Picnic Easter Baskets

I was at Target the other day… childless!  It was awesome!  I actually had a minute to browse without yelling various threats at my son.  I think I even caught myself skipping now and again. 

So this is what I came home with…

Kitchen towels, melamine salad plates, a pack of 4 cloth napkins and placemats… that all match!

And this is what I made with all of it…

Last year for Easter instead of getting regular baskets for easter I bought my girls baskets to go on their bikes.  

At the time I had high hopes of making cute basket liners but ran out of time.  

So this year, after my Target treasure hunt, they became not only fabulous bike baskets, but picnic baskets as well!  They will be so thrilled to pack up a little picnic in their basket and ride down to the park.

    I can't wait until easter! 

I'm so excited to strap these onto their bikes!  

I turned the placemats I found into picnic caddy's.

They are a piece of cake to make!  Here's how…

Press your placemat,  then fold one end up… you can pick how high you'd like to go.  Press again.

Now I can't leave it as is… I had to add a little eyelet trim (I adore eyelet).  Simply cut a piece a bit longer than the width of your placemat.  You want to attach it along the top of your folded edge.  Wrap the trim around the corner, tuck it in a bit to keep the raw edge from showing.  Pin… and then pin it all along the top of the fold.  Then wrap it around the next corner the same way and pin again.  Sew it on.

Now to add a ribbon, this will tie your caddy together.  Cut a long piece of ribbon.  Fold it in half.  Decide where you'd like it to go (I recommend middleish) and pin.  

Now you'll sew around the entire lower fold of your placemat.  Start by lifting the trim up, so you start sewing underneath it.  But also make sure where it wraps around stays tucked under your fold, sandwiched between the top and bottom folds of your placemat.  

Sew all along the bottom fold.  Finished it will look like this…

Right now it's just one big pocket.  Now to make little compartments for each of your picnic necessities. 

Lay them out on your placemat in the order you'd like them in.  

I'm using a... 

*Napkin

*Straw

*Small Garbage Bag 

(I know, it sounds random, but I just had these visions of my girls coming home from a picnic and leaving a half eaten sandwich, orange peels, chocolate bars etc... in the bottom of their bike basket to mold and rot in the hot garage.  I'd at least like to have it in a garbage or plastic baggie). 

*Flatware

(I got these darling disposable forks and spoons from Amazon.  I didn't get the knives, but now I think I'm going to snag some).

After laying them out you'll want to make marks on our placemat to determine how big each compartment will be.  Using a tape measure, determine how big of a space you need for the napkin.  For me it was 5.5 inches.  (Then I placed a pin… don't do this.  I realized after doing this it was silly… because I'd have a tough time sewing through pins going lengthwise).  Instead make a mark.  I just used a pencil.  Make a few marks of your desired length (again 5.5 for me) over from the edge down the front.  Then I repeated the process with the straw and the trash bag.  

Then with the remaining space make three compartments for the flatware.  Measure what space is left, divided it by three to make these compartments even steven.  Then make marks accordingly.  So at the end it should look like this…

(The marks are light… but they are there). 

Then pin your trim up and out of the way.

Then simply sew along each line of marks.

Your end product will look like this.  

Then fill your caddy with your picnic essentials.

Roll it up, tie the ribbon around, make a bow.  Trim the ribbon down to the length you are happy with and add fray check to the edges.

And you are done!

You could add some cute picnic stuff to the basket for easter.  Sunglasses, sunhat, sandwich holder, fabric lunch bag, water bottle, sunscreen.  For younger kids felt food would be darling for pretend picnics!  If you go to etsy and search for felt food, you will find a bunch of yummy collections.  If you are feeling super ambitious and want to make your own, do your search for felt food patterns.  There are some seriously out of control oh-so-cute options!  Another ambitious project would be a picnic blanket.  

Simply Adorbs!

The fabulous Lindi from Love The Day has designed absolutely gorgeous easter printables.  And they would sooooo match these baskets.  Check her blog out here

LOVE THE DAY and find her printable here…  Easter Party Printables. 

