Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Go Green!

Hi! Thought I'd pop in to share a few fun recycle crafts that you can do before the littles are out of school or save them until Summer is here and you can share the fun. I happen to love the above succulent garden by Taylor Stone Prints on Etsy. How fun would it be to try making a few of these with some discarded cereal boxes and green paints?

While you have those paints out... add a touch of white to make those hues a tad bit minty and try painting a few twigs to create this awesome wall hanging from Grow Creative...

And if you're in the mood for a touch more ombre to brighten up your home and adorn your indoor greenery, check out these amazing popsicle stick planters from Design Love Fest. They're the perfect punch of pastel for summer without dropping a dime.

It can get pretty hot in the summer too, so I'm sure you and your littles will ned some cooling off. Why not make yourself the cutest watermelon fan ever like Makes and Takes? I think this would make a stellar party favor for any little's birthday party.

Not one for an afternoon of painting? No worries. How about a little kitchen science with food scraps like the one found on MPMK?

Bring it on Summer. I'm feeling inspired and a tad bit crafty. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: In Honor of Earth Day

In honor of yesterday's beautiful holiday, I thought I'd share a few crafts that I found on Instagram and elsewhere that have inspired me to extend the holiday just one more day.

The ever resourceful Dear Pomegranates, of Resolve House, made leaf art and killer toilet paper roll bracelets with her littles. (seen above) And while browsing Resolve House (because until now I've only known her thru IG), I found her amazing stick advent from Christmas. This got me thinking about stick mobiles... which led me to Playful Learning and some gorgeous painted stick mobiles with beads and tassels. Love. And this post on how to bring nature into your littles' craft boxes is so good.

It's officially official. My youngest and I are going on a long nature walk in the morning, with tote bags in hand. Happy nature crafting. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Easter Jars

From salsa jars to Easter jars, I had no idea this project would be so easy... I know, you've seen it a million times on Pinterest, Martha Stewart and everything in between, but man is this project easy and cute. All you need is some empty jars, a few plastic animals from the dollar store and spray paint. Oh, and the ever faithful hot glue gun. How could I forget that?

Simply wash out your jars (remove any labels), hot glue the animals onto your lids and spray paint. I chose 2 sheep and a donkey for Easter...  in honor of The Good Shepherd.

You could fill these jars with anything! My little jars will be in lieu of baskets this year, hence the candy. For the bunny on my bigger jar, I took some left over balsa wood pieces and made a bunny. Once I hot-glued the ears, I wrapped it in yarn. I think it would also be fun to paint it white and turn it into Miffy. (Maybe I'll make that tomorrow, making the ears stand a bit more upright.)

Y'all this project was so fun and easy. I did it in less than an hour - drying time and all.  And when my boys saw them they went nuts! Even the hubs commented. Whoa! That is serious stuff right there and all of it cost me less than $2.00, candy excluded. Hoppy Easter. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: T-shirt Bib

Pointing fingers isn't really my jam. So I'll skip the pointing and just say... there are knit bibs retailing for upwards of $25.00! Choke. Choke. Gasp. Gasp. Yes, they're organic, super soft and have great prints, but if you're anything like me, you can't afford that. Why not make your own knit bandana bibs? It's really easy and will take you less than 30 minutes to make two!

Here's what you'll need:

1 old t-shirt

scissors

marker or pencil

ruler

sewing machine

Serge your raw edges or finish with a zigzag stitch.

This is where it gets fun... feel free to embellish your bibs with fun stitches. I used a neon green thread to create a graphic element on one of the bibs I made.

Here's my proverbial beef with selling bibs that have serge finishes - they fray! Easily. For this very reason, I went back over my ends with a straight stitch, as seen below.

 Bam! you're done. Easy huh? And look at how cute...

Y'all, that's two bibs for 66 cents and about 30 minutes of my time. You just can't beat that kind of return. And if you're wondering what I'm doing with the rest of the t-shirt - think dust cloths and bathroom cloths to clean up my counters every couple of days. (So much better than using a towel or washcloth every time.) Waste not, want not. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Sweater Weather

Let's all breathe a collective sigh of relief... Spring is here and warmer temps are nipping at Winter's booted heels. Here are a few things that I'm looking forward to as the weather warms up.

silky, flowy dresses - easy on. no thought required. boots or sandals. A good dress can take you a million miles.

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simple classics and sandles - yes. i am a huge berk fan. and i love this look. It couldn't be easier to duplicate and add your own twist.

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(sources unknown)

gold bangles - they're a staple for me. in the winter, they're hindered by by sleeves and layers. They add just the right amount of sparkle day or night.

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calf-length skirts - a great pick for mommies. especially one like me with a little more cheese on my thighs than i'd like. And I love that you can sit on the floor without fear of flashing anyone.

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Ladies, get out your razors and self-tanners... xo

top image via aleyncomprendio

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Napkins to Pillows

It's looking like I'm doing a lot of sale stalking at Target lately, huh? Well I must admit, I can't resist a good deal. These napkins were on clearance last week. Yes, the same week, same day, as my patio "side tables". Dang it. Stalking. But 4 napkins for under $3.00? Come on. Just what I needed to make two outdoor pillows for my Spring patio.

I snipped the tag, pressed the napkins and clipped out the tags. I added velcro to the bottom edge so that I could remove them and toss 'em into the wash easily.

All I needed now were pillow inserts. But honestly, I didn't want to spend any money on pillows that were going to sit outside. I had some inexpensive muslin on hand, so I used that to make two pillow inserts and stuffed them with... what else? Target plastic bags. (Sometimes I forget mine.)

I cut on the fold and sewed up the sides. Stuffed with plastic bags. Sewed up the remaining edge and voila! Pillow inserts.

Easy peasy! That's the best use of an over abundance of plastic bags I've seen in a while. Luckily my patio is covered and the glider never gets wet. When the pillows get dirty, I'll simply remove the inserts, wash the covers and slip them back on. I love a good recycle project. xo

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Vintage Club Pots

I'm not quite sure how I became the proud owner of my large vintage Club pot, but it's mine and I love it. It's perfect for soups and chili. So when the knob/handle recently broke, I tried my best to make do with a makeshift knob made of pipe cleaners. Needless to say, that didn't work for long. And then recently, at an estate sale, I found Club lids for $1.00 each. Score! Replacement knobs sell for $5.99 on ebay. Crazy.

Here's the thing... I didn't need the lids. Just the knobs. And since they are the beautiful vintage turquoise color, I knew I needed to find something to do with them. Hmmm... 2 lids. One big, one small. Bam... bird feeder! I went through all of my husbands tools searching for the parts I needed. Not much luck there - 3 washers and a hook. Lowe's to the rescue.

This long bolt like connector thingy (technical term) allowed me to attach the hook and the long screw, providing just the right amount of space for the birds to fly in and fill their bellies.

On the smaller lid, I attached the long screw with a bolt, washer and a covered bolt.

 I tightened everything with my husband's handy wrench and voila... bird feeder.

I might need to move it from it's current location (I think birds need a safe bush or tree close by to retreat to when they sense danger). Not sure yet. But, all I lack now is some bird food. I do hope they come. I hung it right outside out kitchen window for easy viewing. Here's to hoping that only birds eat out of this one and the squirrels stay away!

Do any of you happen to know anything about birds and feeders? This will be my third attempt to attract birds and NOT squirrels. Help! xo

(And PS - yes, when I look at those pot lids, pre-feeder, all I can think of is boobies. It's the 10 year old in me I guess. Geez. I need to grow up.)