Category: Family

DIY Kids

DIY Felt Memory Game

Post author By vickybarone
Post date May 12, 2016

Looking for a fun game for your little ones that doesn’t involve a screen? This felt memory game is perfect for keeping kiddos busy at home AND in the car! Here is how to make your own…

Supplies: 1 piece of black felt, 1 piece of white felt, 8 pieces of colorful felt, fabric scissors, and glue.

Directions:
1. The white piece of felt will be your board. Set it aside.
2. The black piece of felt will be the backing to each “card.” Cut the piece of black felt into quarters. Then cut each quarter into quarters. You will have 16 rectangles of black felt. Round each rectangle out to create ovals (see photos for example).
3. Cut fun shapes out of the colorful felt. 2 of each shape to match within a color.
4. Glue the shapes onto the black ovals. Let dry.
5. Mix up the “cards” and fill up the board, shape side down. Get to playing!

The felt on felt helps the pieces stay on the board so it’s a perfect game for car rides!

What do you think? Would your little one like a memory game like this? How about this one? 😉

Tags DIY, felt, Kids, memory game

Family Products

Mother’s Day Greeting Cards 2016

Post author By vickybarone
Post date May 6, 2016

Happy Friday! With Mother’s Day just two days away, we thought we’d share a few current Vicky Barone original cards! You can find these greeting cards and many more wherever Recycled Paper Greetings cards are sold and at independent retailers nationwide.

Wishing all the moms out there a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend!

Tags card, greeting cards, happy mother's day, mother's day

Kids Printables

Teacher Appreciation Gift Idea

Post author By vickybarone
Post date May 2, 2016
1 Comment on Teacher Appreciation Gift Idea

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week! Let a teacher in your life know how grateful you are for them with a DIY gift! For my sons’ teachers, I got some fresh new Sharpie markers in lots of bright colors, placed them in a mason jar, and attached a gift tag.

You can print these gift tags too! Click on the printable below to download it for free!

Download, print, cut, and hole punch! Use a ribbon or twine to attach the tags to a jar. This printable has two options (the top two have a space to write your name or your kid’s name!).

Looking for more Teacher Appreciation week ideas? Click here! Bonus points if you include a gift card!

A huge thank you to all teachers! We appreciate you so much!

Tags free printable, Gift Ideas, printables, sharpies, teacher appreciation week, teachers

DIY Kids

DIY Paper Butterflies

Post author By vickybarone
Post date April 28, 2016

Today we’re sharing a simple DIY you can create with your kids! These folded paper butterflies would make an adorable Mother’s Day gift and can be used to create a garland or a mobile, to decorate a frame or even a gift box! There are lots of examples of these accordion butterflies on Pinterest, but here is how we made ours…

Supplies: scrapbook paper or cardstock (we used different shades of pink), scissors or a paper cutter, and pine cleaners.

Directions:
1. Cut paper into squares (ours were about 4×4)
2. Fold each square in half and then accordion style, folding from corner to corner.
3. Take two folded squares and set them on top of one another (corner to corner). We made our butterflies two-toned, so each one was made from two squares of paper in different shades of pink.
4. Wrap a pipe cleaner around the middle of the paper squares, leaving 3/4″ for the bottom of the butterfly body.
5. Once the pipe cleaner is secure, use a cylindrical object like a pen or pencil to wrap the excess pipe cleaner around to create swirly antennae.

That’s it! Make as many butterflies as you’d like! How will you use yours? We would love to hear!

Tags butterflies, DIY, mother's day, paper, pipe cleaners

DIY Holidays Kids

DIY Bunny Ears

Post author By vickybarone
Post date March 18, 2016

Happy Friday! Today we have a super easy Easter craft that you can make with your little bunnies! All you need are some headbands and pipe cleaners…

We got our headbands from the dollar store and these fluffy white pipe cleaners from the craft store!

Just wrap the pipe cleaners around the headband to cover the top and fashion some bunny ears along the way! You will need 2-3 pipe cleaners for each headband, depending upon how big you make the ears.

How cute are they on our little bunny?!

Looking for more Spring inspiration? Check out Vicky Barone on Instagram!

