Briefcase Doll House

We just celebrated my daughter's 4th birthday.  It's crazy to think that my first post on this blog occurred when my oldest was only 4!  

Months ago I found the cutest idea floating around Facebook for a dollhouse that you could carry around.  I just knew that my daughter would love something like that and planned on having it ready by the time of her birthday.

I started off by heading to the local thrift store to find a very small briefcase that I could use for the dollhouse.  Just when I was about to give up this little thing appeared before me.

It was the perfect size!  And once I opened it up I realized that it was an old cassette tape holder... that's not something you see anymore.

After using this free pattern to make some adorable felt paper dolls (and clothes!) I realized that this little home was big enough for 2 dolls. 

 With the original post as inspiration I began to design my dollhouse.  It was fun to go through my stashes of felt and scrapbooking materials to see what I could create.

I decided to modge podge everything (except the felt blankets) because I know how little kids are and didn't want the papers to get dirty or torn.  I also opted not to have a hanger for a change of clothes.  There were two reasons for this--the first is that I made lots of little outfits (not just one) and the second was that the clothes would inevitably fall off once the dollhouse was closed.  Instead I painted a small box to hold all the doll clothes.

Since my briefcase had an extra little insert (originally for hold the cassettes) I decided it would be fun to add a kitchen!

The inside was so cute that I couldn't bear to have her carrying around a drab brown case.  I decided to paint it purple (her favorite color) and modge podge a little house to the outside.

My daughter was thrilled to open this on her birthday and she has already put in a few requests for additions.  We'll see what I can do for her.

This little portable dollhouse is sure to bring hours of fun for one sweet little girl.

IKEA Hack: DIY Jewelry Organizer

My necklaces have been collecting for a while now on a hanger in my closet.  I place my smaller pieces of jewelry in my jewelry box on my dresser but my chunky long necklaces don't fit--so on a hanger in the closet they go. As the months (and years!) have gone by they've become a tangled mess.  I finally realized enough was enough and decided I needed a more organized solution for them. This jewelry holder is the results of my frustration.  It has plenty of hooks for all my necklaces and room for more.  I have it hanging on the wall in my bathroom so I can access them easily.




To make my jewelry holder I picked up this 20 x 20 RIBBA frame from IKEA.  It was very practically priced at only $15!

For a few dollars I got these 7/8 inch white hooks from Lowes.

I removed the backing and glass from the frame and marked where I wanted my hooks to go.  After my sweet husband saw me working to screw the hooks in for a few minutes, and realizing it was going to take me forever, he got out his drill and finished the job for me.  

All lined up in a row--nice and secure.

I then glued some fabric to the back of the frame using modge-podge. I spent way too long deciding on what pattern of fabric to use but in the end I went for the subtle white stripes. I decided a simple pattern was better since once I had all my necklaces hanging there would be a lot going on with colors and shapes.

All done and ready to hold some jewlery! I just love having my necklaces organized so prettily! 

Women in the Bible - Quiet Book

So . . . I was cleaning out some drawers not to long ago and I came across this little gem.

It's the very first quiet book I ever made.  I can't believe I had completely forgotten about it!  When I was in college I took a course from Camille Fronk Olsen called Women in Scripture (I know, I know--if you know Camille then you're pretty jealous of me :)  She is an amazing teacher and it was an amazing class.  I learned so much.  A large portion of our grade in the class was determined by a big semester project of our choosing having to do with women in scripture.  I chose to make a quiet book for children teaching about these amazing women.  Looking back I find my choice funny.  I must really have some sort of crazy love for quiet books.

The book includes verses directly from the scriptures along with a picture/activity page.  Having studied child development I tried to include all that fun sensory stuff for kids.  I also did a lot of research into the verses I included in the book and made a guide for parents so they could help their children better understand some of the unfamiliar parts of the scripture.  For example on the page about Miriam it says in Exodus 2:3, "And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with a pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the rivers brink."

My parents guide explains: The precise form of this little "ark" is unknown. It may have been a basket, a boat, or a box.  It was made of leaf of the papyrus, a reedy plant which grew plentifully on the banks of the Nile, and which was used by the Egyptians for cordage, baskets, boats, sails, writing material, and a variety of other purposes; even sometimes food.  The "slime" . . . though melting easily and running freely, when cold it is very brittle; but if mixes with tar it becomes tenacious when set, and makes firm cement.  In preparing the little vessel for the reception of the infant Moses, it is probable that the papyrus leaves were first plaited together, and then coated with a mixture of hot bitumen and tar, which when cold became firm and water-proof. 

Interesting, huh?  Yeah, this little guide is full of interesting facts and tid-bits.  It's such a little treasure to go along with my quiet book.  

