Getting Crafty

Here is another great idea from BHG
Leaving these hidden messages
around the house is a fun way
to wish everyone Happy
Valentine’s Day.

Cut hearts from white paper and write love notes on them with a white crayon. Hide your hearts in strategic morning locations. Place a box of watercolors at the breakfast table, and brush paint over the hearts to reveal the messages.

Try This Technique:
1. Place unwrapped hard candies in a heavy plastic bag, then place bag on top of a folded towel and crush candies into small chunks with a meat mallet or small hammer.

Steps 2-4.

2. Line a baking sheet with foil. Place desired cookie cutters on foil, at least 2 inches apart. Divide crushed candies evenly among cutters (about 1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons per lollipop; see photo 2, top). Candy layer should be 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Add small decorative candies or flower petals to crushed candies. (If using flower petals, make sure they are covered with a layer of the crushed candy.)

3. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 6 to 8 minutes or until candies are completely melted. Cool 30 seconds. Remove cookie cutters with tongs (see photo 3, center), allowing melted candy to spread slightly.

4. Quickly attach a stick to the base of each lollipop, twisting the stick to cover lollipop end with melted candy (see photo 4, bottom). If desired, use a fork to press more small candies or flower petals into hot lollipops. Cool. Peel foil from lollipops. Makes 8.

Note: These lollipops are not intended for children under age 3. To prevent choking, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says children under 3 shouldn’t handle anything smaller than 2-1/4 x 1-1/4 x 1-1/4 inches.

For more great ideas visit: Betterhomes and Gardens

What You Will Need:

A Styrofoam wreath in size of your choice
Lavender gingham ribbon
Hot-glue gun and hot-glue sticks
Conversation candy hearts in large and small sizes

Instructions:
1. Wrap the wreath with ribbon and secure with glue.

2. Arrange hearts onto the ribbon-covered wreath and glue the candies atop the ribbon, overlapping as desired.

Anyone can splurge on a formal dinner or a pricey bottle of perfume, but it takes creativity, forethought, and time to be truly romantic.

The key lies in personalizing your celebration. Here are ten ideas to fuel your own creativity:

1. Empty a box of chocolates. Then cut out 50 to 100 hearts from lace doilies, construction paper, or fabric. On each cutout, record something about him that you love. Be specific, “The way you smell when you come to bed at night,” “The way you take care of me when I’m sick,” “Your recipe for pancakes”…

Fold the cutouts, place them in the chocolate box, and top with a red satin bow.

The time you spend coming up with these ideas will contribute to your own romantic mood, and what he thinks is a plain box of chocolates will be a gift he’ll keep close to his heart forever. And you can add to the box on Valentine’s Day, his birthday, your anniversary, and other holidays throughout the year.

2. Build a romantic fire. Before the kids go to bed, have fun roasting marshmallows. After their lights are out, host your own indoor picnic, complete with a bottle of wine and chocolate-covered strawberries.

3. Recreate your first date together. What were you wearing? Where did you go? Do you remember what you talked about? Spend the evening reminiscing and reflecting on how far you’ve come as a couple.

4. Spoon all night.

5. Choose a book in which you are both interested, fiction or nonfiction. Read a new chapter each night before bed. This cozy tradition will allow you to spend some quality time together and often makes for thought-provoking breakfast conversations.

6. Make a tape of the songs special to your relationship. Include “your song,” songs from your wedding, songs from favorite movies. Add a personal voice dedication and leave it in his briefcase, Walkman, or car stereo.

7. Turn off the TV.

8. Kidnap your husband. Arrange for a babysitter for a few hours — or a few days. A friend of mine had a lot of success with this one. She knew her husband had always wanted to get married in Vegas, but he had agreed to a large, formal ceremony hosted by her family. So, after they had been married 10 years, she surprised him at work with a packed suitcase. They caught an evening flight and renewed their vows before an Elvis impersonator in a Vegas chapel. Years later, they’re still talking about it.

9. This one requires a babysitter, too. Next time you’re visiting your parents or in-laws, leave the kids with their grandparents and travel to another town, where no one will recognize you. Check into a hotel or B&B. Dress like another woman. Act like another woman. It’s fun to slip into another persona from time to time.

10. Have a scavenger hunt. Write a few poems, wrap candy kisses inside, and hide them around the house. Each poem should be a clue to finding the next one. Make sure the final clue lands your man someplace you want to end up for the entire evening. A romance package, including a bottle of champagne and new lingerie, is a nice touch.

Create some romantic memories today. Now with your pocketbook, but with your imagination.

compliments of: http://www.allfreecrafts.com/valentine/romantic-ideas.shtml

Now here is a great site that we can all use. Things you can make with junk you already have lying around the house. Do’nt know what to do with that old lamp Uncle Jed left you but you don’t want to toss it…then check out this site. It is certainly a keeper.

Please visit: simple crafts

This is a great idea for little ones.

Compliments of: http://www.make-stuff.com/kids/window_clings.html
Try this easy recipe for window clings:
regular white paper glue
food coloring of your choice
clear film (transparency sheets work well)
patterns
Mix a few drops of food coloring to the white glue bottle and mix well.
Put your design under the clear film and trace over it with a continuous bead of glue and fill in.

