Creative Mom Cafe

This time of year my scrap book obsession really comes out. The sun is coming out of hiding and there are a lot more things going on. Suddenly everywhere I look is inspiration for some great scrap book pages. The best, at least to me, are the natural photos of my kids at play.

This is one of my favorite photos of my oldest when he was younger. Splashing through puddles in his rain boots on a hot summer day. There was no posing or working with lighting. I just snapped a few playful pictures of him enjoying some fun outside. With just a little cropping I managed to turn this photo and a few others into a great scrap book page.

Click image to enlarge.

I put together a small list of some of the best advice for capturing perfect photos of your kids without forcing them to sit and smile.

• How to photograph children; where the magic comes from - An eBay guide that has a lot of great advice for moms with cameras.
• The Complete Guide to Children Photography - Part I and Part II - This two aprt guide really is perfect reading material when wondering how to get the best shots of your children.
• Photographing Children - A Quick Tip - A good tip to follow, and some relevant books listed at the bottom if you want to learn more.
• How to Photograph Children - A great video series for capturing many different great shots.
• Photographing Children - An article from the School of Photography that will help you decide which picture to aim for.

Even if you are not a scrapbooker knowing how to capture a great photo of your children is a useful skill to have. It might even turn into a new creative hobby or career.

children, photography, scrapbooking, scrap book

Who has time to craft with all this beautiful weather? OK, so some of you are still stuck under a pile of snow. And some moms might be looking for something to do to spend their hours sitting on the park bench. So here is this week’s fun round up of creative posts that you should check out. As always, if you know of any awesome ones that I’ve missed be sure to let me know!

• Star Stitch Headband pattern -  This cute little knit headband will keep the hair out of your eyes and make you look cool. Perfect for all you hot mamas out there.
• Recycled Bike Inner Tube Jewelry - It’s creative and good for the environment. Two things that score perfect tens for me. Check out the tutorial on how to do it yourself.
• Twelve New Monsters - I know some kids who would love these kind of stuffed friends over the typical dogs, cats, and rabbits.
• Vintage Pillowcase Lunchbox Tutorial - This is a great idea for using an old pillowcase. Of course it doesn’t just have to be a lunchbox. This would also be a cute little bag for carrying almost anything.
• What You’re Reading in Craft:06! - Check out all the links here for some great project ideas. And then hurry and subscribe this the magazine to get your hands on all the great articles and ideas.
• The Crafty Crow - A new craft site full of children’s craft ideas. This is definitely one to bookmark!
• Bias Tape Tutorial - If sewing on bias tape is a little tricky to you here is a great video for how to do it right.

crafts, creative

One fun thing to do in the warm weather is go on picnics. The sunshine, the fresh air, the threat of ants are all part of what makes eating outside fun. I pulled together some great sewing ideas from around the web to create your own picnic things. From wrapping utensils to wrapping sandwiches there are a lot of easy sewing ideas you can use to have everythign you need for a picnic lunch. Everything except the food, of course.

Over at Instructables you can follow the directions to quickly sew a utensils holder from a dish towel. There is also an idea for making a dish holder from ordinary dish towels as well. All you need are some great dish towels, you can usually find them for cheap at your local dollar store. Then use ribbons, buttons, or iron-ons to decorate them however you want. If you can cross stitch these could be a fun project to get into.

Looking for a simple sandwich wrap that can be reused?  Try a square of PUL for a fun sandwich wrap. You can buy squares of this coated fabric online for very low cost. Sew on a small bit of Velcro to keep it on to hold it secure and you’re ready to go. If you don’t want to buy PUL check out what this mom did with ordinary fabric and a plastic sandwich bag.

If you have left over scraps of fabric laying around the house you can whip up some simple cloth napkins for your picnic lunch. These are so very simple to make and can add a bit of fun and style to any picnic. Of course you don’t have to just use them for picnics. Make a big batch of the napkins and use them every day to keep your paper use low.

