39 Valentine gifts to make and give.

I’m a bit in two minds about Valentine’s Day. Some of me sits on the “It’s a created day that is all about retailers and spending money” and the other side of me feels it’s great to be reminded to tell the people we love….that we love them in a more intentional way.

This year I feel more of the second…. hence the post….. but have tried to make it a little more creative (rather than spendy) because self created things almost always* help communicate the love better.

Ideas For Creative Dates

1. Ice skating date in a Jar. Image from The Gunny Sack.

2. Hot Chocolate in a Jar (stay in) Date. Image from the Wintrop Chronicles.

3. Spar in a Jar. Image from The Gunny Sack.

Super Lovey- Dovey

4. 52 things I love about you in a jar. Image from The Gunny Sack.

5. Love Potion No. 9. Image from Shaken Together Life.

6. A little envelope of notes for your loved one. Image from Oh hello friend.

7. Sharpie Mug. Image Sister’s Suitcase.

For the Kids

8. Love Lead pencils. Image from The Gunny Sack.

9. Robot Valentine’s. Image from Lisa Storms.

10. Monster Pencils. Image by the 36th Avenue.

11. Don’t ever change…. Image from Jac & Lyn Murphy.

12. Burst My Bubble Valentine’s. Image from The Gunny Sack.

13. I’m Bananas for you and You’re Grrrrrreat. Image from Lisa Storm.

14. Arrow pencils and printables. Image from Design. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

15. Origami Heart Wrapped lolly Pop. Image A Kiss Of Colour.

Ideas to Bake

16. Nutella Love Letter Pancakes. Image by Kitchen Simplicity.

17. Sparkly Cookies. Image from The Gunny Sack.

18. Valentine snack mix. Image by Glorious Treats.

19. The Nutella/Espresso cup cake.Image from mandy Ash Craft.

20. Valentine’s cookies. Image Wedding Chicks.

21. Heart shaped pies. Image Babble.

22. Red Velvet Cupcakes in a Jar. Image My Baking Addiction.

23. Strawberry and Cream scones. Image Sanae Ishida.

Countdowns to Valentine’s Day (or count on….) 

24. The Valentine tree. Image from Simple as that blog.

25. Cute countdown. Image by Dear lizzy.

26. Bit late for this year….. A countdown to the day. Image from THe House Of Smiths.

27. 14 acts of love. Image from Make and takes.

28. Countdown to kisses. Image from the Olds family

29. DIY printable calendar. Image from Paige of Style.

30. Just one of the activities in the 14 days of love. Image from Pink Pistachio.

Cards

31. I love you this much. Image from Day in my life.

32. Sewn hearts card. Image from The creative Place.

33. Birthday candle card. Image from Real Simple.

Everything else.

34. Mini polaroid Magnets. Image from Ambrosia Girl.

35. Valentines “fortune’ cookies”. Image from Design. Wash.Rinse. Repeat.

36. Message in a bottle. Image from Oh hello friend.

37. Wall heart. Image Oleander and Palm.

38. Washi banner. Image: Fancy Little Things.

39. Printable PDF. Image from The girl creative.

* Yes if you have asked for something specifically ….or have been promised something and you receive a sweet handmade gift, you won’t feel the love!

Facebook Friday

 

Sushi Go by Phil Walker-Harding

A new friend of our family has been designing games for a while now.

Here is a great opportunity for you to help get the next game up and going….and get some awesome Christmas gifts along the way.

My endorsement: We have played Archeology and Dungeon Raiders and are fabulous family games which take up very little space! The video for this one looks excellent. Ally

Click on the Sushi and go straight through to how you can help. Thanks…… and stay tuned. I think a giveaway of Dungeon Raiders would go down nicely very soon.

The other half of a GIANT list of fete and fair tutorials and printables…. (Part 2)

Oh, I bet you thought this was never coming!

You can find the first half of the giant list of fete and fair tutorials and printables here, along with the criteria I used to decide on what was included and what I left out.

If you still want more ideas you can see some past items we have made (although not all have accompanying tutorials)

Enjoy.

