Back to School: Homework Station

Day two of getting ready to head back to school.  Today I am sharing how I put together a simple homework station with the goal of keeping us organized.

Our kids are young enough yet that I still have them sit at the kitchen table after school to do their homework. One of the big frustrations I had from last year is that we could NEVER find a sharp pencil or other supplies needed to complete their work.

I had the perfect thing to create this station - a picnic organizer that I picked up at Target a few years ago in their summer section.  It is designed to hold utensils, plates and napkins but the compartments were perfect for notebooks, paper, pencils, markers, etc.

Using my Silhouette, I cut out some vinyl letters to remind the kids that the items in this bucket are to be used for homework.  I don't know about you, but everything I own gets "stolen" by the kids and hauled upstairs to their bedrooms, never to be seen again.  The kids know that these items may NEVER be removed from the bucket unless being utilized for homework!  I will have to let you know how that goes!  hee hee!

This year when doing our supply shopping, I decided to pick up extra supplies to put in our homework station.  With elementary age kids, the supplies I have included are:

• pencils (only Ticonderoga - they are the best)
• markers
• colored pencils
• crayons (only Crayola - again, the best)
• highlighters
• ruler
• school glue & glue sticks (Elmers - the best)
• index cards (to make flash cards)
• wide ruled loose leaf paper
• pencil sharpener
• scissors

I will not be surprised if I need to add a few things once school starts.  As I typed this I thought of scissors.  I will need to head to the store this week and pick up a couple of those.

Now if I can just get the kids to sit down after school and do their homework without whining!  Wish me luck!

Back to School: Water Bottles

School starts this week for us (doing the happy dance)!  It is hot and dry in Arizona so our school requires each student to bring a water bottle everyday.  I love this about our school.  Well, with all those kids there are bound to be duplicate water bottles.  Face it, we all shop at Target and the options are limited!

These are the bottles I chose for this year - actually the same style we used last year.  I love these bottles by Embark because the lid is tethered and therefore can't be lost.  I also love the wide mouth which allows for super easy cleaning.  It is also really easy to fill with ice in the morning, rather than struggling to push large cubes through a small hole!  We are a busy family, I don't have time for that!


To make sure that we don't lose our water bottles, I always try to make them easy to spot and differentiate them from everyone else.  This year I decided to use my Silhouette machine to put the kids names on them.  It was quick, easy and the kids love the results.

Just a few more projects and we are going to be ready for school!

Our Not So Bummer Summer!

We have had a full week of summer vacation and I can't believe everything we have done already!  Granted, we counted and while Phineas and Ferb tell us there are 104 days of summer vacation - we only have 74!  Not that many when you make a huge list of everything you want to accomplish.  Then throw in swim team which has daily practice and 2-3 meets a week and the time flies!

My 5 and almost 7 year old are very visual and want to SEE that they have actually been doing a lot of things.  So I decided to make a chalk board sign to list and mark off our summer fun activities.

Awhile back I had picked up a can of chalkboard spray paint on sale and was waiting for the right project to use it.  Then it hit me, our Summer Fun List!  Perfect!  Of course, I did not have an appropriate size piece of wood in the garage so I headed to Home Depot. 

I immediately went to the back to check out the "cull lumber" bin.  Cull lumber is cut-offs of boards that a customer does not want.  The best part - they are 51 cents a piece at our store - no matter the size.  You often need to inspect these boards as they may be warped, have a lot of knots or other flaws.  But generally speaking, you can find some great bargains. 

On this particular day, I found a beautiful piece of culled 1x12 that was 35" long - perfect for our Summer Fun chalkboard.  Another thing to note, they generally spray paint the end of the lumber to designate it as culled.  This was fine since I was planning to paint it anyway.

I love a project that ends up to be under $7 - chalkboard paint $4.97, board $.51 and colored chalk 1.99.

I took my list that I had put together and started to write them on the board.  As you can see, we have already checked off a number of items.

Here are a few pictures of some of our fun.  Most of this happened in just one day of "staying home".  I actually love a day when we can just hang out inside, avoid the insane desert heat here in Arizona and have some good old fashion creative play fun!

What have you been doing this summer?

