How to: Glow in the Dark Jars

Glowing Jars

Glow in the dark polka dot jars - some call them Firefly jars

Glow in the dark jars

I wanted to make something neat to look at for my little boy when he's in bed at night so I made these jars. I had seen this previously on a this blog and I was so inspired!!   I used the Palmer Glow in the Dark paints..it was a set of six of them in a package in small pots. They come in six pretty colors- orange, yellow, pink, green, purple and pink.  I paid 1.99 for them on Ebay. It says you can use them on a variety of surfaces, including glass and I found this to be true but the paint is a bit thin.   There is not a whole lot of paint in the package either but it's plenty enough to make a few of these cute polka dot jars. One of the jars had cheese dip in it  and the other is a large mason jar.

Palmer Glow in the Dark Paint

I gathered up a couple jars and washed them to make sure they were clean and then I dipped the end of a small paintbrush into the paints and dotted it right onto the jar.  It leaves a perfectly round dot of paint. I tried to make sure there was a good amount of paint on the end of the brush so the dot would be thick as possible. After a couple dots, I would dip the end back into the paint just to be sure there was a good amount of paint to dot onto the jar.  I did one side, let it dry, turned it and did another side, let it dry and just kept going around the jar like that. I made a make-shift holder out of cardboard that I would lay the jar into so it wouldn't roll while I did the dots. I scattered the dots all around in one color, wiped off the paint from the end of the brush and then scattered dots of another color, I did this with all the colors.

cardboard that held jar while I put the dots on

first scattering of dots

after I added some more colors

The paint does glow in the dark but it doesn't seem to hold the charge long.. after a very short while the dots look dull at best but I think the jars are cute in plain light because of the colorful polkadots so that really made it worth it.  They look like little confetti dots on the jars.. and the paint has adhered to the glass really well, so far anyway.  I guess only time will tell how durable it is. I may do a clear coat on the outsides of them just in case.   I plan on giving this a try again with a more potent glow in the dark paint, maybe closer to Halloween.

I was looking around and there is quite a selection of glow in the dark paints on the market.  I was looking at some the other day that was super bright and they claimed the glow lasted 24 PLUS hours.. that's amazing to me. It was quite expensive but if it's really as great as they say, I think it would be worth it.  Anyway, when I get around to it and make some more, I'll be sure to post them. 

Cereal Box Crafts

Cereal boxes make wonderful crafts! Like this super cute star...

star made from cereal box @ grey luster girl

And here's a few more:

"inbox" organizer made with cereal boxes @ Family Fun

cereal box notebook @ Bee-inspired

cute turkeys @ Blissfully Domestic

I love these turkeys!   Would make the perfect Thanksgiving craft for kids :)

More Cute and Clever Cereal Box Crafts

Handmade 4th of July Hairbows

I made these cute little hair bows a little while back and since the 4th of July is just around the corner, I might as well share them here on my blog.  They were really easy to make... I would have made two matching bows of each color but I only had enough ribbon to make one of each color.  I think a pair of these would be so cute clipped above pig tails.. but you could use just one too for a pony tail, for bangs, etc..

These hair bows really are very easy to make.  You basically just need some ribbon ( I believe these are made with 3/4 inch.), a bottle cap or some other type embellishment and some shiny red and blue tinsel-like shred or similar and an alligator clip for the back.  The red and blue shred (tinsel stuff) is for embellishing scrapbooks, I believe.  I got a couple of packages of it at a garage sale.   Anyway, I made the bows, glued some of the shred on and then glued a bottle cap on.   I used one new bottle cap and one used one that I painted red and added glitter to.   They were actually going to be necklaces, I had made several of these decorative bottle caps but decided these two would be the perfect embellishments for these bows.

These are so much fun! You can use whatever embellishments you want really.. I'm sure they will turn out cute either way.  I still need to glue the alligator clips on the backs of these and then they will be ready to wear.  Here is what the backs of them look like:

The actual bows are made with three loops of ribbon but they are twisted together a certain way but it's super simple to do.  I will update this post with a more detailed tutorial just as soon as I get one finished!  So what do you think?  Are they cute or what?!

Sequin Firecracker Decorations

I have a great 4th of July craft that I want to share!  There is nothing more frugal than being able to turn toilet paper tubes that would normally land in the trash can into glamorous and glitzy firework decorations for the 4th of July.  You won't believe how easy they are to create!

