Create Your Own Wrapping Paper: 3 Techniques

Nana and Papa are having a great time visiting with the grandchildren (and their parents!) this week.  Since I had actual kids to work with, I decided we needed to do a craft together. The two older kids and I had a grand time making our own wrapping paper.

Here's what we started with:

  • Spray bottles (these from the dollar store didn't work that well. You might want to try some that can give you a finer spray and that won't break in use)
  • Foam stickers
  • Sponge shapes
  • Shaped post-it notes
  • Acrylic paint
  • Shaped cutouts
  • Stamps
  • Plain wrapping paper or brown craft paper

I got these stamps  at the Dollar Store.  They came with finger paint. Fun, but took a long time to dry.
First we tried those stamps.

We started using more than one color on each stamp and came up with some pretty designs.

Next we used the acrylic paint and sponges.


For our third variety, we used the foam stickers, the post-it-notes, and the cut outs. We used an repositional glue stick on the back of the cutouts so that we could remove the cutouts better when we were finished. If I had been at home, I would have run the cutouts through my Xyron machine and applied temporary adhesive.

Next I poured about half a bottle of paint and some water (about at 2:1 ratio) into the spray bottle and shook it up. We sprayed the paper. Once the paint dried, we removed our shapes. This version didn't turn out as well as I had hoped. I also got paint all over Jordan's driveway. Next time, I will try it on a more absorbent paper such as brown craft paper and I will protect my surface!. I think it will be very cute.





Here are some of our finished products.



And here they are in use:
We had lots of fun making the paper-- and that's why we craft, right?

Mosquito Bite Remedy

I am SO sorry I have been slacking on blogging lately. I'm going to school during this summer and it's been crazy these past two weeks as we quickly approach finals.  I'm sorry!!

Mosquito and I have a love/hate relationship. They love me and I hate them. It's grand. When I was a kid I used to be covered in mosquito bites. I got one the other day randomly and I was quite annoyed with it. Strange, I know, most people like the constant itching. So I was complaining about how much my bug bite itched and how badly I wanted to scratch it when my roommate came to the rescue.
This is a great remedy that's super easy. All you need is equal parts water and baking soda.
 It should create a watery paste.


Apply it generously to the bug bite an voila, the itching subsides and it's rather soothing.
 Let it dry and it will come off on it's own or you can remove it with a wet wash cloth making sure not to disturb the bite.

