Melted Crayon Brooch

I am taking part in the Show Us Your Plum Contest over at Cherrished Bliss. I was so happy to be chosen by Ashley to receive an item from Pick Your Plum. I had no idea what I would be receiving. All I knew was it was a Pick Your Plum item which I was receiving to craft and blog about.{I just love a good surprise, don't you?} 

My package soon arrived and I was so excited to find this set of lovelies to transform!

Today I will show you the first brooch I worked on:

Melted Crayon Brooch

What you'll need:

brooch {I reveived mine from Pick Your Plum}

crayons in your fave colors

a sharpener, knife, or grater

an oven set at 200 degrees F

Make some crayon shavings using a crayon sharpener, knife or grater. Pile your shavings into the center of the brooch. Make sure it's nice and full since the crayons will melt down.

Place your brooch on a cookie sheet {the one I use is specifically for crafts - you might want to line yours in case the crayon spills} and bake at 200 degrees F. I left my oven door slightly open to see when the crayon was all melted {it took all of about 3 minutes}

Once your crayon shavings have melted, remove the brooch with a pot holder {I don't know how hot it gets, but I wasn't going to touch it} and let it cool.

Doesn't it look cool? I think so!

{sorry for the bad photo}

Have you been crafty with a Pick Your Plum item? You join the contest too!

Want to see what I did with the other pins?

Click to see the Interchangeable Clip/Pin

Stay tuned for the last one {the blank flower brooch}

You may find me linking up to some of these lovely parties.

Comb Painting

 

Did you all see me over at Mess for Less a couple weeks ago? I did a guest post on Comb Painting but just in case 

you missed it...here it is!

I don't know if you have seen paint scrapers before. They are about $3 for a few different style scrapers. Problem is...I can't seem to find them in a store and paying the shipping doesn't make it worth it for me.

If you want to get the same look {of at least one of them} you can use some combs! I got a pack of 10 at my dollar store.

 Grab some paint, paper and combs 

{there was a mix of smaller and larger combs so we used one of each}

 Make a strip {I had to make strips all down the paper since it didn't scrape down very much} of paint. You can also have your child drip paint all over. Bug wanted me to do it.

 Start scraping!

If your child is anything like mine they will want to use their fingers to paint too.

You might find me at some of these child centered link parties here. 

This post has been featured:

Valentine's Day Tea Party Invitations {Guest Post from Mama Mia's Heart2Heart}

I'm so happy to introduce you all to Mia from Mama Mia's Heart2Heart. Today she is sharing with us how to make Valentine's Day invites {for a tea party}! How cute! We have plenty of tea parties here {hence the blog name}. We just might have to make these for her dolls and celebrate on Valentine's Day with our own little tea party.

 
I'm so excited to be guest posting over here at Tutus & Tea Parties. I'm Mia and I blog over at Mama Mia's Heart2Heart.  I teach part time but a mom full time and I like to blog about my fun adventures as both. 

My 3 year old and I love to read, learn, and do crafts together.  So I thought I'd share a craft with you that is actually fitting for Lauren's blog because it's for a Valentine Tea Party that my daughter will be having soon.  I wanted to make some invitations for her lovely day using candy canes that I had from Christmas.

This was very easy to make. I unwrapped the candy canes and glued the ends together using the glue gun to form a heart. 

I then painted the popsicle sticks red and glued the candy cane hearts to it.

After that, I typed out an invitation for the tea party glued to a red scrapbook paper.  And glued the whole thing onto the popsicle stick...

I put the invitation inside a sachet to give it an elegant look. And just like that, it's ready to be delivered to her friends.  Easy isn't it??

She's so excited about this tea party and so am I :)  Thank you Lauren for this opportunity to guest post on your wonderful blog.  I hope that all of you will come and visit me over at Mama Mia's Heart2Heart.  Have a happy day!!!

Be sure to hop on over and visit Mama Mia's Heart2Heart. She has great ideas for the kiddos {and some for us grown ups too}!

Connect with Mia on Facebook & Twitter.

