Mini Top Hat Headband

My sweet little girl is turning 5 in March and because I got an awesome new Canon camera for Christmas, I wanted to try my hand at photographing her. She is obsessed with rainbows right now, so I put together a rainbow outfit. The dress came from The Lucky Princess. Adding a mini top hat makes a cute photo prop and accessory. The bow is removable. You can also use it for a costume or just for your little girl to play dress-up with. I used tomato cans for the main

structure of the hat, so your husband will get a pot of chili out of the deal also!

You will need:

8 oz. can tomato sauce, emptied and rinsed

32 oz. tomato can lid, rinsed

1 piece of flexible felt, any color

Tulle

Feathers

Ribbon

wire

scissors

hot glue

Elmer's Glue

needle and thread
a rhinestone for the bow

a clip for the bow

glitter

3/8" or 1/2" elastic

1. Cut a square of felt and hot glue it around your lid. Be careful not to cut your fingers!

2. Cut a strip of felt for the can and hot glue.

3. I only glued the edges to the can so the glue wouldn't show through.

4. Glue the ends up under the can

5. Glue the ends up over the top.
6. Trace the outline of the can on the felt with pencil.

7. Cut out your circle

8. Hot glue your circle to the top of the "hat"

9. Start gluing your feathers around the top of the brim of the hat (lid). Overlap the feathers over the edge a little.

10. Wrap your tulle around the hat, gluing the ends

11. Glue the base to the top of the hat

12. Now it is time to make your bow. I used 9 different ribbons. Create three "x" shaped bows, the largest bottom bow you can do 6 total loops (3 per side). Stitch the center of each bow with a needle and thread.

13. Cut 4 ribbon strips that will be attached under the bow for extra detail.

14. Layer the stacked bows on top of the ribbon strips. Stick a piece of wire under the entire bow. I used floral wire.

15. Twist the wire under the bow tightly.

16. Stick a clip under the wire and glue.

17. Fluff all layers of the bow to separate the colors. I put a dot of glue towards the center wire to keep the layers apart, otherwise they will want to go back to overlapping each other. The finished bow:

18. Glue a rhinestone to the center of the bow.

19. Snip a small piece of elastic and glue it to the hat so you have something to attach your bow to the hat with.

20. Glue a long piece of elastic to the bottom of the hat towards the ends.

21. Coat the top with Elmer's glue and cover with glitter. You can also use rhinestones or mini flowers if desired.

22. Now you are ready to photograph your cutie. Some balloons and a cupcake make additional cute props. I would love to see what you come up with!

Valentine's Day kid's craft/Dad gift

This is a fun Valentine's Day craft that you can make with your kids. I had my daughter tell me all the reasons why she loves her Daddy. We put them on scraps of paper and threw them in a Dove chocolate container. Then she had fun decorating the outside.

You will Need:

V-Day themed scrapbook paper, plain and/or patterned

a cutter

a container (pickle jar, mason jar, candy container, etc.)

Hot glue and a glue stick

Ribbon

Jewels or other embellishments

Glitter glue, if desired

Hole punch

1. Cut a piece of paper that will fit around your jar. Have your kid decorate the outside. I used hot glue so that when I wrap it around the container, the jewels don't pop off (when I used Elmer's glue this happened).

2. Quiz your kid on her favorite things about her dad or who ever she will be giving it to. It is hilarious what they come up with! We also used glitter glue for added sparkle.

3. Make your tag on a computer or handwrite it. I used white card stock and backed it with some patterned scrapbook paper (using the glue stick). Hole punch the end.

4. Tie a ribbon in a bow and hot glue on the top of the lid. Attach your tag. Fill the jar with your quotes and you are ready to give it away.

Halloween Craft

I'm feeling Halloween-y this week with all the cute decorations out now. I am also still on a cellophane kick. I thought cellophane would make a great pair of bat wings! I made a spider too just because. Super easy and quick project that you could do with your kids or in a classroom.

You will need: Cellophane in purple or green or black, wiggly eyes, black craft puffs, fabric paint, scissors, wired ribbon, white felt, and E600 glue (I'm beginning to think I need to buy stock in this glue!)

For the bat: cut a rectangle from the cellophane- I used two pieces. Bunch together in the middle, secure with a rubber band or piece of wire. Glue to back of puff. Cut two small triangles of felt for the teeth, puff paint a ling over the teeth to make the mouth. Add eyes and bow.

For the spider: Clip 4 long pieces of ribbon. Twist together to make the legs. Glue to the underside of the black puff. Add embellishments: eyes, puff painted mouth, bow if desired.

A cute pair of spooky decor items! Add a clip to make it a hair thing, or attach it to a gift, or simply lay them on an entry table.

"Green" Cuff

As people have a desire to conserve the environment, "green" crafting is becoming more popular. I have seen some bracelets made out of water bottles, but a paper towel roll can be used as well. Just don't get it wet. If only the World Cup sweat-bands were this cute! :)

-You will need some scissors, glue and a tube from a paper towel roll or toilet paper roll. Cut the desired thickness of the cuff you want.

-Cut the tube to separate it and a small piece of elastic

-Cut tube with elastic glued to it, so it can be stretched on a wrist

-Glue the fabric or ribbon on the cuff you want to make. Use clips or some kind of clamp to get it to stick well. For the girl cuff I glued the elastic on last, the boy cuff I glued the elastic on first, then wrapped the fabric around the cuff

Boy cuff

Here is the girl version, perfect for July 4th!