DIY – Page 3 – Short Stop Designs

Printable Advent Calendar + 30 Activity Ideas

November 6, 2023

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We’ve reached the end of the year and the busiest season of the year! My kids ask every year for an advent calendar and they absolutely love it. We’ve done a variety of advent calendars: candy, socks, activities, you name it! I will admit, their favorite has definitely been the candy ones, but I know they also love getting into the holiday spirit with Christmas activities.

Here is an advent calendar that you can print off and use for years. Knowing that every year is going to be different, you can also change the text so that you can plan the activities based on your schedule. The text can be changed in Canva and is free and easy to use!

Here’s what you’re going to need:

Cardstock
Advent Printable Calendar Cover (Green & Pink / Red & Blue / Red & Green)
Activity Page – Edit in Canva
Cutting Mat
Precision/Exacto Knife
8×10 Frame
Tape

How to put it together:

Print out the Advent Calendar Cover on cardstock.
Using a cutting mat and precision/exacto knife, start cutting 3 sides of each box on the Advent Calendar so that it opens up like a door. You don’t want to cut off all of the sides on each box.
To print out and/or change the text on the Activity Page, go to Canva and edit the text on the template.
To print out the Activity Page, select “Share” at the top right corner, choose Download and for file type, choose PDF Print. Once you’ve selected the file type, click download.
Line the Advent Calendar and Activity Page behind it.
If using a matted frame, tape the pages to the matte and line up the 2nd page. If using a frame without a matte, sides down to fit a 8×10 frame.

See the video on how to put the Advent Calendar together: Instagram Video

Need some ideas for your Advent Calendar?

Watch a Christmas Movie
Look at Christmas Lights
Bake Cookies
Make a homemade gift and deliver to a friend/neighbor
Wear an Ugly Christmas Sweater
Look at Christmas Lights
Make a holiday craft
Write a letter to Santa
Read a Christmas Book
Hot Chocolate Bar
Make a Ginger Bread House
Make Magical Reindeer Food
Donate a gift to someone in need
Go Ice Skating
Listen to Christmas Songs
Send Christmas Cards
Have a Sleepover by the Tree
Visit Santa
Watch a holiday show
Visit a Christmas Market
Play in the snow
Make a Christmas Ornament
Play board games in Pajamas
Wrap Christmas Presents
Try a new Christmas Cookie Recipe
Donate Food
Take family pictures
Go Sledding
Leave Cookies for Santa
Attend or Host a Christmas Party

Fall Photo Booth Props – Free Printable

October 26, 2023

We’ve reached the busy season, and that typically means lots of parties and get togethers to celebrate the holidays. I love this time of year (like most of you) and there’s usually a lot that goes into getting ready for a party. Coming up with the food menu, activities, decorations, etc.

One of my favorite things at a party are the photo booths! I love that there are so many fun ideas to create a cute back drop and capture a moment from the party. If you’re having a photo booth, you’re definitely going to need some props! These props are the perfect addition to your Fall photo booth and you can make them at home!

These are easy to put together and add a little fun and silliness to your pictures! Who doesn’t love that? Here is what you’ll need to put these together:

–Fall Photo Booth Printable – Download here

-Color Printer

-Heavy Cardstock

-Scissors

-Wooden Dowels

-Glue / Tape

Looking for more props and want the full set? Grab them in the shop! Click on the image below:

Unicorn Birthday Party

August 1, 2020

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Our little girl turned 4 and she was so excited to have a unicorn birthday party with a small group of her friends. She has been waiting for this party since her brother’s birthday party in February, so this was a long wait for her (or any 4 year old).

Riley and I came up with a few different ideas on what crafts she wanted to do with her friends. We thought about making unicorn headbands, decorate unicorn sugar cookies or make a unicorn painting. Finally, we decided on 2 crafts, and they made unicorn bracelets, and unicorn wands. I tried to keep it as simple as possible, since 3-4 years have short attention spans.

I have been loving the look of the bubblegum necklaces, and we found a pack of mixed beads on sale at Hobby Lobby, and I also ordered some beads on Etsy to add a few more colors. To call it a “unicorn bracelet,” I bought some unicorn charms to complete the look. To help make things easy and organized, I bought some small organza gift bags and placed the beads and pre-cut stretch magic string and tied the ends. This also worked out perfectly to put their bracelet back in the bag after they were done.

