh from The Artful Parent. So Jayna and I decided that would be a fun gift for her friends. We decided to make two batches, one red and one white….and then twist them together like the recipe calls for. But….then we ran out of ingredients. And….we figured out that the twisted versions wouldn’t fit in the half pint masons that I had. So….modification needed.
Therefore, Snow Dough was born. We didn’t have enough materials to make red play-dough, so we kept it white. We added in a lot of silver, and a little red and green glitter from the Dollar Tree. We added some peppermint extract to the dough to give it a nice, minty smell!
Ingredients:
- 5 cups of water
- 5 cups of flour (more or less….I ended up using a bit less)
- 2 1/2 cups of salt
- 2 Tbsp of Peppermint Extract
- 3 Tbsp of Cream of Tartar
- 2/3 c of Vegetable Oil
- Silver Glitter (and Red and Green if you’d like)
Instructions:
- Mix water, salt, peppermint extract and cream of tartar over medium heat until heated through
- Add oil and stir well
- Add flour one cup at a time….you may not need all of it!
- Keep stirring….take a break to massage your sore arm muscle
- Stir some more….make a mental note to get to the gym
- Keep stirring and adding flour until the dough pulls away from the edge of the pot
- Even if the last cup of flour you added isn’t stirred in all the way, dump the clump of dough onto the counter and let it sit for a few minutes to cool. During this time, I also used my wooden spoon to manipulate the dough to knead it more.
- The consistency of the dough shouldn’t be sticky at this point, and when you pinch a piece, it should keep the pinched form without sticking to your finger
- When the dough has cooled enough to work it with your hands, spread (or use a rolling pin to roll) it out and sprinkle glitter over it. Then knead the dough to mix the glitter and repeat until you have the desired amount of glitter.
- This batch made enough dough to divide evenly into 10 half-pint mason jars.
I forgot to take pictures, but I also attached a Christmas Cookie Cutter to each jar.
And they ended up being cute gifts for her friends!
Linkin’ Up this week!
{A Handmade Holiday} JOY
December 5, 2012 posted by
The other gift I made for my gift exchangee, Sharra, was decorated letters that spell out JOY. To make these, I bought carboard letters from Hobby Lobby and modge-podged scrapbook paper to them.
They are perfect for decorating a mantle or a shelf! Hopefully Sharra liked them too!
Proudly linkin’ up this week and participating in:
{click the box to see what everyone else made!}
{A Handmade Holiday} Canvas Heart Garland
December 3, 2012 posted by
Last winter, I stumbled upon Craftaholic’s linky party full of handmade Christmas gifts. I came to realize that all of the participants had given each other the gifts that were showcased. What a neat idea! Imagine creating a gift for a perfect stranger, and receiving one as well! Sounded like fun, and a great way to network as well. So this year I signed up to participate. The lady who I was assigned to create a gift for must be awesome…..her name is Sharra {so, how could she not be awesome!?!}, and seemed to have a similar decor style as I do. So I decided to create a couple of little Christmas decor items for her. {we weren’t required to make Christmasy items, but hey, I was in the mood!}
One of the items I made for her was a cute canvas heart garland. Perfect to decorate a Christmas tree, mantle, or hutch. I adore how it turned out! And even though I’ve already sent it on to Sharra, I’m thinking I may make another for myself….and it would be really easy to personalize with appliques, colored stitching, etc. And SO easy to make!
I used a canvas drop cloth from Lowes, some batting, some rope, and some red thread.
First, cut out a bunch of canvas squares, 5″ by 5″. Fold each in half and cut out half of a heart on the fold. I actually made a little pattern to trace and cut out so they would all be exactly the same. The garland I made had 20 hearts, so I cut out 40 heart-shaped pieces of canvas. Save your scraps!
Sandwich the rope between two heart cut-outs, pinning the rope in place.
Baste stitch 1/2″ around the edge of the heart, leaving a small opening to push the batting through.