Bedazzled Onesie Guest Post

Hey everyone! The Mrs. here from "Like Mom And Apple Pie" I was super excited and completely honored when the lovely and talented ladies of WGC asked me to do a guest post. So here is a simple Onesie makeover craft that is sure to make your little snuggler absolutely scrumptious!
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 Darling Right?! All you need is: 1 Onesie in any color/size you prefer. A roll of tulle in the color of your choice Coordinating lace or other trim 1 disappearing ink fabric pen Step 1: I start by figuring out the length of trim I need by measuring, where the waist would be, on the front of the Onesie from seam to seam and then double it.
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Now Onesies are stretchy, and we need to keep that stretch to squeeze around those big baby bellies, so I add 4-6" to the length. (remember in sewing, you can always cut away excess, but you won't be able to add more.)
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Step 2. Now we need to sew the tulle to the trim to make the little tutu. I like the rolls of tulle because it is already the perfect size for this. Start by lining up the edge of the tulle with the edge of the wrong side of the lace. Place together, lace side down, under your presser foot. Sew 1/8 of an inch in. Gather the tulle in even folds on top of the lace as it guides through the presser foot, keeping the lace straight, to create a cute ruffle with the tulle.
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 When you come to the end of the lace, cut the tulle from the roll and you should have a length that looks a little something like this:
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 If you aren't confident in your sewing skills to eye it this way, Here is a tutorial on gathering by hand, or another sewing machine technique for ruffling. I use this for fabrics, but find if you aren't careful it can rip the diamonds of the tulle, so I suggest you practice on a smaller piece first. Step 3. Now it's time to attach our tutu to our Onesie. Tulle can be a little scratchy, so I like to attach it no lower than the little leg openings on the Onesie so it doesn't rub on that deliciously soft baby skin. Photobucket Photobucket 
 Once I have found the right placing, I measure the distance from the bottom seam of the sleeve (armpit)  to the top of the trim, then I pin it at that spot. (measurements will differ depending on the size of your Onesie and length of tulle...mine was at exactly 3" using a 0-3 month Gerber Onesie) Photobucket Now we can't just pin the whole thing, we have to make room for that baby belly. Place a little mark with your disappearing fabric pen at 3" (or whatever your measurement was) on the opposite side of the Onesie. Now stretch the fabric, and then pin your tutu to the spot you marked. Photobucket 
 Make sure your tutu is straight and pin in the center on the front and the back. Photobucket Now sew, making sure to stretch the Onesie as you move along. If you think it sounds a bit tricky to just pull and stretch as you go, feel free to stretch the Onesie and pin the tutu to it every couple of inches, and then sew. I'm just too impatient for proper pinning. When you get to the end, fold over the raw edge like so and stitch on, making sure the beginning and end of the tutu line up. Photobucket 
 Now your blah Onesie has become adorable! Photobucket You don't have to stop there though ... let's make plain old adorable into absolutely delicious! Step 4: This is my favorite part because there are soooo many things you can do to add to the fanciness. I had some cute flower trim leftover from another one of these I made for my darling sister in law (sadly not enough for another Onesie trim though). Photobucket 
 I cut out 2 complete rosettes from the trim Photobucket And snipped off the excess tulle it was attached to Photobucket Then I pinned the rosettes in the center of the front of the tutu along the top of the lace trim. Photobucket Next I hand stitched the rosettes on, making sure the stitching was hidden inside the folds of the rosette. Photobucket What? You don't sew while sitting in the school carpool lane and photo document it? Weird. Photobucket Finished... Photobucket Adorable...but not quiet delicious just yet... Step 5: Let's take some of that lace trim and sew it to fancy up the collar. For this measure out a length of lace, following along the bottom of the stitched folded collar of the Onesie, from under the overlapped shoulder piece of each side Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket You don't want to sew over the overlapped shoulder pieces or else you won't be able to get it over baby's sweet smelling head, so make sure it's under. Photobucket Now,  hand stitch the lace on, following the bottom of the collar line of the Onesie Add a little extra stitch to the bottom of the lace under the overlapped shoulder piece so it lays flat underneath. Photobucket And voila! 
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 There are many other ideas you could do instead of the rosettes center, and lace collar, these I just happened to have around the house, but one item that any of even the least craftiest of lady's probably has around their house is Ribbons- You could tie one big bow for the middle, and two matching little ones on each of those overlapping shoulder pieces. You could even bedazzle it with some hot glued gems. Get creative, go crazy with it! Now, I am a sucker for matching accessories, And what would a fancy baby girl outfit be without a matching headpiece? So I couldn't possibly leave this delicious Tutu Onesie in it's non-matching accessorized state. It's just unacceptable. So I cut out 3 of the Rosettes from that leftover trim, and snipped off the excess tulle from the back of each. Photobucket Then I scrounged through my ribbon box, finding the perfect pink frilly stretchy elastic one. Photobucket I cut the elastic ribbon 10" long (according to an elastic baby headband I just so happened to have handy because it is used at least once a day in my home as a slingshot), and stitched the ends together. PhotobucketPhotobucket Then I sewed the rosettes by hand, onto the elastic, directly over the seam I just sewed. Making a completely adorable headband to match our absolutely delicious Onesie Tutu. Photobucket Photobucket Photobucket 
 And for our final step? Swoon. 
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(Model- Baby Julianna) Happy Creating!!

Thanks so much, The Mrs. for posting today! She just so happens to be my sister-in-law and we get the fruits of her wonderful crafting skills over here too. Look at this PB in a similar outfit she made her last year.
We enjoyed having you today, The Mrs. We would love to have you back soon!

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