Valentine's Day Crafts

Love is in the air! It is all around and it is almost Valentine’s Day. I am now married, but even when I was desperately single, I still loved Valentine’s Day. It is just such a sweet and romantic day, I adore it. In preparation for the special day, I have been looking for lots of great loved-filled craft ideas.

In this video the host makes an adorable bobby pin clip that looks like a bouquet of roses. List of things you will need are:

• white clay
• sculpy 3 in candy pink
• flat back pearls
• barret
• bobby pins
• felt in red and green
• heavy duty magnets
• scissors
• glue (hot glue gun)
• sequins for embellishments
• exacto knife, needle tool

All these items can be purchased at your local craft store, and all these items are quite inexpensive.  The result is absolutely adorable!  To me it looks like you will need to be a bit patient to make this, but the are just so cute.

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Valentine's Day Candy Craft

While I was looking online today I came across this cute video showing how to make edible Valentine’s Day crafts. I like the idea of a delicious bouquet of edible chocolates and candies. I was also thinking this is the perfect gift to give some of my favorite coworkers and friend. It is so cute and would be an adorable addition to a cubicle or office!

To make the gift, you truly do not need to have a lot of money or supplies on hand. Most of the supplies are readily available at your local Dollar Store. Check out the video below and let us know your Valentine’s Day craft ideas!

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Valetine's Craft Ball

As Valentine’s Day is only a couple weeks away, I have been looking online for some cute Valentine’s Day crafts to make for the upcoming holiday!  Since I absolutely adore the holiday, I thought I would make some love-filled crafts!

This craft truly is so simple to make, and perfect for hanging up during the month of February. I love Valentine’s decorations, but refuse to spend a lot of money on them.  I mean, it is for one day after all and most of the year would be in the hall closet.  So, for this craft you will need the following items:

• Valetine’s Day themed cupcake cups.  Small or large size will work.
• Styrofoam ball
• hole puncher
• scissors
• glue stick & glue gun
• string

The video goes into detail on how to make these absolutely adorable Valentine’s Day craft!  I plan to go to the craft store later today and make these tonight.  I will post a follow up on how it turned out soon!  (p.s. I love the picture above of the beaded Valentine’s ball as well — so many ideas!)

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Spring Bee Card Craft

I just adore Spring time!  As Spring time is right around the corner, and feels like it is already here (it is in the 70′s today) I thought it would be fun to look up some simple Spring time crafts to make with the kiddos.

I found this video that shows how to make Spring Bee cards.  I think this is so cute and perfect for a simple afternoon craft.  You will need the following supplies to make this adorable kid’s craft:

• Colored paper (blue, green, red, yellow, white)
• 2 googly eyes
• black marker
• glue
• scissors

It really is simple, you pretty much fold and cut some paper, use some glue and you have an awfully adorable Spring time craft! I think this one too because I can see my kids getting quite creative and making some interesting shapes and features, other than just some bees and flowers!  Here is the video that shows step by step instructions down below:

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Japanese Sakura Tree

This is a great video about how to paint a basic Japanese Sakura Tree.  The Japanese Sakura tree is absolutely beautiful.  Almost magical if you ask me.  I think I know what I’ll be doing the rest of the afternoon!

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Turn students into recycling heroes this back-to-school season

(ARA) – With back-to-school season back again, now is a great time to instill a simple message your child will benefit from in the years to come: green is good.

By implementing a few recycling tactics across your home and encouraging the same behaviors in the classroom, you can turn your student into a green “hero” and help her embrace earth-friendly habits. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, only 30 percent of consumer waste is recycled each year. This presents a great opportunity for children to use their green thumbs and take part in saving the planet.

Here are a few ways to get your children started:

1. Give paper some TLC
Paper accounts for as much as 50 percent of landfill space. Rather than add to this waste, implement a designated paper recycling bin that can be easily accessed where you tend to use paper most in the home or in the classroom. Or, better still, put your paper products to good use by challenging your kids or students to create paper craft projects. Then encourage them to recycle any scraps when finished.