Tags bunny ears, DIY, easter, kids craft

DIY Holidays Kids Things I Love

DIY St. Patrick’s Day Ideas

Post author By vickybarone
Post date February 25, 2016

Are you feeling crafty? We’ve gathered some awesome DIY projects you can make for St. Patrick’s Day!

1. Lucky in Love Banner | 2. Shamrock Penny Canvas
3. Felt Clover Wreath | 4. Wine Cork Stamping
5. Thumb Print Shamrock | 6. Froot Loop Rainbows

Tags DIY, ideas, st. patrick's day, things i love

DIY Holidays Kids

Random Acts of Kindness Day

Post author By vickybarone
Post date February 17, 2016

Happy Random Acts of Kindness Day! What a wonderful holiday to celebrate, especially with kids! Today we’re sharing 10 ideas that you can do with your little ones to spread kindness.

1. Write a letter. Sit down with your little one and help them write a letter to a friend or family member to let them know you are thinking of them!

2. Buy coffee for the person behind you in line. Whether you’re in a store or in a drive-through, surprising the person behind you with a paid bill is sure to put a smile on their face.

3. Bake cookies for your teacher. Let your teacher (or librarian, mailman, neighbor, etc) know how much you appreciate them with a plate of freshly baked treats.

4. Put change in vending machines. Your little ones will love dropping coins into vending machines to give the next person a free snack!

5. Hold the door open for someone. You can do this all day long! It’s a great habit to teach your little ones.

6. Leave flowers around town with a note. Tie little “have a great day!” notes to flowers and leave them on park benches and bus stops around town for anyone to find.

7. Do someone else’s chores. Surprise another family member by making their bed or folding their laundry!

8. Donate clothes or toys to a shelter. Have your little ones gather up their gently used clothing or toys they’ve outgrown and donate them to a local shelter to spread the love.

9. Pick up litter. Show the earth some kindness and help clean it up a little.

10. Give a compliment to everyone you see. Say something nice to the people you pass today. Give your kids suggestions if they need help, and make sure your compliments are sincere and sweet.

Have more ideas? We’d love to hear them! We hope your day is filled with lots of kindness!

Tags kindness, national holiday, random acts of kindness, random acts of kindness day

DIY Holidays Kids Parties and Events Printables Recipes

Valentine’s Day Cupcake Ideas

Post author By vickybarone
Post date February 8, 2016
1 Comment on Valentine’s Day Cupcake Ideas

Happy Monday, friends! Still stumped as to what to make for Valentine’s Day? Today we’re sharing three sweet cupcake ideas that are perfect for the 14th.

Heart-Shaped Cupcakes

First up: heart-shaped cupcakes! Well, kinda-heart-shaped cupcakes. We have seen the Pinterest hack to make heart-shaped cupcakes by adding glass marbles to a cupcake tin and thought we’d try it out! Instead of marbles, we rolled up tiny pieces of aluminum foil and placed them between the cupcake tin and the liners. They looked so promising! But, alas, it was too good to be true. They don’t have a pointy base, but they can still pass as hearts, right?

Candy Melt Conversation Cupcakes

Next up are these Candy Melt Conversation Cupcakes! All you need to create these cupcake toppers is a bag of red (or pink!) candy melts, a ziploc bag, scissors, a cookie sheet, and some waxed paper.

Line a cookie sheet with the waxed paper and melt the candy melts in a bowl according to the directions. Scoop the melted candy melts into a Ziploc bag and cut one of the corners off. Write any words you’d like onto the waxed paper (make sure they are in cursive and all the letters are connected!) and place the cookie sheet into the refrigerator to set. Carefully peel the words off of the waxed paper and stick them right into the cupcake icing!

Custom Cupcake Toppers by Places for Faces

Last but not least, our favorite way to decorate cupcakes: Places for Faces!

Use Places for Faces to create custom dessert toppers with your face on them! They are perfect for Valentine cupcakes, birthday parties, and any event that could use a little personality. Places for Faces also offers printable valentines for your little ones!

What’s your favorite way to decorate a Valentine cupcake? We’d love to hear your ideas!

Tags cupcake toppers, cupcakes, DIY, places for faces, Valentine, Valentine's Day