How to Make a Gumball Machine

Our second son, Steve, is rather smitten with this treasure of a girl, and has been for over a year. They adore each other. They don't use the "l" word yet, but everyone (including them) knows they l-o-v-e each other.

He is always on the lookout for creative
ways to express his adoration. Sometimes he asks me or his sister for ideas, because his dad and brother aren't exactly the go-to guys for help in the romance department.


Our daughter saw a super cute "gumball machine" on Pinterest back in early February. She told her brother about it, and convinced him that he could make one for his girlfriend.

Arts and crafts projects take him quite a few zones out of his natural element, but that's what makes him all the more attractive to her. He tries to please her in ways that aren't necessarily easy for him.

He created this gumball machine for Valentine's Day. It could easily be adapted to be a gift for Easter,
birthday, or Christmas, or graduation, or just about any occasion, or "just because."


Materials Needed:
- a small clay pot with base
- your choice of acrylic paint colors (small tubes)
- medium paintbrush for painting the pot
- a skinny brush for writing a message (optional)
- a round vase with a "neck" like in this picture (available at the dollar store)
- a drawer pull or some sort of knob (monogrammed ones are extra special)
- ribbon to dress it up a bit
- hot glue gun with one stick of glue in it


Steps (after wiping dust off flowerpot with damp cloth)

1. Paint a clay flowerpot and its base with red acrylic paint. *The base becomes the lid.
2. Let it dry, and apply a second coat.
3. Let that dry and then turn the pot upsidedown. Paint a message.

4. Apply hot glue to the "top" and press the glass bowl securely on it.




5. Add gumballs or chocolates (such as these Lindor truffles) or whatever candies your recipient would enjoy eating.
6. Hot glue a ribbon around the rim of the clay pot. (This ribbon says "Happy Valentine's Day.)
7. Hot glue the knob on top of the lid.
8. Let it all dry thoroughly before wrapping it as a gift.

















9. Watch the smiles appear before your very eyes when your special someone sees what a sweet
thing you made.

50th Anniversary Party, Part 3: Before the Big Moment

A close-up of the floral arrangement we put at my parents' table. I could hardly take my eyes off it. (Note to self: it was made by Dee's Florist in Aberdeen.)











My parents met while at KU, and have been avid Jayhawks fans ever since. Mama set up this vignette next to the Welcome table. Love it! (I think I've mentioned a time or two that my dad tutored the late great basketball star, Wilt Chamberlain, at KU. (Wilt wasn't as good at algebra as he was at hoops.)
I always loved when my daddy tutored me in algebra, too. No one was too great or too small for his attention and brains, least of all his non-mathematically inclined second daughter.


Waiting for guests to arrive, my youngest was a bit on the bored side.
My oldest is standing there looking
suave and his fiancee' debonair.
Andrea is busy hauling water. Paul, AKA my Silver-haired Sweetie, well...I never get tired of looking at him from
any angle. Even (or especially?) at 50 he makes a suit look mighty fine.


There he is, beaming with his one and only daughter. They made a sweet greeting team. I made the floral arrangements in those vases. Love me some lilies. The basket contained little mints wrapped in gold "50" wrappers from Party City. The scrapbook paper in the front was for autographs as people entered. The gift bag held cards for the happy couple. My mom provided the gorgeous lace tablecloth,
a sentimental objet d'art if ever there was one.

Here's a close-up of one of our centerpieces.

In case you missed the how-to, it's a scooped-out pumpkin with a potted mum set down in it, some baby's breath, and silk florals poked in for added color. These were door prizes and thank-you gifts to people who helped us. Cost: approx $15 each.

We used two sheets of Faith paper from Hobby Lobby on each table, as well as silk leaves and two tealights for ambience.

Christmas Gift Bags for Sarah's Kindergartners

Sarah worked really hard this semester and completed her student teaching in a kindergarten class at a public school. She absolutely loved the whole experience, and grew to love the students in short order. It was easy for her to understand now how teachers get attached and emotional at the end of a year.

I came home one evening last week to find 15 cute gift bags on the table, some pink, some blue. Each one was decorated with either a snowman (for each girl) or mitten (for each boy). Gifties for her kiddoes. She stuffed each bag with goodies from the dollar store. My favorite was the crazy straw. I loved crazy straws as a kid! She also got some Bath & Body stuff for the mentor teacher. (Pay no attention to the other crap on the table and counters; I wasn't shooting for a magazine and this is my real life house where real people leave egg nog and Star Wars plates and empty soda bottles on the table.)