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1. The Scrapbooking Jar by Crate Paper Blog
2.  Chalkboard Serving Platter by Wit and Whistle.
3. Knitted Snake by Purl Bee 
4.  Paper Fortune Cookies by design wash rinse repeat.
5.  Pebble Mat by Junk Hippie 
6.  Clay bird ornament by JessicaJane Handmade.
7.  Owl cushion by button bird designs.
8.  Pillowcase shopping bag by Grow Mama.
9.  Mouse Ornaments by Family Fun 
10. Crocheted Washcloths by Purl Bee 
11. Monster Bags by harrysdesk 
12.  Pram cards by The Pleated Poppy
13.  Salt dough Christmas Ornaments by Oleander and Palm 
14. Rice filled heating Owls for children by Just another Hang Up.
15.  Beaded Heart Wand by First Palette
16. Circle Zip Earbud Pouch by dog under my desk
17.  Tea Bag gift Tag by The Studio Of Mae.
18. Cardboard Horses by Design Sponge
19. Mooshy Belly Bunny by Chez Beeper Bebe 
20. Felt Crowns by hellobee
21. Easy Drawstring Bag by Purl Bee 
22. Recycled Book Bird Decoration by Under the Table and Dreaming
23. Present Cards by Craft and Creativity
24. Babies Triange Dress by Purl Bee 
25. Monster Slime by all things simple 
26. DIY ice cream sundae box by family bits.
27. Monster bibs by stubbornly crafty.
28. Cloud and rain mobile by dailylike recipe?
29. Bunting by the yvestown blog.
30. Lunchsacks by All people quilt.

Enjoy….and let me know if you think you might make anything.

Half a GIANT list of fete and fair tutorials and printables.. (Part 1)

Often we are keen to help with school or church fetes but are not sure where to start.

So, I have put together a giant list of fete and fair tutorials from around the blogging world.

So many clever people out there!

For me…. what makes a great craft to make for a fete or fair, is one that is inexpensive to make and buy , fun, quick to make, fairly easy to put together, and something people would want to hand there money over for.

All the images below are by the original tutorial writers. If you want to try one… just click on the creators name and it will take you straight there.

Stay tuned for the next instalment.

Let me know what you think.

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1.  Bunting Cards (tiny party invite) by The Pleated Poppy.
2.  Tissue Paper Pom Poms by diy Wedding 
3.  DIY sugar body scrub by Craftiness is not an option.
4.  Waterproof shower caps by Smashed Peas and Carrots.
5.  Felt Tissue Pouches by My Growing Home
6.  Simple Shopping Bags by The Purl Bee
7.  House pillows by Craft and Creativity.
8.  Beaded Heart Wand by First Palette.
9.  3D Owl printables by Craft and Creativity.
10.  Any colour chalk board paint by Salt Tree.
11.  Angel placecard by Allsorts.
12.  Covered Mouse pads by Coming Home To Roost.
13.  Fairies in a Jar by Organised Chaos.
14.  Paper Decoration Star by Craft and Creativity.
15.  Button Thumbtacks by FellowFellow 
16. Reindeer Gift Tag Printable by Eatdrinkchic.
17. Knitted Mini Stockings by Little Cotton Rabbits.
18.  Edible Teabag Cookie (Gluten Dairy and Sugar free)  by Whatever’s left 
19.  Wooden Fork Dolls by Craft and Creativity.
20.  Spray Painted Animals on lids by Pysselbolaget
21.  Fabric Covered Lights by Rebeccasdiy.
22.  Time for tea Soap by Cumbersome. 
23.  Owl iphone case by handmade. 
24.  Tea bag gift Tag by the studio of Mae 
25.  Monogram bags by zszywka
26.  Plush Monsters by Blueberry Moon.
27.  Plush Penguin by Purl Bee.
28.  Felt ball garland by The SoHo
29. Lavender Satchels by Purl Bee 
30. Chalk Paint Cheese Tray by Wit & Whistle

Mad Science Party….. thanks to the internet and some very generous geeks.

The gorgeous birthday girl with the jelly cake that did work. Photos by the lovely Charles Francis.

Our excitable 6 year old enjoyed a crazy mad science party a few weeks ago now.

