Father’s Day Gifts Simplified

Wow, I don’t know how many months it has been since I have sat down to write, but I think it has been at least three or four. I am not sure where time went, except that we moved to a new home that is a little farther from everything and so the routines of daily life just eat up a little more time than they used to. Its also gardening, lawn mowing and sitting on the patio season, which of course all take up time that was used for other things during the winter months. I have to say though I am so happy to see the sun more often these days! 

All this talk about time leads me to my topic for today, simple Father’s day gifts. You don’t have to spend a lot of money or time to make the dad’s in your life feel special and appreciated. So I have come up with a few gift ideas that are easy to accomplish. Two of them you can make yourself, the other’s you can purchase from this great website Zazzle, that allows you to personalize almost anything you can imagine.

We will start with Zazzle and then move on to the super simple DIY Father’s day appreciation gift that is sure to bring a smile to any dad’s face.

Zazzle is a website that allows you to personalize a very large variety of things. They have mugs, aprons, poker chips, USB drive, golf balls, baseballs and much more! 

Here are a few of my favorites for Dad! (Clink the photo for more information or to order)

For the cook:

For the hat lover:

For the Musician:

For the coffee lover:

For the technology lover:

There are a lot more ideas on Zazzle, but I don’t have the room to list them all. You should go check them out for yourself and find the perfect gift for your dad or make one of our super simple DIY gifts below.

Our DIY gift only requires you to purchase candy and a jar of some sort unless you have one sitting around the house and an instant download from Etsy, to print at home and decorate your jar.

Jar #1: We love you to pieces or I love you to pieces (Purchase)

Supplies needed:

Jar #2: You're a peach!  (***Please note the typo on the tag for "You're a peach" has been fixed in the downloads 6/16/17)

Supplies needed:

NEW!!! Jar #3: You're a Barrel of fun (Purchase)

Supplies needed:

The steps to complete this project don’t take much time at all.

Step One: Print your instant download and trim to size

Step Two: Fill your jar with the appropriate candy and close with lid

Step Three: Tape or glue your jar wrap around your jar

(***Please note the typo on the tag for "You're a peach" has been fixed in the downloads 6/16/17)

Step Four: Punch a hole in your gift tag and attach it to the top of your jar with string or twine

And you’re done! Your Father’s Day gift is ready to go, with little money, time and stress spent on the project! Also check out our other Father’s Day labels on Etsy. (Click the pictures below for more details.)

 

Enjoy the holiday and celebrate your dad!

Mason Jar Easter Gifts (Free Download)

The first day of spring has come, daffodils are blooming andtulips are beginning; all of this means Easter is drawing near! So…. Easter egg hunts, baskets, gifts and celebrations are just around the corner!

I love going to the craft store and buying new craft supplies, but I also find joy in using supplies I have around the house to make something special for that special someone. This blog is dedicated mostly to things I already have on hand and stars another one of my favorite things, mason jars! I am not sure where my love of mason jars came from, but they really are very useful around the house. I use them in the kitchen, for decorations, in my craft room and for gift ideas all the time!

This project falls right in line with a blog I wrote last year about mason jar gift baskets and all the different things you could fit in mason jars to make a unique gift, tailored to the person you were giving it too.

Easter can get really expensive with Easter eggs to fill, Easter baskets to give, eggs to dye, candy to buy, special desserts to make and so much more. So lets cut some of the cost by using some things we already have on hand.

Supplies needed:

This project really is very simple if you follow these steps.

Step one: Trim your parchment or tissue into a square. You can use any size square that will hang down over the sides of your jar. The size depends on how much you want your paper to hang over the edges.

Step two: Fill your Mason jar with your gifts.

Step three: Separate the Mason jar ring and the Mason jar lid.

Step four: Place your paper square on top of the ring and, press the lid into place allowing the paper to gather at the edges. Screw lid on the Mason jar. Optional version: Print out the mason jar label, trim to fit your mason jar lid, place square sheet of paper on ring, line up your label and lid and place on top of paper. Then, continue as above.

Step Five: Tie ribbon around the Mason jar ring.  Attach a gift tag if needed.

Enjoy your Easter season!

