DYI Faux Chocolate Bunnies

 I found such a cute and easy idea today that I just felt compelled to share it with you.  Now I wish I could say that I had thought of this on my own but I must give credit to the very creative woman who shared these photos of her creation.  

Photo by Violet Lively

Violet Lively, Owner of Ranch Bar-B Rustics, LLC in Delores, Colorado shared this amazing Easter decorating idea on Facebook today and I just have to give it a try. Violet writes, "Easy DYI faux chocolate bunnies!  Dollar store Easter decor or thrift store finds and brown gloss spray paint!"  Don't they look amazing?  

Photo by Violet Lively

I'm sending Brad out here pretty soon to buy me a can of gloss brown spray paint so I can give this giant bunny a yummy looking coat.  I bought this bunny at Ross last month to add to my spring display but giving him into faux chocolate exterior will surely get the attention of my grandchildren!

I can see him now in a large basket surrounded by fake carrots.   I really am not a fan of shopping but I did look for carrots at Michaels this week but only found fake fruit.  So since I haven't found faux carrots, I guess I will just have to make my own this week out of paper mache.  Getting a little messy will hopefully prove to be more fun anyway.

Give me a couple days and I will hopefully be able to show you my beautiful creations as I endeavor to "Embrace My Creative Side".  I would love to hear from you if you try this idea for your self.  Send me your pictures and I will share them on my Facebook Page.

Creativity Doing It's Part to Keep the Universe Safe

What a great idea my young friend posted today on Facebook.   I love this and thought I would share this creative idea with you.  She found this idea on Pinterest of course and decided to do some spring cleaning in her son's room.  

These super hero toys can be really important to some kids and with this handy idea they can keep track of them at a glance. They can make sure that all their crime fighters are accounted for. This just may will help keep forces of evil in check and the universe a safer place to live!

 Of course was many years ago,  but my three boys loved their little action army figures.  They were their favorite toys.  Each little soldier was all about 3 inches long and their arms and legs moved.  They were just nameless soldiers and heroes that had the task to teach some little boys how to grow up to be brave men.

Now there are so many superhero figures with amazing super powers that I can't even begin to know all their names.  Of course I haven't really paid attention to the current movies so besides Superman and Batman my knowledge of superheroes is pretty limited.  My 4 year old grandson sure knows them all and these toys are important to them.  He seems to have a complete collection of both the smaller versions and the super sized 12" rendition. 

This back of the door shoe organizer idea really struck me as a great idea for a boys room.  Not only are the action figures up off the floor and no longer posing a tripping hazard but it is teaching organization skills at a young age.  

I should clarify that it is not just boys who appreciate a good superhero.  I did buy my 4 year old granddaughter a couple of the 12" crime fighters and a set of superhero capes for Christmas.  She like Batman the best I'm told.

Feels Like Summer Outside but it's Spring Just Inside My Door

I would really like to know where spring has gone.  With temperatures in Las Vegas well into the 90's it feels much more like May than March.  Then if you add in the factors of recovery from the 1000 mile road trip to Reno topped with the springing a head of daylight savings time, you can see why this week has been pretty much a blur.   

Before our trek across the vast emptiness of the Nevada desert, I had finalized my spring decoration in my foyer area.  I was happy with everything EXCEPT the table runner.  I just couldn't find one that jumped out at me so I opted for a plain ivory lace runner that I found at Hobby Lobby.  I think it was about $6 (1/2 off sale).  Not bad but it really wasn't what I had in mind.  

While I was in Reno, I spent a little time walking around the Ross Store near our hotel.  As I was almost finished shopping, I ran across a picked over display near the front of the store.  This cute little chick appliqued on a set of two cotton dishtowel caught my eye.  Embellished with pastel colored ric-rac and at only $3.99 I couldn't resist.  I knew I had found my perfect spring table runner.

Today I finally got a chance to put the towels together.  A needle and white thread were all I needed to add some quick basting stitches so that the towel ends lined up and would stay in place under my sewing machine needle.  I started with a stitch at both ends to make sure they lined up perfectly and then I worked my way to the center.  I think it only took about 8 stitches and I was ready to get my ZIG ZAG on.  

Since I wanted the runner to lay flat it was important to stitch them together rather than overlapping and then having a thick seam running down the middle.  

Here is my finished table runner and I couldn't have asked for a better fit.  This antique buffet was a trash treasure that my husband found about 2 years ago.  I had wanted a high narrow table to fit behind our front door in our foyer and this piece was just perfect.   

And finally, here is my completed display down to the malted robin's eggs in my antique Red Wing spongeware mixing bowl.  How could something so easy make me smile so big?

