Nations Advent Calendar

Here's a quick look at one of our favorite Advent traditions!  It is hand-crafted and contains 24 hand-stitched dolls from around the nations.  We take one out each day in the month of December and read the card attached to the day for the day to learn more about that particular people-group and pray over their needs.

Here is the site where you can get your own Advent calendar--it makes a special gift, too!

Fall Burlap Wreath

Here is a wreath I put together using the burlap remnants I had left over from this summer wreath project.  Since I only had enough burlap to cover about one-third of the front, I simply went into my stash and added fall foliage to creep up the sides and cover the exposed straw wreath!  I used another pre-fab chevron burlap bow (which also does double-duty for Christmas) from Michael's and wa-la!  A quick and easy fall wreath AND my scraps are used up!  Thanks for stopping by!

Halloween Wreath

Okay, I'll admit it--I am not the biggest fan of Halloween decor.  BUT I really enjoyed making this wreath with my oldest daughter this year!  She hand-beaded the spider (below) all by herself (love those small little hands that don't mind tedious work!) and we made short work of piecing this Stampin' Up kit together and hanging it up inside our house.

I love the movement of this central accordion medallion!  It swings on the orange ribbon provided in the kit!

Supplies: SU! Frightful Wreath kit

Stamp used: Michael's Halloween clear stamps (years ago), Black Stazon ink

Dining Room Table Runner

Breaking out the sewing machine today and upholstry fabric that I have had for 10 YEARS(!!) to make a runner for my dining room table!  This is fabric I've had left over when we recovered our chairs way-back-when and I am finally brave enough to make it happen!!

I literally folded the fabric I had in half (wrong sides together), cut it into points at either end, pinned, and sewed around it with matching thread.  Then, I turned it right-side out and top-stitched around the entire thing with my machine.  

An up-close view...

I couldn't be more pleased with the results!  I am glad I just went for it and didn't mess with measuring.  I might add tassels at either end using buttons later when the kids (and cat) get older and stop playing under the table!  We will see!

Vintage-Inspired Chalkboard Art: Christmas Mantle

 Before you go out and spend $$$ on a trendy (but-oh-so-beautiful) Christmas decor item for your mantle...WAIT!!  Here's a fast and easy DIY crafty project that can update your mantle in less than an hour! I had a BLAST whipping this out last night (although the hubs thought I was crazy at first LOL!), and I thought I'd take a minute to explain how I did it to help and inspire you, too!

Okay, what you need is a chalkboard--I simply unscrewed the chalkboard off of my littlest one's easel (this one) and popped it right off--love the fact that it already had the holes I needed for hanging!

Next, using this chalkboard printable for inspiration, I used white chalk to draw the sentiment onto the board (skinny side for most of the letters--wide side for "COME"). Then I added a bit of washable Crayola red paint over the "COME" letters.  Last, I outlined all the white cursive letters with a chalkboard marker to really make them POP.  Above you will see an up-close picture of the chalkboard--feel free to click on the image to see it larger and in greater detail!

  

To hang, I simply knotted a burlap ribbon through the holes in either corner of the chalkboard and strung it up on a removable Command hook.  Then, I added a wire-on prefab chevron burlap bow I snagged off of my fall wreath (bought at Michael's).

Here's the final look of the mantle, complete with a curtain rod which came out of my basement to hold the stockings--love that I can slide them down to add more when family comes into town for Christmas morning! 

I hope you enjoyed this Pinterest-inspired and FREE Christmas mantle update using your kids' craft items!  It was fun to put together and will be fun to enjoy all season long!

Father's Day Gift

Is it too late to post a project I did for Father's Day this year?  Well...I hope not!  This frame was made with the kids' help on a dime thanks to Michael's craft store!  The wooden frame was $1 and the "best Dad" wooden sentiment was just a bit more, already painted and embellished with a felted star--cute!  We simply painted the wooden frame yellow with some acrylic paint we had on hand, set the sentiment in the wet paint to dry/adhere to the front, added the blue cardstock stars (CM star punch on cutout setting used on cardstock scraps from my stash), and then embellished it with durables triangle studs (CTMH) for some added interest.  I just LOVE how it turned out...and how EASY it was!  I think he got a charge out of it and it sits by his bathroom sink to enjoy each day.  We love you dear!

