Laura Kelly's Inklings

Sudden Bursts of Creativity

Qwirkle Game Night

We have some favorite family games and Qwirkle is definitely one of them!  We have been playing this with our kids for A LOT of years, since they were pretty darn little, and it still gets taken out of the game cabinet a bunch.  We like to plan family game time as an evening activity because it forces us to all stay home and spend awesome, valuable time together.  If you want to have a Qwirkle game night, you might love some of these extra fun ideas.

Qwirkle Family Game Night

Let’s just talk a little about the game.  It is fun.  It is really fun.  It is like dominoes married scrabble and they had a baby and named it Qwirkle.  It requires some thinking and planning but also has a bit of an element of luck.  Qwirkle consists of 108 heavy duty chunky wooden tiles. Players use the tiles to make lines that are either all one color or all one shape. There can not be duplicate tiles in a line. When a line of six tiles is complete, it is a Qwirkle!  You get bonus points for Qwirkles.  It is awesome because it is easy enough for most kindergartners to play but strategic enough for adults to enjoy.  That makes it a fantastic game for so many age groups to play (and have a blast) together.

I created a fun score sheet that you can download and use free.  It is for up to four players.  It even has a place to celebrate the winner.  I am guessing you have a magnet on your fridge for special papers like this one.  We use tally marks in our house for scoring!

There are six colors in the game (red, orange, green, blue, purple, yellow) which makes a rainbow! I whipped up a batch of royal icing, split into 6 bowls and made 6 colors.  A little icing on some mini brownie bites and BOOM, you have the perfect Qwirkle game night sweet snack.

FUN FACT!  We play Qwirkle at the pool.  The pieces are chunky enough that they don’t blow away so those 15 minute adult swims that come around every hour create enough time to complete a game!

Qwirkle Game Night

Don’t have the game?  If you are local you can grab it at Beyond the Blackboard in Southlands or Arvada.

YAY!  Cheers to Time With Family and Qwirkle Game Night,

Laura

 

 

 

 

 

Bunny Cakes

Springtime means bunny cakes and time.  Whether you decide to make these for Easter or any other bunny celebration, you will find them to be super yummy and oh so simple because Satin Ice fondant is the best.  Bunny cakes are a great little party treat or a fun snack after school too.  I whipped these bunny cakes up in about ten minutes so gosh, that excuse of never enough time isn’t going to work on this one.  I made these bunny cakes with store bought round cakes (White Fudge DingDongs) to take that baking step out of the mix.

DIY Bunny Cakes with Fondant

Start by making fondant ears and noses.   Satin Ice makes fondant that is SO EASY to mold.  It is like magical sweet edible clay.

You don’t have to have any experience to be successful!  Trust me.

Frost the top of your cakes with white icing.  Add the fondant decorations and candy eyes.

Boom, that’s it!

That is ALL there is to making bunny cakes.   If you are serving them at an egg hunt, you might like this fun little printable to go with!

Easter Coloring Printable FREE Download

Hop over to Amazon to get some Satin Ice fondants.  You will be glad you did!   The more you work with it and try things out, the better you get.  To me, it is a lot easier than royal icing (which I also really love).  If you mess up, you can roll it back in your hands and try again.  I think these would be super fun to make with kids a a party activity.

Cheers,

Laura

 

This post contains affiliate links.

Watercolor Collage Carrot Decor

It sure has been a gorgeous spring weekend in Denver.  I mean it will probably snow storm again a few times before summer but this weekend’s been perfect.  I cleaned like a crazy person then decorated for spring and Easter.  I have a lot of carrot decorations but gosh, I felt like I need a new one to add so I whipped up this watercolor collage carrot decor.  I love making things that mix up the tools and supplies I love most.  I used my Creative Station to make the watercolor into stickers and that was prettttty awesome.  This post featuring watercolor collage carrot decor is sponsored by Xyron (Makers of the Creative Station) but the ideas and opinions are my own.

