Candy Filled Paper Mache Eggs

What’s your favorite Easter treat?  I have a firm belief that all Easter eggs should be filled with chocolate.  These cute paper mache Easter eggs can be filled with small chocolates, jelly beans and fun trinkets.
Due the drying time on these, you’ll need to plan accordingly.  However, they have a good getting-your-hands-gooey vibe that kids love.  Plus, you have to rip them open to get to the goods inside.



Supplies Needed:  Water balloons, liquid starch, tissue paper.  Also, candy or trinkets to place inside.
Start by cutting your colored tissue paper into 1 or 2-inch squares.  If you’d like to add polka dots to your eggs, use several sheets of paper at once through a paper punch.



Inflate a balloon to your desired size.  Brush on liquid starch.  Leaving the balloon’s tie uncovered, wrap a solid sheet of tissue paper cut to size around the balloon to give it a solid base.  Brush on the liquid starch as needed to keep the paper on the balloon.  Then, add the squares of paper one by one around the balloon, again, brushing on the starch as needed to keep the paper down.  Do not brush hard or the paper will rip.  You’ll only need enough starch to affix the paper.  The more starch you use, the longer it will take to dry.



Once the paper is fully dry, use a pin to poke the balloon, holding on to the tie as it deflates.  The balloon should pull out easily.  From the hole in the top, cut a small slit in the balloon just large enough to place your treats.  Cover the slit with a small piece of tissue paper, and affix it with the liquid starch. 



To remove the treats inside, the paper on the egg must be torn.  Fun!



Happy Easter crafting, DIY’ers!

~julee~

Watch the video as I demo how to make paper mache eggs on WDRB in the Morning:

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Egg Carton Easter Chick

A little egg carton chick to hide some chocolate Easter eggs = Cuteness overload.  Seriously.  And while these egg carton Easter chicks are perfect for kids to put together, adults will have just as much fun helping – at least I did.  And the best part of all is that you probably already have all of the supplies needed for this one.




Supplies Needed:  Paper egg carton, yellow paint, tape, colored paper, feathers (optional), black marker.
1) Cut two egg holder pieces (do these have a technical name?) from the carton.  2) Paint.  3)  Attach the two pieces together with a piece of tape to create a hinge.  4)  Use colored paper to make the beak, feet, and wings (or use feathers for wings, as shown).  5)  Draw on a pair of eyes. 6)  Fill with candy and give to your best peep.



Happy Easter crafting, DIY’ers!

~julee~

Watch the video as I demo how to make recycled egg carton chicks on WDRB in the Morning:

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DIY Mardi Gras Mask

It’s true, my little family loves Mardi Gras.  We travel to Louisiana every year to visit and celebrate Mardi Gras (family friendly style) with dear friends and it might be our favorite trip of the year.  This year, I’m making a special mask to match the beads that I’ll be receiving (at the very family friendly parades, people). 

Making your own Mardi Gras mask is easy and you can customize it however you like.  I chose the traditional purple, green, and gold of Mardi Gras fare, but there is an abundance of colored feathers at craft stores for you to choose from if you’re wanting to create something similar for a masquerade or Halloween.

 DIY Mardi Gras Mask

Supplies needed:  Plain mask, glitter, glue, sponge or brush, feathers, decorative trim and embellishments, small piece of felt, hot glue.  Optional:  wooden dowel or skewer, ribbon.

My masks came with an elastic band.  I wanted to hold my mask rather than wear it, so I removed the elastic.  This is your preference. 

DIY Instructions:  To start, brush glue over the entire surface of your mask.  Do not miss any spots.  If your glue is too thick to spread easily, slightly dampen your sponge or brush.  But don’t add too much water, or you might not get a good glue coverage – I learned this the hard way.  You can hold your mask up to the light from behind to check for any missed spots.

Once you have a good solid coverage of glue, add your glitter.  This is the messy and fun part.  I use two sheets of paper so I can catch and reuse (re-sprinkle?) the glitter that doesn’t adhere.  Once you have a fully glittered mask, step away while it dries.  Step.Away.  Maybe 20-30 minutes or more.

After the glue and glitter have dried, add your trim.   If you want to add jewels or other embellishments, now’s the time to do that, too.  This sequence trim is sold by the roll and you may need to look near the fabric notions at your craft store.  It is perfect for this project because it will bend around the curves of the mask more easily than ribbon.  I used tacky glue to adhere it.

Now for adding feathers.  You can just glue the feathers to the back of the mask.  Be careful if you’re using hot glue since these plastic masks may melt with the heat.  However, I created my entire feather piece separate by first gluing the feathers to a small piece of felt.  This gives you more control of the feather placement.  Then, you can add the entire feather piece to the back of the mask. 

To make the mask handle, I wrapped ribbon around a wooden dowel, and used hot glue to affix it to the back of the mask. 

