3D Paper Plate Christmas Trees!

If your kid (1) loves Christmas crafts and (2) painting.... then these Paper plate Christmas Trees are the craft for you! They're so easy to make and provide the perfect "canvas" for little kids to express their creativity and holiday spirit!

3D Paper Plate Christmas Trees

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3D Paper Tube Christmas Wreath

Do you have a wreath hanging up in your home?  No?  Well hold off on buying one, because you can easily craft one with the kiddos!  Today's Christmas Craft is seriously adorable and SUPER EASY to make.  Really!   And here's an added bonus- you probably have most of the materials at home already!

Paper Tube Christmas Wreath!  

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Easy Twig String Art Ornaments

Our tree is finally up!  And since I love me some  Christmas crafts, my son and I recently whipped up these lovely (and easy) string art twig ornaments!  

Easy Twig String Art Ornaments

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Milk Jug Santa Claus Craft

Got a milk jug lying around?  Well don't throw that baby out!  Instead, use it to make a recycled Christmas Craft!  My preschooler and I recently turned ours into this cute

Milk Jug Santa Claus!

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Glittery and Gorgeous Fall Leaf Process Art

Today's fall art idea is simple, beautiful, and fun to make!  Tada! We're adding to our growing list of fall crafts with these glittery and gorgeous fall leaves!  

Glittery and Gorgeous Fall Leaf Process Art

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Mini Painted Sponge Christmas Trees

Can you believe that it's already mid November?   Time sure flies by quickly!  Even though it's not yet Thanksgiving, my son's already asked me to put up the Christmas tree and make Christmas Crafts.

Well, we still haven't put up the tree, but we have been crafting more together at night.  Recently, we turned a bunch of old makeup sponges into mini Christmas trees.  I know, they're not as beautiful as the real thing... but for now, they'll do!

Mini Sponge Christmas Trees

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Easy Washi Tape Thanksgiving Banner

This colorful and beautiful Thanksgiving Banner is easy to make and will look beautiful hanging up this holiday season!  And guess what?  It's made from everyday materials like washi tape, paint chips, straws, and popsicle sticks!

Easy Washi Tape Thanksgiving Banner

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Colorful Paper Plate Birds (And our favorite bird books!)

Today I'm sharing another beautiful and easy paper plate craft.   These paper plate birds are simply gorgeous.  They are also a great art and craft project to make with kids of all ages!

Paper Plate Bird Craft

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Paper Plate Dia De Los Muertos Skulls

Happy Dia De Los Muertos! This year my preschooler and I celebrated this beautiful holiday with two crafts.  A couple of weeks ago we made sugar skull artwork from sugar cubes.  Recently we made these super easy Paper Plate Dia De Los Muertos Skulls!

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No-Carve Hardware Pumpkins

If you're not keen on carving a pumpkin this year, dig around the 'ol toolbox and try out this easy no-carve idea instead!

No-Carve Hardware Pumpkins!

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Easy and Colorful Paper Plate Snakes

Sometimes the easy and classic preschool crafts are the best.  Today I'm sharing a super easy paper plate craft for all reptile-loving kids.  We're crafting some beautiful paper plate snakes!

Watercolor Paper Plate Snakes

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Spooky Monster Family Portraits

Today's art project is literally the easiest Halloween art activity ever.   (Really!) Continuing with our month long theme of Halloween Crafts,  I recently gave my son a fun art prompt- to draw a family portrait... with a twist!

Rawr!  Spooky Monster Family Portraits!

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Sparkly and Lacy Yarn Spider Webs

Looking for an unusual Halloween Craft that'll please kids of all ages?  My son and I recently made this sparkly and lacy yarn spider web craft together.  The results were really, really beautiful and the process was really unique!

Sparkly and Lacy Yarn Spider Webs

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Make Sugar Cube Sugar Skull Art with Kids!

Looking for a fun Day of the Dead Sugar Skull Craft to do with the kids?  How about this sugar skull process art activity?  Different, everyday materials are combined to create a piece of unique and lovely artwork!

Sugar Cube Sugar Skull Art

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DIY Super Cute Cat Bookmarks

Colorful. Cat. Bookmarks.  Well, if that doesn't lure you in, I'm not sure what will!  Today I'm over at DIYCandy sharing how I made these cute cat bookmarks from paint chips.  So come stop on by!  

Ha!  Look at all these cats! I feel like a cat-lady....

(And I apologize for the silence over here lately.  Unfortunately, I'm still not feeling well.  So I'm slowing down on crafting for a bit until I feel better.  I'll try to post 1-2 times a week... but we'll see how that goes!)

Let's keep in Contact!

You can always find  fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  (Or subscribe to my email mailing list by filling out the pink bar at the top of your screen.)

Happy making, friends!