She stamped the snowmen on, using a sponge and paint. The mittens were peel-and-stick jobbies. I was so impressed with her thoughtfulness and the fun way she always puts things together. She was born to be an early elementary ed teacher! God has gifted her with a love
for little kids, for learning, and for giving--a winning combo. (And one of her teachers emailed her and said that she is the first student ever to have earned a perfect grade in her class!) Can you tell I'm just a bit over the moon about my daughter?

Valentine Wreaths You Can Make & Eat

I'm posting this mainly for Jessica but if you're thinking of being creative to surprise someone you love, try one of these. I made and sold a few of these last year while trying to raise funds for Russia. (A couple ladies from church were getting them from hubbies, so I couldn't post them back then.) Sorry about the blurry first picture. Just pretend it's sort of foggy, wispy, airy, romantic, ethereal on purpose.

Instead of chocolates, you could use assorted candies, little cheap toys, play jewelry, or even rolled dollars bills and shiny coins to decorate it.
For the Valentine wreath pictured here, I'll give you the supplies list and my directions. All of these can be bought at an arts & crafts store like Michael's.

















SUPPLIES
1 (14") flat styrofoam wreath base
1 pc cardboard or tagboard, cut to same size as wreath (it's got to be sturdy to support "toppings")
1 roll valentine wrapping paper
1 large heart-shaped box chocolates
1 small heart-shaped box chocolates
1 square box chocolates (for height)
1 bag Hershey's Kisses *
1 bag Dove chocolates *
1 wooden LOVE sign ($1)
1 roll each pink & purple curling ribbon
1 roll pretty pink satin ribbon slightly wider than side of wreath
hot glue gun and glue sticks
1 roll wide beautiful gauzy (not gaudy!) ribbon to tie on top



















DIRECTIONS:
1. Prepare hot glue gun have extra sticks available. Open all supplies before starting; you'll have to work quickly at times for the sake of the glue.
2. Unroll paper so it's about 2" wider than wreath. Fold it in half and cut along fold so that you have two equal pieces, one for the top of finished wreath, one for the bottom, plus enough to overlap the edged of wreath.
3. Lay wreath on "wrong" (i.e. undecorated) side of wrapping paper to make your template. Trace around bottom edge of wreath with pencil. Remove wreath. "Eyeball trace" another circle approx 1/2" beyond original one. (The extra inch will hang over sides and get glued down and covered up by ribbon.)
4. Glue cardboard securely to one side of wreath (this is the top side).
5. Glue wrapping paper to each side of wreath. Working quickly, glue excess paper down as smoothly as you you around the sides. Don't worry if it's not perfect. Seam won't show.
6. Glue large box down in center.
7. Glue small box on top of large one, where the points of the heart meet. This gives you room for the square box to also sit on the large heart.
8. Glue square box on.
9. Glue love sign on.
10. Glue satin ribbon around sides of wreath.
11. Glue assorted chocolates on (or whatever elements you've chosen.
12. Cut lots of curling ribbon in approx 6" strands, curling and gluing them around top edge of wreath as desired. Whatever suits your fancy. (If you want, like I did, you may add "roses"; cut gauzy ribbon into 4" strips and wrap them around two fingers to form roses. Glue roses onto perimeter of wreath here and there.)
13. Tie an extravagantly long piece of gorgeous ribbon to the top box.
14. Add a name tag or your own special card, and you're done! Love is in the air!

Would you lookie there. A Valentine Wreath in "14" easy steps. I wasn't trying for 14, it just happened. :)-

*I used these kinds because they went well with the paper I'd chosen.
+If you are looking for less expensive options: choose a smaller wreath, use foil instead of wrapping paper, omit the satin ribbon, make your own LOVE sign. The idea is to make it something your recipient will LOVE. I'm so inspired now, I just might make these again this year, just for my family.

(If you'd like me to make one for you, a donation of $40 will go towards Sarah's mission trip to Mexico, but no pressure. I would just need to know by Feb 5th. I could do just about any theme--trucks, farm animals, princesses, travel, cold hard cash, etc.)

Flo

Here's the wreath I just finished making. Sarah brought home the cutest little scarecrows for about 3 bucks each, one boy, one girl. I chose the girl and named her Flo. She directs the "flow" of traffic cheerfully in and out of the front door.

