Terra Cotta Tree

Last month, Little Crafter and I were browsing in Michaels {one of our mutual favorite things to do!} when he spied a little Christmas tree ornament made out of tiny terra cotta flower pots.  What came next?

 "I want to make dat.  I want to do it today, Mommy." 

Which I totally supported...except that I couldn't find the right size pots!  Shame on you, Michaels, for putting a fun craft at my child's eye level and being out of the supplies to make it! :)  I have been searching for weeks to no avail, and of course, out of sight is NOT out of mind for a three year old who has it in his head that he wants to make a "twee."  So, we scrapped the ornament idea and decided to make a larger tree instead.  Here's how it turned out:

TERRA COTTA TREE

Materials:

3 terra cotta pots in graduated sizes

green paint {we used acrylic indoor/outdoor gloss to make it shiny}

paint brush

craft glue or hot gluegun/glue

glitter

assorted baubles {bells, buttons, foam shapes, pom poms...}

STEP 1: Paint your pots.  Don't worry about the insides; they won't show.  Let them dry completely before moving on.

STEP 2: Place glue around inside edge of the two smaller pots and stack to make a tree shape.

STEP 3: Glue decorations on wherever you like.  We used low temp hot glue {I manned the glue gun and he carefully pressed things on} but craft glue would work too; you just might have to be more patient while it dries.

 STEP 4: Use your finger to spread craft glue {or regular Elmer's} around the rim of each pot and on the very top.  Sprinkle glitter on top of glue.

 There you have it; your very own custom-made Christmas tree!  And it's totally inexpensive...the pots are less than a dollar a piece and we already had the foam star and buttons.  Special thanks to our friends at Craftprojectideas.com who continue to support our crafting habit by sending us fun supplies like the jingle bells and glitter used in this project.  I have to say, their glitter tubes are awesome to work with...they have shaker style tops that minimize mess, and they come in all kinds of fun colors!

It's amazing how many things you can make with these cheap little flower pots...coming soon I'll be showing you our cute snowman candy holder and maybe even a penguin too!  Stay tuned!

And while you're at it, stop by my guest post at Adventures of a DIY Mom today to see how the Artsy Family celebrates advent!  We have several fun family traditions I'd love to share with you.

PS - For more seasonal inspiration, stop by the {Our} Home for the Holidays ongoing link party...I'm loving all the great ideas you've shared there.

Advent in the Artsy Family

So, you all know that Christmas is my FAVORITE holiday.

It has been ever since I was a kid.

And it's even better now that Little Crafter is around.

One of the things hubby and I really enjoy is deciding which of our own childhood traditions we wanted to continue with him and what new ones we wanted to start.

Today, I'm guest posting over at Adventures of a DIY Mom where I'll be sharing about two of our favorite Advent traditions.  I hope you'll join me there to learn a little about Our Home for the Holidays!

Christmas Card Time!

 December is just around the corner, which means that trips to the mailbox suddenly get a whole lot more exciting!  Instead of just getting bills {and the occasional pen pal letter...luv ya, Jamie!}, I can look forward to birthday, anniversary, and of course, Christmas cards!  For the first several years of our marriage, I used to hand stamp our Christmas cards, but over time, I found that my favorite cards to receive were the ones with great photos.  Especially when they were from people we hadn't seen in a while!  So, we made the switch to photo cards and never looked back.  This year, we're going to be ordering our cards from Tiny Prints.  They have a great selection of Holiday Photo Cards...so great, in fact, that I'm having trouble choosing just one design!  Here are the three I'm eyeing up:

Blissful Christmas



I like this one for a few reasons...I like the non-traditional color scheme, and of course, the fact that it's Ravens purple!  Being able to display four different pictures is a plus, and if I decide to use our fall photos, the colors won't clash.

