mother’s/father’s day

May 8, 2013 1 Comment

gift wrap paper

This simple gift wrap paper idea is perfect for the kids! It’s fun and maybe a little bit messy (which really just equals more fun, right!), but beautiful when finished and perfect to wrap a Mother’s Day gift!

When the Martha Stewart team asked if anything in this month’s issue inspired me, and would I be interested in sharing the idea with all of you, this super clever gift wrap paper idea was first on my list.

bubble crafts

I mean, finally, a project that gives your kids permission to blow bubbles at the table! Just grab some white butcher paper, build up a froth of paint and water in a baking dish, then gently place the paper on top to create a print.

It’s that easy! Hop over to Martha Stewart for all the how to details and supply list to make your own bubble gift wrap. And pick up this month’s Martha Stewart Living issue for tons of inspiration and ideas for your home and next celebration!

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (never miss an idea, giveaway or free printable!), connect with Kim on twitter, pinterest and on instagram. And don’t forget to shop the party store for birthday, baby shower and holiday party supplies. Oh, and now you can follow the blog with Bloglovin too! Hope to see you around!

easy meringue recipe

It’s Deanna from Mirabelle Creations and I’m so excited to share this fun spring dessert – Strawberry Meringue Roses. I’m a lifelong Kentucky gal, so one of my favorite days of the year is the first Saturday in May – Derby Day! The Kentucky Derby is also known as the Run for the Roses.

This easy, delicious, Strawberry Meringue Roses recipe is the perfect dessert for a Run for the Roses celebration.

So, whether you are hosting full blown Derby bash (download free Derby Party Printable Supplies) or will be watching the race with family at home, you can whip up a batch of these little meringue roses to nosh on while rooting for your favorite horse.

Don’t worry if you don’t have Derby plans. These little meringues would be great for any sweet spring tea or brunch too. They would look beautiful served for a Mother’s Day brunch, as well!

Strawberry Meringue Roses recipe (adapted from Food Network)

4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons seedless strawberry preserves 1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract
2 drops red or pink food coloring (optional)
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 215 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. (Do not skip this or your meringues will stick to baking sheet).

Beat egg whites, salt, cream of tartar, preserves, extract and food coloring until frothy. With mixer running, slowly add powdered sugar and beat until stiff peaks have formed.

Fit pastry bag with a large star tip. Fill pastry bag with mixture. Pipe round roses on lined baking sheet by piping 2 inch spirals starting from the center and rotating outwards.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Turn off oven and open door. Let meringues dry in the oven for about 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

easy meringue recipe

As always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Mother’s Day picnic + gift ideas

We always celebrate with a picnic. It’s my way of getting to enjoy the day too. No house to clean, grab some awesome goodies from the store, pick a patch of grass and call it a party! {wink}

Mothers Day party

My family celebrated Mother’s Day a little early this year. See, my brother and his beautiful family live down south and I live in Ohio. We only get to see each other a few times a year and so when we do we try to cram in all the holidays and celebrations we can. Well this week he’s here!

Mothers Day Picnic

I normally would share my awesome mom with you when talking Mother’s Day, but this year I want to honor my sister-in-law. My brother and his wife were blessed with three girls and a boy. All of which are now in college or in their last few years of high school. Then along came baby!! They were blessed with one more. And did they hit the lottery!

Mothers Day

My sweet little niece is so incredibly precious. Bouncy red hair, a sprinkling of freckles and a loving personality. And what makes her even more special, she has Down Syndrome.

I’m sharing this with you today for a few reasons. One, I love my sweet little niece and I want to show her off.

AND, because my sister-in-law, her mom, deserves some praise. She’s a calm and relaxed personality by nature. When she and my brother were in high school he used to take me along on their dates sometimes… yep. My parents were getting divorced and he and I lived in two separate homes at the time so we didn’t see each other as much as we wanted so he’d let me tag-a-long. And you know what, she never seemed to mind. As a matter of fact, she even acted like she enjoyed having me around. Even though I was 12 and they were 16. They’re just kind hearted, loving people.

