Christmas in July!

What a fun project - make Christmas ornaments or gifts in the middle of July to mark the half-way point. So many things you could do here.

1) Peruse thrift store shops for wooden candlesticks to paint in red, white and green. Or find old spoons, bend the handle so it will hang, and paint it with snowmen, Santa, or trees. Or keep it simple and paint stars in traditional (or non-traditional) colors.

2) Go ahead and make a Christmas tee or sweatshirt. Paint a green triangle. Let dry. Paint a gold or yellow star on the top. Use red, blue, and yellow to paint balls on the tree. Let dry. Outline each ball, star, and tree with black paint that has a pointed writing tip. Let dry.

3) Use scrapbook paper to make Christmas cards. All you'll have to do is insert a family picture, sign it, and send! No more spending money on boxes of cards and your recipients will appreciate a handmade gesture so much more.

So...happy early holiday season and happy crafting!
jen

Happy Birthday America!

Well, it's finally here. Independence Day! I love this holiday - sun, lake, pool, red, white and blue, BBQ, and my favorite...FiReWoRkS! I don't know what it is about fireworks that I love so much but I could sit and watch a good fireworks show anytime. They make me happy. Maybe I'm just intrigued with the fact that you can light a fuse and this thing explodes and paints pretty pictures and shapes and colors across the night sky. I just love it.

Things have been pretty busy this week and I didn't have time to post a craft but I'll be back on it after the wonderful weekend and fireworks extravaganza...hopefully a bit inspired.

Craft Time!

Well, I've been thinking about what craft project to give instructions for so I think a good 4th of July painted tee shirt will do just fine. The holiday is coming up next weekend so this gives you plenty of time to gather supplies and have a fun painting party with the kids...or adults!

Supplies: a plain white tee shirt - you should have plenty of these lying around. It's OK if there's a spot or two because you're going to paint it anyway; red, blue (2 shades if you'd like), and white acrylic paint - not the expensive stuff, just the kind in the craft section that is under $1 a bottle; a black writer tube of paint - again, in the craft section but it will have a pointy tip that is used for writing or outlining (see post on crab bag craft for a picture of this); scrap cardboard to put inside the shirt; clothspins or clips to hold the shirt in place if you desire.

Front of shirt: Paint 3 big red stars on the front of the shirt and some random red polka dots, if you'd like. While that dries, paint dark blue smaller stars and polka dots randomly in the white spaces. Use the lighter blue to fill in all the white areas, but not too heavily or it will take a long time to dry. Let dry. Use white paint to add stripes, plaid, or polka dots to the big red stars if you want. Using the black writing paint, outline all the stars and polka dots on your shirt and let dry completely. This could take about 2 hours or you could leave it overnight.

Back of shirt: Using red paint, write "I pledge allegiance" in the middle. You could choose any patriotic phrase or child's name if you'd like. Make a few small stars or polka dots on the back and sleeves. Use the dark blue (if you used it on the front) and make small stars and polka dots on the back and sleeves. Let dry. Using white paint, accent the words by making small strokes on the letters very lightly with the brush. Fill in the remaining white area with the light blue paint. Then, use the black writing paint to outline the stars and polka dots. You could either outline your words or phrase or just write inside it. Let dry for a couple of hours or overnight.

If you only chose one shade of blue you can leave your shirt white or skip adding polka dots and stars and fill in the white space with the blue. It's up to you! Send pics! I'd love to see what you come up with.