Have a picnic tablecloth that keeps blowing away in the wind? Here’s a simple idea to keep the tablecloth cover down using just a little elastic.  The same will work for bench covers as well. If you are really worried about a windy day try these picnic placemats with individual utensil holders. Keeps the wind from blowing away your fork and spoon in the middle of eating your meal.

Once you get these fun projects whipped up there will be nothing left to do but make your sandwiches and slice the watermelon. Have a great picnic!

crafts, sewing, picnics

The weather is warming up and many moms are pulling out their kids’ warmer weather clothes. Around here jeans were the staple of cold weather wear, worn nearly every day to keep us warm. Now the stack of jeans is being gone through, those too short or too stained tossed to the side. If you have those jeans that have become too short in the legs or have stains across the legs they can still be reused for this spring and summer. A few simple changes can turn old blue jeans into cute skirts and fun shorts for your kids to wear.

First head over to ThreadBanger for a great DIY idea on turning a pair of jeans into a cute denim skirt. All you will need is a pair of jeans, a seam ripper, and a sewing machine to create a fun new wardrobes item for your little girl. Add some lace around the bottom, iron on fun patches, use fabric paints, or anything else to decorate the skirt and turn it into a one of a kind piece of art to wear. You could even try some fun embellishing for a unique style.

If your daughter isn’t a skirt wearing type of girl you can still turn outgrown jeans into fun spring pieces. When kids grow so fast it is common to find jeans that still fit, yet are several inches too short. Cut off the bottom few inches off the legs and hem them to create fun capri jeans. You can add a small lace ruffle around the bottom for a fun look.

Of course girls aren’t the only ones that can have their jeans reworked. You can refashion your boy’s jeans by turning them into cool shorts for the warmer months.  You can use the same ideas of adding iron-ons, sewing on squares of fabric, or using fabric paint to make interesting and fun shorts any boy would love to wear.

If hemming jeans seems like a challenge here is a great tutorial on hemming jeans that you can use for all your jeans transforming ideas.

jeans, crafts, sewing, shorts, skirts, DIY

We spent Saturday afternoon making felt balls and beads for the first time. It was fun, though quite a learning experience. We followed the instructions found on Martha Stewart’s site, and did not like them at all. Four tablespoons of soap to six cups of water was far too soapy for us, we had more bubbles than anything else. Rinsing the soap out took forever, and I still do not like the way anything felted up, if you can really call it felting. Though we used wool that was easy to felt with I really do not think any of it worked. The larger play balls for my sons are OK, maybe a 3 out of 5. But the smaller beads just did not work.

The next time I felt beads, which will hopefully be next weekend, I plan to use the instructions at Knitty instead. These sound like they will work a lot better. I am not sure if the beads I already have made can be redone or fixed (Anyone with experience know?) but still I want to make a second set to string on a necklace. I have an image in my mind that I have not really seen elsewhere yet and I want to make this necklace while I still feel inspired.

Felting balls was fun for my oldest son who just loved getting wet and soapy at the table. The actual felting process, rolling them in his hands and such was a bit difficult. Though a child with better coordination would probably have no trouble at all. Wrapping the balls took about 15 minutes to show and do and another 15 minutes of felting and rinsing makes it a quick craft to do. The beads took a little over 24 hours to dry, the balls are still not quite ready yet this morning.

For a fun outdoor craft to do while waiting for the balls to dry make these cute paper bag kites. They’re perfect for windy Spring days.

crafts, kids, felting, felt, beads

Another week has passed us by. This one has been beautiful here. We started off with nonstop rain, but once the sun came out it was all worth it. Flowers are in bloom everywhere, meaning there’s almost no time for crafting. We’re outside playing as much as possible and soaking up the rays before the heat of summer ruins it for us. If you’re one of the people still stuck somewhere waiting for spring to really show up here are this week’s crafty ideas. They’re perfect for keeping yourself busy and entertained.

