Halloween: Pumpkin Stamps

A cute Halloween craft is making pumpkin stamps. What you need:

• an old wine cork
• a toothpick
• orange and green paint, or orange and green ink pads
• paper (stationery or otherwise, or a canvas crafts bag, plain t-shirt, etc)
• newspaper

Spread newspaper on your workspace. Dip cork into orange paint, scraping of excess. Imprint on a paper and top with green paint from the toothpick. Different corks will leave different impressions, so you can make a whole pumpkin patch with lots of different corks!

Napkin Rings

Vamp Erin in Massachusetts shared this great craft idea with us which will give you something to do on those rainy days. I especially love it because it ties together a lot of what we’ve talked about over the past year, from how to make cloth napkins to more recently, the philosophy of the Elegant Egg Cup.

What you need:

• Paper towel holder
• Scissors 
• Masking tape
• Strips of newspaper
• Craft glue or papier-mâché glue
• Decorations like raffia, shells, ribbons, etc.

Step 1: Cut a paper towel holder into 1-inch rings.

Step 2: Cover each ring with strips of masking tape.

Step 3: Cover each ring with strips of newspaper, gluing with craft glue to hold in place. The more newspaper you use, the stronger the ring will be, so you want to have at least two layers.

Step 4: Once rings are dry, cover with raffia, gluing every so often to hold in place. Once the ring is covered, glue a shell or shells on the center of one side. (Tip: to bring out the color of the shells, first polish with baby oil.)

Alternatively, cover newspaper rings with ribbon. Leave about two inches of ribbon at the end and then wrap around the ring, covering it completely. Once the ring is covered, tie the loose end you started with and the end you’re left with into a secure knot. Glue is not needed for ribbons.

Other decorating ideas:

Old fabric, sturdy wrapping paper, butcher paper that’s then decorated with stamps or paint (you can personalize one for every member of your family!). 

Recycled Paper placemats:

This suggestion comes from Vamp Rose in Ohio who says she’s made this kind of placemat before from old Christmas cards, but there’s no reason not to try it with any postcards, greeting cards, wrapping paper, etc.

What you’ll need:

• Old postcards, greeting cards, wrapping paper, magazine pages
• Craft glue or rubber cement
• A 2 - 3 inch wide cookie cutter (a circle, heart, or clover shape all work well)
• Scissors
• Contact paper (which can be found at crafts stores or online)

What you’ll do:

Trace the cookie cutter on whatever paper source you’re using, centering it over interesting colors, shapes, etc. Cut out shapes and lay them out in the shape of an oval or rectangular placemat, overlapping the edges. Glue paper together lightly. Once shape is set, cover in contact paper to both keep the shape and protect the paper from minor spills. To make a reversible placemat, be sure to use magazine pages or cut out twice as many cards to double-side the shapes.

Wastepaper Baskets 3-ways:

Make it from scratch . . .

Vamp Aleta shared this idea from her childhood, and I think it’s a great crafts project for little ones. What you need: an empty tub of ice cream from a ice cream shop, old magazines, plastic basket weaving reeds (sold at most crafts stores), and craft glue. Roll magazine pages tightly and glue edge to keep from unraveling. Line rolled up pages around the ice cream tub vertically so the entire height is covered, gluing pages in place as you go. Once the pages completely cover the tub, take the basket weaving reeds and place inside the top of one magazine page and stretch to cover two or three others, inserting the other end into another rolled up page. Repeat until all magazine rolls are covered, giving it a finished look. Ice cream tubs work well because the wax coating on the inside protects against unwanted liquid spills.

Spruce up what you have . . .

I recently picked up a wicker waste paper basket from Pier 1 to use as an umbrella holder, though they’re great in home offices, too. To make it a little prettier to look at, weave a colorful ribbon through the top of it, leaving enough at both ends for a bow. Not only will it be nicer to look at it, but you can better match it to your home décor.

Take care of the old faithfuls . . .

Your kitchen and bathroom trash cans should be periodically (at least once a month) washed out with a mixture of hot water and bleach or ammonia. If you’re still having trouble knocking out unwanted odors, keep a dryer sheet at the bottom of the can or sprinkle the bottom with baking soda. To keep waste from slipping between the trash bag and the trash can, tie your trash bags as tightly as possible around the top. With drawstring bags, pull one side of the drawstring and simply twist it tightly to hold it in place.

Xmas Sachets:

Your holiday linens may be all put away for the year, but why not slip a homemade sachet in with them so they smell holiday-ready next year? Vamp Aleta tells us how!

What you need:

• For the scent: leftover holiday potpourri OR essential oils and white pine shavings (available at most pet supply stores) OR whole cinnamon sticks, cloves, and/or nutmegs.
• For the bag: old handkerchiefs OR new cheesecloth and ribbon.

Putting them together is easy! If you use essential oils and pine shavings, simply use a few drops over a handful of shavings and mix them up. Whatever scents you choose, just add them to the center of the “bag,” bring the ends up to the center, and tie a pretty bow around them, and voila! It’s ready for your holiday linens.

Wrapping Paper:

The next time you’re wrapping a hostess gift, think about making your own wrapping paper. Take plain brown paper (from a paper bag) or white paper (old calendar pages work well) and spruce it up. If you don’t have rubber stamps on hand, you can cut a dry sponge into any shape—a heart, star, or crescent moon work well—and then wet it before dipping it into paint and pressing it all over the paper. This is a great art project that works well with children, too.