DIY: Watercolor Easter Egg Garland

Easter is just around the corner and with it comes Spring! I can’t tell you how ready I am for this rain to go away and the sun to start shining! I am ready for Capri pants, tank tops, light sweaters and flip-flops! So, lets get ready for spring with this easy watercolor Easter egg garland and bring a little sunshine to your home with its fun pastel colors and patterns!

It doesn’t take much to complete this project and it’s perfect for all ages and skill levels. You don’t have to be an expert at watercolor to make this watercolor Easter egg garland! It’s a fun family project for a rainy Saturday before Easter. Think about having each family member make two or three eggs, string them all together and you have your garland! You could also include other shapes such as tulips or Easter bunnies.

Most of all just have fun creating your garland with these easy steps!

Supplies:

9 Easy Steps:

Step one: Download and print egg template included in this post. (on cardstock if you have it)

Step two: Cut out the egg template of your choice.

Step three: Trace the egg shape onto your watercolor paper, fitting as many per sheet as you can.

Step four: Paint your eggs with watercolors as desired.

Step five: Let them dry thoroughly.

Step six: Cut out your watercolor eggs.

Step seven: Punch two holes in the top of each egg as seen here.

Step eight: Attach ribbon through holes as shown.

Step nine: Hang your completed garland!

Another idea for your watercolor painted shapes is to use them to make Easter cards for family and friends by gluing them to the front of a blank card. If you don't have time to make your own garland but would like some to decorate your home, visit my Etsy store to purchase yours today! Also visit our store to purchase this instant download to use to decorate your home this Easter.

More Easter fun coming soon!

DIY: Rustic Easter Carrots

Easter is just around the corner and it means spring is coming soon! I love spring, the pastel colors, the sunshine and the warming weather. I also enjoy decorating my little home with Easter/spring decorations. Especially if I can make them economically myself! My goal this year is to have my crafts be mostly made out of supplies I already have lying around the house. Using what I already have is always better.

The rustic carrots in today’s tutorial are popular in almost every store I have visited this March. These carrots are made out of twine, burlap, or bakers string. They come in a variety of sizes, usually three to a package, because we all know that you decorate in odd numbers, right? Each time I have see a package of these fun rustic carrots in all different shades of orange I have thought to myself . . . I can make that!

This post will chronicle my attempts at recreating these carrots, what worked and what did not. Yes, even I make attempts at craft projects that fail, but those failures just give me a chance to re-think and improve my process. That way when I bring it to you, I can show you what really works.

The first attempt was a carrot made out of a newspaper base, wrapped with orange and white bakers twine, glued together with hot glue. This gave the carrot a much more free-form look as we all know carrots are not ever perfectly shaped. At the beginning it looked like my carrot was shaping up very nicely and I was thinking to myself, “Wow this is simple and going so well.” But as I advanced to the end of the carrot where the green leaves are attached, I found that creating this carrot was not going to be as easy as it looked. Getting the twine to correctly wrap around that end of the newspaper proved to be harder than it looked and I was not satisfied with my attempts or my final product. (As pictured above.)

So, the next morning as I was driving to get my step-son & take him to his bus, my brain was swirling with thoughts of these rustic carrots. How can I improve this project? What base would work better than newspaper for wrapping the twine around?  And it came to me! My next attempt will utilize an old pencil, a bamboo skewer or a piece of dowel. Whichever I can find at home. This will give for me a sturdier base and I believe it will allow me to wrap the twine more to my liking! Layering the twine or chosen material up and down the base until I like the shape of your carrot. So let’s get to the supplies you will need and the steps its takes!

Supplies

Step by step instructions:

Step one: To dye your twine orange if desired, mix orange food coloring, vinegar and warm water together until you have your desired color of orange. I used about 2 tablespoons vinegar, one cup of warm water and a few squeezes of orange food coloring. (This is not an exact science) Then I soaked my twine for about 4 hours. Remove from solution and layout on paper towels and paper bags to dry. (about 24 hours).

Step two: Cut your carrots base (pencil, dowel or bamboo skewer) to your desired length, mine were between 2 and 4 inches.

Step three: Cut a rectangle of green construction paper to desired length of greenery for the end of your carrot; cut little strips making sure to leave them attached at the bottom of your rectangle.

