10 minute Glue Gun Birthday Shirt

Ah its that time of year.
I didn't make birthday shirts for the older girls this year.
{sniff sniff.. I'm ok with it} so I almost forgot to make one for the next birthday girls.

So after some googling to come up with quick new ideas, stencils and glue resist came up.

This was so easy and I had all the tools at home.

All you need is a shirt (I got mine $3 target)
Glue Gun and Glue
Spray paint


On some baking paper write out the number (or word or whatever) in Glue.
Let dry and peel off.
Place word on shirt and spray with spray paint {place some cardboard between shirt}
I'm sure fabric paint would work better but all I had is white spray paint so I used that
- Miss would have loved some pink spray

Because the shirt was light and the paint was light the number came out very subtle.
But that's ok. Easier to wear stealthily after the day.

I also sprayed the bottom back for a bit of fun.

Previous Birthday Shirts:

Paint Stencilled Birthday Shirt

Letters {ONE} Birthday Shirt

Felt and Fabric Birthday Shirt

Ribbon Birthday Shirt

Reverse Applique Birthday Shirt

Zig Zag Stitched Birthday Shirt 

Spotty Reverse Applique

2 Birthday Shirt

Recycled Corderoy Pants 5 Birthday Shirt

Felt and Fabric double layer 10 Birthday Shirt

Felt Cat and Reverse Applique 11 Birthday Shirt

Felt Snowflake and Stitched #6 Birthday Shirt

Bleached Out Number Shirt

Fabric Marker Shirt

Elf on the Shelf

I publicly wrote here that I probably wouldn't be doing elf on the shelf.

EVER...

even though I really wanted to...

But wasn't going to for many reasons (we don't do Santa or elves watching anyone/behaviour monitoring, the time, the mess, the DAILY TIME!) even though I thought it was cute.

Well happy to report that since I found a mega cheap elf (not a proper elf on shelf brand) I thought this year I will give it a go. Since my kids are much older than the target group I thought I would get my older girls to do it for my younger (hmmm that lasted a couple days) as a special seasonal treat to get them all in the spirit and to get the olders giving a bit of sweet service to their little sisters.

I may have been cursing myself when on the VERY FIRST DAY... YES THE 1st DEC!
when we were out very late at a school function, coming home at 10pm and I think oh my goodness I have to do the elf!! And the first day needs to be good, my kids have no idea about the elf....the darn elf.. I was definitely regretting it already. ON THE FIRST DAY!

Then when the kids came out the next morning they shrugged, walked by and said

Mum... thats really creepy... He's ugly.

I think I may have almost wept.

HAHAHAHAHAH.


But I kept on and after a few days they loved it. They wanted to help place him - they did a few times but I did do most of it. They were interested in where will he be tomorrow... and by the end of December they said 'but we don't want Pepermint to leave!!!!!!!' and even had a few sads as they saw me put him away with all the Christmas decorations that get shoved in the roof for storage.

Since my kids are older now I think it provided a fun little daily seasonal outlet that gave them a bit of joy in the season. I am a little worried that it could become traditional then you would be stuck doing it forever (it is a bit of a job in an already busy time) but for this year I was glad we gave it a try.


Here is what our Peppermint got up to this season at our house:

Will Peppermint return next year?

Advent Calendar {Standing Frame Flip Advent}

November means Advent Calendar making!

This year I've combined the Standing Ikea Frame Advent Calendars idea with
Random Acts of Kindness Advent Calendars Here  Here  Here Here


Needed:
Christmas scrapbooking papers
number stickers
Tags, ebellishments
Double sided Tape
30mm Index Card Ring
Tolsby Standing Frame


Collect up craft paper and card and embellishments you like.
I would have liked my calendar to be a bit cuter
{but hey all those awesome embellishments add up $$} so I just used 10 for $1 gift tags.
Good news is it will be easy to change/add to if I want in the future

Measure the inside of the IKEA frame.
The paper needs to flip over so needs to be smaller than 4x6 inside frame
I underestimated how small this would be, some of my embellishments were too big! wah!

Cut 12 {or 24}rectangles approx 13x8 cm
Cut 12 {or 24} rectangles 10x8
Make sure you have one large and one small rectangle in the same paper for each 'day'

Using double sided tape stick the shorter rectangles onto the front of the larger rectangles leaving the tops open {so it forms a pocket you can slip a tag or card into with your advent activity/act of service/ scripture/ christmas joke/ whatever you want.}

Decorate with Christmas embellishments/tags. Add number stickers {mine from Riot}

Hole punch a hole in each card.

Attach to the tolsby frame using a index card ring (mine is 30 mm flip chart rings from Daiso}


Display and flip over each day for a new activity/question/act of service for the month of December.

