Felt Lightbulb Ornaments

Looking for a small holiday gift "add on", a delightful handmade ornament, or an easy Christmas craft? These simple felt lightbulb ornaments are perfect "quick and easy" holiday crafts, and I love how colourful and fun they are. Today I am sharing the step-by-step tutorial for these adorable felt ornaments.

To make these ornaments:
1) Cut two lightbulb shapes and two lightbulb tops from coloured felt.
2) Using matching embroidery floss, attach a hanger made from a piece of twine.
3) Use white embroidery floss to stitch the two lightbulb shapes together (with a small amount of cotton stuffing inside).
4) Stitch the lightbulb tops to the top of the ornament.

The best thing about these ornaments is that they can be made in many colours. You can totally make them to match any Christmas decor or colour scheme. 

I made my lightbulb ornaments in blue, red and green.

I made a bunch, and I plan to stick them in Christmas cards, add them to gifts, and hang them on my tree. Cute, right?

These ornaments would be a wonderful project for someone that is just learning to sew. The felt is easy to work with, and the stitching is easy. If you decide to make these felt lightbulb ornaments, let me know what colours you chose.

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Snowman Gum

I love simple ideas. We are all busy, and don't have a lot of time, so today I am sharing an idea that is SUPER easy. Looking for a stocking stuffer, secret Santa gift, or a unique class treat? Have a look at these adorable snowmen made from gum! Cute, right?

To make this sweet treat: cut a package of gum into strips, draw the details of the snowmen with Sharpies, and tie on little felt scarves made from a tiny strips of felt. That's it!

I made these snowmen for my boys, and they thought they were pretty cute. I couldn't agree more because I absolutely love the simplicity of this little goodie.

Do you have someone in your life that might enjoy this snowman gum? Sometimes simple ideas really are the best ideas!

♥ 
Gina Bell (aka East Coast Mommy)

Christmas Photo Class Treats

My boys' school has a strict nutrition policy, but they still like to bring Christmas treats to share with their classes. This year, my boys are taking ornaments that are being shared in a fun way. We are using pictures of the boys, and inserting candy cane ornaments.

Cute, right?

I started with a picture of my son standing in front of our tree with his hand in a fist. Then, I used an X-acto knife to cut slits above and below his fist. I finished by inserting a candy cane ornament into the slot.

I made a bunch of these cute Christmas photos for my boys' classmates, and I love how they turned out!

Do you send class treats to school at Christmas? Would your little one's friends like this Christmas photo class treat?

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Elf on the Shelf Kissing Booth (free printable)

There are a lot of free Elf on the Shelf printables on the web, but I am absolutely obsessed with the cuteness of this free Elf on the Shelf kissing booth! This is how we found our Elf this morning... and he was surrounded by chocolate kisses.

Isn't this "kissing booth" adorable? And what child wouldn't love to wake up to all these sweet chocolate kisses?

To download a FREE copy of the Elf on the Shelf kissing booth: click on the photo below, right click, save it to your computer, and print (on cardstock) like a regular 8x10 photo.

Print the booth on heavy card stock, cut out a window for the elf to peek through, and fold the sides in to make it stand. It's that easy!

What fun things has your elf been up to this year? I hope you have fun with this free Elf on the Shelf kissing booth. It's my Christmas gift to you. Happy holidays!

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

You can find MORE easy and inexpensive Elf on the Shelf ideas here. 

Make sure to check out the magic Elf seeds. It's my favourite!

DIY Trollhunters Sword... and some Netflix news

The holiday season has arrived, the kids will be home from school soon, and it won't be long before they start saying they're bored. That's why, starting December 23rd, Netflix and Dreamworks Animation Television will be treating families to 13 hours of adventure, suspense and limitless imagination with the all-new series DreamWorks Trollhunters. To get you and your kids ready, today I am sharing a fun DIY Trollhunters sword that you can make from cardboard and tin foil.

To make this fun and simple sword, follow the instructions and photos below:

1) Draw a sword and blade (using the picture above as a guide).

2) Print one copy of both blades on plain paper, cut them out, tape them together, and use the paper as a temple to cut a blade from cardboard.

3) Cover blade with tin foil (taping or gluing in place), and decorate with markers.

4) Print the handle onto plain paper, cut it out, and use it as a template to cut a handle from cardboard. 