Step four: Hot glue your base to the greenery as shown. Roll the greenery around the base until its all wrapped around the base and glue the loose end as shown.

Step five: Tie a knot in the end of your twine, hot glue the knot to the opposite end of the base, let the glue set. When tying the knot in the bakers twine I tied three to four knots on top of one another to make sure I had a knot larger enough to cover the end of the skewer.

Step Six: Wrap the twine around the base holding any tail of twine against the base and wrapping the twine over the top of it to hold it in place. Wrap your twine the whole length of the base and up and over the bottom of your greenery.

Step seven: Wrap the whole length again from top to bottom, then continue wrapping up and down the length of the carrot layering more twine at the top and down the center until you have a carrot shape that you are pleased with.

Step eight: Hot glue the end of your twine in place and you are done.

Now you have a beautiful rustic twine carrot that you can use around your house or on a wreath to decorate for spring or Easter! You can make these fun carrots in any color that you wish!

Visit my Etsy store, www.bethannerickson.etsy.com if you would rather purchase this set of three rustic carrots.

Coming soon, Mason Jar Easter Baskets and watercolor Easter egg garland

The art of Jelly Rolls and Birthdays

Hi friends, I am so sorry about my long absence from my blog. Life ran away with me and I am just now getting back to a normal routine, but I have missed writing, designing and sharing creative ideas with all of you!

My husband and I have moved to a new rental, which took about a month of my life.  First there was sorting, cleaning out and packing, then the move, unpacking and cleaning the old rental. We are starting to settle into our new home. We still have a few boxes to unpack and the hobby room, a.k.a my studio is still a mass of boxes and things to put away.

But in the midst of all this chaos, my dear sister celebrated a birthday! Birthdays in our families have always been very special, lasting more than a day and are spent doing activities that interest the person we are celebrating.

This year my sister chose to have homemade burgers and fries, play games and learn how to make a jelly roll! So, alas you see where our title comes from!

The three of us, my mom, sister and myself, spent Sunday afternoon in the kitchen, bantering and discussing life and baking, all while making our first jelly roll. I truly believe baking is an art form. It takes time, creativity, the mixing and matching of recipes to reach the desired effect just like a painting takes time and the mixing and matching of different mediums.

If you have never made a jelly roll you don’t realize the long process to reach your end product, but the results are quite tasty, though I think we decided we enjoy a regular birthday cake just as much; however, the learning of a new skill was the entertaining part.

So, on to the jelly roll. Our jelly roll was a spice cake with a cream cheese filling, but I am pretty sure if you search online you can find just about any flavor combination you wish to make.  I am not going to take you through our entire recipe but just share some of the important tips that make a jelly roll successful.

Tip one: separating eggs.

When you separate you eggs you must make sure you don’t get any yolk in your whites. If you do your whites won’t form stiff peaks when you beat them. The spongy consistency of a jelly roll comes from the fact that you whip your egg yolks until they are thick and you whip and fold in your stiff egg whites, making your cake very light, fluffy and full of air.

Tip two: folding in the egg whites.

When you fold in your egg whites you want to do so very gently, making sure not to loose the air that has been whipped into them. Keeping as much air in your egg whites as possible is what allows for your cake to be rolled with out falling apart.

Tip three: the pan.

Our recipe said to grease and flour your pan and then line it with parchment and grease and flour your parchment, we determined after doing both steps that your pan doesn’t need to be greased and floured if you are using parchment.

Tip four: baking time.

You do not want to over bake your jelly roll or it won’t roll up the way you want it to. Our recipe called for 11 minutes of baking time, but we started with 8 minutes and it was done! So reduce your baking time because you can always bake it some more.

Tip five: cooling and rolling of the cake.

When it came to the rolling of the cake we followed our recipe’s instructions exactly to make sure our jelly roll didn’t fall apart. The steps were as follows, remove the cake from the oven, cool for 3 minutes, turn the cake onto a damp tea towel that has powdered sugar sprinkled on it, peel off the parchment, and roll the cake from the short end along with the tea towel and let it cool completely.

