kids Archives - U Create

Shine Bright Throw Pillows

Kari Sweeten — Thu, 07 Dec 2017 12:48:01 +0000

My daughter needed new throw pillows for her bed (her room colors are turquoise, gold, black, with accents of pink) and when I saw the brand new Shine Bright fabric from Riley Blake, I knew that was the fabric I was going to use!

Wait until you see this fun fabric.

The gals at Simple Simon and Co. (or “the Liz’s” as I like to call them because they both have the first name Elizabeth!) designed this fabric line with their daughters in mind to inspire them to shine bright in their unique ways.

My own daughter is such a light to those around her and my husband has always sang “You Are My Sunshine” to her since she was a baby to remind her how special she is. Whenever she hears the song she thinks it’s her song. I showed her this fabric and she instantly loved the word search fabric – she says if she can’t sleep she’ll just look for words like “courageous” “fantastic” “caring” and more!

I made three different pillow covers sizes 12×12, 16×16, and 12×16 – using my “go-to” pillow cover tutorial!

The tutorial is very simple to follow and you can whip these up in no time (well about 10 minutes!) If you’re adding pom pom trim add at least 20-30 minutes!

10 Minute Throw Pillow Tutorial

This is a great project for beginners, too. Once you start making them you won’t want to stop!

GIVEAWAY!

Want to win this fat quarter bundle? Click HERE to enter and to see all of the different pattern designs available in this beautiful “Shine Bright” collection!

POST BY: Kari Sweeten

This post was sponsored by Riley Blake Designs. All projects and opinions are mine.

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Birthday Photo Banner Tutorial

Becky Vandenberg — Thu, 31 Dec 2015 15:00:33 +0000

Here’s a little tutorial I came up with for my little niece’s birthday. She lives about 5 hours away from me so I wanted to make something I could send to her, but not have to pay loads of shipping. So I created something easy and super cute. I perused her parents’ Facebook pages and downloaded tons of pictures of her from toddlerhood to current age. I sewed them all together and made an adorable Birthday Photo Banner.

Supplies Needed:

Photos! The more the better.
Print those photos. We recommend the Canon PIXMA iP8720 Crafting Printer and photo paper.
Bias Tape (wide single fold)
Sewing essentials (thread, scissors, machine, etc.)

Step #1: Download and prepare to print.

I downloaded all the pictures to my laptop and then created a large square photo collage in picmonkey.com. I actually had so many pictures, I created two of these collages.

Step #2: Print your photos!

Using the Canon PIXMA iP8720 Crafting Printer and 13″ x 19″ Photo Paper, I printed both collages using the borderless setting. I took a screenshot of the settings I used for you.

Step #3: Cut out and organize the photos.

My little daughter and I sat and cut out all the photos…while singing some Kids Bop at the top of our lungs. {Make sure to add that part to the process; it’s hysterical and your kid thinks you’re cool!}

Then I put them in two lines in chronological order from baby girl to young tween girl. Then starting with the last picture in each line I stacked the photos in backward order. I planned to sew the last photo to the bias tape first and ending with the first photo in the line…don’t worry, it will make sense when you start sewing the banner. Step #4: Create the banner

Take the bias tape and fold it in half; iron it down with a hot iron.

Starting with the top picture in your pile, slide the top of the photo in between the bias tape. Sew the bias tape together with the photo and stop right when you get to the end of the photo. Next slide the next picture in and sew across the top of that one. Continue the process until your banner is complete.

I chose to do two rows, but you can sew all the photos into one long banner as well.

Wouldn’t this be an awesome thing to do for an “Over-the-Hill” birthday party with pictures from childhood or it would be a cool teacher gift with photos of all her students (with parental permission, of course). What other ideas do you have for this banner? I would love to hear them!

We would love to see your version of the Birthday Photo Banner. Post a picture to our Facebook page or tag us on Instagram (@ucreateblog).

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Frozen Canvases for Little Girl’s Bedroom

Kari Sweeten — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 20:27:30 +0000

I’m excited to show you what I created with my new Cricut Explore One machine today!!

I have three little girls and my two littlest ones share a bedroom….and they are both crazy about Frozen! My daughters are so close so I decided to create a “Sisters Forever” canvas theme. This is one of my favorite pictures of two of my little girls.

They actually like to play with each other! I’m crossing my fingers that they have a close relationship forever!!

Okay enough with the mushy stuff, onto the tutorial…

SUPPLIES:

Cricut machine (I used the new Cricut Explore One)
gold Cricut vinyl
berry Cricut vinyl
Three 5×7 canvases
Cricut Frozen Cartridge in Design Space

INSTRUCTIONS:

Go to your Design Space in Cricut and download the Frozen images below…

Size your images to fit on the size of canvas you have chosen.

Place vinyl on the three canvases and hang.

