Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Christmas. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Christmas. Sort by date Show all posts

Sunday, August 18, 2019

50+ Super Cute and Easy Origami and Kirigami Projects for Kids

Looking for origami projects that are unique, cute, and easy-to-fold? Or, do you feel the need to grab a pair of scissors and cut some beautiful kirigami designs?  If you're on the hunt for kid-friendly paper folding projects for spring, summer, fall, and winter, then I've got the ultimate post for you. Here's a growing list of over 50 super cute origami and kirigami ideas for kids!

50+ Easy and Kid-Friendly Origami and Kirigami Projects


50+ cute and Easy Origami and Kirigami Projects for Kids for all seasons!

This post contains affiliate links. This means I make a tiny bit of grocery money from each purchase made.  Thank you for your support!  For my full disclosure policy, click here.


Thursday, December 19, 2019

Super Simple and Cute Jingle Bell Necklace Craft

Today my preschooler came home with this adorable jingle bell necklace and I had to share it here! Isn't this the cutest kids' Christmas craft? He was so proud of his necklace that he gave it to me to wear. :)

Let's make a Jingle Bell Necklace!


How to make a Christmas Jingle Bell Necklace with preschool kids - such an easy holiday craft and homemade gift

This post contains affiliate links. This means I make a tiny bit of grocery money from each purchase made. Thank you for your support! For my full disclosure policy, click here.


Friday, December 14, 2012

Crapty origami boat ornaments and Christmas crackers

This weekend we're hosting a gingerbread house party.  To prepare, I purchased a whole bunch of candy, graham crackers, and icing.   I also crapted a couple of origami boat ornaments.  They were folded from magazine paper.  My little boats were inspired by this origami boat necklace that I won in a recent blog giveaway.  (First time I won one of these giveaways, hooray!)


I also made a bunch of psuedo Christmas crackers out of my ever growing pile of paper towel rolls.  Each guest is going to take one home as a gift.  Inside the cracker they'll find a balloon, a corny Christmas joke, a snowflake, cute band-aids  and a couple of candies.  I think traditional crackers are supposed to pop, but I couldn't find the cracker snaps, so mine will just look cute.  

Hope you have a great weekend.  See you on Monday!




Tuesday, November 22, 2016

How to Cut a Unique Gingerbread Snowflake

Just stopping in to share this quick paper snowflake craft that's sure to bring smiles.  Have you ever cut Christmas themed gingerbread man snowflakes?

how to cut unique snowman snowflakes- fun winter paper kirigami craft for kids
This post contains affiliate ilnks.  Thank you for your support.  For my full disclosure policy, click here.

Thursday, July 10, 2014

4 Easy Bell Crafts for Kids

Right now we're in the middle of packing.  Not going to lie, our apartment is looking like it's inhabited by crazy people.  So my posts for the next month will probably be fewer and the crafts will be much simpler.  This brings me to today's topic:  crafting with bells.   I love the sound of jingle bells.  They remind me of Christmas, the cold, and reindeer.  I know it's July and Christmas is miles away... but you can craft with jingle bells all year round?  Right? Right! Here's how we've crafted with jingle bells:

4 Super Easy Bell Crafts for Kids

4 easy bell crafts for kids

(This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!)

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Wreath Interpretations Exhibit

A couple of days ago, we went into the city to meet up with old friends and see "Wreath Interpretations."  This exhibit showcased Christmas wreaths that were made out of nontraditional materials.  After seeing all the artist's creativity, I definitely left with some ideas for next year's Christmas decorations (note to self- start saving milk caps!)

Now if you're in the city and you've got some time to spare, be sure to check the exhibit out!  It's located on the 3rd floor of the Arsenal Building in Central Park.  It's free (Yes!) and open from 9am-5pm, M-F until January 9th. 

Here are a couple of my favorites from the exhibit:

(Psst- Wanna see what else we did in the city that day?  You can find other photos from our trip on my Instagram.)


Keep reading to see more wreaths!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Yes Virginia letter

I recently got the chance to read that famous Christmas letter and response.  I enjoyed reading it so much that I posted it down below (with my favorite bits highlighted in green.)  Virginia's letter is just so sweet and the editor's response is so eloquent and touching.  Does anyone write like this anymore?


Virginia's letter:
DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in THE SUN it's so." Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

VIRGINIA O'HANLON.
115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET.


Editor's response:
VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.





Friday, November 30, 2012

Crapty Paper Fortune Cookie Advent Calendar



Can you believe that tomorrow is the first of December!  Aiyah!  How quickly the time flies.

I love advent calendars.  I don't know why, but there's something immensely satisfying about moving a little figure from one day to the next.

We own one small felt snowman advent calendar, but I wanted to try making my own out of crap.  (Why?  Why not!  I love crapting.  There's just something immensely satisfying about transforming garbage and recyclables into something beautiful.)