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Midwestern Girl DIY

Swim Ribbon Holder

My daughter joined the swim team this year and she is so excited.  They have been swimming since the beginning of April but had their first meet on Tuesday.  It has been such a great experience for her.  We are so proud of the fact that she has found a sport that she loves so much.  We suffered through a couple of seasons of soccer.  And by suffer I mean, lots of tears, lots of "I don't want to go to practice", whining, etc.  This was not fun for ANY of us.

That being said, my little fish is competitive, she loves to win and more importantly, she loves to be recognized!  Swimming is wonderful for that, EVERYONE gets a ribbon in each race they swim (unless they are DQ'd but in the 6 & under division, the rules are pretty lax).

As soon as practice started, I knew I needed to make something for all of those ribbons.  I had a few ideas and knew I had all of the supplies for a wood sign with hooks for the ribbons, so I got to work.

I started with a 2x6 board.  Given the size, I determined my letter height to be about 2.5".  Using my trusty PowerPoint program, I found a font I liked and created my design.  (I don't have a fancy cutter and honestly, I like the painted letters better anyways.)

Since my daughter chose the phrase - peace, love, swim - using symbols for peace and love I first found the shapes using clip art and sized them appropriately.  I then selected my font and layed them out.  They actually worked perfectly on and 11" paper so i added a few inches to each side and cut my board to 17".

I painted the board a pretty pink that matches her room and the got started on the letters.  To assist with the transfer when I traced the letters, I scribbled the back of my paper with a soft leaded pencil.  I then laid it over the board and began to trace.

Once my design was on the board, I pulled out a pretty blue color and painted in the design. I felt like it seemed a bit flat so I created a shadow effect using a complimentary green.  I love how it turned out.

My original plan was to put 7 hooks across the bottom but a couple of them broke off when twisting them in so I had to go with a plan B.  Which, by the way, turned out amazing!  I simply added my daughters name down in the corner and I love it (so does she).

 

So there it is!  (Notice the soccer trophy on the dresser!  Couldn't resist pointing that out.  She has a medal too but I need to find that!) 

I have a plan for a bit of a fun collage on this wall to add some more color and fun to her room but here it is for now.  A place of honor for her 2 first place ribbons!

So far, she has learned freestyle and backstroke.  I am so excited that swimming is her thing!  I was a swim instructor and lifeguard from the age of 14 all the way through college so I love that the love of water has passed on!  (Note, my husband has a huge love of water too and can't wait until she is old enough to scuba dive!)

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Recycle Man's T-Shirt Refashion

Tuesday morning at Our Forever House is ALWAYS and exciting time. At roughly 6:45am, my son's ears perk up and he gets uber excited. Running to the door, he can't wait to stand in the driveway to watch as the recycle truck empties the cul-de-sac's recycle bins. This week was especially exciting because the driver honked his horn when he saw the kids standing there watching in their jammies!
His excitement for all things recycling and trash are endless.

He tells me during car rides that seeing and counting trash cans and garbage trucks gives him super powers - he is a garbage superhero! I, of course, love this obsession and will continue to encourage it in any way that I can!

That is where this week's t-shirt project comes in ... a painted reverse applique t-shirt.  As mentioned yesterday, I am on a mission to make some fun graphic t-shirts for my kids since I did not like the mature content available in the "big boys" section of many of the stores.  My son is 5 and I want him to wear age appropriate clothing.  Plus, I want his shirts to be fun and reflect who he is and what he loves.

I did a bit of research on Pinterest and came across this great recycle shirt applique at Wardrobe Refashion.  She used a couple of techniques including paint and reverse applique to create this fun and dynamic result.  Here is my take on her shirt...

This was a fun project for me because I got to try a couple of techniques I have never done before.  The first was using Glad Press N Seal as a stencil and the second was reverse applique.

I started this project by finding a recycle clip art graphic and printing it out as large as I could make it on a piece of 8.5x11 paper.  I lightened it a bunch before I printed so as to save ink.  Since it was so faint, I simply outlined the graphic with a marker. Here were the first four steps:

#1:  Fully cover the graphic with Glad Press N Seal.  Mine was a summer themed from my amazing Target summer clearance haul from last year.  Make sure the Press N Seal is smooth and secure.

#2:  Cut out the graphic being sure to create a clean edge on the Press N Seal.

#3:  Carefully remove the paper backing  and place the Press N Seal design on your t-shirt, making sure to keep the plastic smooth and not stretch the design.  Also make sure the graphic is centered.  I had to reposition mine and it was difficult to pull the Press N Seal off the fabric without ripping it.  Smooth the edges around the design real well to make sure it is prepped for painting.

