Teacher's gifts under $30!

It's that time of year again when the kids go back to school and meet their new TEACHER! Pinterest has upped the game on teacher's gifts so I have gathered a few of my favorites that are sure to please any teacher.


1. Homemade Bath Salts

This is a great gift that can be made for little to no money if you have most of the ingredient on hand. Give this to a teacher and they will love you and your child. Bath salts are relaxing and they help you detox. Relaxing AND Healthy!!! How can you go wrong?!? Here is a great, simple recipe @ This House of Joy to get you started. Once you master this one the sky is the limit!

2. Crockpot Apple Butter

My mouth is just watering thinking about this apple butter! There is nothing better then apple butter on a biscuit... well except apple butter on an apple fritter from the Apple Barn (drooling now)! What I love about this gift is that you make a big batch in the crock pot so you can make several gifts. This is a great gift for kids and middle school and high school who change classes often.  The Dinner Mom has a great low sugar recipe that is also low cost. You could also add a cute tag that makes a play on apples and teachers. Who doesn't love a good word play?

3. Sparkling Cider, Chocolate Pineapple

So I'm kind of into Pineapples right now... not really to eat but as décor and fashion. I think This gift is so cute and is sure to get your teachers attention. I am not a drinker so I would use sparkling cider as the center of my pineapple but if you are you could use wine or champagne. All of these are win wins for the teacher. There is a great how to over at Handimaina! This one is going to be a bit more expensive depending on what bottle you buy plus the cost of the chocolate.

4.  A Plunder Atlas Or Lorena Pendant

This is a more expensive gift but your teacher will be able to have a beautiful keepsake to remember your child by. Plunder is a Jewelry company that creates vintage style costume jewelry. One of their best sellers are the Atlas Pendent and the Lorena Pendent. These Pendants can be customized to to have any back ground you want. You can use a picture, a quote, a monogram, ANYTHING! Coming in a $28 this is a more expensive gift but one that will mean more and last longer. If you would like to check out the Atlas and Lorena go to the Plunder Page and see all the other beautiful things Plunder has to offer.

So that's my list! There are so many great ideas out there for teacher gifts but whether they cost $5 or $30 your child's teacher will love them because you are showing them how much you appreciate them. Until next time! 





I'm Baaack!

Whoa!!!! It's been four years!!! Four long years! Since my last blog I've had another child and moved  to a new town! Lots has changed but you know what has not changed... My quest to be crafty! Of course along the way I have started on some new quests! I plan to share those on this blog as well!



My latest quest has been volunteering at a local children's museum. For the past few months I have been doing a baby and toddler story time and helping the museum with their Facebook page and marketing. To prepare for story time I took to the web to get ideas! I found an amazing gem in Jbrary.  They have a treasure trove of ideas and advice for the new story timer!

 

In the next couple of weeks I will share some of the details and fun things I do during story time. I will also be sharing crafts I have been working on lately, new business ventures I've been considering, decorating I've been doing around my new house and lots of other fun things I've been up to in the last four years. Until then here are a few pictures from story time!

Turkey in the straw...or shirt.

So I wanted to do a Turkey shirt for my daughter but since I am a little late in getting it made I made it a pin instead so I can use it again next year. I used felt and ribbon. I really like the way the ribbon looks but I am not too pleased with the face. Anyways there is always next year to perfect it. Here is how I did it:

First I cut out two felt turkey bodies. I eyeballed it but you could also use two circle stencils

 

 

Next I cut pieces of ribbon and hot glued the ends together.

 

I then glued the first piece in the middle of the first turkey.

 

 

I continued to layer different ribbon to create a fan effect on my first Turkey body

 

 

On my second Turkey I cut out felt eyes and beak and glued them on the face.

 

 

Finally I glued the second turkey on top of the first Turkey. I attached broach pins to the back so the turkey could be worn with different outfits. My daughter also has a cute brown jumper that will look cute with the turkey as well.

 

 

 

Silent but still Crafting

Well I dropped the ball. What can I say I am a terrible blogger BUT... I am still on my quest to crafty and with the Holiday season coming up it is even more reason to be crafty. I have several projects in the works and I will do my best to keep you updated on my progress.

