Summer is on the horizon! It is time to put away your boots and break out your flip flops! I am a big flip flop fan and have them in every color. So, why not add a little flair to your flip flop wardrobe and decorate them. Personalize your flip flops into something great that only you have! This is a great activity to do with girls of all ages. You get to be creative and it is really easy! As long as you can tie a knot you can make most of the flops shown here!

We did this for a Young Women activity and had about 20 girls making them all at once. We bought flip flops for $1 at Michael’s and brought all sorts of things to decorate with including: water balloons, fabric, ribbon, beads, buttons, silk flowers, glitter glue, hot glue, river rocks, etc.

These were made by hot gluing ribbon wrapped around the straps and then hot gluing flowers on in the middle.

It was so fun to see what everyone came up with! I think the water balloons and the fabric were definitely the most popular. All you do is tie them on with a knot (be sure the knots are all on the outside and do not touch your foot) and then scoot them close together on the strap.

For the fabric flops, cut the fabric in strips about 1 inch by 6 inches. You want them long enough that you can tie them around and in a knot, but then you can vary depending on how fluffy you want them. Test a strip to make sure you have the length you want before cutting them all! Then just keep tying them on in knots until you get the look you want.

One of our YW got creative with the supplies. It was fun to see what everyone came up with.

To give the activity a message we gave a thought at the end with quote from Elder Holland on Appropriate Sunday Dress and how we should not look like we are on the way to the beach. Then, we read the footprints poem and gave them a bookmark with the poem on it.

We decorated with a Hawaiian luau theme. Please keep in mind that I found out I would need to do refreshments like 4 hours before the activity. (The other leader was going out of town and could not find anyone home to drop them off with.) I forgot to take pics of most of it, but here are a few.

I froze silk flowers in circle tupperwares full of water to have some fancy floating ice. There were limes in the bowl too, but they sunk.
Did you know that cucumber water is fantastic too! I kid you not! Put a few slices of fresh cucumber in a pitcher of water and try it. It is amazingly refreshing! I had it at a Bridal Fair at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.

I tied a belt with shells on it around the punch bowl for a little extra flair.

This was a totally off the wall idea because I needed to figure out a treat that I could make with what I had at my house. They are supposed to be little bears lying on the beach. Thankfully most of the YW got it right off.

Items needed for Bears on the Beach Cupcakes:

• Cupcake liners (I used the foil ones)
• Chocolate cake mix and ingredients to make it
• Vanilla frosting
• Blue food coloring
• Sticks of gum (I had Extra Bubblegum)
• Teddy Grahams
• Graham Crackers

Prepare the cupcakes as directed on the cake box and let them cool. Mix a few drops (I used like 10 because I wanted it pretty bright) of food coloring with the frosting and frost the cupcakes. Crush some graham crackers in a Ziploc to use as sand. I put it on a small plate and dipped the top of the cupcake in it. Unwrap the gum and cut each stick in half. Secure a piece of gum to each cupcake by putting a little drop of frosting on the back. Place a dab of frosting on the back of the bear and place it on the gum “towel.”

Ta da! If only they were as relaxing as a real trip to the beach!

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