DIY - Hello Little One Blog

DIY Monoprint Fabric from Design Mom

11 Apr posted by jenny

I’m a bit fan of the blog Design Mom (if you haven’t been there, go now and bookmark it — great articles by a self-professed ‘design mom’ living in France with her six — yep, six kids!) and today’s post is so cool I had to share it with you. Check out these amazing do-it-yourself monoprint fabric pillows. These days, I don’t have a ton of time for crafty projects, but these have such an amazing look to them, I may just have to try them out. The tutorial is really easy to follow with step-by-step instructions. I love everything from the colors they chose to the fabric they sourced. (If you’re a real do-it-yourselfer, check out the other Design Mom post on confetti sprinkled napkins – too cute!)

All photos from Design Mom

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Filed Under: Art and Design, Decor, DIY

Beautify: 15 Fresh Uses for Chalkboard Paint In Your Home

24 Jan posted by renee

Chalkboard paint is totally addictive, true story. I’m in the finishing stages of redoing our playroom and after painting the closet door with it, I’m constantly looking around my house trying to find more things to turn into writing and drawing surfaces. Luckily, there is the internet to feed my addiction and no shortage of fun and creative ways to turn the mundane into something special.

One good thing to know if you’re considering jumping on this train, you can either buy chalkboard paint premixed at any hardware store OR you can go all Martha and mix up some on your own. This last method is great if you want to create a custom color to go with the decor of your house or you just want to save a few bucks. Also, you can add a coat of magnetic paint under your chalkboard paint (What?! Say it ain’t so!) and you’ve got yourself a double duty surface just like that.

Here’s my round up of 15 fresh ways to use chalkboard paint in your home, from turning a bed into an art space to helping identify whose wine is whose, you too will need a support group once you get started.

Chalkboard Table Top
I love this idea if you have an older table that needs freshening up. After turning the top into a workable surface, give the legs and base a coat of paint in an eye-popping color to really bring out the playfulness of the piece.

Chalkboard Headboard
So perfect for a guest room or a kid’s room, and a great way to leave cute notes for your little ones to wake up to each morning.

Chalkboard Spice Jars
Old baby food jars plus chalkboard paint on the lids turns your spice drawer into a well organized showpiece!

Chalkboard Dining Table
Click through the link to see the before and afters of how one old, very traditional table was turned into something fun and unique for the whole family to enjoy!

DIY Chalkboard Gift Tags

Chalkboard Paint to Update Your Refrigerator
How fun is this? No longer just a place to hang the kids’ school work, chalkboard paint elevates this standard appliance to somewhere to write your grocery list and let the wee ones doodle while you prepare meals.

Chalkboard Kid’s Furniture
Sometimes the pieces we find for our kids are less than inspiring, but after a quick coat of chalkboard paint, that is easily changed!

Chalkboard Paint Wall Calendar
Some custom color chalkboard paints are mixed up to create a visually stunning yet altogether practical interior wall.

Chalkboard Wedding or Party Invitations
This beyond adorable idea is not exactly a DIY project unless you’ve got some serious time on your hands, but you can easily buy it on Etsy. Ah, Etsy, my other raging addiction…

DIY Chalkboard Serving Platter
Love this idea, running out to make it right away. I suggest you do the same.

Chalkboard Memo Area On Your Desk
Banish scattered pieces of paper and strings tied to your finger with this great DIY memo pad solution.

Chalkboard Easter Eggs
For some of us, the thought of April seems many snowy days away, but it will be here before we know it so here’s a great DIY Easter egg idea to get you in the Spring spirit!

Chalkboard Lunchbox
The cutest thing to hit the inside of your kid’s lunchbox since sliced bread. Literally.

DIY Chalkboard Herb Garden
Is it cilantro or is it parsley? No more questions – terra cotta pots get a useful update with the addition of some all-purpose chalkboard paint!

Chalkboard Paint on Wine Glasses
This idea is good and bad for me. On the one hand, it’s fabulous so I love it. On the other, I feel like it may prohibit me from going around stealing people’s drinks once mine is all gone. I mean, not that I ever do that, but if I did this would make it kind of difficult, I’m guessing…

How do you plan on using chalkboard paint in your house? Let us know in the comments!

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Filed Under: beautify, DIY, Kid-Friendly, New Year's Resolutions

Get Crafty: Making Homemade Kid’s Christmas Ornaments

7 Dec posted by renee

If your tree looks anything like mine, you have all the good ornaments on the top third, and all the non-breakable, ‘can find another one just like it at Target tomorrow’ ones on the rest of it. Actually, if your tree looks anything like mine, you used to have the bottom decorated but now all those ornaments are under the couch or in the dog bowl or sitting on the table because you refuse to put them back up one more freaking time. Can you tell I have a one-year-old in the house? Yeah. But this one-year-old also has two older brothers, and for the last few years we have spent some “crafty time” making cute little ornaments that they love to pull out of the box every year.

Now, another way you may be like me is that the entire extent of your sewing skills entails dropping things off at the tailor, so my list of homemade ornaments will not require you to wield needle and thread, just glue and whatever material the activity calls for. We like to label the finished product with the name of the child and the year we made it so every December, the ornament box is a time capsule of sorts for us to go through. Right before the baby tries to destroy them all again, that is.

Here are some great ideas that are easy to do and fun to make with your kids, what level you decide to place them at on your tree is entirely up to you!

Reindeer Clothespin Ornaments (you know you made these too as a kid!) Also, consider staining some brown to get them more of a true reindeer color and painting some pink to get some cute little females (white fuzzy tail required!):