Guest Blogger: Flower Pot Gift

Here's another great gift idea created by my sister MaryEllen Kiser!

Hi there! I wanted to share with you an easy craft that your kids can make for any gift at any time. Great for Dad's, teachers- you name it and it fits! We recently made this for my husband's birthday. Get a small flower pot and let your kids decorate it with foam stickers of any kind. Create a banner out of paper and attach it to a tongue depressor. Put a foam ball in the bottom to stick the tongue depressor into so that it will stay in place. Fill the pot with the favorite candy of the recipient. My girls also added a decorated foam book mark to the back of the pot. Easy, cute, and yummy! Fun for all!

Be Still Canvas Frame

 Last week was a bit of a crazy one!  We got the news that my Dad took a nasty fall and suffered a vertebral fracture, landing him in the trauma center flat on his back and awaiting extensive surgery.  Our family lifted up many prayers for his healing and comfort (and continue to do so), and yet, we also felt it hard to be so far away (he was several states away) and not be able to do something.  Well, that is where papercrafting came to the rescue!  We were not only able to send him cards (hand-drawn by the kids, papercrafted by me, and store-bought), but I was able to put together this little 4x4 canvas frame for his bedside!  

Let me tell you how I put it together (it was a quick and fun little project!).  I found the canvas in a frame from Michaels--it was on an endcap near their framing department with all the artistic canvases (they also sell a white frame version).  Then I picked out two black-and-cream patterned papers from my stash (a newsprint and a damask print from SU).  I cut the damask into a 4x4 square to fit the canvas and adhered it with Tombow permanent adhesive.  Then, I tore two corners from the newsprint paper, inked up the torn edges with Desert Sand ink (CTMH) and a sponge and adhered these down in the corners.  For the sentiment, I used one of my favorite stamps from CTMH, Be Still, stamped in black ink (Versamark) on colonial white cardstock.  I inked it up the colonial white cardstock with Desert Sand ink and matted it on Bamboo cardstock, then adhered it to the canvas.  Lastly, I used some metal cross embellishments (Michaels) popped up with 3D foam tape--you can see the dimension it provides in the next pictures...

I really love how it turned out!  It sits up using a little dowel rod/hole system (or it can be hung) and I pray it will be a source of encouragement for my Dad as he convalesces with family for the next several weeks!  I love when my passion for papercrafting can be used by God to bless and encourage others, especially those near-and-dear to my heart!  I hope you, too, can be a bright spot in someone's day with your craft, my friend!

Guest Blogger: Magnetic Chore Chart

Back again today with another inspiring and helpful project from my sister, MaryEllen Kiser!  I will let her tell you how she made this beautiful chore chart for her little ones...

I recently decided that my soon to be three year old's dawdling to get dressed in the morning needed to end and fast! So I started looking online for chore chart ideas that I could make that would hopefully get her motivated to move in the morning! This one that I made is actually a mixture of several I found. I got a cookie sheet from the dollar store and then used Modge Podge to attach scrapbook paper to the bottom of the cookie sheet. The glossy look makes it look a little more "artsy" and like something you would actually buy than just attaching the scrapbook paper with scrapbook adhesive but you could go that route if pressed for time or in order to simplify the process. In this example I used two different kinds of paper. One at the top for the "title" section and the other sheet for the rest of the chart. I liked the look of the contrasting paper and it helps to see the different headings. Next I found chore cards online that were applicable. I cut them out, glued them to scrapbook paper and slid them into plastic  badge holders that I bought at an office supply store. I then attached a magnet on the back which I found in the craft section at Walmart. What I love about using the plastic badge holders is that they are reusable! I can change out the chores at any time and still use the rest of my chore chart! LOVE that! I added some flower embellishments to the top that I made using a variety of punches that I have. I also created three headings on the chart, "To Do", "Lillian's Chore Chart" and "I Did It!". You can also Modge Podge ribbon along the edges of the cookie sheet if you want more decoration. I made a loop out of ribbon to hang it and attached it using E6000. I was able to create this during one nap and it was tons of fun as well! I am happy to report that the chart has really helped my sanity! My daughter loves moving the magnets from one side to the other throughout the day and all I have to do is move them back in the morning. She is proud of herself and so am I! Mission accomplished- pretty and practical!

