Category Archives: Crafts + DIY

Dottie’s Kraft Korner:: Halloween Edition

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Professor Dottie here, from the School of Slapdash Sewing.

Today, students, I’m going to show you how to sparkle up a store-bought costume as the final post of Halloweenie goodness here at Modern Kiddo headquarters.

I know what you are thinking.  You are scratching your well-coiffed head and want to say, “But Professor Dottie, you are the epitome of all things crafty–why don’t you create something from that geniusly clever noggin of yours.  Have the Peach go as Pinkie Tuscadero, or a Harujuku girl or a Freudian slip!”  Well, after last year’s craft bomb of doom, I was a touch gun-shy this time and just wanted to slap something on her a call it day.

It started innocently enough with this darling little store bought “flower” gnome costume from Target. Twenty bucks of sheer cuteness, no?  It’s from the “Too Cute To Spook” line and really, the name says it all.

But then I looked at it a touch closer once I lost the receipt and took it out of the bag. Hmm… Well, that edging on the collar is pretty lame and that button placket is totally off.

And don’t those flowers look more like fried eggs than anything else?

After spending five dollars on trims from the fabric store, I thought I could jazz this up a bit. And not stress about it. In fact, I only want to do this while watching TV.

First, let’s turn those fried eggs into flowers with some easy breezy embroidery.  One episode of Mad Men later and voila–cute little flowers. (I can’t believe Don ditched Faye and asked his secretary to MARRY him?!?!)

Now, I gotta do something about that collar. Enter green ric rac and some nice kinda matching yellow bias tape and ahh… yeah… Perfectly timed with 30 Rock commercials.

OK. A little break involving beer (also known as my secret sewing elixir…) and Halloween candy taste test.

OK, right, back to it.  Let’s fix that placket. It was the perfect time to break out this great vintage ribbon I had.  And we’ll match it with some buttons from my yellow button collection…

Now to make the hat. The hat that came with the costume looked adorable, but couldn’t fit a newborn. Even make a couple of cuts in the back. No dice. The Peach ripped at it with both her hands. Nice.

Fortunately, I had some kinda matching plain cotton fabric and some fusible quilt batting. I decided to not even attempt the cute droopy bit that seemed more Smurf than gnome, but instead stay true to the pointy gnome style. And let’s add some elastic to it actually stays on the Peach’s head. Done during Glee Commercial Break.

I also added to the length of the costume because I don’t really think gnomes are suppose to wear hooker-short skirts. Fortunately, I had some matching yellow fabric in my stash and used the last remnants of the trims to finish it off.  Oh, and of course I’m not letting her out of the house at night without some pants. Yes, I’ve turned into that mother who makes the kid wear a sweater over their ballerina costume. Apologies. But I had this great stripey knit fabric and a ten minute break while Eric was talking to his sister on the phone to slapdash together some pants. I just serged them together and used fold over elastic for the waistband.

They are kinda cute, no?

And voila! A Peachy perfect little gnome outfit! With matching leggings and hat for mama to boot. HOLLAH!  (The hat and leggings was a ruse to get her to wear her own outfit. Sneaky mama!  Mwahahaha!!!)

Happy belated Halloween everyone! I hope your pillowcases of were full of candy and your costume made it through the night!

Crafty Minx :: Googley Eye Cupcake Toppers.

Crafts + DIY

I was browsing the adorable blog scrumdilly-do and stumbled upon these super cute googly eye cupcake toppers. The fabulous Jessica graciously let us reprint her tutorial so you could try ’em yourself. These lil suckas are so cute and really easy to make, I think you’ll love ’em.  Take it away Miss Jessica!

Hi everyone! Jessica here. If happiness came in a bag (and it wasn’t chocolate) I do think it may be googly eyes. There is just so much one can do with these little guys. It being fall and all and almost Halloween I think a little extra googly eye fun is in order. Yesterday’s post is a perfect example of how easy it is to play with these kooky things. Today, I want to show you how delightful a pack of eyes, a few toothpics, glue and paper punches or scissors can be. Viola…googly cupcake toppers! So, what are ya waiting for? Whip up a batch of pumpkin cupcakes or gingerbread muffins and while they are baking, let your kidlets loose to make all sorts of spooky-fun toppers. It’s an impromptu party! Yay for Halloween!

