Before all the paint companies come after me for hoarding their swatches, let me just say this is an accumulation of supplies over at least 5 years. Why do I have so many? Well, I looooove color and playing with multiple variations in paintings and other projects. Anything that has to do with pantone is super swanky in my book. I think using magazine cut-outs with alternative patterns could be equally as cool too!
I love art glass. My favorite artists are Lino Tagliapietra and Steven Main… and Mya, of course. But since she’s not getting near a 2000 degree kiln anytime soon, we went a safer, way less expensive direction. I call this little activity “Chihuly on the Cheap” because this is the closest craft to resemble art glass that you can do with a toddler.
This is by far the easiest little activity you will ever do in your life. Mya loves a good glow stick dance party, so we added a few more ingredients to make a glow jar.
After living in our home for almost four years, I’m finally getting our master bedroom put together. It’s not complete (not that I ever will think it will be!), but one of the items on the to-do list was printing and framing some pictures. After browsing through old phone pics, printing at Costco, and some at-home framing tactics, it turned out pretty shnazy. Here’s how we did it!
Everyone familiar with the movie “Tangled” (ie Rapunzel)? Ok, good. Well, when Mya woke up to her “heart attack” on Valentines’ Day, she claimed the “mean lady” came into her room and put the hearts there. Because in “Tangled”, the “mean lady” steals baby Rupunzel from her MamaDada when everyone is sleeping. So yeah, I don’t think the toothfairy’s going to go over very well.
The original plan was to have a bunch of “blue lizards”– currently some of Mya’s imaginary friends, along with a lion that has stinky armpits. But as it turned out, cutting irregular shapes out of thick poster board isn’t a walk in the park! So we cut out some hearts, slapped some painters’ tape to the back and underwent super stealth mode to place them in her room Friday night. (more…)
I can't say I'm much of a reader otherwise, but I love kid books. Bonus points go to rhyming and beautiful illustrations. Here are some of my favorite lovey dovey books…
Am I the only one that wants it to snow a boatload? I just want to get out and play in some snow! But I digress… “Salad spinner paintings” are exactly what you think. We put paint in a salad spinner and let it do its magic. Yup, we’re getting pretty desperate creative over here. Some of it turned into finger painting, but still fun!
You know you’re old when you google “storage bins” and get excited by the results. I love me some sexy storage baskets, but I have some pretty specific requirements: they have to be soft, sturdy, cost efficient, and not smell bad. Have you ever smelled some wicker baskets? No thank you. Since we mainly use these in our living room to hide little play things, I also look for bins that have some adult sophistication. Just because they’re filled with whoopie cushions, nerf darts, dollies, and harmonicas… the baskets can create the facade that we still possess some savvy style.
Valentine’s Day is less than a month away. Call me a sap, but I’ve always liked this holiday– not because of the stereotypical chocolates and vibrant reds, but because it’s a nice reminder to give more love. And it’s usually low key. Besides making heart-shaped pizzas together, Derek and I usually don’t do a whole lot to speak of. And that’s alright with me. These heart themed happy things make me smile. (And you can find even more on our Heart Day Pinterest board.) You could easily use the designs of 2, 9, or 10 on some homemade valentines. I haven’t mastered the delicate pancake stylings of 5, but wouldn’t it be cool if I could?! In any case, I hope the images give you some warm fuzzies.
Recently, Mya hasn’t wanted to leave the house. “Stay home” is her most common demand. The cold weather makes it pretty easy to stay in and play, but we’ve been “forced” to do more small projects to prevent cabin fever. One of those projects was making crayon hearts. It might be a bit too early to think about Heart Day, but we made some Valentines’ anyway. Plus, they don’t have to be for any special occasion– just for everyday play.
We finally took the Pinterest plunge. "What is that?" you may ask. We got with the times and joined Pinterest. I thought it would totally be a time-sucker. And it was initially.…
As Derek’s mentioned, I thoroughly enjoy decorating for the holidays. But what I don’t enjoy is having a bunch of stuff in storage that is only used for one month out of the year. So, our look for the holidays leans towards the minimalist side of style. Here are two tricks we used this year… and some gingerbread house eating building fun.