Thanks MaryEllen for sharing this great project!  And there is my little niece, Lillian--isn't she adorable?  I hope you have a very creative weekend, my friend--see you next week!

Guest Post: Spring Papercrafting with MaryEllen

Hello friend!  Today we have a guest blogger, my sister, MaryEllen Kiser, who will share with us some beautiful spring-themed papercrafting artwork she has made to brighten and bless her home and family!  I will let her take it away from here to explain how she made these beauties!...

"For the Spring Sign I purchased the wooden sentiment from Oriental Trading Company. I chose patterned paper to use from my stash. I made sure that I used a variety of paper like a stripe, one that would read more as a solid, a large, bright floral, an argyle, polka dots, and a feminine floral. After selecting the paper, I found acrylic paint that would match the background of each piece of paper and I painted all the edges of the wooden Spring sentiment.  After letting that dry, I traced each letter onto the patterned paper and then used Modge Podge with a sponge brush to attach each pattern paper piece to the letter. After I let the Modge Podge dry I used some spring themed embellishments that I already had like sentiments and tags.  I made one of the flowers using a scalloped punch and attached it with foam onto a newsprint flower. I made another flower by stacking two different sized silk flowers together and attaching them with a yellow brad. The rest of the flowers that I used were premade. I messed up on the "P" and had a space showing between the letters so I used small premade flowers that had some "bling" already attached to them and I think it turned out really cute. Love that in crafting mistakes can make your piece look even better than you had originally anticipated! This project was super easy, inexpensive and fun! It shows up really well on my mantel and really cheers up my den!"

Here is another beautiful project that also serves her family around the dinner table...

"I have a pitcher that I love to display on my kitchen table and as much as I love to fill it with flowers, I just can't justify that expense on a regular basis. I was looking at it one day and realized that I could merge my idea of having meal conversation starters handy on the table and cute flowers! I went online and hunted for different kinds of dinner conversation starters and typed a list of the ones I liked. Some of them have spiritual significance and some are more simple opinions. Being a former middle school teacher, I saw kids on a regular basis who could not take part in a simple conversation and it is important to me that my children understand and practice this important skill. After coming up with all the conversation starters that I liked and some that I had made up myself,  I printed them out and cut them up into small strips. I hand made two different flower templates. One has more rounded flower petals and the other has longer, more narrow flower petals. I thought the two different shapes would make the bouquet more interesting. Once again I chose paper from my stash that goes with my décor--lots of earthy reds and yellows--paper that just makes me happy! I traced my flower templates and made sure that I was using a nice variety of paper. I didn't want to use more of one design and over power the entire bouquet.

To build the flowers, I punched out a center using different sized scallop punches (1" and 1 1/2")  that I have and rotated between a red center and a Kraft center. I then used adhesive to attach the sentiments to the flower. I tried to attach the sentiments off center to make the flowers look more interesting. I attached a green pipe cleaner to the back of each bud using basic tape. They were simple and fun to make and more importantly my girls enjoy choosing different flowers to talk about while we eat."

Wow!  Thanks MaryEllen!  Such a beautiful way to ring in Spring in your home AND to serve a wonderful purpose for your family around the dinner table!

Lollydoodle Display Tray

 Hi, back again with some crafty inspiration for you!  I had a super fun time putting this display tray together for my daughter's bedroom.  It adds some fun whimsy to her bedroom decor AND makes her feel special since it incorporates some recent pictures of her!  I simply cut 3x4 pieces of CTMH's Lollydoodle patterned paper to fit each cubby, and then added matching accents from their matching stickers and gem assortment.  The quotes along the right side are simply from the zipstrip on top of one of the papers. I double matted the 4x6 print in the top left corner with slate and cotton candy cardstock (all included in the paper pack!).

