Window Frame Art with an Equestrian Flair

See her two stuffed animal pups peeking out?

My daughter is an equestrian. She's ridden since she was five years old and has competed at the local level for quite a few years now. At Christmas, both girls get a calendar for the new year, and Tiny Girl's has always been horse related. She's collected quite a few by now. So I bought a window frame for a few dollars several months ago, and she selected and cut out some favorite calendar photos and paintings to make a piece of art for her bedroom.

 First, we cleaned the window frame and glass. Then we adhered the pictures to the back of the glass using Scotch Photo Mount adhesive spray. I tested a cutout we didn't plan to use to make certain the adhesive would not smear the ink. Success!

Himself is going to add hooks to the top of the frame so we can safely hang it on the wall. For now, it's propped against her chest of drawers.

For a few dollars and a few minutes, we have individually designed artwork!

Have you tried the whole window frame art idea?



Linking up with:
A Delightsome Life
Share Your Style
The Dedicated House
Make it Pretty Monday
A Return to Loveliness
The Scoop
Wow Us Wednesdays

Cute Reindeer Antlers Headband

My elder daughter needed a quick antler headband to wear to school, so we whipped this up with some things we had around the house. Her little antlers turned out super cute!

First, I looked for an easy-to-use template. I found this one at Sisters Suitcase. Perfect!

I printed out the template, cut out the antler parts only, and then traced them onto brown foam I got from Michaels. You could also use brown construction paper or cardstock. They were very easy to cut out, even for craft-challenged folks like me.

I cut out a strip of brown felt and hot glued it to a headband we had laying around. Then I hot glued the foam antlers onto the top of the headband.

The whole project took about 10 minutes, tops. That's my kind of Christmas craft!

Quotation Tent Cards for Your Thanksgiving Table

Yesterday, it rained all day (I actually like those days if I don't have to go anywhere), so I spent some time making tent cards with Thanksgiving quotations to adorn the Thanksgiving tables at my parents' house.

I found this wonderful and FREE printable from Finding Home, and I printed out two copies on nice, thick resume paper I had laying around. (I also pinned the link to my Pinterest board Ain't She Crafty? for later reference.) I cut them apart using my little handy cutter from my scrapbooking days.

I dug through my stash and found some Avery note cards. Did I mention my scrapbooking days? I also have a fairly large paper supply. I sorted through that and selected pretty papers that measured 5 1/2 inches by 8 1/2 inches. I cut those in half.

I glued the pretty paper onto the front of the note cards and then I glued on the quotations. Voila!

Now I have pretty tent cards for our tables.

I had only Tacky Glue on hand; if I were to reconstruct this project, I'd use a different adhesive. The Tacky Glue is a little too lumpy. But since these are for my personal use and also since I'm an "eh-that's-good-enough" type of gal when it comes to crafts, I'm okay with it.

How are you planning to set your Thanksgiving table?

Autumn Wreaths for the Entry

I am totally craft-challenged, so when something I attempt turns out nicely, I'm really stoked. On Saturday evening, I made these wreaths. I have a double front door, so any decoration has to be doubled.

If I can do it, you can do it. And I say that with utter confidence.

Here's what I did. First, I searched Pinterest to look at some wreaths other (talented, skilled) people have made. Isn't that clever?

Then I searched for a nice template of the letter B. I downloaded it, opened it in Word, and reisized it to a size I thought would look right. Then I printed it off. I traced it onto a closed manila file folder and cut it out. Since the folder was closed (doubled over), this gave me two B's.

I looked through my stash of scrapbooking paper and selected one I liked. I traced the file folder B's onto this paper (stiffer paper makes for easier tracing) and cut them out. Then I glued the pretty B's onto the file-folder B's using Tacky Glue.

I already had the grapevine wreaths, which I used last Christmas. I stripped them of the old silk poinsettias and greenery so I could re-use them. A few weeks ago, I purchased some silk flowers from Michaels to use in autumn arrangements (they were 60% off!), and I decided to use those to make my harvest-themed wreaths. I snipped the stems to manageable lengths and then poked them into the grapevine branches. A few needed a drop of hot glue to stay in place.

After the flowers and leaves were in place, I hot glued the B's, making sure they were level and even with each other.