My latest project was a pillow case shirt for my daughter. I watched the Crafty Gemini on youtube and it really helped me with my sewing. After I made the shirt I cut out some triangle and a jack o' lantern mouth out of black fabric. I ironed on some fusible web and then iron them on to the shirt. I did sew around the edges to keep the fabric from fraying. I paired the shirt with some ruffle pants from etsy.com and it turned out really cute!

 

 

The Giving Tree Birthday Party

For my daughter's first birthday party with our church family we used the book The Giving Tree as our theme. My husband and I both loved the book as children and since our church has done so much for us we wanted to say thank you. I had a lot of fun planning and making things for the party and I just wanted to share a few of the pics from the party.

Here is a picture of our spread for the party. I kept the food pretty simple. I used the colors red and green since the book's cover is red and green. I also used apples as part of the decorations.

Here is the drink station. I did some word art on Picasa and framed it. I also put out a pic of Reese from her newborn photo shoot by Starla Holl.

We did Red Velvet cupcakes and Yellow cake and chocolate icing cupcakes. I cut apples on my Cricut for the cupcake toppers.

Our snacks were all kid friendly. We had Goldfish crackers, Apple Jacks cereal, Apple Rings, Pretzels, Apple Sauce on the Go, and Reese's Pieces (in honor of my daughter Reese).

I stenciled some linen bags for the guests to fill up with candy and take home.

We laid out quilts for our guests. The shade of the big tree was a perfect setting for the party. Here my husband is reading The Giving Tree to all of our guests. In the back I also set up a table for the kids to color pages from the book. I also set up a table for the high chairs.

I repainted an old frame for the guests to use for photo opportunities. I made hats for the kids to wear in the pictures. I also had all the guests sign our copy of The Giving Tree so Reese can see all of the people who came to her first birthday.

And here is the birthday girl. Thats a pretty happy baby (and messy)!

Handmade Flower Shower Gifts

So I took a hiatus from blogging but I have still been crafting. Lately I have been working on some shower gifts and my little girl's birthday party. I will post about the birthday party hopefully next week but I want to show you how I used the same technique from my cloth flower headband post to spruce up a Shower gift.

I made a wreath with handmade flowers. I bought the twig wreath from the craft store. The bottom layer is made of white felt flowers and the top flowers are made from assorted cotton fabric with buttons in the center. I also painted an A and hot glued it to the wreath. All of the flowers are hot glued as well.

I also added some handmade flowers to a dish towel to spruce them up and tie them into the color scheme. The flowers were hand sewn into the kitchen towel.

I bought a plain white frame and hot glued three handmade flowers onto the corner. Inside I placed some word art I made on www.picnik.com. Unfortunately Picnik has now closed but a lot of their cool effects are on Google+.

I put everything into a basket I had at the house and added some matching napkins and potholders to complete the gift. To spruce up the basket I hot glued ribbon and handmade flowers to the front of the basket.

All in all I was very pleased with the gift and I hope that my friends will think of me when they see their one of a kind, handmade gifts.

Young at Heart Banquet

Every year our church has a Young at Heart Banquet for our senior saints. It is my favorite event of the year. I love to decorate. Here are some things we did this year:

It is so much fun to decorate with fun Valentine's day decor. This year we gave every lady a rose and every gentleman some chocolates.

For centerpieces I made this topiary by taking cupcake liners and sticking them on a Styrofoam ball with straight pins. So cute and easy! I will be doing this again for other events.

I found this idea on pinterest and it was so easy and cheap. I found the candle and votive at Dollar Tree and then I simply filled the votive with conversation hearts.

We served Brunch this year and for dessert we did mini fruit pizzas. The Icing is cream cheese and marshmallow fluff spread on a sugar cookie. They were a big hit!

We also did a photo booth. My friend Jackie made the booth by using two project boards and a cricut for shapes and lettering. We also brought several props for fun.

This is me and one of my Bible students posing in the photo booth. So much fun!

Bunny Baby Birthday Party

This site used the cute Bunny Baby book as a shower theme but I think it would be so cute for a first birthday for a little girl. I love this book! It is such a cute and classic book. This theme is so pretty and girly! Love, Love, Love! For this idea and SOOOOOOOOOOO many more cute themes head over to http://www.thecakeblog.com/.

