DIY: Paint-With-Water Pages {Tutorial}

If you're a crafty mom like me, you probably already have all the supplies on-hand to create quick and easy paint-with-water pages for your kiddos. All it takes is a Sharpie marker, watercolor pencils and some absorbent white paper (watercolor paper, bristol or thicker construction paper work well). Since I've been busy with the new baby, our art time has been limited to whatever I can quickly whip up on the fly, and this project perfectly fits the requirements of fast, easy, FUN and little-to-no clean up.



First start with some basic doodles and drawings (and ignore the fact that mine are kind of sloppy - I was doodling on my lap while trying to feed the little guy!), and then go back and outline the drawings with a thick border of watercolor pencil. For small shapes the border of color should be sufficient, but a light shading of the entire area works better for larger objects.



Give the kids a bit of water and a paintbrush, and let them have at it!



If your kids love to send cards and letters like mine do, these paintings are perfect for cutting out the individual shapes to accent homemade greeting cards!

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The Newbie

9/13/10, 2:31 p.m. * 6 lbs 14 oz * 19 inches

He's here! I wanted to introduce you all to the newest member of our family, Simon Harrison. We'll be crafting and blogging a bit less in the coming weeks, I'm sure, as we're quite busy at the moment, but don't worry - I already have a list of holiday projects to start working on, so I'm sure we'll be back to normal soon! This little guy has been mellow and great so far, and we're so in love! ♥

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Bubble Painting {Tutorial}

The boys and I were looking for something new and fun to do on a particularly windy and overcast morning this past week. I was finishing up the breakfast dishes and remembered that bubble painting with dish soap was on our project to-do list, and I figured it would be the perfect day for it.



The first thing I did (beside gathering up my eager project testers and covering them up in painting aprons) was to cover my countertop - we like to use shower curtains from the dollar store because they clean up nicely, they are reusable, and they are a bit thicker than your typical plastic tablecloth. I also put a couple of paper towels underneath each kiddo, because this project has some seriously messy potential!


Supplies needed: Dish soap, paint (we used washable tempera paint), cups, straws and paper. We used white construction paper, but watercolor paper would be especially good if you have some handy.

Pretty! Mix half a cup of water with a generous squirt of both dish soap and paint. Make sure you keep an eye on little ones who might want to drink through the straws. All of the ingredients we used were non-toxic, but I'm sure that a mouthful of paint-and-soap-water wouldn't be too much fun!

Let the kids go crazy blowing mountains of colored bubbles - they can consider this their payback for all the times you've told them not to blow bubbles in their milk!

Really talented kids can even blow multiple cups of bubbles at the same time ;)

Lay your sheet of paper over the top of the bubbles to create the imprint.

Repeat over and over and over again with different colored bubbles until you come up with something like this:

Love it! We actually didn't stop here, and we created something else out of all of our bubble paintings...a birthday present for a special someone...so, we'll share Phase Two in a bit after the recipient has gotten their gift! :)

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Budget Design: $2 Cake Stand {Tutorial}

I've been eyeing cake stands for awhile now, but I just couldn't justify spending $30 on something that I don't actually need. Actually, I'm pretty sure that I do have the need to make my baked goods look pretty, but I still didn't want to part with my hard earned money! Crafty and thrifty inspiration can strike at any time, however - this time it was at the dollar store!


I saw these two pieces of glass, and I knew that they were meant to be joined together in a lifetime of happiness!


I wasn't too keen on the clear glass look, so I started with a few coats of spray paint. I only painted the underneath side of the plate, not only so that you can still see the plate texture on the finished cake stand, but also because I'm a little paranoid about how food-safe a spray painted finish might be.


I originally was going to use E-6000 glue to join the pieces together, but both myself and Home Depot were all out, so the hubby grabbed this Amazing Goop instead. It worked great, but be sure to use it in a well ventilated area! Let it cure for 24 hours...I also hit mine up with one last coat of spray paint to finish it off.

Easy peasy and cute as can be! Now my cakes, cookies and muffins can be properly displayed without breaking the bank!

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