St. Patrick's Day Craft: Clover Wall Hanging

We're a wee bit Irish so I especially enjoy doing St. Patrick's Day crafts with M2. The craft I created for her this year is a wooden clover wall hanging.

Last year, we made lucky shamrock magnets. Since M2 is on a painting kick currently, I decided to let her do something with paints. Like any little girl, she's also big into glitter.

St. Patrick's Day Clover Craft Supplies

•  a wooden clover (found at Target for $3)
• green matte acrylic paint
• gold metallic acrylic paint
• a paint sponge
• paint brush
• light and dark green tempera paint sticks (you can get these here)
• clear glitter glue 
• gold glitter glue

How to Make It

I started by painting the clover a deep green to give M2 a base to work with, being sure to paint the sides and the rope hanger. To keep paint from getting all over, I set the clover on a box for it to dry. Once it dried, I lined the edge with the gold paint using a watercolor paint brush. If you have older kids, they could do the base and edging themselves.

Next was M2's turn. I set her up with green tempera paint sticks in two colors and gold glitter glue. We put on the glitter glue together, rimming the edge of the clover over top of the gold paint I'd added.

She then went at it with the paint sticks. Dark and light green paint topped the green background. Once it dried, she dumped glitter glue all over it and spread it out with the paint brushes to work it in with the paint -- totally her idea! I'm really impressed she came up with that technique, it turned out well. The different paints and glitter gives a neat textured affect to the project.

The whole craft took no time at all, wasn't messy, yet was fun to make. Plus, it's a decoration we can pull out year after year to enjoy.

The clover got set out to dry overnight then hung up on the wall. I added the date and M2's name to the back.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Please vote for me by clicking the brown Top Mommy Blogs button below, then the big, ORANGE button on the next page to vote. Thank you!

 This post contains affiliate links.

DIY Holiday Snow Globes

It's getting down to the wire for deciding what to have the kiddos give Grandma and Grandpa or Great-Aunt Rita for the holidays. The hand print ornament is always a hit, but we did that last year. Why not make something festive that's a bit different -- a snow globe! Guest poster Laurie is here to show you how to make them.

Snow globes are a great inexpensive craft project that can be personalized however you'd like. Silly and fun with a plastic elephant and horse or take a classic Christmas route with plastic ornament balls. Even a couple pieces of that old fake tree from the basement can make a really cute snow globe.

First, you need to figure out what kind of container you want to use. My husband and I had decided on glass milk bottles and small plastic cookie jars. Both are only $1 each at the Dollar Store.

Now, it's time to collect your crafting tools and decorations. Don't forget the glitter! You'll need a hot glue gun and rubber cement to adhere your decorations and lid. A little bit of bleach or rubbing alcohol is also needed. We'll get to why a little later.

For the decorations have the kids run around the house looking for something from their toy box to use. While they do that, why not see what plastic ornament balls you have left over after putting up the tree? Also think of how to dress up the outside of your globe. Get creative!

For this example I've chosen a glass milk bottle and tiny plastic ornaments I picked up from the dollar section (who can resist Target dollar bins). Using my glue gun, I drizzled some into the bottom of my bottle then dropped in my ornaments. Then repeated that process until I liked how it looked.

Now, the bleach/ rubbing alcohol is needed. Just a tiny bit of bleach or alcohol mixed in with the water you use to fill the container. We're using this so no bacteria ends up growing through the years.

Before you fill with water don't forget the glitter! There's no specific amount to add since it will vary from what kind of jar or bottle you decide to use. You won't need a whole lot and even dollar stores carry some.

Before gluing on the lid, secure it then give it a shake. You might find you want to add a little more glitter or some out. Once you like how it looks grab the rubber cement and a paper towel.

Make sure the area where you'll be putting the glue is dry. With the rubber cement you'll want to put glue on the lid and your container. Put a generous amount and wipe away access.

Time to decorate the outside! For mine I chose some ribbon (dollar section again) and a baby pine cone picked by my stepdaughter.

The snow globes are a simple craft to do by mom or dad and fun for the kids to pick the decorations. Our family made 11 or 12 and spent about $20 total. This a great way to give cute and unique gift, plus keep your piggy bank from being smashed.

