More Glitter on Our Alphabet Blocks Tutorial

I've already posted a little tutorial on our Alphabet Block Ornaments we did for my Kid's Christmas Craft Party, using their school pictures.

Today we'll look at some of the glitter on them for our mini glitter tutorial.

Here are the two kinds of kids' blocks we started with. The classic but smaller natural wood with raised letters and line art; and the newer, bigger Circo colorful ones. The big set from Target is about $15 and is more suitable to the some of size kids' wallet school pics come in these days. But they're glossy and all glues and paints were trickier to stick. The smaller retro style has more charm IMO, tho and is only about $5.

At the top of the post I show the number 5 done in a pale green fringy glitter that is super cute. A basic rule is the larger the glitter, the larger the area and the less detail. Use a basic white craft glue like Elmer's to write or fill the area to be glittered. Sprinkle and shake off the excess. Paper plates make a great catch to recycle from. Definitely assist young children when using any of the "pour" or "sprinkle" glitters. :-) Most sides of that large block were covered in craft paper cut into squares, then decorated with glitter. In addition to sprinkle glitter on the number of the age of the child, we sprinkled the year. The edges or rims were accented using glitter glue pens.

 The "C" on this classic small block is so much cuter, don't you think? I used my opaque acrylic craft paint to change it's color as well as cover most of the flat sides. The 2011 was done with a silver glitter glue pen.

In the above photo you can see the pink 2011 and the green rim on the lower block were done with the glitter glue pens also. It's easy for both adults and kids to glob, but for these projects I think it makes it more endearing. Aim for slow and steady pressure. Have a toothpick and tiny bits of paper towel rolled up to dab and move and basically straighten your work if you desire perfection. I tried to let my kids to as much as they wanted to on the big ones, and my mom and I decorated the little ones after the party.

 The "2011" on this block was done with tiny silver glitter sprinkled into white craft glue numbers. The "J" also and both were first painted. All glitter projects have to be carefully wrapped and protected while being packed away if, in this case, you're doing Christmas ornaments.

Glitter Glue & Glitter Paint Tutorial

Happy New Year!!

Today we'll take a look at glitter! A mini glitter tutorial on the various types of glitter available at the craft stores. Working with glitter is so exciting for kids (and adults) but can create quite a mess in a hurry.

We'll recap one of our ornament projects from our 2011 Kids' Christmas Craft Party - the station for painting wooden ornaments:

I had an assortment of thin wood Christmas ornaments for the kids to choose from. The supplies included acrylic paint, glitter paint, glitter glue pens, "real," "pour," or "regular" glitter, brushes, water cups and paper towels.

Glitter in all forms takes enormous amounts of time to dry, so plan accordingly, whether you're working on something yourself or a craft gathering.

Glitter paint. This medium is fairly new to me. Thinner than the glitter pens and easier, naturally, to get more surface area coverage. But it's a very translucent paint that primarily delivers glitter to the object. So for some we chose to paint the wood first with acrylic craft paint. This gives the desired opaque look and dries quickly.

(note: I prefer using opaque crafter's acrylics for little projects. Cheaper than my "artist's" acrylics but you can still mix to get your desired color. For group kid projects I like acrylics in these little bucket rows. No mixing trays needed and they're easy to share and pass around.)
Once the acrylic has dried, brush a second coat using glitter paint. The candy canes shown here are an example of these steps. You can see the areas where we painted the glitter coat on top:

The two green wreaths were done entirely with glitter paints. I applied the paint quite thick to achieve more color coverage, yet you still see the natural wood right through. I also swirled the green paint and brushed the pink and turquoise paint into the pattern of bows - the thicker areas show up darker. As you can see below the glitter paint dries flat.

Glitter glue comes in many forms: pens, squeeze bottles, tubes, sticks, etc. Pens are easy to hold and direct. Some new brands claim to retain a bit of roundedness when dry ... but take thicker takes even longer to dry. They are prone to globbing, but often the globby messes can be 'pushed' back into place or partially removed.

The glitter glue pens along with sprinkle glitter I'll continue in part 2 next time!

(added to original post)

I think the great ladies in crafting heaven invented glitter glue and glitter paint just for moms!! I don't recommend regular/sprinkle glitter for kids under 6. Maybe even 8. Depends on their dexterity. Glitter paint is the easiest form of glitter for little ones to control. They love the pens, but be ready for drips and blobs. But, these are washable!! Tables, chairs, clothes and floors can be easily washed.

If you've braved sprinkle glitter with wee ones, when you're done I recommend stepping outside for some active play! :-) Let them loose – dance, jump, run – to get all the glitter out. Clean the floor with a wet paper towel.

New Year's Prayer for 2012

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 15:13 (NIV)

Desserts for New Years Parties!

Here are two of my favorite New Year's Party desserts:

Spell out "2012" in chocolate turtles!

(visit the link for a complete tutorial and recipe for these assorted nuts, caramel & chocolate turtles!)

Flourless Chocolate Cake with "2012" medallion on top

It's hard for me to post these in time for others to do before the New Years parties ... so this year I'm trying to do better with these reminders of previous years. Desserts around here generally involve lots of dark chocolate, but this year medallion style could be done on any kind of cake. Enjoy!!

Wishing You a Blessed Christmas!

Celebrate Jesus!

