DIY Paddle Fans

If you’ve ever been in the South in the summer, you’ve seen a paddle fan. Every picnic, potluck or summer concert will see these fans pulled out of hand bags and purses to cool off their owners. Most are decorated with business slogans and are pretty ugly indeed. But oh so handy. Create your own handy little fan with some pretty paper and popsicle sticks and keep yourself cool and stylish all summer long!

Things you’ll need:
Heavy cardstock – one sheet (or two sheets of medium weight cardstock)
Medium weight scrapbooking paper – two sheets
Spray glue
Scissors
Pencil
Scrap paper
Two wide popsicle sticks or wavy fan sticks
Craft glue

Things to do:
1. Fold your scrap paper in half and cut a trapezoid with rounded edges. You’ll want your fan to be roughly six inches at the top and 5 inches at the bottom. It should be about 6 inches tall.
2. Use this shape as a template and trace it onto the cardstock and scrapbook paper. Cut out all pieces.

3. Using the spray glue, layer the paper so that the cardstock is covered on both sides with scrapbook paper. Trim any spots where the paper did not line up all the way and smooth out any bubbles.
4. Spread a generous layer of craft glue onto each craft stick.


5. Center one on the stick so that half of it is on the paper and half hangs off to a handle. You want the handle to attach at the narrower end of the trapezoid.
6. Press the other stick over the first on the other side of the fan so that the handle line up. Press the sticks together and wipe away any excess glue. Place under some heavy books and allow the glue to dry before using.

Felt Chalk Roll

It’s summer, and in our house that means a lot of time spent outside at the park. And while my kids love the swings and slides as much as any other child, they are always game for some sidewalk art and often wish we’d brought some chalk along with us. Now we can with this handy little chalk roll. Similar to a crayon roll, this simple chalk pocket hold five sticks, just the right amount for an afternoon at the park!

Things you’ll need:
1 sheet of felt
2 feet of ribbon
Sewing pins
Sewing machine
Thread
Five sidewalk chalk sticks

Things to do:
1. Fold the sheet of felt up by a little more than a third.

2. Fold the ribbon in half and then tuck the folded end between the two layers of felt at one end, near the middle, pin in place.

3. Using more pins, mark off five pockets, evenly spaced, along the length of the felt.

4. Stitch in straight lines where each pin lies, from the top of the felt to the bottom, backstitching at the beginning and the end of each line.
5. Trim the threads and tuck the chalk into each pocket. Roll up and tie with a bow and you are ready to go!

Ribbon Scrap Flip Flops

I have a hard time tossing out those end pieces of ribbon that are left over from my various craft projects. So as a result, I have tons of almost empty ribbon spools in my ribbon box, just waiting for a project that requires only a few inches of ribbon. This flip-flop decoration project is the perfect way to use up all those ribbon ends, and to dress up those plain, boring old sandals (Hint! Little girls love these!)

Things you’ll need:
Ribbon, various colors
Flip-flops
Scissors
Pinking shears or fray check

Things to do:
1. Wrap the shank of the flip-flops a couple of times and then bring the ribbon up to the “V” and tie in a knot.


2. Cut ribbon into 5-6 inch lengths and tie in knots along the straps of the flip-flops, sliding them toward the “V” as you work so that they are densely packed together.

3. Once the straps are covered, trim all of the ribbon to ¾ of an inch with pinking shears or use scissors and a dab of fray check to stop the ribbon from unraveling.

Paper Bag Kite

This summer has been all about kites for my kids. They love kites of all kinds and can never, never have enough of them. This kite is a fast little project that the kids can decorate themselves. You can create as many as your kids can fly!

Things you’ll need:
Paper bag
Clear tape
Scissors
Sock yarn or kite string
Yarn needle

Things to do:
1. Trim the top of the bag to be even and cut the bottom off the kite to remove the seam. You’ll be left with a flat paper tube.

2. Let your kids decorate the bag as they please. The more colors the better!

3. Find the side with the seam up the middle and cut up the center of the tube near the seam.


4. In the center of the flaps, layer three pieces of tape, one over the other.

5. Cut a 2-foot length of yarn.
6. Thread the yarn onto the yarn needle and pierce through the tape about 1/3 of an inch from the edge of the paper. Tie a tight knot.

7. Repeat with the other end of the yarn on the other flap.

8. Find the center of the yarn and tie a loop. This will be where you attach the long piece of string to fly the kite.
9. Tape 10-14 inch long sections of string into the bottom corners of the flaps for tails.

10. Add extra string at the loop and let her fly!

Kool-Aid Play Dough

We love homemade play dough at our house and generally have several colors available in the art cupboard at any given time, but I’m always frustrated when it comes to making the colors vibrant and bright without having to add a ton of food coloring. Then I discovered the wonders of Kool-Aid. It should come as no surprise (remember when people dyed their hair with Kool-Aid?) that this ubiquitous summer drink would make an excellent colorant, and, as a bonus, it gives the dough a nice scent as well. Perfect for some escape the sun inside playtime this summer!