Happy Holiday crafting!

Special thanks to my husband for the idea and help making them!

Please vote for me by clicking the pink banner below, then clicking the GREEN or ORANGE button on the next page to confirm the vote! Thank you!!

About the Author
Laurie is Melissa's sister and a fellow stay-at-home mom to two little girls -- a 4-year-old and a newborn -- and is also stepmom to a 5-year-old little girl. Living in New England, she has a big Australian Sheepdog along with the kids and her husband. She enjoys music, decorating cakes, Doctor Who and annoying Melissa.

DIY Holiday Snow Globes

It's getting down to the wire for deciding what to have the kiddos give Grandma and Grandpa or Great-Aunt Rita for the holidays. The hand print ornament is always a hit, but we did that last year. Why not make something festive that's a bit different -- a snow globe! Guest poster Laurie is here to show you how to make them.

Snow globes are a great inexpensive craft project that can be personalized however you'd like. Silly and fun with a plastic elephant and horse or take a classic Christmas route with plastic ornament balls. Even a couple pieces of that old fake tree from the basement can make a really cute snow globe.

First, you need to figure out what kind of container you want to use. My husband and I had decided on glass milk bottles and small plastic cookie jars. Both are only $1 each at the Dollar Store.

Now, it's time to collect your crafting tools and decorations. Don't forget the glitter! You'll need a hot glue gun and rubber cement to adhere your decorations and lid. A little bit of bleach or rubbing alcohol is also needed. We'll get to why a little later.

For the decorations have the kids run around the house looking for something from their toy box to use. While they do that, why not see what plastic ornament balls you have left over after putting up the tree? Also think of how to dress up the outside of your globe. Get creative!

For this example I've chosen a glass milk bottle and tiny plastic ornaments I picked up from the dollar section (who can resist Target dollar bins). Using my glue gun, I drizzled some into the bottom of my bottle then dropped in my ornaments. Then repeated that process until I liked how it looked.

Now, the bleach/ rubbing alcohol is needed. Just a tiny bit of bleach or alcohol mixed in with the water you use to fill the container. We're using this so no bacteria ends up growing through the years.

Before you fill with water don't forget the glitter! There's no specific amount to add since it will vary from what kind of jar or bottle you decide to use. You won't need a whole lot and even dollar stores carry some.

Before gluing on the lid, secure it then give it a shake. You might find you want to add a little more glitter or some out. Once you like how it looks grab the rubber cement and a paper towel.

Make sure the area where you'll be putting the glue is dry. With the rubber cement you'll want to put glue on the lid and your container. Put a generous amount and wipe away access.

Time to decorate the outside! For mine I chose some ribbon (dollar section again) and a baby pine cone picked by my stepdaughter.

The snow globes are a simple craft to do by mom or dad and fun for the kids to pick the decorations. Our family made 11 or 12 and spent about $20 total. This a great way to give cute and unique gift, plus keep your piggy bank from being smashed.

Happy Holiday crafting!

Special thanks to my husband for the idea and help making them!

About the Author
Laurie is Melissa's sister and a fellow stay-at-home mom to two little girls -- a 4-year-old and a newborn -- and is also stepmom to a 5-year-old little girl. Living in New England, she has a big Australian Sheepdog along with the kids and her husband. She enjoys music, decorating cakes, Doctor Who and annoying Melissa.

Fall Craft Week: All the Posts Together

In case you missed any of the posts from Fall Craft Week, here are all the links so you can find them easily. I've included links to each on Pinterest so you can pin them for later.

Pumpkin, Leaf & Acorn Fall Craft and Homeschool Lesson

Pinterest

20 Fall and Halloween Crafts for Kids

Pinterest

Halloween Hand, Foot & Thumb Print Art

Pinterest

Welcome, Fall Wooden Sign Craft

Pinterest

15 Fall Crafts for Moms

Pinterest

Affiliate Links

Halloween Hand, Foot & Thumb Print Art

My inspiration for this craft is two things: Kid's love of getting messy, coating their hands and feet in paint and goo. Kids grow so fast, their little hands and feet grow bigger every day. As a mom, I try to capture that each year so that the next year I can see how much they've grown and remember how little they were. This Halloween craft captures your child's hand, foot and thumb prints together in art you can your home with for years to remind you of the times that came before. Their adorable handprint becomes a tree, thumbprints a pumpkin patch and footprint a ghost!