The elements were all ones I had leftover from my Zo Z's Cozies projects from last fall except for a few little gourds Sarah brought home with Flo.

Stay tuned. I'll have Mo to show.

Want to Make a Friendship Quilt Block?

I'm going again (Lord willing) to the GAIN warehouse in October to pack and make gospel aprons and bead bracelets and hang out with some of the team we went to Vladimir with. I want to take a handmade quilt for GAIN to send to a Russian orphanage.

But, I have had to admit to myself I am not fast enough to do a whole quilt by myself by October.

So, I got to thinking...maybe some of my blogging friends would like to join me? Just make one square or two.

For more info about this, please read my post on www.25thingsforcharity.blogspot.com, posted today, August 6. Please leave comment here. It may be that there's enough interest to make TWO quilts. The 25things blogs is NOT all Christians, by any means, but I always try to be overt about Christ somehow in my my posts there.

Got fabric?

How About a Gift Card Wreath?

Perfect for the care group leader, a whole family gift, or as a way to present someone with a "big gift to open" and keep the "package" for years after the gift cards have been spent. One gal has ordered and I'm excited to create this for her.

A Gift Card Wreath will be a 14" wreath of silk flowers and greens, and five gift card holders securely attached to the wreath. (This one isn't finished;it only has two holders so far, but I wanted to post the picture now to give you an idea what I'm talking about.)
Suggested donation: $20. (The more the merrier:)). I would love one of these for myself, actually. Isn't that funny? I can just see some of my favorite place names playing Peek-A-Boo out of their holders. Mine would be: Ritz Camera, JoAnn's, Michael's, Ross, ScrapMasters, and Dunkins. (Love their coffee!) Of course, there's no stopping you from putting cold hard cash in little holders, or a receipt for airline tickets, or notes of offer to babysit, wash the car, bring dinner, or tickets to a show, concert, or game. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination!

Place your order soon.

By the way, yesterday I got a surprise call from a couple, Frank and Mary S, who are reps with GAiN. Frank has been on 27 missions trips with them. I was asking him what sort of little gifties we can take with us to hand to children and adults. He said they take little toys and hair things, cars, balls, just like our kids. The adults are hungry for the Bible. One English-speaking Russian woman in the airport with whom Frank and Mary were speaking said she really wanted an English Bible. Frank inquired around among the GAiN group and no one had a new Bible in their luggage. Mary said, "Frank, give her mine. It's got notes and highlighting, but that's probably okay." Well, this woman was so grateful she began to weep. On the plane they saw her kissing the Bible. Kissing the Bible. How I long to witness this hunger for God's Word among foreigners. Well, I desire it among Americans, too, and am filled with more love for God when I see others so in love with Him also.
Please keep praying that God would open the storehouses of heaven for both Sarah and me to go together on this life-changing trip. We need $6,000. So far we have $245.

Never-Ending Chocolate Wreath: Silver Edition

The last one was Gold.

I can't say who ordered this; it's a secret. You might be the recipient. But here's a sneak peek. Notice all the chocolate around the sides of this wheel? Mmmm.What a delectable wreath. I think this one has about 54 pieces of Hershey's yum-yums on it.

Pinecones & Purples Wreath

Created with simplicity in mind, I chose mostly pine needles, pine cones, some greenery, purple berries, and green and purple plaid ribbon for this wreath. It may well be my favorite thus far. But then again, I say that after every wreath I finish. That's the trouble I'm having; making them, liking them, wanting to keep them. But I realize they are being adopted into good homes and the "adoption fees" are going to making our dream of ministering to orphans a reality. That makes it easier to part with these Cozies.

If you'd still like me to make one for you, just say so, but quickly. I have only time and materials to make 13 more for the Christmas/Hanukkah season. I would LOVE to create some that are in my head. Tell me if you'd like:

-White Winter Wonder (pretty angel in white gown, surrounded by antique white roses, white ribbon, baby's breath) suggested donation: $40

-Plethora of Pinecones (almost entirely pinecones of all sizes snuggled up) Suggested donation: $25

-Hark! The Herald Angel Sings" -- the whimsical angel surrounded by gifts of gold, scented with apples; you can see her when you scroll down this blog. Suggested donation: $30

-Anything similar to what you've seen before here.

-

Never-Ending Chocolate Wreath Picture

Here's the Never-Ending Chocolate Wreath

I made for Lauren. It has 49 pieces of

Hershey's chocolate.