#4:  Paint over the image and remove the Press N Seal.  When painting, make sure to place a board or piece of heavy paper inside the shirt so that the paint doesn't seep through.  Since I was doing a reverse applique I only needed to do the edges as the center was going to be cut away.  Let the paint dry thoroughly before proceeding.

The next step is the reverse applique portion of the shirt.  Cut a piece of fabric a bit larger than your design and pin it behind the design on the inside of the shirt.

In the inspiration, she hand stitched around the design but I decided to machine sew mine.  After hand sewing the pom-poms t-shirt yesterday, my hand was far to soar.  I sewed along the edge of my paint.  I then separated the two layers and clipped a small hole in the t-shirt in order to trim the INSIDE of the applique area in order to expose the back fabric.

Additionally, I flipped the shirt inside out and clipped the green fabric around the OUTSIDE of the design.  I used t-shirt fabric so the edges will not fray and will be soft to the feel which is important in kids clothing (mine too for that matter).

I love how the paint frames the reverse applique fabric and gives an added dimension to the design!  My little man could not wait to wear his new shirt!

Come back tomorrow when I share yet another t-shirt re-fashion project.

Linked up at Blue Cricket Design, Not Just a Housewife, Polly Want a Crafter, House of Hepworths

Pom-Pom T-Shirt Knock-Off

It is getting warm and of course, my nothing short sleeved in my kids drawers fits them.  They both have seemed to jump a size in the past several months.  So this week I went through their drawers and pulled out everything that was on the small side.  What it left was well...not much. 

We headed out to find some new shorts and t-shirts for the looooooooong Arizona summers.  They need to last for at least the next 6 months.  Both kids have now transitioned from the "toddler" section of the store to the "kid" section.  What I found with many of the graphic tees is that the content is definitely directed to the older child.  I didn't feel that the designs were appropriate for my 5 and 6 year olds.

The alternative was simple.  I picked up a stack of plain t-shirts in a variety of colors for each of them.  Then I headed to the dollar store to pick up a bunch of adult t-shirts (just a dollar each - which is the perfect price since they were going to be cut up - I can't get used t-shirts that cheap) in a variety of colors and headed home.

I searched a bunch of my favorite children's specialty retailers for ideas and was excited when I came across the Spotty Dotty T-Shirt from Mini Boden.  I loved 3-D effect on this shirt and knew that my daughter would too!  What I didn't like was the $28 price tag. 

Source:  Mini Boden

I grabbed my $5 t-shirt, the bag of pom-poms from the kid's art supplies, a needle & some thread!

Using a piece of paper and a hole punch I created my pattern.  I folded the paper, cut out a heart shape and placed it on the shirt, adjusting the pattern until I liked the size and placement.  I then punched holes in the edge of my pattern about every inch.  Placing the pattern back on the t-shirt, I used a washable marker to place a small dot in each hole.

I then determined my pattern and began sewing each pom-pom in place.

This process was tedious and I have decided that I could never do long periods of hand-sewing.  My wrist, the one I broke roller-skating a year ago definitely hurt a lot during this process.  That being said, I absolutely LOVE this fun t-shirt and as you can see from the smile on my daughter's face, she loves it too!

This was a relatively simple project and such a fun way to embellish a simple t-shirt.  Mini Boden also offers their Spotty Dotty shirts in the shape of a star and a butterfly but really, the possibilities with this are endless.

Tomorrow I will be back sharing a fun t-shirt refashion for my son!  See you tomorrow.

Linked up at Blue Cricket Design



Linked up at Blue Cricket Design, Not Just a Housewife, Polly Want a Crafter, House of Hepworths

Magnetic Board Updates

Every kid should have a bulletin board to keep all those cherished memories.  You know the ones - the photos with friends, the movie ticket stubs, special notes, pictures from magazines, invitations, etc.  I will admit, I had many a picture from the latest issue of Teen Beat hanging in my room. 

When we were working on the desks for the kids rooms, I knew that we needed to give them each a bulletin board.  I love some of the cork board updates I have seen, HOWEVER I didn't feel that my 4 and 6 year old needed to have push pins in their room.  I had visions of ME stepping on them amongst the other toys and "stuff" on the floor.  A magnet board was the perfect solution.  We picked up a couple of simple boards at Ikea.  Perfect for the kids rooms.