MATERIALS
* toothpicks
* scrap paper, printed paper, newspaper
* paint of your choice
* paint brushes
* cup o water
* glue and/or glue stick
* various paper punches or scissors
* googly eyes
* markers (optional)


To make the same style of toppers I made here, set out newspaper or phone book pages and watercolors or other paint and have your wee ones paint away. Set aside to dry and let them give a stir or two to whatever cupcake or muffin you are baking. I made gingerbread cupcakes from this recipe. Make sure to work in an area that is happy for spills and mess, use a splat mat or wax paper to protect your table top if you need to.

Once dry, use a large scallop punch to punch out newspaper shapes, set aside. You can let your kidlets go to town here or you can give your paper a couple of folds and punch out multiples at a time. Use a smaller circular punch to cut out shapes from your printed or scrap paper. A solid page would be better for this but you can use whichever you want. Colored paper would be nice, and/or cardstock. I used an old library brochure.


Use the gluestick on the back of the scalloped circles and sandwich a toothpick between two of the. I found it easier to use a large gluestick and to put the circle on the gluestick rather than glob the gluestick all over the back of the circle. If your tots are going to use the gluestick like a pen, use a sheet of wax paper underneath to prevent extra sticking.

Next up, repeat the gluestick process with the smaller circles, one circle per topper. You can do both sides but you don’t need to.

Finally, use a small dab of glue to anchor a googly eye or two to the center of each paper circles combo (try saying that three times fast). Lay flat to dry.

When cupcakes are cool and yer ready to serve, plop a google-eyed topper into each cake and admire. Yay for impromptu party fun!

—————————————————–
YAHOO LADY JEK! These are adorable.
Friends, Jessica is a talented crafter and photographer and has a super fun Flickr set under Jek-A-Go-Go. You may also remember her super duper cute niece Beatrice Bird who was a Weekly Kiddo! THANK YOU SO MUCH JESSICA!

Dottie’s Kraft Korner :: Bumblebee Costume Fail

Crafts + DIY, Real Life : Dottie, ,

People, it’s here–the uber craft project that is Halloween that strikes fear into many a craft mamas heart.  Let me start this season of spookiness with a horror story for this week’s crafty post.

Gather round the campfire friends as I tell you this story with a flashlight under my chin.  The frightening crafty tale  of the Peach’s first Halloween costume…

But first a bit of backstory.

When I was seven I was given the role of a woodpecker to play in the school play. When I came skipping home to my mother telling her I needed a woodpecker costume in two days, I didn’t notice how all of the color drained from her face.

My mother is a lot of things, charming, smart, funny as all get out, but she doesn’t possess a single crafty bone in her body.  I realized this the day she presented me with the World’s Saddest Costume–one of my brother’s white undershirts with two “feathers” cut out from a brown paper bag and half drawn in with a blue ball point pen.  And then a couple of feather-like shapes drawn onto the t-shirt with the same blue ball point pen skipping fabric every inch or so.  And not in a straight line.

You have to understand that I took a vow that day when I was seven. As grand a vow as Scarlett said when after she ate that scrawny carrot and held her fist claiming she would never be hungry again.  I promised my future children that they would never be embarrassed by their Halloween and or school play costumes!

Fast forward 30 years later and there I sat Halloween tired after a week’s worth of cleaning, cooking, baby wrangling and a full time job eating those innocent words I spit out as I furiously attempt to finish the Peach’s costume in time to take her out and “show her off” to the neighbors.

I was so innocent at the beginning. I came up with the sweetest idea. How about a widdle bumble bee Halloween costume?  Surely, I could pull that off. I used to work in the costume shop for my college’s theater department. I’ve owned my own sewing machine for 30 years!  I would just make a cute little A-line jumper made of warm black and yellow  felt that will keep her cozy and match it with a hand knit hat. Perfect, right?