Watercolor Collage Carrot Decor DIY Spring Easter Project

Okay, let’s make carrots!  Start by painting a piece of watercolor paper with orange and greens.  Let it dry.

Cut a carrot and a carrot top out of cardboard.  You could use the back of an old memo pad or a cereal box!

Cut it up into pieces, separating the orange from the green.

Feed your pieces through your Creative Station, turning them all into STICKERS!  When it comes out, there will be a sheet over the top.  Peel it off and your stickers are ready to use.  If you are making this with kids, this might be a step that uses a grown up helper to keep from wasting the cartridge of sticker paper.

Cover your cardboard pieces with the sticker watercolor cutouts.  You might need to cut some down smaller to fill holes.  It is okay if you go over the edges.

Cut around the edges to trim off any excess then glue your top to your bottom.

Add a twine bow and ta da!  You have the most darling watercolor collage carrot decor ever.

I had extra pieces of everything so I cut out a smaller carrot set.

I used the scrap stickers and made a mini carrot then turned it into a card with a watercolor collage carrot.

YAY!  Yay for making things with awesome tools like the Creative Station.  I am very appreciative of Xyron for working with me to share projects like this with you!

Cheers and Carrot Love,

Laura

 

PS:  Last year I made a carrot project with Xyron too.  Check it out!

Carrot Easter Home Decor DIY Straw Art

 

DIY Felt Easter Garland

I created a simple felt garland for Halloween in 2018 as a kit for Crafty Happy Hour.  It was such a hit that some of you wanted me to create one like it for Christmas.  So I did.  Well, here I go again with a DIY felt Easter garland following the same pattern ideas.  Working with felt is so much fun and creates darling decorations for not a ton of money.  I  love the bright cheery colors.  I love the way the decorations store from year to year.  I made this DIY felt Easter garland last week and have it hanging up in my kitchen on the chalkboard.  It looks so darling.  I am excited to share the directions here so you can make one too AND share a giveaway!

Easter Felt Garland Craft Beginner Project

To make the garland, you will need the following supplies and materials.

  • Two Kunin Premium squares (4 1/2 inch) in yellow, orange, pink and white.
  • Assorted felt scraps in  orange, yellow, black green, brown and
  • Beacon Fabri-Tac Glue (Dries FAST)
  • Scissors
  • Twine or Ribbon ( 30 inches long)
  • Buttons

Directions:

  1. Glue your squares together along the tops so that you have four sets, one of yellow, orange, pink and white.
  2. Cut out and add pieces to turn the yellow one into a chick, the orange into a carrot, the pink into a flower and the white into a bunny.
  3. Glue these pieces to the front side of your square sets.
  4. Let dry completely then hang each square over the twine to create the garland.

A few days ago I shared these darling carrot beanbags on the blog, also made from Kunin Felt.

DIY Felt Carrot Beanbags

These darling felt bunny beanbags are on the Kunin Felt blog!

Easter Felt Bunny Carrot Beanbags

And if you follow me much, you know that felt is all over my world.  So, I thought it would be fun to partner with Kunin Felt and give you something awesome!  We are teaming up to give one lucky winner a DIY Easter Garland Kit (and a bottle of Beacon Felt Glue) to make one like the one share in this post AND a $50 gift card to Michaels!  Enter away!


Cheers to Being Makers, Creating Celebrations and Spring!
XO,
Laura

 

Farmgirl Flowers

Let me start by saying that being a artist/designer, a blogger and a social influencer takes a lot of stamina, resilience and grace. I am usually super cheerful and full of pure joy.  This past week presented some unforeseen struggles that challenged me to the core.  I shared my Farmgirl Flowers delivery on Instagram and wowza, I got a bunch of messages from followers where my message resonated.  I wanted to share with you here on the blog too.  I put a lot of pressure on myself, A LOT.  I am my worst critic.  I am using this delivery as a message to be kind to me, to soften up and fill myself with gratitude.
I am overwhelmed with the beauty and magic created from this experience.   The flowers in the arrangement are extraordinary.  They came wrapped in burlap that has been recycled and that is AH-Mazing! I want to share some of my Farmgirl Flowers photos with you!