Of course, plain does not cut it with kids.  This project we were able to get the kids involved.  I picked up some pink and green polka dot decals at The Dollar Tree for my daughters project and we simply used green painters tape for my sons board.  They helped put them on which helped them both take ownership of their projects.

Both projects were completed in under 30 minutes and gave the rooms immediate impact!

Have you used a simple item like tape to add immediate impact to an otherwise plain object?

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Polly Want A Crafter
Todays Creative Blog
Funky Polkadot Giraffe
Blue Cricket Designs
Sugar and Dots
Sweet Peas and Bumblebees
Crystal and Co.
Not JUST a Housewife

Student Desk {Girl}

As promised, we finished up the girl's student desk this weekend.  We got it hauled upstairs, accessorized and it has already been christened (as in, it has marker on the top already).  Last week I shared the desk project that started last November with the purchase of 2 "vintage" student desks.  I spray painted my son's desk brown.  My daughter has white furniture in her room so I brushed on white paint for hers.

I used a white flat paint and put on several coats with a light sanding between each coat.  I really liked using the flat paint as it does not show the sand marks like the satin spray paint did.  For this desk I put 4 coats of paint on the top and drawers in order to offer a strong finish since these areas take the biggest beating.

I followed up the paint with several coats of polyurethane.  In hindsight, I should have used poly-acrylic which offers a clear finish.  The polyurethane created a yellowish tint to the desk.  At some point I will probably go back and redo the finish but for now it is fine.  Again, I put a couple of extra coats on the top to better protect this surface. 

Ultimately, I would like to have a piece of glass cut to fit the top of each of the desks.  Not only will the glass protect the surface, it will allow the kids to put pictures and notes underneath like a scrapbook.  Note, when putting glass in a kids room, it should be tempered glass.  In the event that it breaks, like safety glass, it does not make as big of a mess and is safer by not creating the sharp, jagged edges.

I lined the drawers with another roll of Target Dollar Spot wrapping paper.   My daughter loves the polka dots.  I also added some fun, pink acrylic butterfly drawer pulls that I found in the dollar section at Michael's awhile back.  The knobs fit a bit close to the drawer so I put a white pony bead on as a spacer.  This makes the drawers much easier to open.

Of course, we had to accessorize.  For my girl, we hung a white Ikea magnet board and some kitten pictures from a calendar I picked up at the dollar store.  Target had some cute kitten buttons in the dollar spot.  I added a magnet to the back and they make great "girly" magnets.  I also used a couple of pink and green mini-buckets from the Dollar Spot for markers, pencils, etc.

Again, I am still on the search for the perfect chair for both kids desks.  After having the desks in their rooms, I am thinking we will paint the chairs a fun color - pink for the girl and blue, red or even green for the boy.  I hate to have their furniture too matchy-matchy and the punch of color will be fun. 

I look forward to both kids getting a lot of use out of their desks over the years!

Before

AFTER

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Student Desk {Boy}

School has started again so I decided that it was time to finish up the desks that I bought for the kids last November.  I know, that was a long time ago, and they have been collecting dust in the garage, partially sanded and not done!  Well, last week I got to work.  I started with the smaller desk for the boy because I knew I could finish his a lot quicker than the girls.


I really wanted the kids to each have a nice, wooden desk in their rooms as they grow up.  I am certain the desk will be used for many art projects, coloring and homework as they get older.  Of course, there are two options for desks in the stores.  There seems to be the fancy expensive Pottery Barn desk (which of course I LOVE but am way to cheap to buy) or the basic, metal and pressed board computer desks that have no style OR storage - a must have for kids.

I knew I needed to find an old-school student desk like the wood (albeit thin) desks we had as kids.  The flea market had several to choose from and I was so excited to be able to pick up 2 desk for $30.  There is nothing special about these desks but with a bit of paint, some fun knobs and creativity, they are perfect.

The boy has dark wood furniture in his room.  With his desk I decided to use spray paint (Rust-oleum Painter's Touch Ultra Cover 2x Coverage in espresso brown with a satin finish).  It was so quick and great.  I did about 3 light coats on the desk with a couple of extra coats on the drawers and top since they get the most wear.  I followed up the paint with a few coats of polyurethane.  Again, adding a couple of extra coats to the top for added protection.

After looking at a variety of fun knobs, I decided to go with a nice shiny nickel finish as it gives a nice industrial feel to his room and plays well with the cars theme in his room.

