Soccer Mom Style

DIY: Heart Shaped Valentine's Wreath with Coffee Filters

2012-02-14T16:04:00.003-06:00

I decided to make a Valentine's wreath. The only condition was: I could NOT buy anything. All the supplies needed had to be already on hand in my house.
You can find many tutorials online on how to make a coffee filter wreath. However, some of the tutorials call for dyeing each coffee filter one by one. I'll show you how to make these beautiful pink paper flowers by dyeing coffee filters in only 3-4 batches.

Supplies used:
large piece of cardboard (you do save your large amazon boxes, don't you?!)
utility knife
pencil
medium glass or plastic round container for dye-bath
screwdriver (preferably Phillips head)
longnose or needlenose pliers
a package of 8-12 cup basket-style coffee filters (I had a package of 200 but still have plenty leftover)
small amount of red poster paint (or red water color)
medium or large craft brush
yarn or ribbon for hanging
strong tape

First, prepare your dye-bath:
Fill your container with cold water only about 1" deep. Dip your brush in red paint and then rinse it in dye-bath water. Divide your package of coffee filters in several batches (sorry I have no idea how many coffee filters I had in each batch). Place the coffee filters one batch at a time into your dye-bath as shown below and remove immediately. This gives you a beautiful ombre effect.

dip-dyeing coffee filters in large batches speeds up the process considerably

Load wet brush with small amount of paint and slightly touch-up the edges of coffee filters (still in large batches). Repeat the process with each batch.

Place the batches of coffee filters on some old towel to dry for several ours or overnight.

With the utility knife cut a desired shape out of cardboard. I ended up with two shapes. One 13X16" heart "outline" shape (about 2.5" wide) and the smaller solid heart shape (the middle part of the whole).
In any case, just choose you own shape and poke holes with the screwdriver all over the cardboard (you can draw your dots first with a pencil). The holes should be about 1.5" apart.


I punched too many holes, so ended up not using all of them...

Next, is an important step and it will speed up your project significantly in the end.
With the tip of longnose or needlenose pliers widen each hole to about 1/4" in diameter (of course, you could skip making holes altogether and just hot glue your flowers to the cardboard but I did not want to mess with hot glue this time).
Separate dry coffee filters and make flowers (roses?) by pinching the middle and twisting as shown below:

Thread each flower through the holes in the cardboard.

Repeat until you fill most of the holes.

You can use the finished wreath as a decoration around the house or make a hanger with a piece of ribbon or yarn and hang it on your front door. Happy Valentine's Day.

back side of the wreath is not so pretty, but nobody sees it

Kids Activities: Painted Ice

2012-02-07T10:56:00.001-06:00

All you need is some ice placed in an old container, household salt and liquid food coloring. Pour salt all over ice and start coloring with food coloring drop by drop. This was equally fun for my kids to paint and for me to watch them enjoy the creative process.

Of course, we could not help pretending we were bloody monsters :)

Have fun!

Helpful links with similar projects:

Ice sculptures with salt and liquid watercolors

Iridescent ice experiment

Valentine's Hearts Tee Ideas Anyone Can Do

2012-01-30T10:52:00.000-06:00

Project 1: Easy Ruffled Heart Tee (no sewing machine required)

I can't sew but that did not stop me from making this ruffled heart design for a friend's daughter :)

What you'll need:
solid or striped tee or dress preferably cotton
about a yard of flower ruffle trim - like this one from JoAnn's
pencil or fabric marker
heart shaped cookie cutter - optional
needle and thread

Outline your design with a pencil or fabric marker (I just traced cookie cutter). Start hand-stitching your trimming to the shirt starting from the outer edge going to the middle.

Project 2: Pastel Hearts Stamped on Fabric (using fabric paint).

I made my own stamp from a rubber eraser and hot-glued it to a fat marker end. You can just purchase one from this lovely Etsy shop.
You'll need a blank shirt or a dress in white or light color (the one in the photo below came from Walmart).
Using 3-4 pastel fabric paints start stamping away. To mix your own pastel colors just add white paint to any regular color. For example to make pastel pink, mix white and pink colors together.

use foil, wax paper or smooth plastic place-mat sliding it inside the dress for protection

When the design is dry heat set with iron using wax paper on top of painted areas for 30 seconds.

Project 3: Using Paper Doily
Using paper doily as a stencil make your own "lace" heart design with fabric paint. When dry, don't forget to heat set. See more thorough instructions in my previous post.