And now I watch them with their little girl and I think God chose this little soul especially for them. My sister-in-law with her gentle nature, never ending patience and big heart makes me proud to call her family.

So now that I’ve gotten a bit teary-eyed, let’s talk Mothers Day picnics. As I mentioned at the beginning we’ve been hosting them for years at a local park. The kids play, we eat — no mess, no fuss. This year we took my niece to the zoo, but no matter where you go, you can host the day with style!

World Market Store Ohio

I chose to shop World Market. Everything in the store is just so bright and bubbly right now. And there is tons of chevron… hence the aqua and white chevron throw we used for our picnic. My little niece took a liking to it. It will be going home with her (and her momma). {grin}

And not only does World Market have lovely décor for the day, they have some awesome Mother’s Day gift ideas too. I would suggest looking at the jewelry and the Scarves!

By the way, World Market is hosting a “My Amazing Mom” Sweepstakes - just like them on facebook and nominate your mom or other deserving mother figure for a chance to win a $5,000 World Market gift card. You’ll upload a photo and tell what makes her special. You can find World Market around the web too: Store, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and even Instagram.

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

This shop is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and World Market, but all my opinions are my own. I would have it no other way! #pmedia #MyAmazingMom. http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO

cala lilies, easy Mother’s Day craft

Cala lilies were my wedding flower. Such an elegant and beautiful flower. AND, such an easy flower to recreate with crepe paper for a Mother’s Day craft!

I’m talking Mother’s Day on Red Barn Blog this week. Join me for the quick 1, 2, 3 (pictorial) of making this easy crepe paper craft!

Plus, download my FREE Mother’s Day subway art print and gift tags (that you can personalize before you print!) while you’re there.

See you there! And as always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Mother’s Day craft – monogram pots

My little alien and I made a Mother’s Day craft yesterday. {grin}

He’s six now, so he’s incredibly independent and always wants to do everything by himself.

Mothers Day Craft

As you ladies know, when it comes to paint we can cringe a little sometimes. But guess what?! The new Modge Podge Washout… washes out… of clothing and furniture with soap and water, even when it dries before you get to it! It’s perfect for us and teachers. Just machine wash whatever it is. No pre-soak needed. And I use Apple Barrel paint all the time because clean-up is so easy when it’s wet.

So I set him up with a few supplies and let him go. There is something to be said for just letting kids be creative. For this project you’ll need:

Mod Podge Washout
Apple Barrel paint (we used Candy Pink and Lime Tree)
Stencils
Sponge brushes
Tape
Fabric
Wooden sticks
Permanent pen
Plants and soil

Mothers Day Craft

We started by making plant markers. He dipped them in Apple Barrel paint and then we stood them upright to dry in a cup of uncooked rice.

Mothers Day Craft

Next we moved on to decorating flower pots. He wanted to monogram one with an “M” for Mimi, what he calls my mom.

Mothers Day Craft

And then he wanted to monogram one with an “L” for Love. I think the “L” was also the easiest letter to cut out of the fabric. “G” for Grandma seemed like too much work. {wink}

As you can see, he painted over the “L” but it does take a while to dry. If you’re in a hurry, you could also just douse the letter in Mod Podge Washout and apply.

Mothers Day Craft

Now on to planting. He chose these Begonias from our trip to the nursery. He and I both loved the deep and bright orange color!

Mothers Day Craft

By the time he was done planting the plant markers were dry and he wrote sweet little messages on them.

Mothers Day Craft

One of the things I loved most about this project is that my little guy can claim that he truly did this project on his own, which of course will make it that much more special to his Mimi and Grandma. Now, if you know them, just don’t ruin the surprise. {wink}

Want more Mother’s Day craft ideas? Follow my Mother’s Day Ideas board on Pinterest. You can also

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Big thank you to Plaid and Blueprint Social for letting us test drive their new Mod Podge Washout product and for the bit of payment. Yes, I did get paid to craft with my kiddo. I know. I love my job! But all opinions are my own of course. You ladies know I would have it no other way!

