Candy Cane Stick Horses These ornaments remind me of childhood in so many ways! First, they conjure up images of kids romping around riding stick horses, pretending to be knights or Mounties or cowgirls. They also inspire me to reminisce about my own girlhood, when my mom would do crafts with us. The pattern for these […]

Jewelry from Salvaged Belt Loops & Vintage Buttons I volunteer at the local recycled art materials shop, a nonprofit that benefits the public school system. The other day, I was tasked with salvaging belt buckles. The belts themselves had already been cut off — no doubt they wound up in the scrap leather bin. As I was […]

Acrylic Frames Become Memo Holders Looking for quick and easy volunteer appreciation gifts? Or maybe a craft activity for a group of kids (scout troop or school classroom) for Mother’s Day or Father’s Day? Or maybe an inexpensive teacher gift? Here is an idea for you! It is very easy to make these cute little memo stations that […]

Aluminum and Elastic   These bracelets are popular with young people, and are very easy to make. Step 1: Collect the materials. I think my version of this bracelet (fairly large) took about 24 tabs. It also required about a yard of elastic. You can use almost any kind of elastic that is narrow enough […]

Pretty Snowflakes with no Scissors or Scraps If you are bored on a snow day, here’s an activity that can keep you (and/or the kiddos) busy for hours — go to the Make-A-Flake web site and design your own snowflakes. You can save the results as JPEG files, in case you want to use them […]

Facebook Twitter and You Tube Throw Pillows These are great gifts for a young person who is a fan of Facebook, Twitter, and/or YouTube. My pillows are made out of flannel (except for the lettering on the You Tube pillow, which is felt.) However, they could also easily be made from fleece or felt. I put a flap on […]

Chim Chim on the Cheap (and Quick) When I was a kid, we would have called this a “stuffed animal”. But now, there are so many new words that people use to describe plush toys… I’m not quite certain what to call it. Plushie? Stuffie? Softie? I tried to search online for the distinctions between these, […]

Spiraling swirls of hearts and flowers My husband, Bill, and I have been married many years, and he is not only my True Love, he is also my dearest friend. The other day, I was reminiscing about our romantic courtship and the early years of our marriage. We didn’t have much money back then, but we […]

Pocky pocket! Are you familiar with Pocky? It is a Japanese snack, in the form of a stick that has been dipped in a flavored coating. Pocky sticks are great — low-fat, tasty, and not too sweet. They also add an elegant and unusual flourish to ice cream desserts or fancy cupcakes. And the boxes are so cute! […]

Build-your-own flower adornments    Is it a hair clip? …a pin? …a headband or purse decoration? Surprise! It’s all of these, and more. This year, my little neices are getting these felt-and-fleece adornents, that feature interchangable multicolored flowers and leaves. The girls can stack the little flowers however they like.  All of the flowers start out as […]

When I was working on my owl key cover, I used the Millefiori technique to make the owl’s eyes. When I was finished, I had lots of the “Millefiori’ed” clay left over. So I smashed it all together and made a couple of erasers. (I happened to be using “Amazing Eraser Clay” for my owl.) […]

Cute pyramid-shaped felt coin purse This ingenious little coin purse makes a great gift, stocking stuffer, or favor-box for a wedding. It is incredibly inexpensive and easy-to-make — so also a great craft for youth groups. I am calling the shape a “pyramid”, but the mathematically-correct term is actually “tetrahedron”. Here’s what you need: Felt Embroidery thread Needle […]

My friend, Nichole, has three daughters and they like ribbon hair bows. But the bows can be rather expensive, especially in multiples of three! So she and her daughters (Taylor, Brieana, and Alivia) decided to make their own. They gathered pretty ribbons and hot-glued them in loops, then glued all the loops together to form bows. A […]

Pull-string surprise egg This is a fun way to bestow Easter treats. When the recipient pulls the embedded ribbon, it breaks the paper mache egg in half to spill its hidden treasures. What you will need: An oval balloon Several yards of ribbon Tissue paper Your favorite papier mache glue (I use wallpaper paste) Glass jar […]