Elegant Snowfall

 I think this one is stunning.  I love the effect of the larger photo, and the snowflakes combined with the elegant font are just gorgeous.  I'm not sure which photo I'd use though; I'm afraid the fall ones would look wrong...the colored leaves and the snowflakes wouldn't be a good combo.  One of our summer beach pics might work though, or we can always take a new one.  Then again, we could pretend to be those people...honey, remember that time when you had chunky glasses and looked like Bob Saget, I was a model, and Little Crafter was a girl?

Joyful Highlights

I like the full photo on this one...although I'm not sure we have one suited for this design with the space on the right for "joy."  Of course, we could always take one with that in mind.  But what really sells me on this design isn't the front, but the inside!  Look at this timeline!

I. love. it.  We've been sending out the annual "Christmas letter" each year along with our photo cards for people we don't see often, and I'm always afraid it'll be too long and they won't actually read it.  But we want to hit the highlights of our year, and particularly how LC is growing and changing, and I think this is an awesome way to do it.  I'm really leaning this way just for the sake of this incredible way to summarize the main events of 2011 for our faraway friends and relatives {well, the ones who aren't on FB...}

What do you think?  Which design is your favorite?  If you're in the market for some photo cards of your own, head on over to Tiny Prints and see which ones catch your eyes.  There's something there for every style; you're sure to find at least one design you love.  As for me, I'm off to play around and plug a few photos in these designs to see which one is the final winner! 

Don't forget, for more seasonal inspiration, stop by the {Our} Home for the Holidays party and the weekly Shine On Fridays party!  And, the Plum Adorable giveaway closes today...don't miss out!

Have a great day!

Bringing Old School Back

I think one of the downfalls of trying to be a really artsy mama is that sometimes I put too much pressure on myself to always have new, original {or stolen borrowed from Pinterest} ideas for everything we do.

I mean, I'm competing with things like the touch pad Leapster Explorer for Little Crafter's attention, plus I'm trying to come up with fresh things that will make all of you lovelies in blog land go "oooooooh" and "aaaaah" when you see them, right?

But you know what?  While new ideas are certainly fun, I've found the joy in

bringing old school back.

That's right.  You know what I discovered?  The cute little things you and I enjoyed making in elementary school....get ready for this....are still fun for little kids! 

Yes, the world is different now...you and I had cassette players and didn't know what a computer was back then, while my 3 year old can work the iPod touch. 

But stringing beads on a pipecleaner?  STILL FUN!  

Gluing popsicle sticks together and shaking glitter all over them?  STILL FUN!

Here are a few of the simple projects we've done recently that require very little money or supplies but can bring lots of joy to those little faces {and yours too!}

BEADED ORNAMENTS

Remember these guys from your Girl Scout days?

All you need are tri beads, a pipecleaner, and some ribbon to make your own.

{Our beads and sparkly pipecleaners were included in the holiday kit we received from Craftprojectideas.com...boy was that a great surprise to get on our doorstep!}

I'm pretty sure no tutorial is necessary here.  Just thread the beads on the pipecleaner and shape however you want them.  A certain someone was very insistent on doing the whole thing all by himself!

POPSICLE STICK SNOWFLAKE

All you need here is four craft sticks, glitter, and glue!  Our sticks and glitter were also part of the Craftprojectideas.com kit, and the sticks were already colored {yay!!}.  If you're using plain ones, you can bust out some blue kids' paint to get the same effect.  I really liked the glitter...we got lots of different colors and each one came in its own little tube with a shaker top to minimize the mess {thanks again, CPI!}

Just spread craft glue all over the surface of each stick, sprinkle the glitter on, and let it dry.  Then, glue your sticks in a snowflake design and add a cord or ribbon if you want to hang it.  Easy peasy...and cuuute!

Follows my motto: "Glitter makes everything better!"

PAINTED WOODEN ORNAMENTS

It doesn't get much easier than this!  Buy some wooden shapes {these trees came 6 to a pack}, break out the acrylic paint and brushes and let them go to town.  Little Crafter's current favorite colors are blue, red, and purple {for the Ravens, of course}...can you tell?  He had fun using the bottom end of the brush dipped in paint to make "ornaments".

