Carissa's Creativity Space

ANNOUNCEMENT: Carissa's Creativity Space is becoming Creative Green Living

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 06:53:00 +0000

I am so excited to make the announcement that next week Carissa's Creativity Space is officially becoming Creative Green Living! I've been blogging in the same place for the last 6 years and am glad to have a more focused space with room to grow. I know change always comes with questions so I want to take a minute to answer some of them here.

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Why the Change?

There are several reasons but there are three primary ones:

First: Allows me to Refine my Focus

I started Carissa's Creativity Space a little over 6 years ago in the pre-facebook days. Early posts were about things like having a bad day at work, missing Seattle, a recipe I made for dinner, pictures of my dog, etc (the kinds of things that would go on Facebook...if I had been on Facebook then). It evolved to be about knitting and cupcakes. About two years ago it became a much more focused endeavor about crafts, recipes, and gardening with a special emphasis on tutorials. I was writing the kind of posts I wanted but I also felt limited by my site's history. Changing to Creative Green Living lets me keep writing about crafts (my first love!) and recipes but allows me some more room to write about other issues I care about like green parenting and easy green lifestyle choices.

Second: Less confusing

I realize most people have probably never noticed (although it drives me bonkers!) that my site's name is Carissa's Creativity Space but my site's address is CreativeCarissa.com. They have not matched for 6 years and this issue has really been bugging me for the last 2. Creative Green Living will live at CreativeGreenLiving.com.

Creative Green Living is also a more appropriate name name because it tells you what the site is about. If you aren't already familiar with my site, and hear Carissa's Creativity Space, do you know what the site is about? Probably some girl named Carissa doing, uh, creative stuff? It's a little vague and I want to help clear up the confusion there. Creative Green Living will open more doors for more people to join us and find the great stuff the site has to offer.

Third: More Space for Features!

I've posted my share of round ups and featured other bloggers' content here. But with my name in the title, it felt a little awkward. Creative Green Living will be an online resource featuring lots of original content but pointing readers to some of the best craft, recipe, and green living content on the web. (This also means if you are a blogger and write about any of these things, I want to feature you! Please let me know about your great crafts, recipes, gardening, green lifestyle or parenting posts!)

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What about the posts that live here?

All the previous posts from Carissa's Creativity Space have already been moved into Creative Green Living so that no project will be left behind. Over the next week, an auto re-direct will be set up so if you have a previous project pinned or bookmarked, you'll still end up in the right place!

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Improvements for Email Subscribers:

For most of the last 6 years, I have worked full time and blogged in my spare moments. Which sometimes meant going weeks in between posts. I am now a full time blogger and want to start posting more regularly (probably 5-7 times a week) but held back in part because I didn't want to flood the inboxes of e-mail subscribers! I realize that many e-mails a week can get tedious for those of you who get every single post in your inbox. Creative Green Living will give you options for how to subscribe. You can choose a weekly newsletter which will give you a re-cap of things that happened on the site that week OR you can also choose to subscribe to individual posts still. It's up to you! Want to set up your e-mail subscription, pop over here and choose how you'd like to subscribe.

Lastly:

Thank you all so much for following me on this journey!

It means a lot to me that so many of you read my e-mails and show up on my site each week. I know you will love to new site even more. I'm excited to see what the next year has in store!

Consumer Crafts Sale Through February 4th

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 23:00:00 +0000

You all know from my love of dollar store crafts that I have a special place in my heart for affordable crafting. I have discovered a new website this week that is about to give the dollar store a run for their money! They have SO many affordable supplies. Most of their things are way less than you'd get them for in a big box craft store. They are also having a sweet sale right now where everything on their site is an extra 15-25% through Feb 4th.

Right now they are focusing on their "Back to Basics" stuff. Some of the best stuff on their site is in that Craft Basics section! Wreaths, yarn, wood crafts, cutting tools, fabric crafting...so much stuff!

Check out some of the things I picked up from the Craft Basics section when I ordered this week...

(i have some great magnet projects in mind coming up and these were great prices)

(to dye some of my white cloth napkins that are showing wear and tear and have minor stains)

(this is the best price on printable magnet sheets I've seen. I will be using them for home school)

(i have definitely been bitten by the glitter bug...plus what a great price!)

(my old craft knife is dull and needs a replacement. now I have a great mat to use it with, too!)

(another product for a great price! i'm going to use it in my upcoming command center project)

These are just some of the things I ordered. I hope it gives you a feel for the kinds of things on the site and their everyday awesome prices (the prices shown are not the sale prices...if you order during the sale, you will pay even less). Keep in mind that due to the sale, I got 15% off on everything shown above as well!

I've got some great projects coming up with some of the stuff I ordered but in the meantime, make sure you check out their sale. While you're at it, be sure to like them on Facebook so that you can keep up with future sales and inexpensive craft ideas!

I am posting this as part of a campaign through The Blueprint Social. I have received compensation including free product from Consumer Crafts for posting this review and linking to their site. All opinions expressed in the review are 100% mine. I was not paid to give a positive review. They earned my praise by being genuinely awesome. See my full review policy here.

How to Make Yellow Tomato Soup

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:00:00 +0000

When I grew my garden last year, I grew several varieties of yellow tomatoes. Part of this was motivated by my fascination with non-grocery store colors of food (purple potatoes, yellow zucchini, purple carrots, etc). The other part was motivated by an amazingly delicious yellow tomato soup I was served while touring the English countryside with my grandparents when I graduated from high school. This soup was amazing enough that I remember it more than a decade later and it motivated me to grow yellow tomatoes just to recreate that soup. It was that good.

