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Glittered Wine Glasses #12monthsofmartha

August 12, 2013 By Michelle Barneck 5 Comments

This post was sponsored by Martha Stewart and contains affiliate links to products.

Sometimes it’s nice to have a little something special. Whether it’s a wedding gift, late night date night, or special holiday with your family its nice to have something extravagant up your sleeve.

What better way to add a little glamour than glitter? The best part is, it’s so easy and dishwasher safe! That’s right, no one time use with this method! Let me show you how to paint wine glasses to bring that touch of elegance.

See the full tutorial.

SUPPLIES:

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix the glass paint with the gloss spray medium according to package directions. For two glittered glasses you will want to use about 1.5 ounces of paint and 1.5 ounces of medium.

2. Attach the paint sprayer to the bottle being sure to take the straining cap off the bottom of the tube to allow the glitter through.

3. Place a plastic grocery bag over your hand to hold the wine glass while spraying.

4. Paint the glasses with multiple light coats letting them dry between to avoid puddling. Do not tilt the sprayer more than 45 degrees. Continue glittering, more concentrated at the base and gradually becoming thinner at the top giving it an ombre effect. If the sprayer gets clogged, put your finger over the hole and press down the sprayer. This will clear out the tube. Dry completely.

Enjoy your beautiful new glittered wine glasses with the beverage of your choice or give them away to someone celebrating an exciting occasion. Either way they will put a smile on your face.

Disclaimer: Martha Stewart provided product for my review. All ideas and opinions are my own.

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Baked Apple Chips

August 9, 2013 By Michelle Barneck 8 Comments

I found a healthy snack that the kids love and makes the house smell scrumptious. What more could you ask for right? I shared this over on DIY Dreamer a few weeks ago, but couldn’t resist sharing here too. Check out these baked apple chips.

Are they not the cutest and so perfect for back to school?! You’ll be surprised how very simple it is to make your very own baked apple chips getting rid of preservatives and other gunk that comes with the packaged ones. Let’s get started.

Supplies:

Apples

Cinnamon

Mini Cookie Cutter (optional)

Knife

Parchment Paper

Cookie Sheet

1. Slice your apples into thin slices. The thinner you cut the crunchier they will be.

2. Grab the nearest kiddo and have them cut out the cores with a mini cookie cutter.

3. Line your cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread apple slices on to pan. You can fit about two sliced apples per pan. Shake cinnamon over them.

4. Bake at 275 for about 2 hours 15 minutes. Flip them over after an hour so they bake evenly and then check them every half an hour thereafter until they look crispy. If you want to make a large batch, just do one pan at a time. They get too hot too close to the bottom.

It made the house smell divine and the kiddos gobbled them right up! They were the perfect healthy snack both kid and mom approved!

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Easy Painted Notebook Paper Frames

July 31, 2013 By Michelle Barneck 8 Comments

This post is sponsored by Michael’s and their Back to School Challenge.

I have a thing for back to school. Something about fresh notebooks and backpack shopping gives me a big grin. I am a nerd. I loved school and want my kids to love it too. There is something fun about capturing those first day excitement and end of year celebrations which brings me to my project…School Picture Frames. I joined up with Michael’s to participate in their First Day of School Challenge and I think you’ll like what I came up with. This is not my first rodeo, see my ruler frame and back to school frame, this year I went with paper.

The notebook paper frames are hand painted, but sooo easy! I made two versions one frame with college rule paper for the older kids and one frame with the “learn to write” paper for little kids (see picture on left).

They are perfect for your first day of school pictures and I love that they can preserve your little person’s adorable handwriting.

SUPPLIES:

Wood Frames ($1 each)
White Craft Paint
Foam Brush
Ruler
Pencil
Red Fine Tip Paint Pen
Blue Fine Tip Paint Pen
Mod Podge or Clear Spray Paint

*all available at Michael’s*

DIRECTIONS:

1. Paint the frame white. I used three coats. Let dry.

2. Using your ruler make marks on each side of the frame where you want the lines to go. I spaced my lines one centimeter for both versions, you just alter the colors of the lines for the learn to write paper.

3. Using your ruler add the red lines with your paint pen. One line going down vertically about an inch from the left side for the college ruled or every 3rd pencil mark for the learn to write. Let dry.

4. Using your ruler add the blue lines with your paint pen. For the college ruled on each pencil mark. For the learn to write, one under each red line. After the blue lines are dry, go back and add the blue dashed lines after your blue lines are dry.

5. To personalize, have your child add their name with a pencil or add the teacher’s name and use for a gift.

6. Cover with protective clear coat.

Not bad for buying all the supplies (most of which you may have on hand) for about $10 right?

Speaking of gifts for teachers, Michael’s offers a 15% off discount for teachers everyday! Talk to a store associate for more info. Also, be sure to download the Michael’s app so you always have their deals and coupons at your fingertips! I love just pulling out my smartphone and getting a discount!

Last, but not least, here is how I put it all together. I still can’t believe my little guy is starting Kindergarten. Tear.

Disclosure: I was provided a Michael’s gift card to pick up supplies for this challenge.

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ABC Letter Chips

July 30, 2013 By Michelle Barneck Leave a Comment

Hello Little Tipsy readers! I’m Kelly from Smart School House and, as I’m sure you can imagine, I love educational crafts. The other day my toddlers (2 and 3 years old) were playing with their play-dough while I was preparing their lunch. My daughter, Stella, absolutely LOVES those unbaked tortillas that you can find in the refrigerator section of any grocery store (or Costco in our case). It dawned on me that I could combine the play-dough activity with lunch for an educationally fun experience!

Read more of this fun tutorial…

These fun chips are made from play-dough letter cutters! The play-dough cutters make creating shapes and letters in uncooked tortillas so easy. In fact, the dough of the uncooked tortillas is thinner than play-dough, so this educational craft is as easy as can be for mommies. Be sure to scrub off any play-dough with some soap and water before making your ABC chips (play-dough is not fun to eat hehe!).

To make the ABC chips, simply place the letters on the tortilla like so:

Next, place the letters on a griddle and cook the letters according to the directions on the tortilla package. In this case, I cooked the letters for about 30 seconds on each side (so easy!!).

The neat thing about these chips is that they aren’t too crunchy for the little mouths of toddlers. Yet, they are crisp enough to dip into any fun dips that your toddlers may like. My little ones, Stella & Mitch, absolutely loved “playing with their food” so to speak. It was the perfect time for me to sit with them and teach them letters.

Stella is 3 and recognizes most of her letters. So for her, I would say things like, “Where is the letter T, can you find the T?” Mitch is 2 and still learning to identify the letters of the alphabet. So for him, I lined up a series of about 4-5 letters and pointed to each one while saying its name. For example, “This is the letter I and this is the letter L.” What I love about these ABC chips is that the activities can be modified for different ages. If your child is having a difficult time learning their letters (or maybe reversing their letters), then this is a perfect activity for them!

You can even use the letters to form a series of words that will put a smile on any beginning readers face:

If you are looking for more educational activities for your little ones, feel free to stop by Smart School House and say hello! Check out this other fun DIY activity that can help children learn their letters: