The Violet Hours

Time for Pom-Pom Bunny Crafts

It doesn't have to be Easter to get the hankering to craft a bunny. But you do have to have pom-poms on hand to make any bunny craft worth his weight in carrots. Whether it's the whole body, the tail, or just the nose, listen up: pom-pom(s) required. Here are some of my faves...

 

This cutie-patootie little bow-tied cupcake topper bunny by Oh Happy Day is just the perfect amount of cute.

 

Not for the faint of craft, this pom-pom bunny by Jennifer Murphy is lovingly described in 18 "simple" steps.

 

Sweet and simple...I'm in love with this book-page and pom-pom bunny by Dekotante Rock My Home.

 

Just the noses...that's all the pom-pom you need to give these envelope bunnies a soft touch. By Martha Stewart.

 

What a clever little party favor! Give your Easter guests a pom-pom necklace buy displaying it as the tail of a paper bunny. By B. Jane Brewing.

Time for Easter Candy Decorations

I'm usually very anti- the idea of decorating with sugary, edible items as craft materials for all the obvious reasons...the waste, the insect-attraction factor, the potential for decomposition. But honestly, Easter has me rethinking this rule of thumb. And I think because you don't typically leave Easter decorations up for weeks on end, it's totally excusable. Pass the Peeps please!

I made these sprinkle and icing Easter eggs for Parents magazine a bunch of years ago. They are so much fun to make, and there a ton of different techniques! I used corn syrup as glue...worked better than hot glue!

Martha Stewart always takes Easter to a different place. I wouldn't let my kids anywhere near these beautifully styled jars of Easter candy!

 

What's prettier than a sugary, gumdrop wreath like this one from A Pretty Cool Life? Just shellac it and save it for Christmas!

 

I love the idea of using candy-dot paper strips as easter basket decor like this one from Parents magazine (ok, I know...but I used to work there!).

 

You can't talk about Easter candy decorations without Peeps. This sweet topiary by Country Woman magazine is amazingly easy to make. Go ahead and use your glue gun on this one...who wants to eat peeps anyway?

Time for Spring Break Staycation Crafts

I just started contributing to a very cool, newish parenting website called Mom.me, where you can explore crafts, behavior advice, recipes...basically everything under the sun that comes along with the parenting gig. They asked me to come up with some fun Spring Break staycation crafts. I tried to make each project something that would be just that: a project; not something that would only take 5 minutes. So here are a handful of the ideas. You can see the whole gallery here at Mom.me.

Snap Happy ABCs sends kids on a scavenger hunt with a camera, looking to find something from every letter of the alphabet to photograph. Upload the photos to picmonkey.com to add text then bind it with zip ties in paper-covered cereal box sides.

Growing up, my sister and I had a self-cleaning Lego mat like this Road Mat. You just push all of the toys into the center, then pull the drawstring and there you go! Clean-up is done-zo! My 2-year old son Oliver cannot believe how lucky he is that this is Mommy's "work".

The play value in this cardboard castle is huge. Let your kids spend the week constructing, and they'll play with it endlessly!

I don't think there's anything more satisfying than putting together a terrarium. Send the kids out in the backyard to gather moss, sticks, and rocks, then arrange them on top of soil in an upcycled plastic snack container (the one I used was from Target's addictive trail mix).

In most homes with young kids, you can find a handful of popsicle sticks. Just add some velcro dots to the ends and watch the kids come up with a gazillion ways to play with them. I call this, Popsicle Stickies. It's good, I know.

Check out the rest of the craft ideas on Mom.me! My second story with them will go live on April 4th; I'll be sure to remind you when it's up. (And follow them on Pinterest...they have good taste, I swear!)

Time for 10 Amazing DIY Birthday Party Hats

I find no reason whatsoever to buy a party hat. Wait, let me rephrase that. I find no reason to buy a party hat without jazzing it up! It's totally legit to buy the paper ones and doll them up, or, just download a hat template and make it from scratch. But of course that all depends on how many you need to make. My daughter's first birthday party is in two weeks and to be honest, I don't feel the need to make a hat for everyone...just for her. So, since I'm only making one, I can really dedicate some time and thought to it. Let's explore the world of homemade party hats, shall we?

1. Never would I ever make this hat from Wedding Chicks for a 1-year old baby (glitter in the eyes, mouth, ears, cake, etc), but I love love love the ombre affect! I think I would try something a little cleaner with some glitter paper from American Crafts and glitter tape from Shop Sweet Lulu.

 

2. These DIY party hats from Oh Happy Day are soft and lovely and feel so right for a darling 1-year-old girl on her birthday.

 

3. These DIY printable party hats from Chic Mother & Baby couldn't be simpler. Download the design, print, cut and glue! And they are pretty precious!

 

4. Love the bling! These homemade party hats from Glee Projects would be perfect for New Year's Eve...or in brighter colors for Sommer's first birthday party hat!