Our spice cake jelly roll with cream cheese filling turned out wonderfully and was delicious! When you don’t have time to paint a masterpiece be creative in the kitchen! It’s the next best thing!

I am sad I missed the valentines day season on the blog, because I had lots of creative ideas for you. We won't miss Easter! Coming soon, Easter crafts and creative decorations.

DIY: Cookie Cutter Gift Tags

Christmas can be a very expensive time of year. There are so many things to purchase: gifts, wrapping paper, gift tags, tape, tissue paper and many other things. These thoughts take me back to my childhood and memories of how my Mom did such a great job of keeping to her budget. How did she do it? One idea stands out from the others. Its something we did all through my childhood, we made our gift tags from construction paper, a cookies cutter and a pair of scissors. I am not sure why I stopped this tradition, maybe it was time or the store bought tags just look so cute on shelf I couldn’t resist buying them.

Making your own gift tags not only saves you money, but it also adds a special touch to your Christmas gifts. It shows you took time to wrap and label your gifts for all your family and friends, and that it’s important to you to give them something special on Christmas.

The wonderful thing about cookie cutter gift tags is that most of you will already have all the supplies you need right at home. So take a look around and see if you can find what you need without spending a single dime.

Supplies:

Step One: Choose your paper and your cookie cutter

Step Two: Trace the cookie cutter shape on the paper, going around the outside of the cookie cutter. (I would do this on the backside of your paper so your pencil marks don’t show on the front. I forgot to do this when creating my sample)

Step Three: Cut out your shape

Step Four:  Write To: and From: where ever you desire on your gift tag. It can be on the front or back. Leave blank to fill in later when you are wrapping your presents or for your family to use when they wrap their presents.

Step Five: (Optional) Punch a hole in the center at the top, add twine or ribbon

See, how simple that is, really easy and they turn out beautiful. So additional ideas would be to decorate your tags even further with Christmas stickers, crayons, felt pens, glitter or ribbon. You can make this project as creative or simple as you like.

If you are not one to make your gift tags you can visit Etsy or Zazzle to purchase gift tags already made for you. You can download gift tags like these to print at home on Etsy.

I really hope you enjoy your holiday season. I will see you after Christmas!

DIY: Handmade Rustic Christmas Garland

Recently, my sister, my mom and myself went on a pre-Christmas outing to a local nursery that fills their gift shop with all kinds of holiday finds, from ornaments to poinsettias, holiday dishes and decorations galore! Of course anytime I visit a venue like this I look around and see many decorations I would love to have in my home, but can I afford them all? No way!

The result of not being able to afford everything that I see, is this mantra “I can make that!” I have said this to my sister so many times it’s become a joke between us. She often says to me before we head out for a day of shopping in a small town “Please don’t tell me that you can make everything I see!” But then of course I have to say it even more just to make her laugh!

Truth be told though, there are quite a few things you will see for sale this holiday season that you can make yourself. The question is, do you want to? Do you have the time to do so and do you know how to accomplish the task?

That’s what I am here for, the know-how! This garland was inspired by our recent outing.  I saw some garland that was made out of wooden snowflakes, twine and rusty silver bells and said to myself, “This is truly something I can make at home very easily” and “why not share the steps with my faithful readers”.

The garland you see here can be modified to look however you feel would be best for your home, you can leave off any addition you see here that you feel doesn’t fit with your home or skill level.

Rustic Christmas Garland

Supplies:

Step One: Measure the area you want to hang your garland, then add 1 -2 feet depending on how much you want it to swoop when you hang it.

Step Two: Plan out the pattern and spacing of your garland. Layout your twine cut to the appropriate length. Then set your decorations (which ever you choose to use) out along the twine deciding on the spacing and pattern you think looks best.

Step Three: If using wood rounds you can paint them or draw on them. To produce what is seen above: Paint them with the chalk board paint, let dry and then decorate with the white gel pen. Drill holes in the wood rounds large enough to accommodate the twine.

Step Four: Starting at one end of the twine, following your pattern, tie your decorations onto the twine in the correct spacing as planned in step two.

Once you have done this for the length of your twine you are ready to hang it!

