Push Pin Love

Share a little love with your honey this Valentines Day with this fun and simple craft.

Things you’ll need:
Square canvas
Print out of the word LOVE, sized to fit on your canvas
Pencil
Pushpins

Things to do:
1. Hold the print out up to a window and trace the letters onto the backside of the paper in thick, firm lines
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2. Lay the paper onto the canvas, printed side up, and scribble over the letters to transfer them onto the canvas.
3. Using the pencil marks as a guide, push the pins into the canvas, overlapping each pin slightly, to create the letters. If you are worried about the pins falling you, you can choose to cut a piece of foam core to fit into the frame for added support.

Ribbon and Paper Retro Heart Ornament

This little last minute valentine has a lot going for it. It’s made of easily found materials, takes only a minute or two and has a fun, funky feel. Perfect for hanging on a door or hook to surprise your sweetheart and simple enough that you could make them by the dozen.

Things you’ll need:
Craft paper
Ribbon
Glue
Clothespins or binder clips
Scissors
Ruler

Things to do:
1. Cut two 12-inch long strips of paper that are twice as wide as your ribbon. Cut two 12-inch pieces of ribbon as well.

2. Fold both pieces of paper and one ribbon in half and layer them, being careful that the ribbon in centered, paper, ribbon, paper, at the fold. Add a dot of glue to each layer and fold them all in half, securing with a clothespin.




3. Pull the lower pieces of paper and the ribbons around and back to the fold to create a heart shape. Glue and re-secure with the clothespin.
4. Pull the outer layer of paper down to create a larger heart around the other. Glue and re-pin.

5. Fold the remaining piece of ribbon in half and slip the ends into the center of the heart with a drop of glue. Insert a second clothespin to secure the center.

6. Allow everything to dry and hang.

DIY Heart Envelope

Sometimes you just need a simple little love note for your someone special. Use this quick technique to write and package your note all in one!

Things you’ll need:
Scrapbook paper
Plain paper
Pencil
Scissors
Removable glue dots

Things to do:
1. Fold the plain paper in half and cut out a heart.

2. Using this as a template, trace your heart onto the scrapbooking paper.

3. Cut out the scrapbook paper heart.

4. Fold the side of the heart in about halfway through the “hump” of each side of the heart.

5. Turn the heart around and fold the top (the rounded side) up.

6. Fold the point of the heart down to form the envelop flap. Secure with a sticker or add a removable glue dot to make a resalable closure.

Felted Ball Wreath

This winter I’ve been doing a great deal of knitting. Lots of wool, lots of yarn, lots of projects. Which has left a lot of scrap yarn sitting at the bottom of my work basket. At the same time, my front door has been looking a little bland without my holiday wreath. So I decided to combine the two to create a simple and modern wreath using wool scraps and a simple felting technique.

Things you’ll need:
Flat wreath form
Ball of neutral colored yarn
Felted beads or balls
Hot glue gun and glue sticks

Things to do:
1. Start by creating at least 10 felted wool balls or beads of various sizes. You can find a detailed tutorial here.
2. Allow your felted beads to dry completely.
3. Tie a loop of yarn tightly around the edge of the wreath and start wrapping, keeping the yarn loops close together to block out the wreath form underneath.



4. Once the wreath is fully covered, arrange your beads to your liking along one side. Add more or less to create the look you are looking for and glue them down and to each other with small dots of hot glue.

5. Tie a loop of yarn around the wreath at the length needed for your door and tuck the ends into the back of the wreath under the loops. Hang and enjoy!

Upcycling: Coffee Can Bird Feeder

This simple little bird feeder is a perfect afternoon craft with the kids. While spray paint is the easiest way to decorate the can, with kids you can try using acrylic craft paint.

Things you’ll need:
Coffee can
Spray paint (or acrylic paint)
Jute twine
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Can opener
Scissors

Things to do:
1. Wash and dry the inside and outside of the coffee can.

2. Turn the can upside down and, using the can opener, remove the bottom from the coffee can. Be sure to file down the edges of each side so that you will not harm the birds.


3. Paint the outside of the can (several coats of spray paint or let the kids go crazy with paint!)
4. Cut the lid in half and glue each of the halves over the ends to create a basin for birdseed.