It chose to do the “Sisters Forever” in a hot pink to stand out more, but I also think it would be beautiful in gold.

By daughters are so excited about their new Frozen decorations for their bedroom!

Those of you interested in a great deal on the new Cricut Explore One…oh, and it’s FREE SHIPPING for a limited time!

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Valspar Color Trends – Girl’s Bedroom Update

Kari Sweeten — Tue, 12 May 2015 02:28:34 +0000

My two youngest daughters share a bedroom filled with dark purple stripes painted by the previous owner. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a fan of stripes, but these are just too dark for their small bedroom and make it look even tinier.

My girls love the color purple, but a few months back when they told me they didn’t want the stripes anymore I knew I had to jump on that and repaint the room!

When I saw the new Color Trends palettes by Valspar, my eyes immediately went to the Belle Grove Sorbet color from the Sixth Sense trend.

Sixth Sense is influenced by smart technology featuring cool, calm, and crisp colors. The beautiful hues of blue, aqua, yellow, and gray are classic colors that will last for years. I’m very picky about the colors that go on the walls in my home, and I can tell you I would use any of the colors from the Sixth Sense trend family. They are long-lasting and will not go out of style anytime soon.

They are all so beautiful but I knew my girls would love the mint green look of this Belle Grove Sorbet color.

I also wanted to use Valspar Reserve paint (available at Lowe’s) because it’s Valspar’s “most durable paint.” I need durable and easy-to-clean paint with these little girls!

I have to admit I was a little nervous that the light paint color wouldn’t cover the dark purple stripes – even though Valspar Reserve interior paint is a paint + primer in one.

Well, I got to work painting and quickly discovered that this paint delivered and did what it said it would do!

I was blown away at how well only one coat covered the walls. I painted two coats for complete coverage and there is no way anybody would be able to tell there were stripes underneath. It really looks flawless and I cannot believe how GORGEOUS this color turned out in my daughter’s bedroom. Here are some after photos:

We kept the purple on the bottom because my girls are crazy about it, but the room looks so much bigger and more inviting with this gorgeous Belle Grove Sorbet color on the top half of the room.

I’m trying to talk them into painting the whole room this color…baby steps!

For more information and insight on Valspar’s 2015 Color Trends, visit http://www.valsparcolortrends.com.

POST BY:

This is a sponsored post by Valspar. All opinions and projects are mine.

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DIY Headboard for Boys

Kari Sweeten — Tue, 25 Mar 2014 22:33:00 +0000

I have been busily making over my kids’ bedrooms so they can switch rooms. Now I have a bunch of tutorials to share with you as I completely redid both rooms.

What started this process? It’s really simple and I cannot believe I didn’t think of it before.

My son’s room is bigger, he is almost 12 so his toys are more electronic, he keeps his room clean and his room is away from the entryway (meaning it’s not the first thing everyone sees when they walk in). My daughters’ room is small, their toys are always scattered everywhere (including spilling out into the entryway) and they share a room so they are in need of more space. It just makes sense that the children sharing a room get the bigger room, right?

After spending weeks on Pinterest, scouring thrift stores and mulling things over in my head, I finally decided that I was ready to just dive in and completely redo both bedrooms.

Today, we are starting with my son’s room…new room. Well, I am really only showing you one wall, but I will eventually reveal more. I promise!

This is the room that will become my son’s room. You will remember it from when I did a post on staging a First Birthday Photo Shoot.

I didn’t have to do any painting in this room, because I figured that once I removed the sheer curtains from the gray wall, it will already look awesome for a boy. However, now it looks incredibly boring!

Pay no attention to the twin quilt on his new queen size bed. I have some shopping to do!

Months before I engaged in this undertaking of switching bedrooms, I visited my sister-in-law and noticed some amazing storage she had all around the walls of her family room. (I wish I was smart enough to have taken a picture.) She had painted surplus wooden Ammunition Boxes and assembled them on the wall as some pretty sweet storage and decor. Not even kidding, the next day I went to a huge army surplus store nearby (Smith and Edwards) and grabbed 6 of the wooden ammo boxes. Can you believe they were only $3 a piece.

These ammo boxes measure 32″ x 12″, have rope handles, and lids with hinges. Now, my vision for these is to create wood crates and secure them to the wall to make one awesome headboard/storage area. So it’s time to get a few tools out and get down to business.

Step #1: Take off all the hardware.

I used a power drill and removed the lid, screws, and hinges from all the boxes. I put the lids aside for another project and threw all the rusty hardware away.

Step #2: Cut the rope!

Next, I took my trusty hacksaw (which should come in pink) and cut the ropes off the sides of the boxes.

Step #3: Break out the hand sander.

