November 16, 2015 by Krista

Star Wars Christmas Tree

Not so long ago in a galaxy not so far away, the day my husband has been anxiously awaiting finally arrived. No, the kids aren’t all potty trained – I WISH! No, we decided it was finally time to share Star Wars with our boys. My brother has always loved Star Wars and it was a big part of my childhood, so I was excited to share it with them almost as much as Mr Napping. The polling is complete and the results are in: my boys LOVE Star Wars, big surprise. It’s been the only thing to compete with superheroes lately. When Mr Napping and I found these Star Wars IttyBittys at our Hallmark Gold Crown store, we knew what we needed to do with them to make Christmas extra galactic!

STAR WARS CHRISTMAS TREE

Now, the IttyBittys aren’t actual ornaments so I attached ribbons to each of them (which I will give you the details on in just a moment) and then we surprised our boys with an early Christmas present and a fun Christmas activity. We decided to make the IttyBittys into ornaments with the hope that my boys will play with that Christmas tree and not our big tree that will go up in December. They can pull off all the ornaments they want, decorate the tree again and again. If they want to play with the IttyBittys, it’s not a big deal and they won’t break them. Want to make your own ornaments? Here’s the how to:

Materials:
– IttyBitties available at Hallmark. Not so into Star Wars? That’s ok, Hallmark has lots of IttyBittys to choose from. There are nativity set IttyBittys, superheroes, Frozen, Rainbow Brite, winter-themed, Disney Princesses, Peanuts, Wizard of Oz, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Inside Out, Monsters, Inc., and more – there’s something for everyone. Not all stores carry all the IttyBittys, see the Hallmark site for the complete selection.

– Skinny ribbon.
– Needle and thread
– Scissors

Directions:
– Cut off a 3-inch length of ribbon.
– Loop the ribbon with the ends together and tie a knot in the ends. Trim the ends, but not too close. I trimmed a couple too close and my boys ended up pulling the knots out and I had to re-attach them to the IttyBittys.

– Thread the needle and tie a knot in the end of the thread. I actually used the thread doubled over for a little more strength.
– Attach the loop of ribbon to the top of the IttyBittys with the thread. I just stitched around the ribbon a few times and tied a knot. Trim the thread ends.

– Repeat until all IttyBittys have ribbons attached to them.

After I attached the ribbons to the IttyBittys, I put them in a fun gift bag (also from Hallmark) and told my boys we had a surprise for them. We let them open the bag and then we set up our small Christmas tree and let the boys decorate their hearts out. They had almost as much fun decorating the tree as they did just playing with the IttyBittys. I don’t know how many times that tree has been redecorated since Saturday.

We were still missing one thing though. Every Christmas tree needs a topper. And what kind of star tops a Star Wars tree? Why the Death Star, of course. I spent a good chunk of today bouncing between kiddos and making a Death Star to top our tree.

We are still adding to our Star Wars tree and we probably will keep adding to it until we take it down. My boys love to play with the IttyBittys and this was such a fun activity to do together as a family. They are still breaking out in the Imperial March every time they see the tree. Mr Napping likes to start humming and then bask in the resounding chorus of three boys.

SAVE TIME WITH HALLMARK THIS SEASON

Want to save some time this holiday season? Make Hallmark your one stop shop for your holiday shopping. Check out Hallmark’s new Crafters & Co. line of luxury soaps, teas and candles for decadent gifts to spoil the special people in your life. this holiday season.

There are lots of great ornaments perfect for gift giving. Home decor elements are my go-to gifts for my favorite girlfriends and Hallmark has some awesome options. They’ve got you covered for all your gift wrap needs too! We seriously debated the Star Wars wrap, but went with the cute bag instead because well it’s just easier to wrap in a bag… And, of course, Hallmark has a fantastic selection of cards for your Holiday gifting. There are even Star Wars cards my boys would be crazy for.

October 27, 2015 by Krista

Directional Halloween Sign with BEHR® Marquee Paint

I want to thank Behr for sponsoring this post. I was provided with compensation for products used and my time to share this project. All content is original and honest, pinky promise!