DIY: Valentine's Craft With Paper Doily

2012-01-29T20:15:00.002-06:00

Do you remember my red sparkle heart tee I did last year after seeing one on Taylor Swift in In-Style magazine? Back then I used plain old craft glitter. The design come out so stiff that I've been searching for a better product since then... and that better product is Plaid's Silk Screen Glitter used with Simply Screen Adhesive.
A few weeks ago, I received a gift from lovely Bromeliad - glitter fabric paints and silk screen glitter. I have already made several things with kids. Here is a tutorial for an easy Valentines shirt for a girl using a paper lace heart doily. I bought my doilies at Target ($1 for a set of 20) but you can find similar ones on-line or in any craft store.

paper doilies from Target

Plaid's Simply Screen Foil and Glitter Adhesive

Plaid's Silk Screen Glitter
sponge or soft brush for applying adhesive

this step is optional: cut out the middle part with X-Acto knife

Prewash, dry and iron the shirt; place the paper "stencil" in the desired position as shown above.

Apply Silk Screen Glitter Adhesive with a sponge or brush; then sprinkle glitter. Allow to dry 24 hours. Heat set with a household iron using parchment paper on top of glitter for 30 seconds.

Instead of glitter you can also use fabric paint as shown below.

here I was experimenting on my daughters pajama shirt with different techniques with black fabric paint

Also, one can simply use heart doilies as stencils on light paper for kids crafts. For this project I recommend using Do-A-Dot Art markers.

My Georgia: Gozinaki Recipe (Candied Walnuts)

2011-12-28T21:59:00.002-06:00

Gozinaki

Gozinaki is a traditional Georgian candy made around Christmas or New Year. A friend of mine is visiting from the country of Georgia and she brought us this delicious treat she made herself.

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups shelled and toasted walnuts
1 cup honey
1-2 tbs sugar

Chop walnuts coarsely. In a deep saucepan bring the honey to a boil. Add sugar. Stir in the nuts and cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, stirring periodically with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is think.
Pour the mixture out onto a moistened wooden board. With a spatula or hand , spread it 1/2 inch thick. When cool, cut into 2-inch diamonds.

Kids Activities: Homemade Christmas Ornaments

2011-12-28T21:39:00.001-06:00

Here is another holiday craft we did over the break: homemade pine cone ornament. This is kid-friendly and easy.
You'll need a pine cone (either store bought or from a nearby park), string or ribbon for hanging, white acrylic craft paint, Mod Podge, glitter, brush and some kind of glue.
First, attach a string or ribbon to the top of the pine cone for hanging. For this, I used hot glue (the only part of this craft that you'll need to help with or use school glue instead).

Apply white paint to the pine cone as shown below:

Apply a layer of Mod Podge on top of white paint and immediately after that shake glitter on top of Mod Podge. Allow to dry.

homemade pine cone ornament

We also made a snowman face with an extra Styrofoam ball. One could also decorate Styrofoam ball with old buttons, beads, tissue paper and even scraps of fabric.

homemade snowman

This year we decided to make Russian Tea Cakes for Santa since they kind of resemble snow balls. Here is a link to the recipe we used. Happy Holidays!

Kids Activities: Yarn Ornaments

2011-12-26T09:02:00.002-06:00

homemade yarn candy cane

Merry Christmas to you! Here are some yarn crafts I did with my children who are eight and six. I did have to help them a lot especially with hot glue.

To make three candy canes you'll need:
red and white thick yarn (LionBrand from Walmart for under $3 each roll)
one wire hanger (will make 3-4 candy canes)
tin snips
hot glue

With tin snips cut the wire in 3-4 straight pieces about 6-7" long. Bend one end of each piece to resemble a candy cane. Then tie red a white yarn together and hot glue to the straight end of the wire. Twist your yarn (red and white together) around the wire, using small amounts of hot glue. Once finished, just tie another knot and hot glue to secure. As I said above, I had to do hot gluing for my kids. With the younger kids you could just use pipe cleaners as shown here.

homemade yarn and Styrofoam ball ornament

For the yarn ball ornament (above) we used Styrofoam ball, red and white yarn, and hot glue.

Tie red and white yarn together and hot glue the knot to the center of the Styrofoam ball. Twisting the yarn glue it to the ball in circles as shown below.

With a separate piece of yarn (about 6" long) make a loop for hanger and hot glue it to the ball. Then finish up the rest of the ornament. For more kid friendly version, maybe try Tacky Glue instead of hot glue.

Next craft is a yarn ball without any Styrofoam (see the photo below).

red yarn ball homemade ornament

For this craft we used red yarn and twine (to make two separate balls). Instead of yarn or twine, I think one could use cord, string or even jute. For the excellent tutorial, go to this website.

homemade twine ball, DIY moss ball

Christmas Break Kids' Crafts: Yarn Ornaments

2011-12-20T13:13:00.001-06:00

Christmas break starts tomorrow and it's too cold to play outside. To keep my little troublemakers out of trouble (and to keep my sanity) I've been searching for some new Christmas craft ideas. Here are just a few links for simple yarn ornaments. Will update you on our own version later. What's your "secret weapon" to keep your children busy when they're out of school?
Happy Holidays to all!