A few of my faves from Mama Mia's Heart2Heart:

Egg Shell Snowman

Hot Dogs and Noodles

Crayon Monogram

A Pinteresting Party - Week 24

Thank you all for linking up last week!

Please spread the word about this Pinteresting Party! :)

Hosted by Tutus & Tea Parties & Here's to Handy Andy.

Hop on over to see what Here's to Handy Andy's faves are too!

BTW- Pinterest is my #1 referring link this month as per Google Analytics!

My faves from last week that I pinned: 

This Ruffled Lampshade is so pretty! Head on over to Putting Down Roots to get the how to.

I just love this Doily Stenciled Onesie from vixenMade! Isn't it just darling?!

Get the kiddos and make some sand paint. You can go over to Train Up a Child and see how much fun it is! It's a great sensory/art project.

And of course since Valentine's Day is fast approaching I had to include my faves for the day.

These Paper Clip and String Heart Earrings are adorable! See how to make them over at Pitter and Glink. 

Loopy Loop Creations shows us how to make this lovely Valentine Crayon Art.

 Aren't these the cutest Valentine's for boys ever?! See how they were made over at Randee's Organized Chaos.

Stop on over to these links and show them some love and if you pinned them, you can let them know. :)
 

Go ahead and grab the "I was featured" button for being so Pinspirational. 
You deserve it!

&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;a border="0" <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">href</span>="http://<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">tutusandteaparties</span>.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">blogspot</span>.com/search/label/Link%20Party /" target="_blank">&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">img</span> <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">src</span>="http://farm8.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">staticflickr</span>.com/7150/6595270767_597436cb04_m.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">jpg</span>" width="125" height="125" alt="Button" />&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;/a> 

Here are the rules:

1. Add a direct link to a blog post along with it's title {not the title of your blog}.
2. You can link up to two posts per blog. {no shops or giveaways please}
3. Visit at least 2 other links and pin their post on Pinterest. It would also be nice if you could comment and let them know you pinned their post. {we all love comments, right? :)}
4. I'd love for you to spread the word and post my Pinteresting Party Button somewhere on your blog. {& be sure to follow the hosting blogs to see when the next party is & if you were featured the following week} :)
5. By linking up you give me full permission to use one photo from your post if you are featured the following link.
6. Please, no Etsy shops or Giveaways. 

Feel free to leave your Pinterest page link in the comments so we can all make some new Pinteresting friends. :) 

Grab the party button!

&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;a border="0" <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">href</span>="http://<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">tutusandteaparties</span>.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">blogspot</span>.com/search/label/Link%20Party /" target="_blank">&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">img</span> <span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">src</span>="http://farm8.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">staticflickr</span>.com/7162/6617115159_cbd068d4b0_m.<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">jpg</span>" width="125" height="125" alt="Button" />&<span style="background: none repeat scroll 0% 0% yellow;" class="goog-spellcheck-word">lt</span>;/a>

Want to know how to check if you were pinned?
Copy this link into your browser and add your blog URL {does not work for Etsy shops}:
http://pinterest.com/source/YOURURLHEREfor example, mine would be 
http://pinterest.com/source/tutusandteaparties.blogspot.com

Need a reminder about this party?   

Look to the right { that way ----> } You see that spot that says "Subscribe to our mailing list"? Type in your email and you will receive an email each week reminding you to link up! Hooray! 

{Freebie Friday} Enter to win 10 assorted tags from puddingcups.

Well, we made it through anothe week of no binky here with Bug. These late nights and no naps are starting to make us cranky but last night she finally put herself to sleep {after 2 hours of yelling for us}. It's a start! 

I am so happy to introduce you all to Helen from puddingcups on Etsy. If you can remember back a bit I had reviewed one of her sticky note pads. You can see the review here. She has a lovely shop and today is giving away 10 assorted tags to one winner. Find out more about Helen and enter the giveaway via the Rafflecopter form below.