2. Get crafty
In addition to paper products, all kinds of waste can be “upcycled” into useful or decorative items. For example, a painted egg carton can make a unique storage box for small objects like beads or paper clips and tissue paper glued to a clean spaghetti sauce jar makes for an attractive vase. The possibilities are endless, so you’ll not only be saving trash from a landfill, you’ll be inspiring creativity.

3. Better together
Recycling is often more effective when multiple people take part. Teachers can set a goal for their classroom, school or even individual students to recycle a specified amount of paper, plastics, aluminum and glass before the end of the school year. Parents can support this effort by encouraging children to not only recycle at home, but to also take recyclable materials into the classroom to participate in the school’s project.

4. Adopt a program
Encouraging your children to take part in a recycling-focused program can develop valuable habits while encouraging some fun. One such program is the Elmer’s Glue Crew Recycling Program, a classroom resource designed to teach children how they can help save the planet, gives recycling-related lesson plans as well as fun and engaging projects for their students. Throughout the year, the classroom or school collects empty glue bottles and glue sticks to be recycled through TerraCycle. For additional information on the Elmer’s program, visit ElmersGlueCrew.com and Facebook.com/GlueCrew.

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Creative and affordable ways to personalize school supplies

(ARA) – The classroom has always been a place where children and young adults can show and grow their styles and creative spirits. There are easy, inexpensive ways to showcase that style and make the school year more exciting. From pens to notebooks and lockers to lunchboxes, students can add their personal flair to everyday items.

Book bags, pencils and pens – even calculators and rulers provide a palette for creative expression. A new and inexpensive way to add flair and creativity to ordinary book covers, plain notebooks and dull folders is to use Duck Tape brand duct tape Sheets. The sheets are available in a variety of colors including blue, white, red, silver, black, green, purple and yellow. For students who really want to stand out, sheets also come in prints, such as zebra, leopard, camouflage and tie-dye.

Here are ways to add a touch of personalization to school supplies and other belongings using duct tape or other household crafting tools:

* Jazz up notebooks and folders with different colors or prints for each class to make them quick and easy to find when grabbing supplies from your book bag or locker.

* Personalize a pencil case, lunch box or book bag with your name so they don’t get lost in the shuffle.

* Make a duct tape wallet or purse and tuck your lunch money in a safe place.

* Use stencils to trace letters and add the name of each class or subject to make finding the correct book easy.

* Create fun artwork out of duct tape shapes and designs to decorate the insides of lockers.

* Accent personal belongings, such as cell phone cases, clothing and more.

* Make and decorate picture frames for lockers to hang pictures of favorite school memories.

The school bells of a new school year also mean it’s time for fall sporting events. Students can be the biggest fan in the stands at pep rallies and games. They can show their school spirit by making pennants, flags, megaphones and even T-shirts. Visit DuckBrand.com for crafting instructions using Duck Tape Sheets.

Heading back to school gives students, from elementary to high school, the opportunity to develop and show off their own style and personality with a unique twist on traditional school supplies.

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Fun ways to encourage learning beyond the classroom

(ARA) – The back-to-school season is more than just shopping for classroom supplies and new clothes. It also means supporting your kids’ education by making an effort to promote learning outside of school hours.

Exercising the brain doesn’t need to be reserved for homework or something boring that kids dread. With some creative ideas, you can encourage your children to have fun and the education will come naturally.

Smart idea 1: Scavenger hunt
A family scavenger hunt can make for a fun afternoon activity full of education and a bit of friendly competition. For smaller children, focusing on counting skills can be a good way to add education to the activity. Have them look for things like five red rocks, three yellow leaves and one penny. For older kids, make nature your inspiration and have them seek more specific items, such as a certain type of tree leaf, a specific flower or a bird feather from a popular local bird. Arm them with a nature book or diagram so they can learn about each item as they look for it.