I bought the ribbon at Michaels, too. All their Christmas ribbon was on sale. This wired ribbon is copper and gold -- more autumn than Christmas -- so it works perfectly. I cut two even lengths, lopped them onto the wreaths, and then hot-glued them to close. I'm no good at bows.

Ta da!

The B looks a tad wonky in this one, but they both look fine in real life.

I have wreaths pinned to both my Holidays board and my Gorgeous Home board. Pop on over for some wreath inspiration of your own!



Linking up with:
A Stroll thru Life
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Make It Pretty Monday
Savvy Southern Style
Green Willow Pond
DIY By Design
From My Front Porch To Yours
The Charm of Home

Weekly Happenings: A Week of Quiet

 We took it easy this week. The last two weeks were a flurry of activity, mainly due to Miss Priss's theater production. This week, she was hit with a bad cold (and actually napped twice one day -- unheard of!), and I have the winter blahs. It seemed a good time to take a little break.

But we weren't slugs by any means. Unless you count the fact that we stayed in our jammies until we absolutely HAD to get dressed.

On Tuesday, we celebrated National Pancake Day at our closest IHOP. Who can beat a free short stack of pancakes? While we were there, we talked about the positive identification of Richard III's skeleton in Leicester.

We listened to the chatter of the cedar waxwings, stopping for a few days on their annual visit. They and the robins stripped our large holly tree of its berries. I loved watching them swoop to and fro outside the picture window in my study. They were easy to distinguish from the robins because they are smaller and, when they fly, their tails flash yellow. They've now moved on, and we won't see them again until next February.

Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons

We listened to Bach and explored a new art project, which I wrote about in detail yesterday:

The girls did quite a few art projects. They both worked on friendship bracelets. And Tiny Girl drew a picture in pastels for the upcoming Sketch Tuesday event hosted by Barb, something she hadn't done in a while.

We read nice books and drank lots of tea. I read The Tutor's Daughter, by Julie Klassen. Miss Priss read Anne of Windy Poplars, Anne's House of Dreams, and Anne of Ingleside, all by L.M. Montgomery. Tiny Girl read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, and, for even more fun, Tongue Twisters for Kids. One of the gifts she received at her birthday party last Saturday (her actual birthday is yet to come) was a Kindle! She adores it.

We're also reading The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone: Key to Ancient Egypt, by James Cross Giblin. AO's Year 6 history is light on ancient Egypt, so I added in a few resources. This is one. I want the girls to be properly informed in preparation for our trip to England. We're in the nascent stages of planning it. I've seen the stone on a previous trip and can't wait for them to have that opportunity, too.

The girls are now practicing their piano pieces for the recital in May. Each has one piece that's a bit of a challenge, so we're working through the angst of "I'll never be able to play this!" But of course they will. I'm often called to the piano during their practice time to work out a measure or two so they can hear what it should (ostensibly) sound like. And that's the extent of my piano prowess, I assure you.

It's almost time to say good-bye to Max, one of our ponies. Our lease is up, and his owners plan to send him to Kentucky to sell. We are hoping and praying that he gets another little girl who will love him as much as we have.

The girls and I both needed this week of quiet. Also, it gave me some time to research and plan some other materials we're about to pick up. In our "regular" weeks, I don't have much time to do this.

How was your week?





I'm linking up with:
Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers
No Ordinary Blog Hop
HammockTracks
Collage Friday
The Homeschool Mother's Journal

Spend some time perusing the blogs on these wonderful link-ups for some new ideas, encouragement, and fun!

A Day for Art!

This week, we decided to devote most of one day to educational pursuits we sometimes neglect or often can't fit in. An art project was one of these.

Inspired by Tricia at Hodgepodge's Mixed Media Valentine project, the girls created their own canvases. Only Tiny Girl's is actually mixed media; Miss Priss opted to stick with paper. Also the girls wanted to make the creations non-holiday specific. While we worked, Bach played in the background.

Just like Tricia, we selected verses from 1 Corinthians 13 (Msg). I copied their verses from BibleGateway into Word, and then the girls played around with different fonts. I printed these out and the girls cut them into strips. You could select different verses to go along with your own collage theme, if you'd like.

We have a large stash of decorative papers. The girls picked a few sheets and then tore pieces for their collages. Then they played around with placement on their canvases. You could also use cardstock, construction paper, cardboard, etc., in place of a canvas. Our Michaels had a sale around Christmas, and I stocked up on some canvases then (70% off!).