Source: 123mytoddlerandme.blogspot.com via Maya on Pinterest

Source: familyfun.go.com via Maya on Pinterest

Source: homedecorators.com via Maya on Pinterest

DIY: Glitter Cowboy Boots

2011-12-15T14:27:00.001-06:00

Bought these genuine leather cowgirl boots for my daughter for $6 (Goodwill). There were already beautiful but black leather just did not match Nina's girly character. Pink would've been so cute, but I did not want to dye them myself. So took the easier road of turning these into glitter boots. Nina loves them!

jumbo multi-colored glitter from JoAnns, Mod-Podge, large brush, masking tape and plastic container (not pictured)

in a container mix Mod-Podge and glitter (about 1:1 ratio)

tape off the soles and apply your first layer

let it dry 40 min to 1 hr

apply your second layer, let it dry as well and then apply just Mod-Podge alone to seal

My Georgia: Oleg Timchenko's Paintings

2011-10-25T09:17:00.003-05:00

Angel (source)

I am so excited to be able to attend Oleg Timchenko's exhibition in New York on Thursday!! I am leaving tomorrow and will be back on Sunday. More photos coming after the trip.
The exhibition is called Come Together and is held at the Art Bazaar in New York (175 7th Ave, N.Y. Corner of 20th Str.)
If you are in New York area from October 25 through November 6 please try to see this. I am traveling all the way from Tennessee to New York just to see Oleg's works. They are brought from the country of Georgia (the artist's birthplace).

Guardian (source)

Nude, courtesy of Hans Buhr

Red Box Full of Jewels (source)

Ophelia (source)

photo courtesy of Hans Buhr

Tennessee Pow Wow 2011 (Part 3)

2011-10-19T09:30:00.000-05:00

I'm SURE all you really want to know is what I wore to the festival I've been posting about for the last couple days. I was actually very uncomfortable being my 6-year old daughter's over-sized twin, but decided to act confident.

horse tee - Walmart

Free People maxi skirt - thrifted

western booties - SteinMart

Nina's dress is made out of an extra large horse tee from Walmart (with JoAnn's white fringe attached at the bottom). I don't have a sewing machine and did it all by hand. Her suede purse is thrifted. Her new cowgirl hat is from Walmart's Halloween section. I had a suede cowgirl jacket ready for her to wear but it was too warm for it.

Nina's necklaces:

F21 chain with a girl charm - gifted from her Aunt

dream catcher and crystal necklaces - new purchases from the festival

Cordell's purchases:

coyote tooth and bear claw necklaces, Indian drum

sterling silver horse earrings I bought for myself from one of the vendors

Tennessee Pow Wow 2011 (Part 2)

2011-10-18T10:28:00.001-05:00

Indian fry bread with confectioner's sugar. Yum!

Last Saturday I took my kids to the Tennessee Pow Wow 2011. It was a beautiful sunny day. We had a blast and my kids can't wait to go there again next year (this is becoming our favorite Fall tradition, we went last year too). We watched the dance contest, ate native fry bread, and got to see beautiful arts and crafts. Unfortunately, most vendors did not allow photos taken, but here are just a few we were able to take.

Tennessee Pow Wow 2011 (Part 1)

2011-10-16T10:57:00.000-05:00

More photos from the Tennessee Pow Wow coming tomorrow... Stay tuned.

DIY: Fall Inspired Jewelry Organizer

2011-10-12T20:48:00.007-05:00

This is an easy and fun Fall inspired project. I picked up these branches while walking my dog in the nearby park. To sterilize wood you can actually bake it in the oven at 250F for about 30 min (I did not do this, but have baked drift wood in the past for our hermit crab). Also, you can spray-paint branches if desired. For the container, pick something that has a relatively wide base and is not breakable (just in case your project tilts). To make this stable fill your container with glass vase fillers or small river rocks (I already had glass vase fillers).

I will definitely have to show you more of my stars and the moon necklace (above). It is so much like Dolce and Gabbana AW2011 star prints. I found this amazing celestial necklace at my favorite local antiques shop for only $2 or $3 several weeks ago.

DIY hardware bracelet

The pumpkin bracelet holder was just a joke at first, but then I thought why not?! Small pumpkin with a long stem = instant natural bracelet holder.

Bright Blue Dress + "Voodoo" Accessories

2011-10-10T20:59:00.005-05:00

bright blue dress - thrifted

black suede booties - DSW (one of my birthday purchases)

tribal clutch - Target

beaded necklaces, ribcage necklace - Target

Mexican Sugar Skull earrings - DIY

blue bungee cord bracelet - DIY

October is a great month to check out your local Target, Walmart, Kmart etc. for funky accessories. I bought my ribcage necklace and skull earrings at Target (they had all kinds of spooky jewelry in their Halloween section). The earrings originally were silver, but I spray-painted them white and decorated with acrylic paint to resemble Mexican sugar skulls.
My kids are on their Fall Break from school, so I will probably not be posting this week much...

here is a cheesy shot of my new highlights ;)