Materials for Unicorn Bracelets:

16mm bubble gum beads
Stretch Magic 1mm jewelry cord
Unicorn Charms
Organza gift bags 3×4 – optional

For the unicorn wands, we used small wooden stars, wooden dowels, acrylic paint, and found some unicorn stickers. We played some games while we waited for the paint to dry, and my MIL helped glue the dowels to the stars and the ribbon. This project was definitely the quickest for them to complete, but was definitely longer due to having to wait for the paint to dry and then putting together the wand. But I love how they turned out!

Materials for the Unicorn Wands:

Wooden stars
1/8″ Wooden dowels
Acrylic Paint – assorted colors
Paint brushes
Assorted Ribbon
Stickers

For the games, we played the classic “Pin the Horn on the Unicorn,” and the Unicorn Ring Toss. I had my boys be the center of the game, and while they acted like they totally hated it, I think they had some fun doing it. There was no order to the ring toss game at this point, as we had 30 minutes left and we still had a pinata and cake to get to before the party was over! The girls just threw the rings at the boys, but my kids loved playing it before and after the party was over.

I wish I had taken a picture of the cake with my DSLR camera than with my phone, but I loved how it turned out! We did a small birthday party with family the week before on her actual birthday, and while I thought it looked pretty good, I just didn’t want to mess with the fondant for the ears and the horn again. I found this awesome unicorn horn and ears topper that worked great on a 6″ cake. I had 3 layers on my cake, and there was still half of it remaining. I don’t make cake very often, but this party has proven that with a small group, 6″ of cake is enough, especially if there are 3 layers!

I even went crazy and made some cupcakes in case the 6″ cake wasn’t enough for everyone. Nice to know that I probably won’t have to do that again unless I have a bigger group of friends over.

For the decorations, I like to try and keep things more on the “frugal” side. I used a lot of streamers and I thought they turned out pretty elegant! I like to hang banners in front of them to add a little more dimension. My favorite banner is this Unicorn Banner that I’ll link in a future post to come.

I cut out circles of colored card stock and glitter card stock and sewed them together to create the hanging decorations. Instead of having to cut the circles out by hand or waiting for my Cricut to print out hundreds of circles, I use this Craft Punch circle tool to get them cut in a short amount of time. I used my Cricut to cut out gold glitter unicorns to put at the end of some of the hanging decorations.

I found these amazing unicorn headbands at the Children’s place for such a great deal and used these as a party favors, but the girls were able to pick them up at the start of the party to get into the theme of the party.

We had a blast, and it seemed like the party went by in a blur, but I know Riley had such a great time and was happy to see her friends. It takes a lot of time and effort to throw a party, but knowing that she was happy with they way things looked and had fun, is all that matters! Happy birthday baby girl!

Unicorn Party Supply ideas:

DIY ‘HOME’ Wall Art

July 23, 2020

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We moved into our brand new home the day before Thanksgiving last year making this our 7th home! This does not include all of our transition periods staying at one of our parents’ homes in between a few of those moves. We have lived in 4 different states, California, Idaho, Washington and currently Texas. It has been quite the adventure for us and our kids.

With every move I’ve found it usually takes me months before I’ve formed a plan of how I want to decorate my walls. My entry was lacking a bit of a warm welcome, and I finally found a solution! It was during the early stages of quarantine that I needed a small project to keep myself busy with all the free time we had after work, when the kids would normally occupy our evenings with sports.

This project was easy, not unbearably time consuming, and just what my entryway needed! I found everything I needed on Amazon:

Wooden Letters (12″) – Letter ‘H’ – Letter ‘M’ – Letter ‘E’
15″ Faux Boxwood Wreath
White Acrylic Paint
Paint Brushes
Command Strips

All I needed to do was paint my letters white, and then after they dried I hung them up on the wall with 2 command strips on each letter. For me, the easiest way to hang it was starting from the bottom and then moving my way to the top so I knew how low I wanted my letters to be. I hung the wreath up with a nail to complete the farmhouse look. You could definitely change up this look during the holidays to make it more festive!

Teacher Appreciation Day Gift Ideas + Printables

April 26, 2018

Looking for a creative gift idea for your child’s teacher for Teacher Appreciation Day? These fruity puns are a silly and fun way to make your teacher smile and know how much they are appreciated with a simple gift.

