Frame up your Love this Mother's Day

Every Mother loves to get a gift of love - things made from the little hands of her loved ones. Make it doubly sweet by framing a picture of you and mom or the entire Happy Family with these creative yet easy to make frames.

Twig Frame


Supplies needed:
Twigs
Twine or string
Glue (hot glue works well)
A photo for framing

Collect 2 bunches of twigs. One bunch (about 6 to 8) should be about 2 inches longer than your photo. The other bunch of twigs should be about 2 inches wider than your photo.

Arrange the twigs so that they surround the photo and extend outward about an inch in each direction. Tie the twigs at each corner using twine or string, making an "X" pattern.

Glue the photo onto the back of your twig frame. Hot glue works the best.

Glue a small loop of string to the top batch of twigs for hanging the photo.

Fun Foam Picture Frame


Supplies needed:

A piece of fun foam a few inches larger than the photo
a photo to frame
a hole punch
scissors
glue (like Elmer's glue or a glue stick)
about 6 inches of thin ribbon or yarn (for hanging the frame)
fabric paint, sequins, buttons, yarn, ribbon, feathers, etc. (all are optional decorations)

Choose a photo to frame.

Decide on a shape for your frame and draw it on a piece of foam. Cut a piece of foam that is at least 1 inch larger than the photo on all sides.

All sorts of shapes look good. To cut an oval or heart shape, draw half the shape on a folded piece of paper, then cut it. Use this template for cutting the plastic.

Cut a display hole in the other piece of foam (the piece that will be the front). This hole can be any shape you like, just make sure that it is smaller than the entire photo and is big enough to show the important parts of the photograph.

Put glue on the BACK of the frame. Glue the back of the frame and glue your picture in place. Cut a thick piece of paper for the back of the frame (it should be slightly bigger than your picture but smaller than the frame). Glue it to the back of the frame.

Using a hole punch, punch a hole towards the top of the frame.

Decorate with foam cut-outs, yarn, buttons, feathers, ribbon, fabric paint, sequins, etc.

Tie a thin, short ribbon (about 6 inches long) through the hole punch hole. This will be used for hanging the frame.


Plastic and Yarn Picture Frame


Supplies needed:
thick, flexible, clear plastic
a photo to frame
a hole punch
yarn, twine, or other thick thread
scissors
glue
stickers (optional)
thick needle (optional)

Choose a shape for your frame. Cut 2 pieces of plastic; one for the front and one for the back of the frame. Make sure the plastic is about 1 inch larger than the photo on all sides.

All sorts of shapes look good. To cut an oval or heart shape, draw half the shape on a folded piece of paper, then cut it. Use this template for cutting the plastic.

Put the 2 pieces of plastic together (without the photograph).

Using a hole punch, make a series of holes all around the edge of the frame.

Place the photo on one piece of plastic and position it where it will look best. You may need to trim the photo. A dab of glue on the back of the photo will keep it in place.

Decorate with stickers or labels.

Put the second piece of plastic on top of the first, matching the holes exactly.

Using yarn, twine, embroidery floss, or other thick thread, "sew" up the edges of the frame. Older children can use an upholstery needle. For younger ones, a bit of nail polish put on the end of the string (let it dry first) will act like a needle.

Attach a short loop of yarn for hanging the frame.


Flower Picture Frame


Supplies:
A rectangular piece of cardboard
scissors
paint, markers or crayons
A picture

Directions:


Draw a flower with stem on the cardboard.
Cut the flower out.
Have fun decorating it. You could use poster paint, shiny sticker etc.
Paste your favourite picture in the center of the flower.

Hand Mom this lovely flower with a BIG Smile :)

Impressive Crafts - These Pressing Methods create tons of fun and wonderful crafts

Wonderful crafts can be made using many different ways of pressing, rubbing, tracing images etc.

Make your own stamps

Potato Printer Stamp

Amaze your kids by turning a pantry staple into a great potato printer stamp! They can use the stamp to transform ordinary paper into decorative gift wrap, book covers, or stationery.


