Shrinky Dink Name Tag Tutorial

Remember how I'm doing crafts for my MOPS group? Yep, it's that time again! This month we're making tags for our kids' bags. (Try saying that ten times fast.) So, essentially name tags - out of Shrinky Dinks! I can't wait to see how it goes having 90+ women trying to cook these things in six toaster ovens. Actually, I'm terrified.

I stole this idea from this wonderful & helpful post. So, you won't hurt my feelings if you want to just skip this tutorial and check out hers. I just made mine a different size, but essentially they're pretty much the same things.

One other fun addition... I made a few templates for the MOPS ladies to use if they want. I'd be happy to post them out here for the world, but I couldn't figure out how to get a PDF on here and I'm tired... so I guess you'll just have to join my MOPS group if you want them.

Shrinky Dinky Name Tags


Materials:

• Shrinky Dink ruff ‘n ready sheet
• craft knife
• ruler
• hole punch
• permanent markers
• dry erase marker
• templates (optional, but you can use clip art and print text to trace)
• ribbon
• oven
• brown paper bag
• baking sheet
Directions:

1. Cut Shrinky Dink sheet (approx. 8"x10") into four (4) equal pieces (approx. 4"x5"); round corners, if desired. Punch hole in one edge.

2. Decorate your Shrinky Dink! You will need to draw on the “rough” side of the Shrinky Dink. For the name, write the name on the smooth side of the Shrinky Dink with your dry erase marker, then turn the tag over and trace the letters (backwards now) onto the rough side of the tag with your permanent markers.

Tip 1: You can use the templates as a guide, inspiration, or just free-hand the tag. I recommend getting the name where you want it first, and then the adding the design around the name.


Tip 2: Everything becomes darker when it shrinks. If you think your colors look a little light, that’s good because it will be just right when it shrinks. Tiny smudges will also get a lot darker when it shrinks, so be careful not toyou’re your hand across the tag.


Tip 3: The great thing about writing the name with dry erase first is you can re-do it over and over again! However,, be sure to completely wipe the dry erase off, because even a fine trace left of the tag will be amplified and show up when it shrinks.

3. Line your baking sheet with a piece of the brown paper bag. Bake your Shrinky Dink in an oven or a toaster oven according to the package directions. (Typically about 325 degrees for 2-3 minutes.) When it shrinks down and becomes completely flat again, take it out and press it down with a piece of paper or oven mit to flatten it completely.

Tip: Watch it closely but don’t freak out when it starts to bend and curl. It will flatten back out. Leave the oven door closed, and don’t be tempted to open – you’ll loose all your heat and have to add a lot more baking time. The only exception: I have had them curl into themselves and stick once or twice, so if you see it getting close to touching you might want to try to save it by sticking your hand in and trying to flatten it down with a hot pad.

4. Thread your ribbon through the hole and tie it around your kids’ stuff!

Where have you been?

Where have I been lately?

Pinterest. Obsessed.

I've only been on it for two weeks, but I have a serious problem.
In my defense, though... I'm not just surfing the internet - I'm making too!

I have found so many great project ideas... and I've followed through!

I've made these cute penguin invites, inspired by images I found:

And under those invites, you can see some fabric that I made my own wall-paper glue from this pin and then modge-podged it onto a desk (in my newly functional craft room) that my awesome husband built.

I've made this dry-erase picture, and it's hanging on the back of our front door.

I made these yummy cake batter truffles for book club yesterday.

We laughed really hard over this pin.

My kids made this tree and this birthday card.

I'm about half-way through making this bible cover...

Made hairbows this fun new way.

Made this for breakfast one morning. And made these for Lauren and her newly expanded family. (& I made a few for our freezer too.)

Attempting to make this quilt for Lily for Christmas.

And Friday I'm posting a tutorial to make my own version of these Shrinky Dink name tags.

And I made these super-awesome envelopes for my wallet.

No idea what I'm talking about? Well, that's where I've been lately, anyway.

A Birthday for Alice - The Second Party

On Lily's actual birthday we invited a few little friends to a real Alice in Wonderland Tea Party - complete with a Mad Hatter.

 And an Alice, of course.

 There was a door mouse...

... lots of yummy food, tea and cakes.

And friends!

The Moms got to tag along too.

A four-year-old delight!

A Birthday for Alice - The First Party

Miss Lily (or Alice as she was known for a few days) wanted a Alice in Wonderland birthday party for her 4th birthday. So, we had two parties: A family pool party at my parent's house (did I mention that they got a pool this summer?) and another Alice in Wonderland Tea Party with a few of her little friends. (That post is to come.)

At the first party we kept it simple. Pool. Alice Ice cream cake. Cousins. Fake fingernails. A little show put on by the birthday girl. And Chic-fil-a - also requested by the birthday girl.

She knows what she wants.

Swimming fools.

Apple Orchard

It's barely September, but we've been to the orchard at least 5 times now.

Now they have a lovely playground in the midst of the apple trees. And it's five minutes from our house. And they have 50 cent apple slushies.

Oh, how we love the orchard.

First Tutorial EVER! Flower Bling

I'd like to preface this by saying... I've never done a crafty tutorial before. So go easy on me!