Growing up, my family didn’t celebrate Halloween much. I remember trick-or-treating maybe a handful of times and we attended a few carnivals and Halloween parties. But, my mom doesn’t like Halloween. And I get that. Well, I kinda get that. The gore and guts, no thanks. No thanks at all. I like the cutesy, fun part of Halloween. And decorating with the cutesy, fun side of Halloween makes me happy. It’s the kick off to the holiday season! So I put together a fun Halloween project that turned out fabulously, thanks to BEHR® MARQUEE® Interior Paint & Primer!

DIRECTIONAL HALLOWEEN SIGN

MATERIALS

– 8 ft long 1″x6″ pine board
– 6 ft long 1″x4″ pine board
– Pencil
– Square box or other square to use as a template to make your arrows
– Tape measure
– Jig saw and saw blades
– Belt Sander and/or Sandpaper
– BEHR MARQUEE paint samples in:

Torch Red
Birthstone
Green Dynasty
Lamplit
Teal Motif

– BEHR PREMIUM PLUS ULTRA® Interior Paint & Primer In One in Black (I would’ve gotten this in MARQUEE as well, but the hardware store couldn’t mix the color I needed with MARQUEE. The PREMIUM PLUS ULTRA was a great paint too.)
– Paint brushes or foam rollers (I used rollers and foam brushes)
– Newspaper or other covering to protect your work surface
– 1 1/4″ screws
– 3/32″ drill bit
– drill and screwdriver
– black vinyl
– craft cutter or craft knife
– masking tape or transfer tape
– blunt object to press down vinyl
– Polyurethane to seal boards

DIRECTIONS

MARKING THE BOARDS FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– Use the square box or other square to create arrows on the board. Line up the point of your box in the middle of the board. Mark the point of the box to create the point of the arrow.

– Decide how long you want your arrows to be. I made mine all different lengths: 12 inches, 16 inches, 18 inches, 20 inches, and 24 inches. There was a little left over at the end of my board. Measure and mark all your arrows with the box and the pencil.

CUTTING THE BOARDS FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– Use the jig saw to cut the boards apart. I let Mr. Napping do this part for me, as I hadn’t ever used the jig saw before and we were on a time limit; he was leaving on a work trip. I didn’t want to end up missing fingers because of a lack of experience and familiarity. Be sure to brace the board while you cut.

– After you have all your arrows cut out, sand the wood until it’s smooth. We used a belt sander for the majority of the sanding and then I did some touch up with sandpaper before I put on a coat of paint. Don’t skip the sanding, your paint will turn out so much better if you take the time to prep your boards.

PAINTING THE BOARDS FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– Paint each board one of the five colors of the MARQUEE colors. That’s right, no primer! The MARQUEE collection of paint has a One-Coat coverage guarantee over previously coated surfaces when tinted to any of the 372 colors in the MARQUEE Interior One-Coat Color Collection and applied to previously painted surfaces. I was very impressed with the coverage even though the boards were not previously coated. And not having to wait for a primer to dry was fabulous. My least favorite part about painting projects is all the waiting time between coats of paint. The MARQUEE paint covered my project well and dried fast, which made me a happy momma because it meant I didn’t have a paint project on my kitchen counter for a week before it was completed. There is also exterior paint available in the MARQUEE line which has some great weather-resistant properties. If you’re new to painting, Behr has some great directions on how to correctly choose supplies, prepare and prime before you paint.

– Let the paint dry for a minimum of two hours. Sand lightly with fine grit sand paper. This mostly just removes any weird brush strokes or paint puddles that may have gathered and dried during that first coat so your next coat doesn’t just add to the weirdness.

– Paint another coat of paint on each board. Let dry a minimum of two hours.
– Paint the 6-foot pine board with the black paint. Let dry and set aside for now.

APPLYING THE VINYL FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– Cut out of black vinyl any text and graphics you want to use on your signs with a craft cutter or a craft knife. I used my craft cutter for my signs. You can find the links to the jpg files I used to cut from here: TEXT and GRAPHICS. The files are formatted to 12×12 inches, as that is what fit my cutter. You can alter the images as you need to fit the dimensions you have available.