Farmgirl Flowers Delivery Lower 48

The box arrived. I opened it up.  WOWZA!

I arranged the flowers and re-used the burlap!

And all these other goodies too.

YAY!

I am overwhelmed with gratitude that Farmgirl Flowers created such a shift in me that cascaded to others. That fills my soul with joy.

XO,

Laura

PS: The last time I was this soul shifted was when I made my first fairy garden in the wheelbarrow, the one that was featured in Where Women Create Magazine!  There is magic is flowers and plants for sure!!!

 

 

Excavating Fairy Eggs Treasure Hunt

It is the first day of spring.  YAY!  It is a perfect day to share this awesome excavating fairy eggs treasure hunt.  This is a fantastic (and super fun) activity for spring, Easter, fairy parties or family time.  We believe in fairies.  We have signs of them all over our home and yard.  Our love for the fairy world makes this activity all the more fabulous.l  I am excited to share the entire treasure hunt worth of clues (in printable form) and an example of the fairy I excavated from an egg.  This post is sponsored by MindWare but the ideas and opinions are my own.  These would be SUPER cute in a Easter basket but gosh, they are a great stand alone activity too!  The eggs I am sharing in this post are called Dig it Up! Discoveries:  Fairies.

Okay, let’s start by setting up the treasure hunt.  To use the clues I made, you will need these five spots in your home.

  • Washing Machine
  • Pillow on Bed
  • Bathtub
  • Kitchen Sink
  • Front Porch

Start by loading a basket with a fairy egg for each participant in your hunt, or two or three!  These are the eggs I used.

Let’s set up the Excavating Fairy Eggs Treasure Hunt!  Print the clues first.

Cut them apart.

Roll them up and tie them with ribbons.Place them in the spots listed above.  Place the last “clue” in the basket with your eggs to be excavated.

The last clue for your Excavating Fairy Eggs Treasure Hunt ends up on the front porch.

The last clue tells the participants to find their fairies in the eggs.  Be ready with cups of warm water for each participant and newspapers or a work surface.  It might get messy!  Each egg comes with directions and a tool.

There are lots of fairies that might be found.  This is the guide that comes with the set of 12 eggs.

I excavated one to see how it works.  I have to say, it was seriously harder than I thought and tons of fun.  It took me a good ten minutes to reveal my GARDEN FAIRY.

I am now really wanting a friend for her.  I think she needs a tree spirit.  The question is, do I excavate eggs until I find one?

If you are in need of a fairy word search puzzle, you can grab this one in a post I shared a while back.

Fairy Garden Word Search Puzzle

And now, the best part!  Do you want to WIN a set of twelve fairy eggs of your own.  You can enter right HERE!  Note, if your kiddos would rather have a dozen dinosaurs to excavate, we could do that too instead of fairies.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This is what the Dig it Up! Dinosaur Skeletons looks like.

Cheers to Fairies, Adventure and Magic!
Laura

 

 

 

Teacher Appreciation Note Cards

It is almost that time of year again when we come together to let our teachers know how grateful we are for them!  You can order these teacher appreciation note cards RIGHT NOW for half price in my online store!  This is a great deal that I do once a year.  Teacher appreciation note cards are special because they are personalized AND consumable.  If you ask most teachers, they really don’t want any more mugs or plaques.  They love things that they can use up and move on.  I have given these to teachers SO many times and they always love them.  These designs are great for teacher appreciation note cards and so many other things too.

Personalized Note Cards for Teachers and Monograms Laura Kelly Designs

So, here is the code to use on Shop Laura Kelly.  TEACHERNOTES

Personalized Note Cards for Teacher Appreciation Gifts

These are the most popular four designs for teacher appreciation note cards but there are others to choose from too.