Once they found a pleasing arrangement, the girls glued everything in place with Tacky Glue. Tiny Girl also Modge Podged hers.

Miss Priss chose to cover her canvas in paper. When the glue dried, she sprayed it with high-gloss acrylic sealer. She's going to give it to one of her close friends.

Tiny Girl liked the idea of using paint as well. She used a teal paint to go over the bare areas of canvas. When that dried, she spatted a few drops of gold metallic paint over the entire thing.

Aren't they nice? We are very pleased with the way they turned out. And I was happy to carve out some time for such an enjoyable activity. Thanks, Tricia!

FREE Printable Christmas Gift Tags and Labels Round-Up

I've been on the hunt for printable -- and, of course, FREE -- gift tags and labels to attach to food gift packages and also presents in general. Perhaps you are looking for these, too.

Photo courtesy Lolly Chops

Here are some links to sites offering super-cute tags and labels:

• Too Much Time on My Hands: cute and sassy gift tags
• The Creativity Exchange: fun tags with a touch of elegance
• WorldLabel: these are meant to print on Avery labels of all sizes and shapes. They are in editable PDF files, so you can change the font if you'd like.
• Christmas Printables Board by Claire Donovan on Pinterest: dozens of all sorts of Christmas printables (as the name sorta implies, eh?)
• Mimi's Printable Tags Board on Pinterest: EVEN MORE printable tags. I'm loving this!

Photo courtesy Lindsay Bolton

• Christmas Gift Tags from FreePrintableGiftTags.net: fun illustrations perfect for children's gifts
• Skip to My Lou: really colorful and bright gift tags
• Brownhill's Bob: folksy, color-your-own tags; a great idea for kids

Courtesy Cheryl Seslar

• Disney-Stationary.com: I almost didn't list this because of the misspelling on stationery, BUT they do have cute Disney character gift tags, if such things make your heart happy.
• Tidy Mom: You'll find a lot on this printable round-up, like vintage-inspired, fancy, creative, and sweet tags.
• Free Printable Christmas Labels Image Page from Google: links to hundreds of sites offering labels and tags. Peruse to your heart's content, or quickly scan the page, click, and print.
• The Stir at Cafe Mom: another round-up of all sorts of free tags and labels. I love the sixties-ish (think Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown) style tags!

Photo courtesy Fresh Picked Whimsy

Have fun wrapping!

Weekly Happenings: Christmas-y Things Abound

It's beginning to feel a bit like Christmas around here. We're finished up most of our lessons, but have a few readings to complete. No biggie. But we've spent time doing fun things, too.

The girls and I spent one day Christmas shopping and lunching at one of our favorite restaurants, Sweet Tomatoes. They each had allowance money to spend, which is always a great joy. They have fun choosing gifts for each other and for Daddy. Oh, and for themselves, too.

Himself jetted off to N'Awlins for a quick business trip. He came back with a yummy Kringle Cake and some French Market chicory/coffee grounds for me. I made a small pot, and I have to say I prefer plain coffee. The chicory/coffee required lots of doctoring up to be drinkable. At least for my palate it did. But the Kringle Cake was delicious.

Last week, the girls set up our Christmas village on our family room coffee table. This is not some precious, hands-off collection. No, sir. All the buildings either came from Dollar Tree or are paint-it-yourself ones from Michaels. The girls each add one house each Christmas and then enjoy playing with them all. Note the Matchbox cars.

Last year, we made these really nifty picture frames, which turned out great. (The link gives more detailed instructions, if you're interested in seeing what we did.) So this year, we made some more. Here's Tiny Girl painting the backs of the frames.

And here are four the the finished frames.

Yesterday, I blogged about my Christmas baking adventures. Just so you'll know, the mint chocolate cookies are heavenly. Here is the recipe on my Pinterest board, Tasty Eats and Sips. Go there now and get it. Now.

Today, the girls made more frames, so now we have seven to give as gifts. Then they put on a nativity puppet show with a friend of theirs. The puppets were drawn and cut out and then glued to drinking straws. Luke 2 was the script. The dogs and I were the appreciative audience.

I still need to make -- okay, maybe need isn't the word. Wait a minute. YES, it is -- salted caramel and ganache. Some will go into jars to give as gifts and others will go into jars and into my fridge to eat at my leisure. More on this later. I made both last year, so pop over to those posts for photos and recipes!

