All About the Packaging: Giant Kisses

Take the bottom half of this and turn it upside down,

crumple up three to four sheets of this and place on top,

wrap in two 2ft sheets of this,

add a foot and a half of this,

and you get one of these--

It takes a little bit of shaping once you wrap the foil around it, so you'll need the second layer of foil to keep things smooth. We used Grafix Rub-on Film to add the lettering for the Maddie-licious party. You could also use them as sweet packaging by adding a little gift in the middle.

Love Links: Elizabeth Abernathy

Filled with tutorials, refashions, interviews and interesting photos and finds, Elizabeth Abernathy has put together a great blog. She has also created Nuno Magazine, which has page upon page of " eco-friendly craft, sewing and crochet projects."

What to Do: Make a List

Make a list of the things that make you happy and then try to include at least one of these things in your a day.

Five Faves: Easy Red, White and Blue Recipes

Here are our five fave quick and easy recipes for the 4th. Just click the links to take you to the recipe.

No Bake Blueberry Pie
Linda's recipe for No Bake Blueberry Pie is delicious and you don't have to heat up your kitchen with the oven.

Photo: Linda Hill

Watermelon Margaritas
Sloshed.com has a simple yet tempting take on a margarita that uses fresh watermelon.

Photo: Sloshed.com

Blue Cheese Dip
OnePerfectBite.com's Blue Cheese Dip is perfect with wings, veggies or chips.

Photo: OnePerfectBite.com

Caprese Salad
When tomatoes are in season, there's nothing better or simpler than slices of tomato and fresh mozzerella with a little olive oil and basil (and maybe a little balsamic). And if you can find some blue basil, you've got everything covered for the 4th! Check out HomeCookingConnection.com's recipe.

Photo: HomeCookingConnection.com

Ginger Lemonade
Lemonade with a little bite to it. So refreshing on a hot day! BettyCrocker.com has a super simple recipe.

Can I Have This?: Zoku Quick Pop Maker

You're only seven minutes away from a popsicle when you have a Zoku Quick Pop Maker. Think of all the different (healthier) ones you can make with this and some fruit and fruit juice.

Just In Case You Missed It

Happy weekend! Here's what happened this past week.

Can I Have This?: Jigsaw Graphics Kid's Artwork Letterpress
Five Faves: Summer Evening Activities
What To Do: Take a Time-out
Love Links: Mighty Girl
All About the Packaging: Owl Treat Box
Things That Make Us Smile: Buckets

Things That Make Us Smile: Buckets

All you need is a little imagination.

All About the Packaging: Owl Treat Box

We saw these boxes on Papercrave.com and had to let you know about them.  How cute would these be for a Harry Potter birthday party? Head on over the Papercrave.com for the PDF and tutorial.

Love Links: Mighty Girl

We just love reading Mighty Girl (a.k.a. Maggie Mason). Her blog is full of wonderful posts on topics ranging from creating a life list to how to pack light and still look fab.

What To Do: Take a Time-out

There's no rule that says you have to accept an invitation to any event over the weekend. It's fine to just say "I can't make it" and spend the weekend relaxing at home, catching up on your Netflix queue.

Five Faves: Summer Evening Activities

There's just something about being outside in the evenings during the summer. Here are our five fave things to do.

Watch a movie
 Many parks across the country offer free movies in the park. Bring some popcorn and something nice to sit on and settle in for some entertainment under the stars.

 Image: Chicago Park District

Concerts in the Park
Music may be more your thing. Many opera companies and philharmonics schedule outdoor concerts. A quick search finds concerts in Portland, New York, and Madison as well as many other cities.

Go to a sidewalk cafe
Either for dinner or afterwards for dessert. It's nice to just site at a sidewalk cafe and watch the world pass by.

Stargaze
Whether in your backyard or on the roof, head out when it's dark to look at the stars. Use the GoSkyWatch app to find constellations.

Just go for a walk
Get some fresh air and a bit of exercise.

Can I Have This?: Jigsaw Graphics Kid's Artwork Letterpress

Here's a beautiful idea for note cards. Jigsaw Graphics takes your child's artwork and turns them into personalized letterpress cards. Adorable!

Just In Case You Missed It

Happy weekend! Here's what happened this past week.