Here's a few photos:

TP tubes painted red

TP rolls painted white

Made using larger sized sequins

larger sequins

 

 

 

 

Covered with smaller sized sequins

 

Okay.. Okay.. I know! It's a lot of pictures but I just couldn't help it! They turned out so pretty and shiney :)

So save your empty TP tubes and grab some red, white and blue sequins... it's time to make some sparkly firecracker decorations!!

See the sequin firecracker tutorial!

Memorial Day/4th of July Wreaths Round-Up

Memorial Day has come and gone and the 4th of July is fast approaching.  It's time to start thinking about decorations!  I missed decorating this year for Memorial Day because we were in the middle of a move but never hurts to look for ideas for next year and also for 4th of July, coming up!!  I decided to feature some super cute patriotic wreaths I found as I was looking around today.

Oodlekadoodle Primitives

I love the look of this one with all of the little flags.

Attempting Creative

I love faux flowers so naturally I am crazy over this wreath... so cute with the little buttons!

Cheap Cheap Chickadee

Another cute flower wreath.. I love the fluffy white.  Be sure to check out the matching pillow!

Every Crafty Endeavor

 I love the big bow on the top and how fluffy this wreath is.. and the glittery stars are a perfect touch!

Catch My Party

 This wreath made from balloons is so neat!  I like how it has the light and dark blue balloons along with red and white. It's actually for a July birthday (so cute!) but you could change up the sign and put Happy 4th or Celebrate.. LOVE THIS!!!

4 Bergs Crafts

Grab some ribbon and make one of these! Love it :0)

A huge thank you to all who shared these beautiful wreaths on your blogs! That's it for now... stay tuned for more 4th of July crafts coming soon :0)

Fancy 3D Chandeliers

I  have been busy making these super cute 3D chandeliers for my daughters graduation party and I'm really happy with how they have turned out.  I've made a few different shapes of them and they all look really nice, at least to me anyway.   I know these are used a lot of times for party decorations but I think they would be cute in a little girls room too.   If you are into recycling, you will love these because many of them were made from frozen pizza boxes which is basically the same thing as chipboard.


Here are a few photos:

Here's one style. This one I made several with regular cardboard and a couple out of the sides of frozen pizza boxes (same as chipboard)

Here's another style... These were made from cardboard so they were a bit heavier than the one above. The ones made with cardboard also have rhinestones glued on them... this particular one has silver rhinestones.  Right now I only have these two photos of this one and they were taken before it was finished:

LOVE these silver rhinestones!!

Here's another style.. these were made from frozen pizza boxes (chipboard), like the one on top. This is after I had put one coat of paint on it and it was waiting for another coat of paint:

Here is another pic of the top style with red rhinestones- The party colors are red, white and black. Personally I like the white rhinestones better:

Right now, all of the finished chandeliers are over at the house where the party will be but I am taking my camera and will be sure to update this hub with pictures of all these pretty hanging chandeliers.


If you are interested in a detailed tutorial on how to make these, please see my tutorial:


How to Make a 3D Chandelier

Thanks for stopping by!!

Survival Kits - Cute Craft Gifts

I have been thinking a lot about survival kits lately.  These are cute handmade gifts that you can give for any occasion..  The best part about them is that they are easy to make and inexpensive to put together. 

Take a look at these cute survival kits:

Here is a Teachers Survival Kit.... it is a teachers appreciation gift and would be perfect to give at the beginning of the school year.   I found this one at BH&G.

 

This one is a Everyday Life Survival Kit that I found at Creative Craft Ideas. This cute little tin which looks to be a re-purposed Altoids mint tin is filled with little things that we all need in every day life.  Visit the link to see the list of items in the kit. 

You can make the kit as large or small as you prefer. I love this Maid of Honor Survival Kit that I found at Vintage Folly!  I has tissues, deodorant, safety pins and things like- emergency items to help the Maid of Honor out on the special day.  Visit the link to see the full list of items for the kit PLUS a few other wedding  related survival kits!

For TONS more survival kit ideas, see the round-up here:  Unique and Fun Handmade Survival Kits

I hope you enjoy and thanks for stopping by today!