Holiday Gift Idea : Wooden Toy Rainbow

Seriously how cool is this wooden toy rainbow? I love the concept of using it to not only just for play but to teach colors and arranging/sorting sizes.

I also love the idea of supporting a small business during the holidays by purchasing such unique gifts. This piece is so pretty I think I would be tempted to place it on a shelf as a decor piece! 

I found this wooden toy from ImaginationKids on Etsy. They make a ton of other amazing quality and super adorable wooden toys as well. Definitely worth checking out for your holiday shopping.

Sweet Shoppe Series Part 2: DIY Candy Initial

Candy Button Initial

Supplies

With Baby Z's Sweet Shoppe fastly approaching (next Saturday, YIKES) I have been crafting sweet projects all weekend long. I dont think I have ever been so surrounded by sweet things that I cannot eat. An easy project that I did last evening was this candy button initial for the mantel piece. It is so inexpensive and easy to make! 

I purchased all the items from Michaels. The wooden letter was $2.99 and they come in all different sizes.  The Martha Stewart Glitter Paint was just under $3.00 and the paint brush was $0.50.  The candy button package was $2.99 and I have plenty of them left over after gluing them to a pretty large letter. 

Martha Stewart Glitter Paint

The glitter paint is very thin and glittery. It took about 4 coats to get the consistency that I was looking for. Once your coats dry it is a really lovely sparkly finish. This paint comes in so many different colors so your possibilities with this craft are endless.

Candy Buttons

These are all the leftover candy buttons I had after finishing the craft. I didn't end up using the yellow ones as I thought they might not show up properly against the yellow paint.

I also picked up this photo/plate stand to prop my finished letter on. I think this also was just under $3.00. You could use candy hearts for this project as well. You could do the first and last initial or even all three initials. Its one of those projects that looks like it was harder to make than it actually was. You could use this on your dessert/sweet or gift table or use it to decorate a mantle piece as I am. 

On to the next craft!

View Part 1 of my Sweet Shoppe Birthday Series here!

Pottery Barn for Kids mini haul...

I picked up this Zebra Bath Wrap at Pottery Barn for kids last weekend. Its almost to cute to use. This is definitely a baby splurge so we will see if it is worth it. These cute animal themed towels don't come cheap. I justified my purchase by reminding myself that all the bath towels we currently own are getting that ratty look and are way to small for Baby Z. A few of my friends swear by these towels, stating they are the best out there. We will see. I really want the pink and purple owl one but don't know how to justify another one of these just yet.

I also picked up from Pottery Barn for Kids this cute little wooden colored caterpillar. This purchase is to aid me and Baby Z on our quest for wooden toys instead of plastic. You can flip the little wooden parts around to see different colors and its attached to some sort of strong yet flexible rope. So far its a hit. That makes this my all natural wooden toy hit number 2. Yay!

Here it is in action. It was on sale for $4.99 from $9.99.

This picture is from inside Pottery Barn for Kids...got to love the opportunity for an impromptu photo session.!

Wood & Ribbons...Teething Bliss

Little Z has been teething for quite some time now. She started right around 4 months and at 7.5 months old she has her two little bottom teeth. However teething still persists as I am sure it will for quite some time, resulting in whining, drool, fingers in mouth and a tired mommy. She hates all plastic teethers. She loves cold wash cloths however I cant really whip these out on the go. She hates pacifiers and any and all other main stream teething items I have purchased. She loves sweatshirt strings. If she sees you wearing a sweatshirt with those all enticing sweatshirt string ties hanging down, she will do all she can to reach them and shove them in between her gums.

Then I found this little treasure on Etsy. Its wood and ribbons. Simple as that. Her and said wooden teether have become fast friends. It took them a few tries but now mommy has a tried and true baby calming item to whip out when on the go. It has wooden balls, a wooden ring, hanging ribbons and cloth covered balls.  It is made extremely well and comes in a variety of fabrics.

We even used it while waiting for a laptop to be fixed at Apple. I stumbled upon this all natural teether on an Etsy boutique KatandCompany. You can visit her shop here. Its such a cute boutique that also offers lots of different all natural wooden toy sets as an alternative to plastic toys. Everything looks so adorable. I spotted in her shop an all natural wooden kitchen play set that I absolutely cannot wait to buy for baby Z when she gets older.

Yay for a little less drool and a lot happier baby.

What teether works for your little one?