Reusing an Old Tin

I stumbled upon this old watch case and didn't have the heart to throw it away.

It has a nice, foam center with a circular slot where the watch (that I lost) used to be.

Remembering how crayons roll off the table when my daughter colors and sketches, I decided to reuse this old, squarish tin as a crayon holder.

Now my daughter knows to return the crayons into this holder to prevent them from rolling off the table.

It's a nice, simple way of making life easier and more organized by reusing old household items.

What about you?  What's your "reuse," "recycle" story?

My First Handmade Stamps

I'm so happy!!!  I made my first homemade, handmade stamps!!!

The story behind these handmade stamps...

Last week, I made these notecards...

Pretty.  But I was already dreaming of having my own stamps made so I could use them on note cards and really call them my own.

Then I remembered that our friend Carla had mentioned that she made her own stamps.  Making my own stamps never occurred to me before. Out of curiosity, I researched online.  Thanks to pinterest and google, I found this blog post and this blog post.  The stamp-making video and eraser stamp tutorial were really helpful.  Both posts seemed easy to follow.  I got so excited and when I got the chance to go to the bookstore, I got myself the essential tools.

Today, I finally got to play with my new toys!  This is my first stamp:

A peppermint!  Peppermints are on my paperminties banners, if you hadn't noticed! ; )

 ...and it looked like this on paper.

My daughter watched me make my first stamp and she enjoyed trying it out as well.

Then, I got really excited and ended up making more.

They were really easy to make and quite addicting!  I'm glad I bought many erasers so I could make more.  I am seriously hooked.

I was not satisfied with the colors of the store-bought stamp pads so I followed the instructions on this post to make my own. 

Homemade Ink Pads

Now, I can make note cards with designs that really have my stamp on them.  Pun intended.

I will definitely post to show photos of the note cards when I've finally made some out of these handmade, homemade stamps! 

Save a Tissue Roll, Save the World

If you watched the now defunct TV series "Heroes," you'd know where the quirky blog post title came from!

I'm all for reducing, reusing, recycling and upcycling so this was one project I couldn't wait to get my hands on!  

Dear hubby left these giant tissue rolls for me one morning (he brought them home from the office) and I spotted them sitting on the desk.  I instantly knew they were for me!  I was giddy excited and smiled from ear to ear!  Such DIY project potential in these tissue rolls (Yes, I may be the only wife who gets strangely excited when her husband surprises her with tissue rolls).  Well, they really had me at "hello."  This meant another DIY project/challenge for me! 

Since these are gigantic tissue rolls, they aren't the flimsy kinds.  They're thicker and sturdier.  One look at it and I knew they were perfect for corralling items; perfect as pencil or pen holders.  All I needed to do was decorate it and glue a firm base to hold whatever items I decide to place in them.

So first, I washi-taped the first roll.  I'm a fan of all things chevron-print now (see pinterest board on Lovin' Chevron!)...but honestly, I think it turned out less than perfect.  Something about the gaps in the washi didn't do it for me (I think for chevron-print to work, there should be equal stripe widths).  It took me more than an hour to painstakingly achieve chevron but ummm, I'm not exactly satisfied with the result.  Could have been better.

I was happier about the design of my second tissue roll.  I wrapped it in Ellen Krans scrapbooking paper (from a set given to me by my sister from her US trip).  It's a school-themed print which I love since it's so me!  And it only took about five short minutes to do!  Now, that's my kind of DIY project!

What do you think?!

Next, I used the tissue rolls to trace circles on foam sheets to use as the base and cut them up. 

Then, I adhered them to the bottom of the tissue rolls with a glue gun.

Tada!  Tissue rolls with a foam base!

And the finished product - giant tissue rolls turned cutesy pencil holders.

That's it.  Easy peasy DIY project.

I wouldn't mind doing more of these in the future.  Maybe try to achieve a better chevron-printed one.

I enjoin you to do the same if you can get a hold of giant tissue rolls!  Let's save the world one giant tissue roll at a time! = )

Additional Note Card Craft Kits in my Etsy Shop

I was inspired to make these additional Note Card Craft Kits to post in my Etsy Shop.  The shop just feels so empty so it's great that I'm slowly able to fill it with new items.

Here's what I wrote to describe these crafts kits:

This paperminty Note Card Craft Kit with these dainty Laura Ashley scrapbooking papers is a fun gift as a Mother's Day present or a gift for a friend or loved one!

It could be a gift for yourself, too!

This Craft Kit includes:
15 folded, blank notecards in card stock (4"x5" each)
15 plain envelopes (size 5.5")
10 printed Laura Ashley scrapbooking papers (3.5"x4.5" each), acid and lignin free
5 plain scrapbooking papers (3.5"x4.5" each)
20 small handmade flower cutouts
20 big handmade flower cutouts

Contents are tied together with pretty, gold string and enclosed in a transparent acetate box.