The Potato Printer Stamp is easy and fun!



What You'll Need:


Newspaper
Potato
Knife
Ballpoint pen
Poster paints
Clean foam food tray (from fruits or vegetables only)
Drawing or brown mailing paper
How to Make a Pattern Printer Stamp:

Step 1: Cover your work surface with newspaper. Clean a potato, and help kids cut it in half.

Step 2: Draw a shape on the cut surface with a pen. Assist kids by cutting away the edges so that the shape stands out.

Step 3: Place some poster paint on a clean foam food tray. Dip the potato shape in the paint, and then press it on a piece of paper.

Step 4: Continue stamping the paper until you've created a pattern you like. Let the paint dry.

Craft Foam Stampers

These craft foam stampers are ideal for making holiday greeting cards or invitations to your kids' birthday parties.

What You'll Need:

Craft foam (available at craft stores)
Blunt scissors
Fabric glue
Blocks of wood
Poster paints or stamp pads

How to Make Craft Foam Stampers:

Step 1: Cut out shapes from craft foam. Glue each shape on a block of wood.

Step 2: Use poster paints or stamp pads to ink your stampers. Wash your stamps after each use.

You can make 1 large stamp to decorate the front of a birthday card or small stamps to create repeating shapes on wrapping paper or gift bags.

Combine 2 or 3 small shapes on a single block of wood to make interesting repeating patterns. Try hearts, circles, squares, or stars.

You can also make letter or word stamps. Cut out letters or words that you want to print, and glue them to a block in a mirror image.

Custom Stencil Pillowcase



Turn a plain pillowcase into a special custom stencil pillowcase for your child's room. Design and paint your own floral border!


Dress up any bed with the Custom Stencil Pillowcase.


What You'll Need:


Pencil
Plastic coffee can lids
Scissors
Plain pillowcase
Plastic garbage bag
Binder clips
Acrylic paints
Paper plates
Stencil brush

How to Make a Custom Stencil Pillowcase:

Step 1: Draw a flower shape on one plastic coffee can lid. Draw leaf shapes on another coffee can lid. Help kids cut the shapes out to create a flower stencil and a leaf stencil.

Step 2: Put the plain pillowcase flat on your work surface, and place a plastic garbage bag inside the pillowcase. Place the flower stencil on the edge of the pillowcase, and secure it with a binder clip.

Step 3: Pour some acrylic paint on a paper plate. Dip a stencil brush in the paint, and dab off the excess paint on a piece of paper. Dab the brush inside the stencil shape until it is filled in.

Step 4: Continue stenciling the flower design along the edge of the pillowcase to make a border.

Step 5: Once the paint has dried, repeat the stenciling process using the leaf stencil and a different color paint. Let the paint dry.

If you want, stencil the same border on the bed's dust ruffle or curtains to match your child's bedroom.

Cookie Cutter Stamps
This is a great way to make stamped bags, stationery and greeting cards.

You will need:

Acrylic Paint:
Assorted Cookie Cutters
1" Styrofoam sheet
Black permanent pen
Assorted paper bags, cards, and envelopes
A new pencil with a new eraser
Decorative Scissors


Instructions:

Press cookie cutters into Styrofoam to cut out shape. If some Styrofoam bits remain around the design, remove them with a plastic knife rubbed with an old candle.
Dip Styrofoam shape into a fresh puddle of paint that has been poured onto a paper plate and stamp onto surface. Once stamping of design is completed, let all paint dry. Use your imagination and have fun creating cool designs.
Here are some shapes you can use:
The following colors were used with the following shapes:
Moon, Stars,Flowers, Leaves, Butterflies, Apples etc.

You could also dip a pencil eraser into a vibrant and contrasting paint and then use it to stamp dots on flowers. Add smaller dots using a paintbrush handle or a toothpick.
With this method you could add details to your colourful butterflies or ladybugs. After all dots have dried, add outlines and curly vines with the black pen.

(Optional) Tie with colored ribbons and fill with assorted tissue papers to make festive designs. Use paper edgers and corner edgers on cards to create pretty designs.