Decorative Packaging

With a little planning ahead, anyone can make creative gifts for Valentine’s Day.  Your sweetie will appreciate that you saved money by making them yourself.  The kids will love to make these too.  You can change the type of paper and candy and make this cone hanger for any occasion. Choose some special candy and small gifts to put in the pouches.

You will need: 12×12 scrap book paper or wall paper samples, tissue paper, hole punch, paper clips, tape, yard and half of wire ribbon 1 ½ inch wide, craft glue,  yard and a half of ½ inch contrast striped ribbon.

Fold the paper corner to corner and press the fold crisp.

Hold paper towards you with folded side on top.

Fold the outside corners towards the center and overlap them.  The points will stick out the top and create a cone.

Roll the paper to make a tight fit at the bottom.  Make the seam face the back so it will be hidden.

Hold the top with a paper clip between the points.

Glue the seam, use tape to secure it while the glue dries.  Make sure the tape is only seen from the back. Remove the paper clips and glue the seams there and replace the paper clips till it dries.

Measure about 1” from each side of the back and ½ inch down punch two holes.  The holes should be about 2 to 2 ½ inches apart. If the paper is too thick for a hole punch, use the point of sharp scissors.

Place the thin ribbon on top of the wide ribbon. Push the ribbon ends through the back of the cone and pull up through the center of the cone.  Make sure ends are even.

Tie the first bow about 4-6 inches from the cone.  Tie the bow and play with it till it the bow loops are pretty.

Place the tissue paper inside, and put the candy, gifts, and love notes inside.

Small cones will make great party favors for school or church kids.

Hang one of these from your husband’s mirror in the car before he goes to work.  He won’t forget its valentine’s day, and he will be thinking of you all day!

You don’t have to be a hunter to love camouflage.  Woodland camouflage is about blending in with nature.  Some try to dress in camouflage so they can hopefully not be seen by the wild life they are trying to hunt for food.

Others are trying to blend in so they won’t be seen by the animals they want to take pictures of or just enjoy nature.

Camouflage ribbon is a fun way to bring the outside in doors. This adorable nursery is decorated in all camouflage fabric.  I love looking at home décor magazines.  Most of us don’t have the budget to purchase everything they see in these pictures of room redecorating.

But you can add your own personal touches to a baby’s room with camouflage ribbon on items like pillow cases, and curtains.  Purchase earth tone fabrics and make blankets and curtains then trim them or swag them with camouflage ribbon.

Don’t wait till the last minute to pick up goodies for your Valentine.  Starts making a list of all her favorite things then pick up a small taste of several of them.  This basket has several premium candies in it, but you could include her favorite lotions or perfume as well.

If you add some decorative shreds to the basket, your presentation will be as sweet as the candy inside.  And who wouldn’t love a plush little teddy bear to cuddle.  Don’t forget to add some holiday ribbon to the basket to make it “POP”.  By adding ribbon bows to the candy it accents them without covering them up.

Putting a lot of thought into your gift means more than the amount of money you spend on it.  Make a date for dinner, and give her the basket at dinner.  Smiles will definitely be on the menu for the evening.

Decorative ribbon has so many uses.  Ribbon can be used to dress up a basket and give it a whole new look.  It can also personalize an Easter basket or transform it into a storage basket for craft items on your little artist’s desk.

This simple wicker basket is lovely with the mixture of several types of pink ribbon.

Baby pink satin ribbon looks so sweet with the pink and white gingham checked ribbon in two shades then add a delicate pink grosgrain and polka dot ribbon in the copy this look.  Tie the tiny bows and hot glue them on the basket all the way around.  If you wish to wrap the handle with ribbon also, then do it first so your bows can hide the ends of the ribbon you have hot glued down.

Teaching kids to keep their things organized at an early age will help them later on in school.  Be sure to provide many ways for your little ones to store their crafts and toys.

Cupcakes are a fun way have a celebration and allow all your guests to have their own favorite type of cake.  Many brides today are choosing to use cupcakes for their wedding cake instead of a traditional cake.

This is a beautiful display of cupcakes with a traditional cake for the top layer.  They get to have the best of both worlds, cupcakes for the guests and a top layer of wedding cake to share on their first anniversary.

You can make your own cake display or purchase the tiers ready-made.  The bridal colors were probably two shades of green with this dusty rose pink as an accent.  In keeping with the color scheme each level is papered with matching pink foil paper and matching green decorative ribbon along the edge of each level.

Mmmm Cake anyone?

