What I've been working on

I finally finished a couple of projects that I have been working on and I thought I would share!  The first thing is a new yarn ball wreath.  This has to be my favorite one thus far!  I love the colors.  I was thrilled to find some vase filler at Target that perfectly matched the yarn I had picked out over a week before.  I love it!  This has been sitting in my living room since two days after Christmas and I would do a little here and a little there.  I finally finished it up today!  Take a look!  If you want the directions as to how to make these little gems, I posted the step by step instructions here.

The second thing I have been working on involves my daughter's birthday that is quickly coming up!  She decided that she wanted an ice cream themed birthday party.  I got to work figuring out what cake to make (the most important part, you know!) and we decided on having a sundae bar with the cake.  I then needed to plan out the invitations.  I also needed to do invitations for her "friends" birthday party.  In lieu of a gift, one of her grandmas offered to pay for a "friends" party.  We decided that Isabella would have a balloon theme and that each of the guests would be able to make some jewelry.  This was another easy theme.
Now on to the guest list and invitations!  I wanted something simple so my daughter could be involved with the making of the invites.  This is what we ended up with.  On the left is the invitation for her ice cream party.  She was able to help cut out the ice cream cone pieces.  Below is her "friends" party with balloons.  She helped to cut out each of the balloons and then we added a simple red ribbon to each.

We included the note at the bottom of the balloon invitation that says, "No gifts please.  We prefer your presence over presents!"  I do prefer that for a friends-type birthday party the guests are able to simply come and celebrate with the birthday child instead of feeling the need to shell out money for a gift.  It just makes sense to me!


So there are the latest projects from our home.  I have also been working on the corn heating bags, but I'm not quite done.  Once I get those finished, I will post pics and how-to for those!  Time for coffee!

Gingerbread boy & girl wreath

This wreath was ridiculously easy and can easily be used as a template for an innumerable amount of themes. I choose the gingerbread theme because I wanted something to hang in my kitchen. I am a bit of a cookie making machine when it comes to the holidays, and my kitchen takes on a gingerbread theme in decorations. Let your creative juices flow and this wreath could be tailored to fit any room in the house. And it only takes about half and hour!!

1. Get your supplies! From the previous post, you will see that this can be the best part of this. Walking through a craft store can fill you with all sorts of ideas! Basically though, for this wreath you need a wire wreath frame (I used a 12 inch), ribbon of your choice (just be sure not to get anything too "loud" so as to distract from the embellishments) and your embellishments. This was made easy for me as I found gingerbread boy and girl Christmas ornaments. I simply cut off the string put there for hanging. Soooo simple!

2. Wrap your wreath frame in ribbon. Simply loop the beginning of the ribbon around the first wire on the frame hot glue (yes, I am still learning/burning myself/making a mess) it to itself. Then start wrapping. Keep the ribbon taunt so that it doesn't slip. When you run out of ribbon on one spool, start a new and glue the end of one ribbon to the beginning of the new. Wrap around that section a couple times to add stability.

3. Once the frame is wrapped, plan out how you want to arrange your embellishments and start gluing.

4. Fabulous! You are done. If you want to loop a ribbon around the top on which to hang the wreath, go ahead. I just left my simple and will hang the wreath directly on the hanger. Ta-Da!

Christmas Wreaths

I made my first wreath a couple of months ago when I made a yarn ball wreath with Autumn colors. I fell in love! I knew right then and there that I would repeat at least the yarn ball wreath, but maybe venture into something new as well. Well, here is my Christmas themed yarn ball wreath for the living room and my gingerbread boy and girl wreath for the kitchen(pics will be coming soon!). I took pictures of the steps this time so it would be easy to duplicate.

Yarn Ball Wreath

1. Get your supplies! This is the fun (and dangerous) part! Head to the craft store and let the creative juices flow! I like the look of yarn ball wreaths, but I prefer to add more texture and "pop" to mine, so I look around for little embellishments. For the Christmas wreath, it was easy. I found little ornaments that would coordinate and some little pom pom things. Pick up a wire wreath frame as well (I used an 18 inch). Try not to get too distracted and to NOT buy the entire store!

2. Make the tin foil balls. So easy. They don't have to be perfect balls, just don't make them too tight (it helps to have a little give in the balls when putting the wreath together). Make them a variety of sizes from grapefruit size to a small plum size.

3. Start wrapping away. I grabbed my kiddos (ages 10 and 6) and we popped in Polar Express and wrapped while we watched. It made the time go faster (it does take a couple hours to wrap all the balls) and the kids were able to be involved in the craft. It was great!

4. Once they are all wrapped, take the larger ones and simply place them on the wire frame. This will give you an idea of how you want everything placed. There will be gaps, but they will be filled in later with the smaller balls and embellishments.

5. Start hot gluing! This seems so simple for some people, but for a novice crafter, this takes some doing. I burn my fingers, end up with glue all over things and have those annoying little stringy, spider-webby things everywhere. Seriously, is there a class on how to use this thing?! Anyway, I pour on the glue so I'm sure everything will stay put. As you glue, gently yet firmly push the the yarn balls into the frame and together. This is where it is beneficial to have a little give in your balls.

6. Lift the wreath up to eye level (or higher depending on where you want to hang it) and start evaluating where gaps need to be filled. This is when you get to put in the little ones and the embellishments. As you do this, it is very helpful to periodically hold the wreath up to look at it. It is a very different perspective.

7. Once you are happy with the placement of everything and it is all sufficiently glued, you can choose to add a ribbon by which to hang your beautiful creation. It could also do without the ribbon and simply hang on wreath hanger.

8. Step back and marvel at your craftiness! Sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee (or hot cocoa) and be amazed at what a talented little crafter you have become!

Creativity on Crack

That is what I call Pinterest. I recently discovered Pinterest and I am completely addicted. I have gotten some wonderful ideas from there! And yes . . . I have actually used what I have discovered. About once a week I am using a recipe I found there and the organizational tips are a life saver!! Plus I have made a few crafty-type things! I am not a crafty person either, but there are such simple crafts that I can even do on there. (Case in point: see pics). I love it!