This is my personal favorite design for teachers.

100 Years from Now Saying on Note Card

You can hop over to my online store, pick your note cards and use the code to check out.  It is good on all stationery items so get something for yourself or your kiddos while you are there too.

This design is cheery and bright!

These are all really fun too!

Giving teacher appreciation gift cards is just a good idea! I designs for Expressionery too.  You can hop over there if you think giving a self inking stamp is a good idea!  The stamps can be used to make note cards and lots of other things too!

Cheers to note writing, teacher appreciation note cards and gratitude.

Laura

 

Fruit Punch Game Party

I first learned about this crazy fun game, Fruit Punch, at a toy show in 2018.  We ordered it to sell at Beyond the Blackboard and gosh, it was one of the biggest hits for 2018.  I love it for lots of reasons and am excited to share about why in this post.  I am also thrilled to share how to turn the game into a mini party for your family or a group of friends.  This post is sponsored by Amigo but the ideas and opinions are my own.

Throw a Fruit Punch Game Party

Let me start by sharing that Fruit Punch, like all of Amigo games, is quick to learn to play.  They specialize in creating games with five rules or less to make the learning process smooth. This game is awesome for kiddos ages five and up but yet enjoyable for teens and adults too.  It is a fast action game which means players on alert, all the time.  No player is left waiting for a turn because every turn includes all of the players.  Deal out all the cards.  Each turn all players turn over one card.  If there are exactly FIVE of the same fruit, the first player to punch the banana get all of the cards out.  Sometime there isn’t an exact five so the cards pile up which make a great sweep for the next one to legitimately bop the banana.  BTW, Runts are a great complimentary candy treat to a Fruit Punch game party!

Fruit Punch Amigo Games

The banana squeaker is simply the best part.  I mean, for real, who doesn’t love to bop a banana that squeaks?  I love that there is this fun and silly component.  My kids related it to ringing the bell in another game we play.  There is just such satisfaction in the squeak!

I whipped up a real fruit punch smoothie recipe to serve at your fruit punch game party.

Mix together banana, blueberries, strawberries and almond milk in a Ninja Personal Blender.  Serve with fruit chunks!

Fruit Punch Smoothie

I also made a word search printable puzzle with fruits.  You could use this at your mini Fruit Punch game party as a race to find the words or merely a fun group activity.

I gathered up three of my favorite Amigo games and am giving them away with a $25 Amazon gift card so the winner can buy snacks for their Fruit Punch game party.  I would love for you to enter.  This giveaway is sponsored by Amigo!  The three games are Fruit Punch, Connect Thoughts and Cake Off.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I think playing games is super important.  Playing games stimulates the brain, creates connection with others and relieves stress.

YAY for Fruit Punch Game Party Time,

Laura

This post contains affiliate links.

 

 

Easter Bunny Stencil Painted Jars

Painting jars to create decorations for holidays and celebrations is a great way to personalize your colors and style.  I first made Easter bunnny stencil painted jars and then created a carrot too.  I have this crazy love for carrots so am excited to share it first.  I used DecoArt’s multi-surface paints and DecoArt’s Decou-Page too.  This post is sponsored by DecoArt but the ideas and opinions are my own.   Note…this project creates a decoration.  It is not to be used for drinking beverages!

Hand Painted Carrot Stencil Jar Decor

Materials:

I LOVE this awesome set of Americana multi-surface Satin paints.