February is national wear red day to raise awareness for heart disease.  Heart disease kills more women each year than all cancers combined. February 3 is the national Wear Red Day.  Wearing a red awareness ribbon is one way you can be sure you have red on this day.

I think that the only red clothing I have all have a Christmas scene on them.  Unless I manage to buy something new to wear for this day, I will be using red ribbon to participate.  I could crochet a red scarf and hat from yarn or red knitting ribbon too.

The whole purpose is to bring awareness to heart disease. You can raise money for medical research and to help promote the education of communities.  This money can help fund programs to teach school children how eat healthy and live healthier lives so they can live longer with heart healthy lives.

Contact the American Heart Association to find out where you can help locally.  You can click this link and get free resources to print flyer’s and posters to help you get started on your fundraising event.  http://goredforwomen.org/wearredday/resources/

Making awareness ribbon is easy; all you need is red ribbon and mini gold safety pins.  You can make ribbons and sell them for an agreed amount then donate all the money to a local division of the American Heart Association.

I have seen satin bows tied at the end of pony tails, tied around the waist as a sash, and even on the toes of shoes but I have never seen them pinned to the back of a little girls tights.

This is so precious, this could be a wedding look, or Sunday best, or even Easter Sunday extra frills.  I would always put frilly socks on my girls on top of their tights so they had ruffles around their ankles.

This is an adorable look.  The pure white cotton, tea length, eyelet dress, white cotton tights baby pink soft leather shoes and baby pink nylon satin ribbon bows pinned about a hands width from the back of the shoe.  They are only little girls for such a short time.  Take every opportunity to dress them up because one day they will come down stairs in ripped jeans, pink hair and with flip flops and a sweat shirt.  Ha,  yes ,they are still beautiful, but not quite the attire that makes me smile like this does.

Indoor weddings or outdoor weddings would both benefit from this style of decorating.  I love an isle that is candle lit, but it also bothers me that a catastrophe may happen with all that fabric and fire.  These little galvanized buckets make beautiful little floral arrangements to decorate the center aisle for a wedding.

If you are a do it yourself bride, you can pick these mini buckets up for as little as $2.00 each. Place a floral oasis in the bottom if you choose to use fresh flowers like these lovely carnations.  Add the flowers and some greenery with baby’s breath of course then.  These country white chairs look so sweet with the satin ribbon or taffeta ribbon bows that attach the buckets to the chair.

If the budget is small, then you could put them on every other row, or every two rows.  You may even choose to use this for the first few rows where immediate family will sit, and then tulle bows on the other chairs.

Gingham Checked Ribbon and Gingham Shirt

Here is an original idea for wrapping!  This is like getting three gifts in one.  If your friend or family member likes plaid or gingham checked shirts they will love it, if not, I guess it can be a gag gift.  But the idea is still very creative and pretty in its own way.

This is the perfect way to wrap a gift for a friend who is a faithful recycler and only uses eco friendly items.  They will marvel at your resourcefulness.  Be sure to use a cotton shirt if this is the reason you are wrapping like this.

This idea would be patriotic if you used blue and white gingham checked ribbon to attach little bows in the corners instead of the broach.  It would also look very sloppy if you did not iron this shirt first.  You can even pick up shirts at the thrift store to save money.

Making fun things for a baby shower doesn’t have to be hard, or expensive. Many of the creative crafts you can make as decorations can also be part of the gifts you give.  They will just be in disguise.

These cute little candies look like star mints, or other hard candies we all love to enjoy.  But they are not to eat!  These will make great table decorations around centerpieces or just randomly in little bowls or however you choose to use them to decorate.

These are made from baby wash cloths.  Those come in two sizes.   Either size will work but the larger size will be easier to work with.  These can be used on diaper cakes, and are a great way to add color to your tables.

You will need:  Packages of baby wash cloths, curling ribbon, clear cellophane and a small pin.  If you hot glue these, they won’t be useable for baby.  You could also use double stick tape but pins are just as easy.

Begin by laying the wash rag on a flat surface.  Begin rolling tightly from a corner to the opposite corner.  You may need to use a small double stick square to hold the final corner down to prevent unrolling.  Use the curling ribbon to wind around the roll. If you lay the ribbon on top of the edges of the rolled rag, it will hide it.  Use contrasting colors like the picture.  When you come to the end with the ribbon, use a tape square to secure both ends of the curling ribbon.

Roll the rag into a coil then secure with a straight pin.  Cut squares of crispy cellophane to wrap them up like a Brach’s candy. Tie curling ribbon on the twisted ends and don’t forget to curl the ends of the ribbon.  These are so cute, You may have so much fun making them that you’ll keep need to buy more supplies!