When she suggested the idea I was a little out of my depth….. not having enjoyed science that much through school…. so I did what I do best and searched the internet for party ideas. Tim also had the great insight to ask some family friends of ours to help with the activities. They are a family full of crazy, fun, sciency folk and they did a marvellous job of entertaining and exciting the masses.

Because I was so thankful to all the people out there in cyber space posting their great ideas for me to use ….I thought  would put all the links together in one post for you to use and steal and enjoy.

Another free invite by Smilebox

 The invite was made using the excellent Smilebox. So easy , and so free!

Playing with IT…. the slimy stuff.

Norfolk Kids have a great recipe for custard powder gooey slimy stuff!

The super geeks preparing the rocket for launching.

The water rocket was a great hit with the Dad’s and the kids.

The Aquapod bottle launcher could quickly become a family favourite. The launcher is safe and with just a bike pump and water sends the rocket about 100m in the air.

….. a little palaeontology anyone?

Wack with a hammer to reveal a dinosaur inside. A hit!

…similar ideas at Kids Activities Suite 101.

Marbled fingernail painting….

…a little something like this.

6 year old in her scrubs playing with ‘squishy circuits’.

‘Squishy Circuits’ are the brainchild of AnnMarie Thomas. See her TED talk here. These are super cool!!

Yes, it’s an old faithful….pass the parcel. The treats inside included ‘Smarties’ and ‘Nerds’ and crystal stickers.

No link here. I adapted this game all by myself.

Even when we really had no idea what we were doing we looked the part in our lab coats. These came courtesy of the high school our friend works at. They had authentic chemical stains.

Making ice-cream to eat with our birthday ‘cake’….which was actually jelly. BIrthday girls looks a bit sceptical about this one.

We jiggled and wiggled to science music making our ice cream. You can find the recipe here.

….ooops just realised that you all have seen this outfit before on a different birthday girl. Yes the girls do borrow each others clothes.

And speaking of food…..

An exploding (not really) jelly cake.

Made this one up too after the disaster of the ‘molecule cake’ 

Inside the test tubes was a jelly snake, and it’s hard to see but the jelly was layered lime aqua and pink.

A very cool and easy way to layer jelly. The link is down but you can see from the images here how to do it. All you need is a muffin tray.

It doesn’t show fully in the photo but these drinks were colour layered….it’s all to do with sugar content.

I found this cool idea at the sisters cafe. It also works in a larger jug.

A little difficult to see….. ‘Build a molecule’ tray of round food and toothpicks. Also little specimen cups full of jelly.

The ‘build a molecule’ idea came from Come together Kids. This blog has lots more ideas re:science party.

Balloons and flower balls as party favours. If you look closely you can see the water has H20 labels.

I have talked and made these tissue paper balls before. The instructions can be found at Martha Stewart (I couldn’t do a party without her) and the idea for re-labelling the bottles of water from Kara’s party ideas. As you could imagine ….there are lots more ideas for different parties to be found here.

Last of all 13 year old and I made bunting of real chemical elements (with a few made up ones).

Were you aware the R is the element Random and Da is the element Daring?

…… not to leave out science fiction …… see chemical element Et……

The idea for the bunting came from Apartment Therapy.

6 year old in excellent company…… mad scientist together.

I used the image of Einstein from the invitations…… then photographer 6 year old doing the same face. After a short fiddle with the colours in photo shop….. we had our bunting.

How do you start putting together ideas for a themed party?

What are the best ones you have ever hosted or been too and why?

Idea of the Day: Printable Paper Planes.

Printable Paper Planes by Canon's Creative Park.

Another great download.

Idea of the Day: Folded Goldfish.

Print and fold fish by Canon Creative Park.

Gotta love origami as a quite non-messy craft.

