Upgrade Your Dollar Store Valentines!

Hello!  Today I want to share a quick and FUN project with you! 
UPGRADED dollar store Valentines!

My daughter and I have been playing around with valentines this year to send to grandmas and cousins and friends.  We took some valentines we purchased at the dollar store this year (plus some from past years!) and... well...  did this with them!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I definitely consider it an improvement!!
Here are a few more!

And, my personal favorite!

Ha ha ha!!  Enjoy!  And if you make your own, share them with the hashtag #upgradedvalentine !

Ninja Party -- Super Inexpensive!

Mr. S had his 5th birthday earlier this month, and after lots of thought decided he wanted a NINJA party. I must confess -- we threw this party together very quickly. On a Monday morning (BEFORE we had the theme) we ran to the store and got generic invitations for him to pass out to classmates at school that day. By that afternoon he had decided on the theme. The party was Thursday.

I called my brother, who is skilled in doodling, and asked him to draw me a quick ninja. I used his ninja to cut out posterboard ninja decorations for the front door

and the walls.

And, of course, at our house no birthday party is complete without T-shirts for all the guests! (Past parties with T-shirts: Super Mario Bros and Despicable Me!)
I found 16 long sleeve T-shirts, all XS, in four different colors at the dollar store. I worked my magic with my brother's ninja drawing, my printer, and some iron-on printer paper. It was a complex shape so it took a long time to cut out the ninjas, but it was most definitely worth it!

A quick rundown on games:

We started with Ninja Training. My husband was an excellent trainer, teaching them how to be quick on their feet by having them jump over a spinning sword, and teaching them how to listen well and be disciplined by playing Ninja Says. He and Mr. S even created a big obstacle course in the basement for everyone to run through -- it involved climbing over, crawling under, somersaults, and even throwing paper Chinese stars!

We played Pin the Sei Blade on the Ninja.

The cake? I thought we could make cupcakes, but Mr. S thought that didn't count for a birthday. So, the morning of the party we lucked out and found a black and red swirly-looking cake already made at Walmart. Hubs brought home some ninja legos to go on top. Perfection!

At a local toy store we found these FUN tiny dragons for 50 cents a pop. The original plan was to put them on the cupcakes, but...

...they were just right on each piece of cake!

At the END of the party, just before parents were coming to pick everyone up, we busted out the $1 foam swords (from Target!) and a huge pile of balloons, and everyone played "keep up" -- trying to keep the balloons from hitting the ground. This was everyone's favorite game -- and we saved it for the end to avoid any sword fighting among the ninjas. It worked out just perfectly!

So, to sum up: Everyone had a fantastic time. Each guest went home with a T-shirt, sword, and tiny dragon for a total of $2.50 per kid. Mr. S was beaming for days. Sounds like the perfect party to me!

It's birthday party time....

It's birthday party time around here again, and you know what that means....

....lots of dollar store and dollar aisle shopping!!

This morning we went and picked up scads of T-shirts, posterboards, and balloons from the dollar store, and a huge pile of foam swords from Target's dollar aisle!!

Can't wait to share some details later this week!

Itty-Bitty Photo Frames

Today I'm over at Dollar Store Crafts sharing these itty-bitty photo frames. Wouldn't they be SO CUTE on a scrapbook page, or in a dollhouse?

Come check it out!!

"Despicable Me" Party Ideas!

For today's Dollar Store Craft I want to share what we did for Buzz's 6th birthday party last weekend. He really wanted a party with a Despicable Me theme. (If you haven't seen the movie yet, I definitely recommend it. It's so much fun!)


Of course we had to have some fun decor -- so I bought a couple posterboards at the dollar store and cut out some minions for the walls. I found a bright yellow disposable plastic tablecloth at Walmart for a little over a buck, which I ended up cutting to fit not only my kitchen table but also two smaller picnic tables we brought in. Also found at the dollar store: bright blue paper plates, bright blue and yellow crepe paper streamers, and....


....SCORE! Scads of bright blue T-shirts in all the kid sizes I needed! I busted out one of my FAVORITE crafty supplies I always keep on hand: Transfer Magic's Ink Jet "Transfer to Dark" heat transfer paper. This stuff is THE BEST. I simply sized some minion images in Photoshop, crammed them all into a 8 1/2" x 11" file, and printed them out on one sheet of transfer paper. I cut them all out while I watched a movie, then ironed them onto the blue t-shirts. Bang! 20 T-shirts for about $22! It was SO FUN to see all the little party-going minions running around in their matching minion t-shirts!

Now for the party games:


First a project-y sort of thing (you know I can't resist throwing in a creative project!): Cookie robots! My sister (thanks, Lol!) and I cooked this one up over the phone just a few hours before the party. When I went to pick up the cake (there IS a very cute Despicable Me cake available, hooray!), I also grabbed a bag of chocolate chip cookies, a box of Dots, a bag of stick pretzels and some cookie frosting. Ba-da-bing, cookie robots! Each partygoer got to come up with his or her own design. Fun and tasty!

Another game: Gru Says!
I whipped this Gru scarf together out of some fleece scraps. The idea is that whoever wears the Gru scarf gets to be in charge of Gru Says (Simon Says, of course!) -- and all the minions must follow. I admit, we never got around to actually playing this game at Buzz's party, because another game took over....


A beanbag-toss-type game: In the movie there is a scene at a carnival where the object of a carnival game is to knock over a spaceship to win a prize. In our modified version, I created a cutout posterboard version of the spaceship, taped it to the wall, and stacked some plastic cups in front of it.


Each boy had a chance to toss Sleepy Kittens (we HAD to get them in there SOMEWHERE!) at the cups. If they knocked the cups over, they won a prize...