And I think I did it. When I told my husband we were having yellow tomato soup for dinner, he was skeptical but he is now a believer, too.

You'll never believe how easy it is to make tomato soup. Just add all the ingredients to a pot, simmer and then blend. You'll never want to go back to the canned stuff after this.

Ingredients

4 pints canned yellow tomatoes (I used 3 cans taxi, 1 can yellow brandywine. Use what you have. Even red tomatoes will turn out well)
1.5 onions, chopped
6 cloves of garlic
3.5 cups chicken (or veggie) broth
1.5 tsp salt
2 Tbsp dried basil
2 Tbsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried thyme

Directions

Add all ingredients to a large pot and stir to combine. Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer uncovered about 30 minutes to allow flavors to blend. Taste and adjust salt and spices as necessary. Simmer an additional 10 minutes.
Use an immersion blender (I like this one) to blend soup until smooth.
Serve hot and garnish with Parmesan cheese and a dash of dried thyme or fresh basil leaves.

This batch turned out a little orange looking because of the orange brandywine tomatoes. To make your really yellow, use Taxi tomatoes. You can also use this recipe to make red tomato soup.

Cards for Carmen - Will You Help?

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 23:29:00 +0000

Meet Carmen. Carmen is a bright, thoughtful, sweet 8 year old girl who loves baking, cupcakes and her family. Carmen was also recently diagnosed with Extraosseous Ewing's Sarcoma...a rare form of cancer.

I first met Carmen's mother, Jaci (like Jackie), when we were both in high school and participating in a community program for high school girls together. I've since moved away but I've remained connected with her family via Facebook and through my mom who is also friends with her family. So of course hearing that such a great kid has this huge cancer fighting journey ahead of her hit my heart.

Why am I telling you all this? Because this sweet 8 year old girl has just one wish this Valentine's Day:

A Whole Lot of Valentines Cards

And if doing something as simple as sending a card to this great little girl will help her battle against cancer, I can definitely find some time and a stamp to make that happen!

I'm telling you guys because most of my readers are either 1) Crafters and/or 2) Moms. And I know that crafters, moms (and especially crafty moms) are the kinds of generous people who might want to help make a little girl's day by dropping a card in the mail.

So are you in?

You can send your cards to Carmen at:

Carmen G

PO Box 156

Suquamish, WA 98392

Carmen two weeks ago before deciding to preemptively shave her head

What kinds of cards would be good?

Store bought cards

Hand crafted cards

Kid crafted cards

Cards with cupcakes

Cards with Johnny Depp

Happy cards

Cute cards

Clever cards

Any Kind of Card!

If you're interested in following Carmen's journey, you can also stay connected with Carmen on the Caring for Carmen Facebook Page and the Caring for Carmen website.

Thanks so much! Please drop me a comment and let me know if I can count on you to help send cards to Carmen!

THANK YOU!

Make a Panda Bear Hooded Towel

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:34:00 +0000

My son loves panda bears (love panda bears, too? You might like my panda party, panda ears tutorial or panda pancakes). Now that he's 2 and huge, he needed some bigger towels for bath time. What better creature to make a hooded towel like than his favorite snuggly panda?

I followed the same technique taught by Amber at Crazy Little Projects. If you have never made a hooded towel, do yourself a favor and read her very thorough tutorial. Then come back here and see how to adapt it to make a panda.

Supplies

White bath towel
White hand towel
Black bath towel
Black washcloth
Fusible Interfacing (I used Heat'n Bond Lite Iron-on Adhesive)
Matching thread
Sewing machine, scissors, iron, Walking Foot if you have one.

Cut list:
White hand towel: Cut in half across the narrow width
Black bath towel: Cut off the top third of the towel across the longest width of the towel
Black washcloth: Cut out 4 ear shaped pieces (remember to cut them bigger than you need them). Then iron on the fusible interfacing to the remaining washcloth material. Cut out two kidney bean shaped pieces for eye shadows and a nose.

Hood

Fold in the front edge of the towel past any band that might be on the towel. Using white thread, sew across. This is the front edge of your hood.
Switch to black thread. Stitch around the curve of the ears, leaving the flat edges open. Flip ears so stitches are inside.
Iron down the eye patches and nose. Use a zig zag stitch to applique these pieces to the hood.
Cut slits in the hood where you want the ears to go. Insert ears and sew to hood from the inside.
Fold hood in half down the middle of the face, right sides together and sew with white thread.

(Are these instructions not making sense? They assume you're familiar with basic hooded towel construction. Be sure to read Amber's great hooded towel tute if you haven't yet.)

This is what your finished hood should look like:

Body

Placing right sides together and being sure to line up any bands on the narrow ends of the towels, lay the long black bath towel strip along the long edge of the white bath towel . Sew together and open.
To keep the seam flat, I opened up the back side of this seam and stitched down the length of the towel on both sides.
Make a tuck along the top edge of the black section and pin in place (refer to Amber's tutorial).
Center the hood seam to line up with the tuck and sew, attaching the hood to the body of the towel

Enjoy!

Make a Book Page Pennant Banner

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 19:55:00 +0000

My latest addition to my Valentine's Day book page decor is this LOVE pennant banner (check out my Valentine's gallery wall for more great book page art ideas). It was super easy and I love how it looks hanging on the mirror in my entry way.