The day we made these, we were actually babysitting a little girlfriend of his.  She absolutely loved the activity too; here are her trees.  I love, love, love their sweet little serious faces while they worked...

Little Crafter gets so in the zone when he's painting or doing any kind of project.

Oh, and can you tell we had been playing dress up too?

BEADED PINS

Got a large safety pin and some spare beads laying around the house?  You can make your own holiday pin.  With or without a dangling charm, they're cute and easy.  Just be careful with little fingers and that sharp point!  Little Crafter did all the beading himself and was just fine with it, but I admit it made me nervous and I was definitely hovering...

FOAM FUN

There are so many great foam activity kits out there!  Ornaments, pins, decorations...all kinds!  Don't hate, embrace them!  I used to feel like they were cheating because I didn't have to do the thought or prep work for the craft...now I rejoice that I  don't have to do the thinking or the preparing.  I love having some of these kinds of things on hand at all times so if we have a few minutes I can just pull one out and we can whip up something quick. 

The ornaments and pin above were made at a local holiday craft fair...it was so great, they had a room where the kids could go and craft while their moms and dads theoretically went around the fair to shop.  Each craft cost somewhere between $1-3, and there were volunteers to supervise and help.  I chose to stay with Little Crafter, but they encouraged me that next year he could stay on his own.  I just laughed and told them I could never do that.  Why?  When I came back, he'd have made one of everything and they'd tell me I owed them $150.  You can see it, can't you?

Happy Crafting...old school style!

{Our} Home for the Holidays: Jamie's Advent Traditions

Hey, friends!  Today I'm excited to introduce you to my bloggy friend Jamie, who has also become my real life snail mail pen pal!  I get so excited to receive her letters in the mail every week or so!  She's a real sweetheart and I know you're going to love her too.  Today, she's inviting you into her home for the holidays...enjoy!

Hi!  My name is Jamie from For Love of Cupcakes and I'm so excited to be a guest poster on One Artsy Mama!!  Nice to "meet" all of you.  :o)  I am a Stay at Home Mommy and I write about my life with my wonderful husband and our beautiful December 2010 Daughter.  <3  On my blog, you will find posts about our baby, fun with photos, ways to save money, teacher tips (I am a former kindergarten teacher), my faith journey, crafting, baby food making, etc.  I Love Life and am having so much fun blogging!!  :o)  Stop on over and if you'd like, I'd love to have you as a follower.  <3

Christmas is one of my favorite times of year so I'm thrilled to get to write about it here.

I spend Christmas with my husband, our daughter, Cupcakes and my family: my mom, my dad, my brother and sister.  Sometimes we get to see Hubby's family, but they live across the country, so sometimes we don't.  I can't wait for them to invent a teleporter!

As Catholics, we prepare for Christmas during the season of Advent - a time to prepare our hearts for the coming of the savior, Jesus Christ.  Each week, at Mass, they light a candle on the Advent wreath and on Christmas, they light the final white candle in the middle.  We also prepare by decorating our home for Christmas - lights (I like the colored ones the best), a tree, the little snow village, garland, stockings, snowmen, and of course, a Nativity Scene.  :o)  The night we decorate the Christmas tree is one of my favorites of the year.  We listen to Christmas music, watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas - CARTOON version - together, eat snacks, and reminisce.  Its great fun!  We leave all decorations up until January 6th - the Feast of the Epiphany, which is the day the 3 Wise Men came to see the newborn King.  I really like that part of our tradition.  On Black Friday, all the girls (and sometimes my brother) go out shopping which is also great fun!

Early in the morning (a reasonable time now that we're all adults lol), we all wake up and go out to the Living Room.  We listen to instrumental Christmas music and drink tea / coffee / hot chocolate until everyone has gathered.  Then we do the stockings and presents.  Afterwards, we go to Mass (unless we attended the Christmas Eve vigil which we usually do).  In the evening, we all eat a big dinner together.  It's a wonderful family day!