Things you’ll need:
1 cup flour + ½ cup flour
2 tbsp cream of tartar
1 tbsp vegetable oil
½ cup kosher salt
1 cup boiling water
2 packages of Kool-Aid

Things to do:
1. In a large bowl, mix 1 cup flour, Kool-Aid, salt and cream of tartar.

2. Pour in the boiling water and oil and mix until well combined.

3. Turn our onto a floured board and work in enough of the remaining flour to give you a smooth, elastic dough.

DIY Chalk Paint!

Now that summer is here, it’s all about sidewalk chalk in our neighborhood and along with the traditional stick, chalk paint has been a much hankered after art supply. But rather than buying chalk paint, we’ve been getting a little extra mileage out of this activity by making our own. *Hint, this is a perfect recipe for budding cooks to try! Super easy, very inexpensive and practically no fail!

Things you’ll need:
Corn starch
Food coloring
Water
Muffin tray

Things to do:
1. Put 2-3 tablespoons of cornstarch in each section of the muffin tin and add enough water to make a thin paste.


2. Add a few drops of food coloring (this is a great time to experiment with color mixing!) and stir.

3. Paint away!

Upcyling: Colorful Candlesticks

With the warmer weather here to stay, a little does of fun is due in the house, brighter colors, softer lines, more fun all around. And these bright and peppy candlesticks are the perfect example. Look for old brass candlesticks in charity shops and at garage sales for the best deals and choose fun, summer shades of paint. Remember you can always paint them a different color come fall, so don’t hold back!

Things you’ll need:
Brass Candlesticks
Spray Paint
Newspaper or cardboard to cover your work surface

Things to do:
1. Clean any old wax off of the candlesticks and wipe them down with warm, soapy water to remove any oil from the surface. Allow them to dry.


2. On a covered work surface, spray all sides of the candlesticks with thin coats of paint. Allow coats to dry, turn and continue spraying until the entire candlestick is well coated with paint. Let the paint cure overnight before use.

Shirred T-shirt Cover Up

Summer is here and in my family, that means just one thing, pool time. But while most of the members of my family are content to wrap a towel around them on the way to or from the poolside, we have a little girl who is a little more particular. She needs a DRESS, thank you very much. SO it’s a good thing I whipped up one of these shirred shirts as a cover up. Look for a t-shirt that hangs down to your child’s knees but isn’t too enormous in the neck and shoulders for the best fit. A larger child’s shirt will work better than an adult one for young children.

Things you’ll need:
Old t-shirt
Elastic Thread
Thread
Scissors
Ruler
Pencil
Sewing Machine

Things to do:
1. Lay your shirt out on a flat surface, and, with the ruler, draw a line just under the armpits across the front and back of the shirt. (Or find a striped shirt and choose the stripe closest to the armpits.

2. Hand wind your bobbin with the elastic thread, keeping the tension fairly tight as you wind. Load the bobbin as normal.
3. With your machine on it’s longest stitch length and a straight stitch, sew along the marked line all the way around the shirt, backstitching at each end.

4. Trim the threads and move the foot of the sewing machine ¼ inch down. Repeat step 3. Continue to sew around the shirt with your rows ¼ inch apart, until you have stitched about two inches of fabric and the waist has drawn in enough for your child. The closer the rows are together and the more there are of them, the more cinched the waist will be.

5. If your sleeves are too loose, you can also add a few rows of stitching about ½ inch from the edge to gather them as well.

Egg Crate Succulent Garden

This pretty little tabletop garden brings a little green and cool indoors on these hot afternoons. Look for large egg crates that hold several dozen eggs at the grocery store or keep an eye out for the porcelain version for a more permanent display.

Things you’ll need:
Large style egg crate
Small succulents
Decorative rocks

Things to do:
1. Tease apart the roots of the succulents so that you have a smaller root ball.
2. Fill roughly ¾ of the egg indentations ½ way up with soil and nestle a succulent into each, filling in more soil as needed
3. Add decorative stones to the remaining indentations and lightly water all of the plants. Do not water again until the soil is completely dry and then only sparingly.

Upcycling: Silver Cup Succulent Garden

If you are anything like me, you’re always on the lookout for pretty little things at yard sales and charity shops. Lately I’ve been picking up a lot of small silver and pewter cups, bowls and doodads and this week I put them to use by turning them into a small, indoor succulent garden. Think of it as a terrarium without a bowl. Succulents are excellent indoor plants because they require very little attention and come in many shapes and sizes. When looking for plant specimens, choose a variety that will give you height, structure and interest.

Things you’ll need:
Silver eggcups, port glasses and cups
Succulents – small in size but several varieties
Potting soil
Spoon

Things to do:
1. Gently work apart plants and pull out their root balls.

2. Fill the bottom of each vessel with a small amount of soil.
3. Press individual plants into smaller spaces or group a few plants in larger cups and add enough soil to cover the roots. Press the plats firmly into their new homes.

4. Sprinkle the soil with a small amount of water. Allow the soil to dry before watering again.
5. Group the planters as a centerpiece or in a window for an unusual little indoor garden.

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