How are your Christmas plans coming along?

Hammer and Sew: Making Our Own Journals in a Bookbinding Class

A few months ago, I got interested in bookbinding. I perused several websites and blogs, reading over their how-tos and studying photos. Ultimately, I decided this was an activity I'd never do on my own, so I gave up thinking about it.

So imagine my delight when I saw that our library -- which has always had an outstanding children's summer program -- was offering a bookbinding class! I signed us up immediately.

Two Crazy Women, a Maine-based educational partnership, conducted the class. There were quite a few folks, young and older (thank you very much) alike. I appreciated the way Pam and Amy prepared for the class. All our materials were ready for us, but we participants actually did the work of making our own journals.

Here, Miss Priss hammers holes into her first "chapter," more formally called a signature.

After hammering, we stitched the signature pages together with -- get this -- dental floss. You can, of course, purchase much more expensive bookbinding materials, but why would you? Then we hammered and stitched two more signatures, and then stitched the signatures together, as Tiny Girl demonstrates below:

After stitching everything together, we selected our cover materials. Here is what Miss Priss selected:

Next, we glued the material to thin cardboard, then the signatures to the cardboard, and lastly, the wallpaper pieces to the inside covers of the journal.

And here they are!

Will we ever do this again? I don't know. It was a LOT of work, especially for those of us new to the craft. But we are all pleased with our results.

Weekly Happenings: Bliss!

Our second week in Maine and our first week of relaxation. A few days ago, I blogged about the gift of sabbath and our reluctance to accept it; but this week I've opened my arms wide with acceptance. So what have we been doing?

Reading, resting, swimming, a bit of boating, more reading, crafting. The girls have been enjoying a paper fashions kit we bought at A.C. Moore (which is just like Michaels). They've created quite a wardrobe.

Our next-door neighbors, who live in Germany over the fall and winter, have visitors from Germany for two weeks. These sweet teenagers, whom my girls love, brought us gifts, one of which was a lovely box of chocolates, packaged so perfectly.

One morning the lake was as smooth as glass.

When I write, I take my computer outside to the deck. Here's my outdoor office:

Here's my snowball bush, which was moved two summers ago for our construction project. I think it likes its new location.

And really, that's all. We started reading Oliver Twist after a break of several weeks, to Tiny Girl's delight. We read a chapter each evening. Here's an exchange that happened last night:

Tiny Girl: Are we reading Oliver tonight?

Me: Yep.

Tiny: Oh good! I am so worried about him!

Aren't books wonderful?

Craft and Gift Idea: Gussied-Up Picture Frames

While wandering around Michaels a few weeks ago, I saw a project sheet for holiday picture frames, and I thought, "The girls could make these for their grandparents for Christmas." (Every once in while, inspiration strikes me, especially when it's right in front of my face.) So I bought four unfinished frames for $1.99 a piece, Mod Podge, and an X-ACTO blade. The girls selected scrapbooking paper, paint, and embellishments.

You know me; I never follow any directions exactly. Where's the fun in that? As a loose guide, we used the directions for the Santa frame. I never found any Terrifically Tacky tape at the store. If the girls had chosen to use ribbon on their frame edges, we would have used the Mod Podge instead. However, they both painted the edges at the same time they painted the backs.

We completed the project over two days. On the first day, the girls painted the backs and edges of their frames and left them to dry. Miss Priss chose a metallic gold paint that went well with the papers she'd selected; Tiny Girl opted for white paint.

On Day 2, it was time to trace the frame and frame opening onto the back of their scrapbooking paper.

Since I didn't relish a trip to the emergency room right before Christmas (been there, done that), I used the X-ACTO blade to cut out the tracings.

The girls then spread Mod Podge onto the backs of their cut-outs and smoothed them onto each frame.

After that, they added their embellishments. The stickers were all adhesive, so we didn't need a glue gun. Miss Priss used Mod Podge to adhere her ribbon. And here they are!

 Tiny Girl's finished frames

Miss Priss's finished frames

Last night, a friend -- a high school junior whom my girls adore -- came to hang out with the girls while Himself and I attended a company Christmas dinner. "These frames are great!" she said, and added that she'd like to make some for her friends.

The frames can be fun or fancy, depending on your paper and embellishment choices. Plus, Michaels has tons of frame ideas on the company's website. Check it out to get some ideas!