Vintage Tiered Planter Goes Tropical

Even though spring has just sprung, this vintage planter has hit the summer tropics with bold colors. To see its complete transformation, visit my new blog at Altered Artworks on Wordpress.  Hope you'll follow my new blog and continue to check in here for creative inspiration.

DIY Candy Corn Treats

What do you get when you mix m&ms with candy corn?  

Well, if you add them to a painted terra cotta pot, 

you get a special Halloween treat!

Now I'm not one for much Halloween hoopla.  

However, I am a sucker for embellished terra cotta pots.

So when I read Kim's creative idea at Maiden D'Shade,

I decided to borrow her idea of candy corn painted terra cotta pots. 

Plus, I couldn't help myself while trolling past the candy aisle

without picking up some of these:

 

Like Kim, I painted the lower part of the pots white, 

 orange in the middle, and finally yellow on the rim.

Be sure to allow each color to dry before adding the next.

I sprinkled bright yellow glitter to the top rim of my painted pots, 

adding shimmer to this Halloween terra cotta treat.

After shaking the glitter onto the just painted yellow rims, 

and letting it dry,

I decided to give it a good spritz of top coat acrylic sealer 

to help those little shimmies stay in place.  

Then I gobbled up poured about 1/2 cup of each candy

 into a cute clear bag,

tying the bag with orange and black ribbons. 

I added a tag, which I had quickly embellished with Halloween paper.

These would make great DIY projects for a Halloween party.

And, as they say in the 'hood:

TRICK OR TREAT!

Check out this Halloween gift idea:

Spooky Socks Gift Package

Spring Centerpieces

The next two weeks bring many people together. Not only are many families celebrating the joys of spring break (well, at least the kids are celebrating!), many are busy preparing for the week-long festival of Passover.  This is where we retell the story of the Exodus by reading the Haggadah, singing songs and eating specially-prepared foods.

When we were growing up, my parents invited friends and relatives to join us for our Seder. Because we had 25-30 people joining us, we moved our living room furniture into the dining room, and turned our living room into a large dining hall. With so many people, we created place cards to assign everyone a particular seat.  Making the place cards was always my responsibility...which I took very seriously.  

Last year, I re-instated my job and made place "cards" using small Terra cotta pots.  These are so much fun to create, and kids can get in on the creative action.  I decided to share this idea on my blog again this year, with a few minor revisions.

Materials:

Small clay pots in various sizes, no larger than 4"

Clay saucers

Blue & white acrylic paint

Mod Podge

Brushes

Clear sticker paper or Xyron sticker maker

Passover Graphics & Text

Twine

Wooden plant markers

Herbs (such as parsley)

This is the How-To:

I painted the pots in different combinations of blue and white paint.  While they dried, I printed graphics and text onto clear sticker paper.

Next Year in Jerusalem

Then I adhered the stickers to the pots.  After coating each pot with Modge Podge, I wrapped blue and white baker's twine around two of the pots.

I printed names on white cardstock, cut them out and mod podged the cards onto wooden plant markers, which I had painted blue.   

A green herb (such as parsley or cilantro) is used on the Passover table to symbolize spring. So I decided to plant herbs in each pot.

I'm going to use the largest pot as a centerpiece, so I made a label that reads "Kosher for Passover." 

The smallest pot was just too tiny to hold a plant, so I used the medium sized pots for the place "cards."

These festive pots and plant markers will add a nice touch to any Seder table.  The larger pot will also make a great hostess gift!  And, of course, depending on the colors and signage you use, these pots can easily be made for any holiday or occasion!

Whether you celebrate Passover, Easter or even just Spring Break, I hope you have a wonderful time with your family and friends.

Happy Spring!

You may also like:


Craft Organization: Goodbye Plastic. Hello Industrial Chic.


Springtime Tiered Planter

Sunshine in a Box

You can find me partying here and
Creative Jewish Mom
The Hankful House Spring Projects

Thanks for visiting!

Guest Blogging at "Fun Home Things"

Are you getting goosebumps just thinking of Halloween 

and all the creative possibilities 

that come with this spooky season? 

Then come on over to 

Fun Home Things 

today where I'm guest blogging. 

Find out how to make a glittery 

Candy Corn & Terra Cotta project. 

Here's a sneak peek at what you'll find:

I'll meet you there!

 

Sharing here:

The Art of Appreciation

Twice a week I volunteer in a classroom at a community Pre-K program.  There are 17 children, most from non-English speaking families.  The teacher is amazing.  She is patient, kind, cares about each child, and is preparing them for success in Kindergarten next year.   Without this program, these children would start kindergarten way behind their peers.  It's hard to believe our school district has plans to cut the program next year.  But that's not what this post is about.

Teacher Appreciation Week comes and goes.  There aren't room parents for this class.  So I decided to help the students show their love for their teacher with this project.  It's simple enough, but goes a l-o-n-g way in showing their appreciation.  

I brought punched scalloped and plain circles, mini letter rubber stamps and a black ink pad to school one day.  Each child chose their color combination of their "flower" and stamped their name on it.  So it was also a lesson in ABC's.  Then I glued a coffee stirrer stick between the flower and another scalloped circle   to create the flowers.

I painted a terra cotta pot and saucer using yellow acrylic and chalkboard paint.  Two coats of each fully covered the pot.  I also painted a tag with the same yellow paint and stamped the teacher's name on it.

I embellished the top rim of the pot with a yellow measuring tape.  Because the rim is larger at the top than the bottom of the rim, I cut the measuring tape every two inches or so, and glued them separately to compensate for the angle.  When glued, you cannot even tell the measuring tape was cut.  I used Mod Podge for the glue, and again for a final glossy coat (but not on the chalkboard paint).

 All that was left was to pot the plant and stick the "flowers" in the pot.

 A coordinating tag that reads "Thank You for helping us to grow."

The teacher was so touched to receive the gift.  

And the students were anxious to find the flower with their name.

Partying here:

The Hankful House

The Shady Porch

Romance on a Dime TIOT

The Gunny Sack Time to Sparkle

 

 

 

Positively Splendid holiday-gift-idea-exchange-2012

The CSI Project Chalk & Paint Party

Alderberry Hill Make the Scene Monday

Blackberry Vine Tuesday To Do

Salt Tree Open Call Tuesdays

Mop it up Monday