Can I Have This?: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment

Five Faves: Etsy Shops

What To Do: Explore Outside Your Neighborhood

Love Links: Simple + Pretty

All About the Packaging: Shirt and Tie Gift Box

Things That Make Us Smile: A Subway Party

Things That Make Us Smile: A Subway Party

Lucy's son Jasper loves MTA subways and buses, so she decided on a subway theme for his second birthday. So with a few of our printables, she threw an amazing party for 17 kids!

Photo: Jonas Kant

Lucy even made homemade cupcakes. Yum! 

Photo: Jonas Kant

Of course, there was some water available to go with them.

Photo: Jonas Kant

And at the end of the party, the kids took home these adorable goodie bags. Lucy had a friend use her son's initals in the style of the MTA logo. So cute!

Photo: Jonas Kant

All About the Packaging: Shirt and Tie Gift Box

Paper Crave has a great tutorial for adorable shirt and tie gift boxes. These would be perfect for Father's Day.

Photo: Paper Crave

Love Links: Simple + Pretty

The name of Jane's blog says it all: Simple + Pretty. Take a look if you want to see a collection of wonderful pictures of pretty things and designs that are sure to inspire.

What to Do: Explore Outside Your Neighborhood

We get into a routine pretty easily, so much so that there are parts of our hometowns that we never go to. Why not take a couple hours and go to another part of town? Look up a cafe or shop that sounds interesting to you and go out of your way to check it out.

Five Faves: Etsy Shops

We love how we can find just about anything we need on Etsy. Here are our five fave shops.

Andie's Specialty Sweets
The most incredible cake decorations you've ever seen.  It's hard to believe their cameos, butterflies and buttons are all edible.

School Locker
Great selection of anything you could want for craft supplies. We love the colored twine and tags.

Simpson Studios
Simply beautiful beads and charms.

Vintage Confections
Delicious and amazing candies. We used their lollipop in place of a candle for the Subway party.

SteampunkAsunder
For a great selection of little bottles and vials to fill as your heart desires.

Can I Have This?: KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment

A KitchenAid mixer is already super useful and now you can take it to another level with an ice cream maker attachment. Is it necessary? No. Is it fun and something we want? Yes!

Just In Case You Missed It

Happy weekend! Here's what happened this past week.


Can I Have This?: Buccaneer Bed
Five Faves: Summer Camp Care Packages
What To Do: Treat Yourself
Love Links: Grosgrain
All About the Packaging: Animal  Paper Boxes
Things That Make Us Smile: Mini Aquariums

Things That Make Us Smile: Mini Aquariums

We made these mini aquariums with our kids' pre-K class. So easy with boxes from the Container Store, gravel, toy fish and a plant.  The kids loved them!

All About the Packaging: Animal Paper Boxes

Paper Box World has the cutest boxes ever! They are so adorable that you'll want to download all of them. What's more fantastic is that they are all free.

Photo: PaperBoxWorld.com

Love Links: Grosgrain

If you love to sew, then Grosgrain is the perfect site for you. Kathleen Dougherty fills her blog with just about everything you need to make amazing creations. Grosgrain is full of free patterns, video tutorials and fantastic giveaways.

What to Do: Treat Yourself

Things can get crazy pretty quickly these days.  Work, family and friends can take a lot out of you, so don't forget to take a moment and treat yourself. It can be something as simple as picking up a favorite magazine or  stepping out for some frozen yogurt in the middle of the day. Just do something for yourself.

Photo: Microsoft Images

Five Faves: Summer Camp Care Packages

School will be out and camp will soon begin. Here are our five fave items for care packages.

Flashlight

Sure to come in handy during late-night gab fests. Go with a crank flashlight and there's no need for batteries.

Magazines
Give your camper a little taste of the outside world. Plus, it's something else to do if there's downtime.

 

Glow Sticks
Every night can be a party with glow sticks.

 

Card Games
Playing cards work, but there are so many more to choose from as well. Blink, You Gotta Be Kidding, Scrabble Slam are just a few.

Stationery, Stickers and Stamps
This is a win-win for everyone. Your camper gets to share what's going on, while you get to receive something special in the mail. Adding stamps makes it that much easier.