More Valentine's day ideas

How cute is this Envelope Background. This is simple and cheap but looks sooooooooooooo cute. This is a must try! I found this at http://justcallmemarthaa.blogspot.com/.

This is a great idea for little ones. Use a Recycled Chocolate Box to give your child an exciting Valentine's day lunch. I found this at http://katherinemaries.com/.

Does anybody else have a hard time getting gifts for their husband? How about this super cute Sock bouquet. Of course I am not sure my hubby would appreciate how cute this idea is... still I would feel good about it. I found this at http://www.howdoesshe.com/.

There are a ton of cute Food gifts at http://www.bhg.com/. These would be so cute for a teacher or neighbor.

Hershey Kisses Name Cards

How cute are these Valentine's Kisses! They would be perfect to use as name cards at a party. You could do any Holiday with these and just change the shape you attach to the toothpick. I will defiantly be doing these for our up coming Valentine's day party. I can not wait. I found these at http://www.craftaholicsanonymous.net/.

Felt Nesting Dolls

Sorry I have not posted in over a week. We have been out of town due to family matters but I am back in the pocket and ready to get crafty.

Right now I am obsessed with two things: Felt and Nesting Dolls. That is why I am in-love with these Felt Nesting dolls from  http://skipthechips.blogspot.com/. There is a free pattern you can download and make your own super cute nesting dolls.

Smartie Pants Valentine's Day Card

How cute is this Smartie Pants Valentine's day card. I love, love, love this card. I found this at one of my favorite blogs http://www.tipjunkie.com/. She had a free printable for the card and the 3D pants. Your child will be the coolest kid in class with this v-day card.

Craft Room Inspiration Board

I love the idea of a Craft Inspiration Board hanging in your Craft Room. How fun to pin all of your inspirations where they can be displayed and admired. I found this idea at http://bunnyhillblog.com/. She has such a sweet studio. I love the way everything flows together. Go by and check her out!

Cutting Vinyl on a Cricut

I really want to make some of my own wall art and vinyl labels. I found this tutorial on Cutting Vinyl with a Cricut. The blog shows how to cut the vinyl and how to transfer it to the wall or other objects. I can not wait to try this out. I found this tutorial at http://www.controllingmychaos.com/.

Felt Finger Puppets

I love these Felt Finger Puppets. These are great for all ages. A new baby will love to watch mommy sing "Old McDonald" with these fun fingers or use these cuties in the cradle roll Bible school when teaching Noah. These are a must try! Head over to http://www.theidearoom.net/ for a tutorial on making these adorable finger puppets.

Glass Etching

 

Now that I have my Cricut I want to do all kinds of cool things with the stencils I can print out. Well here is one of the things I have got to try: Glass Etching! What a perfect wedding gift. You can add personality to any plain glass container and everyone will think you are AMAZING! I found this how to at http://www.makeit-loveit.com/ one of my favorite blogs. Go and check out all the neat DIY projects.

I will be out of town till Wednesday so I may not be able to post till then. Keep Crafting in my absence!

Felt Toolbox

A Felt Toolbox is the perfect "quite" toy for the little man in your life. If your little guy likes to play with daddy's tools then you have got to make him a felt toolbox to play with during church or other times he needs to play quietly. The blog http://servingpinklemonade.blogspot.com/ shows you how to make the toolbox and the felt tools. How cute!

DIY Birthday Corsage

Make this sweet Birthday Corsage for your little one on her birthday. The corsage is sweet and a keepsake. You can make it to match whatever outfit your child will be sporting on her birthday. Head on over to http://homemadegrits.blogspot.com/ for a step by step how to.

Decorate with Conversation Hearts

Want to decorate for a party or just around the house on Valentine's day? Try using a v-day staple: Conversation hearts. They are great to eat but they are also great to spruce up your home. This Conversation Heart Candle is cute and easy. Pour some conversation hearts in a votive and then put in a candle. I also think it would be cute in a mason jar with a festive ribbon tied around the top. I found this at http://theweddingtheblog.com/.

These Felt Conversation Hearts are super cute and you could hang on to them for next year. Love these! Go and check out http://www.christinechitnis.com to see how to make these.

This Conversation Heart Topiary is so cute and is sure to be a conversations starter (pun intended). If you can wield a glue gun you can make this cute topiary. Go to http://gluegunsandspatulas.blogspot.com/ for all the details.