4 minute read
Spring Is for Cleaning AND Crafting!
Family Fun Written by Sheila Turner-Hilliard
Spring is on the way! Can you feel it? Soon it will be time to open the windows and feel the fresh air rush in. Flowers will bloom, our days will get longer and our moods a little lighter. Spring is the season of new beginnings, and we are all ready for that!
Spring is also when we dust off those winter blues by cleaning our homes. As we welcome the new season on Sunday March 20th, let’s also recognize March as National Crafting Month, which was established in 1994 by the Craft and Hobby Association (now the National Arts Materials Trade Association), to encourage people to explore creative outlets as a way of reducing anxiety and stress. For many, crafting has become a healthy outlet and a relaxing and rewarding hobby, so let’s get creative by making some of our own fun, fresh and new spring home decorations.
Spring floral planter box
Homemade Planter Box with Mason Jars
This is an easy project that looks great at your front door, on a windowsill or even on your dining room table. All you need is a planter box, a few glass or plastic mason jars, your choice of color chalk paint, paintbrushes, letter stencils, and either fresh or artificial flowers. All these items are easy to find at your local craft store.
Starting with the planter box, decide on what you would like your message to be and trace the letters with your stencils. You can then either use chalk paint or a permanent marker to fill in the color.
Next, remove the lids from your mason jars, place the jars on some newspaper to protect your surface, grab your paintbrush and apply the color. If you’re using chalk paint, you may need to apply 2 – 3 coats, depending on its thickness.
Once the jars are dry, place them in the planter box and add your flowers. You may want to spray some expanding floral foam filler inside the mason jars first, to keep the stems in place, especially if you’re using artificial flowers.
Lucky charm clover hair clips
Lucky Shamrock Felt Pin or Hair Clip
Grab the kids, some green felt, scissors, a needle and thread, and either a hair clip or pin back. Cut four leaves in the shape shown in the photo. Each piece should measure about ¾-inch tall and 1-inch wide. Sew the leaves together, then tie the threads together lightly at the ends. Sew or hot-glue the shamrock to a hair clip or a pin back for your little lucky charms!
Four-Leaf Clover Sun Catcher
This easy craft is fun for the kids, and makes great window decorations for the family to enjoy. All you need is a few pieces of paper, clear contact paper, 1" squares of light green, white and dark-green tissue paper, a hole punch and some string or ribbon for hanging.
On plain paper, cut out an outline of a four-leaf clover. (You can find plenty of four-leaf clover templates online.) Cut a piece of clear contact paper that’s larger than your outline. Lay it on the table sticky side up, and place your clover outline on top of it.
Help the kids place the tissue paper squares inside the outline, alternating the colors and overlapping the pieces slightly. The tissue paper will stick to the clear contact paper. Once finished, cut another piece of clear contact paper and place it sticky side down on top of the tissue paper. Smooth out the contact paper and trim it to match the outline of the four-leaf clover.
After you use the hole punch to make a small hole at the top of the clover, hang the clover in a window, using some string or ribbon. This type of project can be repeated all year long using different design templates like tulips, rainbows, the sun and other fun seasonal themes.
Well, you can certainly start with the projects we’ve discussed here, or perhaps try your hand at scrapbooking, jewelry making, knitting, sculpting or candle making. If you’re not sure where to start, there are unlimited ideas and tutorials online, or you can make a trip to your local craft store or nearest craft fair for inspiration.
The beauty of crafting is that there are endless possibilities for creating and for stepping outside your comfort zone. Who knows? It could very well lead to some amazing creations on your part. You never know unless you try!