• T-shirt Handbag - Got an old shirt stuffed in the back of your closet that you can’t wear anymore but don’t want to give up? Here’s a great idea to reuse it into something new!
• Craft project and eating your vegetables - Crafts and healthy food, a combination almost every mom loves. These cute little labels will give your kids a big smile every time they go into the kitchen.
• Baking Pan Wall Art - This is a great project for reusing those old baking pans you no longer use.
• Starting up your Craft business - If you’re hemming and hawing about doing it here’s the kick you might need to finally jump in.
• Mini I Spy Quilts - Perfect for all those scraps of fabric you might have laying around. You could make several of these and save them for Baby and toddler gifts.
• Moving into the Video Age - A great tutorial video for transfers with acrylic paint.
• Simple Simon - Check out these awesome apple pies - baked inside tiny glass jars! Shows you how fun going outside the norm can be.
• Monster iPod Cozies - I love these furry little bags. Of course they don’t have to be just for iPods. Little kids might enjoy using them to carry toy cars or crayons around in.

As always if you have a creative post up or know of one that deserves mention leave a comment and I’ll add it to the list. With so many great blogs it’s hard to get to them all, especially with this warm weather beckoning.

crafts, creative, art

I found these adorable spring animals online and had to share them. Using empty baby food jars and some craft foam you can create cute little animals to show off. Make bunnies and chicks for Easter decorations around your house, in your church, or even at the dinner table if you are having a big Easter meal. The possibilities are endless for these easy to make pets.

Of course they don’t have to just be decorations. You could help your kids make an entire farm full of animals for some creative play time. Or you can even use them for party games. Write numbers on the lids then have everyone pick an animal. Later draw a random number, whomever has that numbered animal wins a prize. Hide the fun animals around your house or yard for an interesting scavenger hunt game, just be sure there aren’t any eggs still laying out there. Use your imagination and I’m sure you can come up with a lot of great fun ideas for these cute animals.

Since they reuse the glass baby food jars you could turn them into a fun recycling project. Use scraps of felt or bits of broken toys to create the animals. You can stuff them with bits from old towels, clothes, or the cotton stuffing from blankets and pillows. See how creative you can get using only recycled items for your animals.

For other ideas on reusing baby food jars click here.  There are a lot of fun ways that you can reuse something that most parents already have sitting around.

crafts, spring, animals, Easter, recycling, kids

I’m pulling this idea out of the archives, but for a very good reason. It can be a great spring craft to make with your kids right now. Back during the winter I suggested giving flowers as a Christmas gift. It wasn’t just the flowers but also the pot that makes a beautiful gift.  No doubt if you have gone to the store recently you have seen displays of flowers for sale, lilies, daisies and tulips are the most common right now with some other spring time flowers also. These could be great to give to grandparents as gifts for Easter or to just have around your own home to bring in a little spring. But you don’t have to keep them in the boring pots the stores keep them in.

Turn ordinary terracotta pots into fun spring time crafts. Let your kids go wild painting them, sticking on bunny stickers, or gluing fake eggs around the bottom of the pots. Just be sure to cover the area well first, kids and paint always seems to mean big messes. Here are some great tips on painting terracotta pots that you can use.  You could also try this fun mosaic idea on your flower pots.

Of course you don’t have to just have flowers in your pots. You could decorate a large pot for a one pot herb garden.  Or you could try some container gardening for indoor or patio vegetables. Spring is the perfect time to grow something new and with pretty pots made by your kids it is even more fun to do.

flowers, gardening, Spring, Easter, kids, crafts

Pretty Easter dresses, colorful eggs, delighted faces running through the grass. These are the things that make moms carry their cameras every where they go in hopes of getting a few good photos. With Spring almost here and Easter on the horizon I wanted to share some fun ideas for you scrapbook lovers out there. After all, you have to do something with the mountain of photos you are taking every day.

This is an Easter scrapbook page I did when my oldest son was not quite a year and a half yet. The giant rabbit handing out suckers and taking photos was too fun to resist, at least to me it was. Making the page was just as fun, mixing bright colors with the unique patchwork quilt pattern gave a look I loved. And of course the embellishments added the perfect Easter touch.