With this Note Card Craft Kit, you can create and design your own note cards! There are endless design possibilities.

It comes with a promise of endless hours of crafting fun!

Convo me or email me through joydb_2013@yahoo.com.ph
for additional information.

Here are two designs you can make with this craft kit:

The papers are actually pretty enough as they are so simple details will be enough.  For the card on the left, I just added a stripy strip of paper at the bottom and voila, a pretty card!

New Item in my Etsy Shop - Note Card Craft Kit

Mother's Day is coming up and what better way to celebrate it by honoring your Mom or momma friend or loved one with a fun and crafty present - a Note Card Craft Kit!

It's been a while since I've added anything to my paperminties Etsy Shop and I figured this is the best time to do some shop-keeping since I have the time!

Each Note Card Craft Kit is only P350.00 for a whole set which includes:
15 folded, blank notecards (4"x5" each)
15 plain envelopes (size 5.5)
3 felt sheets
5 printed scrapbooking papers (3.5"x4.5" each)
5 plain scrapbooking papers (3.5"x4.5" each)
20 flower cutouts

Your momma or momma friend will surely have hours of crafting fun trying to create and design her own unique note cards!  There are endless possibilites!  Here are two of many, many possible designs:

As of this writing, only two (2) sets are available so hurry and purchase one now!


Please visit my Etsy shop to see what other paperminties are available!

You can also email me through joydb_2013@yahoo.com.ph for orders or inquiries.

Washi-taped Pencils

Do you remember that line in the movie "You've Got Mail" that goes:

"Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanna buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address. On the other hand, this not knowing has its charms..."

"...a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils."  That line stuck with me because I so get it!  I'd love and appreciate a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils!  LOL!  But really!!!  Wouldn't you?!?

I remembered that line while doing this washi-tape project and had to include a photo of my sharpened colored pencils!  What a happy sight! 

I got these pencils as Christmas gifts and thought of that "You've Got Mail" line, too!  I painted this mug in this shop called "Color Me Mine" which closed shortly after my sisters treated me to my bridal shower there.  Too bad it closed down.

I thought I'd do another fun washi-tape project (the first was the Homemade Bag Tags) while fixing my stuff.  Washi-taping my plain pencils seemed like a fun idea!  If you have washi tape and pencils, I suggest you go for it!  Do it as a breather in between stressful meetings at work or as a five-minute crafty project!  I'm serious.  It's all it takes...Five minutes to washi-tape a pencil!

Here are the results!

Plain pencils (which I love just as they are, actually) to...

Washi-taped pencils!!! <3...  I sharpened one (rightmost) to see what happens to the washi tape.  It crinkles a wee bit at the tip.  I suggest you use a manual sharpener to preserve the washi tape or the mechanical sharpener's teeth will leave marks on the pencil.

You can washi-tape yellow pencils too!

Yellow pencil washi-taped halfway!  Love it already!  I did this with my blue, space-themed washi tape!

Yellow pencils washi-taped all the way!  Cutie!

Try this project!  I'm telling you, it can be quite therapeutic!  And you may end up with your own bouquet of washi-taped pencils. ; )

Homemade Montessori - "Felt" Sandpaper Numbers

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My daughter has this new-found interest in writing letters and numbers.  Months ago, she would resist writing exercises and would only practice when she is in a good mood.

Lately, she has been writing during her spare time.  She would ask for a pencil and paper and keep at writing for a considerable amount of time.  More often than writing letters, she would choose to write numbers.

She writes with such concentration and enthusiasm, only pausing to ask "Mommy, what's next?" from time to time.  Otherwise, she tries to figure out what number comes next in the sequence by counting again from one.

I am so impressed by this development and I just watch her write and acknowledge her hard work and effort when she is done. 

I noticed though that she has been writing some numbers backwards so I thought it might be helpful to go back to the basics to practice her strokes.

She was so proud of this work!  She encircled each number and said, "Look, mommy!" with a huge smile on her face!

Sample work of exercises from summer class at her new school.

She worked with the Montessori sandpaper numbers in her previous school.  I love that it is a tactile learning tool to help children recognize and write numbers.  I have been wanting to  make a homemade version of the sandpaper numbers (and letters) but have been putting it off since I could not find the finer-grained sandpaper in hardware stores.  I figured maybe felt would be a good alternative so I tried it out.

To make the numbers, I cut them out of green felt and glue-gunned them unto old desk calendars.  I folded the desk calendars and glued the folded sides together to make the backing board of the numbers sturdy (a friend of mine used old DVD cases.  I love that she reused and re-purposed old DVD cases and that it makes for very durable backing board for sandpaper numbers).

This is what it looks like from the side.  They sort of open up near the folds but they are not bothersome to work with.

I recommend this Montessori material especially for children who are ready to learn their numbers.  The site Infomontessori or Montessori Primary Guide and this video will show you how to use this as an effective teaching tool.

These are all the numbers, top view!  May this project inspire you to make your own!