Perler Bead Garland

The Perler Bead holiday crafting continues!  A couple of days ago I shared how to make these super easy Perler Bead Snowflake ornaments.  Today I'm over at DIYCandy sharing this quirky and unique Perler Bead Holiday Garland!

Perler Bead Holiday Garland

You just need 2 materials:  Perler Beads and Zip ties!

(And if you like the adorable Christmas trees in the photo, you can find the tutorial for mini Christmas trees here.)

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, friends!  We're going black Friday shopping today with family!  Wish us luck!

Let's keep in Contact!

Like this idea?  You can always find other fun ideas on my Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts!  Or, just sign up for the weekly newsletter in the pink bar at the top of the site.

Happy making, friends!

Cardboard "Bead" Necklaces

I recently saw this fabulous post on painted bead necklaces by fellow Rockin' Art Mom ArtBar Blog.  Her students painted such beautiful wooden bead and cardboard necklaces.  I was really intrigued by the idea of using corrugated cardboard to make "beads," so I thought I'd give it a try myself.  Last weekend our town held its annual Lemon Festival, so I painted myself a lemon necklace to wear there.  And since Halloween is always on my mind, I painted myself a skull and bones necklace too.  Here are the results!

Let's Make Some Cardboard Beaded Necklaces!

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Aren't they cute?   Let's get making!

Faith, Generosity, and a Cardboard Pumpkin Face

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You're probably confused by the title... and I apologize.  Today's post is quite special to me and I just wanted to make sure everything important was included.

Now if you've peeked over at my About Me page, you'll see that my Christian faith means quite a bit to me.  It shapes how I view the world, pulled me out of a tough spot when I quit my PhD program, and even influences how I view creativity and crafting.


My friend Amy Sullivan (who you might remember was the mastermind behind the #riskrejection challenge that encouraged me to publicly "come out my crafting closet")  recently wrote a book When More is Not Enough - How to Stop Giving Your Kids What They Want and Give Them What They Need.

I received a copy of this book to review... and I was pretty nervous.  A whole book focused on being generous and serving others like Jesus? Ehhh...  I worried that I'd finish the book feeling super guilty because my family and I weren't doing enough.

After reading the very first page, I saw how wrong my fears were.

Amy is honest, funny, and humble.  She shares her own family's struggles with generosity, and how God slowly changed their views of service.  She also offers some really great ways the whole family (including the kids!) can serve and love their communities and the world.


You can check out this video book blurb below for more details:




(Psst- Did you catch how she's donating 100% of the proceeds of the book to Transformation Village ?  Wow.)

After reading her book I felt really encouraged to rethink my views on service and generosity too.  I didn't need to be a missionary or the president of a non-profit to make an impact and help out my community.  I could do small things with love.


And now here's where the pumpkin face comes in.  I initially made Chuck this changeable cardboard pumpkin face (inspired by Halloween and this face from Mr. Printables) as a way to help him learn about his emotions.

See how the facial features change?  As we played with the toy, Chuck began relating to the pumpkin as his friend.  It kind of took on a life of its own.  We talked about how Mr. Pumpkin looked sad, happy, surprised, or scared.  We then also starting having conversations about how we could help friends that might be scared or upset.

And that's when a light bulb went on in my head.  These small, everyday conversations were also equipping Chuck to have compassion for others... and do small things with love.  Chuck's only 3, but he too can have compassion and serve others too.

Whoa.  That was definitely a "wow" moment for me.

So if you have a chance, I definitely recommend you reading Amy's book When More is Not Enough.   You can read her thoughts on writing a book, or find her on her blog, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest.  

(And in case you want to make your own changeable pumpkin face, simply cut out the facial features and pumpkin from corrugated cardboard.  Then, paint them.  Then, drill holes through the pieces and use fasteners to attach everything together.)

Happy Monday friends!

DIY Watermelon Perler Bead Bracelet

That's it.  

Summer is over.

No more vacation, no more white shoes.

Want to keep the good time summer vibes going?  

 Check out this watermelon bracelet I made out of Perler beads.

It's my second craft post for Handmade Charlotte.  

Happy belated Labor Day!

 
 

Perler Bead Zip Tie Statement Necklace

Ok, ok.  I'm still on the Perler bead kick.

I can't help it!  The jar is still practically full of beads.... and it mocks me whenever I walk by.  I tried hiding them in a craft drawer, but it didn't help.  I hear tiny colorful voices crying  "Leslie, Leslie.  Use us.  Use us!"

So like any crafter, I caved in to their siren calls.

Inspired by Mark Montano, I used zip ties to make these quick and easy Perler bead statement necklaces.  Tada!

I think the right one looks really cute and fresh.  I was on the fence about the left one... but it was a hit with Chuck.  He decided to wear it to church on Sunday (along with a backwards basketball cap, purple exercise shorts, and sneakers.....oi!) 

So if you too find yourself taunted by Perler beads, you could try making these necklaces too.  Let's begin!