Linking up to...
Tatertots & Jello
Flamingo Toes-Think Pink
I Heart Nap Time
The Creative Create

Last Minute Easter Inspiration

I was going to post this thursday... but life had it's own ideas.  What I've got planned is fairly simple and maybe someone could get some inspiration from it.  For me I can take what someone else has done and alter it to suit me.  Build on or take away from what someone else creates.   So maybe this will give someone some last minute Easter inspiration.

Easter is special to me.  

I've got easter bunny issues (seriously, who invented the easter bunny).  We do baskets and everything, but I don't want my kids to loose sight of what we are really celebrating.  I was talking to my gorgeous red haired cousin yesterday and she feels the same way.  Her statement was that Easter "is the last real christian holiday."

To emphasize this here are my plans for the day...

Morning... of course we'll do easter baskets.  No big gifts just a few little things and candy.  This year for baskets I'm doing something different.  I like to use holidays as an excuse to accomplish or give something I already wanted to.  So instead of easter baskets I found these...

They are bike baskets (from amazon).  I'm planing on making liners out of fabric for them.  Time is tight  (easter is tomorrow... do you think I can do it)?  If I run out of time I'll embellish them with ribbons and trims.

Easter time is family time.  We are having an extended family dinner in the evening so for just my little family I'm planning a breakfast.
(I set up my table early so you could see my plans)...

I use wrapping paper as chargers or placemats.  It's cheap and adds color and pattern.  I take whatever left over fabric I have hanging around and make napkins.  I just cut a square out of fabric and hem.  You could add ric rac or other embellishments if you wanted.  I'm always keeping my eyes open for cute plastic plates to add on top of my white plates.  These are from walmart ($2.00 each).  For valentines I used heart shaped plates (also walmart, but only $1.00 each).  Target always has a darling selection too.   They usually run about .50 to 1.00 more.

Martha Stewart has loads of Easter dessert ideas.  They are so cute (seriously those spring chick cakes are to dye for).  But I don't need dessert... we are doing breakfast.  After viewing these Flowerpot Cakes  a light bulb went on.  What if I just put a chocolate muffin inside the pot.  Costco chocolate muffins. (These are actually from Winco).  Then I made a flower lollie for each one.

You could totally do this for a birthday, shower or other spring party.  I'm thinking you could use the Costco cupcakes instead of muffins.  And it is soooo much easier than cooking cake in the pots. (Oh Martha Martha Martha. While I love her ideas I don't have a team at my disposal to do whatever I need whenever I need it, my time is limited, so I take her ideas and alter them to suit me).

Tomorrows breakfast menu...

German pancake

Bacon

Fruit Parfiat

O.J.

Chocolate Muffins ;)

and if time allows I may throw some hash browns in too.

I need to mention how much my daughters LOVE helping me set up the holiday table.  They get giddy as we decide which fabric to use.  And even more excited as they see it coming together. I have a cheering section.  "Oh mom... that is soooo cute." It really is precious time with them.  I hope by starting this now that years in the future we will gather together, with grand daughters in tow, and set up thanksgiving, christmas or easter together.

After breakfast we will spend our day soaking in the good word listening to general conference.  In between sessions we will drive past the Temple.  I wanted to get all gussied up in our easter duds and take pictures at the temple.  But right now I hear the weather isn't going to be friendly. (I have this vision of taking a little family pic infront of the temple every easter.  Hmmm...). After this we'll take a little trip to the cemetery to visit Evie's grave.  There is no better time to explain the gift Christ gave us than on easter day.  Having our little family gathered together, standing above where her little body rests, teaching of the resurrection and concluding in a family prayer.  Precious moments like this far outweigh the easter bunny.

BLOOM❀

Aaaaahhhhhhh.... spring...

Awake, thou wintry earth -
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!
~Thomas Blackburn, "An Easter Hymn"

Learn how to make lollies here.