See how simple that was, all it took was a trip the craft store and some time at home planning the look of your garland. You have just created something that would sell for about forty-five dollars in a high end boutique.  These supplies are much more affordable and you also get the satisfaction of knowing you created it yourself.

This is my favorite time of year! Thanksgiving and Christmas! Keep your eyes open for more holiday tips and tricks to come!  I love decorating for these holidays and creating new decorations every year!

Gift Idea: Personalized Photo Gifts

Do you take a lot of photos of the places you have been, the ones you love, nature, rustic old buildings or just things that catch your eye? Do you ever wonder what to do with all those photos? Why not make them into a personalized gift for someone special? Did you know that it’s really very easy to do?

All you need is a jpeg of your image, a computer, an Internet connection and a debit/credit card and you are ready to go. Now you are thinking but where do I go to make these personalized gifts? Well look no further than this post! I have some resources for you that will be helpful for you. You can personalize almost anything with your own photos, your name, your initials and more! You can have your photos printed on wood, metal, glass, and canvas or poster paper! You can customize a cell phone case, cutting boards, serving trays, giftwrap, note cards and the list goes on!

I have used these sites for just about every special occasion in my marriage to make my husband a photo book or calendar that captures all our special moments. These are gifts that will be held on to and looked at over and over for a lifetime.

My first recommendation is www.zazzle.com. Zazzle allows you to customize wedding invitations, save the date cards, cell phone cases, leggings, tote bags, t-shirts, watches, tissue paper, gift wrap and a lot more.

I have a store on Zazzle, www.zazzle.com/EricksonDesigns* where you can order, photo Christmas cards, stationary, home décor items, tissue paper and more. My collection is still growing so check back often! If you see a design in my store that you would like to see on a different product feel free to send me a message and let me know. I love customer feedback!

Next, www.snapfish.com which is primarily a photo driven website. They allow you to put your photos on fleece blankets, mugs, canvas, metal, wood, Christmas cards, gift items and create photo books to hold all your memories. I have found that Snapfish photo books make wonderful gifts.

After that, www.shutterfly.com. They pretty much do the same items as Snapfish but allow you to personalize stationary, cell phone cases and gifts. They are affiliated with TinyPrints and Wedding Divas.

Along with all these websites you can also visit Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Costco and Rite-Aid to have your photos printed or put on special gifts. It all really depends on the price you want to pay and the quality you want to receive. Another option is Etsy. There are many shops on Etsy where you can work with a designer one-on-one and they will design your item for you and even help you order the end product if you need them too.  Visit my Etsy store, www.bethannerickson.etsy.com to see the item I offer or contact me for a custom order.

The steps to customize your items really are very simple and each of the sites work pretty much the same way. I will run through the basics with you below.

Step One: Chose the site you want to order from. Click a link above or search or a site on your own. There are many more companies out there than I have room for in this blog. A search on Google will highlight most of them for you.

Step Two: Create and account on the site you choose by clicking their “sign-up” now button.

Step Three: Search their site for the product you want to customize.

Step Four: Once you have found the item, click through to the customize page for that item. Once you are there, there will be buttons that either say customize, upload, edit or something along those lines. Click the appropriate button.

Step Five: Upload your photo by clicking the appropriate button on the page and navigating to your computer and the location in which you store your photos. Choose the correct photo and wait for it to upload.

Step Six: Check to make sure you photo is positioned the way you want it, resize, rotate and crop it using the tools on your chosen site, add text or other elements until you like the way your item looks.

Step Seven: Place your order and pay.

Each site will be a little different in how it operates, but these are the basic steps you need to know to create your own personalized photo gifts. All of these sites have extensive help pages to help you learn how to use their site and customer service agents you can contact. I have found that these sites are very user friendly, I hope you find them to be also.

Consider turning your photos this holiday season to the perfect gift for someone you love.

More holiday ideas still to come! I love Christmas!

Pumpkin Granola and the Art of Hostess Gifts

Hostess gifts used to be the norm along with thank you cards for just about everything from hosting friends for dinner to gifts of all kinds.  It seems that these two traditions showing appreciation for family and friends have gone by the wayside. But why has this happened? Are we too selfish to think of others? We think they will cost a lot of money?  Are we worried people will think us weird or old-fashioned?

