Sneak Peek

I've been working on something this past week that is just too adorable not to share! I won't actually be revealing the entire project until March 1st (to coincide with its magazine release!), but in the meantime here's a little sneak peek at what I've been calling my "cutest. project. ever."

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Tips & Tricks: Green Onions

Here's a handy tip that I learned a few months ago (I want to say that I read it in Natural Home & Garden magazine, but I honestly can't remember where I first saw it). Did you know that you can extend the life of store bought green onions so that one single bunch will last for months? 

These green onions that I purchased back in November are still bright, green and tasty! All you have to do is place the bulb end into a container of fresh water and keep it somewhere sunny. You can keep snipping off the tops and they will continue to grow back over and over again. I change the water in my mason jar about once a week, and they're still going strong after all these weeks. I have no idea how long they are actually supposed to last, but these don't seem like they're going to stop growing any time soon - super cheap and easy peasy!  

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Kids Art: Watercolor Winter Trees

Sutton and I discovered a fantastic blog the other day, Art Projects for Kids, and he was especially intrigued by their winter birch trees paintings. We decided to try it out for ourselves this morning, and though our results aren't quite as pretty as the inspiration they were still really fun to make. Sutton was especially keen on getting to use salt in a painting project since we've never really done that before.

First, tape down your paper around the edges. Use torn strips of tape to create the silhouettes of tree trunks and branches. Our trees were a little less birch-like and a little more free form. We used blue painters tape and watercolor paper as suggested, but I found that the tape really stuck to the paper, so that might not actually be the best combination.

Use dark blue watercolor to paint over the entire sheet of paper.

While the paint is still wet, shake on some big pieces of kosher salt. We also used a few shakes of regular table salt because someone was having way too much fun with all that salt shaking. I'm not sure what happened, but instead of turning white and absorbing the watercolor, the salted spots on our painting turned bright pink...which was also cool, but not exactly what we were originally going for.

Peel off the tape and shake off all the salt. Go back with your watercolor paint and add some lines to your trees for detail and definition. You can also shade and shadow your trees, but since our tape let a lot of paint leak underneath we didn't really need to. You can also add white details to the snow/stars (aka the salty spots).

I'd like to try this again using contact paper instead of blue tape. I think it might also be nicer with watered down tempera paint and bristol instead of the watercolor paper. We had much more success using those materials when we created "S" initial artwork last year. Still lots of fun, however, and the kids always love the "big reveal" when you finally pull off the masking and unveil their masterpiece!

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Art Armoire: A Craigslist Makeover

I'm in the middle of transforming my office back into a craft room/office and reorganizing all of my supplies, but in order to make some more room for MY craft stuff I needed to clear out some of the boys' art supplies from my office closet. I knew that I wanted to put them somewhere close at-hand so that we can whip up projects at a moment's notice, but I couldn't figure out exactly where that magical place was supposed to exist in my already jam packed cupboards and closets. Luckily I've had my eye on Craigslist for awhile, and when I spotted this fantastic wood armoire for a steal of a deal, I snatched it up with big dreams of blissfully separated supplies.

This is what it looked like before the transformation. It was set up to house a television, so the back was open and it was lacking shelf space. Luckily for me, my hubby is a handy guy ;)

He started out by adding a new solid backing and a couple of custom sized shelves. I made sure that I left ample room for all of our paints up on the top shelf since I don't really want the kids taking those kinds of messes out on their own.

Then he faced the shelves with some matching cherry trim and added a center piece for both support and aesthetics. (Make sure you compliment your handy guy and tell him how amazing he looks wielding that nail gun!). As you can see, I was anxious to start stocking the armoire, so I started by putting some of our puzzles and homeschool "jobs" on the bottom shelves.

Now stock this bad boy with everything you've got! Okay, honestly, it didn't fit ALL of my kids' supplies, but it did fit all of the most frequently used goodies. What can I say? We have a lot of art stuff.

It's kind of hard to see, but this baby has some deeeep shelving. I was able to stock a few items (like the liquid watercolors in the yellow buckets) two or three deep to conserve even more space. If you want to be totally OCD awesome like me, pick up a Label Maker
and start labelling everything!

