Tag Archives: edible craft

Involving Children in Genealogy

As we get older, we learn the importance of Genealogy. As kids, maybe we didn’t realize what Genealogy was all about. We may not have appreciated knowing about our ancestors until we were older. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t teach our children about Genealogy so that they can appreciate learning about their ancestry from an early age. There are many activities that we can do with children of all ages in order to teach them about Genealogy. Let’s look at some ideas and projects for different age groups. For young children, they may enjoy completing the teddy bear family tree, … Continue reading →

Hop Aboard the Candy Train and Other Festive Crafts for Kids

Now that the kids are out on winter break your home is probably not as quiet (or clean) as it was a week ago. To regain some semblance of order you might consider emptying your craft closet and assembling the following kid-friendly holiday crafts. Not only will they help your children channel their energy into something worthwhile, but also your home will be filled with festive decorations. Note: Adult supervision is required on projects that involve hot glue. CHRISTMAS CANDY TRAIN Materials: Hot glue gun 1 unopened roll of hard candy (Lifesavers) 4 wrapped peppermint candies 1 wrapped caramel 1 … Continue reading →

Why Scrapbooking Makes Me Happy

Since I was very young, I can always remember needing a creative outlet in which to express myself. Before it was scrapbooking it was stamping, and before it was stamping it was arts and crafts. Even from a really young age, I can remember being enthralled with the idea of saving memories and making myself relive them over and over again. I can remember making ‘books’ as I called them, with magazine cut-outs and photographs and words and journaling and cool pictures and drawings. That wasn’t just a book. It was the beginning of a scrapbook. Albeit not a very … Continue reading →

Tackling a Huge Project

Many of us start out our home businesses on a small scale. We might piece things together one customer or client at a time. Others of us might start out with only one or two larger customers or clients who consume the bulk of our time. At some point, many of us have to face the “problem” of growth and evaluate whether or not to take on a huge project or a big new client or customer, and figure out whether our home businesses can handle it or not… Many of us make the mistakes of either being way too … Continue reading →

The Joys and Challenges of Family Projects

I love family projects—whether it is cookie baking, cleaning out the closets, or other ambitious undertakings, I really do enjoy (for the most part) doing projects with my kids. The truth is, however, it doesn’t always go well and we have had some major implosions over the years when it came to attempting to do family projects. I’ve learned that there are certain things we just can’t do together and that there are certain “arrangements” that work better than others… When my children were little, I used to try to coordinate big group projects for the holidays—jack-o-lantern carving, group cookie-baking, … Continue reading →

7 Common DIY Mistakes (6)

Ooh, we are getting close to the end of our series of the 7 most common do it yourself (DIY) mistakes that people usually make. The sixth one is one that I continue to remind myself about. Over the years, not falling for this mistake has saved us some money. This next common DIY mistake is one that you might not usually think about. It is missing out on guarantees. Many times we take on DIY projects to save some money. Even if we have the skills and experience, we can’t guarantee our own work for free, so sometimes hiring … Continue reading →

Three Quick and Easy Ghost Craft Projects

Halloween ghosts are very easy to make. Here are three to occupy the kids or to brighten someone else’s day. Ghostly feet Take one small person’s foot and press into white washable paint. Press their feet onto black paper so that the heel is at the top of the paper. The round imprint of the heel is the ghost’s head. On top of the paint put googly eyes, or dots of black paint for eyes. The prints of little toes almost look like the ghosts are floating. These make great party invitations or Halloween cards for grandparents. Tissue paper ghosts … Continue reading →

7 Common DIY Mistakes (4)

What is the biggest complaint that potential buyers make when looking at a recently remodeled house? That is the subject of our next common mistake that is made when you do it yourself. Learn what that mistake is and how to avoid it. Image that you are looking at a home. It has some fabulous new updates, but some things seem to be missing. This is what happens when the homeowners have left certain things half done or incomplete. This can not only not add the value to your home that was your goal in remodeling, but it can also … Continue reading →

7 Common DIY Mistakes (3)

Doing it yourself instead of hiring a professional just might cost you money in the long run. This is especially true if you plan on selling your home in the future. We have been talking about the most common do it yourself mistakes and how to avoid them. We are now up the the third mistake, and it could be one of the most costly ones. What is it? Read below. The mistake we are going to talk about today is equating the dollar amount you spend with the value of the remodel or repair. You can spend thousands of … Continue reading →

How Do You Turn Down a Project or Client?

One of the reasons many of us share for going into business for ourselves is that we want to be able to choose who and when we work. In the beginning weeks or months of our businesses, however, we may take any client, customer or project that comes our way. But, as we get established, and if we have a very clear of sense of our mission and purpose, there will eventually come a time when a project or client presents itself that we really don’t want to work with—so how do we turn down a project or client and … Continue reading →