5) Color the handle, and glue it to the cardboard. (My son added jewel stickers to add an extra "cool factor", but this is optional.)

6) Use hot glue to attach the handle to the blade. (If you want the sword to be really strong, you can make two handles, and sandwich the blade in the middle... but his is optional.)

Cute, right?

My boys are super-excited to play with their new sword and to check out season one of Trollhunters when it comes to Netflix on December 23, 2016!

And, as if this new series isn't exciting enough...

Just in time for long holiday trips, Netflix recently announced that members can now download many of their favourite series and movies at no extra cost. To start downloading today, make sure your Netflix app is updated to the latest version and head to the ‘Available for Download’ menu on your tablet or mobile device.

Happy viewing... and happy holidays!

♥

Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

PS (With New Year's Eve around the corner, don't forget the fun NYE countdowns available on Netflix. You can ring in the new year whenever the kids are ready for bed!)

Disclosure: I receive special gifts and perks as part of my affiliation with Netflix.... however (of course!) the opinions on this blog are 100% my own.

Christmas Eve Gift Basket... with free printable tags

My boys have always worn matching PJs on Christmas Eve. I pick pyjamas that are festive and cozy, and I LOVE how the matching PJs look in the pictures I take on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. This year, I decided to put the PJs, cookies, and cocoa together in adorable Christmas Eve gift basket with a sweet tag that you can download (below) for free!

Isn't this a great idea? I bought pre-made cookies, a box of hot chocolate, adorable PJs, and little white basket from the dollar store. You could add mugs, whip cream, and marshmallows too... but I didn't have room in my basket.

Then, I made a special, personalized tag for my boys. You can download the generic tag below and use it "as is", or you could personalize it for your kids using Picmonkey.com.

To download the generic tag: right-click on the tag below, save it to your computer, and print it like a regular 4X6 photo.

I wrapped my basket in cellophane, tied it with curling ribbon, and attached the tag. Easy peasy!

Do you have any fun Christmas Eve traditions? Would you consider adding a Christmas Eve gift basket to you holiday celebration? I'm not sure how much longer my boys will agree to matching PJs, but maybe bribing them with cookies and hot chocolate will allow me to continue the tradition a little longer! 

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)

Easy REINDEER Crafts (that kids will love)

The Christmas season is always super-busy for parents and caregivers, so it can be very helpful to have a few SIMPLE holiday crafts to keep the kids entertained. Today, I am sharing FOUR easy REINDEER crafts that are perfect for Preschoolers and older kids too. These crafts are simple to make, the supplies are easy to find, and the children will be delighted with the finished products.

Personalized ornaments are always special, and this simple reindeer photo ornament is absolutely adorable! Cut a circle from a piece of card stock, glue on a photo of a child, draw reindeer antlers, and add a red sticker nose. Attach a string, and give it as a gift or hang it on the tree. Cute, right?

This simple reindeer painting is also easy to make, and it is a sweet piece of holiday artwork. Draw a reindeer head, antlers, and nose on a piece of white paper. Colour the reindeer parts, cut them out, and glue them onto a piece of heavy coloured paper. Add a googly eye (with white glue), and cover the paper with snowflakes made from dipping a Q-tip in white paint.

Wrapping yarn is a fun way for little ones to practice using their fine motor skills, and this yarn wrapped reindeer ornament is sure to delight little ones. Start with a piece of heavy cardboard, cover it with white glue, and wrap the cardboard with yarn. Add googly eyes, a red pom pom nose, clothespin antlers, and a yarn hanger.

Making magic reindeer food is simple and fun, and the finished product can be sprinkled on the lawn on Christmas Eve to ensure that the Santa's reindeer are well fed during their annual trip around the world. You can find the recipe for magic reindeer food and the FREE printable tags here.

Christmas crafting is a fantastic way to spend time with kids, and the simple reindeer crafts are guaranteed to be a lot of fun for little ones. You can use the finished crafts for gifts, you can use them to decorate, or you can simply take them out each year as treasured keepsakes. I hope you take the time to make a simple reindeer craft with your children this holiday season. If you try one of mine, leave a comment below, and let me know which one was a favourite in your house. Happy Crafting!

♥
Gina (aka East Coast Mommy)