One of the best tips I have for organizing kids' supplies is to use a silverware caddy or divided basket to keep all of the basics in one place. We use a metal silverware tub that I picked up on clearance after Halloween - my boys think the skull motif is super cool - and it helps keep their markers, pencils, scissors, and glue all quickly accessible.

I used the bottom shelves for games and homeschool work that will be able to be changed out and rotated on a regular basis. It's amazing how much more appealing these things are to the kids when they're easy to see and get to!

All closed up and put away out of sight! Now I can focus on reclaiming my own art closet space...more to come!

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Review: Champion Me Books

This year for Hanukkah, my boys received these AWESOME personalized books from Champion Me Books. We've had personalized books made before, but they usually feel like all of the personalized info was plugged into a fill-in-the-blank form, and the stories have been pretty lackluster. With Champion Me Books, not only do you get to add personalized information, but you actually get to personalize the way the character looks, right down to their clothing!

These books are incredible and SO entertaining! Sawyer got "Sawyer vs. the Scribble Monster," and it has quickly become one of our favorite stories to read. It is packed full of creativity, adventure and hilarious antics that are totally 100% Sawyer.

Of course, his most favorite page is the one where he's zipping away from the scribble monster on his skateboard!

"Sutton in Gadgetland" is also a new favorite of ours. It follows Doc Sutton as he fixes up all sorts of gadgets and machines, and turns into quite the adventure when he discovers a shape shifting Gizmo with a sneezing problem!

Honestly, I cannot recommend Champion Me Books enough! Their quality is excellent with clear graphics and text, and the paper is heavy weight and glossy. My boys love starring in their very own book, and I was thrilled to discover that the books were both funny, engaging and interesting. With personalized book choices that are appropriate for girls and boys of all ages, there is sure to be something that your child will fall in love with!

Disclaimer: I was provided with one Champion Me book to review; however, I purchased the other book on my own, and all opinions expressed are 100% mine!

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Crazy Owl Valentines

I love this idea for a cute and easy sugar-free Valentine's treat! I picked up some crazy straws from the dollar store and created these sweet little cards with some of my favorite Print Candee papers and graphics. Check out my post over on their blog for the list of what I used!

 

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Simple Fabric Organization

There's nothing I like better than a pretty rainbow of color, especially when that rainbow is part of a bigger organization plan. I found this idea on Pinterest (naturally!), and I knew it was something I needed to do immediately to tackle my overwhelming and haphazard pile of fabric that was overtaking my craft area. I created mini bolts of fabric by wrapping the fabric around these Comic Book Boards - they fit near perfectly if you fold the fabric in half from selvage to selvege and then in half again. Then just roll the length of fabric around the board - easy peasy and uniformly organized for easy rainbow storage!

Isn't that pretty? Granted, it's only a percentage of my fabric, so the entire rainbow won't end up fitting in a single drawer or shelf, but I just had to take a picture of how lovely it looked at the halfway point!

Happy organizing!

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Miss Me?

Hi everyone! I've been busy attacking my usual New Year's resolution of getting better organized, so there has been a whole lot of rearranging going on around here. I've got a ton of stuff to share with y'all, but first I've got to get a couple more things (or piles of things!) reorganized and put away! I'll be back in a few days with a couple of fast and easy organizing tips as well as some cute Valentine's ideas. Stay tuned!

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2012 Blog Facelift

It's that time of year again - time for resolutions, renewed inspiration, and motivation. Time to start anew with a fresh clean slate. Time for change...specifically, a makeover, blog style.

I loved my blog design last year, but as it got more cluttered with sponsors and featured badges I switched back to a 2-column format and moved a lot of the buttons to their very own page. It made things a lot easier to read, but suddenly my blog looked pretty drab with all those colors missing. So, for 2012 I decided to add a little bit of color (and by "little bit" I clearly mean "a ginormous amount").