 My favorite detail is this paper rosette I made using a strip of the pink chevron patterned paper, a Martha Stewart border punch, and a circle punch (pear cardstock).

Supplies used (CTMH unless otherwise stated): Lollydoodle pattered paper pack, stickease, and gem assortment, burlap ribbon,7 gypsies printer's tray (Michaels), Marvy 1" circle punch, Martha Stewart dotted scalloped border punch

For more ideas of printer display trays, check out these previous posts here and here.  I love these things--they come together quickly and are SO visually interesting for your home.  They also make great gifts! Thanks for stopping by today--hope you have a creative one!

Prayer Wall

 I am always looking for TANGIBLE ways to teach my children more about the truth of God's Word and walking in faith and NOT by sight (truth is, tangible things help ME to grow and set my mind on the things above, and not on earthly things Colossians 3:1-2).  I have been contemplating making a Prayer Wall for our house for quite some time now and today was THE day to "get 'er done!"  What is a Prayer Wall, you might be wondering?  This is a place where we as a family can collect our prayer requests (could be written thoughts, pictures, etc) to establish what WE as a FAMILY are trusting God for in our lives.  While I have stalked Pinterest for some inspiration (and have a vision to make a cute shabby-chic frame enclosing chicken wire one day...) I decided to just jump in and use what I already had on hand (hello...can we say FREE?!).  For this project, I used a retired Creative Memories Display Frame (it is magnetic, which is handy, and it came with magnets, the ribbon, and matching clips), Post-It notes, and printed out a few images from our computer and backed them with black cardstock.

The title was stamped using CTMH's Framework alphabet using Cocoa ink on white cardstock and backed with Cocoa cardstock.  No frills, nothing fancy, just a VISUAL and TANGIBLE space where we can all collect our prayer requests!  My daughter had the idea of creating a space under it for answered prayers! Great idea, Natalie!  As you might notice, some of our requests are praises, simple requests (love the "don't get eaten by the alligator" request by my daughter...yes, we do have a gator out back in our lagoon), my upcoming 10K for Living Water, our Compassion child Joan, our family, countries we are praying for (India map/flag), and some are written in my oldest daughter's handwriting and others are written by me.  The biggest decision was where to hang it.  If you know me, you know I like clean and simple and NO visual clutter (as a general rule...the fridge is always an exception) so I knew I didn't want this in our everyday space (like our family room...besides, would YOU want every house guest to see what you all are praying for??).  However, I didn't want to tuck it away in some remote corner of the house so that no one would see it (like the laundry room or back hallway).  We finally decided on Mommy and Daddy's bedroom--a space we often all crash in in the late afternoon hours or on snuggly mornings.  We will see how this works and possibly expand it in the future!  Hope this helps to inspire you and yours as you teach your little ones to trust a BIG God for ALL the things in life!

Babycakes Framed Layout

Back again with another baby-themed project for you!  If you missed my post about baby cards, check it out here.  This layout uses the same color palette and patterned paper packet...Babycakes from CTMH...as the baby cards.  Love the grays and yellows with this one--very "on trend."  I used chocolate cardstock for the page, and then used various patterned papers and zip strips from the paper packet to compose the page. Then, I used butterfly punched embellishments (Martha Stewart) decorated with some bitty sparkles (CTMH) along the butterfly body and popped them up with glue dots.  Lastly, colonial white cardstock makes for a great photo mat.  I placed this layout in a black metal 12 x 12 scrapbook frame (Michaels) and gave it to a friend who just welcomed her 3rd baby!  Congrats Anna!  It will be a great keepsake for her to use with her favorite baby picture.  Scrapbooking and cardmaking is a GREAT way to give memorable and affordable gifts!  Try your hand at it next time you need to give a gift from the heart!  Blessings!