Well, I say who cares what anyone thinks. It’s time to bring these two traditions back to being normal. A hostess gift does not have to cost you a bundle and a thank you note can be sent by e-mail, but personally I think a hand written, mailed note, that someone has taken the time to address, stamp and place in the mail box means so much more!

Thank you cards are very affordable these days with places like Ross, Marshalls, The Dollar Tree and Tuesday Morning. Hostess gifts can also be affordable.

This whole idea of a homemade hostess gift came to me when I was making pumpkin granola for a potluck from a recipe given to me by my sister. As I was putting it in mason jars to take to the potluck, it struck me, if I designed a label and a recipe card to go with it, that it would make a wonderful gift.  That’s how this blog post was born. I am including a designed pumpkin granola recipe card along with a blank one with this post. Use it as many times as you like and share it with friends and family. My sister created this granola from a cookie recipe a friend gave her and it was a huge success at my church potluck. Enjoy!

Hostess Gift Ideas:

Most of us have mason jars just sitting around our house and they are super easy to fill with some homemade granola, wrap with some pretty scrapbooking paper or one of our mason jar wraps sold HERE and ribbon.  Complete these steps and you have a very affordable hostess gift ready to go. Another idea is to include the recipe for your granola on a decorated recipe card. Punch a hole in the card and tie with the ribbon you are using to decorate your mason jar.

There are also many handmade items you can give as hostess gifts, a few homemade note cards, a handmade Christmas ornament, a hand-sewn pot holder or dish cloth, a bread basket liner and more.

Let’s join together to bring back the art of hostess gifts this holiday season. Visit our Etsy store to purchase our Mason jar wraps (They can be used to wrap a peanut jar, a mason jar, a bottle of wine or cider and more!) or thank you cards that you can print at home.

More holiday tips and tricks to come in the next few weeks!

Pumpkin Pecan Granola

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients in large bowl until oats are coated, line cookie sheet with parchment, cook at 10 min intervals, stirring between until browned and crunchy, cool and then store in glass containers.

DIY Chalk Ornaments & Gift Tags

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I know, it has been a very long time since you have heard from me. Life has been crazy busy with school starting, driving my step-son to his bus every day, getting my husband ready to go hunting, fall activities and working on fall and Christmas projects. I had a very successful Ladies Only Fall Craft Day, where we made wood pumpkins and cinnamon stick ornaments and since then I have been working on my birch wood ornaments and gift tags! These two projects are very simple to recreate in your own home or you can purchase from me on Etsy by visiting this link, www.bethannerickson.etsy.com!

The Christmas ornaments and gift tags in the following tutorial are perfect for the rustic Christmas tree or rustic themed gift wrapping and will add an unique touch to your wrapping or decorating. They are also very affordable simple and to make.

Supplies:

Step One: Layout your wood rounds on a covered work surface. I use paper grocery sacks.

Step Two: Decide if you want to paint all of your wood rounds black or leave some of them natural. Paint a black circle that does not reach all the way to the edge on the ones you want to be black. Let dry completely.

Step Three: While you are letting these dry, you can draw or write on the unpainted wood rounds with your black sharpie. As you can see from the pictures, I drew an owl, snowflakes or holiday greetings. The possibilities are endless.

Step Four: When your black paint is dry, use your chalk pen or white gel pen to draw your snowflakes, holiday greetings or other art on top of the chalk paint. Let dry completely.

Step Five: If your wood rounds or wooden gift tags did not come with pre-drilled holes you need to choose which side is the top of your ornament and drill your hole there.

Step Six: Add your chosen twine, ribbon or string through the hole as the hanger and your project is complete!

See, wasn’t that so very easy! Just 6 very simple steps and your project’s ready to go. If you don’t feel comfortable drawing on your ornaments or gift tags you can always buy stickers or rub on transfers that will show up on the black paint or bare wood. You might need to go over the stickers with a coat of Mod Podge to make sure they stay affixed and last from year to year.

Please feel free to comment, ask questions or send me pictures of your completed projects! I would love to see them!

Again, if you don’t have the time to make your own, you can visit my Etsy store to purchase.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the fall weather! This time of year is the perfect time of year for craft projects!

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