I purchased a pre-made banner and button from Sara Rubendall, and I LOVE it! Sara's designs are super cute and way more budget friendly than getting another custom makeover, though the pre-made format ensures that I'm not the only blog out there in Blogland that has this same header layout. I'm not worried. Then I googled a few tutorials on how to finish my blog makeover by myself, and I added the new yellow background made from Print Candee digital paper, some new fonts and new colors and played around for awhile. I still have a few minor changes to make, but I'm pretty happy with it...and who wouldn't be happy with all that colorful cheer around!

What do you think? Do you like it? Hope you're having a fantastic start to 2012!

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Sacramento Parent Magazine: Family Memory Match Game

My latest Sacramento Parent magazine article is arriving on news stands as I type this, and it's just as exciting for me the second time around! If you're not local or you just can't wait to pick up your printed copy, head on over to Sacramento Parent's website and check out the online version right now. As always, it was a pleasure to work with their wonderful staff, and I am honored to have been a part of the January issue!

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Cultural Exchange Package: South Carolina

A few months ago we signed up for Little Red Farm's cultural exchange. We mailed packages of goodies and information representing California/USA to people from England, France, Nigeria, Australia and USA (East Coast), and in return we will receive a package from each of them.

In between all the holiday madness and sickness (Simon is slowly trying to recover from the stomach flu and an ear infection), I completely forgot to take pictures of the packages that we sent - oops! They included a USA map jigsaw puzzle, postcards from northern California, California state information and coloring pages, eagle and flag stickers and die cut shapes, crazy straws (just because my boys can't get enough of them!), lip balm in patriotic packaging, pencils and a few sweets. Each box was slightly varied to suit the number of children in the family. We can't wait for the recipients to get their packages!

The first package that we received was from a sweet family in South Carolina who shared some of their local customs and traditions with us.

The package was wrapped in the South Carolina state flag (made from a plastic tablecloth and white paper). How cute is that!?

It contained: a postcard, South Carolina state shaped cookie cutter, SC pencils, SC roadmap, SC popscicle stick puzzle, Confederate money, peanuts, cotton, a sand dollar, a plastic palmetto bug and a state flag dough ornament (that went straight up on the boys' Christmas tree!). There was also a nice letter from the family and some papers describing the items and their history.  

Sawyer was totally  excited about the map, and he spent a really long time trying to read all the different city names.

Sutton immediately dove into the bag of peanuts - they didn't last long!

They both took turns trying to put the puzzle together. It took them awhile, but they finally got it when they worked as a team!

Thank you so much for our package! We loved receiving such fun mail, and it was great to learn a bit about an area of the US that is so historically different than ours. If you're interested in participating in the next cultural exchange, Little Red Farm already has a link to sign up  for the 2012 exchange.

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Glittery Snow Playdough

We never get snow where we live...okay, maybe not NEVER, but I think it's happened about 3 times in the past 15 years. Since Sawyer is still on Winter Break from school he came up with the idea of making some Wintery white playdough to make "snowmen" with. I suggested adding some irridescent glitter (which was nearly impossible to photograph, even in sunlight), and we had a sure fire hit!

You can't really see it very well in the other pictures, but I swear there was a ton of shimmery glitter in the dough!

The recipe makes enough dough for my two big boys to share, but you might want to double it if you have a larger group of children.

* 1 cup flour

* 1/2 cup salt

* 1 cup water

* 1 tsp. oil

* 1 tsp. cream of tartar

* 2-3 tbsp. of ultra fine glitter

In a large saucepan, mix together the flour, salt and cream of tartar. Add the water and oil and stir until mixed well. Place on stove over medium heat, stirring constantly. After a few minutes it will cook down to playdough consistency. Allow to cool (cover with a damp cloth while cooling to avoid drying out), and then knead in the glitter one tablespoon at a time. 

We've had a lot of playdough and pajamas during this winter break!

We've also had a lot of knitting going on! We discovered the Clover Wonder Knitter, and the boys are hooked on how easy it is to quickly crank out long chains of knitting. Sawyer and I have each made a skinny scarf that loops around your neck four times to create the illusion of a larger cowl, and Sutton wants to try to make some finger puppets next!

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

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