Laissez les bons temps rouler, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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DIY Valentine Bunting

Creating a sweet Valentine bunting is easy and you’ll only need a few supplies to create your own lovely pennant.  Doilies are the perfect accessory to add romance to your Valentine’s Day décor, but instead of using them directly on the bunting, I’m using the pattern in the doily to create a stencil effect on the paper.  So much more fun to use paint!

Supply list: Cardstock, craft paint, brush/sponge, doily, hole punch, string, embellishments, and glue (optional). 

To make: Cut the cardstock to your preferred size.  Use the doily as a stencil and dab the paint on to the cardstock.  To get clean lines, make sure to dab up and down instead of painting in strokes.  Once the paint dries, affix your embellishments.  My letters had an adhesive backing and were easy to attach.  Make holes in the corners of each flag, and thread your string through.  Next, hang and enjoy!

Happy Valentine crafting, DIY’ers!

~julee

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Video: Matchbox Valentine

This week on WDRB in the Morning, I showed viewers how easy it is to turn a matchbox into an adorable personalized Valentine.  And then Sterling ate the chocolate.  Good times.  Watch and see.

~julee~

PS – You can see all of my WDRB in the Morning segments on my YouTube channel.

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DIY Matchbox Valentine

I am so very in love with these little matchbox Valentine boxes.  With so many ways to embellish them, I think I could sit and make them all day.  Addicting little guys, and so easy to put together.  Perfect for a sweet treat or tiny love note to your sweetheart. 

To make your own, you’ll need a box of strike anywhere matches, and paper to cover the top of the box.  Then, gather some lovely embellishments.  For these, I used Valentine ribbon and heart decals. 

Cut a strip of decorative paper the same size as the top of your box.  Mine was 2x4.  You don’t have to take the top of the box apart to adhere your decorative paper, but I found that doing so gave a tighter and cleaner fit.  Use a glue stick to adhere your paper to the box top and use the folds in the original box to refold and reglue the box together.  If kids are making these, you can definitely let them make these the easy way and just wrap the paper around the box and glue.  Once that’s done, go crazy with the embellishments.

And I prefer my Valentine’s to come with chocolate.  Who’s with me?

So this is my version of matchbox Valentine’s.  How would you decorate your matchboxes?  If you’re in the Louisville area, you can join the D.I.Y. Louisville group on Sunday, February 2nd where we’ll be decorating these little cuties.  See our Facebook event for more details, pricing, and to RSVP.

Happy Valentine making, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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Video: Repurposed Jewelry Organizer

I was invited on WDRB in the Morning this week to show how to make this fun and easy repurposed frame jewelry organizer.  All you need to make your own is an old picture frame, mesh screening or chicken wire, and some hooks or knobs.  Assemble it all together and it makes the perfect organizer for your earrings, necklaces, and bracelets.

Craft E Magee and I are on WDRB twice monthly showing simple, affordable crafts you can make yourself.  Check out D.I.Y. Louisville’s event page for our next appearance.  And, as always, you can watch our videos on YouTube.

Thanks for watching!

~julee~

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DIY Jewelry Organizer Display

At first glance you might be thinking, wow, she needs  more earrings, but on second glance you should be thinking, wow, I can totally make that, because you can.  Creating a unique jewelry display for earrings and necklaces is as easy as grabbing some bits and hardware and repurposing an old picture frame.

With a little bit of ingenuity, you can use pretty much any picture frame you have for this project.  Mine happens to measure 18x15 and is made from wood, so that’s what I’ll be showing here.



Aside from the frame, you will also need mesh screening (purchased from the hardware store), a way to to adhere the mesh to the frame (glue or staple gun), hooks or decorative drawer pulls, and a hanging kit if you want to hang your organizer.  Optional, but if you have some duct tape, grab that, too.



If you want to paint your frame, do that first.  After it dries, measure a length of mesh screening to cover the entire opening of the cutout, plus approximately 1-inch on all sides.  Affix the screen to the back of the frame using glue or staple gun (or in my case, a not-very-fancy typical office stapler).  Be sure to pull the screen as taut as possible.  When you’ve adhered all sides, you may want to go around the edges of the screen with duct tape to cover any pesky sharp edges.  (I forgot to photo that, but I’m sure you can picture it.) 

You can stop here if you’re happy to use your frame as an earring holder.  If you want to also hang necklaces or bracelets, add some knobs or hooks to the frame.  If you’re happy with how it looks, use the holes in the mesh to slip your hanging earrings through and you’re done!

Louisville Locals:  I will be hosting a picture frame jewelry display workshop at Good Garbage on January 26th at 4:30.  The cost is $20 and we will provide a wooden 18x15 frame plus all of the materials you need to create your own jewelry organizer.  Purchase tickets at Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/picture-frame-jewelry-display-tickets-9177898341.  I hope you’ll join us!

Happy organizing, DIY’ers!

~julee~

 

D.I.Y. Louisville

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DIY Cork Wine Coaster and Bottle Tag

Is it a gift tag or a coaster?  It’s both!  These DIY cork coasters are a practical gift to give alongside a bottle of wine when attending holiday parties this season.  The upside?  You can make a whole batch of them in just a short amount of time. 