Fall Craft Week
For more fun seasonal crafts for kids, check out my Pumpkin, Leaf & Acorn Fall Craft and Homeschool Lesson, adorable Welcome, Fall Wooden Sign, a roundup of 20 crafts for kids. If you're looking for crafts just for you, check out my roundup of 15 Crafts for Moms. It's all part of Fall Craft Week here on The SAH Life!

Supplies

Thin black ribbon with glitter
Vanilla-colored acrylic paint
Pumpkin-colored acrylic paint
Brown acrylic paint
Deep green acrylic paint
White acrylic paint
Jet black acrylic paint
Orange-yellow acrylic paint
Paint brushes
Sponge brushes
Paper plates or something else to put you paint on/in
Hot glue gun and glue
2 round wood plaques
1 square wood plaque

Instructions 

Paint the plaques using the sponge brushes so the paint is even -- the square with the orange-yellow paint and the rounds with a 50/50 mixture of the white and the vanilla-colored paint. Let them dry completely. Use the regular paint brushes for the other steps.
Paint your child's hand with the brown paint and have them put their print at an angle on one of the rounds. Paint on a trunk to complete the tree.
Dump out some of the pumpkin-colored paint on a plate and have your child put their thumb in it then make thumb prints by the tree to create a pumpkin patch.
Paint a small line with the brown paint at the top of each pumpkin to be the stems then next to each paint a smaller line with the green to be the leaves.

Paint your child's foot with the white paint and have them step on the other round. Have their heel by the top as the top will be the ghost's head. Paint eyes on mouth on the ghost with the black paint.
Paint "Boo!" under the foot print with the black paint with a touch of the pumpkin color mixed in.

Paint "Happy Halloween" on the square plaque, alternating between the black and pumpkin-color paints.
Paint a swoosh and two dots underneath the words.

Let the paint dry completely.
Cut a piece of ribbon for the hanger, however long you'd like, and hot glue each end to the back. Be sure to glue it so that there isn't any kinks in the ribbon.
Cut a piece of ribbon so that one will go from the middle of the square to the middle of the round with about 2 inches between the plaques. Cut another piece the same way, to go from one round to another, again with 2 inches of ribbon between them.
Figure out how you want the art on the front of the plaques centered and determine where the center is -- this is where you'll want to glue your ribbon on the back. The square should be first, then the tree and pumpkin patch followed by the ghost.
Glue your ribbons on the back by hot gluing a line from the top to the middle of each piece then sticking the ribbon over it.
After the glue dries, hang up your new art!



This post contains affiliate links.





Affiliate Links

Halloween Hand, Foot & Thumb Print Art

My inspiration for this craft is two things: Kid's love of getting messy, coating their hands and feet in paint and goo. Kids grow so fast, their little hands and feet grow bigger every day. As a mom, I try to capture that each year so that the next year I can see how much they've grown and remember how little they were. This Halloween craft captures your child's hand, foot and thumb prints together in art you can your home with for years to remind you of the times that came before. Their adorable handprint becomes a tree, thumbprints a pumpkin patch and footprint a ghost!

Fall Craft Week
For more fun seasonal crafts for kids, check out my Pumpkin, Leaf & Acorn Fall Craft and Homeschool Lesson, adorable Welcome, Fall Wooden Sign, a roundup of 20 crafts for kids. If you're looking for crafts just for you, check out my roundup of 15 Crafts for Moms. It's all part of Fall Craft Week here on The SAH Life!