When your heart has been stuffed with the batting, straight stitch around the heart again, following your original baste stitch, and closing the gap. This should also keep the rope in place. Do the same for all of the hearts, spacing them about 4 inches or so apart. Use pinking shears to cut around the edge of the hearts, taking care not to cut through the rope.
Cut strips from the scraps of fabric, and make the center of the strip thinner than the ends. Tie the strips in knots around the rope, one in between each heart.
String your garland around your Christmas tree, hang it on a hutch, or decorate your mantle with it. You can even use it again come Valentine’s Day!
I’d love for you to Pin this and Share it, but please link it back to my site! Thanks!
Want to participate in the Summer Gift Exchange, but need a reminder? Click here!
Linkin’ up here this week…..and participating in this linky party too! {Click on the box to see what everybody else made!}
Christmas Wrap Up
December 30, 2011 posted by
Merry Christmas! I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday weekend. Our celebrations continue this weekend as we ring in the new year at not one, not two, but three New Year’s Eve Parties!
But first, I wanted to check in with you and tell you a little about our Christmas. The weekend began on Thursday afternoon, when Mom Mom and GP arrived from up north. After Amelia’s 4 month check-up, we met them in town and had a quick lunch before heading back to the house for naps. On Friday, Dave and GP did a little fishing on our pond, while us girls started on the baking. First up, Christmas cookies!
Obviously, Jayna did the majority of spoon licking and decorating. Eat at your own risk, Santa!! Next up was a gingerbread house. But not only do we not like gingerbread, we also shutter at the thought of conformity! =) We opted to try a rice krispy treat house instead. Adorned with mint M&M’s, sixlets and Mike & Ike’s stuck on the roof with melted chocolate, we discovered that rice krispies work just as well! The only disappointment was that our graham cracker roof just wouldn’t stay pitched…..so we opted for The Flintstone’s model instead!
After the girls went to bed that night, Loo Loo, Mom Mom and I stayed up late tidying up and finishing last-minute Christmas decor.
That’s right…you see more recycled pumpkins, and the two Christmas trees were handmade by yours truly, but I got the ideas here and here. Like I’ve said before, I’m not a very creative person, but I’m an excellent copycat!!
Saturday morning, 9am. Our doorbell rings with our first of many guests for our first annual Christmas Eve Brunch. Growing up, my family went to a friend’s annual brunch to gather with friends, do crafts, and put in last-minute requests with Santa. It’s one of my favorite Christmas memories, so we decided to duplicate it and start it as our own tradition this year. We invited friends and family from our Sunday School class, as well as our neighborhood. Although we anticipated mixed results being that it was Christmas Eve, we ended up with about 30 people coming for breakfast! The kids decorated foam gingerbread children and decorated our felt Christmas tree, while the adults mingled around coffee and breakfast casseroles. Around 10, the doorbell rang yet again, and Santa made a quick appearance for the children. After he head back to the North Pole, families headed out to spend the days together and participate in their own Christmas traditions.
Later that night, Sue Sue and Papaw joined us to fry a turkey for dinner and then we went to the early, kid-friendly church service. Our tradition on Christmas Eve is that the girls get to open one gift (from Ralph, our elf), a new pair of pajamas.
This year, Loo Loo must have thought the adults were going to feel left out, because she found us some new pajamas as well!
I won’t mention any names, but some of us were more comfortable in our footie pajamas than others!
Then, we all knocked off early…After all, everyone knows Santa can’t come until everyone is in bed! The next morning, Jayna was up at the crack of dawn (to be expected), but was more interested in watching Little Einsteins than checking out what Santa had brought. So we all took our time getting dressed and finally made it downstairs. Jayna’s first reaction to the bean bag chair she had wanted soooo badly? “It’s not purple!!” We’ll be talking about being grateful next week!! Nevertheless, the unwanted green color didn’t faze her…
And after opening an elephant shaped pillow and blanket (that matched Loo Loo’s), she was all set…no other presents necessary!
Jayna didn’t quite get the “open all of the presents” expectations. She would open one, take it to her playroom, and we wouldn’t see her for a good ten minutes…..its like she wanted to enjoy just that gift for a little while before opening the next! We had to beg her to finish opening so we could clean up and get started on fixing supper!
