Mother’s Day is just around the corner and I am sure you are searching for a perfect handmade gift for mom. Am I right? What about a small gift for Grandma? These tiny little windowsill planters made using recycled lids or a domed vending machine container are just the perfect project for Mother’s Day. You may already have the plants you need in your yard.

I recently attended SNAP! (a blogging conference) and my roommate Cynthia taught a class on making a DIY terrarium necklace with succulent plants. She has an amazing tutorial you can find here, you will want to look at her tutorial before making this little windowsill planter. Her class and knowledge inspired me to make these windowsill planters to give as gifts for Mother’s Day.

Supplies:

• Floral Adhesive (I bought it from my local flower shop)
• Assorted Succulents (You may have enough in your own yard or visit Lowe’s)
• Dried Moss (Michaels)
• Toothpick or Bamboo Skewer
• Paper Plate
• Assorted Sizes Lids from Recycling Bin (Baby food lids are the perfect size)
• Scissors

How To:

1. Gather succulents you want to use. I purchased mine from Lowe’s. You may already have some in your yard, succulents like Hen and Chicks work perfectly for this project.

2. Using a scissors, clip off a small piece from each of the succulents you want to use.

3. Squirt a small spot of floral adhesive onto a paper plate.

4. Use a toothpick or bamboo skewer to pick up some adhesive and spread it around the inside of your lid. Floral adhesive does not harm the plant tissue.

5. Adhere moss to the adhesive. The moss will provide a place for your succulents to grow new roots.

6. Use your toothpick to pick up adhesive and dab the adhesive on the ends of the succulent cuttings. Glue the succulents into the moss. Above I layered two different size lids to make a unique mini-planter.

7. Be sure to read Cynthia’s maintenance tips for caring for your succulents in her post here. The basics are that you will need to mist your plants with water about once a week and be careful not to over water.

The post How To | Mother’s Day Recycled Windowsill Mini-Planter appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

My daughter is having her friends over in a couple weeks to make crafts. We decided we wanted to make finger puppets as one of the projects. We wanted them to come in a little gift box so everyone would have their own Finger Puppet Kit. We made enough kits for her friends and a few extras to give to cousins. I am really excited to make these with the girls when they come over, my daughter is really excited too. If you want to make some Finger Puppet Kits to give as gifts, you can download my FREE patterned gift box by clicking on the link below. (Don’t forget to LIKE us on Facebook so you don’t miss out on any great craft ideas!)

Handmade Holidays | How To | Finger Puppet Kit

Supplies:

• Stretch Gloves or Recycle Old Gloves (Target has 2 for $2 or Jo-Anns has them in their dollar bins at the checkout)
• 5mm Googly Eyes
• Tiny Pom-Pom Balls
• Assorted buttons, trims, wire and paper flowers
• Colored Paper
• Felt
• Glue
• Scissors
• Small Baggie
• Finger Puppet Gift Box Template Download

How To:

1. Download and print the Free Finger Puppet Gift Box Template. (It will work best if you print the template on a thicker paper.) Cut along the solid lines and score lightly using a craft knife on the dotted lines. Fold on dotted/scored lines. Adhere side of gift box together using double-sided tape or glue.
2. Cut fingers off of gloves.
3. Count out googly eyes. Add assorted pom-pom balls and trims.
4. Cut out paper and felt in 1″ squares.
5. Place all the googly eyes, trims, paper, felt and other small items into a small baggie.
6. Place glove fingers and baggie of items into box and fold sides closed.
7. Give as a gift!

FREE DOWNLOAD:

Click here – Finger Puppet Gift Box Template Download

Linked to: Where Women Create

The post Handmade Holidays | Finger Puppet Kit appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

Over the weekend my daughter and I made these bottle cap necklaces to give to her friends as gifts when they come over in a couple weeks to make some Christmas crafts. She was so excited to help me put them together. We think they turned out really cute! The perfect handmade gift for little girls. If you want to make some with your daughter check out the free download below, it has the cute little girl faces for you to use to make your own necklaces! (The free download has a larger variety of hair colors than the necklaces shown above and no names.)