Cute as a BUTTON!

This rabbit is just the start of my spring decorations

Spring is here and it is most definitely time to box up and retire all the pink and red of Valentines Day decorations and look to bright and pastels to warm up that chill that is still hangs in the air.  This weekend I bought a large plaster rabbit and some realistic green apples with the idea of coming up with my spring decorations.  I have a bird's nest and some eggs and of course I'm thinking those yummy "Robin Eggs" malted candy will be perfect for my candy dish.  As I get going I will be blogging more about my spring decorating attempts.

I started today looking for some cute ideas that I could make with the grandchildren and came across several images that grabbed my attention.

My Grandma's Button Collection

BUTTONS have always held a special fascination to me.  I can remember stringing buttons of all sizes, shapes and colors together with my grandmother to make pretty bracelets for ourselves.  As a matter of fact, I inherited her button collection and I store them in an antique ball canning jar and have them displayed on my bookshelf.

Here I have taken a picture of my button jar sitting on the old ice cream parlor chair that was in my grandmother's house from my earliest childhood memories.  This little chair has to be nearly 100 years old.  If I recall, she kept her buttons in a can or a box but I love how they look in this old glass jar.  So many colors and shapes.  Many of them are plan white or grey and I'm sure she got them off my grandfather's work shirts but there are many that appear to be very old and are quite fancy.

I loved these flowers made entirely from buttons. Just a glue gun and plenty of colorful buttons are all you really need.  I would put them on stems of green floral wire so that you could attach them or display them in a bouquet.  This should prove to be a fun activity for the older grandchildren.  You can then attach them to make hair accessories, front door wreath or add to a hanging garden decoration.






I really like this second picture where they have used old shakers to display such a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers.  I would love to have this to display on my entry foyer antique buffet table.

This is as CUTE AS A BUTTON!

This one is probably my favorite.  Such a simply project but it just makes me so happy to look at it.  I can't wait to come up with a way to display these cute stitched button flowers.  Wouldn't it be so cute have different shades of blue buttons to make an arrangement of "bachelor button" flowers?




Believe me I have already added some packages of colorful buttons to my Amazon shopping cart and I can't wait to get started on all these spring flowers!  I will be blogging more about my progress as we say goodbye to February and warmly EMBRACE March.

Grandma Let's Make Art Together

WHAT AN AWESOME AND EASY ART PROJECT.  

Staying true to my blog focus on Embracing Your Creative Side, I am so pleased that I was able to complete my first planned art project with my 4 year old grandson and it was SO easy.  Having projects planned in advance allows me to be ready and seize those precious opportunities when presented.  Today was just that kind of day.  With only a few supplies and a bundle of Q-tips as an awesome paintbrush I was able to make a memory.  Here he looks so proud of how the finished piece turned out.  I would say this grandma should get an A+ for effort.

Here is a list of the materials we used for this project:

* white card stock

* Apple Barrel Acrylic craft paint (4 colors- yellow, orange, bright green and cobalt blue)

* Blue Painters Tape

* 20 or so Q-Tip Swabs

* Paper plate to use as a paint palette

 First, I taped a plan piece of white card stock to a paper grocery bag but cardboard or poster board would even work better.  I just wanted a surface bigger than the 8.5 x 11 piece of card stock in case my little artist got carried away in his painting exuberance.  With preschoolers you can never take enough precautions.  Note that my little art student is wearing one of grandmas very bright orange t-shirt to protect his clothing and keep grandma out of hot water with mommy.  

Using the painters tape I also formed a large letter "N" in the center of the page.  I did use some scissors to straighten up the three sides of the letter and to make them even.

Our pallet was a sturdy paper plate in which I poured out a small amount of each of the colors of paint.  We made our Q-Tip brush by grouping together about 10 or so Q-Tips in a bundle and with another  piece of painters tape I secured them together.  With two bundles we were then able to apply all four colors because we were able to use both ends of the Q-Tip swabs.

With very little intervention on my part, My grandson was able to dip his Q-Tip brushes in the paint and cover all of the white areas of the paper with a fun dabbing motion.  Once the paint dried I removed the tape to reveal a very nice piece of art that could be framed or hung for his room.  With it being of his initial it really makes a timeless piece that he can appreciate for years to come.  

One problem I did encounter during this project was that the tape seemed to want to tear the paper a bit. I thought I wouldn't have this problem using the blue painters tape but I did.   I think that to improve on this project, next time I will use small stretched canvases.  I think that a canvas will give the piece a more art quality and less likely to get torn.  I can also apply a coat of varnish and a hanging wire so that they are ready for mom or dad to hang.