Let dry for at least 12 hours. Peel your work of art off of the film and place on any glass surface.

Store between sheets of plastic wrap in a cool place.

This project works well with children of all ages.

I found this cute idea for valantines day!

Compliments of: http://www.make-stuff.com/projects/heart_wreath.html

Almost any kind of twigs or branches can be used to make a decorative wreath. This wreath is made of new growth from our olive and eucalyptus trees. I trimmed off the newest and most pliable branches long enough to form the basic heart shape, and then filled in the wreath with shorter branches and twigs.
You will need:

Branches and twigs from any tree or bush
Lightweight floral wire
Wire clippers and garden clippers
Dried fs, or other decorations if desired
Take one long, very pliable branch and bend in the middle. If the branch is green enough, it won’t snap. Continue folding the ends around and cross them at the bottom of the heart shape. Tie the ends together where they cross with a short piece of floral wire.
Wrap and twine the rest of your branches around this main shape. Use floral wire where needed to hold the branches in place. Use branches without leaves for the main bulk of the wreath, but as you get closer to the outside, include some small branches with leaves left on them. Eucalyptus branches are wonderful to use for this project. The new growth branches are reddish in color, great for a Valentine’s Day wreath, and they smell great too!

If your like me then you are glad the holidays are over so you can take a much needed rest from all the gift giving. Well I ahve just the thing that you can make for yourself or give it as a gift for someone else. I go the idea when I was in lamaze class when I was pregnant with my son Robbie. It is very simple and in expensive to make and you can even make it an aroma therapy item as well. It is a heating pad so to speak. Here is what you will need and what you have to do to make this great muscle relazing item.

1 sock (small for a small heating pad or a long knee high sock to wrap around your waist for back pains or around your neck for neck pains and headaches)
1 bag of long grain rice (uncooked of course)
needle and thread or a long ribbon
a few drops of scented oil
a large bowl to mis the rice and oil together

you will put the rice into the bowl and add the scented oil of your choice (this is optional) mix well then fill the sock 3/4 full with the rice. You want to have room to tie off the sock at the end and still be able to mold the rice around to fit where you need it. After you put the rice in the sock then either sew up the end or tie it off with a pretty colorful ribbon. Be sure the ribbon has no metal.

To use the sock simply place in teh microwave for 1 to 2 minutes on high. THe rice will hold the heat for up to 20 to 30 minutes and you have a great heating pad the will form to your body. It will also give off a great scent with the oil you added to the rice when heated.

Enjoy!!!

I came across a great little site with some huge ideas. This sure beats my comic wrapping paper. Here is a bit of the advice she offers and a link to her site. Hope you get as much out of this as I did.

TRY OTHER CLEVER PAPER SUBSTITUTES
Wrap a magazine subscription card in the cover of an old issue.
Point your favorite jogger in the right direction with a map of the city; tie with a pair of shoelaces.

Fancy up plain brown paper with gold cord and a First Prize blue ribbon.

Strike the right note with sheet music for a CD or concert tickets

Ask your child to draw a picture — this wrapping gets raves from grandparents.

Decorate colored tissue paper with stickers for a youngster’s gift.

Turn on the holiday glow with wine bottles wrapped in aluminum foil.
Put confetti inside the foil and tie with paper streamers.

Use a travel poster for someone on the go.

link for : wrapping ideas

wrapping paper

Ever have a party to go to but you can seem to find anything to wrap the gift in? You don’t have to look very far or scramble out of the door to get to the closest store for wrapping paper.

you can take the sunday comics from the news paper and spray it with a layer of hairspray. Let it dry. It dries pretty qucik as the hairspray is mostly alcohol. once it dries it will ahve a nice glossy finish that prevents the paper from bleeding out and the receiver gets a treat with their gift.

So n ow the holidayss are over and you have a pile of christmas cards still sitting on the table. You don’t want to throw them away but you don’t want to keep storing them year after year. Well there is a fun easy solution to this dilema. You can make a beautiful lighted christmas box.

Items you will need.

1. shoe box
2. Christmas cards
3. Siccors or safety siccors
4. elmers glue or a glue gun
5. Cotton balls
6. A light to place inside the shoe box to light up your project

first: Cut pictures out from the fronts of the cards. This is a great job for little ones. They can pic their favorite pictures or cut cool shapes out of the fronts of the cards.
second: Take the shoe box and cut a window in one of the side for your display and a small hole on the other side to put the light thru.
third: Pull the cotton balls apart (stretch then out) and glue the,m to the bottom of the shoe bax (this will give an effect of snow on the ground)
fourth: glue your cut outs from the cards to the outside of the box and glue some in the snow (glue the bottom edge of the cut out and place it in the snow, making it appear like the cut out is standing in the snow) This is good if you cut out pictures of people, snow men etc…
fifth: place the light in the back of the box and light up your display.

Your christamss memories will last you a long long time and you get a great decoration for the holiday season.