Teachers work so hard during the school year to keep those young minds busy and actively learning. I am constantly amazed at how much my boys have learned and I owe it all to their teachers! I love hearing about their day and what they’ve been learning about when they get home from school, and I am always shocked that these teachers are able to go the whole day without loosing their cool. I can barely handle my own three kids for the whole day! Teachers have 20+ kids to work with and think they are amazing, if you ask me! Show them some love on Teacher Appreciation week May 7-11 with these easy gift ideas.

This Lemon Gift tag pairs perfectly with some lemonade packets in a mason jar. While I was browsing through Walmart, I noticed that the Pioneer Woman had these cute Mason Jar lids with holes in them for straws. How cute is that? If you have more than one teacher to buy for (or you’d like to keep the rest of the lids for yourself) buy a pack of mason jars and lids with straws and you can mark this off as a completely affordable gift idea, and adds a cute touch! (There are so many great ways to use mason jars!)

I love a fresh smelling house, and I’m sure you’re teacher will too! I have to be honest, this candle scent wasn’t labeled “watermelon” on it, but it smelled pretty darn close to it! I took the tag off and added this watermelon tag, and now no one will ever know it’s not watermelon (except for you of course!) Ribbons make everything look prettier, and pairing the gift tag with a big ribbon makes all the difference!

Last, but certainly not least is the strawberry gift tag! I’ve always had a love for the strawberry filled candy, and it worked great with these gift tags! Fill up a mason jar with these little guys and keep your teacher happy the whole day when she needs a little pick me up. If you have a big mason jar and not enough candy to fill it up, a fun and sneaky little way to fill up the jar is to add an empty toilet or paper towel roll in the middle of the jar and fill the candy around it. Add a note from your child in the middle of the roll like this Thank You Note to Teacher printable and they’ll have a happy little surprise!

Download the Teacher Appreciation Gift Tags

Note: When you download the PDF file, you will notice the green looks brighter than the ones pictured in the post. I promise when you print it out it won’t be that bright!

Star Wars Lightsaber Valentines

February 8, 2018

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Our family loves Star Wars, and my younger son is in major Star Wars mode right now. Whenever we go to the library, he’s always on the hunt for a Star Wars book even if we’ve checked it out before. For his Valentines, he wanted to pass out pencils as lightsabers, but I was thinking of how I could attach the “happy valentine’s day” part to it. Alas, I figured it out and love how these Star Wars Valentines came out! Super easy to put together too!

Here’s what you’ll need:

Star Wars Lightsaber Valentines Printable
Light Saber Pencil Wraps Printable
Cardstock
Colored No. 2 Pencils
Tape
Scissors
Exacto Knife (or something similar)

First, tape on the Lightsaber Pencil Wraps onto the eraser part of your pencil. I put a little tape on part of the pencil and the wrap in order to keep it from sliding off, and then wrapped the rest of the paper around and finished it off with another piece of tape.

Next, you’ll want to use an Exacto knife and make a little slit above the lightsaber, like pictured above. It is going to be bigger than the lightsaber in order for your pencil to fit through.

Put your pencil through the slit, leaving a little bit of the pencil behind the printable. Apply tape to keep it in place.

And that’s it! You’re kids are going to have lots of fun with these, and they’ll love pretending they have a mini lightsaber! My son loves using his pencil lightsaber to do his homework, and I’m guessing your little ones will too.

Emoji Valentines Bookmark

January 29, 2018

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Ever since my son learned to read, he has been reading books non-stop. He loves it and will even take it to his bed at night before he falls asleep. I realize he is probably bringing it up with him because he’s trying to avoid going to sleep, but I am totally fine with it as long as he is quiet!

Since his sibling are younger than him and are constantly wanting to “read” the same book as his older brother, his bookmarks keep falling out and I always feel bad that they keep loosing his place. With Valentines Day coming up, and the constant battle with losing his bookmarks, I thought it would be perfect to make these magnetic bookmarks to pass out to his friends. These are the easiest Valentines to make, and might I add a very practical Valentine!

Here’s what you’ll need:

First, print out and cut out your bookmarks. If you are going to laminate them, this would be the perfect time to do it, just make sure your child signs their name first!

Next, cut out two equal pieces of magnetic tape. Take one of the pieces and peel off the back and stick it onto the inside of your book mark, like pictured above.

Place the remaining magnetic tape on top of the magnet you just placed on the bookmark. This will help make sure they they line up when the bookmark closes.

