Activity Book

As promised this entry is going to give information on how to create an activity book at home on a budget. All you need is a printer and time to create it.

Items used
1. I searched Google for coloring and activity pages and found tons of them.
2. I also searched Google for some Thomas Clip Art
3. I used Microsoft word to create the front page layout
4. I also downloaded a FLARED GOTHIC font from www.fonts101.com which resembles the Thomas font used. I have the link below

http://www.fonts101.com/fonts/view/Brandname/12001/Flare_Gothic

I basically printed out the activity pages and stapled the pages together.
I printed out the front page.
I cut the front page halfway into 2 and added a piece of blue polka dot paper to tie it into my theme and also  to lift the look of the book.
I stuck the front cover page to make an activity book.

We used the activity books while we were waiting for guests to arrive and the kids loved it a lot.

Next Entry how to make cup cake toppers to match the theme.

Birthday Banner

In December we celebrated our son's 3rd Birthday. This year it was a Thomas and Friends Birthday. I handmade the banners, cupcake toppers, popcorn box labels, Lollipop stand, an activity book and decorated the cupcake stand as well. The theme was Thomas and Friends and the colors were Blue and Red.

Below I have some instructions on how I did the Banner

Items Used

•  I printed the Polka dot paper from Paperprintables.com. This is a free website that has tons of paper you can download and print at home. 
•  I bought the Blue and Red Die case letters from DollarTree. It’s a dollar for Blue and a dollar for the red letter. If you have tools for cutting letters like a Cricut then you are all set. 
•  I also used a Bazzil Red Cardstock. 
•  I used foam stickers to stick the letters to give some dimension to it (bought in bulk from Oriental Trading) 

I used Fiskars paper cutter to cut the triangles, you can get at least 2 triangles from a piece of 81/2x11 sheet of paper. I stuck the letters and used a paper punch to make holes for putting the ribbon.

Next entry instructions on how I created the Activity book on a budget.

Flower Card

My cousin recently got engaged and I made this card to congratulate him. But this is such a nice simple design that you could use it for any occasion. I created the flower using a tutorial I watched on youtube. (http://valitasfreshfolds.blogspot.com).

Items used

1. Plain cardstock bought from Michaels during one of the sales. 4 pads of 81/2 * 11 paper for $10 dollars. So the cost of paper I used for this card must around $1.00
2. Ink pads pumpkin spice and green color was bought at Joann for $1 each.
3. Ribbon was bought at Joann for 50c for 5 meters of ribbon and  I used a small fraction of it.
4. Rhinestones were bought at Joann for 97c. It had about 30 or so stones.
5. Background stamp was bought at Michaels for $1.99 and I found it in their clearance bins.

Tips

1. Always check out the clearance bins and dollar bins in Michaels and Joann. You get the best deals.
2.  Subscribe to Michaels or other hobby sites to receive coupons via email. If you have a Smartphone you don’t even have to print them. Just show the bar code at the register and they will accept it. Most stores also respect competitor coupons. 

Earth Day

I wanted to start my blog with a scrapbook page I created for an Earth Day celebration at my son’s school. They released 3000 lady bugs free that day. This picture was taken when my son was standing in line for their teacher to hand them lady bugs so they could release it.

Supplies I used

1. Free printable paper from www.mygrafico.com. I used the lady bug paper pack by Shery K Designs for this project.
2. The title was made using a stencil bought from Dollor store.
3. Black ink pad bought from Michaels on a sale for $1.99. You can get them in the Dollar store as well.
4. Dimensional foam stickers or you could cut small pieces of foam and glue it on both sides and mount the title. (Foam sheets can also be found in Dollar store)
5. I typed up the journal on the computer and cut them up and stuck it to the bottom
6. I also added a few charms (ladybug, butterfly, bee and flower) that I bought online at OrientalTrading.com. 
7. I also used letter stickers for the date. The bought a sticker pack from orientaltrading.com.
8. I used a Martha Stewart Punch-3 In 1 Butterfly that I bought from Joann.com in a half off sale. But you can add stickers or any kind of embellishments.

Cost of the basic supplies on this page

1. 85c for the charms
2. $1.00 for ink pad which can be used for more projects
3. $1.00 for Stencil which can be used for more projects
4. $1.00 for a pack of 10 foam sheets
5. Optional Butterfly punch – $5.49 (50% off sale)