Tell us about yourself.
My name is Helen Nakamoto. I'm married wtih a 3 year old son. I live in Lihue, Hawaii, which is on the island of Kauai.

How did you get started in your craft and selling on Etsy?

My friend is a Stampin Up demonstrator and she's the one who got me started in paper crafts. I opened my Etsy shop to try to offset some of my craft expenditures.

What is your favorite item in your shop & why?
My favorite item in my shop are my Sticky notepad holders with mini-pens. I like useful, practical things and I think the notepads totally fit the bill, and the fact that they're cute too is a bonus.

Do you have a job outside of Etsy?
I am a seasonal, part-time tax preparer. I only work during tax season (Feb. to April 15) and what I call extension season (August to October 15), and only if my services are needed.

What is one thing {NOT person} you can not live without?
Oooh, that's a tough one. Either naps or Pepsi.

What is your guilty pleasure?
Haha. Naps and Pepsi. And watching reality tv shows like Keeping Up With the Kardashians or Tori and Dean.

Tell us a joke.
What did the taoist say to the hot dog vendor?
Make me one with everything.

Win this set of 10 assorted tags from puddingcups.

The tags are hand-stamped with different images and sayings such as "thank you" "happy birthday" "welcome baby".

 Contest closes 2/10/12 at midnight EST. Open to US only.

Want to make a purchase? Use coupon code Tutu15 for 15% off while the giveaway is open.

{you get 10 entries for making a purchase so be sure to enter it in on the Rafflecopter form below}

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Marshmallow Catapults {I'm over at Mama Mia's Heart2Heart}

I hope you are all ready for some fun today! I'm over at Mama Mia's Heart2Heart today to show you how to make these marshmallow catapults. 

You won't want to miss it...they are so much fun!

Marshmallow Catapults

I hope you will stop on over and check out my guest post.

Bubble Wrap Heart Art {Guest Post from Mess For Less}

I am so excited to have Vicky from Mess For Less guest posting here today! She has a super fun Valentine's Day art project to do with the kiddos that they will love. I know Bug will be all over this project...making me lots and lots of these hearts!

I am so excited to be posting here today at Tutus and Tea Parties! Thanks to Lauren for asking me over. My name is Vicky and I blog over at Mess For Less. I am a mom of 3 (3 year old twins and a 2 year old) and I write about kids activities, crafts and money saving tips. I hope you will stop by and visit us!

We love bubble wrap in my house. The kids love to pop it, play with it and have even painted with it in the past. I love that it's free. With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I thought we could incorporate bubble wrap and painting while creating some seasonal artwork.

Supplies you will need:

• Bubble wrap (I used some with larger circles, but the smaller type would work as well)
• Paint colors of your choosing
• Tray
• Paintbrush and cups for mixing
• Easel paper
• Marker
• Scissors

Start by using your marker to trace some large hearts on the back of some bubble. I made a heart for each of the three colors I planned to use. You can also just trace and cut out one heart and use it in different colors to get more of a rainbow effect.

Pour some paint into a tray and spread it around. I mixed some pink and purple colors and used the plastic cups to combine the colors before spreading it on a tray.

Have your child dip the heart bubble wrap (circle side down) into the paint and then push their heart onto the paper to make a print.

My youngest, who just turned 2, really enjoyed this part.

I had three colors of paint and the kids wanted to try all the paint colors. 

Here are some of our finished pieces. I am so excited to decorate with these. What a simple and fun way to  add a touch of Valentine's Day to your home.

This last one was done by my youngest. As you can see, even when kids can't quite keep the hearts straight, the artwork is still eye-catching.

Vicky, thank you so much for sharing this fun art project with us today! I'm sure we will be making lots of these hearts over here. We just love bubble wrap!

Connect with Mess For Less on Facebook & Twitter.

My fave posts from Mess For Less {so hard to choose just a few}:

Valentine Swirl Cupcakes

Fruit Loop Towers

{FYI- I carry these materials out to eat and this totally entertains Bug while the grown ups eat & talk}

 Chemical Reactions for Preschoolers