Next, I took some 60 grit sandpaper, an electric hand sander and smoothed down EVERY side on the box…especially the inside. These wooden boxes had been stored outside for a very long time at the surplus store and were incredibly weathered. My point in sanding them was not to make them look perfect, but smooth. Some spots had splintered, some spots had mold, some spots were just down right nasty looking. I spent about 15 minutes sanding each box.

Step #4: SPRAY PAINT!

After wiping the sanded ammo boxes down with cheesecloth, I used the Valspar Glossy Black spray paint from Lowe’s. In my opinion, Valspar is the BEST spray paint out there. I gave each box a heavy layer of the spray paint and let them dry overnight.

They were dry that evening, but the fumes of the spray paint were still quite strong and I had plenty of other things to do to get the room ready…like buy a queen size comforter.

So far…we went from an old, weathered ammo box to a glossy black wooden crate.

Now to create the headboard.

To attach the boxes to the boring gray wall, I used an electric drill, 3 inch grabber screws, a drill bit just smaller than the screws, a stud finder and a laser level.

Step #5: Figure out the configuration.

After arranging the boxes on the floor in numerous ways, I decided to stagger them on the wall. I tried stacking them, making a symmetrical formation, making them touch, putting gaps between them, etc. In the end, I like the staggered look better.

Step #6: Find the studs and secure the boxes!

Once I found the studs, I marked the location with a pencil. Then I decided how high off the bed I wanted the boxes. Because I was by myself with no other adult help, I stacked books and such to the height I wanted the boxes, then I rested the box where I wanted it. Using the laser level, I lined the edge of the box up with the laser and drilled a hole through the box and the stud (I did that by using the drill bit and electric drill). Then I screwed the 3″ grabber screw into the hole I just made. Each box is secured with 2 screws.

The first box was the toughest because I had to keep it steady while trying to create holes in the wall. It was pretty comical actually. Once that first one was in, the others seemed easier.

Step #7: Decorate the new headboard!

While Ethan was at school, I put all his special stuff on the shelves. I wish I would have recorded his reaction because it was EPIC. He jumped around yelling how awesome it looked. He was in his room all night doing homework, playing games and reading on his bed!

I love how it turned out too!

But we totally found a way to make it better…

Step #8: VINYL the wall!

We added some black vinyl atoms using the Silhouette Cameo. The atoms are 7″ around…just bigger than my hand. Ethan also wants to add some red vinyl Xbox controllers, too. Then this wall will be a perfect depiction of his personality.

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Personalized Periodic Elements Pallet Project

Kari Sweeten — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 15:19:00 +0000

I love science and I married a man who loves science. That being said, it should come as no surprise that my children love all things science; especially my son! He was so excited about the idea of making his name using the Periodic Table. This Personalized Periodic Elements Pallet Project is such an easy project; we had a great time creating it!

The idea for this pallet project came very accidentally:

Ethan and I were Googling the Periodic Table of Elements to find a certain spelling when I came across the coolest website: LMNTOLOGY.com. You can type in any word or name and this site will make the word using the elements. AWESOME! Some letters do not have an element {E,J, X, Z, etc.} so Lmntology.com created a few fictional elements (they are in purple). I was ok with a fictional element in Ethan’s name.

Anyway, while Ethan and I were playing with LMNTOLOGY.com, it dawned on me that I could totally do this for my Sister Wars Pallet Project! I started on it right away and had it done by the end of the day.

I took four pieces of the pallet wood from an unused pallet and sanded them down.

I snagged 12 of metal brackets with screws at the hardware store. This is how I connected the wood.

Using some leftover Minwax Wood Finish from my table makeover a couple years ago, I stained the wood really dark.

Once I had the wood the color I wanted, I left it in the sun and went inside to create the lettering.

Whenever I need a custom stencil I always use vinyl! I created the letters using the program that comes with my electronic craft cutter. I just used a box shape and create the element inside the box; the font is Times New Roman. The finished elements are 12×12 inches. After I cut the vinyl, I took out the negative. Basically, I removed whatever I wanted yellow.

Using chalk and a ruler, I made little lines where I needed to line up the vinyl in order for it to be perfectly straight.

I laid the vinyl on the chalk lines and removed the transfer tape.

It looks pretty cool looking using only the vinyl, but I wanted to be bold and use a bright punch of color. Bring on the yellow!

I painted a thick layer of the yellow paint over the vinyl stencil. Before it dried completely, I took all the vinyl off. At this point I thought I had a serious craft fail on my hands.

I expected nice, clean straight lines, but the paint kind of spread through the slats of the wood. So, I set the wood up and stepped back to look at it and it didn’t look too bad.

With some fine grit sandpaper, I roughed up the yellow a bit to create a more weathered look. This made the “imperfections” in the paint look less imperfect and more antique-y. The picture above is the sign fresh out of the vinyl. The one below shows the sign after I sanded it down.

