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 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 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 Perler Bead Crafts

When I see buckets of perler beads at Michaels, I move past with no hesitation. I'm not totally against plastic, but I just don't have a mind for what to do with them. I think my opinion changed after seeing these delicate pastel, perler-bead bangles from Maker Mama. Look at these other amazing crafts made with perler beads! They are not just for alligator keychains anymore!

I'm so in love with these perler bead people, I don't know what to do with myself. I don't speak German so I have no idea what/where they are, but I heart them! Via Skidt & Kanel.

 

Now this is true perler bead genius—3-dimensional perler bead food. I don't even know where to begin to understand how they did this! From the top, the picnic food is from Fave Crafts, the sushi is from this Japanese site, and the cakes are from here.

More of the traditional perler-bead world, but I still love these heart valentines from Camille Styles.

Time for DIY Garlands

My daughter Sommer's birthday falls in early April, and here in New York, there is no guarantee of gorgeous, spring weather. So for her first birthday, I'm just going to do it up at home. We have a pretty big living/dining/kitchen "open-concept" room and I've been trying to figure out what broad-stroke decorations I can create to really give the room a transformation. I took this photo last weekend at Erica Tanov (best store!) and decided on pink and yellow, with a splash of navy, for the color world. The store has a Parcel pop-up shop in the back which is where these sweet garlands came from. Depending on how you make and then use garlands, they can do the trick to really take over a room.

My criteria for this project are... (1) Bold & Impactful (2) Quick & Easy (3) Inexpensive & Accessible.

Oh crepe paper, how I love you so! These big fringe garlands are so easy to make and can seriously take over the most blah of spaces. By Oh Happy Day.

I'm a little tired of the circle garland, but the half circle? I'm okay with it. But really, it's how they used this garland that really works. You can use it to take up a whole wall with this elegant swag. Via Pinterest, by Fellow Fellow on Etsy.

 

I love the watery, washy quality of these painted book pages from Lilla A. What if they are strung up around a room, sort of like the traditional Tibetan prayer flags? Hmmm....

 

Don't rule out paper chains as a totally viable throw-back DIY garland. They are super simple to make and you can craft a lot of them to really fill a space. Via Pinterest, via Parcel Post.

 

I think adding a little glitter twinkle into the mix is a good idea. I love how these strips of fabric looked dipped in glitter. And the idea of my guests leaving with a little glitter in their hair is just plain nice. Via Pinterest, by Michelle Edgemont.

Time for Plastic Easter Egg Crafts

{Precious bird and bunny garland from Parents.com.}

So, I didn't grow up celebrating Easter, and every year that I worked at Parents magazine, I needed a refresher as to how Easter worked. What happens with the eggs? Do you hide the ones you decorate? Do you hard-boil them and eat them? And the bunny...what's his role again? I swear, I have the whole Christmas-Santa-Mistletoe thing down, but Easter confounds me every year.

But, this confusion in no way reflects upon my awe of the Easter Egg. This will be the first of a few Easter craft posts, I imagine...so I'll start with what is its own miraculous transformation—the plastic Easter egg. Scroll down and you'll see ways to use it that have nothing to do with Easter!

 

These play teacups are made from half of a plastic Easter egg and a button glued to the bottom to make it stable. By Creativity in Progress.

 

I'm obsessed with these plastic egg maracas made by MADE.

 

Put an educational spin on your plastic eggs with this letter matching game from Playing House.

 

I believe these are a product, but how cute would this chicken egg be as a craft? Note to self. Found on Lulusoso.

Time for Washi Tape Walls

{image via pinterest}

I'm not sure that there has been an invention of a craft material in my lifetime as monumental as washi tape. I can't get enough of the stuff. I'm hard-pressed to find a tacky washi-tape project. If I see it in a store, I can't not touch it. Should I see a doctor? Maybe. There are a gazillion awesome uses for the stuff; here are totally clever (and simple) ways to use washi tape on your walls.

Image via.

 

Image via Plenty of Colour.

 

Image via Objects & Use.

 

Image via Design*Sponge.

 

Image via.

 

Image via At Home In Love.

 

Image via Stylizimo.

 

Image via Studio Tout Petit.

Buy washi tape to your heart's content here at happytape.com. And find the new giant washi tape here! I need some!