colorful frames

Like most little ones, my kids love to make art. And, like most kiddos, they make too much of it for me to fit on the fridge. I've started scanning each piece of art that they make, and plan on making a large coffee table book with their masterpieces when enough has been collected. For their favorite pieces, though, I needed to create a special place for display.

Materials Needed:
Large paint-friendly frames (I got mine at Michaels)
Paint
Embellishments
Nails


I covered the frames with several coats of paint followed by a clear sealant coat. Using small embellishments, we added some sparkle to a few of the frames. I have seen frames with chicken wire or cork board attached on the back, but we put ours directly on the wall without backing. I am fine with using clear scotch tape to attach pictures to the frames and wall, but some people may prefer using the cork board to attach artwork. I used 4-6 small finish nails to attach the frames to the wall and the frames were quickly filled up by the kiddos. They are very proud of their 'art space' and point out their work to family and visitors alike.

handprint flower pots

Last year we made cute flower pots with kids hand-prints for Ali's preschool teachers. Since I am a preschool teacher and decorate our house as such,  I made a couple extra pots with just Ali & Grey's hand-prints for use around the house.

Materials Needed:
Large plastic pots
Acrylic paint
Clear sealant spray
Paint pens

I used plastic pots since they were less likely to shatter if they fell on the floor, and because they were already the colors that I wanted. Since both kids have sensory issues, painting their hands was a challenge. I spread the painting out over a week and tried to use mixing colors to my advantage. For example, I might start with yellow paint on one hand and red on the other, getting a hand-print with each; then have them rub their hands together to make orange. Most of Grey's hand-prints came out smudgy, which looked rather cute.

After all of the hand-prints were complete I used paint pens to write the kids names and the date on the pots. A quick round of spray sealant and the pots were ready to use. I have used one pot for plants, and the other as storage for loose items. This (relatively) quick & easy project still makes me smile everyday. I plan on making more projects with their hand-prints this summer. It is so easy to forget how little they once were, and I love these sweet & tiny reminders.

broken pots birdbath

What do you do when you accidentally break some of your Terra-cotta pots? Make them into a stacked pot birdbath!


Materials Needed:
Several Terra-cotta pots
Terra-cotta bowl
Terra-cotta dish 
Garden stake 
Spray Primer & Paint
Permanent adhesive


A few of my pots became stuck together and out of frustration I dropped them on the ground. Of course, they broke. Wanting to make lemonade out of my lemons, I primed the pieces and sprayed them different colors. After they dried I glued the pieces back together using Quick Grip all-purpose permanent adhesive. This glue does dry quickly and becomes clear, but had a lot of air bubbles that I had to smooth out. I liked that the glue is water- and weather-proof, as the project will stay outdoors year-round. After the glue dried I traced the cracks with a silver paint pen. Why not accentuate what makes these pots unique, right?

I found a few more pots of varying sizes which were already painted, and then prepped a terra cotta bowl and a small dish. I pounded a five foot garden stake about 18 inches into the ground and stacked the first three pots upside down. I glued on the last pot upright to give it extra support. Then I glued on the large bowl to be filled with water, and the small dish for bird food. The kids were excited to see the finished product and we are hoping for lots of cute little birdie visitors.

the wedding tree

I got to try a brand new painting project last week. Some friends of my dad's had a lovely mountain wedding ceremony, which my dad officiated. I have seen versions of this wedding tree around on-line and really wanted to give it a try. The cute part of this tree is that the wedding guests make the leaves with their fingerprints. In this case the couple's wedding colors were maroon and yellow, which made for a lovely autumn tree.

Materials Needed:
Canvas
Paints & Brushes
Alphabet Stickers

I made the background with several colors of cream and brown, with a final coat of pearlescent clear paint for the shiny effect. For the tree I used a darker brown, finishing with cream and gold highlights. I placed hearts and spelled out the names of the bride and groom with stickers, then painted the grassy knoll using greens and yellows. After the paint dried, it was just a matter of peeling off the stickers to reveal the hearts and names. The painting was finally done when the wedding guests placed their fingerprints on the tree. I was told that the painting was a hit, and I hope that I can do it again for other weddings.