Dollhouses

Looking for a fun project to do with your kids?
This Dollhouse from Creatology was a perfect project for rainy days.

Do you remember the Gingerbread houses Candace and I put together using these same wooden puzzle dollhouses?

We picked them up at Michael's~and if you use a coupon you can get them for less than $10.  They come in all shapes and sizes.
                                               
It took us a couple of hours to put it together, making sure to glue it together along the way. Then we did a quick coat of spray paint inside and out, adding some contrast to the roof, windows and railings.

The funnest part was heading down to Hobby Lobby and picking out our flooring and wall paper!
We used felt for the flooring and scrapbook paper for the wall paper.  It actually wasn't too bad installing it.  We hot glued on the floor and Mod Podged on the paper.

My daughter even made "artwork" for her walls from images she found on the internet.

It turned out pretty cute and is now hauled all over the house leaving a trail of dolls and toys behind it.  Not bad for less than $20 right?  Now to create the rest of the block.....

Guess what's coming in less than 2 weeks?  Teacher Appreciation Week!  My head is whirling with door decoration ideas!  What do you do at your school to show your appreciation?

Happy Monday friends!

Fat Cat Daddio's

 

I'm not sure where this last month went~seriously!
Part was scrambling to fill orders before Spring Break,
then 10 days visiting my in-laws in Tennessee without my husband~yes, I know weird but fun!
Then it's been scrambling to catch up from being gone.

Oh, did I mention that my computer died and I thought I lost everything~because really, who backs stuff up over the last 9 years?  Not me.

Amidst it all though my daughter has the chance to be part of the Holiday House Spring Boutique in their new Kid's Crafting Section, which is a brilliant idea!  So as parents we thought this was a unique idea and challenge for our little 10 year old.

First I told her to create a Company Name and Logo:

This is her original drawing but she liked her second one better~at least the colors.

So we told the logo guy to run with whichever image he thought would work.
This is the final result:

My husband has a great contact for logo's, Deeper Designs~this guy is brilliant, amazing and wonderful!  We had so much fun working with him on the logo!  It was so fun to see her drawing come to life!

This last summer we grew a ton of catnip!  It's amazing stuff and so potent!  Our kitties go crazy for it!  We've packaged it up and it's ready to please the finickiest of kittens! (My daughter is going to love that I used "Finnick" in some way referring to her~ahhhhh swoon!)  Stuff you get in the store just doesn't compare so she was really excited to put her Fat Cat Daddio's seal of approval on it!

We of course had to print up some shirts!  I have to admit it was pretty adorable to see my hubby sporting his Fat Cat Daddio's shirt to lacrosse practice to show his boys.  He's a good Daddy.:)

Last but not least are the fun Greeting cards!  Avery is always busy drawing~always.  We buy her more notebooks than toys if you can believe it.  I thought it would be fun to share some of her little drawings since her homemade cards are the favorites or our family and friends.  We printed off some of her cute drawings and mounted them on cute colored polka dotted cards.  Did I get a decent picture before taking them over to the boutique~no!

Fun stuff right?
I even spent most of the day creating her own little Etsy store, because I love Etsy!

Fat Cat Daddio's

 There are so many great things there and I love that they are handmade.  If you get a chance make sure to check it out~I think I need to work on her little banner some more.  Any and all feedback is welcome!

So what do you guys think?  Crazy to do this?  Funner than 100 degree heat Lemonade stands?
Happy Friday Friends and here's hoping you have an AMAZING weekend~SpRiNg is here!

WYLTC? Mother's Day Craft

We are hosting Wood You Like To Craft this month

and our theme is "Mother's Day"!

Come check out our cute Mother's Day Wooden Flower Bouquet

and stay tuned for what Krystal, Wendy and Melinda have to share this week!

eyeball gumball necklace

This week we are getting ready for school Halloween parties.  

We have a couple of Halloween ideas to share with you, hopefully each day...but don't hold us to it.  Our children, laundry and husbands beckon us... 

First up, an eyeball gumball necklace made from a store bought candy necklace.  

Kinda gross, but the boys love it!

I picked up a really cute gumball necklace at our local Holiday House Boutique.  The necklace is made by Emily, she will be selling more at the next boutique on November  9-10th & November 16th-17th.  I love it and had to ask her how she makes them.  She uses a dremel bit to drill holes through the gumballs and then weaves ribbon to create the necklace.  

Sadly, it doesn't quite work for my boys....

I stumbled upon some gruesome candy eyeballs at TJ Maxx, I thought they were funny enough to buy and I knew my boys would get a kick out of them.

Yeah...they are pretty gross and bloody.  I could have done without the blood, I like happy and cute Halloween.

To "cuten up" the gross eyeballs,  we added them to store bought candy necklaces.  

Next, we drilled through the eyeballs.  

(Clean the drill bit and either use a dremel or a controlled speed drill.  Watch your fingers!

Hold the gumball with a good set of pliers and to avoid scuffs, use a soft towel between the pliers and the gumball.  Drill on a cutting board or a piece of wood to protect your work surface.)

The candy necklace elastic was a little too short for us to work with, so we cut a longer piece of new elastic thread. We used a needle and it was much easier to string the candy.  Bead the candy and gum balls on and finish with a tight knot. Super easy!

They are a hit with the boys and will be so funny to hand out to their friends!

If you are looking for gumball eyeballs, we found some over at Oriental Trading Co.

Another option is to use edible cake/cookie decorating markers and make your own eyeballs on white gumballs.

We have a several more easy Halloween ideas to share, so come back soon!

September Wood You Like To Craft

Today we are over at Wood You Like To Craft

sharing our take on September's theme

Crafting with/for Kids!

We are always excited for an excuse to do crafts for our kids and with them!

Here's an idea I've wanted to do for a while now!

We thought it would be fun to take one of our favorite shapes and turn it into a

fun chalkboard and jewelry holder, which was perfect for my daughter!

First we found a fun shape we used from a favorite old poster.

This was perfect since it looks just like our favorite kitty Morris~

My daughter has been begging for a kitty shape for a long time now

and I've been wanting to figure out a cute way for her to store all her own necklaces

so they aren't tangled up in my jewelry box....

so this was our perfect fit!

First I made up my pattern and traced it onto 3/4" MDF.

I cut it out with my jigsaw and scroll saw for the finer details.

I then painted it 3 coats worth of chalkboard paint.

I sanded in between coats lightly with a sanding sponge for a smoother finish.

I added 10 tiny hooks that I had spray painted black by pre-drilling holes first along the tail.

The tail was the perfect place for these hooks!

Then finished it off with a hook on the back for easy hanging.

Now I have the perfect place for reminder notes and a perfect place for her own necklaces!

Now I just need to find the perfect spot in her room to hang it up....

Make sure to head over to Wood You Like To Craft to 

see what the other gals have been up to!