I actually am anticipating a visit here real soon with my 4 year old granddaughter and can't wait to include her in our painting fun.  My plan is to do a repeat of this project with both of them together.  I'm certain that there will be more blogging about that in the near future.

My main objective was to keep his sleeves out of the wet paint

He is having so much fun covering all the white area with the colorful paint

Everyone Needs a Prowling Dog and a Covorting Cat

Original Dog and Cat before I got creative on them

Today, in Las Vegas, it seems to be raining chocolate cats and gingerbread dogs outside. True to being a long time Las Vegas residents, my husband and I went out gambling today...Not in the slot machine, poker sense but we did take our lives in our hands and brave a drive on the wet roads to go to Michaels for the sole purpose of buying this little plastic dalmatian dog.  Crazy I know, but I thought the rain had stopped when we left but of course it was only a small window like the eye of a hurricane and soon it was pouring around us.  It was at this point in our journey that we began to rethink our decision because we found ourselves sharing the roadway with so many others that didn't have the good sense to stay home.  I was thankful, almost as if we won the Mega Jackpot, when we successfully navigated the many accidents, flowing water, large puddles and crazies to make it safely home.  

The little dog is pretty cute as he is, but I will soon transformed into a one of a kind gingerbread dog with just a little paint.  I looked for a cat to no avail.  There was a nice selections of dragons, tigers and wolf pups, but there seemed to be no cats to choose from in the picked over bins that I could use to make his literary cohort.  I have no choice but to put into service this old Barbie doll pet cat that once belonged to either my daughter, my niece or some strange visitor that might have dropped her from his pocket as he visited our home.  Very soon I will paint her a lovely dark chocolate color.  

Chocolate Cat

Gingerbread Dog

Sugar Plum Tree

Now, In case you are not into 19th century American literature, I'm not speaking in code here, but making many bad references to the famous Eugene Field poem, "The Sugar Plum Tree". 

I know you are going to find this difficult to believe, but adding a little dog and cat to my Christmas decorations is something I have wanted to do for probably over 20 years but haven't accomplished it.  True to my desire to step up my grandma game and Embrace My Creative Self, I am not putting this off any longer.  After today, when my grandchildren come and gaze in awe at my beautiful gingerbread house they will see the complete scene laid out before them and my reading of this beloved treasure will now make complete sense. They will all LOVE poetry from that moment on and grow up to appreciate literature, classical music and paint like little Monets.   Okay this maybe just a wee bit over the top, but Grandmas these days have to stand on their heads,chew bubble gum and juggle 4 or 5 large kitchen knives at the same time to impress a 2 year old that can work your smart phone better than you can.  

I was given this Gingerbread House many, many years ago by a very dear friend.  It was immediately added to the high level of a Treasured Townsend Tradition.  I can't set up that tree and hang those beautiful glass candy pieces from the branches without reciting the well known children's poem written by Eugene Field in 1892- "The Sugar Plum Tree".  

My beautiful Gingerbread House decoration

Here is the entire decoration.  The detail in all the candy, cookies and little gingerbread people are something straight out of a child's dream.  We have enjoyed this piece year after year.  

I hope you enjoy this poem as much as I do.....  

The Sugar-Plum Tree







HAVE you ever heard of the Sugar-Plum Tree?

'Tis a marvel of great renown!

It blooms on the shore of the Lollypop Sea

In the garden of Shut-Eye Town;

The fruit that it bears is so wondrously sweet

(As those who have tasted it say)

That good little children have only to eat

Of that fruit to be happy next day.

When you've got to the tree, you would have a hard time

To capture the fruit which I sing;

The tree is so tall that no person could climb

To the boughs where the sugar-plums swing!

But up in that tree sits a chocolate cat,

And a ginger bread dog prowls below-

And this is the way you contrive to get at

Those sugar-plums tempting you so:

You say but the word to that gingerbread dog

And he barks with such a terrible zest

That the chocolate cat is at once all agog,

As her swelling proportions attest.

And the chocolate cat goes covorting around

From this leafy limb unto that,

And the sugar-plums tumble, of course, to the ground-

Hurray for that chocolate cat!

There are marshmallows, gumdrops, and peppermint canes

With striping of scarlet and gold,

And you carry away of the treasure that rains,

As much as your apron can hold!

So come, little child, cuddle closer to me

In your dainty white nightcap and gown,

And I'll rock you away to the Sugar-Plum Tree

In the garden of Shut-Eye Town.

Eugene Field