– Weed out all the negative space from your vinyl and discard it. I prefer to use masking tape to transfer vinyl, rather than transfer tape. To do so, place a layer of tape over the image either from top to bottom or bottom to top until it’s covered with tape. I find it easier to get the vinyl to stick when I’m only pulling off a small layer of tape at a time – and masking tape is usually less sticky than transfer tape, so there’s never any gooey residue left behind. Use whatever you prefer to transfer vinyl for this part.
– Place the vinyl on the board you choose and begin removing the masking tape a layer at a time. If the vinyl pulls back up, replace the tape and rub firmly with a blunt object (the handle of a butter knife or scissor handles work well). Then, pull the tape up again. It works best if you pull the tape back at a 180-degree angle.
– When the tape is removed from the vinyl, rub the vinyl down firmly with the blunt object.
– Repeat the vinyl transfer process with each board.

SEALING THE BOARDS FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– Apply a thin layer of Polyurethane to each board. I intend to use this sign indoors and only applied a single coat to the face of the board. I didn’t seal the edges or the back. Let dry thoroughly, overnight if possible. Polyurethane can be a great sealant and protector once it’s dry, but it can bubble if it gets too hot, is applied too quickly or if items are placed on it before it completely dries. So, let it dry really well.

ASSEMBLING THE SIGN FOR THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– On the BACK of the black board , lay out the arrows and arrange them however you like. Mark the placement with your pencil.

– Turn the black board over and drill pilot holes with the drill bit. You can drill all the way through the black board. I decided to do two screws in each board so that the boards won’t twist or spin.

– Once you have the pilot holes drilled, you can position the boards underneath the black board and sink the screws through the black board into the arrow boards. By working from the back of the sign, your screws will be hidden. The boards are also thick enough you won’t need to worry about the screws poking through the front of the arrows.

DISPLAYING THE HALLOWEEN SIGN

– This sign will be used at a Halloween party and I’m simply going to set the sign up against a wall in an infrequently trafficked area. It’s large enough to see, but hopefully it won’t get played with too much. Because all I really need to complete my day would be my three boys running around with pointy sticks screwed to a really long stick. It’s like the ultimate sword. Call the Emergency Room and alert them now. My younger sister has also asked to borrow the ultimate sword, I mean sign, for decor for a Halloween party she is co-chairing for the all the college kids at church.

So, there you have it. A fun and cutesy Halloween sign. No guts or gore here. Skeleton Street is about as close as I’ll get to that. This seems like a lot of steps, but it’s actually a really easy paint project. Definitely something you could do in a day or two, tops.

What are you dying to do with BEHR paints?

This post is brought to you by BEHR. Color that’s True to Hue. If you feel it, you can find it. Visit True to Hue. Behr sponsored this blog post. The opinions, photos and text are all mine, honest.

October 13, 2015 by Krista

BOO It Forward with the Game Night BOO Kit

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #BOOItForward #CollectiveBias

I’ve mentioned before that when I was growing up, we didn’t do much celebrating of Halloween. My mom doesn’t particularly like the holiday and so it was minimally recognized. One thing we did get to do, though, was BOO’ing our friends. I have three siblings and each of us would get to choose a family to BOO. Some years, we would go all out and make fun Halloween cookies and treats to share and some years it was a little more simple. But, it wasn’t really about what was in the goody baskets, it was putting them together as a family. And, of course, delivering them was the best part!

This is a tradition I wanted to share with my family now. We made three kits to share with some friends. I wanted something simple and easy. Life is busy and I just didn’t have hours to spend baking Halloween goodies. Lucky for me, MARS/Wrigley has an amazing BOO it Forward campaign going on and putting together our BOO kits was super simple.

SUPER SIMPLE PRINTABLE GAME NIGHT BOO KIT

Materials:
– BOO It Forward Printable Card for each kit
– MARS Mixed Minis Chocolate Candy Assortment (52 oz)
– MARS Chocolate Mix Fun Size Candy Assortment
– Sunkist® 8oz cans in 6pk
– Pin the Face on the Jack-O-Lantern Printable Game for each kit
– Halloween Bingo Printable Game for each kit
– Bowl or other container for each kit

PUT TOGETHER YOUR BOO IT FORWARD KITS

Directions:
– We grabbed some of our favorite goodies at Walmart: some Sunkist® soda and an assortment of delicious MARS chocolates. I also grabbed a couple of big bowls that were on clearance to stash all our loot in.

– I decided we should probably put in something else and it was Big J who thought of including the Halloween games we’ve been playing around here the last couple weeks. So, I made up a few more of the Pin the Face on the Jack-O-Lantern game and some more of the Halloween Bingo game I shared yesterday. We put them in ziptop baggies to keep them together.

