Pixie Sticks ? Stix?

Pixie Sticks or Stix?? I'm not sure but these are really big ones!! I used these with the glitter, craft foam hearts glued to the end as part of a dessert table display for a volunteer meeting a few days before Valentine's Day. I simply hot glued the hearts to the end of a giant Pixie Stix and put them in a large glass vase from Ikea. After the meeting was over they were just hanging around ... we are having a fundraiser this weekend with a Bake/Dessert Sale as part of the fun. I decided that I'd add some ribbon, curling ribbon and torn fabric strips to make them irresistible to the younger shoppers and put them in the Goodie Sale  (this is my usual MO of trying to dazzle with packaging and presentation and hopefully keep anyone from realizing that I didn't actually BAKE!!). After making the hearts I got to thinking that these could be made for all kinds of events. The giant Pixie Stix are inexpensive (about 50 cents each if I buy them separately at the party store or less if I buy a box at Costco or BJ's) and the craft foam shapes cost just pennies. Add some odds and ends of ribbon that are hanging around and you have a cute bake sale item , gift for children in a class or party favor. 

I made some with Shamrocks on the end and dug out some Easter Foam shapes to make some for Easter celebrations as well. Stars on the end, tulle ribbon and glittery curling ribbon would make excellent magic wand party favors... the possibilities are endless! 

I'll let you know how they go over:)

Everyone's Irish - On March 17th!!

In the midst of all the excitement of green food and leprechaun mischief this is a great little project. This started with a Dick Blick canvas , the 8x8 square ( I told you I'm on a mission to try all the sizes they offer in the economy packs.) I painted it blue and striped it in turquoise. The shamrock is created using 3 hearts and a wooden spoon shape ( they are in packages by the popsicle sticks at Hobby Lobby where I can wander for hours... ) These were painted green and then given some polka dots using the eraser end of a pencil ( a fav tool of mine) and children love making those dots! I squeeze out the paint on a tray and we practice "dip and dot" standing up and keeping our arm up and out of the wet  paint dots.

(If you are in a situation where you can incorporate a faith based message then the shamrock is a great opportunity to include a lesson on the Trinity and the real St. Patrick)

I used my Crop-A-Dile to punch holes in the canvas for a fun, beaded wire hanger. (Still don't have a Crop-A-Dile?? Go get one. Right Now.) For classes with young children I use a pipe cleaner for the hanger and for older children I use a a finer wire. For classes, I go ahead and make the holes ahead of time.

OK, looking good. You can stop here or you can add some ribbon ( or torn fabric strips- my budget substitute for ribbon.)  I, however, have no restraint when it comes to ribbon (or that runny, white cheese dip in Mexican restaurants... sorry, off-task !)

 So, a little bit of polka dot ribbon and it's finished. All ready for the Leprechauns! And hopefully a pot of gold!

A couple of thoughts ... First, if budget does not allow for canvases and wood cut outs, this could be easily done using craft foam. You could cut the hearts and stem from green and still use the acrylic paint to dot the shapes. Acrylic "sticks" just fine to the foam. You could still do the cute hanger with a hole punch and a pipe cleaner - gold if you have it - and some pony beads. 

Second, I like to send home some nice, "substantial", "keeper" projects regularly. I was just thinking as I looked at these pictures and the Love canvases that I posted recently that it would be nice to do one seasonally themed canvas each month (the same size) so that they would create a " calendar" of sorts of the school year. It could be very cute displayed in the child's room or playroom. We go to school  August to May so we would only have to double up twice. You could definitely do a Father's day canvas early for June and something patriotic for July and the year would be complete... I can just see it! Hmmmm, I think I'm going to work on that. Keep you posted, literally :)


Linking Up:

"A Whole Lotta Love"

How cute is this?? Just in time for Valentine's Day!  This project was done by 4 year olds and they loved it (not to mention what a great job they did!!) We used an artists canvas this year 

(last year we had some scrap lumber and they were on wood - cute either way). They wrote the letters out in chalk first ( no correcting - let it be their handwriting!!) and then they painted the letters with black acrylic. We put white polka dots on the heart and glued it inside the "O". I used a Crop-a-Dile to punch holes in the canvas so we could create a decorative hanger ( If you do not have a Crop-A-Dile get in your car and go get one. Right now. It punches a nice smooth hole in almost anything.... cookie sheets, canvases, paint sticks, chip board....) I'm serious. It is amazing!! The little artists strung beads on a silver pipe cleaner and added a "key to their heart". A very nice man at the Locksmith gave me a box of very cool "reject" keys - all different so everyone could choose the one they liked. This project is a BIG hit with parents every year. 