Supplies

Book pages (4)
Red construction paper
Scissors
Glue stick
Permanent marker
Twine
Font you like (I used Sketch Serif. You can get it here)

Instructions

Step 1: Cut your pages

I folded my pages in half and cut off the raw edge. Then I cut the bottom off at an angle to make points.

Step 2: Cut out hearts

Cut out four hearts. I made mine big enough to span the width of the text on the page.

Step 3: Write your letters

To do my lettering, I pulled up a font I love (Sketch Serif) on my computer so I could use it as a guide for how to write my letters on my hearts using a permanent marker.

Step 4: Glue your hearts to the pennants

I used a glue stick to glue my hearts down to my book page pennants.

Step 5: Attach to twine

I cut a length of thick garden twine long enough to hang across my mirror plus about 6 inches. I folded down the top margin of the book pages, which made a nice little pocket for the twine. Then I glued down the edge on the back with the glue stick (and added a piece of scotch tape for back up).

That's it! Super easy and quick

Valentine's Gallery Art Wall (and free printable)

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 23:13:00 +0000

Until recently, I have not been one for "themed" Valentine's decor. In fact, I normally don't decorate for Valentine's Day and opt for cranberry colored winter berry decor to last from Christmas until Spring. This year, though, I have been loving book page crafts (it all started with my book page pumpkins) and decided I wanted book pages and red hearts to be my 2013 Valentine's Day theme. Considering our level of book nerdiness and the size of our library, books are especially appropriate for us.

I have a narrow wall in our downstairs half bath that was more than ready for an art update. I picked up 5 frames from the dollar store (2 8x10 size and 3 5x7 size) and got to work.

Supplies

Frames (2 of 8x10 size and 3 of 5x7 size)
Old book
Glue
Red construction paper
Printer
Cardstock
Poster board ($0.50 from Dollar Tree for a huge piece)
Permanent marker
Embroidery thread
Paint and paint brushes

Painted Heart

To make this one, I glued down several pages to the back of the default image paper than came in the frame. Once it was dry, I painted a heart with watered down red acrylic paint and added some black accents. I like that the heart is see through and you can still see the words on the back side.

Cut Out "Specimen" Hearts

For this one, I printed out the lyrics of the song that was sung at our wedding (A Page is Turned by Bebo Norman - totally ties into the book nerd theme!) onto a piece of cardstock and used it for a mat. I cut some extra hearts out of the lyrics and glued them down onto a piece of red construction paper with some colored hearts (I decided on black for contrast).

Song Lyrics Tree

This was inspired by this pin. Sadly, there is no original source - it just points to a tumblr blog. Let this be a lesson - if you're a blogger, watermark your stuff! That way if you picture becomes unmatched from the source people can find you. But I digress. The tree is another piece of cardstock with the Page is Turned lyrics on it. Then I tied red hearts onto the branch with embroidery floss. Mine is admittedly not nearly as pretty as the original but I still like it.

Pop Out Heart Art

This was inspired by this 3D Butterfly Art. I turned a book page sideways and drew hearts on the back. I cut around most of the edge, leaving a core in the middle to keep the heart attaached when folding up the sides. I slipped a piece of red construction paper in behind it and put it in the frame in front of the glass.

Printed Branch with Hearts

To make this one, I cut a piece of book paper to 5x7 and then told my printer to print the graphic as if it were a 5x7 photo. I should have reduced the amount of ink it used because it did take a little while to dry but I really like how it looks.

If you like it, I'm sharing my printable graphic with you guys. You can try printing it on a book page like I did or onto regular cardstock for use in your valentine crafting. Click here to download the full size heart branch graphic for printing.

Thanks for stopping by!

Twin Lab Diet Fuel Forskohilii Review

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 06:00:00 +0000

If losing weight is on your to-do list for the new year, you might be curious about diet supplements that can help you along with that process. But do they work? I know I always wonder that when I walk by diet supplements in the store or my local GNC.

I was sent a 30 day supplement of Twin Lab Diet Fuel Forskohili to try over the holidays. Diet Fuel combines clinically-tested levels of three weight management nutrients to help you lose weight and gain energy.*

Coleus Forskohlii: Support weight management with this traditional ayurvedicherb.*
Green Tea Extract: Boost energy and focus with this powerful thermogenic.*
Chromium: A critical trace mineral that helps you burn fat.*

* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

The instructions tell you to take one capsule twice a day 20-30 minutes before a meal. Now, I don't know about you but except for dinner, I have a hard time knowing a full 30 minutes in advance of when I'll be eating. My toddler keeps me on my toes and our schedule stays pretty flexible. The best I was usually able to do was 15 minutes before. And this might be why I saw no change in my weight over the 30 days that I tried this supplement.

Knowing that I had a hard time following the instructions exactly, I won't blame the lack of results on the supplement. This may be a key point, though, to those considering trying it: If you have a hectic life and will struggle to have 30 minutes advance warning that you will be eating, this might not be for you.

Other reviewers online have said they saw changes and one reviewer on the GNC website said they lost 10 pounds while taking it. If you're game to try it out yourself, GNC has a coupon code that will get you $3 off your purchase of Twin Labs Diet Fuel. Just use coupon code *20376* when you check out.

I received free product in exchange for this review. All opinions are 100% mine and do not necessarily reflect those of the manufacturer or vendors of this product. Please see my complete review policy for additional information.