Except I used a dull old rotary cutter to cut the strips of yellow, so it looks like I was drunk when I cut them…

  • And I forgot to match the edges, so the stripes were off..
  • And then I  tried to fix the too wide stripes after I sewed it together by adding more not straight stripes with glue…
  • And since  felt and glue aren’t best friends, the additional stripes kept falling off…
  • And, OK, maybe I used some staples to hold the stupid stripes in place…
  • And the knit hat was too big, so I decreased and accidentally made it too small..
  • And I forgot to buy pipe cleaners to get the antenna straight…
  • And I ran out of time to make yellow tulle wings…
  • And I… well….  Here you go.

Part bumble bee/part hobo and 100 percent CRAFT FAIL.

You can see her little antennas have wilted out of craft shame. Nice matching stripes, eh?

I think she was cute enough to get away with it.  But she knew this wasn’t right.  She can’t even look directly at the camera out of baby disgust with my crafting.

I promise, kid, I’ll buy you a costume this year…

Just wait until you see my Halloween make-good costume for the Peach this year.

To be continued…

Etsy Faves Heidi & Finn

Crafts + DIY, , , , ,

As you know, I’m very committed to making the Peach’s clothes for Fall. I think sewing little dresses will help quell my fear of sewing bigger dresses for moi.   There are so many grand patterns out there for the wee ones, but I found some particularly delicious patterns that from my newest obsession, Etsy shop, Heidi & Finn. And I think you’ll like them too!

For example, I’m going to make this pinafore top for the Peach–like four of ’em!  That pleated pocket detail is just darling!

And next summer, I’m making four of these great tops out of linen for the Peach, so she won’t burn up. Sigh…the Peach is so pale.  We call her the mushroom baby–she lives away from the sun!

Oh and then there is this ruffle jumper–such a nice twist on the standard one.

Speaking of nice twists on standard style,  this great pant pattern with a cool pleat detail fits that bill too. I’m sensing a great theme here…

Oh, and the coats. The yummy wearable coats.

I am head over heels with the wearability of this wrap yoga sweater.

Now I must admit that I’m always impressed when I see cool patterns for boys clothing.  And Heidi & Finn doesn’t disappoint on this front.  Like this slim fit military style shirt for boys. And this great unisex hoodie is adorable.  Just change the button and fabric choices and you got a sweet outfit for your boy to boot.

But here are the top three reasons why I’m so bananas for this brand:

  1. They are available as PDFs, so talk about instant gratification! You can make one of the patterns tonight if you wanted to.
  2. A lot of these patterns use knits, which is so great for that cozy factor we love for kid’s clothing, plus easy wash and wear.
  3. These patterns have two special magic words on them that make my heart flutter just reading them: “EASY. SEW”.

Not a seamstress? Not a problem! They also have an Etsy shop of finished items from their collection. Including this little gem which is so much fun and perfect for parties–wearable cozy yet effortlessly charming/borderline fancy.

So, I’m off to purchase the 4 patterns for $21 special they are running right now!

Guest Post: Danielle from Thompson Family Life.

Crafts + DIY, Guest Blogger, , , ,

This is Danielle Thompson here, guest blogging for our lovely Alix while she’s away in Prague! Thank-you Alix and Dottie for letting me post here at Modern Kiddo. It is one of my favorite kid-themed blogs, so I’m quite honored to be posting here! I’m sharing a super-cute DIY tutorial with you today that would be *perfect* for a boy’s room, but you could always change the color palette for that little girl in your life. I have two boys, and any mother out there with boys knows what I mean when I say it is HARD to find unique and cool things for boys when it comes to decor (and clothes!).

I’ve been in the process of redecorating my boys’ room since they “moved in together” and are sharing a room. I’ve been perusing the interwebs for months now searching out the perfect items. I remember I had a thought one day that vintage arrows would be so cool as decor, displayed on the wall somehow. Arrows are such a classic symbol and evoke the “cowboy and indians” game that boys have played for ages!