– I put the minis on the bottom of the bowl.

– Then, I tucked the games at the back, just under the mini candy bars.

– Next, I stuck in two of the soda cans on each side of the bowl.

– I took the BOO It Forward printable card, folded it in half and taped it together with some fun Halloween washi tape. This will let your friends know how they can pass on the fun Halloween cheer. Cut the directions off the We’ve Been BOO’d poster and put that in with the card. Your friends can then hang the poster in their window so others will know that they have already been BOO’d once.

– Then, I put in the last can of soda and filled in the spaces with the fun size candy.

We loaded the kiddos up in the car and delivered our three baskets. Mr. Napping and the two oldest boys left the goody baskets on the doorsteps while Baby N and I stayed in the car. And just like their momma, they thought the best part was the delivery! Who could you BOO to share the Halloween spirit? Check out more awesome BOO kit ideas and get out there and share some goodies!

You can save $1.00 on TWO (2) 2L or 6pk 8oz cans of any flavor Sunkist® Soda, 7UP®, Canada Dry®, A&W®, Squirt®, or Sun Drop® by using this coupon when you purchase items for your BOO Kits! And how would you like a $1000 eGift Card to Walmart? Well, here’s your chance! Check out the widget below:
#booitforwardsweepstakes

July 14, 2014 by Krista

Washi Tape Summer Boredom Buster Jars

Well, hello friend! I’m so glad you came to visit today! Looking for a boredom buster activity to help you out with the kids? Thousands of people on Pinterest have loved this Washi Tape Boredom Buster Jar and I know you will too.

Here’s a question for you…Can you feel it? Feel what? The warmer weather, the longer days. The school bell’s last ring of the year.

It won’t be long now before school is out and the kids are home!

Every. Single. Day.

Does that make you a little nervous? Because it makes me nervous.

Day after day after day of refereeing the Brother Bickering Match isn’t my idea of a good time. Back when I didn’t spend my days chasing three little hooligans and trying to keep them entertained all day, I lived for summer. Now, I’m a little apprehensive when summer hits full force.

We live in the desert, which means that it’s too hot to play outside from about 11 am until around 5 pm. That’s a lot of hours inside. Climbing and bouncing off the walls. Pulling out every toy we own, all at once. Hiding in the closet eating chocolate.

That last one might be me.

I have a hard time coming up with ideas of things for us to do on the spot and my boys get tired of the same thing all the time. So, I put together a list and then made us our very own Boredom Buster Jar. Actually, two jars… they wouldn’t all fit in one! There’s no excuse now. Let the fun begin!

WASHI TAPE BOREDOM BUSTER JARS

Materials:
– Craft sticks
– Permanent Marker
– Washi Tape in seven designs
– Jars or containers to hold your sticks

Directions:
– Gather ideas of activities your kids would like to do. Include things like projects you can make together, things they can do on their own, activities that will help get the wiggles out, and even places to go. I had a running list on my phone that I kept adding to for about two or three weeks. When I came upon something else I thought my kids would enjoy, I’d add it to the list.

Want a great list in just a few seconds? Check out my list with 168+ activities and ideas of things to put on your craft sticks!

– Write each activity on a craft stick with a permanent marker. Doesn’t need to be fancy, just legible. You could type them up on the computer, print them out and then glue them on the sticks – but that’s too time intensive for me.

DIVIDING THE ACTIVITIES INTO CATEGORIES

I divided the categories up so that my kids would be able to use the boredom jar on their own.

By putting the activities into categories, I was able to control the kind of activity and still allow my kids to choose what they wanted to do, randomly or by picking sticks until they found something they liked.

I thought about our typical day and the kinds of activities we like to do. Then I considered how involved I am in different parts of my children’s days. I came up with seven categories.

My categories were:

Things we can do
Things we can make
Energy Bug – activities that help focus their bouncing off the walls into something a little less destructive
Quiet time activities – things for my preschooler to do on his own while his brothers nap
Family activities – things we wanted to do as a family, like outings. This was perfect for weekends!
Outside play time – activities to do outside. A lot of these involved water
Fun with food – activities to do with food, often ending with snack time

– Tape each stick in a single category with the same color washi tape. You could also paint the ends or use some other method of distinguishing the sticks. Washi tape was quick, easy, and mess-free. If you have a problem with the tape sticking, a small piece of scotch tape or a swipe with a glue stick should fix the problem.