How to Make Elderberry Syrup

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:21:00 +0000

Have you heard all the crazy news about the 2013 flu epidemic? I'm about as excited as you are about the prospect of getting the flu. Which is to say: not at all!

This then poses the question to families: What are you going to do to stay healthy?

Whether or not you choose to get a flu shot (we personally choose not to get flu shots), you'll still want to make sure your immune is in tip top shape and equipped with everything it needs to go to battle for you. Elderberry syrup is full of good-for-you stuff like bioflavanoids, antioxidants, vitamin C, beta carotine, calcium (the list goes on!). The bioflavanoids help prevent cold and flu viruses from infecting cells to keep you from getting sick. If you do get sick, people who take elderberry juice during illness report less severe symptoms and a shorter duration of sick time than those who don't.

So how do you get it? If you're short on time or looking for convenience, you can buy ready-made elderberry syrup (like this Organic Elderberry Syrup from Nature's Way). But making your own is really easy and costs a lot less per ounce than buying pre-bottled stuff. Buy the dried elderberries in the bulk bins of your favorite natural foods store or you can even order them from Frontier via Amazon.

This recipe will make about 3 cups of syrup. I doubled it when I made mine.

The standard dosage is 1/2 to 1 teaspoon for kids daily and 1/2 to 1 tablespoon for adults daily for prevention. If the flu strikes, take the normal dosage every 2 to 3 hours until symptoms disappear.

Ingredients

2/3 cup dry elderberries (you can get organic or regular elderberries online if your local store doesn't have them)
3 1/2 cups water
2 inch piece fresh ginger (The recipe says 2 Tbsp. I calculate 1 inch = 1 Tbsp)
1 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp clove powder
1 cup raw honey (local honey is best if available)

Recipe
Get the recipe from fellower blogger, Alica Voorhie's site: The Soft Landing [Homemade Elderberry Syrup for Colds and Flu]

Like my bottle? It's the SLOM Bottle from IKEA. The labels were made using contact paper and my printable label template from my pantry organization post.

Free Personalizable Valentine's Day Photo Cards: Family Time

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:00:00 +0000

If you're on the hunt for Valentine's Day photo cards for your family, look no further! The next installment in my personalizable Valentine's Day card series is perfect for photos of families. My photo happens to be in black and white but you can use a color picture for this layout, too.

It features a generously sized area for your photo, a red finger paint texture on the bottom and personalizable text. The font I used for the names is called Janda Elegant Handwriting and it is available for free.

Download the free personalizable photo card here. (4x6 size)

Name font (Janda Elegant Handwriting) available here

If this is your first time downloading one of my cards, note that you will need to register (it's free and takes literally 10 seconds) first to download the card. Then scroll down and click the download button below the file (circled in red).

Free Personalizable Valentine's Day Photo Cards: The Girly Girl

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 17:00:00 +0000

Everyone is on the hunt for adorable Valentine's Day cards...we've got just one month left! I've got a special series of personalizable photo cards I'll be posting over the next couple weeks so be sure to keep checking back!

Our first card would be perfect for the girly girl in your life. It's got a modern damask print and pretty pink text and polka dots. You can personalize both the photo and the text on the card. The font used to write the name on the card is called "odstmeplik" can can be downloaded for free.

Download the free personalizable photo card here. (4x6 size)

Name font (Odstemplik) available here

Snowy Winter Wreath

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 14:00:00 +0000

I love the subtle elegance of white and silvery snow decor. When I took down my Christmas wreath I knew I wanted to do something pretty like this. And with out unseasonably warm Oregon winter this year, maybe it will be a good omen and draw some sparkly snowflakes our way.

Today I'm joining 35 other craft bloggers in celebrating everyone's favorite precipitation - Snow!! Be sure to check out the linky at the bottom of my post to get inspired by others' snowy posts going live today. (if you're an e-mail or RSS reader you may need to click through to my post to see the links).

Materials Needed:

Grapevine wreath
Grey spray paint
Silver and/or clear glitter
Snowflakes (mine came in a 6 pack from my local Dollar Store)
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Felt scraps (optional)
White organza ribbon for hanging

Instructions:

Step 1: Paint the Wreath

I brought my wreath outside in a large box to paint it without getting paint everywhere. Just remember that spray paint usually sets best between 65 - 90 degrees (check your can of paint for brand-specifics) so unless you live somewhere pretty warm, you'll need to bring it inside to dry once you're done painting it.

Step 2: Add sparkles

While the paint is still wet, dust the wreath with glitter. I used a combination of fine silver and fine clear/white glitter. Let your wreath dry (probably inside. I put the whole box in the bathroom with the fan on to air it out).

Step 3: Add Snowflakes

Arrange the snowflakes around the wreath and attach them with hot glue.

Step 4: Add felt pads (optional)

I like to add felt pads to the back of grapevine wreaths as I find the sticks have a tendency to scratch my door. Just use your hot glue to attach some felt pads on high or particularly scratchy spots.

Step 5: Hang

While I like the look of organza ribbon for hanging, I know that it will be hard to support the weight of the wreath with the ribbon alone. I use a metal wreath hanger (covered in a piece of grosgrain ribbon in the picture) but loop the organza ribbon through the wreath to look pretty. I just attach the ribbon the backside of the door with a dot of hot glue that can peel off later.

Remember how I said 35 others are celebrating snow, too? Be sure to check out the other posts by following the link party below. It will populate throughout the day, so be sure to pin it and come back to check on it (if you're reading this via e-mail or reader, you may need to click through to my post to see it).