I placed them into different sized pots mod podged with the dictonary paper.

So now the lollies look like funky flowers.

My old door looked sad without the L*O*V*E letters hung onto it.

So I stapled strips of scrap fabric behind the window. Added a paper wreath.  Glued triangles cut out of the two dollar dictionary onto ribbon. And my door is happy again!

Linked to Tatertots and Jello

Feeling Lucky? It's a give away!!!

After making all those fun pom poms for valentines I wanted to attempt one as a wreath.  The timing is perfect because I was hoping to add a few additional inexpensive accents to my easter decor.  Here's how they turned out.

I made two.  I couldn't decide whether to go with conventional (ruffles all the way around) or go with something a wee-bit quirky (inspired by these divine shirts by Eliza and Axle). 

Now that they're done I can't decide which one I like more.  This works out to someones benefit... because now I have one to give away.  Yup... my first (and possibly only) give away.  Entering is easy...simply comment which wreath you dig more, (conventional or quirky) and you're entered.  Woo hoo!

And it gets better... your chances of winning are super dooper high!  I've only got a handful of readers.  So really... what's to lose?

So here's how I made them...

Let's start with the "conventional" style.

I cut about 65 six inch circles out of an old dictionary.

I slid the edge, all the way around, through a small puddle of glue.

Pour glitter on top.  Turn the circle around to coat. Add glitter as needed.

Flip over circle and glitter the opposite side.

When pouring the glitter on the circle, do it over a large sheet of paper (you could use tracing paper, wrapping paper, mailing paper, I used drawing paper... just make sure it's big enough to catch all your left over glitter).  Crease the paper down the middle.  Then you can easily pour the excess glitter back into the container.

I used martha stewart rose quartz glitter (from Michaels) for this project.
After a circle is glittered, hang it to dry.  I used clothes pins and string.

Once dry pinch the circle in the middle.  Then just keep folding it in.  Then staple it at the base.  Voila!
Continue with each circle

Then prep your wreath form.  I used a 12 inch round styrofoam form ($4.50 at Hobby Lobby and JoAnns) Wrap it in strips of the dictionary paper. I just used the glue gun and stuck it on.  No need to be perfect.  You aren't going to see much of it.

Then start adding your ruffled circles.  I would put a couple on the outside and inside and then fill up the middle.  Then start over...a couple on the outside a few on the inside and then fill it up in between.  I again used the glue gun.  Occasionally I'd add a staple from my staple gun for extra security.  Especially the outside ruffles.  Make sure you hold each ruffle in place until the glue has cooled enough to stick to the wreath. 

(Here's what the back looks like).

Then add what ever ribbon you want to hand it with.  I use ripped strips of leftover fabric and ribbon.  I tie it all in a knot at one end and glue and staple it on.  And you're done! 

Now for the quirky one...

It's basically the same.  Instead of just 6 inch circles.  I made some 6", some 5" and some 4".  I think I used about a total of 30 circles. Glitter them the same way.

I covered this wreath form in strips of torn fabric.  I started with gluing one end on what would be the backside of the wreath.  I added a couple staples for security.  Then I wrapped it... pretty tight so it would smooth out.  I only added glue to the backside... I was worried it might make it lumpy on the front.  After I glued, I'd pull it fairly tight again and wrap again...glue then wrap...glue then wrap. Add a new strips of fabric as needed.  Then add your paper ruffles.  Start with the biggest.  Then add the medium circles to each end.  Then the smallest to each end.

Add ribbon to hang and your done.

I'm thinking these would look spectacular for halloween.  Black glitter, a square wreath, wide satin ribbon and a crow perched in the corner.   Gorgeous!
Alrighty... don't forget to enter.  And seriously... anyone is welcome to enter, long lost cousins, friends of friends, complete strangers, my best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend who heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who... (name the movie folks;)) you get the idea.

(I'll close the contest sunday evening and announce the winner monday morning).

This giveaway is now closed:)