Magnetic Spiders

I will admit that I am addicted to Pinterest, and I am constantly on there looking for new crafts and such. Since Autumn is my favorite time of the year, and Halloween is my favorite holiday, I have been browsing fall crafts. I came upon a craft for magnetic spiders. You can find that here. I know Halloween isn't until next month, but I couldn't wait to make these spiders! We recently had our back door replaced with a fire safe aluminum door. It's hard to hang my wreaths on, but it is magnetic!
So, off I set to find my plastic spider rings. It was difficult at first, since there were no Halloween decorations out yet, but this past week, the local stores have been setting up their Halloween Decor! As I was in Target yesterday morning, I thought I'd give the Halloween section a little look. I found some plastic spiders that were not rings (which made it easier for me for not having to cut the ring part off)! They were $3 for a 72 or 74 count. Then, I headed to Joann Fabrics to purchase some magnets. I found a roll of magnetic tape for $5. It was well more than I needed, but I can use it for other crafts! Here is what I did:

Supplies needed:

Plastic spiders (rings work, but you have to cut off the ring part)
Magnetic strips
Scissors
Glue gun and glue sticks

Steps I took:

First I gathered all my supplies

 Then, I started to cut strips off the magnetic tape to fit the back of the spiders. I was able to cut each square in half into strips that fit perfectly!

I got my hot glue gun ready and started to glue the strips to the back of the spiders. 

 

(I apologize for the blurry photo...my photographer had a shaky hand)

I let the glue harden. 

Then, I had some fun on the refrigerator at work! I left the spiders up for my residents to see when they went into the fridge! They got a kick out of it!

Once I got home, I stuck them to my door.  Every day or every few days, I am going to reposition them.

 I can't wait to purchase more spiders to make more so I can stick them to my neighbor's door upstairs!!!! Hahahah!

Arts & Craft Project

Today, Abbey and I decided to do a fun arts & crafts project. She has a pad of floor paper, so I taped 4 sheets together and taped them to the floor. I didn't have painter's tape, so I just used regular tape. Then, I tried to get Abbey to lie down so I could trace her. She wasn't having it. 

 So, I stripped her down to her shirt and diaper and then squirted the paper with all the colors of paint we have. I am using washable paint, so I wasn't very worried about the floor becoming dirty or her shirt for that matter. 

 And then, I just let her do what she pleased. She was a bit apprehensive at first...

 But then she realized what was going on and started to really make a "mess"!

 She seemed to like scooting her little butt on the paint and paper. 

 She had fun walking, but it was so slippery that I needed to hold her steady so she didn't wipe out!

 And this is our finished project! I am not sure exactly what I am going to do with it. I am going to un-tape each page. I might hang one up in her room and add the rest to my collection of painting that I want to use as wrapping paper. 

This can be fun for babies and young children! I recommend nontoxic washable paint for those little ones (mine still likes to lick the paint and she is almost 2yrs old!)

Clean up was simple:

I brought Abbey straight to the bath tub and gave her a bath. Then, I put her in her crib so I could clean up the "mess". I un-taped the painting and brought it to my bedroom floor to have a flat place to dry. Plus, my bedroom is blocked off from the dog and Abbey during the day. Then, I just mopped up the area with my Swiffer Wet Jet and all was clean again!

Fun Craft for the Whole Family

I had recently seen on Pinterest.com a fun painting/art piece. It was a handprint of each of the user's children in a frame on the wall with their names. Having only one child, I thought how can we do this project in a fun way that whole the family can enjoy. Why not put all of our prints on one paper and hang it on the wall. Abbey had received a pad of drawing paper from Easter and it was big enough for all our prints. (By all I mean me, my husband, Abbey and our dog Nurbie.) I even had an old frame that was big enough to hold the paper. 
I then gathered some materials. I used paper plates and spread a thin-ish layer of washable paint onto it; one for me, my husband and Nurbie to dip our hands in. We each chose a color to use. Then, I used a paint brush to brush paint onto Abbey's hands. My husband helped Abbey with her handprints, since she is still too young to understand what to do. Then, I helped Nurbie with his paw prints. Then, the husband and I did our prints.

Once it was dried, I trimmed the paper to fit the frame and then we hung it in our living room. It is a fun piece of art that we made all on our own. 

This is a great way to have a family fun day/night craft with your little ones.