Supplies

Thin black ribbon with glitter
Vanilla-colored acrylic paint
Pumpkin-colored acrylic paint
Brown acrylic paint
Deep green acrylic paint
White acrylic paint
Jet black acrylic paint
Orange-yellow acrylic paint
Paint brushes
Sponge brushes
Paper plates or something else to put you paint on/in
Hot glue gun and glue
2 round wood plaques
1 square wood plaque

Instructions 

Paint the plaques using the sponge brushes so the paint is even -- the square with the orange-yellow paint and the rounds with a 50/50 mixture of the white and the vanilla-colored paint. Let them dry completely. Use the regular paint brushes for the other steps.
Paint your child's hand with the brown paint and have them put their print at an angle on one of the rounds. Paint on a trunk to complete the tree.
Dump out some of the pumpkin-colored paint on a plate and have your child put their thumb in it then make thumb prints by the tree to create a pumpkin patch.
Paint a small line with the brown paint at the top of each pumpkin to be the stems then next to each paint a smaller line with the green to be the leaves.

Paint your child's foot with the white paint and have them step on the other round. Have their heel by the top as the top will be the ghost's head. Paint eyes on mouth on the ghost with the black paint.
Paint "Boo!" under the foot print with the black paint with a touch of the pumpkin color mixed in.

Paint "Happy Halloween" on the square plaque, alternating between the black and pumpkin-color paints.
Paint a swoosh and two dots underneath the words.

Let the paint dry completely.
Cut a piece of ribbon for the hanger, however long you'd like, and hot glue each end to the back. Be sure to glue it so that there isn't any kinks in the ribbon.
Cut a piece of ribbon so that one will go from the middle of the square to the middle of the round with about 2 inches between the plaques. Cut another piece the same way, to go from one round to another, again with 2 inches of ribbon between them.
Figure out how you want the art on the front of the plaques centered and determine where the center is -- this is where you'll want to glue your ribbon on the back. The square should be first, then the tree and pumpkin patch followed by the ghost.
Glue your ribbons on the back by hot gluing a line from the top to the middle of each piece then sticking the ribbon over it.
After the glue dries, hang up your new art!



This post contains affiliate links.





Affiliate Links

Welcome, Fall Wooden Sign Craft

Welcoming fall by decorating for the season is something we do in our house every year. It goes hand-in-hand with the apple picking, baking, cooking and opening of all the windows to let in the crisp air. Adding to our decoration collection with crafts M2 creates makes the yearly decorating even more special. Every time they come out, the memories of her making them and of her when she was younger come flooding back. Previous years she wasn't able to do much.

Now that she's a little bit older, she and I are getting more adventurous. To officially welcome fall this year, she and I made this wooden sign. I love how the layered paint looks like fall leaves scattered on the ground and the apple reminds us of our family apple-picking tradition. This craft is for kids age 2 and older. Younger ones are going to need more help from mom while the older kiddos can do more on their own.

Fall Craft Week
In case you missed the earlier Fall Craft Week posts, check out my cute Pumpkin, Leaf & Acorn Fall Craft and Homeschool Lesson, a roundup of 20 crafts for kids from other bloggers. Then stop by tomorrow for 15 crafts for moms and come back Friday for an adorable hand print, footprint and thumbprint Halloween art M2 and I created to share with you.

Supplies
Wooden plaque, any shape
Wooden apple cutout
Brown yarn
2 medium googly eyes
Apple-red acrylic paint
Leaf-green acrylic paint
Dark brown acrylic paint
Yellow acrylic paint
Dark orange acrylic paint
Medium orange acrylic paint
Red glitter hot glue
Clear glitter hot glue
Paint brushes
Hot glue gun
School glue
Scissors

Directions
Child:
Paint the apple, starting with the red then doing the stem and leaf
Paint the plaque with the yellow and two orange paints
Let dry
Glue on googly eyes with school glue

Mom: (older kids can do this part themselves)
Cut then braid three long pieces of yarn then fold in half. Length can be whatever you want it to be, depending on where the sign will hang. Remember to cut the pieces extra long as you fold it.
Hot glue ends of braided yarn to back of the plaque
Paint "Welcome, Fall" and swoosh on the plaque with brown paint
Paint smile on the apple
Outline apple with red glitter hot glue and outline plaque with clear glitter hot glue
Let everything dry then hang your sign to welcome fall!



Affiliate Links