(vintage arrows, source)

So, I looked online on Etsy & Ebay and found some, but they were pricey! So, I thought to myself “Hey! These wouldn’t be so hard to make!” I considered going to a local archery store for supplies to make some authentic looking ones, even looking online for the “correct” way to make one. (thinking the Cub Scouts would probably know!) Then I decided it would be more fun (and inexpensive) to make my own version with various things I already had on hand in my craft stash and at my local craft store. This is what I came up with.

Supply List:
(most of these items you probably already have or can easily find at your local craft and home improvement store.)

– wooden dowels
– fabric scraps
– spray primer
– Mod Podge
– Tacky Glue (I used “Fast Grab” Tacky Glue)
– copper tape (I could only find this at Joann’s Crafts – it wasn’t at Michaels or Home Depot)
– variety of real feathers (you can get some at your craft store, or you can find nicer ones online from a millinery supply. Etsy is a great source.)
– felt scraps (I used wool felt)
– paintbrushes
– scissors
– heavy-duty metal cutters (I used these to cut my dowels shorter, but you could use a saw, or whatever you have on hand)
– washi tape
– acrylic paint
– pencil erasers
– paper feathers

I used three different methods to decorate my dowels: painting, covering with washi tape and covering with fabric scraps. You could try all of these for a diverse arrangement of arrows, or you could pick your favorite method and stick with that. The washi tape method went super fast. The painting and fabric method were a bit more time consuming (and messy.) First you’ll want to cut down your dowels to a good “arrow” size. I honestly can’t remember the exact size dowel (diameter) I purchased, but if you purchase from Michaels, I believe they had yellow paint on the tip (color coded). I used my metal cutter, but you could cut it down with a saw or knife.

ARROW #1

First, we’ll do the Washi Tape method. I’ve been hoarding this tape for months and was so happy to finally get to use it! You can find Washi Tape online. Get your tapes out and start wrapping. I used short lengths of tape so that I could ration it and not waste a lot.

When I completed each wrapped section, I would cut off the excess using scissors, instead of just tearing it off. It made for a more tidy look. I used several different colors of tape and just made up a random pattern.

This was by far the quickest and easiest method! Instant gratification and I love the watercolor-y look to it. I ended up adding a coat of Mod Podge all over it because the little strips of tape were coming up after a while. The glue really helped this problem. Put this aside to dry.

ARROW #2

Now we’ll try the painting method! (You’ll want to use a similar color palette on all of your arrows if you plan on displaying them together. Keep this in mind when you gather your tapes, paint and fabric scraps in the beginning.)

Pick out the colors you want to use. You’ll want to place something under each end of your dowel so that it won’t stick to the surface you are working on and so you won’t mess up the paint. I used a sanding block on each end.

Start adding your stripes of paint. I placed my thumb on the end where I started and just rolled it forward as I painted my stripe with my paint brush “traveling” around the dowel as I rolled, creating the stripe. Don’t fret if your stripes aren’t super straight and tidy. Mine aren’t and I like the rustic quality it adds. When you start each new stripe though, try not to paint on top of the edge of the previous stripe too much because the colors will mix, and you don’t want them mixing too much. Finish painting the entire dowel and then set it aside to dry (keeping it propped up on something).

ARROW #3

Next we’re going to try the fabric covering method. Pick out your fabric scraps. Cut them into little strips like I did below. They were around an inch wide to four inches long, but really, any scrap will do. They don’t have to be perfectly cut as well. The fabric covered arrow ended up being much more of a rustic look, so it doesn’t have to be perfect. The imperfections are what gives it character.

You’ll want to coat Mod Podge onto your dowel and your scraps. The easiest way I found to wrap the fabric was to hold the dowel at the bottom (holding it vertically), attach your first strip at the top, hold the end of the strip and spin the dowel with your bottom hand. It kind of wraps in a nice spiral as you go down. This is extremely messy because of the glue. I didn’t use gloves and I was peeling glue off my hands for what seemed like an eternity. ; ) So, you might want to use gloves?

Keep wrapping til you finish. Set it aside to dry. Make sure you coat the entire thing with Mod Podge so that the ends of the scraps don’t pop up.