– Store your sticks in a jar (or jars…) and the next time boredom strikes, prepare to be a superhero!

Did you download my list of 168+ activity ideas to put on your craft sticks?

GET IT NOW!

I did the hard part for you, the rest is cake. And you’ll be so glad when you need a distraction and you can just grab the boredom jar and quell the storm.

Maybe the jar is too much? Just print the list!

PROMISE, it’ll be a lifesaver.

June 11, 2014 by Krista

Washi Tape USA Flag Craft

I’m super excited to be part of Jen’s {from Girl in the Garage} Red, White and Blue Inspiration Series. There have been some fun projects so far, which I’ll show off a little more in a minute or two. You’re gonna want to check them out. But first… I’m going to share a fun and super easy USA flag craft for your patriotic enjoyment!

This project is incredibly simple and took me about 20 minutes to do. The supplies are simple and you can easily take this idea and run with it… how cute would these be as smaller, drink coasters?!

WASHI TAPE USA FLAG CRAFT

SUPPLIES NEEDED TO CREATE ONE USA FLAG CRAFT

– One 1″x6″ board cut at 7.5″ long. You can get it at Lowe’s or Home Depot and if you ask nice, they’ll even cut it for you.
– Red Washi Tape – I like to buy washi tape on Etsy (SOLID RED | RED POLKA DOTS | RED CHEVRON | RED STRIPES)
– Blue Washi Tape – The blue star tape I used can be found on ETSY or AMAZON
– Craft Knife (I have THIS ONE in both the knife and swivel knife and really like them)
– Ruler
– Pencil
– Sandpaper (optional, but recommended)
– Polyurethane (optional, but also recommended)

DIRECTIONS TO CREATE YOUR USA FLAG CRAFT

MEASURE FIRST!

– If you want to shape your board and clean up any rough edges or imperfections, do so now. I just took a quick swipe along the edges with sandpaper to get any splintery slivers and take a little of the edge off.
– Lay your board down horizontally. Measure out 3.75″ from the top, left side of your board. Mark it with your pencil. This space will be for the blue stars.

– Measure the stripes on your flag. I did it the super technical way and just used a roll of washi tape to measure the width of each stripe. Fancy, huh?

APPLY THE RED STRIPES

– Start with whichever tape you want, I did the red. Following the measurements your marked on your board, lay down strips of tape. I wrapped the edges of the board as well as the face.
– Skip every other line to create the white stripes in between the red ones. If you want a truer white than the board you’re using, you could paint the board before you begin. Because I am using pine, it’s a pretty light color already and I really like the wood grain in it.

NOW FOR THE BLUE

– When you finish with the red, switch to the blue tape and start in the top left corner, carefully laying down strips of that tape.
– Make sure your stars face the way you want them to and remember to stagger each row if you want them offset, like they are on a real flag.

– Use your craft knife to get precise straight(ish) lines where the blue square stops. I wasn’t too particular, but use your ruler if you want it to be straight and even.

That’s it. You’re done!

HELPFUL TIPS AND TRICKS

I did end up going over the board with a layer of polyurethane to help hold the tape in place. (A glue stick will also help if your tape keeps coming up.) It actually added an antique look to the flag, which was kind of neat.

I think these USA Flag Crafts would make super cute coasters if you scaled the proportions down a bit.

There are some great options to display your USA flag craft. Sawtooth hangers are inexpensive and easy to install. The real no muss, no fuss solution.

I ended up drilling a couple holes and then looped some picture hanging wire through them and tied some ribbon on it for a little more cutesy finish and hung it on our door.

THE BEST PART?

I like that it’s not huge, but the bright colors will still draw the eye. It’s a nice wreath alternative. Because, seriously, who has the room to store a wreath for every holiday? Uh, not me. A 5×7″ wooden board, I can probably handle though.

As I mentioned, there are some other really great projects from some super talented bloggers. Don’t miss the other great features in this series! Check them all out!

*After some looking around… I found the red swirly washi tape HERE and the blue star tape HERE. These are not affiliate links, just what I found with my own Google searches. Hopefully, they will help you complete your own washi tape USA flag craft.

This post was written by Krista and originally appeared on While He Was Napping.