Moving on . . .

So to be honest I'm kind of embarrassed of this book.  The idea and the research I put into it are fabulous--but the art and construction of it . . . it's not  . . . perfect.  I was a poor college student and had super limited supplies (and time).  It really was quite painful to my budget to have to go out and buy all those brushes and different colors of paint.  I still have to remind myself that no little kid is really going to care.  My kids love this book and have so much fun learning the scripture stories as they play with the pages.  In fact this post has taken me forever to write up because each time they see me working on it they are reminded of this little quiet book and they want me to read it with them.

Regardless of what a little child might think though I'm still hesitant to share it here . . . but I'm going to anyway.  I hope it will inspire someone to make something 10 times better than mine, and more importantly help their children develop a love for the scriptures and the lessons that we can learn there . . . and fortunately these small picture hide so many of my many flaws.

So . . . here goes nothing.  Don't laugh.  OK?  :)

First off is my little cover page.  All the text in my book was done by typing it up on the computer and then printing it out onto Pellon Peltex sheets through my printer.  Printing onto the Pellon mutes the text quite a bit.  I used black ink but you can see it comes out looking more gray.



Eve.
The apples are felt and removable with velcro.  There is also velcro in Adam and Eve's hands so they can hold the apple.

Rachel
On this page the fuzzy sheep can be moved around to different velcro spots on the page.

Miriam
Here's Moses floating in his reed basket on the "ric-rac" water.  The basket opens and Moses is removable.  I just have to say pellon is really a pain to paint--especially with cheap brushes. I tried to take a short cut and used a permanent marker to do some of the coloring.  You can see on the opposite page that over time some of the green marker has bled over.  I'm a little sad about that . . . but what are ya gonna do?

Here is the page with the basket closed.

Ruth
On this page Ruth's arm is movable with a brad.  Her hand is holding a string that the stalks of wheat can be strung onto.  The stalks of wheat are held a in pocket that looks like a bundle of wheat.

The Widow of Zarephath
On this page the barrel can be seen with a small amount of meal on the bottom.  Then as you tell the story the child can unbutton the barrel and turn it over . . .

to show the jar full.

Ester
Esters hair can be braided and tied with the ribbons.

Mary
Baby Jesus and the little land can be removed and placed on the page with velcro.



The Woman with the Alabaster Box
On this page the woman's hair is made of string that can be used to clean/wipe the Savior's feet.

So as you can see this book is a great teaching tool and has become a real treasure.  I hope it inspires you to create a fun teaching tool for your children.

Looking for more quiet book ideas?  Check out my other quiet book patterns below.


My Original Quiet Book 



Quiet Book Game Series

and my book

Quiet Book Patterns

Eraser Stamped Batman Shirt

Not to long ago I spied some t-shirts at the dollar store.  They had all kinds of sizes and colors so I grabbed a few knowing that decorating them would make a fun and inexpensive activity to do with my kids.  We used some of the shirts to make these festive patriotic shirts for the Fourth of July.  With the extras each of my children got to decide how they wanted to decorate their own shirt.

My super hero loving three year old decided that he wanted a batman shirt so batman it was!

He was super excited to wear his new shirt despite the long sleeves and the hot humid weather.



He was sure to wear what he calls his mean batman face as I snapped a few picture.  I just love this spunky and silly little boy!



Now that he has his mask, cape, and new shirt he's ready to go fight crime.  I found the batman mask on Amazon a few years ago for only $5 and the cape was another dollar store find.



I love how simple, fun, and fast these eraser stamped shirts are to make.

First things first--I washed the shirt.  This is always a good idea so it can preshrink.  It also washes away any chemicals on the fabric from manufacturing which may prevent the paint from being permanent.

To start out I traced and cut out the batman logo from freezer paper.  I then placed the shinny side of the logo onto the fabric and ironed it on using a medium setting.  Be sure to focus on the edges and points of the logo.  Iron for about 30 seconds to a minute.  The first time I used freezer paper for a project I applied a lot of heat and and lot of pressure and I couldn't get the freezer paper to come off of my fabric when I was done. I ruined my project.  Less is more here, but at the same time you want to make sure the paper is completely ironed on so no paint seeps under.

I then mixed in some textile medium to my black paint and used a new pencil eraser to stamp.  Be sure to place cardboard, wax paper, or freezer paper inside your shirt before you start stamping so the paint doesn't soak through to the back.  You really can't go wrong with the design.  I concentrated the dots more around the logo and then spaced them out as I got further away from it.

Once the paint drys you can peel away the freezer paper and your shirt is done!

Want more eraser stamped t-shirt ideas?  See the patriotic shirts we made here.