This year, I'm in charge of the creative activities for my MOPS group. So I've decided that all the crafts we do for MOPS I'm going to post here on my little blog. That way those fancy i-Phone users can pull up extra pictures while we craft, and if someone misses a meeting they can find the craft instructions here too.

So for this month, our craft is this fun little hair pin - or you could make it a brooch for your bag or scarf if you're not into flowers in your hair.

Flower Bling Tutorial

Materials:

• scrap of polyester or rayon fabric (min. size approx. 2 ½” x 6”)

• small bead or button
• small piece of felt (approx. ½” x ½”)
• bobby pin or safety pin
• hot glue
• scissors
• needle & thread
• lighter

Directions:

1. Cut a circle out of the fabric approximately 2”-3” in diameter. Cut two more circles out of fabric, each one should be about ½” – ¼” smaller than the first circle. They don’t need to be perfect!

I used my lens cap as a template here. Oh, and please don't mind all the paint on my cutting mat. That just means it's loved.

2. Using the lighter, lightly touch the flame to the edge of the fabric to melt the edge and seal the fabric. (It might be best to practice this on a scrap piece of fabric if you’ve never done this before.) Once all three circles’ edges have been sealed, stack them from largest to smallest so that it begins to look like a flower.

No, that isn't a lighter. It's a candle. Halfway through the first circle my lighter ran out of juice (too many hair bows, I guess) and so I had to resort to a candle. Which I don't recommend because the wax was dripping everywhere! I often use strike-on-the-box matches when melting the ends of ribbon, but for these circles the nice candle lighters are easier because you won't burn your fingers.

Tip: Start slowly, because it’s easy to melt too much. If you do melt too much, just melt more of the edge to try to smooth out the edge to fix your circle. The circles should start to curl up at the edges, if they don’t you might need to help shape them some with your hands by cupping the edges. You may also need to melt the edges a little more.

3. Using the needle and thread, sew the bead onto the center of the flower.

Tip: Starting with the largest circle, bring the needle through the back of the fabric in the center of the circle. Don’t put the needle all the way through, but then stack the other two circles on top, (this way, you can easily center all three circles) and finally add the bead. Don’t worry about how the back looks, it will get covered.

4. Cut a circle out of the felt.

5. Cut a slit in the felt circle from the edge to the center (should remind you of Pac-Man). Thread the bobby pin onto the felt circle, and glue the circle and pin onto the back of the flower.

Tip: It should look like your bobby pin is interlinked with the felt. Apply glue to the entire piece of felt to stabilize the pin. Be sure to attach the “top” side of the bobby pin to the bottom side of the flower.

6. Viola! Enjoy your flower bling or give it to a friend!

FOUR!

Today our first born is FOUR.

Happy Birthday sweet little girl!

I want to remember you now, just as you are. And now that you are four - and practically all grown up - you can...

Pick out your own clothes (and put most of them on).

Swim all by your self! (a little bit).

Talk. my. ear. off. And I don't think you particularly care if we're actually listening.

Write your name. (backwards)

Name all your letters and their sounds, colors and count to fifteen!

You can say "hello" in four different languages.

Ride your bike all by yourself. (with training wheels of course)

Your favorite food is ice cream. or cake. or cookies.

You don't like any foods that are mixed together.

And for your 4th birthday the thing you wanted most in the world was a fish.

So take good care of those fish. Today you named them Dorothy, Princess the Tree, and Princess the Lala... but the names will be different tomorrow. (And please stop feeding them so much. They aren't going to make it a week.)

Happy Birthday sweet heart. We love you so much!

Welcome Home

A red door means “welcome” in Feng Shui, as well as historical American traditions (or so I’m told.)

A red door means “mortgage free” in Sweden. Ha. But it’s a goal anyway. And besides, we don’t live in Sweden.

A red door means happiness to me.

I have always planned on living in a house with a red door.

We bought this door off someone in Broadripple, two years ago when we first bought our house. J has been working on restoring it here and there (trust me it was all just potential when we bought it.) While I was far away in Mississippi chasing enjoying my kiddos, he was finally able to install it. And lucky me came home to this beautiful door! So this should have been a post way back in July – but that’s neither here nor there.

Yes, of course we went to the State Fair.

Yes, of course we ate a turkey leg and a chocolate milkshake for breakfast.

Yes, of course we rode a tractor, an elephant, and the Ferris Wheel.

Yes, of course we fed the animals, got our hands dirty and had a fabulous time.

We wouldn't miss the fair. Not if I can help it, anyway.

First Day of School

It's that time of year again! Time for everyone in the blog-o-sphere to post their pictures of their little one's first day of school. This is Lily's first day of 3D3's (or three-day-three's for those of you not up on the lingo). She goes three days a week, and she's in the three-year-old class... get it?

This particular first day she was in a mood.
Usually the first to smile for the camera, she was not interested in my efforts to document her important day. So this is the best I got.

Believe it or not, this girl loves school. On the way there she kept saying, "Mommy, I'm so EXCITED to go to school!"

She's going in the afternoons this year (since she hasn't napped regularly in ages), so hopefully her little sister can get a nap and I can get a few things done. So far it has made her very cranky and tired at the end of the day. So we're hoping that she gets used to it soon!