Handmade Holidays | How To | Bottle Cap Necklaces

Supplies:

• Darice Cotton Loops (found at Michaels)
• Jump Rings
• Bottle Caps (I got mine at Oriental Trading $4 for 24)(Also at Hobby Lobby $9 for 24)
• Gemstones
• Magic-Glos by Lisa Pavelka (found at Hobby Lobby) (other options are Diamond Glaze or 3D Crystal Laquer)
• Crop-A-Dile
• Scissors
• Double-sided Tape
• Bottle Cap Necklace Art Download

How To:

1. Use your Crop-A-Dile to punch a hole into the bottle caps.
2. Print out the Bottle Cap Necklace Art Download and cut out the ones you want to use.
3. Secure art to bottle cap using a small piece of double-sided tape.
4. Add a gemstone onto the art.
5. Follow the directions and add your Magic-Glos. Let it set for a very long time according to directions. Try to make sure you have nothing near by the bottle caps that will get fuzz or dirt on the glaze after you have applied it. Keep an eye on them as they dry and pop bubbles with a toothpick or pin.
6. Add a jump ring to the top through the hole.
7. Thread your cotton loop through the jump ring and knot the ends together. (I cut my cotton loops in thirds to make them the right size for the girls necks.)
8. Package in a cute gift box!

FREE DOWNLOAD:

Click Here – Bottle Cap Necklace Art Download

Linked to: Where Women Create

The post Handmade Holidays | Bottle Cap Necklaces appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

My daughter (age 6) is just learning to sew. Together we made this felt baby dinosaur and egg for her brother for his birthday. We worked together to draw the egg and then the baby dinosaur, we had to be careful to make sure he would fit nicely inside. She was able to do the sewing pretty much herself, I just started and ended it for her. She was thrilled with the result and loved being able to give a gift that she had made herself!

Learn To Sew | How To | Felt Baby Dinosaur and Egg

Supplies:

• Green 9×12 Felt Sheet
• Cream 9×12 Felt Sheet
• Cream Embroidery Floss
• Green Embroidery Floss
• Black Bead for Eye
• Sewing Needle
• Sewing Pins
• Scissors
• Polyfil Stuffing

How To:

1. Work with child to draw egg and baby dinosaur shape on paper to create a template. Trace shapes onto felt using fabric pencil.
2. Double felt over and cut out shapes. You should have two identical pieces for each shape.
3. To create your egg, pin identical egg pieces together. Next, thread your needle and tie a knot at the end of the thread. Start sewing on the top corner of the egg. Remember to keep the top (cracked) part of the egg open so your baby dinosaur can fit inside. Tie a knot to finish. Repeat this step for other half of the egg.
4. To create your baby dinosaur, pin pieces together. Next, thread your needle and tie a knot at the end of the thread. Start sewing at the dinosaur’s nose and sew along the bottom of the dinosaur. When you get up to the top of the tail add stuffing to the legs and tip of the tail. Continue sewing and adding stuffing as you go. Tie a knot to finish.
5. Play with your new baby dinosaur and egg or give it as a gift to your brother!

The post How To | Felt Dinosaur and Egg appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

I know I haven’t posted in a while. We have been busy having some summer fun. Last week we headed up North for family week. My Aunts, Uncles and Cousins all converge upon my Grandma’s house and hang out together for the week. We have relatives that come from Alaska, California and Kentucky. My kids love being able to play with their cousins! The weather wasn’t optimal this year, but we still had some fun in the water and on the sand dunes.

During family week my Grandma pulled out my Grandfather’s knife collection. He passed away last Spring and Grandma decided that it would be nice for anyone that wanted a knife from his collection to choose one for themselves. My kids loved looking at the selections of knives, supervised of course. Allan choose a trick wooden switchblade which he has been showing people all week. My kids get a big kick out of its spring action.

I thought this was a great boy craft to make. It was easy and fast. Now all my kids are flicking their popsicle stick knives at one another.

How To | Wooden Switchblade

Supplies:

• 2 Wooden Craft Sticks
• Rubber Band
• Clothespin
• Craft/Wood Glue
• Wax Paper

How To:

1. Overlap ends of craft sticks slightly and use rubber band to attach them together.
2. Put glue on the end of one of the craft sticks and clamp clothespin over glue.
3. Place wax paper in between the ends of the clothespin to avoid them being glued together. Let dry.

To Use:

1. Once the glue is dry you can play with it. Hold the knife out in front of you.
2. Twist the craft stick (that isn’t glued) around so it is lying on top of the other craft stick and clamp the end in the clothespin.
3. Squeeze the end of clothespin and the craft stick will fling out like a switchblade.

The post How To | Wooden Switchblade appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.