Make a DIY Pretend Doctor Kit

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 00:40:00 +0000

For Christmas, my two year old son said he only wanted Santa to bring him one thing for Christmas: "A doctor kit with a stethoscope." I'm not even kidding. Whose two year old asks for something that sophisticated?

Since he really only asked for one thing, I wanted to try to get him one.

The problem? Most kids' doctor kits are $20-$30 and full of little plastic do-dads. I have major hang ups about paying $30 for a small collection of junky plastic do-dads. And none of them do anything. The reason he wanted a stethoscope in the first place was because a nurse had let him listen to his own heart with one a few weeks prior. Since he asked for one specifically, I wasn't sure he'd want a kids pretend stethoscope that didn't make noises.

So I did what any crafty mom would do: I decided to assemble my own with as many (safe for toddlers) working things as possible. I made this in the two weeks before Christmas, so I know that if I'd given myself more time, I may have been able to get some of these things for less.

What's in the Doctor Kit?

Personalized doctor bag (Free: made myself from an old purse. See below)
Stethoscope (about $8 for this one: Prestige Medical Dualheads, Frosted Royal)
Knee hammer (about $3 for this one: Taylor Percussion Hammer)
Light scope (about $10 for this one: CVS Multi Use Scope Light for Eye Ear Nose Throat)
Metal baindaid box (about $5 for this one: Hello Kitty Bandages)
Ace bandage (about $1.50 at Wal-Mart)
Self-stick medical "tape" (about $1.50 at Wal-Mart)
Box of bandages (to refill bandaid box, $1)
Prescription bottle (on hand)

Total Spent: $30

So I did not actually save any money over buying a pretend doctor kit from the store. BUT I got stuff that is way cooler for the same price I'd have paid for a box of useless shaped plastic pieces. I'm hoping mine will last a bit longer, too.

Here is the break down of everything for those who like pictures and things....

Doctor Bag

The doctor bag actually used to be my favorite purse from college. It did create a smidge of heartbreak to turn my fave sentimental purse into a kids toy but the honest truth is that I have not actually used the purse in 5-6 years (the layer of dust I had to clean off of it will attest to that, ahem) and chances that I will be using such a small purse any time in the next five years is not high either. It also had the best shape for a doctor bag of any of my old purses.

This is what it used to look like:

I made a patch to cover the C on the front with a large white circle of felt, a red cotton cross that was appliqued on, and "Dr. Bonham" written in fabric paint. Once the patch was made (and the paint was dry), I used Aleene's Original Tacky Glue to glue it to the purse. I chose this glue because it is flexible and can move with the bag

Accessories:

Below are the items I bought to fill the kit (you can click the image to go directly to the item for sale on Amazon). We already had the medicine bottle at home.

For those of you wondering: Yes, this doctor kit is for a boy.

Really? Hello Kitty? While the Hello Kitty bandage tin came with cute bandaids, I swapped them out for some plain colorful bandaids instead. All I was really interested in was the tin to use as a durable container for bandaids. You may be able to find a less expensive tin at a drug store near you (I paid about $5 for mine online).

Does he like it? Yes he does! He is particularly enamored with the bandaids - everyone including one of our fluffy dogs has fallen victim to "Dr. Bonham's" attempt at nursing them back to health with the power of kisses and bandaids. It has also become common to have to explain to grandparents, babysitters, store clerks, etc that my child isn't really injured. He just likes bandaids.

He also likes to use his light scope as well as the stethoscope.

These are a couple pictures from Christmas morning:

These were taken a few weeks after Christmas. Notice how both Dr. Bonham and Daddy Bonham have several bandages each.

Thank you for stopping by! If I inspire you to make your own DIY Doctor Kit, please leave me a link in the comments. I'd love to see!

**This post contains affiliate links and I may receive a portion of sales generated from clicking my links. I promise to only ever link to products I know and love. Thank you for supporting Carissa's Creativity Space!**

Organize Your Pantry with Glass Jars and Contact Paper (plus free printable!)

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 02:47:00 +0000

Has your pantry taken on a life of its own? Do you fear spaghetti night because you know as soon as you open the door to your pantry, bags and boxes will threaten to avalanche and leave you buried alive? Are you putting off organizing your pantry because you just can't afford the fancy do-dads you want to make it perfect? Make excuses no more, friends because I tamed my pantry beast for a paltry $1.

I had tons of different bags of bulk foods, boxes open and half full crammed onto my shelves and precariously perched on top of each other. It. was. ugly. No, there are no before shots (you don't really want to see them anyway).

But the after is so nice. Everything has a place and most things have a label:

My favorite labels, of course are the pretty, swirly ones on the top shelf (which is actually the second shelf...the top shelf just has cereal boxes and a large jar of oatmeal). All I had to do was trace the template shapes onto the back of some white contact paper from the dollar store, cut them out and label them with a permanent marker.

Where'd I get all the jars?

I started using just extra quart size canning jars. Anything that was in a bag in the pantry but could fit in the quart jars went in. I also saved all of my glass jars from store bought foods for several months to build my collection. I just soaked off the label, gave it a good scrub and gave it a new home in my pantry. I did eventually purchase some large 1.5 gallon and half gallon jars but most of the jars are re-purposed food jars.

Why not chalkboard labels?

