DIY Wall decal

SO excited to share about this project! Giddy excited. We are in the middle of transforming Nevaeh's room from a pink and green haven into a blue horse big girl room. This will probably be something we do a little at a time but that doesn't mean I couldn't get started. The main thing I wanted to get was a unicorn wall decal (my version of a horse) but was not going to pay almost 60 bones for. So I decided to make my own (it only cost $1.29)!

All you need is a black poster board and mod podge as the main material. 

Draw out your design, cut out each shape, and put a layer of mod podge on the backside. Once placed on the wall, cover each piece with a thin layer over the design to seal the decal and create a high gloss effect. The mod podge goes on white and then dries clear. Next, I cut fine strips and made stars for a final touch by repeating the same process.

The end 3-d effect looks better then a sticker decal AND it's something you can make on your own. Plus for a little over a buck it's my kind of project.

On the homefront

Family = unconditional love. Loving each other at our best and at our worst. With our warts and all. I find that home is our little haven where this happens a lot. We take down our guards and the masks come off. It's where we exchange our suits for pjs- figuratively and literally. And yes, sometimes we get whiny and throw tantrums (not just our two year old).

Our love is messy and real. In my world, I think playtime should be no different. There are epic successes and epic fails in trying new things as a family but when you find something that clicks with your brood it just makes it that much sweeter. You create your own traditions so to speak. Here is some of the craftiness that has been going on this fall in the Karraker abode:

*Building using cardboard boxes: Cardboard boxes, hammers, nails, and screws and with supervision they "build" with daddy

* Watercolors in the bathtub: Nothing fancy just cheap washable watercolors instead of expensive bath paints! It cleans up soooo easy.

The girls also loved mixing different colors with shaving cream and painting with their concoction.

*Forts under the table: Mismatched blankets, a lantern, books, and goofiness required

I love the little feet that are peaking out from underneath the table  lol =)

 *Jumping on beds: Our bed, their bed, beds on the floor. All the time. Why not?

If it wasn't so blurry maybe you could see my big ol baby bump he he

*Paint by #'s: Nevaeh has incredible patience and this has been such a great craft for her. It has now morphed into almost a family puzzle of sorts as each of us have taken turns to paint with her a little bit at a time. Even grandma got to do some spots.

* Toddler go to activities: "cooking" with play dough

* Using tongs- I'm amazed at how entertaining this is for her!

*Coloring on butcher paper: on the walls, on the floors, with roads and cars. Geez I love butcher paper.

 * Pom pom activities- sorting & matching the colors into different containers

* Large beads on elastic

Get your felt on

It's insane how fast time is going (this coming from a preggo lady who is in denial about having baby #3 in just three months!!!!!) and I can't believe Thanksgiving is just next week! Which is another opportunity to practice thankfulness and of course nerdy craftiness.

Last Christmas, we decked the halls with felt christmas trees and let the kids decorate them to their hearts content. I've secretly been waiting all year to bust them out again. He He. It's suddo important to this mama that we teach our children the spirit of gratefulness not just on a holiday but what it looks like on a daily basis. For Thanksgiving, I really wanted to do another felt craft but also something that had some significance. Thus, the thankful turkey was born.

Meet Mr.Thankful Gobble Gobble

Get a variety of cheapo felt

Draw out your pattern & cut (or just eyeball it). Keep in mind that you will need a larger pattern that can be placed on the wall first so that the turkey body and feathers have something to stick to.

Have your child write down different things they are thankful for on each feather. I'm planning on having them add to their feathers yearly with different pens and perhaps smaller handwriting =)

 Ruby decorated/scribbled faces on a few of her own and Nevaeh jotted down some of her sister's ideas such as yo gabba gabba or "smiley faces".

Mount your larger piece on the wall (adhesive putty works the best) and let the kids go for it!

What I love about felt decorations is they can last forever. This nerd is going to have a tote full for every holiday. Better yet, I should just make a flannel board....it worked in Sunday school right? lol I can see it now. Instead of Mary & Joseph, John will be showing the girls how to survive zombies with little figurines on the board!

Fun in the dark

BLACK LIGHT ARTWORK



I have to say this has been our favorite activity/discovery to date! John had recently purchased a black light for halloween and just happened to plug it in above our kitchen chalkboard and low and behold the chalk glowed!!!!!! The rest was a no brainer. We got out the chalk we had made (see link) prior and the girls went to town doing grafitti, all under the blacklight.

BLACKLIGHT EXPERIMENT

Next, we took the same black light fixture and using an extension cord, went around the house on a hunt to find things that would glow. Some things were truly fun and surprising to see transform like certain picture frames or toys and others were a little disturbing like the sinks in the bathroom! The simplist things are the most amusing to kids. They love to be little scientists and go on mini adventures and this let them do both.

SHAPES WITH GLOWSTICKS

Family dance parties are nearly a weekly must in our household. We play fun music and try to have a small supply of dollar store glowsticks tucked away for the fun occasion of doing the dance party in the dark.

Recently we found a new "game" by making shapes with the glowsticks. By placing the shutterspeed on our camera on a low setting, we were able to capture different designs. We didn't need a tripod for this but simply took the picture and within the time delay, drew different designs into the air. The kids were entertained for over an hour experimenting with different techniques to create these fun pics. Ok. We were ALL entertained!

"Everyone draw a heart!"

"Ready set go. Everyone draw a square! Triangle! Star!" It became sort of like simon says and our youngest had fun at attempting to draw the shapes too =)

Gotta love glowing rainbows!

 



Just wanted to share some family creativity in the dark!

DIY Makeup Part 2: Powder

Ready for round two? First I tried homemade lip gloss which you can read about here . I really have been using it daily and would recommend it to anyone. Now onto making homemade makeup powder!!!

What's baffling to me is why I hadn't tried this sooner. Besides, the ingredients are straight out of the kitchen pantry!

Here's what you'll need:
* Baking Cocoa
* Cornstarch
* Cinnamon
* Empty plastic container (or re-use one from previous powder)

*NOTE: Cinnamon is optional. If your skin is naturally sensitive like mine, apply a small amount to the side of your hand, blend, and let sit for 24 hrs to ensure that you don't have a reaction before you mix it with other ingredients

The cocoa is naturally good for your skin on it's own. I used baking cocoa that was dutched which means it was treated with an alkalizing agent and is less acidic.

To make your powder first start with the cornstarch as your base then add cocoa and if desired cinnamon to get the right shade for your skin (I used both). Go a shade darker then your natural skin tone by adding a little bit of cocoa at a time.

Blend the ingredients together thoroughly and apply to your beautiful smiling faces daily! Because we are always beautiful and smiling right lol

 So proud of my miniature makeup collection. Feels good to do things on your own doesn't it?