Bathtub Crayons

I have been wanting to make these for M for a long time, but wanted to wait until he would actually use them as crayons as opposed to eating them (don't worry, he still felt the need to taste them). They are so easy to make and you end up with soap and crayons in one!

What you will need:

- clear glycerine soap (grated)
- food coloring (dark colors work best)
- molds
- glass bowl
- spoons for mixing
- your favorite essential oil (optional)

The first step is to grate the soap into your glass bowl. I used about 1 cup of grated soap for each mold (no need to pack it into the bowl, just loosely grate)

Melt the soap in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds. The soap is grated to it only takes a few seconds for it to melt. Then add your coloring.

Remember that more is more!!! Dark colors will work much better and the more coloring the better. My orange and red crayons did not show up very well because there was not enough coloring.

Pour the melted soap into the molds and repeat with all desired colors. Set the soap aside to harden. It should only take a few hours but I recommend leaving it overnight to be sure.

Once it has hardened completely pop the crayons out of the molds and they are ready for use.

Of course M just had to taste them.

DIY Easter fun!

Spring is here and Easter is around the corner. With just a few simple touches you can give your house a spring make over.

I was able to take my plain white yarn wreath and give it a whole new look with a little ribbon and a few decorations I found at Hobby Lobby.

I found these colorful Easter eggs at Target and used clear thread to take them from this:

to this!

I have to thank Pinterest for the inspiration for my flower arrangement. It was so simple and so bright and cheery. I took two sizes of square vases that I got from the local dollar store. I filled the larger vase halfway with Easter grass then set the smaller vase inside and slid the Peeps in between. The smaller vase hold the flowers.

Valentines Day to St. Patricks Day for $2.50

I decided to use my yarn wreath for multiple occasions. This time I was able to take it from a Valentines Day wreath to a St. Patricks Day wreath for only $2.50!

What you will need:

- yarn covered wreath (remove previous decorations)
- 2 green felt sheets
- St. Patrick's Day garland

I was able to the the felt sheets at Hobby Lobby for $ 0.25 each and the garland for $2

First, make a stencil like the white one in the picture below. It is basically a flower petal with a flat bottom. I found it easier to fold it in half to ensure symmetry. (I made several attempts prior to folding that just did not come out symmetrical.)

Trace the pattern onto the felt. You will need four leaves per clover, you can make as many clovers as you want.

Line both pieces of felt up and cut out the leaves.

Now it is time to line them up and sew the leaves together. By placing your stitches in the right place, you can create the simple fold in the center of each leaf. To do this, insert your needle into the bottom edge of the felt leaf and bring it up just before the middle of the leaf staying along the bottom edge. Make another stitch just past the middle and bring it back up close to the end. Repeat for the other three leaves. The thread should look like the picture below.

Next, begin to pull the thread tight and the clover will start to form.

Pull the thread tight and make a stitch back into the first leaf to close off the clover. Tie a knot in the thread and spread out the leaves of the clover.

Tie the clovers onto the wreath. You can do this in any arrangement and may vary depending on the number of clovers you have. I used the thread to tie on my clovers. I also found it beneficial to ad a few stitches to the clovers to hold them together in a row.

The last step is to cut your garland and wrap it it around your wreath. I used garland with wire in it so I was able to secure it by just wrapping it around the wreath and twisting it a few times. I did this twice and used the garland to hang the wreath on a hook.

Here is your finished product, a St. Patrick's Day wreath for only $2.50!

Mirror Coasters

Today let's make something for the home, mirror coaster! I saw a picture of these on Joann Fabrics website and they look expensive but so easy to make!

What you will need:

- Cork sheets
- 1" Mirror squares (12 per coaster)
- 1/2" Mirror squares (16 per coaster)
- Glue (I used Tacky Glue)

I was able to find all the supplies locally at Hobby Lobby, they can also be found at Michael's and Joann Fabrics. The cork can be purchased as a sheet like above or as precut 4" by 4" squares.

These coasters are so simple, all you do is glue the tiles onto the cork! I found it easiest to glue the squares one row at a time. I started with the bottom row and worked my way up. When I got to the second row, I started with the smaller squares and did the 1" outer squares last. I finished with the top row of 1" squares.

Make sure the glue is dry, wipe them off with glass cleaner and they are ready to use!