Even the panda slippers she received from Santa got a good ten minutes from Jayna (but she had to take off her footie pajamas in order to fully enjoy the pandas!).
It was a wonderful, laid back day…and the guys made Lowcountry Boil while the ladies drank coffee and nibbled on the ginormous fruit and cheese spread we had put out…not to mention the Overnight Coffee Crumble Cake I made (this recipe is a KEEPER!!!) Yum! Hope you enjoyed my quick synopsis of our weekend festivities….and thank you to our family afar for all of the lovely gifts! Here’s a little sneak peek of something you will be getting in the next week or so! Happy New Year!
Paper Mache NOEL
December 29, 2011 posted by
So you may have noticed the NOEL on my mantel. I was feeling like my mantle needed a little something, and then I saw this on Pinterest. Perfect!
Too bad I had no time to actually follow those oh-so crafty directions. But….I do have a crafty sister. And I do have newspaper. And flour. Hmmm….paper mache anyone? Here’s what Loo did:
First (I forgot to take a picture, sorry!) she mixed together approximately 1 cup of flour and 2 cups of water. Tear your newspaper into one inch strips, about three inches long.
Dip each strip into the flour mixture and slide it over the side of the bowl to get off any excess liquid. Wrap it tightly around each letter, overlapping each strip of paper a little bit.
Feel free to kind of paint the flour mixture over the finished letters, especially around the corners.
Someday, when we have some more time and inspiration (and hopefully before next Christmas!), we’ll end up putting some sort of color or texture on them.
Stay tuned for an updated picture once we finish it!
Lullabelle’s Christmas Dress
December 23, 2011 posted by
Yes, just another something I’ve been working on. I finished it last week, but didn’t want to brag about it until Lullabelle got it. I am quite proud of myself as this is probably the most complicated dress pattern I’ve tried so far. I used New Look’s pattern 6903. It took my about 2 weeks to make, but I also was only able to work for about a half an hour at a time while the girls were napping. I am blessed to have a craft room, but unfortunately it’s an open design (no door) and I have a loud sewing machine. So Jayna hates it when I sew while she is trying to rest.
For this pattern, I learned how to make ruffles, and mastered making a pocket. I loved putting the rick-rack over the outer stitches…it makes the pocket look so clean!
It was also my first time using the button-hole function on my sewing machine. I was way easier than I thought. I even dragged out the How-To video for the machine to learn how to do it, but after watching it once….piece of cake!
I finally finished the rest of our DIY Christmas decor, but want to take a couple of days off to spend with my folks, who are here in town for a couple of days. So, have a blessed Christmas this weekend and I’ll be back next week! Merry Christmas!
Christmas Yarn Ball Wreath
December 22, 2011 posted by
It’s been a hand-made Christmas this year for me….well, decoration-wise anyway. With a new house comes a craving for new decor. So, inspired by Pinterest and my fellow bloggers (and a little bit of Martha Stewart!), I set out to create. One project was a new wreath for our porch door. I made a burlap fall wreath, but obviously it was time to replace that. I found this cute little number on Pinterest, and decided to try to replicate it.
Here’s how I did it:
I bought red and white yarn, and a spool of jute (twine), and a wreath form. You’ll also need thick ribbon, scissors and hot glue. I cut each page of the newspaper into quarters, and then crumpled them into balls.
I decided that the base of my wreath was going to be red, so I tied a knot around the wreath form at the seam and slowly wound the yarn around it, being careful not to overlap and to keep the yarn tight.
When I reached the end, I just tucked the yarn under….not very sturdy, but I’d be glueing on my ribbon holder on top, so it’s ok.
I secured one end of my ribbon where I had tucked the end of the yarn, using hot glue. Do not secure the other end of the ribbon yet.
Then, with a second piece of ribbon, I formed a loop and hot glued it on top of the yarn and the already glued down part of the ribbon.
Then I took the first ribbon and wrapped it over the second loop and secured with hot glue.