• Go with the unusual. Instead of the typical soft pastels look for a bright green or yellow, or mix up colors that you would not normally use together. Just think of wild flowers bursting into bloom.
• Use photos that tell a different story. Instead of the sweet faced child in her best dress use the one later, where she’s covered in chocolate looking for trouble.
• Add some nature to your pages. Not just in photos of nature but with some dried flowers, pressed leaves, or even a muddy hand print begging to be preserved.
• Create a paper garden. Toss together little bits of this and that into a scrap paper garden. All those little ends and sides that leave paper messes every where could be reused into a funky and colorful Spring flowerbed.

If you are looking for something great to say but hitting a writer’s block here is a collection of poems and quotes perfect for Spring time use. You might even be inspired by the quotes themselves. “In like a lion, out like a lamb” is already giving me an idea involving two great pictures. one of my youngest screaming as he waits impatiently for his chocolate candy, and the other as he slept peacefully on the couch, chocolate smears across his lips. You can also get inspired by checking out the great pages other scrapbookers are doing for spring at Flickr.

Spring, Easter, scrapbook, scrapbooking, crafts, photos

For many people this week is Holy Week, the build up to Easter. Which means lots of bunnies, eggs, and pastel colors are being tossed around. I thought it would be great to start the week with a quick round up of some the latest Easter themed craft projects going on. I already spotlighted several on Saturday’s Creative Speedlinking, but if you are interested in more here are some to check out.

• Easter Crafts with Pictures - Seasonal Kids Activities has this fun Easter craft post for photos of your little ones.
• 34 Free Easter Crafts, Projects & Tips - Just like the title says here is a collection of ideas that you will love.
• Easter Crafts - 4KraftyKidz also has a great collection of crafts and coloring pages for kids this Easter.
• Spring Inspiration - Mommy’s Crating has a photo collection of Easter goodies that should get your creative juices flowing. I love seeing what other creative people are doing to get me in the mood to create.
• Easter Peek-A-Boo Treat Holder - I am absolutely mad about this fun little card! If you plan to have an Easter party for your kids this could be a perfect treat to make for each of them.
• Easter is coming - These marbleized Easter eggs are so beautiful you’ll want to keep them out long after Easter is over.
• Tiny Chalkboard Eggs - This is such a great idea I’m sad I didn’t think of it first. Slip a few of these in everyone’s basket along with a small package of chalk and you’ll have some very excited kids this Easter.

I will be sharing my own Easter craft ideas too this week, including sharing a fun Easter scrapbook page from when my oldest was little. I haven’t shared much scrapbooking ideas lately, but there’s nothing like a holiday that involves lots of photos to get everyone in the mood to cut and glue.

crafts, Easter

St. Patrick’s day

Here’s another great edition of Creative Speedlinking. I’m taking off for the weekend so I hope this list will sustain you with creative ideas for moms and kids.

• This Chick is Easy - An adorable little felted chick that is so easy to make. Perfect for a fun spring craft project with your kids!
• Rub a Dub Dub; Six Kids and Some Felted Eggs - Want another easy yet fun felted project for Spring? Make these cute felted eggs!
• Easter Bunny - Want to knit up a cute little bunny? Here is a great pattern for you to use!
• The Basics - information & tutorials to get you started - Ever thought about making jewelry yourself? Here is collection of the best tips, tricks, and advice out there. You should definitely bookmark this page.
• making magnets - OK, so I’m a sucker for cute magnets. But when they’re this easy to make and adorable to use it’s hard not to get suckered in.
• Spring Treat: How To Make Golden Chocolate Easter Eggs - These eggs are beautiful! The golden color is just amazing and will light up anyone’s eyes when they see them. Of course the best part is the chocolate surprise inside.