The most important thing you’ll need to make you own coasters is cork.  You can buy thin sheets or rolls of cork at the craft store.  (I purchased mine at Good Garbage.)  Then, you’ll cut circles out of your cork with a circle cutter or a circle template and scissors or exacto knife.  I made my coasters 4-inches.

Use paint or glitter to embellish your coasters.  Once you’re finished with  your design, use a standard hole punch to cut a hole for hanging and wrap it around the neck of your wine bottle.

Alternately, you can make a whole set of these to give as a gift on their own.

Happy handmade gift-giving, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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DIY Felt Christmas Tree

I saw some similar felt Christmas trees on Pinterest this week and immediately fell in love with their whimsical Dr. Suess-esque quality.  I thought they would be perfect to recreate for my coffee table which is sadly barren of any holiday decorations.  They fill the space quite nicely and were simple to put together.

To make your own felt trees, you’ll need:  Felt, bamboo skewers, pom-poms, wine cork.  Start by cutting a 1-inch circle from your felt, and then continue cutting gradually larger circles (approximately 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch larger).  I used 11 circles for the large tree, 8 circles for the medium tree, and 5 circles for the small tree.  But you can definitely add more if you would like a fuller look.  Once your circles are all cut, skewer them on to the bamboo stick through the center.  Space out the circles to your preferred look.    Add a pom pom on top, and use a cork cut horizontally as the base.  To make smaller trees, cut your bamboo stick to your preferred size.  That’s it! 

Happy holiday crafting, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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DIY Snow Globe Ornament

We had our first snow of the season and that inspired me to  hunker down in the cozy warmth of my home, sip hot cocoa, and create some new handmade ornaments for our tree.  First up, I made these adorable DIY snow globe ornaments.  (Although, to be honest, they should be called a faux-globe.)  They are easy to put together with just a few items that can be purchased at any craft store this time of year.  The result is a pretty, glistening, festive decoration for your tree.

Here’s how you can make your own DIY snow globe ornament:

You’ll need clear glass ornaments, small bottle brush trees, and snow flakes.  You’ll also need hot glue, wire cutters, tweezers, a funnel and ribbon.

Remove the top hanger off of the glass ornament.  If your bottle brush tree has a base that’s too large for the opening of the ornament, clip it off with wire cutters.  Place the nose of your hot glue gun into the opening of the ornament and squirt a decent amount of glue so that it falls to the bottom, as close to the center as you can get it.  Before the glue has time to dry, use tweezers to push your tree into the opening and place it into the dollop of hot glue.  Next, add your snow flakes.  I created a funnel out of paper to make this easier.  My flakes are iridescent flakes, but you can also use white flakes, glitter, or even white seed beads.  Finally, add the hanger back onto the ornament and tie a pretty ribbon to the top. 

Shake up the flakes a bit, hang it on your tree and enjoy the merriment of the season!

Happy holiday crafting, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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Easy Kids’ Thanksgiving Table

   

This week on WDRB in the Morning, Craft E Magee and I collaborated to create an easy kids’ Thanksgiving table.  The idea was to create something fuss-free, entertaining for kids, and easy for adults to clean up.

Instead of a traditional tablecloth, Liz used brown kraft paper and set out adorable branch colored pencils so kids could easily draw on the table as they waited for food to be brought out.  At each place setting, she set out mini pumpkin pies, flanked by  a feather name card.  To create the names on the feathers, she used kraft and letter stickers found at Target dollar-spot.  Simple and super cute!

Keeping with the kraft paper theme, we filled small paper bags with Thanksgiving trail mix made by mixing popcorn and candy corn.  We used stamps and bakers twine to decorate ours, but you can also use these as name/place settings.

Finally, we used my Thankful Tree as the table’s centerpiece.  Set out leaves at each place setting for kids to write (or help them write) what they are thankful for this year.  Be sure to add a date on these to keep as mementos each year.

After dinner, you can roll up the kraft paper tablecloth and recycle.  Easy!

You can find more details and photos at craftemagee.com.

Do you create a special table for the kids at your Thanksgiving dinner?  Any additional tips for keeping kids busy while they patiently wait for dinner to be served?

Happy Thanksgiving, DIY’ers!

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DIY Thankful Tree

I have seen many, many versions of thankful trees online lately, and I love them all.  Finding a few bare branches in your yard and placing them in a pretty vase or jar is all it takes to create this personalized décor for your own home.  I used a circular paper punch to create leaves for my tree, but you can also cut leaf shapes from cardstock, or even use silk leaves if you prefer.

This will be perfect as a Thanksgiving table centerpiece and you can have all of your guests add their thanks to the tree.  I especially love to see what kids are thankful for.  My daughter’s thankful list this year included books, light to see, and a bed to sleep in.  Simple gratitudes that we often forget to acknowledge.

What are you thankful for this year?

Happy Thanksgiving, DIY’ers!

~julee~

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