I love spending the day with my family, but I have to say that the coming of the Son of God to save us all is the best part.  Last Christmas, our baby was less than a month old; I'm really looking forward to all of the Christmases in our future during her childhood!

Thanks so much for reading!  I'd love to hear about your Christmases too!  Feel free to come follow me and leave a comment!  You can also send me a tweet anytime!  (@4LoveofCupcakes)  I'll warn you though... I tweet a LOT. 

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Etsy
In Blogginess,

 Jamie

{Our} Home for the Holidays: Christmas in Hungary

Hi, friends!  I hope you've been enjoying the {Our} Home for the Holidays series so far!  I think it's been such fun "visiting" each other and learning about special traditions, crafts, and gift ideas!
Our guest today, Jane, lives in Hungary and has some fun things to share about how she and her family celebrate the holiday there...

Thanks so much to Amy for inviting me to participate in the {Our} Home for the Holidays series! I'm so flattered to be included in this group of amazing bloggers! My name's Jane and I blog over at Mama Pea Pod about making the most of my time with my two little peas, aged 4 and 1, while they're still young enough to want to spend this time with me. We often do this through play outdoors (I invite you to come join our Outdoor Play Party on Fridays), through arts and crafts for kids, through sensory play, and through open-ended play. Why not come over for a playdate with us?

In Hungary, on December 5th, children polish their boots to a gleaming shine and set them on the windowsill, eagerly anticipating what morning will bring. December 6 is "Mikulás nap" - Saint Nicholas' Day. Mikulás is traditionally a bishop dressed in red robes, but modern Mikulás generally looks more like the western Santa Claus. He comes to visit children and remind them of their good and bad deeds of the past year. He brings with him two helpers, an angel-like helper who helps distribute chocolate and small gifts or books for those who have been good, and a naughty impish helper called Krampusz, who leaves a switch of gold twigs to those who have been naughty (to suggest that they are due for a spanking!) Since nobody is all good or all bad, children usually get both the gifts and the gold switch. (On December 24th, the Hungarian tradition is for Baby Jesus to visit and bring presents and a decorated Christmas tree in the evening after dinner.) In our multinational, expat family, we celebrate the holiday with a mix of traditions, so Mikulás visits on December 6th and brings chocolate (and the switch!), and Santa Claus comes on December 24th with presents. Do you have any special cultural traditions for the holidays in your family? I'd love to hear from you! You can leave me a comment on facebook, twitter, or below. Happy holidays to you, however you celebrate!

 

Turkeys and a Great Deal

Hi, friends!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  We sure did!  Check out our cute family turkey...

And here's our version of the blessing mix originally shared by the ladies at Caramel Potatoes...I really appreciated the cute free printable!  We put one at each person's place as a special favor to take home.

One of my favorite things about the holiday is that we get both sides of the family together; hubby's parents, my parents, and my grandmother for a special dinner.  There are three times a year when we all get together, and I think it's such a special opportunity for Little Crafter...I can't remember a time in my life when all four of my grandparents were in the same place at the same time, so I think it's priceless for him to have so many of his favorite people celebrating holidays in one place.  It's even better at Christmas when hubby's brothers can come too.



Now that Thanksgiving is past, it's time for lots of turkey sandwiches and it's time to start thinking about Christmas!  Finally!Now I can hear Christmas music in the stores, drink my peppermint mochas, and see Santa without grumbling about giving the turkey his time!  Of course, with Christmas comes the task of finding the perfect gift for everyone on your list and choosing the right Christmas cards too.

I just found out about a deal that some of you may be interested in, so I wanted to pass it along to you.

Remember Tiny Prints, where we entered the family photo contest {don't forget to vote!}.

They make gorgeous photo cards for the holidays and lots of other occasions too.