With chalkboard stuff everywhere, there was a temptation to try and make these chalkboard style. I'd seen a tutorial online of someone who had just painted contact paper with chalkboard paint to make chalkboard labels. And I thought about it. But at the end of the day, it was just a lot more work than I wanted to put into this project.

What if I change what's in the jars?

That's the beauty of contact paper! The contact paper just peels right off. I actually cut out a small stack of extra labels so if I switch out the contents of a jar, I can just peel the old label off and put a new one on. Tracing and cutting out the extra labels was way less work than painting a whole roll of contact paper with chalkboard paint (plus, no need to worry if it will flake or chip off later).

(if there was extra contact paper not big enough to make a label, I cut it into a square or rectangle to copy down things like cooking times or instructions and put it on the back of the jar)

If you're itching to organize your pantry, too, save some time and download my free printable label template instead of having to find the shapes yourself. There are a whole range of sizes so you can pick one that's the right size for your jar.

Download the FREE Printable Label Templates Here

(if you are reading this via e-mail or RSS feed, you may need to click through to the post on my blog in order to download the labels)

Upcycled Thread Organizer

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 22:23:00 +0000

Today, I'm proud to show you guys a project that my mom made. I come from a long line of crafty women so it's fun to show off some of their work to you guys. My mom does lots of crafty stuff but one of her specialties is sewing. Currently, fancy Irish Dance Dresses are her thing (interested? check her out at Irish Rose Couture). All those dresses means lots and lots of pretty threads. With her thread collection multiplying faster than rabbits, she needed so do something but she didn't want to add another dowel-based thread rack to her wall.

Instead, she used some small divided tray organizers (she had a lot of leftover from another project), stacked them together and hot glued them to a piece of foam core board from the dollar store. The result is a super cute thread condo that uses the space more efficiently and looks way cuter. Plus it only cost her a dollar because she already had the little trays on hand.

Interested in achieving a similar look?

Look for divided boxes. Think silverware organizers or jewelry boxes. You should be able to find these kinds of items at your local thrift store or if you need to buy something new, I know both Jo-Ann's and Michaels sell divided boxes that they market at jewelry organizers (just don't forget your coupons!).

If your pieces are not already made of wood or something sturdy, be sure to attach them to one big piece of material (like foam core board or MDF) for stability.

Be sure to pop back in throughout January for more organizing ideas. You can also subscribe by e-mail to make sure you don't miss a single post!

2012 Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 20:52:00 +0000

I can hardly believe 2013 is already here! Is it just me, or did this year whip by? Thanks for joining me on the journey and tuning in for some creative green living ideas. These were my top 10 most popular posts from 2012. Did your favorite make it on the list?

#1: DIY Play Kitchen

I made this play kitchen from an old entertainment center for my son. It was originally going to be Christmas present in 2011 but it became a new year's present in 2012 instead. This won the number one spot by a landslide. Check it out if you want to build one: I break the process down for you.

#2: How to Make Peanut Butter

When the price of peanut butter threatened to sky rocket, I was glad to find roasted peanuts on sale and stocked up so I could ride out 2012 with homemade peanut butter. It is super easy and a great way to save money and reduce the amount of junk in your food, too!

#3: Free Photo Christmas Card Templates
What makes this even more remarkable is that this post only had 6 weeks to collect pageviews to win the number 3 spot. Who knew photo card templates would be so popular! I'll be sure to make new ones in 2013, starting with some Valentine's Day cards later this month.

#4: Grow Your Own Easter Grass
This is one of my favorite ways to green your Easter. It's easy, fun and is a great science lesson for the kiddos, too. It takes about a week to grow a basket full of grass.

#5: Easy Glittered Bulb Ornaments

Everyone loves an easy craft project! These bulb ornaments take just a few minutes to make and can be done with inexpensive materials.

#6: Best Homemade Sandwich Bread Ever

Earlier this year I was on a mission to make my own bread that was great for sandwiches (most recipes I'd tried to that point were a little stiff and crumbly or great for soup but not for sandwiches). This bread is amazing. The addition of the vital gluten makes it nice and soft and elastic.

#7: How to Make Yogurt (in your crockpot)

Making yogurt at home is actually very easy and a great way to save money - especially if your family goes through yogurt like mine does! You can even make small personal sized yogurts by pre-packing chopped frozen fruit, a squirt of agave or honey and the fresh yogurt into small jars.

#8: Duct Tape Rainboot Rescue

Don't toss your old rainboots when they start to crack from wear: dress them up with some cute patterned duct tape instead.

#9: How to Make Zots (Zucchini Tots)

When I ended up with almost 200 pounds of zucchini from my garden, we needed to find some ways to use them up. This was a great kid-friendly way to serve zucchini in cheesy, bite sized tots.

#10: Footprint Towels

I made these footprint towels as a gift for my son's grandmother. Little baby feet make adorable bases for both butteflies and bees on flour sack towels.

Easy Glitter Candle Holders

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 02:33:00 +0000

If you're like me, you have barely recovered from Christmas when you realize that New Year's Eve is like, tomorrow! If you're also like me, you may not have made anything crafty for New Year's. Well, worry not because these candle holders take all of 7 minutes to make and only require 4 ingredients!

Supplies

Small tumbler or candle holder
Tea light
Double sided tape
Glitter

I got everything at the dollar store (or had it on hand from a previous dollar store trip) except for the tumblers, which I picked up at Wal-Mart for $2 for a set of 4.