Mother’s Day craft & free subway art

Mother’s Day is only a few weeks away and I have the perfect Mother’s Day craft for you!

And what’s even better than Mother’s Day subway art… Mother’s Day subway art that you can personalize!!! Yep!

Need one for your Mom? Check.

Need one for Grandma? Check.

Need one for Mimi? Check.

Need one for Nanny? Check.

I made the top line of this Mother’s Day print and the Mother’s Day gift tags so that you can click and type write into the file personalizing them with any name you need. Even if your little one calls your mom “Gigi…” Oh, yes ladies, it happens! {grin}

Join me for my latest contributing post at Red Barn blog and DOWNLOAD your free Mother’s Day Subway Art mat and gift tags. Just personalize and print!

Or, if you think the one shown in my photograph is perfect, no personalization needed. I’m sharing a link on Red Barn for that one too! Enjoy!

By the way, I’ll be back tomorrow with a fun Mother’s Day kid craft and on Friday I’m sharing how to make those paper calla lilies you see in the corner of this pic!

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

mother’s day brunch placesetting

I’m absolutely giddy for Spring. I’m an early riser so I tend to see the sun come up each morning and this time of year that means I also get to hear the birds chirp the day in. It’s my favorite time of day to just think and be creative.

And those little chirps led me to this Mother’s Day brunch, sweet baby shower, or even Spring party placesetting idea.

I picked up these lovely new Easter dishes from Target. I love how girly they are. I’m the only girl in a house of four so sometimes it needs to be a bit about me. {grin}

The malted milk ball candy eggs make this party placesetting perfect for a baby shower…

Mothers Day Brunch

but I chose to craft little baby birds for a Mothers Day brunch. I just thought how sweet to be able to put the number of babies in the nest that each guest has!

As you can see, I have two little birdies in my nest! {proud momma smile}

How to make a paper blue bird

So here’s how you make these sweet paper bluebirds. You’ll need:

Blue cardstock
Yellow cardstock
Paper trimmer
Scissors, small and sharp is best
Hot glue
Stick glue
Optional: Sharpie if you’d like to add eyes

How to make a paper blue bird

And here are the easy steps:

For the mother blue bird, trim strips of scrapbook paper in 2″ (body) and 1 3/4″ (head) strips
Curl the paper slightly by running it through your fingers. If you don’t the paper will crease.
Determine your body circle size (based on your nest and plate) and hot glue the ends together trimming off any excess. Repeat for the head, making it slightly smaller.
Trim an oval out of the yellow scrapbook paper, then trim down the sides to a beak shape.
Attach the beak with glue, not hot glue or it might show.
Perch the bird on the nest with a small dot of hot glue and hold 5 seconds until it sets.

Note: Baby birds strips should be 1″ and 3/4″.

Mothers Day Brunch

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (never miss an idea, giveaway or free printable!), follow us on twitter, pinterest and on instagram at @thecelebrationshoppe. And don’t forget to shop our party store for birthday, baby shower and holiday party supplies!

kid craft: red bird handprint art

My boys crafted red bird handprint art canvases for their grandmothers this Christmas. Aren’t they fun?! The perfect kid art activity!

And you should have heard the responses. What mom, grandmother, dad, grandpa doesn’t want handprint art gifts from their little ones? Well none in my family and I’m obsessed a bit with capturing their little hands anyway before they get any bigger.

Just imagine your little person’s hand smothered in paint… okay and maybe their little bottoms buckled to the chair {smirk}… but the outcome is adorable.

My mom’s absolute favorite is the cardinal bird. Here in Ohio I see them everyday in my backyard. Such beautiful birds!

