Creative & Crafty

My daughter came home from school last week with a twinkle in her eye.  I know that twinkle...I have seen that twinkle...I may have invented that particular twinkle (hush Martha Stewart).  I knew what it meant.  There was a project.  It could be a simple project, something that is thoroughly explained in a concise paragraph on simple copy paper.  It won't be simple.  It never is, not in the "Crafty" house and especially not with my youngest child.  There is something about a project in which she is allowed a little leeway to be creative.  Her teacher says draw a picture, somehow my child returns to school with a 3D boat made of paper.  She always gives me that look, the one that is just short of begging.  "Mom, I have a school project, can I go to your basement?"  She will emerge hours later, full of pride at her completed project...and nearly all my glue dots will be gone.

But this project is different.  It isn't for a grade, oh Mom, it's so much more than that...it's a contest!  Oh yes!  There will be awards.  And what is this challenge?  A Valentine Box.  I knew at this point that it wouldn't be a few hours in "my basement".  I could tell by the look on her face that she was on a mission.  She went through several ideas, a gumball machine (how exactly she was going to manage that I still don't know), a flower pot, a Love Bug (??), but she decided on a wedding cake.  I blame Cake Boss, which she recently discovered on Netflix.  The only criteria as outlined by her teacher, it had to have a slot to put the Valentines into.  So away we went.  Usually she tackles school projects on her own, with Mom and Dad just checking that she has met the appropriate requirements.  This project, however, required a hot glue gun and a craft knife...enter "Crafty Mom".

She chose her boxes very carefully.  Mom cut out the centers of the boxes, as well as the slot for the Valentines and used a hot glue gun to connect them all.

Armed with plain school glue, a foam brush and pieces of tissue paper, she tackled the tops of the boxes.  Of course she had to sprinkle all of it with glitter while the glue was still wet.

Then mom cut some pieces of white cardstock to cover the sides (she is NOT good at measuring just yet).  As she is adhering the cardstock, she refered to it as her "fondant" and said it just like the guy from Cake Boss.

Then she had to decide how to decorate it.  She had a vision of flowers, butterflies and sparkly fabulousness.  Mom went to look up "how to make tissue paper flowers" and wedding cake decorations, only to be informed the she wanted to make the special ribbon roses that Mom had taught at class.  Okaaaay.  I realize I don't have enough of the right type of ribbon (I know!!  I was shocked too!), so off we go to the store.  Armed with the right ribbon in various sizes we begin the process of making ribbon roses.  I shouldn't have been surprised that she totally remembered how to make them (this was seven months ago)!  Once I gave her a few pointers I left her to that while we (yep brought the whole "Crafty Family" in for this part) die cut butterflies.  She was really in the zone now, picking out butterfly colors, making ribbon roses, somehow getting glitter everywhere, this is her heaven.  I trimmed the bottoms of the ribbon roses while she planned the layout, then meticulously layered butterflies together, every once in a while Mom interjected with a hot glue gun.  Just when I thought she was finished, she asked if we could spray it with shimmer.  What was I supposed to say?!?

It is a beautiful box.

Full of sparkling detail.

And TONS of butterflies.  Which is exactly what she wanted.

She doesn’t even care anymore if she wins a prize.  She says this as her eyes twinkle with pride.  She is proud of this box.  I am proud of her…and I’m all out of glue dots.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Tami