Remove the backside of the magnet exposing the sticky side, and fold the bookmark in half, making sure the magnet sticks to the bookmark.

They should look like the picture above when you’re finished. And that’s it! So easy, your kids could even help you with this project!

I remember using these for my bookmarks, and I loved that they never fell out of my book! I’m excited to share this project with my son and hopefully your little ones will love it as well!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

I also have a normal Emoji Bookmark that your kids could also use to pass out for their Valentines instead! Download the Printable HERE.

Santa + Reindeer Gift Tag – Kids Crafts

December 11, 2017

My kids love to do whatever they can to help with the holidays. They love to decorate the tree, make cookies, and any other holiday craft we can find or come up with. I thought it would be fun for them to make some gift tags to put on presents for their teachers and our family.

I love that my kids had fun putting these together and how cute they look on the Christmas gifts! The best part, they don’t have to be perfect and they still look pretty cute.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Cricut
Red, Black, Brown and White Cardstock
Googly Eyes
Red Pom Poms or Red Buttons
Modge Podge
Glue Gun
Hole Punch
String
Santa Gift Tag Cut files: Santa’s Face | Santa’s Hat | Santa’s Beard + Hat Pieces
Reindeer Gift Tag Cut files: Gift Tag (Rectangle) | Reindeer Antlers

If you don’t have a Cricut, I also have a printable file that you can print onto your cardstock and cut out the pieces.

For the Santa Gift Tag:

First glue on the beard onto Santa’s face and then your mustache.

Next, glue on the red hat, then the remaining two white parts of his hat.

Add some googly eyes or use a black marker for the eyes to complete the look of Santa.

For the Reindeer Gift Tag:

Glue your antlers onto the brown gift tag, making sure some of the antlers are coming off the tag like pictured above.

Add your googly eyes with modge podge or hot glue (which ever sticks better onto the paper. I had success with both, but sometimes the modge podge wasn’t sticking).

Hot glue your reindeer nose onto the gift tag.

Hole punch your gift tags at the top, add some string, and you’re gift tags are all done!

Santa Letter Printable

December 4, 2017

I’ve been wanting to make a Santa Letter Printable for a while, and my kids were so excited when I was finally done. They’ve been anxiously waiting to write Santa a letter and send it in the mail.

When I was helping my 3 year write his letter, I asked if he had been naughty or nice this year, and his first response was “Naughty.” It made me laugh, and he recognized that he definitely had some rough patches this year, but it was perfect to go over the things he was trying to improve on this year.

These letters are the perfect way to get your kids excited about Christmas and let Santa know what they’re wishing for this year. It’s super easy to put together and you don’t need an envelope since it’s a tri-fold letter!

First you’ll need to print out the letter on both sides and trim it down.

Fold the letter twice so that the opening of the letter looks like the picture above.

And the “to” and “from” side look like this.

Place a stamp on your card and they’re ready to send it off to Santa!

Download the Santa Letter Printable

Hot Chocolate Bar + Printables

November 27, 2017

With the cooler weather upon us and family in town the week of Thanksgiving, I thought it would be fun to create a Hot Chocolate Bar during their visit. My kids and I love hot chocolate, so this was the perfect opportunity! My kids loved adding in their favorite mixes and toppings and having something to warm us up during the cooler week.

To go along with Hot Chocolate Bar, I also created these Hot Chocolate Bar printables to make it a little more festive.

I love how easy it is to put this all together, and you can use as many toppings and mix-ins as you like. I’ve included some of the basics on the printables!

Using disposable cups with lids was perfect for everyone, especially the kiddos. I didn’t have to worry about them breaking a mug and you can make them look cuter with these coffee sleeve printables.

I used a fancy cake stand to create some dimension to the look of the Hot Chocolate Bar.

Add some cookies or candy to the bar, and you’ve got yourself a perfect Hot Chocolate bar!

If you’re looking for more ways to create stylish spaces, you must check out Havenly. Havenly is unique way of letting experienced Interior Designers create a beautiful and stylish home for you with any budget. From small rooms, to kid friendly living rooms, there is a designer that is there to help you with your specific needs!

Download the Printables Below:

Hot Chocolate Bar Sign | Baby It’s Cold Outside Sign (5×7)

Hot Chocolate Bar Labels| Coffee Sleeves Printable