Instructions:

Step 1: Apply double-sided tape around top of tumbler.

Step 2: Apply glitter.

Step 3: Press glitter down with your finger before shaking off excess.

Step 4: Apply double-sided tape to tealight.

Step 5: Roll tea light in the excess glitter from the tumbler.

Blinged out tea light:

Step 6: Insert into the tumbler, light and go!

Don't just stop at using these for New Year's decorations. Use pink and red to make pretty valentine's candles. Green for a little luck o' the Irish in March. The possibilities are only limited by your glitter supply!

Impressive Dollar Store Gift Wrap Ideas: Blue, Silver and Snow

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 19:24:00 +0000

It's Christmas Eve. You're supposed to be wrapping presents but you're trolling Pinterest and the blogosphere instead. Don't worry. It happens to the best of us.

Get something done while you're here and learn how to wrap impressive looking presents with dollar store materials! While these presents look fancy, they are very easy to execute.

Supply List:

Silver wrapping paper
Silver and blue jingle bell garland
Snowflake ornaments
Blue and while crepe paper
Glitter pipe cleaners
Doily
Blue and silver wire ribbon
Hot glue gun and glue sticks

All of the above supplies were purchased at Dollar Tree and provided enogh supplies to wrap about 15 presents with lots left over.

Did you notice that I had a glue gun on the supply list? That's right! All of the accessories on these gifts were adhered with hot glue. It's faster, easier and more secure than tape. I did use tape to wrap the paper wround the boxes but I do have a friend who uses hot glue for that part, too!

Supplies used:

Silver paper
Jingle bell garland

Just cut a piece of the garland long enough to string across the front of the package and secure on the ends with hot glue.

Supplies used:

Silver paper
Glitter pip cleaners

Twist 4-6 glitter pipe cleaners in complimenting colors together in the middle. Then twist the ends around a pencil to make them round. It looks kind of like a firework, it's dimensional and it's more sturdy than ribbon if you need to travel.

Supplies used:

Silver paper
Blue crepe paper
White crepe paper
3 Snowflake ornaments

Wrap two pieces of blue crepe paper around your package to make a double-wide strip of blue. Wrap one piece of white crepe paper around the center over the seam. Add three snowflake ornament across the front.

Supplies used:

Silver paper
Doily
1 glitter pip cleaner

After wrapping your package in silver paper, wrap a doily around the front. Twist the pipe cleaner into the first initial of your gift recipient and glue to the doily.

Supplies used:

Silver paper
Blue and silver ribbon scrap
Snowflake ornament

Wrap a scrap of wide ribbon (or use crepe paper) around the width of your box. Add a single snowflake ornament.

How to Make Envelopes from Magazine Pages

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 08:33:00 +0000

I have a confession. I suffer from DCMS - Dysfunctional Card Mailer Syndrome. I'm not too bad at acquiring and writing cards but boy do I have a hard time getting them in the mail. I've had my Christmas cards ordered since before Thanksgiving but it's the week before Christmas and the only ones that have been mailed, have been sent in boxes with presents. So, uh, five of them. My reason? No envelopes.

My Christmas cards are 4 x 6 and between funds being tight and being super busy, I just haven't had a chance to go buy the right sized envelopes. Well tonight I decided: No more slacking! I whipped up some envelopes with old magazine pages. I used a December issue of a magazine to have holiday-centric images. You could also use this technique with scrapbook paper or old calendar pages.

Supplies:

Magazine, calendar or scrapbook pages
Card or letter to mail
Glue stick
White out tape
Self adhesive gift tags
Pen

Make the envelope:

Step 1: Pick a magazine page you like and turn it face down. Center your card on the page

Step 2: Fold in the long sides of the page against the sides of the card

Step 3: Dog ear the corners

Step 4: Using the bottom of your card as a guide, fold the bottom edge up. Mark the diagonals with a pen.

Step 5: Apply the glue stick on both sides from the line down to the fold (as indicated by the blue arrows)

Step 6: Fold the bottom up and press along the edges to seal.

Step 7: Dog ear the top edge. Fold the top edge down against the side of the card and crease. Open and apply glue across the top and on the dog ears (as for the flap of an envelope)

Step 8: Fold the flap down to close. Press to seal

Address the front:

To make festive holiday labels (and to create a clean space to write the address if mailing), apply a self adhesive gift tag to the front.

If you are going to mail your cards, be sure to avoid confusion with the post office by whiting out the "from" on the tag before writing the recipient's address. Use another label for a return address in the traditional place, or write it along the envelope flap on the back side.

Now you have envelopes that will stand out from the crowd as well as save you money and help save some trees!

Make Glitter Dinosaur Ornaments

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:50:00 +0000

Join me over at Dollar Store Crafts where I teach you how to take small plastic dinosaurs and transform them into fun ornaments for your tree. This technique, of course, works with all manner of plastic creatures including bugs, zoo animals, horses and more. If you find that your tree is a little on the full side, these also make great present toppers - plus your recipient gets the bonus gift of a sparkly dinosaur friend. {Learn how to make Glittered Dinosaur Ornaments Here}

Make Reindeer Pom-Pom Magnets

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Sat, 15 Dec 2012 01:21:00 +0000

My son is 2 and a half and has been getting more and more interested in making crafts with me. In a search for kid friendly crafts (which I admittedly have very little experience with), we have been experimenting with pom-poms. They are soft and kid friendly. And my son has a lot of fun fluffing up his "puffy balls" as he calls them before we start crafting.

