Mirror, Mirror....Take Three!

Geez, here I said my last post was my last for the day.... and I almost forgot to share an updated version of my very Pinterest popular Mirror, Mirror posts! These mirrors like the earlier versions were also purchased at my local Dollar Tree, but they are in very cute zebra and leopard prints.  They also have smooth surfaces which made them perfect for using with vinyl lettering (I used my Cricut, but you could use pre-cut vinyl lettering as well.)  I hot-glued some tulle and sparkly ribbons for that extra girly touch.  As with my last several posts, these were geared toward dance recital girls, but I think they would also work great for birthday party favors, big sis - little sis sorority gifts, bachelorette party gifts or bridesmaid gifts.  

Water Bottle Ballerina...The perfect dance recital favor!

 Last post of the day! And, I think I've saved the best for last.  As many of you probably have seen, there are people online who have transformed water bottles into ballerina's for themed parties but these are meant as a one-time use item.  What I've made here can be used over and over again, and also to help your little one remember which bottle is hers (and avoid sharing whatever cold is going around the studio!)
As with the other posts I've made over the last couple of days, I made these to sell at a recital gift table.  The project requires some sewing skills, so if you don't have machine this probably isn't for you.

Supplies:

• Metallic Waistband Elastic, silver and gold (JoAnn's)
• Tulle Strips, 3x the length of elastic sections, and about 4"wide (White tulle on a roll at Dollar Tree works great!)
• Bits of Ribbon Scraps
• Sewing Machine and Thread

Step one:
Cut elastic to the desired length (8" seemed to fit both a standard water bottle and some of the reusable bottles we had around the house), and zig-zag stitch over the raw edges to prevent fraying.

Step two:
Join the two ends of the elastic in a kind of butt-joint method with a very wide zig-zag stitch.

Step three:
Stitch over the seam with the decorative ribbons and trims to disguise and give it the look of a ballet tutus bodice.  Get creative, I made each one unique so no one would mistake theirs for another's.

Step four:
Fold tulle in half, and use a gathering stitch along the folded edge. Gather.  Turn the elastic to the wrong side, and stitch the gathered tulle with a fairly long stitch to the elastic at 1/4".  Remove the gathering threads, if necessary.

Step five:
Finish the ballerina with a bow or additional decorations.

Sock Cupcake Dance Recital Favor with Free Printable Tag

"This cupcake is not to eat, it is for your dancing feet!" reads the little dancer tag for this adorable play on a messy, sugary cupcake (no mom wants their daughter eating one of those back stage at a recital)!  

So, here's all you'll need for one more of the dance recital favor gifts I put together this week, and again, simple was the word of the day! 

You'll just need some ankle socks (I bought some junior/women's size and some girls size socks at my Big Lots store for $5 a pack), medium sized (depending on the thickness of your socks) rigid cupcake cups, red mini pom poms (JoAnn's),  cellophane bags (Dollar Tree's smaller size), 1/4" grosgrain ribbon and the free printable tag I've included below.  I had all but the socks already among my standard craft supplies, so maybe you won't have to run around too much to gather the items together either! 

     The pictures below show how I offset the socks a bit before rolling to get the longest spinning effect I could.  I then folded the socks at an angle so the roll would go from tall to shorter as it rolled.  Last, just tuck it inside the cupcake cup and top with the "cherry" pom pom.  Since I was preparing them to sell, they went inside a cellophane bag tied with ribbon with a tag attached.  Cute and practical for a dancer of any age!

Here's the free printable image for your tags!

"Have courage and be...fabulous!" Party Favor with Free Printable

As promised, I'm back today with another quick and easy favor gift.  As with the two posts yesterday, I've just made up a bunch of these to sell at a recital gift table fundraiser but this would also work great at a princess themed party.  The tag is a play on words of the new Cinderella movie's tag line "Have courage and be kind," instead reading "Have courage and be...fabulous!" Perfect for the little girly girl in your life.

    The best part of this favor, it's very inexpensive.  A quick trip to your local Dollar Tree store and you've got all the makings (with the exception of the card stock for the tags).  The mini pink polka dot boxes are in their baby shower department (8/$1), inside are ring pops (4/$1) from the candy department and the organza ribbon (1/$1) is from the craft department.  I've included a free printable of the tag below, just paste to a label sheet format and print on regular card stock and finish with a hole punch in the corner.  No need for courage to complete this project, but it is fabulous!

Here's the free printable tag image!

Bibbidi, Bobbidi, Boo....Good Luck to You!

     

     Alrighty, here's post number two for today...can you tell I blog in spurts?!  To continue with the small dance themed gift items, here's a little ribbon wand that is a spin on an earlier post where I made fan spirit wands.  The ideas the same, I've just used pastel 1/4" ribbon and added a cute little gift tag that would suit any little twirling princess perfectly!

    The wand starts with the diamond back braiding technique using two colors of ribbon, a 1/4" dowel and some hot glue.  You'll need 2 ribbon sections 6 times as long as your dowel, then find the middle of the ribbon, criss-cross at the end of the dowel, rubber band it at about 1/4" down and start braiding (You can find a great video on YouTube that I mentioned in my earlier post about diamond back braiding!)  When you reach the other end, tie knots in the alternate colored ribbons over the end of the dowel, and you're done!  I put a hole punch in the corner of the tag (free .pdf file below), and slid it up the ribbon.  Oh, and I almost forgot, if you are an adult carefully seal the ends of your ribbons with a quick pass across a lighter or match to ensure they don't fray.  

You're ready to twirl girl!

Bling Friends Forever

 Yay! It's summertime! I've got a few quick posts to share over the next couple of days of some cute little items I made for a dance recital gift table fundraiser my oldest daughter's dance team is holding this weekend. I revisited a few of my previous posts and updated them for the younger girls who will be shopping this weekend. That means lots of pink, purple, sparkles and princesses! 


     Here's the first little idea, a play on the popular BFF phrase..."Bling Friends Forever." One headband to share, and one to wear!

    I purchased two sets of 6 sequin headbands at my local JoAnn's (I used a coupon, so if I'm remembering correctly they were about $2.50 per set).  After designing and printing the cards onto heavy card stock, (I've included a free printable .jpeg file below!) I mounted them on.  I just made two sets of 1/8"x 1" slits at each end of the blank portion of the card using an exacto knife. I then carefully slid the folded ends of the headbands through the slits about 1" and taped the tail down on the back.  The card fit right in a Dollar Store clear cellophane bag, and voila, done!

     I think these would also make fun little birthday favors, or to attach to the top of a friend's birthday gift. Shine on!