The great thing about scavenger hunts is they can be done anywhere. Stay close to home and have the hunt in your neighborhood, head to your local nature center, or plan a special scavenger hunt on your next family vacation. You may even offer a prize for participants such as a book or a special item for school.

Smart idea 2: Board games
Recent research has acknowledged the significant benefits that board games have, not only on children’s cognitive development and their brain’s motor functions, but also on important life skills such as patience, cooperation, concentration, teamwork and perseverance.

Two fun games with educational benefits are Jungle Speed and Dixit. Jungle Speed is a fast and furious game of quick thinking and lightning fast reflexes. Think classic card games like Spoons or WAR, embellish the cards with abstract shapes and colors and add an exciting race element. The game will have kids involved in so much exciting, stimulating fun, they won’t even know they’re learning. Dixit is a unique game of storytelling through imagination and clues. Artistically designed cards tell a different story for every individual and put creativity to the test.

“We find that game play enhances many cognitive functions, including visual discrimination, visual span, visual processing speed, visual-motor integration and visual sustained attention,” says Jason Pine, president and founder of Sharp as a Tack. “It is astounding how much progress each student makes in terms of cognitive processing speed in just one session! You can see the transformation in their eyes and body language.”

Smart idea 3: Crafts that teach
Encouraging kids to be creative and use their imagination is a great way to have a blast while exercising that brain muscle. If your child has an interest in a certain type of art or craft, encourage him to explore it in his free time. From writing poetry to sketching flowers, you’ll be amazed to see their talent develop. Here are three fun educational crafting ideas:

* Make puppets and plan a puppet show. You can create your own storyline and characters or choose from a favorite play or movie. Put the show on for the neighbors or family.

* Make learning about nature fun by incorporating crafting. For example, pick up leaves that have dropped and create nature rubbings by putting the leaves between two pieces of paper and rubbing with crayon. Collages that feature natural treasures are always fun as well.

* Encourage kids to write in a daily journal and keep small mementos from their favorite activities. Each week go through the journal and add to a scrapbook that will serve as a great reminder of the school year.

From playing games to making crafts, with these fun activities, your kids will keep learning even after the school bell rings.

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Chinese Takeout Lantern

I recently stumbled upon this wonderful video of Shiho Masuda making Chinese takeout lanterns.  I love how simple and elegant these turn out.  I think even I, who is not a “crafty” type of person, could make these with ease.  This also seems like a good craft idea to make with kids.  It seems like the perfect vessel to let the creativity shine.  I also really want to try to make these as I think this would be the perfect addition to my next Chinese dinner-themed party.  A simple menu of dumplings, lettuce wraps, spring rolls and cocktails would suffice.  Check out the cute and short video below!

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Smalti Mosaic Cityscape "Where Hot Meets Cool" - Glascow, Scotland

Last year my sister and I took a Smalti Mosaics class together at the local art studio.  We had so much fun and I’ve been thinking about starting to make mosaics again.  The picture shown above is the amazing Smalti mosaic work of a very talented artist in Scotland.

Smalti is a mosaic material used for a variety of applications such as mosaic murals, table tops and panels.  It is perfect for using as borders around mirrors, picture frames, backsplashes, or even to surround fireplaces.  Mosaics add a richness and uniqueness to works of art and home decor like nothing else can.

A big bin of Smalti - how magical!!

The size of the Smalti pieces to be used in the art work is up to you!  Cutting Smalti is a unique process.  It cuts easily with high quality wheeled glass cutters. In the class my sister and I attended we used an oil pen to trace along where the cut was to be made.  After that was applied we used the handles of the cutters to squeeze and pop the tile to the shape desired.  It was a lot of fun and very simple! You can also use a traditional hammer to cut the Smalti if that is more your style.

If you’re looking for a great craft idea that translates into amazing home decor mosaics may be the right choice for you.  I would suggest looking for a local art class or doing some research online before starting.  After getting the fundamental basics making beautiful mosaics is a piece of cake – or should I say piece of Smalti glass.

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