How to Create a Chalkboard Wall

chalkboard-wall-kids-room-diy-chalk-yellow-grey-room

We saw a glimpse of Amy’s chalkboard wall in her kids room while looking through beautiful photos by the talented Sally Mae. We loved the wood nightstand, the bright yellow bedding, the antler hung on the wall…and of course, the chalkboard wall.

Amy was so kind to share how she created the wall, where she found the adorable accessories and also 10 very good reasons why every child should have a chalkboard wall {or board} in their room. Jessica shared it on Momtastic.

{images via Amy, Design Lotus}

Day 12: How to Make a DIY No-Sew Felt Crown

NYE no sew felt crowns

On the 12th day of Christmas, j. sorelle gave to you…DIY no-sew felt crowns for New Year’s Eve.

Our children love creative play, and Jessica’s daughter LOVES to wear crowns. And, we have NO idea how to sew. So, for our Dec. 31 New Year’s Eve celebration, we made no-sew felt crowns for the kids to wear until midnight {or their 9 o’clock midnight celebration}.

It’s an activity and party favor all in one, and it can be duplicated for future birthday parties.

how to make a no sew felt crown

No Sew Felt Crown Tips:

  • You can find the templates for the crowns here. Our inspiration came from Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom and she has a template too.
  • We used a Sharpie to free-hand bubble letters and numbers on felt {CELEBRATE, PARTY and 2015}, then we cut them out with scissors, and used a hot glue gun to glue them to the hats.
  • We learned the hard way that it’s best to measure your child’s head and place the pre-cut elastic in the middle of the crown before gluing the tips of the crown together. It’s easier than inserting it once the tips of the crown are glued together.
  • Hot glue pieces of velcro to each end of the elastic, so the crown is easily removable.

{images via j. sorelle}

DIY Halloween Monster Cups with Solo Cups

diy monster halloween cups_jsorelle

Sully and Mike Wazowski made their way into our homes as our kids watched Monsters Inc., but these DIY Monsters Cups will make their way into our kids hands and hearts this Halloween with this easy, DIY tutorial. Our kiddos loved it!

You and your kiddos can make 1-eyed, 2-eyed and 3-eyed monster cups this Halloween with minimal supplies and lots of creativity. This would also make for a fun ‘favor’ to bring to school, or a creative activity for the kiddos at a Halloween party. Each cup comes pre-packaged for each child with pre-cut eyes, mouths, teeth, etc in a cellophane bag attached to a blue Solo cup.

monster cups before and after_WITHTEXT

You’ll Need

  • Blue Solo Cups
  • Colorful Craft Felt Stickers
  • Scissors
  • Cellophane Bags
  • Clothes pin
  • Colorful cardstock

Here’s How

  • Use everyday household items to trace different size circles onto the Felt. We used a mason jar lid, a paint lid and a spice bottle for our circles. As for the lips, mouths, teeth, etc, we did it free-hand.
  • Cut the shapes from the felt.
  • Place shapes inside cellophane bags, and make sure each bag has monster ‘parts,’ including eyes, teeth, mouth, etc
  • For the labels, we used our amazing Silhouette Electronic Cutting Tool to cut out the letters. If you don’t have a Silhouette, you can print labels by hand or use stamps on the cardstock. Fold the cardstock and use a stapler to attach your labels to the cellophane bags.
  • Attach to the cup with a clothes pin.
  • For assembly of the cups, just peel the sticker paper off the back of the felt, and stick to the cup where your little monster heart desires. For the eyes, where there are layers of felt, we needed a tiny bit of hot glue to adhere.

DIY halloween monster cups_jsorelle

DIY halloween monster cups

 

DIY halloween monster cups

DIY halloween monster cups

Bear Party Activities and Crafts for Kids

Before the bears go back into hibernation, let’s celebrate and learn about the furry, cuddly and powerful nature of bears.

Disneynature Bears takes us on a journey where a mother bear raises her young cubs in the big and beautiful world of Alaska. And, just like humans, she does her best to guide, protect and teach her young so they can one day survive on their own.

With the recent DVD release of Disneynature Bears, here’s 10 great ways to immerse yourself and your children into the wonderful world of BEARS this fall.

beary good day_jsorelle

1. Rent or buy, Disneynature’s Bears on DVD now.

2. Throw a mini Bears Party for your home movie feature, followed by a Bears Scavenger Hunt {free printable here} like we did.

3. Serve delicious and nutritious bear-inspired snacks for your hungry cubs that highlights magazine shared.

4. Crafty Morning shows us how to make adorable paper bear plates with these instructions.

5. Did you know a bear’s sense of smell is 2,100 times stronger than that of a human? You can learn many more facts about bears by downloading free activity pages from Disneynature Bears.

6. What kid wouldn’t want to end the day with a treat – gummy bear popsicles? Yes, please. Foodbeast invented the yummy and colorful idea.

7. Read any and all of the creative and sweet Bear Books by Karma Wilson such as Bear’s New Friend. This book series is a household favorite around here.

8. Make sure your little ones stays warm as the weather starts to turn cold with this Bear Scarf Hat.

9. Karma Wilson’s charmed bear character needs some help dressing for the seasons. Print the sheet for a fun activity for your kids.

10. Katarina’s Paperie keeps the day bubbly with DIY honey bear bottle bubbles.

{images via Highlights, DisneyCrafty Morning, Foodbeast, Amazon, Zappos, Karma Wilson and Katarina’s Paperie}

Thank You Cookie Scramble Gift

Can you unscramble the words in the title to this post?

The correct answer is: thank you.

We owed some very special people a thank you, so the kids and I got creative with our words. With delicious, homemade shortbread, and Ghiradelli chocolate as our base, and just a hint {in this case the hint word was, gratitude}, we created a cookie scramble ‘thank you’.

cookie thank you_jsorelle

cookie thank you_jsorelle

cookie thank you_jsorelle

{images via j. sorelle}