...a Shrink Ray! Or, if you rather, a Freeze Ray! Or Piranha Shooter! Or Octopus Launcher! Or any of the other fun and silly inventions from the movie! Buzz spotted these at the dollar store in three-packs, and he knew immediately that he NEEDED to have them as favors at his party. Genius!

I'm happy to report that Buzz's Despicable Me party was a rip-roaring success, with no less than 17 minions running around and having a grand old time. Not too shabby for a dollar store-heavy production! :o)

Barbie Bed -- A Dollar Project!

Hee hee! I am tickled by today's project for Dollar Store Crafts. But, then again, you know me and tiny things -- I just love them! Can you guess the source of my doll bed frame and comforter?


The comforter and pillow were made from a dollar store pillow cover -- with fabric to spare -- and the bed frame was made from two wooden "Zen Garden" trays, also from the dollar store. I have had my eye on those for over a year, knowing they had great potential. Finally the perfect project to use them for!

Here's what I used:
~ One pillow cover (lots of prints and fabrics to choose from!)
~ Two Zen Garden trays

~ Scrap of eyelet trim (for the bed skirt)

~ Scraps of white fabric (for the mattress and bed skirt)

~ Scraps of polyester batting
~ Also need: sand paper or utility knife, wood glue, finish nails, saw

(pardon the lighting on this photo and the next one, taken down within the depths of the basement!)
First we will need to construct the bed frame. My husband was kind enough to tackle this part of the project for me!
STEP ONE: Measure and mark ONE of your Zen Garden trays 3 5/8" from one end and carefully saw. The longer piece will be the headboard, and the shorter piece will be the foot of the bed.

STEP TWO: With both cut ends together and the two tray pieces back to back, use a sharp pencil to draw a line on the headboard piece, marking the height of the foot of the bed, as shown.

STEP THREE: You will be butting the shorter end of the first tray (the foot of the bed) against the short end of the second (uncut) tray. The cut side will be the part of the bed that touches the "floor." Lightly sand (or in our case, since we had no sandpaper handy, scrape with a utility knife) JUST the two surfaces that will be touching. This will help the wood glue to hold. Use a thin layer of wood glue, then carefully nail one finish nail on either end for a sturdy hold.

STEP FOUR: Now for the headboard. Again, carefully sand or scrape the two surfaces that will be glued together. Your drawn line will be where you line up the TOP of the long tray. We glued and then used a staple gun to hold the headboard in place.

Allow the glue to dry!

STEP FIVE: Now we're getting to the fun part -- the sewing!
I started by carefully removing the zipper (to save for a future project!) and then cutting along the seam lines of the pillow cover. Set your pillow cover fabric aside.

STEP SIX: Make the bed skirt! Cut as follows:
Center piece: 11" x 4 1/4"
Ruffle pieces: Two rectangles, 14 1/2" x 4"

Hem the two short ends of all pieces, and one long end of each of the two ruffle pieces, by turning the edges up 1/4" and sewing. Gather the raw edge of the two ruffle pieces a scant 1/4" from the edge. Attach to the long edges of the center piece. Your bed skirt should look like the photo.

STEP SEVEN: Make the mattress! Cut two rectangles, 12 1/2" x 5 1/4". Sew all the way around with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Open each corner as shown and sew a line 3/8" from the point, perpendicular to the seam line. This will box the corners of your mattress.

Cut a 6"-8" slit down one the center of one rectangle and turn it right side out. Carefully stuff with a stack of batting and whipstitch the opening closed.

Bed skirt and mattress? Check!

STEP EIGHT: Make the comforter! Cut two rectangles, 9 1/2" x 13 1/2". Layer them right sides together and sew three sides, leaving one short side open. Trim the corners as shown and turn right side out. Carefully tuck the raw edges inside 1/4" and press. Topstitch all the way around, closing the opening as well. Done!

STEP NINE: Make the pillow! Cut two rectangles, 5 1/4" x 3 3/4". Sew right sides together using about a 1/8" seam allowance, leaving a 2 1/2" opening on one short end. Turn right side out.

Topstitch right along the edge on the three finished sides, then 1/4" from your stitching line.

Stuff with another stack of batting. Carefully tuck the raw edges inside and topstitch the opening closed, then sew 1/4" from that stitching line.

Everything's done! Time to make the bed!
I topped my little bed with a tiny embroidered sachet that belonged to my grandmother. It makes a perfect accent pillow!

Barbie is all set to relax and read a book!

Tiny Covered Notebook Keychains

Today I am over at Dollar Store Crafts sharing my Tiny Covered Notebook Keychains!
Come on over and check it out!

A Sweet, Non-Sweet Valentine Treat

Today I'm over at Dollar Store Crafts sharing these cute little "goodies" to pass around to classmates with Valentine cards. Come check it out!!

Cupcake Pin Cushions!

Today I'm over at Dollar Store Crafts sharing how to make these cute cupcake pin cushions. Once you get the basics on the larger size, come back and get details on how to make the tiny one...


...you can even turn it into a pin cushion ring, for when you need to keep some pins "close at hand!"


Recognize my "cupcake paper"? It's the lid from a Cherry Coke!
To make the ring, I cut a red hair tie and threaded the ends through the two holes I drilled, leaving enough room at the bottom for my finger to fit through.

Then I simply tied a square knot and clipped the ends.

The rest of the pin cushion is constructed the same way as the larger one. I used a 2 1/4" diameter circle for the cupcake top. You can use the same holes you used for the elastic to tie down the top -- just use a little caution not to snag the elastic. For the cherry I used a 1 1/8" diameter circle.

I used 6 strands of thread to create those little sprinkles -- each sprinkle is just a simple stitch.


Done! This one is my favorite!
I'm going to use this one for my hand sewing needles. Seems like they are always getting lost in the "guts" of my larger pin cushions... but there's no way to lose them in this tiny little guy!