Kids Christmas Craft Party - Dipped Pretzels and Alphabet Block Ornaments

I hosted my 2nd Annual Kids Christmas Craft Party yesterday! It was so much fun! There were about a dozen moms and 25 kids, ages 3-9. They painted, beaded, freeze danced and pretty much ran wild for 2 hours. :-) I simplified things a bit from last year and organized just three craft areas. The main project was alphabet block ornaments using their kids' school pics:

I made my samples up a few days earlier to practice and the ladies did SO good making their own and I totally forgot to take pictures!! We used both the big ones from Circo and the smaller classic wood alphabet blocks. I had loads of paints - acrylic and glitter; decoupage, glitter glue, sprinkle glitter, cut out paper squares and they all chose their own colors and which sides of the blocks to cover or let show:

Cut your child's picture the size of one panel and glue/decoupage on first. Then frame it in glitter glue and decorate the remaining sides as you please. I kept one side showing with their initial. Then papered or painted the remaining sides and wrote on their age one one and "2011" on the other. Screw a cup or eye hook into the top, add a ribbon and it's ready to gift or hang on your Christmas tree!

The second craft was assorted wood ornaments to paint and glitter - wreaths, angels, candy canes and bells. The third station was at the kitchen island making beaded candy cane ornaments. I had little colored bags to write their names on and tuck their finished projects in to take home. Drink bottles were available with their names on for ease of keeping track:

And every guest left with a chocolate and/or almond bark dipped pretzel rod:

with a Merry Christmas note from the kids:

Notes: Use a cooling rack as a drying rack since all things glitter take a LONG time to dry. Have some paper plates for the ladies to carry the still wet projects home on.

Christmas Star Napkin Rings

Grab a few simple crafts from your supply closet for this easy way to dress up your Christmas table:

Red napkin rings, craft wire, colored glass beads and star charms:

Happy Christmas entertaining!

Gift Card Holders for Teacher Christmas Gifts

Time for teacher Christmas gifts! 

In the past I've done these gift card holders - paper boxes:

This year my kids' teachers will get their gift card in an up-cycled mint tin...

... freshly washed and decorated by my kids! I wanted the kids to be more involved with the gift, while still giving the teachers the "choose something for yourself" benefit of the gift cards. We traced and cut out from Christmas crafting paper 3 rectangles with rounded corners. These are for the cover and each inside. Before we glued them in place, my kids wrote the "to" and "from" and a little note.

Add gift cards & ribbons! Easy project for the kids!

Christmas Votive Place Setting

An easy Christmas place setting for your holiday entertaining:

These simple glass votives have an easy ridge on which to wrap a little paper strip that you print a Christmas message on:

 Pop in a classic white ball ornament tied with a satin ribbon:

Decorate Railing Post For Christmas

My stairwell landing post in my last house - decorated for Christmas:

Using gold pine cone, ribbon and jingle bell accents to dress up some fresh ever green boughs:

A handmade paper ribbon "Celebrate His Birth" in gold on green is the focus of this decor:

Christmas Greens Centerpiece

Decorate an old paint can and add your Christmas tree trimmings!

I printed "Celebrate the birth of Jesus" on frosted white paper and wrapped it around a small paint can. Add water and some extra evergreen boughs. Accent with a large velvet wired ribbon for the finishing touch!

Thankful for God's Grace

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

 Amazing Grace - how sweet the sound!! 2 color choices for a new painting of mine.

In honor of Black Friday and Cyber Monday and all that jazz, I'm offer a 20% off coupon good on any order from my Etsy shop. Enter "SAVE20" to get the discount - good through Monday!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with family and loved ones!!

Christmas Blessings Gift Tags or Labels Free Download

As you crafty ladies get an early jump on your Christmas crafts and gifts, I'm offering a free download of a classic Christmas Blessings gift tag or label. Share the blessing of CHRISTmas with these mini cards:

(download free label)

I used a Christmas scripture from Luke 2:11 "For unto you is born ...a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." You may download these and use as you wish!

(download free label)

There are three color choices. Tuck them inside your bills or upcoming correspondence to share the Joy of Christmas!! Print on cardstock and punch a hole to string your ribbon through to decorate a cute canister or gift box. Or print on glossy label paper to adorn homemade candle jars. Pass them out to busy store clerks as you're Christmas shopping.

(download free label)

Enjoy!!!

Thank You Veterans!!!!!

 Thank you to our veterans on this Veterans Day!!

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High 
   will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, 
   my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will save you
   from the fowler’s snare
   and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers,
   and under his wings you will find refuge;
   his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night,
   nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
   nor the plague that destroys at midday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
   ten thousand at your right hand,
   but it will not come near you.
You will only observe with your eyes
   and see the punishment of the wicked.

 If you say, “The LORD is my refuge,”
   and you make the Most High your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
   no disaster will come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning you
   to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in their hands,
   so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
   you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue him;
   I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
   I will be with him in trouble,
   I will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him
   and show him my salvation.”

Psalm 91 (NIV)

Simple Pumpkin Fall Centerpiece

Our favorite blue green pumpkin from our farmer's market outing takes center stage in a very simple tablescape for fall:

Our wood and metal platter from Blessings Unlimited is usually on a stand in a decorative grouping above our fireplace. But the pressed tin has a great cool tone to go with the cool sage of this pumpkin and the rich purple of a skinny eggplant. Altogether it makes a simple, yet stylish centerpiece as we decorate for fall.

Anyone know what our sage pumpkin is really called?