Here is an EXCLUSIVE deal that they are only sharing with select blogger friends.  This deal is not available on their site, so you need the special code!
Buy a $25 gift certificate and spend $100 on your holiday cards, and get $30 off your holiday cards order!  Plus free shipping!

You can give the gift certificate to a friend {what a great stocking stuffer!} or you can keep it for yourself; either way, you get $30 off your cards!  There are a ton of great designs...I'll be showing you a few of my favorites on Tuesday so you can help me pick which one the Artsy Family should use this year!

The code you need to redeem this offer is 30OFFHOLGCERT

This deal is only good through midnight tomorrow, 11/27!

Now, I'm off to start decorating Little Crafter's room for Christmas!  We made his countdown chain last night {more on that next week} and now we're off to set up his mini tree and hang up all those ornaments he's been making!  I really wish we could get our big tree today, but we cut a live one and last year when we got it Thanksgiving weekend, it was getting pretty crispy by Christmas.  What about you?  When do you get your tree?

Shine On Fridays #3 {and some fabulous features}!

Hi, friends!
Hope you all had a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving!

Welcome to the third ever Shine On Fridays party!
Last week's party was full of fanTAStic ideas; thanks so much to everyone who linked up!

Today, Kara and I will each be featuring three of the six most viewed links, as well as one or two of our personal favorites.
To see the rest, visit Happy Go Lucky!

 This Thankful Turkey shared by Happily Mother After is such a fun craft for kids of all ages.  This one was made by a 2 1/2 year old; isn't it adorable?!  I love how it uses both handprints and footprints, and it'll be such a cute reminder in future years of what things he enjoyed at this age!

Rachel at Adventures of a DIY Mom linked up this delicious looking "Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake!"
Sounds sooo yummy, doesn't it?


Janet at Today's Fabulous Finds showed us how to make this Children's Nativity using craft sticks, terra cotta pots, and wooden beads.  I immediately pinned it, and Little Crafter was grinning when I showed him the pictures.  His response?  "I want to make that right now!"  If this project hadn't already ended up in the top 6, it was going to be my pick of the week!

I had quite a few favorites this week, one of which was this Tree of Life ornament from Lisa's Craft Blog.

I've seen these around on Etsy and Pinterest and wanted to make one, so I really appreciated Lisa's clear, step-by-step tutorial...and I actually did make one of my own!  Thanks, Lisa!

Here's Lisa's version!

...and here's mine!  I decided to make mine a pendant instead of an ornament.

And, I have to give a quick shout-out to this fun Football Subway Art {free printable} from Lillian McKay Designs!  Y'all know I'm crazy about football {Ravens!!} and this printable has a ton of great terms related to the game!

I especially appreciated it this week since we got to go to our first-ever live pro football game!

This is what happiness looks like!

Ok, friends, it's time to PARTY!

<center><a href="http://oneartmama.blogspot.com/"><img alt="One Artsy Mama" src="http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc86/dancers4life/shine3.png"/></a><center></center></center>

Show off your fabulous creations with us and be inspired by what others have created!

   

Please link up crafts, recipes, home decor, etc.

We can't wait to see what you've been up to lately!!

If you're going to play along with us, pretty please:

- follow both co-hosts via GFC
- grab a party button and put it somewhere on your blog
- have fun and visit some other friends
- no commercial sites

Linking up your photos gives us permission to use them in features on our blogs and Facebook pages.

The party will be open until Wednesday!  Now, get shining!

Give Thanks

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

- Psalm 136:1

"...give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus."

- I Thessalonians 5:18

Today, I am grateful.  I am stopping and remembering to give thanks to the giver of all good gifts.

For my husband.

my son.

my parents.

my extended family.

our home.

our health.

the fun we all have together and the joy in my life.

I am thankful that my husband has a good job, that there is always food on our table, and that God continues to provide for us so that I can stay home with our son.

And that's just the beginning.  There are so many blessings for which I am grateful.

What are you giving thanks for today?

"Let us come before him with thanksgiving..."

- Psalm 95:2a