The canvas was as cute as the reclaimed wood we used last year. I order the canvases from Dick Blick. They are the economy classroom packs and are very affordable, come in a great variety of sizes, ( I'm anxious to come up with some projects for some of the unique sizes they offer), have a nice surface and the children get a kick out of using " real artist" canvases!!

No More SNOW!!

I know I mentioned snow projects but I really had to move on when it thawed out in Atlanta. I was ready for Spring things!! I'm just going to quickly show you a cute Snow sign I threw up on my front door for our unusual 5 inch snow. It's painted on an old scrap of wood and the snowman is painted on a quart paint can lid. A scrap fabric scarf and some beads and he's cute as can be. I had already
made these with a group of children at an art class and they loved painting on a paint can lid, stringing the beads on the wire hanger and spatter painting the background before they painted the letters. They wrote them out in chalk before they painted them so it was their handwriting - that's a keeper for moms!!

Cheering Up A Friend - Heather's Sign

I know I said my first projects might be snow related since we had an unusual 5 inch Southern snowfall( which is still on the ground - Day 4 of no school and icy roads! Not our norm!) but I ended up making a gift for my good friend Heather. She needs a little cheering up and I think this sign will have her laughing in no time! We share all of our crazy family stories so she will appreciate this ( and not be offended!!) Since I am snowed in I had to use things I had on hand! I love to paint on reclaimed wood* that would have been tossed. I don't care how banged up it is - sometimes the more banged up the better. Since I was painting and making a mess anyway I made one for our house too!!

A couple of quick tips about painting this type of sign. To make the background a little spunky I painted the board with Krylon spray paint in a nice tan (Pebble) and then used blue painters' tape to mark off stripes. I painted those stripes with  a Krylon Brushed  Metallic Spraypaint in Caramel Latte ( yum!) and then spattered the whole board with brown spray paint ( I spatter a lot of things that I paint! It adds a little visual texture and color. ) The stripes are cute and make lettering a lot easier and since it's tone on tone it isn't distracting. The best tip - I write out my sayings lightly in chalk - plain old white chalk- before I paint. It took me a while to figure this out but it has sure saved a lot of projects!!

 

I cannot tell you how many projects I tried to "fix" or just painted over before I started  laying out lettering in chalk.

Then I used a new, never erased anything, pencil eraser to dot the letters.

I painted a cute little house at the top with polka dots on the roof! Heather's has a tree with Mickey Mouse ears on it because she and her family moved to Orlando last year so they could work and play with Mickey.  ( Her husband actually gets to work at The Magic Kingdom everyday!!) I'm missing her so I needed a sign to cheer me up too. Then I put screw eyes in the top and attached wire. I strung the wire with beads and tied on scraps of ribbon that I had ( remember I am having to use stuff I have on hand). Check out the first picture in the blog - I tied on some old keys too! Just for fun and in a jar on the baker's rack in my kitchen - why not?? :) 

Now I just need to send it off in the mail ( we are getting above freezing tomorrow and can go out into the world again!!) and wait for Heather to call me laughing!!

*I painted this sign on "scrap" wood. It's easier to come by than you think. Ask your handy friends to save scraps for you and if you ask nicely they will sometimes share the scraps in the trash can under the saw at Home Depot or Lowe's ( you  know, the saw where they cut wood for customers) - especially if you need wood scraps for your class at school or church.

A New Year. A New Blog.

The idea behind this blog is to share creative ideas for art and craft projects  using inexpensive, free, recycled and repurposed items. I have a backlog of ideas that I've used through the years and a lot of new ideas I am ready to get going on!! I collect all kinds of crazy found items that can be turned into fun and funky projects. I'll try to keep a running list of things to collect for future projects so you'll always be prepared when the creative urge strikes ( or your child has to produce an amazing project before morning and forgot to tell you when it was assigned) or you need a gift and forgot to pick something up (handmade gifts are best anyway) or you just need something cute to hang around the house and freshen things up.  These projects will be perfect for school projects, teachers, homeschooling moms, gifts, church activities and more. I can't wait to figure this blogging thing out and post the first projects.... they might be snow related because we are in a deep freeze in the deep South this week :)  Five inches of snow in my backyard and no thaw in sight. (Two weeks ago I was in Hawaii-seriously- and I'm having a little trouble staying warm.) Not what we are used to here in the South but it is beautiful and quiet and a great chance to clean up my crafting space after the creative chaos of the holidays... where are my scissors....any scissors?? and tape?? - forget about it... bring back my Sharpies right now...
So let me clean up my space, thaw out and get this blog thing going.... check back and we'll make great stuff together.... thanks for your patience... I'm not a computer guru but I can sure cut and glue!!