***

Here are some of the acts of service that I liked {I wanted easy achievable ones for the month}

Give someone a compliment today
Smile at people
Make dinner for someone in need
Give cookies to friends
Leave a finished book you've read in a public spot for someone else to enjoy
Pick up rubbish in a local park/roadside etc
Mail a card to someone you haven't seen in a while
Leave coins at a laundromat/shopping centre ride ons/vending machine
Find a local home with best Christmas lights and leave a thankyou note
Give sincere thanks to a teacher and maybe a little gift {school or church or music}
Offer to babysit for a family that needs it
Write a letter to a loved one
Leave anonymous happy notes in public places
Invite a new friend out/over
Let someone ahead of you in a line
Leave stamps for someone to find at the post office
Leave happy chalk messages around your neighbourhood
Wash a car


On some days I might pop in another tag with questions from Last Years Advent Calendar . {confession : I've left it up all year! We've used it as a noticeboard for motivational photos/posters /sayings the girls collect}I've still got these tags tucked away ready to be bought out again. I love these questions and think they will go well tucked in the pockets of  this Standing frame Advent.

Past Years Advent Calendars:

Wooden Tree, vintage photos, family question time Advent
Lolly String Advent Calendar
Sewn Brown Paper Advent
Christmas Book a Day Advent
Bon Bon Advent
Pocket Bunting Advent
Religious/Life of Christ Advent Calendar
Poke a Cup Lolly Advent
Sewn cardboard houses Advent
Envelope Activity Advent
Quilted, Hang an Ornament Advent


I'm excited cause I just ordered 3 of these German Paper Window Advent Calendars
so pretty. Don't worry about the $20 tax. It doesn't appear at the checkout in the end. It was freaking me out. Wasn't there last purchase.

TEN {Sequin Birthday Shirt}

Each year we make a birthday shirt. Just to mix it up a bit I ocassionaly trial different types.

This year we tried sequins! I had sequin ribbon here and shirt was $3 from Target. Done!

Sequins were a bit more fiddly to work with than I thought - you have to do a stitch behind every sequin to 'capture' the thread holding them together. My writing turned out a bit wonkier than I wanted as they moved around a bit while sewing but Miss 10 was happy with the outcome.

^^ Heres an example that I was working on laying out the ribbon in running writing. Turned out this shirt was too tight. Lucky we checked before I spent all the time sewing the ribbon!


Previous Birthday Shirts:

Paint Stencilled Birthday Shirt

Letters {ONE} Birthday Shirt

Felt and Fabric Birthday Shirt

Ribbon Birthday Shirt

Reverse Applique Birthday Shirt

Zig Zag Stitched Birthday Shirt 

Spotty Reverse Applique

2 Birthday Shirt

Recycled Corderoy Pants 5 Birthday Shirt

Felt and Fabric double layer 10 Birthday Shirt

Felt Cat and Reverse Applique 11 Birthday Shirt

Felt Snowflake and Stitched #6 Birthday Shirt

Bleached Out Number Shirt

Fabric Marker Shirt

Winter Solstice 2016

^^ WOOD! We are running low. Thanks to kids and neighbours for collecting.

^^ Blessings to burn in the fire to release. We are mid school year so always need learning help.

^^ I've just learnt how to crochet stars. I'm starting now for Christmas but thought they went well with the longest night of the year.

^^ First technical? Day of winter.

^^ Mega Mallows. Took me ages to Eat!

Our family has done a small winter solstice family tradition the past few years. Usually it involves watching the sun set and having a fire and warm yummy food. This year I've added the tradition of making some blessings, wishes, thoughts that we will pop in the fire.  Basically write down something you would like to release to the world. Some people like to give thanks for all the blessings and challenges each year brings. Some opt to write life difficulties to let go of them, but I think we will write all the things we are grateful for and for positive things we want to release into the world. I'll let the girls write their own. We've wrapped them with some rosemary (just because thats all I had - anything would be fun)


See our previous celebrations:
2015 (the purple sky last year! We had takeaway hot choc)
2014 (too warm for a fire)
2013 (we were sick, a perfect way to get snuggly)
2012 (it was a hot day!)
2011 (there was live music, and we built our own fire without the MR)
2008

Solstice is the 21 June. We will probably do ours a day early - but there isn't much difference between the shortest day/longest night of the year, compared to the second shortest right?! (a few mins) I'm sure any day this week will do. As its also FHE night we will do a small lesson about being grateful for the seasons, the sun and stars, nature and creation.


The astronomical definition comes about as the winter solstice is the day when the Sun is at its furthest north, it is at its lowest in the sky and the length of daylight is the shortest in the year. The North Pole of the earth will be tilted toward the Sun, which will have reached its northernmost position in the sky and will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer at 23.44 degrees north latitude. This is the first day of summer (summer solstice) in the northern hemisphere and the first day of winter (winter solstice) in the southern hemisphere.


Now to tuck into bed and enjoy the longest night of the year!