Are there any great creative posts out there that I missed? With so many crafty and creative people blogging it is hard to round up the best of the best. But hopefully these will inspire you to get a little more creative with and for your kids.

crafts, creative, blogs

As the big green day draws closer more and more people are talking about how they celebrate St. Patrick’s day. There have been so many great posts I could not just sit back and keep them all to myself. Here are the ones that have caught my eye recently. I promise to catch up tonight on the great St. Patrick’s day craft ideas I promised, but until then visit these posts.

If you are looking for some great St. Patrick’s day ideas head over the the St. Patrick’s Day carnival going on at Babylune. There is quite a collection of posts full of ideas for your St. Patrick’s day fun.

Also check out the Holiday Blogger who has a fun craft up called a Leprechaun Box. This is a fun little craft that kids of any age could do, and it gifts you a chance to slip them some treats in secret.

Over at Gather you can find a good recipe for some traditional Irish soda bread. It’s an easy bread to make for anyone, even those who have never tried to make bread before.

Over at My Readable Feast you can find a recipe for a yummy sounding Honey Almond Oat pudding as well as a few good links to check out.

I have several fun creative ideas that I think you are all going to enjoy. Things have been busy, but tonight I’ll have the time to share them all here. Until then here’s a question for everyone to answer. Are you celebrating on March 17th as usual or are you going to be celebrating on the changed date of March 15th?

St. Patrick’s day

Potatoes are the vegetable most associated with Ireland. So why not use them to stamp designs on your own St. Patrick’s day cards to give out? Potato stamping is a simple craft that kids of any age can do, and they work well enough to make beautiful designs you would be proud to show off. All you need are a few potatoes, a sharp knife, and a stencil or cookie cutter.

Cut your potatoes in half and lay your stencil or cookie cutter across the center of the cut edge. Then using your knife you cut away the potato from the design about a half an inch deep. What you have left is a perfect potato stamp that you can use to create anything from cards to shirts. Depending on what you are creating you will need different types of ink or paint. Poster paint or fabric paint can work very well, but you should experiment and see what you like to use the best. You can either paint directly onto your potato stamp or use a sponge or felt pad to dip your stamp onto.

Cut shamrocks, small pots, or rainbows into your potatoes for stamping fun. If you’re not sure what kind of card to make here are a few great St. Patrick’s Day ideas.

• St. Patrick’s Day Shamrock card
• Self Mailing St. Patrick’s day card
• Simple St. Patrick’s Day Cards
• Shamrock Design St. Patrick’s day card

Or you can just pull out a large sheet of paper and let your kids have fun with their new stamps. You might create some fun new wrapping paper for the next birthday party you have to send gifts to. Potato stamps will last 1-2 days if stored in a bowl of cold water in your fridge.

St. Patrick’s day, potatoes, stamping, cards, crafts

Here are some great St. Patrick’s day ideas for the knitters in your house. I love finding fun things to create with a little yarn and my favorite needles.

• Knit Shamrock Cloth - This could be used as a pot holder, dish cloth, or just a decorative piece to hang up. What ever your do it brings a little luck of the Irish.
• Frolicking Shamrocks Socks - The pattern is $5, but these socks are so cute it’s hard to pass it by. A little St. Patrick’s Day fun for your feet.
• Shamrock Pillow or Sachet - Here’s a fun pattern to knit a small shamrock shaped pillow. Very cute!
• St. Patrick’s Day “Necklace” - This fun little knit necklace takes almost no time to create and even beginners can do it.

For those who like to crochet here are some great patterns to get into before St. Patrick’s day.

• Pot ‘O Gold - This fun little crochet pot is the perfect place to hide your treasures.
• Four Leaf Clover coaster - You can whip up some of these to place around if you are planning a St. Patrick’s day party. Be sure to use green yarn to hide the spills from the green beer.
• Shamrock - This cute little crocheted shamrock would look adorable pinned to your jacket.
• St. Patrick’s Day hat - This little green hat is so cute I can’t resist it. It is certainly not for beginners, but worth the effort.

If anyone knows of any other fun patterns online for St. Patrick’s day please leave them in the comments. Thanks!

knitting, crocheting, St. Patrick’s day, crafts