FEATHERS.
Now it’s time to add your feathers! I used a variety of items for my feathers, you could use which ever you like best, or do a mix like I did. Your feather options:
– real feathers
– felt feathers (cut from scraps of felt)
– paper feathers (print from my digital kit onto paper and then cut out)

FEATHER #1
First we’ll use real feathers. I bought some from the craft store, but used mostly some that I had leftover from when I created my two feather digital kits! They were purchased from a millinery shop here in Atlanta, but you could also find them online. First, I used this brown feather (not even sure what kind of feather it is). You’ll want to cut off one side. Cut as close to the spine as you can.


You’ll want to cut off that little “tail” at the end.


Now you’ll adhere your feather “vanes” to your decorated dowel. You could add glue to your dowel AND your feather so it really sticks, but towards the end of this project, i just added glue to one of them, and it worked fine. The “Fast Grab” Tacky Glue really grabbed it.. fast. ; )


Add your other feather vane and you’re done. Next you’ll want to add a “target point” to your arrow. I wasn’t sure how I wanted to make this for my arrows since I wasn’t making a “real” arrow, I didn’t want to make anything too dangerous just in case the boys got a hold of it! ; ) As I was walking around the craft store, I saw these rubber erasers and loved the colors and they reminded me of an exaggerated arrow point. So I went with it. I wasn’t sure if it would look silly, but it ended up working well!

I wrapped copper tape around the bottom of the eraser as a design element to transition the dowel into the eraser tip. For some reason copper tape came to mind when I was thinking of supplies I needed for this project and I love the metallic element it adds. I could only find it at Joann’s (it wasn’t available at Michaels or Home Depot). It has a backing strip that you peel off. The tape is self-adhesive. You can find it in the stained glass craft section.

FEATHER #2
For the next arrow, I used several different kinds of feathers. The first one I used as the foundation is called a “feather pad”. You can find these at stores online, such as Etsy. Feathers are already glued onto (usually) a felt backing.


I cut mine in half and adhered it to my fabric covered dowel.


I then cut another feather pad in half and adhered it to the other side. This is what it looks like on the back.


I then started adding other real feathers to the top and also a felt feather.


I added some copper tape at the base of the feather arrangement. Add your eraser and copper tape to the other end of the arrow and you’re finished!

FEATHER #3
Now for the felt feathers. These are my favorites I think. Just cut half-leaf shapes from felt (cutting “notches” out with your scissors) and adhere them to your painted dowel.



And the back…

Add your eraser and copper tape to the opposite end, and copper tape above the feathers and you’re done!


FEATHER #4
And finally, the paper feathers. I used my Monotone Fresh Feathers kit for these. Just open the files in your photo-editing program and print them out. I’ve created a PDF just for Modern Kiddo readers of the feathers that I used in this project that you can print from at home. : ) Download HERE. Just layer them and adhere as you did the other arrows. I left a little space to the right/left of the “spine” on these so I’d have more room for the glue.


That’s it! You’re all done. I hope you enjoy making these as much as I did! If you do make them, please email me your projects at thousandclowns(AT)yahoo.com.. I’d love to see them!

To hang these in the boys’ room, I just used strips of foam tape that you can get at the craft store. I attached it to the arrows and then stuck them on the wall. *Note: I added some of the reddish paint color stripes to the other arrows (painting directly onto the fabric and washi tape) to “unify” the look of the arrows.

I would love to make some of these for myself, in some pretty “girly” colors. And if you just don’t have time to make some of these (“free time” is a luxury as a parent!), you could always buy these lovely handmade ones on Etsy. Aren’t they beautiful?


source and source

Thanks again for having me, Alix and Dottie!

THANK YOU so much Danielle for this amazing post and craft tutorial!!! Gorgeous photos…and such a fun idea for decorating your little one’s room. Seriously, your arrows are the coolest looking of all of these. You are so talented! Be sure to stop by Danielle’s blog, Thompson Family Life for more gorgeous photos and fun posts. Then swing on over to Kitschy Digitals for more of her crafting genius! xo Alix