Kitchen Organizing...

Before



After

Mailbox gift Bags

Valentine gifts for my daughters pre-kindergarten class

What's in the bag?...

 Target Dollar Spot

 Target Dollar Spot

4 Boxes Free at Safeway with coupons and Buy 4 Save $4 sale

Dollar Tree

You'll need to cut out the mailbox, the flag and the opening of the mailbox. 
Mailbox size = 5" x 3-3/4"--fold in half and curve edges

Your mailbox maybe a different dimension than mine, it will depend on the size of the bags you use.

 Have your kiddos help you put the mailbox together with glue

Whalla!

Type up some labels, cut out, and glue to the flag and opening.

I came up with this idea after my daughter glued everything together. 

Before gluing the opening on, cut a slit halfway up the black opening and slip the "letter" part-way in and glue, then glue the opening to the mailbox.





hmmm.  How to attach it to the bag?.....tape? glue dots? staples?

NOPE!

Paper Fasteners!

First I hole punched (small size) through the flag, mailbox and bag and then attached the fastener.  One pull from the preschoolers and their bag of treats will be free from their valentine.

Note: I didn't have any valentine colored fasteners, so I just took some acrylic paint and painted the gold fastener tops white. 

Use what ya have...that's my motto!

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 This Mailbox Gift Bag Idea was inspired by THIS LINK that was posted by

Connie at the Craft Sayings Forum

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Linking to Blog Parties listed HERE

Kids Craft: Yarn Hearts

I got this idea from Family Fun Magazine (Feb.2011 page 24)


You'll need:
A heart cookie cutter
Yarn cut into 6-8 inch strips
Mixture of flour and water in a bowl


(Family Fun used a different glue concoction using 1/4 C. cornstarch and 1/2 C. water in a saucepan until smooth and then thick and translucent. Use after cooled)

 Put wet yarn into a cookie cutter (I only had a small heart)

 Press yarn down

And press down some more

 (I couldn't pick which picture of my daughters pudgy fingers to use, so I used them both)

And then....



Whalla!

My daughter LOVED this craft.  She made 4 hearts.

We left them outside to dry and over two days they were dry (they were thick and saturated)

I'm not sure where to put them yet, for now I put them on our wreath

Two discoveries:

1) If you do the flour/water mixture, the fluffy yarn holds together better.

If you only have regular yarn, give the cornstarch mixture a try.

2) A larger cookie cutter will allow you to make thinner hearts that will dry faster.

I am linking up with Blog Parties HERE

Valspar Sample Arrived!

I just received my free sample of Valspar paint!  It came with a $5 off a gallon of paint too!You can still get yours too!  Go HERE to pick your color and request the sample! 

Valspar had an overwhelming response when this first came out so they have put a restriction on the amount of samples that go out.  If the "sample store" is closed, be sure to check it each day...the earlier the better.


I plan to use my Italian Roast color as a base before a glaze treatment on a bookshelf I bought.  I will be doing a sample board to test the coloring.  The steps will be coming soon!

Picture Frame Redo

Before

 (Nice enough, just not my style anymore)

 After

 I took the frame apart, took the glass out and the little square insert that was around the mat, and sanded everything to add texture so the paint would adhere well.  I then spray painted thin layers until it was a solid black.  I used Black Satin Spray paint from Micheal's for about $3 after coupon.

Note: this frame is plastic, not wood.  Spray paint works on all surfaces as long as you buy the correct paint...read your labels!

I have two of these frames and am currently working on the second one.  I will post a picture when i fill them and hang them on the wall

Picture/Card Holder

I have had this shutter in my garage for years.  It was already painted red (horribly, I might add).  I roughed it up a bit with some sandpaper and hung it on the wall. 

 It's perfect for the random family pictures you get in the mail and for cards for birthdays or holidays (valentines day!)

There are those curtain rod clips again!  I had to twist the hook on the end so that it would hang from the slates on the shutter.

If you don't have these clips just hanging around your junk drawer, remember I also found the clips at Joanne's in a package of about 20.  They are sold in silver, so you can either leave them or spray them any color you want!


This can also be used as a holiday decoration.  Throw some cute holiday pictures, shapes...make it your own! It's red, so I can use it at Christmas time too. 


I have another shutter that is currently in my bathroom, that I am thinking I will bring out for year round use and put the red away after Valentines Day until 4th of July

Valentine Banner

I got a Cricut Expressions for Christmas and been learning to use it slowly.  I have seen banners all over the blogosphere and decided to give it a try with the cartridges that I have.

Papers are from a stack I bought at Tuesday Morning for $2.99

Clothes Pins are from 99c Store (100pack) painted white

Used Twine for rope

Clips are from old curtain rod that i never used (but I saw them at Joannes in a package too)

 

I am linking up with Friday Parties HERE

Dollar Tree Glass Jar Redo

The one in front with the top I got at a yard sale for $0.50.  The other two were made from $1 store finds.  Right now our local Dollar Tree has glass candlesticks and glass cylinders.  I used E600 glue to fuse the two surfaces together.  I left them overnight upside down in my garage to dry.  I plan to pick up some valentines candy and fill them up and use some ribbon to decorate.

I bought the glue at Joanne's and used 50% off coupon. The tub will last forever!