How to Care for Bonsai Trees

If Bonsai trees conjure up images of Mr. Miagi and the Karate Kid trimming a small tree, you're not alone. Tiny mature trees, knows a Bonsai trees take years to cultivate, but can last up to 100 years.  Check out THIS article for steps on how to plant and then care for bonsai trees.

DIY Apron Shirts

Turn an unused men's button-down shirt into an apron shirt perfect for covering your kid's normal clothes during arts and crafts time or a cover-all appropriate for you to wear while gardening or cooking messy foods.

Check out THIS article for step-by-step instructions on how to simply alter the shirts to suit your needs.

DIY Costume Crafts

As any parent knows, kids love to play dress-up. Unfortunately packaged costume sets can be costly and become damaged easily. Instead of buying a set or things by the piece, use some of your creative energy to make some costume crafts yourself. Antennas, animal ears, and animal-themed sweatshirts are all simple to make, and allow your child to use his imagination.

Let the kids mix and match the costume pieces together to form something completely unique such as a tiger with antennas. Check out THIS article for cool tips on how to make costume accessories.

DIY Wedding a Reception Menue

Details make the wedding memorable. Even the smallest details, like personalized wedding reception menus can help make the wedding look pulled together and show your guests that nothing was planned last minute.

Don't feel like you need to hire a printer for your reception menus- you can print them yourself as long as you have a word processor computer program. Follow THIS link for tips on how to design and print your own menus.

Making Cow Print Rugs

Who doesn't love the random design of cow splotches?

If you already have faux cow print curtains and bedding, and are itching to for a rug, but just don't want the actual cowhide on the floor, CREATE YOUR OWN following the simple techniques outlines in THIS ARTICLE.

Making Personalized Area Rugs

Personalization is all the rage right now. People love seeing their name, initials, or their favorite characters or teams on their own items.

If you've been craving to add a little personalization to your room (or your baby's nursery) - purchase a low-pile area rug and get painting. That's right- you can paint designs on area rugs to feature your favorite designs.

Check out THIS ARTICLE for info on How to Personalize An Area Rug.

Making a Three Stick Stool

Three stick stools are lightweight and easily portable. You've probably seen them at sporting events or at campgrounds, and wondered how they worked or if you could make one yourself.  Well the answer is YES YOU CAN!

Three stick stools hale from South America, and were used by people who lived in tents and traveled a lot. You too can make a three stick stool with a few supplies such as three same-sized sticks (baseball bats work well), some heavy-duty fabric such as denim or leather, and some strong rope.

Check out THIS LINK for the article I wrote on how to make a three stick stool. And check out the book and link to the left for more cool crafts on making authentic crafts.

Making Goop

Thanks to the HUGE snow storm in Atlanta (6 inches of snow in my yard!!!) I've been house-bound with my three kids since Monday. Desperate times call for desperate measures.... so I decided to make a "green goop" recipe that was in my son's superhero coloring book.


Recipe:
2 cups salt
2/3 cup water
1 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup cold water

Directions:
Mix 2 cups salt and 2/3 cup water; heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, quickly add mixture of 1 cup cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water. Stir quickly and add green food coloring. Return mix to the heat if it is too "goopy."

TIPS:
Mix the cornstarch and cold water BEFORE you add it to the heated salt mix.  I didn't do this (and didn't notice the phrasing in the directions) and the mix was unbearably difficult to stir with the wooden spoon.

I thought the mix would be more slime-like, but it actually looked like sandy cookie dough, and wasn't very wet at all.

Don't eat the goopy mixture, it won't taste good, and frankly it doesn't smell too good either. Sadly, the kids decided they wanted to play with their new play-doh sets from Christmas, so my creation was placed in a plastic container.

Quick Costume Ideas

If you've been invited to a last-minute costume party, or just feel like mixing things up a little, visit THIS ARTICLE for some quick ideas for transforming yourself (or your kids) into a scarecrow, animals, princess, or even the classic 80s TV character Magnum PI.