This particular guy is stuck to a magnet from the dollar store (you can get a package of 8 magnets that look like buttons in the school supplies section of Dollar Tree). They also make fun tree ornaments if you stick them to a painted clothespin instead of the magnet. Just clip it onto the end of a branch!

Supplies

1.5" or 2" brown pom-pom (pictured craft made with 2" Pom Pom)
Googly eyes
Small sparkle pom for nose
1 tan "chenille stem" AKA pipe cleaner
Magnet or clothespin
Wire cutters
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
White glue** (if crafting with kiddos)

**When I make these by myself, I use hot glue for the whole thing. If crafting with kiddos, you can use white glue to attach eyes, nose and antlers - although this method will require drying time before it will be ready to attach to a magnet or clothespin with hot glue. If you do this, be generous with the glue because the large pom-pom with absorb a lot.

Step 1: Make the face

Attach googly eyes and sparkle pom to large pom-pom using your preferred gluing method. If using white glue, be generous in your application and allow to dry overnight after attaching antlers.

Step 2: Make the antlers

Cut the chenile stem into 6 lengths (each approximately 2" long) using the wire cutters. If you end up with slightly shorter lengths at the end, use these for the top rack of antlers. Make two sets of antlers as show by twisting 2 sections around a length of stem. Attach to large pom-pom using preferred glue method.

Step 3: Attach the magnet

Regardless of your face/antler attachment method, you'll want to use hot glue to attach the magnet to the back of the reindeer. I prefer the dollar store magnets over the small kind you get at the craft store because not only are they less expensive (8 for $1), but they are a more substantial size. Look for them in the school supply section.

That's it!

Alternatively, you can also glue your reindeer to a clothespin. I got a large package of clothespins at the dollar store and painted mine red with red sparkles. Glue the reindeer upright on top of the pincer end and then just clip him onto the end of a branch

Five Ways to Wrap Gifts with Kids (that still look great)

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:00:00 +0000

SPOILER ALERT: This post shows pictures of real wrapped gifts for family members.

I've been so blessed to be working with Dollar Store Crafts lately. I started working for them as their Newsletter Manager and was recently invited to start writing for the site itself. Not only is that an awesome honor but the owner as well as the site editor are fabulous to work with.

My first post went live yesterday, showing you five great ways to wrap gifts with kids that look awesome instead of....well, you know...like a kid wrapped them. Of course these use dollar store materials so they are super affordable (in most cases you can wrap 3 or more gifts for $1). Come visit Dollar Store Crafts to read the full article. {Five Ways to Wrap Presents with Kids (That Still Look Great) }

Tute-Less Tuesday: Pom-Pom Ornaments

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 16:00:00 +0000

Materials:

Glass Bulb Ornament (6 for $2 and up)
Sparkly Pom-Poms ($1 and up)

Some crafts are so easy they really don't need instructions. This is one of them. But in case you need them:

Step 1: Remove top from ornament
Step 2: Insert pom-poms (AKA "puffy balls" in our house)
Step 3: Replace top

You can, of course, do this with any color but red and green were my choice. These sparkly pom-poms were in the $1 section of Jo-Anns near the registers.

Make a Melted Snowman Christmas Ornament

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 23:57:00 +0000

I found the instructions for this clever ornament via Dollar Store Crafts (where, by the way, I'm now a Contributor as well as the Newsletter Manager. Pop over and subscribe by e-mail and get a cleverly written newsletter from me in your inbox each week).

I made mine with a small bulb ornament, chunky epsom salt, black peppercorns, a scrap of ribbon and a scrap of orange fleece for the nose. {Get the full melted snowman tutorial here}

Make Easy Glittered Bulb Ornaments

noreply@blogger.com (Carissa Bonham) — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 04:02:00 +0000

These ornaments are quick and easy to make and are a great project to do with kids or beginning crafters (the blue ornament in the photo was made by a nine year old girl!). Really, I'm not sure if you could design a better project: quick, easy and affordable.

Materials Needed:

Clear bulb ornaments (I got a 6 pack for $2 at Michaels)
Glitter (on hand or $1)
Mod Podge (on hand or use watered down white glue in a pinch)
Mod Podge Holiday Rub-Ons (on hand)

Directions:

Step 1: Take the top off the bulb ornament

Step 2: Use a brush to paint some Mod Podge inside the bottom of the ornament.
(pretty much any formula Mod Podge will do. In a pinch, you could also use watered down white glue)

Step 3: Add some glitter
Shake it around to cover all of the Mod Podge. I used a mix of chunky glitter from the dollar store and fine glitter from the $1 section of Michaels.
Pro tip: Use a popsicle stick or funnel to scoop the glitter into the ornament without making a mess

Step 4: Cut out a rub-on and apply
Use the popsicle stick to rub hard over the word to apply it to the surface. When you're done, peel it off slowly to make sure the whole thing stuck. If needed, replace the film and continue rubbing until the full word is adhered.

Step 5: Set aside to dry
You can return the top right away if you're a anxious to hang them on the tree. They will dry faster, however, if you leave the top off. It may take up a full day (or more if you put the tops back on) for the white from the Mod Podge to disappear completely.

Keep repeating the process with different glitter colors until you have your own sparkly jewel toned ornament collection. I did a variety of small ones and then made a large one and added some blue and silver dollar store bells to the side for an embellishment.

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* Get Your Craft on @ Today's Creative Blog *