Upholstered Bench

Not so long ago we bought a house, and I have been trying to furnish it without spending much extra money. Months ago, I got a cute, modern desk free from craigslist. The only problem is it didn't come with a chair, so we'd been using a dining room chair... until now.

Take one free piano bench from craigslist

Half a yard of fabric from Joann's for a whopping $3.50

And a can of blue spray paint leftover from an earlier project, and Voila!

Not counting the time it took for the paint to dry, the whole project took about 30 minutes, and I love how it turned out.

Easter Eggs Painted with Crayons

Painted Easter Egg instructions are now here.

Stained Glass Cross Craft

Finished Crosses

Stained Glass Cross instructions are here.

Upcycled CD/DVD Coasters

So, we have dozens of unreadable or obsolete CDs and DVDs sitting around.  When something doesn't burn correctly, DH husband usually laments that he's made another coaster.  I've thought about sending them off to a technology recycling firm. Alas, they charge to recycle them, and then any data that is readable is put at risk.  So, I came up with a way to put all of those "coasters" to use.

So, without further ado here are the directions for making easy and adorable CD coasters.

Supplies:
Trash CDs or DVDs
Super glue
Ribbon
Embellishments (optional)
Scissors

Brace yourself; this is the hard part... (Not)

Directions:

1. Gather the CDs you'd like to use and choose which will be the top layer.  This is important because this is the side everyone will see.  Choose enough CDs to fit the width of your ribbon.
2. Super glue the CDs together.
3. Measure and cut your ribbon.  You can wrap it around the CDs if you don't have a ruler handy.
4. Super glue ribbon around the edge of the CD stack.  Add embellishments if desired -- this is particularly useful if you don't want to see the seam.

Pipe Cleaner Christmas Wreath Craft

Find instructions to make this wreath here.

Alphabet Stick Craft

Alphabet Stick Craft is here.

Free Summer Kids Activities (Many in Chicago, Some Nationwide)

I am always looking for things to do with the kids in the summer, and I hate spending a lot of money for activities.  So, I've compiled this list to help out others.  It will certainly be most useful if you are in Chicago (or planning a visit), but a few activities are nationwide or mostly so.

1. For really hot days take the kids bowling for FREE! You can sign up at http://www.kidsbowlfree.com/ to receive printable coupons good for 2 free games per child per day.  It is nationwide as long as there's a bowling alley near you willing to participate.  If you live the New Orleans area, you're out of luck for now.  If your bowling alley doesn't participate, you might suggest that they consider it for next summer.  You will need to rent shoes (or buy a pair online if you plan to go often).  We went 1-2 times a week last summer, and the girls had a blast.

2. Parks and playgrounds are always fun, especially if it's not too hot.  There are tons of great parks in Chicago, and at Millenium Park there are free kid's activities all summer long.  The Family Fun Festival offers a variety of activities every weekday, including Wiggleworms interactive music, story time, arts & crafts presented by different museums, and music & dance performances.

3. Swimming! This is one we have not tried in past years, but we will be doing in a couple of weeks.  There are 77 public pools in Chicago that offer free swimming.  Click here to access a list of pool locations and hours.  Most of them have certain times for various age groups or family swim, and they offer free swim lessons for kids ages 6-12.  If you don't live in Chicago, check with your local park district about public swimming pool availability.

4. Movies in the Park. There are lots of options for different age groups at parks around the city.  The Karate Kid for older kids, Yogi Bear for younger one, and Jaws for parents.  This would be fun with a picnic dinner.  If you don't live in Chicago, your local movie theater may offer free summer movies.  You can check here.

5. Music in the Park: if you want a little more culture, try the Grant Park Music Festival.  This is another good one for enjoying a picnic dinner while listening to the wonderful performances of the Grant Park Orchestra accompanied by guest musicians.

6. Museums: All of the major Chicago museums offer free days throughout the year.  I am disappointed to say that despite the fact that Chicago Public Schools didn't get out until June 17, many museums offered their last summer free days in early June.  There are some, however, that will be having more free days in July and August.  If you live in the city, or are visiting residents, you can also check out passes for many museums from any library branch.  Target is also sponsoring free or reduced admission at museums around the country.

7. Lincoln Park Zoo is always free.  It offers traditional zoo animals like zebras, elephants, and giraffes, as well as the Fart-in-the-Zoo with cows, baby chicks/hatchlings, and a beehive (sort of).  There is also a community garden, and storytime on Wednesday and Friday at 9:15 and 10 a.m in the farm area.

8. Reading Programs: the Chicago Public Library offers a summer reading program for kids up to age 14.  After reading 25 picture books or 10 chapter books, kids earn a t-shirt.  Each week they present a book report, they are also entered in a raffle to win books.  If you're not in Chicago, Borders Books and Barnes & Noble also offer summer reading programs.  After reading 10 and 8 books respectively, kids earn a free book. B&N is only open to school age children, but even young children can do the Borders one.  If you don't live near either of those stores, here's a mail-in reading program.

9. Story Times:  Most of the Chicago Public Library branches offer story times.  You can search for events by branch.  Barnes and Noble also offers weekly story times.  Just click the "stores and events" link on the website to find one near you.  If you live near a Pottery Barn Kids, they offer story time year round.  As an extra bonus to theirs, you get a attendance book stamped every week and after 5 stamps it becomes a $10 coupon good on anything in the store.  They are also offering a reading program to earn a free book for reading their entire reading list (it's not very long).

10. If you have kids ages 8-12 and live near an Apple Store, they can do a free summer camp workshop where kids become filmmakers.  Mine are too young for this one, but we'll keep it in mind for future summers.

If you know of other programs or have other ideas, feel free to share them!

Easy Upcycling Craft (Denim Purse)

This has been a team craft for us between adult (or older child) and younger ones. We've made two types of purses from Daddy's worn out jeans --large purses, and pocket purses.

What You Need:
old, holey jeans
ribbon (choose a thick width for the large purse, smaller for the pocket purse)

sewing machine & thread
fabric glue
markers (or other decorating items)

Project One (Large Purse):
1. Cut off the bottom portion of the legs as high as needed to make a purse in the size you want.  The hem will be the top of the purse.
2. Turn inside out, and sew the cut edges together.

3. Cut a ribbon to the desired length.

4. Fold the edges under (to prevent unraveling), and sew to the inner side seams of the purse.

5. Put an art smock or old T-shirt on your children and hand them some permanent markers to decorate.  You can also cut out pictures to trace, and the kids can color them in.

Project Two (Pocket Purse):

1. Cut the pockets off the same pair of jeans (including the inner jean to which the pocket fabric is attached). You can either cut the top inner edge with pinking shears or cover the edge with ribbon to prevent unraveling.

2. Put fabric glue on the wrong side of one pocket.
3. Place edges of ribbon cut to desired length on the glued side of pocket and place the other pocket on top (wrong sides together). Voila, you have a purse with two small compartments.
4. Put an art smock or old T-shirt on your children and hand them some permanent markers to decorate.

Addendum: The larger purses are great for organizing small toys, carrying books & things while your out and about, and as gift bags for girls' birthdays. We attended a horse themed birthday party once, and Yaya decorated one with a galloping horse for the gift bag.  We saw it holding books in church the following Sunday.

You can also watch demonstrations on the Instructional Video page.

The Tomb: A Craft

The empty tomb craft is here.

Crayon Christmas Wreaths

You can find instructions to make crayon wreaths here.