I've just finished a similar
one for Jack M. He wants two.
These are fun to put together.
You can eat the mistakes--literally!

In fact, while I was working on this one, Ben says,

"Hey, Mom, got a Snickers for me over there?"

I said, "Gotta wait till I mess up."

At times, being an imperfectionist is a delicious thing.

White PIne Scented Wreath

Can you smell it through the screen?
White Pine scented potpourri and bark
make this a creation ordered by Jack M.
It has burgundy and gold berries and
pinecones.

Fond Memories Wreath

Donna asked me to make a wreath to put on Scott's grave. I am humbled, honored, sad, and invigorated all at the same time.

She gave me a couple of solid paragraphs that really helped me picture his favorite things. I am on mission to make this memorial wreath really special.

If you would like a Fond Memories wreath as well, please let me know ASAP. (They take a little longer to customize.)

Of course I have no picture to show you, as the wreath for Scott is still in my head and heart!

Again, your donation would go into our fund for Russia. At this point, Paul is saying only Sarah will go, but I am begging to go, also. Begging without nagging? Is that possible? Hmmm.

So I suggest a donation of $50 for this one, but if your budget can't swing that, I understand and will work with you on a pleasing keepsake for you and a drop in our Russian bucket for me.

Never-Ending Chocolate Wreath...& Candy Wreath

Chocolate Lovers, this wreath is for you and all the other chocoholics in your life.

I have not made one yet to photograph, but designs are swirling in my head.

Here's what you'll get: a wreath filled with fun-sized chocolate bars of your choosing, plus a few Hershey kisses in holiday foil wraps, tied together with fun ribbon.

You choose the size. Small (suggested for co-workers, teachers, care group leader's wife, hairdresser). Medium (for anyone else on your list). Large (for yourself, of course. Just kidding.) Medium and large ones would be ideal for the social gathering. Set them on the table or island and let guests enjoy picking their chocolate off the wreath. Or, hang the wreath on the inside of your front door and let people take a chocolate as they leave your home.

You pick the candy. Just let me know which candies you want. For example, "All Snickers" or "surprise me, just nothing with nuts" or "Dark Chocolate only" or any other way of personalizing it. I want you to LOVE your wreath.

I'd be happy to mix and match candy in your wreath, too. Candy canes, Mike & Ikes, Laffy Taffy, Milk Duds, whatever. Just name it and I'm sure I can satisfy the Sweet Tooth on your list.

All proceeds will go to orphan care through GAiN, or specifically to Sarah 's and my trip with GAiN , should Paul say yes. Please pray. We need to raise $6,000 in a few short months.


By the way, for the security reasons, I will only sell to people with whom I have some relationship or am comfortable providing my address to. Sorry to disappoint anyone who found this blog by doing a chocolate wreath search!

Fresh Linen & Cinnamon Wreath

I crafted this wreath for the powder
room. Neutral tones, wonderful aroma.

May I Make A Wreath for You?

• Dear Friends,
  
  Whether the Lord sends Sarah, me, Sacha, or any combination thereof to Russia (or wherever) next summer, I am starting to raise funds now, in faith. The application alone is $750 per person.
  
  I plan to make several wreaths between now and Christmas. Rather than set a price, I will be asking individuals who want them to make a contribution to our trip fund. The donation amount is up to you.
  
  Available before Thanksgiving. For indoor or outdoor use. (I recommend that wreaths for outdoors be sheltered.)
  
  Perfect for the hostess:
  
  12" wreath: Bountiful Harvest has pumpkins, pinecones, small gourds, fruit, a quail and a big rust bow, on a scrappy nest of natural colored raffia.
  
  OR
  
  12" wreath: Fresh Linen and Cinnamon. I created this one for my powder room. This wreath features several strips of linen-scented bark, cinnamon sticks, cinnamon-scented pinecones, sage green leaves, and ivory shells. (Every time Sarah is in our foyer, she says, "Oh, that smells so good!" ) This wreath would accent a shabby chic, traditional, or modern bathroom, bedroom, or laundry room very well.
  
  My wreaths come with an attached sawtooth metal fixture for hanging on the wall. If you want a brushed brass-like door hanger, I can supply that for an additional $5. They look good with all styles of decor.
  
  

If you prefer a wreath for Christmas, I can do that for you. Just leave a comment saying what you'd like and how I can best reach you.

May I make a wreath for you?