But you know, these handprint red birds (or any color) would be perfect for kid crafted Mother’s Day gifts too… just saying!

By the way, I did so many crafts over the holidays that I really wanted to share and just ran out of time. So if you see a Christmas craft here in July don’t judge…

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own red bird handprint art canvases:

Kids… it’s just not as cute if it’s your hand. {grin}
White canvas (you can get a 8×10 for about $7 at your local craft store)
Paint colors: red, brown, black, yellow and silver (if you want snowflakes)
Paint brushes
Optional: Martha Stewart Snowflake Punch to make a stencil

Easy how to steps to make your own red bird handprint art:

Paint your child’s hand with red paint, making sure to get in any creases.
Apply to canvas quickly, lightly pushing on their hand to make sure all areas touch the canvas. (Wash little one’s hand… like you need me to tell you!)
Using black, let your child paint on legs and a dot for the eye.
Using brown, let your child paint whispy tree branches.
Using yellow, let your child paint a triangle for the beak.
Using silver, let your child stencil on a snowflake using the template you made from the punch.
Sign it! Let your kiddos write their name at the end of the wing tip and don’t forget the year.
Tip: Let the canvas dry a few minutes in between each color/application if your child’s hand might brush wet paint. The canvas isn’t very forgiving.

As always, I hope you’re inspired to craft, bake, create and celebrate!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (never miss an idea, giveaway or free printable!), follow Kim on twitter, pinterest and on instagram. And don’t forget to shop the party store for birthday, baby shower and holiday party supplies. Follow my blog with Bloglovin.

photography idea for Father’s Day

Hi everybody! It’s Bridget! Recently, I have been searching for fabulous Father’s Day gift ideas for my darling hubby and just haven’t found anything that I loved.

And since I’m always playing mamarazzi (as my nine-year old refers to it), I decided why not give him photographs of our most precious gifts! I loved the idea of using the large craft letters and have the kids each hold a letter to spell out “DAD,” but since I hadn’t made it to the craft store {gasp!} I made my kids BE the letters instead. And I thought the hardwood floors were the perfect backdrop.

In my digital scrap-booking software, I made a quick collage of the pictures with some masculine embellishments and next we’ll frame in in a 12″ x 12″ metal photo panel – perfect for his desk. But you don’t need my software for this project. With some fun paper and scrapbook supplies from your local craft store you can recreate this idea in minutes!

There was a lot of giggling and many, many outtakes, but the end result was share-worthy!

As always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake and create!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily ideas to come right to your inbox (a box in the right-side navigation bar), follow us on twitter, pinterest and on instagram at @thecelebrationshoppe

simple flower pot kid craft

Hey everyone! It’s Bridget! I’m back to share a sweet craft that I made with my Daisy Troop — yep, 11 young ladies including my daughter! As the a leader over the past 2 years, I’ve found that crafts need to be simple and fun (environmentally-friendly doesn’t hurt either!).

So I decided to have the girls make aluminum can flower pots (inspired by Craftzine). With just a few cans, tissue paper and some Mod Podge (available at Jo-Anns Fabric and Craft Stores) my lively bunch was able to create a dozen of these in no time at all. I really love that this could be used for just about any gift-giving–teacher gift, mother’s day, a thank you to this summer’s camp counselors!

Our girls made sweet little labels instead of a card too, which we mounted on a lollipop stick for some height. Then with a little potting soil and a lot of love, my darling Daisies went home with a lovely gift. I suggest using a simple spray lacquer for a bit of extra shine, too.

As always, we hope you’re inspired to craft, bake and create!

Join The Celebration Shoppe on facebook, sign-up for the daily feedburner e-mail (box in the right navigation), follow us on twitter and pinterest.

gift wrap paper

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Mother’s Day craft – monogram pots

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mother’s day brunch placesetting

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kid craft: red bird handprint art

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photography idea for Father’s Day

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