Tag Archives: Arts & Crafts

Dec2

Crafty Holiday Gifts

Posted on December 2, 2025 by lifewithlilred

Hi!! Crafty gifts for the holidays are a great idea for kiddos and adults alike. It is perfect for the crafting enthusiast, someone who is interested in starting the hobby, or simply offering a pleasant way to kill time. There are also countless places that offer wine and paint classes, pottery lessons, or flower arranging tutorials that can turn a crafty gift into an experience one too. Let’s explore some different options to get everyone on your list fully utilizing their creative side:

Craft kits for kids:

I am extremely partial to gifting crafty presents to my nieces and nephew because they absolutely love it. Their favorites are the paint your own pottery figurines and I have to concur. They are so proud of their creations and I am so happy when I am lucky enough to receive one of their masterpieces. From jewelry and slime making to mini pottery wheels and coloring books, there is surely a crafting kit to fit your little giftee’s interests. It will also be a bonus gift to the parents while their kids are focused on creating museum worthy art!

Experience crafts:

If there is a style of art that your giftee would like to learn, sign them up for a class! Community centers, libraries, and even community colleges all offer crafting classes to provide both the gift of knowledge and creativity. You could take the class too for some fabulous quality time! Studios that offer candle making, glass blowing, or crafting scents could also be a fun way to spend a day together. Top it off with a dinner or happy hour out – craft cocktails, anyone? *See what I did there!*

Diamond art:

I don’t know about all of you, but I am amazed by diamond art! If you have a giftee with a steady hand and laser focus (Both of which I have not!), a diamond art kit could be a great way to go. These crafts create an image out of tiny rhinestones and the end results are simply brag worthy. Such a cool hobby and your giftee will have a work of art made by them proudly displayed in their home.

Beauty crafts:

There is nothing better than homemade skin and bath and body care. How about setting up a crafting workshop to make them? Invite your friends over, have the supplies like essential oils, coconut oil, and beeswax ready, and make your new favorite products. Once everyone has their creations ready, you could have a pseudo spa experience with candles, mint tea, and calming music. Take a vote on whose product you like the best for a prize and have a blast with your besties!

Craft gifts are engaging, unique, and just pure fun. Even if you’re a far cry from an artist, it’s always nice to try something new!

What is your favorite craft? What is on your holiday gift wish list? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct25

Crafty Halloween Home Decor

Posted on October 25, 2025 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! It is no secret that Johnny and I live for Halloween decor and our apartment is decorated for the happiest season of all all year round. At work, my Johnny is definitely the elder emo of the bunch and his work station is decorated with Halloween goodies too. Earlier this week, he sent me a picture of a craft that one of his coworkers made just for us. We were so genuinely surprised at how thoughtful this was and have it proudly displayed in our living room. I am absolutely in love with it and wanted to share it because it’s something that could be easily replicated. It can also be made to fit the upcoming holiday season too. Check it out:

Johnny and I were aware that his coworker makes crafts like this bottle nightlight and never expected to have her make one for us. It honestly came as a shock and we are just so appreciative for it because it’s so totally us! His coworker claims to not be crafty but we most certainly say otherwise. There are countless fun little details to this display. The spider, skeleton beads, and eyeball flowers took a simple craft into something really special. The bottle of Witches Brew set the tone and it bloomed from there!

A craft like this would make a fabulous gift and I can picture it perfectly for the holiday season. Start with a bottle of sparkling grape juice, Christmas ale, or a seasonal wine and add some twinkling fairy lights. For the flowers, I’m thinking poinsettias with sprigs of holly and a spray of glitter or fake snow. Then, it could be decorated with tiny ornaments, icicles, peppermints, or snowflakes. Any holiday staple that speaks to you! There is nothing better than a homemade gift and this is a great route to draw inspiration from. ❤

This Halloween craft was the perfect treat – no tricks involved. What a kind, generous, and wicked cool gesture! ❤

Have you made any crafts recently? How did it turn out? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug17

Bluey Paint Kit

Posted on August 17, 2025 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! One of my nieces is almost a birthday girl and I can’t wait to celebrate! Last year, she was all about Gabby’s Dollhouse (And still is!) but this past year, she has turned into Bluey’s number one fan. TJMaxx always has beaucoup Bluey in the children’s department so I knew just where to go to pick up her prezzies. I got her new Bluey duds, an interactive Bluey toy, and a light up Bluey figurine to paint. Upon further inspection of the figurine, I thought that it might be too involved for her to do so I decided to paint it really nicely myself. I worked on it all of this past weekend and thought it turned out so good minus when the light is turned on. It looks like garbage then, which is kind of a bummer! Check it out:

^^^ UGH -_-

Painting this figurine was truly a labor of love and I mean that very seriously because it took for freaking ever lol. When I first started applying the acrylic paint, it was going on really thin and chunky. I also learned that it would be necessary to paint it in parts so there was always a place with dried paint to hold onto. Once the first layer was fully on, it was obvious that I would need to repaint it again… and again… and again. I ended up repainting this statue of Bluey’s loving mom and dad FOUR times in total and it definitely needed it. The areas that specifically had darker colors like the deep blues on Bluey’s dad didn’t even come close to being how it should look until the fourth attempt.

I was so happy I was satisfied with the end result by the time my fourth go around was complete because there was literally nothing else I could do. All of the paint was long gone at that point! I hate to toot my own horn, but I think that my weekend painting project turned out fabulously. Even Johnny was impressed and I was just pleased as punch. The real kicker, though, was when the batteries were in and the green and red lights began to alternate. Because WTF?! You can see Every. Single. Paint stroke and then some. It’s sort of creepy actually lol. On the bright side, sans light it looks just right and that’s good enough for me! 😀

As time consuming and sometimes frustrating as this project was, it warmed my cold bitter heart to make something special for my niece. I hope she loves it!

What was your favorite show growing up? Do you have any diehard Bluey kiddos? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan4

Super Cute Craft

Posted on January 4, 2025 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! Whenever Johnny and I watch our nieces, we always like to do some type of craft together. The girls are especially partial to painting. Whether it be on mugs, paper, or wooden or clay figurines – they are all about it and we have many of their masterpieces displayed throughout the apartment. This past weekend, we enjoyed using one of the painting gifts that I got for my eldest niece and it was a huge hit. If you have a little who loves art and unicorns, I cannot recommend this kit by SpringFlower enough. Check it out:

^^^ Photo by SpringFlower

I purchased the unicorn painting kit by SpringFlower off of Amazon for twenty dollars and was pleasantly surprised by how nice it was. It came with eight felt figurines that were all different from each other (Awesome!), tubes of glitter, paint, and paint brushes. The figurines were sturdy, easy to paint on, and just so darn cute. They were serving MAJOR My Little Pony vibes and, as a total nineties kid, I was living for it! Even my niece appreciated this nod because My Little Pony was her mom’s (my sister’s) all time favorite and they have several of them throughout their house. ❤

As I prepared dinner over the weekend, Johnny and my niece broke out the unicorn figurines to paint together. Before I even had my back turned, they were already laughing and scheming on what colors to use. My heart was bursting, but it simply exploded when I checked back in on them ten or so minutes later. Our niece proudly told me “TT – Uncle Johnny and I are both making rock and roll unicorns!” They created a color palette to use and made matching, concert ready unicorns. Once they were dry, our niece decided Johnny’s unicorn needed to be put by his record player and I couldn’t think of a more perfect spot!

12/10 Highly recommend this painting kit. It is an ideal activity for a day in or even setting it up as a painting station at a birthday party for an adorable keepsake!

What was your favorite childhood toy? Where are all my other nineties kids at? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr15

Slumber Partayyy!

Posted on April 15, 2024 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! Johnny and I take our title of “Fun Aunt and Uncle” to our sweet nieces and nephew very seriously. We delight in treat days, outings, and surprises to further solidify that we are the best lol and we have the best time doing it! As often as we can, we like to have our niece, Val Gal, over for slumber parties for an evening of playing music, crafts, movies, and snacks. Surprisingly, I had the day off this past Thursday and was so excited to be able to host our lil BFF. I was SO tired the next day, but that’s a small price to pay for such a wonderful time! Check it out:

When my sister dropped Val off at chez nous, lil buddy immediately went into her overnight bag for a surprise for me and Johnny. She bought us chips with her own money and made an origami bunny with her dad for us too. It was so sweet I could have cried because it’s usually the other way around for who’s getting a little gift! Before dinner, Val wanted to play music with Johnny and he is always happy to accommodate. He got them matching ukuleles for her third birthday and she brings it every time she comes over so they can play together. My heart! ❤

After our music block, it was time for dinner and a show and we watched our all time favorite, Vivo. It is a slumber party staple and it gets me every time. I love singing along to all of the songs with bestie! We noshed on mac n cheese and ice cream sundaes, then we spent the rest of the movie time painting together. I decided to make a picture for Val in a rainbow motif and then I wrote her name on it. She wanted to do the same thing for me and I came in with the assist to help her finish it. I love my painting so much and it has a very special place on my art wall with all of the crafts she has made for Johnny and I.