 

5. I'm all about repurposing, and these paper-cup party hats from Real Simple are totally adorable and so, so simple!

 

6. I'm kinda loving these butcher paper, marker, and pipe cleaner hats from Salsa Pie. The combo of the glittery pipe cleaners with the plain ole brown paper is genius. What a fun craft for kids!

 

7. Again, another totally unpredicable combo of silver and wood grain by Creative Jewish Mom. But it works so well, especially with those pops of pink and yellow.

 

8. I love the idea of putting party hats on the favors! Saw this today at Shop Sweet Lulu's blog! (Read this post...I love that this party centered around this orange cat from Ikea...colors, theme, the whole bit!)

 

9. A party hat made from an ice cream cone? Yes please! Made by the brilliant ladies of One Charming Party.

 

10. A classic Martha Stewart Living masterpiece, these DIY party hats are made by gluing 2 circles together!

 

Time for Easter Egg Craft Smarts

Really and truly, I could come up with dozens of topics for Easter egg posts...animals eggs, people eggs, egg totems...but I feel the need to think outside the shell a little bit. Today, I've chosen to feature egg crafts that are a specific color for a specific reason. Huh, you ask? Take a look...

 

As a New Yorker, the brilliance of these MTA Subway eggs just can't even be put into words. I'm just mad I never thought of it. Made by The Soho.

 

Oh Pantone, how we love to use you as a motif! How About Orange dyed eggs, then accurately matched them to her Pantone chips. Smart lil lady.

 

Leave it to Martha Stewart to bring color theory into Easter egg crafting. And turn out a gorgeous, modern result. Found via Present & Correct.

Time for the First Day of Spring!

Spring has sprung (technically) so it's time to start planning some planting projects for the kids! Here are a few simple ideas that will really get them excited about gardening...

 

Remember my perler-bead craft post last week? This planter is so amazing, it's a product. If you aren't such a planner (this design would take some design skillz), this would even be cool if you just did stripes of color. Via Peaches & Keen.

Cut a hole in a plastic animal toy and create a succulent planter. Genius! Found via Digs Digs.

 

This one was a new one for me...I'd never seen a plant in an ice cream cone! Adorbs! Found via Home DIY Pins.

 

It's the simplest idea, but one of my all-time faves: a planter in the bed of a vintage truck toy. Found via Charming Spaces.

Time for Fresh Eggs: Modern Easter Egg Crafts

One of the last stories I produced as Lifestyle Director at Parents Magazine was this Easter egg story by the amazingly talented Jocelyn Worrall. Prepare yourself for some overwhelming cuteness!

These beauties were made with just a simple brush and tempera paint.

 

We've all seen the chick Easter egg craft before, but these yellow-dyed large eggs are sitting in jumbo egg shells. Genius. Watch the how-to video here.

 

This technique uses rubber cement. So easy to do and the results are gorgeous! Watch a how-to video here.

 

Wrap a ceramic or wooden egg in white yarn to make these fluffy bunnies that you can use year after year. Watch a how-to video here.

 

These little guys might possibly be my favorite. Keep clicking through the slideshow on Parents.com to see the instructions.

 

 

Time for Craft Inspiration

This morning my head is swarming with craft ideas, so I need to be fast on the blog. This image from The Purl Bee is so full of yummy color, texture, material...it makes me feel hopeful that beautiful will churn out of this studio today.

Glue gun in plugged in, the French press is full, Pandora is singing, my babies are happy...and off I go. Happy Monday everyone!

Time for 3.14 ~ Pi ~ Pie Day!

It's March 14, hence 3/14, hence the reason to celebrate PIE! (If you are math-challenged, read about Pi here.) I'll take any excuse to eat, talk about, read about, look at pie. In fact, I think I need more pie in my life. I love this image of a potluck pie party from Bon Appetit. I could seriously get behind that. Feast your eyes on some more fun PIE play...

 

This felt pie looks good enough to eat. Found via Thursday Night Smackdown.

 

The first time I saw this pumpkin pie Thanksgiving kids' favor from One Charming Party, I nearly died. It was one of those "I wish I had thought of that" moments!

 

Cakes get stands, so why don't pies? I love the rustic look of these galvanized pie stands from BHLDN. They'd be great for the pie potluck!

Time for an Elegant St. Patty's Day

Ok, I must confess, this is one holiday that I fully ignore every year. I don't wear green underwear and I don't buy gold chocolate coins. But it's 2013, the era of the elevated craft, so of course St. Patty's Day has taken on a whole new modern, elegant aesthetic. Oleander & Palm has shown me the path of the sophisticated St. Patrick's Day. I didn't think it could be done, but she did it. Bravo!

Not just green and gold silhouettes, but green and gold silhouettes of kids holding 4-leaf clovers. So sweet.

 

Seriously, I could live with this shamrock wall decal on my wall all year round.

 

Everyone should enjoy a green beverage on St. Patty's Day. And it doesn't have to be held with a coozie or make you belch. A lime shebert fizzy drink? I'd drink you even without the cute gold-heart shamrock.