I sprayed one coat of satin polyurethane over the entire sign. I attached three heavy duty sawtooth hangers to the back of the finished sign and hung it in Ethan’s room. He totally loves it!

I love that he takes everyone back to his room to show off what his mom made for him…and I also kind of love that I won the first round of Sister Wars!

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Creating with the Stars – Girls Bedroom Reveal!

Kari Sweeten — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 18:16:00 +0000

Hello U-Create readers! I am Nancy from owen’s olivia. Awhile back, I entered the contest Competing with the Stars hosted by East Coast Creative, and I was teamed up with Kari. I had the opportunity to get to know her a little better during the contest, and I am so glad they paired us up together. She has been such a pleasure to get to know.

owen’s olivia is a small blog about my love for sewing and home DIYs. I love to sew, quilt, use power tools, and do anything creative. Sometimes, I joke that I am Martha Stewart’s daughter. I am trying to make my home more beautiful a little at a time, which can be a slow process. I have a 3 year old son, Owen, who keeps me on my toes, and I stay home with him while my husband attends North Carolina State University for Electrical Engineering.

I had the opportunity to head out of town for a few days to make over a bedroom for a couple who is adopting three siblings, one of whom is Kk. This couple has been trying for over 10 years to have children of their own. Kk is the youngest out of the three. I made over one of the couple’s guest bedrooms into a space for Kk as part of my entry for Creating with the Stars. I did not let my elimination in Round 3 stop me from finishing Round 4‘s theme Home Decor, and I am so glad I continued on! The space is so bright and airy. There are not too many personal touches in the space due to time constraints, as I am one who likes to sew and create things with my hands. But on the bright side, this also allows Kk to add her own personality to the space when she comes to her new home. I finished this space in 5 days (1 day to gather supplies), which I have discovered to be too short of time for a makeover. Yes, I am the turtle when it comes to home decor races….

Totally unaware at the time one photo was not straight. Ha! oops!

$5 “wallpaper” treatment.

A source list will be given later this week at owen’s olivia.

Thank you Kari for sharing my space with your readers! I hope they love it as much as I do! xo

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DIY Vinyl Polka Dot Wall (Tween Girls Room Makeover)

Kari Sweeten — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 13:00:00 +0000

I’m so excited to show you my daughters room makeover!

She’s 10 years old, she loves pink and green, and she wanted a….

…polka dot wall!

I placed the polka dots in a random pattern and used vinyl dots so they could easily be removed! We used the Silhouette machine and premium white vinyl with a 5 inch circumference for each dot. So simple!

I’m in the process of making white ruffle curtains, thus the bare windows!

Let me show you the rest of the room….

I can’t believe how much the polka dots add to her room! We chose to do one wall and the rest a light green color so the polka dots didn’t overwhelm the space.

I also snagged a silver chandelier from IKEA and painted it white to spice it up!

This adds such a “girly” touch to her bedroom!

Next up?

The duvet cover.

I decided to use bright pink sheets instead of white for a pop of color! Oh, and see those li’l pillowcases? My daughter made those in her sewing class all by herself…she loves to sew and she’s great at it!

More polka dot love? I had to have these white polka dot sheers for her canopy bed {purchased at Walmart}.

She really wanted a cork board so we used this frame I had in the basement. We painted it bright pink, glued some cork on the wooden insert, and she’s ready to pin away!

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DIY Ballet Bar

Kari Sweeten — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 06:04:00 +0000

I can’t wait to show you what my amazingly talented sister-in-law, Laci created (we call her the Ana White of the family)!

My little neice is one of the cutest ballerina dancers ever and has been doing it for 3 years and LOVES it.

Laci said Katie’s only complaint was…”I can’t practice at home mom, I need a mirror and a bar.” Now she has no excuses!

Ballerina Bar Tutorial

First, she prepped the wall and used four mirror clips, two on bottom that rested on the baseboards and two spring loaded clips above that just happened to conveniently be placed in studs.

Next, she hung a 4’x5’ mirror…

…then attached the beadboard…

…and painted the wall an adorable pink color (Porter Paints Rosebud).

For the ballet bar she used a railing rod and rod holders…

…and voila!

She has a beautiful ballet bar… perfect addition to Katie’s room!

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DIY Daily Chore Board

Kari Sweeten — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 12:50:00 +0000

Let’s start the week off with a reader submission!

Get organized when it comes to chores with a family daily chore board! Disa Grant at The Daily Five shows you how to “bring more peace to your morning/evening routine”…

Customize the chore tags to meet your family’s needs.

When the children complete each chore they receive a happy face and small incentive!

DIY Daily Chore Chart by The Daily Five

Ooh and while you’re there you might want to check out their flavored water recipes, too!

Have an idea or project you would like to share with Ucreate? Contact us HERE!

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