I've always loved eating fortune cookies. (They're the best part about eating Chinese food!) So, I made my advent calendar look like paper fortune cookies.  Unlike their doughy counterparts, these fortune cookies don't contain traditional cookie wisdom.  Instead, each holds a Christmas-y activity that our family can do together or a way that we can serve others. Each cookie also holds a bible verse.

Hopefully these paper treats will help put us in the right frame of mind this holiday season.

Want to make your own paper fortune cookie advent calendar? Read on!

Materials:
- paper grocery bags (<--crap!)
- scissors
- cup
- pen
- computer paper
- glue stick
- gold paint
- paintbrush
- string
- tape
- Bible Advent verses

Directions:
1)  Trace and cut out 24 circles.
 2)  Write down fun Christmas-y activities or different ways you can serve others onto the circle's backs.
 3)  Make your fortune cookies!  Fold your circle in half, making sure your writing is on the inside.
 4)  While still holding your half circle, use your other hand crease the circle like so.  (Thumb and middle finger on the edge while your pointer finger gently applies pressure and creases the paper.)
 5)  Keep applying pressure until you have your fortune cookie shaped.
 6)  To keep the paper in this shape, you'll now need to let go of the paper and dab glue onto center crease. (Or you can use one of those glue dots... but I'm cheap so I just used my glue stick.)
 7)  Now, refold your fortune cookie.  Apply a bit of pressure to where the glue is to make sure both fortune cookie "arms" (no idea what  they're called) stick together.  Insert a bobby pin inside the "arms" so that they remain sticking together until the glue dries.
 8)  Repeat the process to create the rest of your fortune cookies.
9)  Come back 24 hours later.  (Or earlier if you wish.  I just waited to make sure the glue was dried.)  Paint half of the fortune cookie gold.  While waiting for the paint to dry, write out your bible verses and corresponding numbers on thin slips of paper.
9)  Once your paint dries, tape the slips of paper into the fortune cookies.

10)  I wasn't sure how to string the cookies up, so I created small loops out of leftover paper and taped them to the inside of the fortune cookies.) String up your cookies and enjoy!



Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Light Painting with a Flashlight

Hubby and I love seeing things glow in the dark. We've taken photos with glow sticks (and then cut them up to see what was inside- muah ha ha), made our Christmas lights look like different shapes, and even made glow-in-the dark chalk.

This past Christmas our uncle gave us his old tripod (Thanks Tito Ric!), so hubby wanted to try light painting.  We basically just waved around a flashlight in the air to make lovely "drawings" in the dark.

How to do light painting with kids- Easy and unique way to make art at night!



Wednesday, November 26, 2014

DIY Perler Bead Snowflake Ornaments

Every year I try to make a couple new Christmas ornaments for the tree.   So far I've made hand and feet salt dough ornaments and  felt and milk jug ornaments.  This year I used Perler Beads and pipe cleaners to create easy snowflake ornaments!

Perler Bead and Snowflake Ornaments


perler bead and pipe cleaner snowflake ornaments
This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support!


These were so incredibly easy to make and the colors make me happy.  Keep reading to see how you can make some of your own!


Thursday, December 27, 2012

DIY Birdseed ornaments


Today I'll be sharing how we created these lovely DIY Birdseed ornaments.

DIY Birdseed ornaments
Back in Michigan, hubby and I put up a small bird feeder to feed the birds during the winter.  Now that we live in the city, we don't have space to put a bird feeder up.  (Plus, even if we did figure out a way to do it we'd probably just attract pigeons or rats.  Ew and double ew.)

So, you might say that I was feeling a bit nostalgic after seeing this lovely tutorial from Saltwater Kids showing how to make birdseed ornaments.  Luckily we have several family members that live in nearby tree-filled suburbs, so I made a bunch of these as small Christmas gifts.  I don't know about you, but I could really just spend hours watching birds hopping or flying around.  Hopefully this gift will keep the kids (and adults) entertained as they enjoy nature.


If you'd like to make them yourself, let me just first make two notes:
(1)  The Saltwater Kids tutorial contains really lovely photos and clear directions.  I totally copied their recipe.  I'm a copycat.  I fully admit it.
(2)  I tried to be neat, but the birdseed got everywhere.  Be prepared to sweep and wipe up lots of tiny seeds and sticky birdseed mess.


Still want to make them?  Ok, here's how I did it:

Materials Needed to make DIY Birdseed Ornaments:

-3/4 C flour
- 1/2 C water
- 1 envelope unflavored gelatin (Knox)
- 3 T corn syrup (I used dark... but I'm not sure if that matters)
- 4 C birdseed
- muffin tins/ molds (or cookie cutters)
- nonstick cooking spray
- drinking straws/ stirrers
- wax paper
- ribbon

Directions to make DIY Birdseed Ornaments:

1.  Combine flour, water, gelatin, and corn syrup in a large bowl.  Stir until everything is combined and resembles sticky goo.

2.  Add birdseed.  Stir until birdseed is covered.

3.  Spray muffin tins / molds with cooking spray.

4.  Pack birdseed mixture into the molds.  Use a measuring cup to pack and smooth everything down.   (I had a bit of trouble with this, which resulted in rough edges.)