21 Handmade Wrapping and Decoration Ideas…. with tutorials.

Wrapping:

1. Button Cards by Martha Stewart.

2. Downloadable Gift Tags by hello, Good Gravy.

3. Paint Chip Wrapping by D sharp.

4. Pop Up Christmas Cards by Martha Stewart.

5. Nature Packaging by Justina Blakeney.

6. Stitched Wrapping Paper by Redefining Creativity.

7. Fabric Giftwrap by Chewing The Cud.

8. Recycled Fruity Packaging by Tokketok.

9. Threaded Christmas Cards by Bleach Black.

Decorations:

10. Paper Bauble Garland by Kidspot.

11. Filled Baubles by Country Living.

12. Felt Doves by Elsie Marley.

13. Photo blocks via Screen Print Blog.

14. Pomanders via Ohdeedoh.

15. "You mean the world to me" Ornaments by Maya Made.

16. Wire and Twine Star Garland by The Handmade Home.

17. Paper Christmas Tree Ornament by Elsie Marley.

18. Chalkboard Wineglass Tutorial by Just short of crazy.

19. The Gumdrop Garland by Martha Stewart.

20. Lego ornaments by Chris McVeigh via Ohdeedoh.

21. Christmas Tree Mobile by Not Martha.

17 Handmade Gift Ideas for Babies + Teachers……with Tutorials.

Babies:

1. Paint Chip Mobile by Kirsty.

2. Washcloths by Martha Stewart.

3. Printed Scrap Ribbon Tags by Lil Blue Boo.

4. Catch-all Baby Bib by Make-It and Love-It.

5. Vinyl Tablecloth Change Mat by Lil Blue Boo.

Teachers gifts:

6. Homemade Herb Soap by Henry Happened.

7. Wallet that turns into a Tote via How About Orange.

8. Hot Cold Rice Bag by Make It and Love It.

9. Felt Magnets via Everything Etsy.

10. Bath Fizzies by Martha Stewart.

11. Printable Lollie Wrappers by Fun.kyti.me

12. Time For Tea Soap by Cucumbersome.

13. Japanese Motif Soaps by Martha Stewart.

14. Cake In A Jar by Cakies.

15. Chocolate Fudge by Martha Stewart.

16. Subway art by Lil Blue Boo.

17. Printable Soap Wrappers by Fun.kyti.me

34 Handmade Gift for Little Boys + Little Girls….. with Tutorials

Ideas for Little Girls 

1. Upcycled Knit Pom Hair Accessories by Lil Blue Boo.

2. Puffy Bead Bracelets by Running With Glitter.

3. Non Slip Hair Bows by Make It and Love It.

4. Little Girl Romper by Make It and love It.

5. Braided Headband by Skip To My Lou.

6. Bonsai Tree Applique by Lil Blue Boo.

7. Lazy Days Skirt by Oliver and S (download).

8. Black Apple Dolls by Martha Stewart.

Ideas for Little Boys 

9. Upcycled : Shirt to shorts by Saltwater Kids.

10. 'Gak' by Make It and Love It.

11. Picture Matching Word Cards by Canon.

12. I Spy Bag by Make It and Love It.

13. Boys Shorts with Cargo Pockets by Craft Passion.

14. Upcycled Fused Plastic Belt by Lil Blue Boo.

15. Green Robot Stenciled T-shirt. by Lil Blue Boo.

Little Kids 

16. Personalised Memory Game by Momtastic.

17. A frame play tent by My Cakies.

18. Alphabet Wall Art by The Handmade Home.

19. Owl And Elephant Collages by Martha Stewart.

20. Kids size Ironing Boards by Duo Fiberworks

21. Rolling Pin Stamps by Redefining Creativity.

22. Nesting Dolls by the ETSY blog

23. Stick Horse by Light Blue Grey.

24. Felt Cookie Presents/Playfood by Redefining Creativity.

25. A Matching Game (Tutorial and Download) by Lil Blue Boo.

26. No Sew Pennant Banner by Place To Bloom.

27. Libray Totes by Noodle Head.

28. Dr Suess Activity Blocks by Sugar Bee Crafts.

29. Painted Block Puzzle by Momtastic.

30. Window Garland by Noodle head.

31. Accidental Painting by Lil Blue Boo.

32a. Thrifty Fort Building Kit by Saltwater Kids.

32b. Fort Building Kit ( all packed up) by Saltwater Kids.

33. Birthday (or Picnic) in a Suitcase by Funky Time.

34. Fabric Dollhouse (or Barn) by UK lass in US.