Directions:

  1. Cut a carrot shape out of paper.
  2. Tape it to a jar.
  3. Paint the jar with a multi-surface paint. Paint over the paper around the edges.  Paint several coats for complete coverage.  Paint up to the base of the rim with the orange.
  4. Let it dry then remove the paper.
  5. Paint green foliage on the top of the carrot and let it dry.
  6. Add a coat of Decou-Page to seal the paint.
  7. Tie twine around the top of the jar.
  8. Fill with candy or treats to create a decoration

Making Easter bunny stencil painted jars is easy peasy and really fun.  I love them because they are great for filling with candy or spring decorations. This project would work great with recycled food jars or newly purchased Mason jars.  Depending on the colors and the stencil used, they could be made for any holiday or celebration decor.  They are super fast to create so making a bunch of them for table centerpieces would be totally cost effective and do-able.  These are a little different than the carrots in that they don’t have several coats of paint and were sanded down before adding the Decou-Page.  This is an easier version for kiddos who struggle with perfection.

http://www.meandmyinklings.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Easter-Bunny-Stencil-Painted-Jars.jpg

Creating Easter Bunny Stencil Painted Jars is fast and simple.  Follow the same directions as above.

These decorative jar are NOT for drinking from.  The materials and supplies are not to be consumed in any way.

If you aren’t sure about making your own paper stencil, you can download this fun printable coloring sheet and cut out one of the shapes in it!

Check out bunches of other crafts that can be done quickly using decoupages!

And check out this awesome Easter decor project that I shared last year using DecoArt paints and Decou-Page.  It takes a little longer but gosh, isn’t the newspaper bunny darling?

Mixed Media Easter Bunny Canvas Art

Cheers to DIY Projects for Celebrating the Season!

Laura

This post contains affiliate links.

 

 

Carrot Beanbags

Beanbags are just great for so many reasons.  Let’s just start by saying that they are festive and super cute when they are carrot beanbags!  I am excited to share with you lots of ways you can use beanbags in a bit but first let’s make them.  Let’s make lots of carrot beanbags!  I love the way these carrot beanbags feel because they are filled with Fairfield World’s Poly-Pellets.  This makes them perfect beanbags because they are filled with weighted non-toxic pellets!  This post is sponsored by Fairfield World but the ideas and opinions are my own.

and 10 Ways to Use Them at Home and in the Classroom

To make carrot beanbags, you will need the following supplies and materials.

Download the pattern.

Cut out the patterns.

Pin the patterns to felt and cut out carrots and tops.  Each beanbag will need 2 carrot pieces and 1 top.

Sew the tops to one piece of carrot.

Add fabric details to the other piece for each carrot beanbag.

Pin the carrot pieces for each beanbag together.

Sew around the carrot using a Zig-Zag stitch, leaving the area where the green top is OPEN for filling with Poly-Pellets.

Fill the carrots with Poly-Pellets.  This opening (using the pattern) allows room to use the Easy-Pour container which I LOVE because I usually get them all over my studio.  This is one of the greatest packaging ideas ever!  Do not overfill them.

Sew the carrots closed on the tops.

Ta Da.  You have three darling carrot beanbags.

Now let’s put them to use.   Here are 10 ways to use them at home or in a classroom!

  1. Place a bean bag in front of a working student who is demonstrating good work habits (quiet, on task, etc.)  Move it around as fitting.
  2. Tape a number to the bottom of the bag. Everyone says a number. The one closest to the number gets to do a special job (line leader, wash brushes, etc.)
  3. Pass the bean bag around while in a circle.  Each student shares one thing when they have the bean bag that relates to your current lessons.  Once they have gone, they stand up.
  4. Place photos of the students on the floor.   Children take turns tossing the bag on a picture. Then they have to say three nice things about the student in the photo.
  5. Use the beanbag like musical chairs in a circle.
  6. Send the beanbag home each night with a different student and a journal.  Have them write about a special place in their room where they kept the beanbag over night.
  7. Make a number board and have the students toss three bean bags onto the board and add up the numbers they land on.
  8. Use the beanbag to hold down papers that are handed in for homework.
  9. Estimate the weights of the beanbags then weigh them and compare numbers.
  10. Make a list of all the things that could be used to fill a beanbag.

Cheers to Carrots, to Beanbags and to Springtime!

Laura

 

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