5.  Push straws or stirrers through the birdseed.  (Make sure to push them all the way through so that you have a hole to string the ribbon through.)

fill molds with birdseed to make ornaments

fill birdseed into silicone molds to make ornaments

6.  Let your birdseed mixture sit there for three hours.  Then, take out your straws and slide/pop out the hardened ornaments out onto wax paper.  (They easily popped out of the silicone molds, but I had to use a fork to pop them out of the muffin tins.)  Flip the ornament upside down so the bottom gets a chance to harden as well.  Let them sit out overnight.

7.  Put ribbon or string through the holes and enjoy!

Merry Christmas feathered friends!

Update-  I wanted to hang up ornaments with Baby Chuck around town, so I stored some in our apartment for about a week.  Bad idea.  When I finally remembered them, I saw that they had grown fuzzy with mold.  So, make sure you use them as soon as you make them!  Otherwise you'll end up with fuzzy black ornaments.  Ick.

DIY Birdseed ornament recipe




 

Interested in other ways to create birdseed feeders?

Create your own toilet paper roll bird feeders and ice bird feeders.

Toilet Roll Bird Feeder Craft ice bird feeder craft

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Color me Christmas

Sadly, Christmas has come and gone.  Luckily for me, our aunt's decorated house helps carry holiday cheer into the New Year.

Five little snowmen send their season's greetings.


This tiny tree puts me in a wonderfully sweet and girlie mood.


Somewhere a tiny Santa Clause is running around naked.

Friday, November 28, 2014

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

Perler Bead Holiday Garland- Easy, fun, and colorful!

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!

Monday, May 2, 2016

Artsy Paper Bag Stars!

I've seen versions of these paper bag stars all over the internet for awhile now.   And last weekend, we finally got a chance to make our very own version.  Half art project, half craft, these artsy paper bag stars are such a unique way to showcase children's art and decorate your home!

Artsy Paper Bag Stars      


artsy paper bag stars - a great way to showcase children's artwork!

This post contains affiliate links.  Thank you for your support! For my full disclosure policy, click here

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Finding beauty in the everyday

Heart shaped candy canes 

(bent using this tutorial)
Bend a candycane to look like a heart

Our current car collection

toy cars arranged in a nice way

Christmas tree toys 

plastic animals arranged like a christmas tree

Red and white rice krispy treats

make red and white rice krispy treats

White play dough on our black table

white play dough winter scene

Happy Thursday friends!

Tuesday, December 27, 2022

Free Printable New Year Agamograph

Can you believe that it's only three more days until the New Year? Time has sped by since Christmas and I'm stopping in to share this free printable New Year's Agamograph. :) 

FREE Print and Color New Year's Agamograph

how to make a free printable new year's agamograph for easy kids homeschool library elementary school craft activity


Tuesday, May 31, 2016

30+ Awesomely Unique and Fun Paper Plate Crafts for Kids!

It's no secret that I LOVE paper plate crafts!   Wanna make my heart sing?  Hand me a bunch of blank paper plates.  Seriously.  No joke. (Ok- Crafter confessional here- I've even snuck interesting paper plates out of parties before to craft with... shhhh... )

If you follow me on Instagram you'll see that I'm this week's #kidscrafts101 judge! Yup!  Every week there's a fun challenge to craft with a different material.  This week's theme is... drum roll please... paper plates! I know all of you and your kids have such creative ideas, so I'd love to see your ideas on IG!  (Just use the #kidscrafts101 so I can see your great ideas!)

And in honor of this week's theme, I thought I'd also share my absolute favorite paper plate crafts!

30+ Super Fun and Unique Paper Plate Crafts for Kids!


30+ Super Fun and Unique Paper plate Crafts for Kids
This post contains affiliate links.  This means I make a teeny tiny bit of money from any purchases made through the Amazon links below.   Thank you for your support! For my full disclosure, click here.


Sunday, December 12, 2010

Christmas store

A couple of nights ago we ran across this wonderful store in Grand Rapids.

What luck!  It was open.

Isn't this stained glass beautiful?  I love dogwoods.

We stepped inside and were enveloped by Christmas magic

Monday, December 22, 2014

DIY Star Washer Ornaments

Enjoy making things?  Looking for a fun gift to give a DIY-loving friend?  
How about these Star Washer Ornaments!

DIY Washer Christmas Ornaments- Easy to make, fun to give!


These lovely hardware ornaments are super easy to make and will look great on the Christmas tree too!  You can check out my full tutorial on DIY Candy today!

And here are 3 other easy DIY Ornaments!



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!

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Merry Christmas!


We wish you all a merry, merry Christmas.
May your homes be filled with love, joy, and peace this holiday season.  

And in case you need a little extra holiday cheer, here are some goofy photos of Chuck and me wearing a lovely Santa/Gnome beard.  (I just cut out a beard shape from felt and hot glued elastic to both sides.)

Happy Holidays!  (And happy crafting!)