Above the desk we hung a metal bulletin board.  I decided that push pins and kids were probably not a good idea since most everything ends up on the floor.  We picked up this board from Ikea.  The magnets are simply some plastic wheels and Sheriff Woody stars from a couple of tic-tac-toe games I picked up at the dollar store.  I simply added a magnet to the back and they are perfect.

 

Since these were used desks the drawers were a bit dirty.  Additionally, the thin plywood bottoms were a bit rough and could cause splinters so I decided to line the drawers.  I had these fun rolls of striped wrapping paper from the Target Dollar Spot.  I simply decoupaged them down by putting a thin layer of decoupage on the bottom of the drawer and placing the paper down, using a credit card to smooth it out and remove any bubbles.  I let this layer dry overnight and then placed a thin top coat on to further protect the paper and create a nice seal.  I love the happy stripe when you open up the drawer!

Of course this project is to be continued (a.k.a. a work in progress)...

•  Desk Chair  -  I am hoping I can find a nice wooden chair similar to the one I found for the perfect little desk downstairs.  I will continue on my thrift store visits until I find just the right chair that can be spray painted up to match!

•  Glass Top  -  While I made sure to add ample layers of protection of paint and poly, I would like to have a piece of glass cut to fit the top of the desk.  Not only will it protect the surface, it will allow the kids to put photos, pictures etc. under the glass to customize their desk.  It is like a scrapbook and desk all in one!

•  Desk Accessories  -  Kids love to feel all grown up so I am working on finding or creating some fun desk accessories like a blotter, calendar, name plate, pencil holder, etc.  With the boys room I want to go with the galvanized theme.  He already has a galvanized metal trash can (lid and all) that he got for Christmas last year from Santa.

Watch for part 2 of the Student Desk posts next week when I unveil the {Girl} desk!

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A Banner Day!

I cannot deny, I have a thing for pennants and banners these days.  It started with the preparations for my daughters rainbow birthday party where I first began to sew with paper - one of my many obsessions.  Then of course, I added some fun banners in the laundry room too!  Of course, I don't want every room to have pennant banners but I think they would look great in adding to the themes and designs in the kids rooms.

For the boy's room, we are going with a bit of a transportation theme which is currently being powered by Cars 2, fire trucks and garbage trucks - 3 of the boy's biggest obsessions!  A while back I found this awesome black and white checkered felt in the remnant bin for an additional 50% off.  I picked up a few yards with no real plans other than I knew it would be great for his room and/or party decor.  Yesterday I cut a few triangles, sewed them to some black grosgrain ribbon (from the dollar store).  Tied it to his headboard and we were done!  He is so excited with his new decor!

Last week, my now 6 year old, first grade daughter declared that we need to redo her room because she is "fashionable" now!  We have never really finished her room so this was as good a time as any to give the girl a bit of glimmer, shine and sparkle.  We have always called our daughter a camo-pink kind of girl.  She loves, loves, loves all thinks pink and glittery but is a tom-boy all the same.  I decided to hit my surplus of scrapbook paper for her banner.  I found some fun animal prints in bright colors and added a few glittery pages too.  I sewed her fun triangles to some thin pink grosgrain ribbon too.  Her banner has been placed on the green wall above her bed!  I can't wait for her to come home from school and see her new "fashion" decor!

I just love how they turned out!  Banners are so fun and such a quick and easy way to add some color and design to a space with very little investment (money or time)!  I can't wait to add a few more accents to the kids rooms.

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Todays Creative Blog

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Sewing 101

This morning I was working on a sewing project that I can't wait to share.  I am designing it as I go and putting together a full tutorial with a free pattern download so it may take awhile.  My daughter has been intrigued by all of the fabric laying around so today I decided to let her try some sewing. 

We took a fat quarter, pinned on a couple of ribbons (we should have sewed them down but oh well) and folded it right sides together.  We pinned it.  Then I used a fabric marker and drew a line around the edges at a 1/2 inch for her to use as a guide.

She used the sewing machine and very carefully sewed along the line.  She did awesome - better than I do most of the time (granted I am a beginner myself).  We used a box to make the pedal a bit easier for her to use!

She turned it right side out, put in the stuffing and together we sewed closed the opening. 

She is so proud of her new butterfly pillow!  Pretty good for a 6 year old!!!