Babycakes Card Box and Notebook

Hello, my friend!  I have a few new projects to post...most recently this adorable little gift set that I made with the Babycakes CTMH paper packet.  It is really a baby-themed paper pack, but has a wonderfully neutral color palette with gray and brown and a bit of yellow and orange (trendy, too) that makes great year-round gifts and home decor projects!  For this project, I used the CTMH card box and covered it with the polka dot pattern from the Babycakes paper packet.

 I added sunset baker's twine (CTMH), Cork letters (CTMH clearance), and punched a monarch butterfly (Martha Stewart) which I popped up with glue dots and blinged up with some bitty adhesive gems (CTMH).

 Then, I covered this kraft notebook (Walmart) with the polka dot paper, twine and cork letters, too, and placed it inside the box.

 Here's a few detail shots of the butterfly, showing you some of the dimension of the butterfly wings and how intricate the punch is....just beautiful!

This little gift set will go to a friend and Bible study leader of mine who is battling cancer.  I have been encouraging her with cards throughout her journey, and now she will have a special place to put all the cards she receives from myself and others!  In addition, she can keep a gratitude journal or just log the items for which she needs to thank others for since I know the body of Christ has been ministering to her and her family's needs during this difficult trial.  I hope this gift set puts a smile on her face and encourages her in the home stretch of her chemo treatments!

Verse of the Week Chalkboard

Welcome back and Happy New Year!  I hope you enjoyed some time off and some R & R!  Just wanted to post this super cute vintage-inspired project I found at my local Kirklands Store.  It is this "Verse of the Week" chalkboard that I intend to use with my children for Scripture memory verses each week.  I simply strung it up with black striped grosgrain ribbon (CTMH), added some poster puddy behind the lower corners so it wouldn't swing (it is on a frequently used door to our laundry room) and voila--a perfectly pinnable little home decor piece!  Hope you enjoyed this little bit of inspiration!  Thanks for stopping by!

Isaac's Paper Pumpkin

My 5 year-old son brought home this adorable little paper pumpkin from preschool the other day.  He made it by gluing 5 paper circles together back-to-back and then sliding a brown pipe cleaner through the middle to form a stem.  How cute and easy!  I saw something similar on this post here from Brenda Rose.  Love this simple papercrafting decorating idea and thought you might, too :)
Thanks for stopping by, my friend!

Recipe Quick Album

 How are you organizing your favorite holiday recipes this year?  Are they all in one place, or do you find the need to hunt-and-peck (like a chicken with their head cut off) to find them each year?  Well, last year I rounded up all of our favorite family holiday recipes and placed them inside this cute little album from Creative Memories.  This particular album design has a strap that transforms the flat book into a little easeled display--how fun and functional!  Here is the introduction page--me with the three kiddos in the kitchen!

 There are recipes for Easter, birthdays, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas in here.  Below is a recipe for my Mother's Cornbread Stuffing and the page also includes a picture from one of our Thanksgiving dinners several years ago--so special!

 Hmmm....pumpkin pie....

 And a look at the Thanksgiving menu (below).  I include holiday menus throughout the book even though they vary a bit year to year, just to give me a basis to work from.  Again...helpful to have this put together for me ahead of time!

All patterned papers, recipe cards, stickers, and accents were part of the Recipe Quick Album kit from Creative Memories--so sad they are not in business anymore to be offering these!  But if you are interested, they might be on sites like Ebay.  Hope you are able to round up your family's favorite recipes this year and have them all in one place.  This makes for stress-free holiday meal planning, but it also provides such a wonderful keepsake for generations to come!

Giving Thanks Box

 Just wanted to share with you today an adorable little box that helps my family and me express gratitude this time of year.  This was a club project designed by Lisa Stenz a few years ago--check out this post to see her version of it.  For my version, I used the cornucopia image from the Harvet Home stamp set (CTMH, retired) stamped in black Stazon ink and colored it in with watercolor pencils and a blending pen. 