5. Thread the twine through the upper part of the can and tie over a tree.

Tile Coasters

With warm weather approaching, iced tea and coffee are going to quickly become staples in my house, and that also means that little wet rings will soon start appearing all over my tables, including my newly refinished coffee table. And we can’t have that, can we? To help keep the rings away I’m stocking my table with some custom made coasters, cheery and bright, just right for summer!

Things you’ll need:
Blank ceramic tiles
Lightweight fabric (quilting cottons are perfect!)
Hard Coat Modge Podge
Foam paintbrush
Clear glaze spray
Pinking shears
Felt
Scissors
Craft glue

Things to do:
1. Cut squares from your fabric ½ inch smaller than your tiles. Trim the edges with pinking shears.


2. Apply a thin coat of Modge Podge to the entire top surface of the tile and smooth the fabric square on, centering it so that an even amount of tile is showing all the way around the fabric. Allow the Modge Podge to dry before proceeding.

3. Brush an even, thin coat of Modge Podge over the entire top of the tile and allow it to dry.

4. Spray the surface with two thin coats of glazy to seal. Allow the glaze to dry between coats.
5. Cut a square of felt just a tad smaller than the tile and glue them to the bottom of each to protect your tabletops from scratches. Allow the glue to set before using.

Plastic Bag Pot

No matter how hard I try to use reusable bags at the grocery store, I still seem to end up with plastic bags filling up my junk drawers. This craft was inspired by all those bags-giving them a new life rather than sending them off to the garbage dump to sit for a zillion years. Because this deals with melting plastic it is not a great craft to do with children and should always be done in a well-ventilated workspace.

Things you’ll need:
Plastic bags cut into squares
Pot or glass to use as a form
One or two large rubber bands
Hairdryer

Things to do:
1. Start by wrapping two or three squares of bag over the end of the form and securing them with a rubber band.



2. Turn the hairdryer onto the hottest setting and hold it about 1 inch from the plastic for about 30 seconds. You’ll see the plastic start to melt and bond to itself. Work around the form until the entire surface has started to bond into shape. Remove the rubber band carefully.
3. Wrap a few more squares of plastic around the form to build up the sides. Repeat the melting process, this time keeping the heat on a little longer to help the layers bond to each other. Remove the rubber band and allow to cool before removing the form. The pot will be water tight and is perfect for seedlings and small plants or as a lightweight catchall.

Shirt Cuff Card

This simple Father’s Day card takes only a moment to create but looks stunning and is the perfect thing for the button down wearing dads in your life. Choose plain white buttons for a more conservative look or go wild with color for funkier style.

Things you’ll need:
Cardstock in blues, greys or other shirt-like colors
Scissors
Pen
Needle and thread
Buttons
Template

Things to do:
1. Using the template, cut out one shape for each card you want to make.

2. Write a message on the inside and Happy Fathers day on one end of the outside.
3. Fold (without creasing) so that the ends meet and stitch the buttons in place.

Layered Hands

This little project is operation handprint art for Father’s Day part two. A stack of family handprints all together. This captures that exact moment in the life of your family and is sure to be treasured for years to come.

Things you’ll need:
Cardstock or colored paper, one color per family member plus one more
Scissors
Pencil
Frame
Spray Adhesive

Things to do:
1. Trace each person’s right hand, fingers splayed. You might have to be sneaky to get daddy’s!

2. Carefully cut out each hand.


3. Layer the hands, largest to smallest and secure with a small amount of glue.
4. Glue the stacked hands to the remaining piece of paper. Add a date, your families name or a message to finish it off.

Handprint Heart

Can’t think of anything to give dad this Father’s Day? Both my dad and my husband are notoriously hard to shop for so most years I help the kids make a little something handmade for the guys in my life. And this year they are getting some Handprint themed art. Here’s part one of that project!

Things you’ll need:
Acrylic Paint (two or more colors)
Foam brushes
White or light cardstock
Fine point pen
Little hands

Things to do:
1. Wash and dry those little hands. You’ll need two hands per heart. If you have two kids whose hands are close in size, use one from each (one right, one left) for one heart. Otherwise, one heart per child works best.
2. Spread a thin layer of paint on one hand and press it down on the paper at an angle, fingers together.

3. Allow the handprint to dry and then layer the other hand on top to form a heart.

4. Once both prints are dry, add a message, either around the heart or at the bottom and frame.

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