Moving on to the yarn balls. Just wrap them tightly around the newspaper balls. You want the newspaper to be completely covered, and its ok that the balls are slightly different sizes. I made about 22 of the red and white, and 8 of the twine. Even though technically I am finished with my wreath, I still may go back and add some more balls to the sides and top to give it some more depth and bulk. You can always add more, so I’d start with just 20 or so. Find something good on TV because these take awhile!
Jayna decided she wanted to help wrap some balls too…..I’m thinking her fine motor skills aren’t quite there yet, what do you think?
But she was ok, she settled for naming her new baby “Yarnie” and toting it aroudn with Pink Baby.
Ready to glue on!
Start slowly, and layer as you go. Remember that there is newspaper in the middle, so the balls can kind of be squished to fit where you need them.
Tada! Great, bright addition to our living room! And because I only used red, white and natural colors…I feel like I can leave it up through the winter…not so Christmas-y!
See on the left hand side where you can still see some of the red yarned wreath form? That’s where I will probably end up adding a few more….you know, in my spare time!
I’m linking up here this week!
Letters to Santa
December 19, 2011 posted by
You know the Christmas Season is officially here when Santa makes appearances all over town. He has been spotted downtown, riding around neighborhoods on a fire truck, and at various school and church breakfasts each week. Last weekend, he spent the morning at our church, eating with Jayna’s friends and schoolmates. It was a lovely little potluck spread, complete with little foam, sticker and coloring activities for the kids, balloon figures, and of course, Mr. Claus himself.
“Dear Santa, I have been a very good girl this year. Please bring me a bean bag chair! Thank you! Love, Jayna”
When it was finally their turn to talk to Santa, they could not contain their excitement! Amelia was a bit overwhelmed with the crowds, and Jayna could not stand still to save her life!
But overall, we ended up getting some great quality time with Santa. Jayna sat and talked with him for a few minutes, and then Amelia joined her on his lap and we managed to get a pretty good picture!
The Living Christmas Story
December 12, 2011 posted by
Every year our church begins the holiday season by giving a gift to our whole community. They close the perimeter of the church for three nights, and transform the parking lot there into a living Bethlehem….what it would have looked like the night of Jesus’ birth. The cast members walk around and engage with each other, completely in character….ignoring the thousands of cars that slowly pass through over the three nights. Our town is practically shut down as traffic is re-routed to accomodate the 2 hour long line of cars waiting to drive through and catch a glimpse of the newborn king. Each year we participate….usually as villagers or shephards wandering through the marketplace or keeping watch over the live sheep. But this year was special. We happened to be one of the few families in the church who had an infant….so we were honored to play Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus in the Nativity Scene.
Don’t worry, Jayna wasn’t left out…she still got to be a villager with Sue Sue! For those of you who couldn’t see it in person, here’s some shoddy pictures I was able to grab while riding through during a break. Sorry they aren’t better!
Jayna sees the bright North Star (aka a ginormous spotlight), calling all of the Lowcountry to come see the story of Baby Jesus’ birth.
The census-takers count all who enter the town of Bethlehem.
Roman Guards stand at the gates to Bethlehem.
Gabriel tells young Mary that she will be expecting a baby, and to name him Jesus.
King Herrod hearing the rumor about the Savior being born.
Joseph and pregnant Mary rest on the side of the road.
An angel tells the Good News to shephards watching their flock.
The blacksmith and his apprentices in Bethlehem.
Women at the well gossip about a tiny king that was reportedly born in a stable nearby.
Families mend the nets and attempt to sell fish.
Calling villagers into the temple.
Women and children barter for rugs, fruit, bread and baskets in the marketplace….while trying to avoid the Roman Guards.
The Innkeeper and his wife turn villagers away from their inn…there is no room.
Mary and Joseph admire Baby Jesus, as the three kings offer gifts as the shephards and livestock look on.
The excited chatter of the village fades away as the cars drive past the Nativity and into the darkness. To the left is a silent, lit cross.
And to the right…an empty tomb….reminding us that Christ’s birth was just the beginning of the story.
Merry CHRISTmas!