Let me explain how this box works.  We keep this beautiful box displayed in our kitchen and pass it around the dinner table in the evening during our meal together.  Inside it contains corn kernels and each of us takes out however many kernels we'd like.  We count them up and then share THAT number of things we are especially thankful for that day.  It is fun to do, especially for the kids!  The instructions are beautifully displayed inside the box lid, and the corn kernels tuck inside the orange tissue paper.

Supplies used: chocolate striped grosgrain ribbon, Dreamin' paper pack (CTMH, retired),  my creations card box (CTMH), foundry pewter mini medley accents (CTMH), preprinted Giving Thanks title and instructions (Lisa Stenz)

Hope you and your family can incorporate a creative way to express thanks and gratitude this harvest season!  Thanks for stopping by!

Jesse Tree

 Today I wanted to post about one of my family's favorite Christmas traditions...the Jesse Tree.  I find that most people have never heard of a Jesse Tree, so I'd love to share about it with you because it is very special for us and might be for your family, too, this year!  We use the Jesse tree during our morning devotional time throughout the month of December, and it helps prepare us for Christmas Day and the celebration of Christ's birth.

What is a Jesse Tree?  Well, in it's purest form, it is a tree that depicts in visual form the geneology of Christ (the "root" of Jesse), starting from Creation and Adam up through Christ's birth.  However, my familiy has adapted it a bit to include some other favorite and familiar Old Testament (OT) Bible stories such as Jonah, for example, who is NOT part of Christ's lineage.  You know, Christ did not just appear on Christmas morning--we see Jesus starting in the first chapter of Genesis as God states: "Let us make man in our own image" (Gen 1:26).  From Creation, we see that God has been preparing the way for Christ's birth that would come thousands of years later.

Our Jesse Tree has evolved from several sticks secured in a tin can with rocks and paper ornaments....

to a greenery tree (Michael's) and felt ornaments like the one pictured at the top of this post.  I received this felt set last year as a gift from my parents, but I have seen many on etsy.com or you can make your own!  In fact one year, we were moving in the month of December and didn't have a true Jesse tree--instead, we had a box of ornament cards that taught through the Jesse Tree and we were able to take this with us on the road!  Check out this previous post to check out that box.  So the beauty is it is as basic or as fancy as you want to make it.  The point is teaching CHRIST through ALL of His Word!
Here's how it works...each morning, starting on December 1st, we do a short devotional about that day's particular ornament and Bible story.  Most of these stories are familiar OT stories and are found in most children's storybook Bibles--so even little ones can follow along with the story and pictures.  Then, after our devotional time, we hang the day's ornament on the tree (we keep the tree on a kitchen countertop or in the center of our table) and we watch the tree fill up with ornaments thoughout the month.  On December 24th, we hang the last ornament and read the Christmas story when Christ is born--that day's ornament is Baby Jesus in the manger.
There are many websites with Jesse Tree daily devotionals.  I have used this site for years for the devotionals and have paired it with the printable ornaments from this site.  Last year we switched to this red booklet that came with our felt ornament set.

 

The kids and I have truly enjoyed doing the Jesse Tree during the month of December.  We learn a lot of the OT in such a condensed period of time--it serves as a fabulous OT review and also prepares our hearts and minds to focus on the REAL reason for the season....Jesus Christ!  I hope this post has been helpful to you and yours!  May you have a blessed Christmas this year, and as always, thanks for stopping by!

Tommy Picture Frames

Greetings!  Hope your summer is well underway and you are enjoying it!  I have been enjoying a bit of summer with the Tommy paper pack (CTMH)--you can check out my patriotic card projects which use this paper packet here--but for these frames I used the paper for it's nautical theme.  These picture frames will be given to my family when we meet up with everyone at the beach next week!  I love how they are all similiar, yet a bit different, as they use different papers and colors.

 

Each features a rosette with a little bit of interest in the middle from the Tommy assortment or the canvas complement stickers.  Love that little pennant flag!

And a little bit of Outdoor Denim chevron ribbon finishes these two out...LOVE!

Hope you can enjoy some water fun this summer where you are!  Thanks for stopping in!