We spent the rest of the evening holding the bunnies, running around the apartment like crazy people, and watching a bit of Elf before bed. The following morning, I got up extra early so I could work before she woke up. Val threw an adorable wrench in my plans because she got up extra early so she could have more time with me! We finished Elf and before I took her home, we broke out her new diary and wrote an entry and drew pictures together about our slumber partay. It was absolutely precious and I’m not sure which one of us had more fun!

Being an aunt brings me so much joy and Johnny feels the same about his uncle status. We love every minute with our lil besties and we both agreed that this was one of our best slumber parties yet!

Did you have a favorite aunt or uncle growing up? How do you like to spoil your family? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan3

A Very Madea Craft

Posted on January 3, 2024 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!!! This past Halloween, Johnny and I watched “Boo! A Madea Halloween” for shits and gigs. Little did we know, we would end up LIVING for the Madea franchise and have worked our way through almost the entire collection over our holiday break. What can we say, we love Tyler Perry in a mumu! During one of our viewings, we noticed a welcome sign outside of Madea’s home that says “Hellur” and I decided I wanted to make one for our apartment. So, we went to Walmart, purchased supplies, and went home to watch more Madea movies as I painted away. I’m not the most crafty gal in the world, but I think I nailed it! Check it out:

It has been a long while since I have crafted anything and it felt really good to make this sign and bask in its awesomeness. I am SO proud of how it turned out and it made me happy to hear Johnny’s raving compliments as I completed my project. I created my own little painting station on the floor with a trash bag as a tarp, prepared my paints and water, and paper towel then painted the base of my sign yellow. My goal was to make this sign as close to the one in the movie as possible. We also plan on making a goth version of it in black, red, and white. Johnny already spray painted the base of his, but I have a feeling I will have to do the painting portion lol.

Once the yellow paint had dried, it was time to get started on the pattern. I started with the leaves going around the sides of the sign, which was most helpful. This allowed me to set up the space for the flowers on the top and bottom and the “Hellur” smack dab in the middle. The leaves were easy peasy, but I definitely ran into some difficulty with the flowers. Despite how simple they look, mine just wasn’t going accordingly to plan. The extra colors in the petals gave me the most trouble and my first attempt ended up looking so muddled that I had to cover it up with yellow paint.

As I waited for my “whoops” coat to dry, I had to figure out what to do next because I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied with my second go at the flowers if I tried again. Rather than another attempt to replicate them, I switched gears and went for roses instead. As the paint dried, I practiced the technique to make watercolor roses. Of course, this is much different with acrylic paint but it was basically the same idea. This was much more like it and I love how it turned out! The roses were a time consuming process and it was well worth it. I loved how it added my own personal touch to the sign!

After the flowers were done, all that was left to do was paint a big, friendly “Hellur” and let the sign dry. This painting costed me less than fifteen dollars in supplies and it is one of my favorite things that I have ever made. I can’t wait to hang it up in the apartment!

What is your favorite Madea movie? Have you made any crafts recently? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct4

Easy Halloween Wreath

Posted on October 4, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! I love hosting guest bloggers on lifewithlilred, especially during the change of the seasons. It is so much fun to see how my friends and readers from all over the world welcome and celebrate different seasons and the holidays that come with it. I was SO excited to see this past week that one of my darling friends, Rachael, the mastermind behind the fabulous blog, And Fierce, responded to my guest bloggers call to action. She is so fantastic so do give her page some love! Today, we are going to check out an Easy Halloween Wreath that she created and check back in tomorrow for her recipe for pumpkin milkshakes. Yum! Let’s get to it:

Easy Halloween Wreath

Compliments of Rachael from And Fierce

As a Halloween lover, it is extremely hard not to buy everything in the store right when I see it. I think I speak for everyone when I say, it is easier to throw something in your cart and buy it than it is to curate something yourself. I made Winter’s first two Halloween costumes and this year I bought hers. I could’ve made it but I didn’t really have the patience for it this year.

So somehow I’ve had the time to make two Halloween wreaths??

Okay, so, what happened was, I had been slowly putting together sticks from our yard to make this wreath that I kind of came up with in my head. I was feeling myself because of how it turned out. I put in all the time to do it all and plan it out. But I guess it wasn’t as sturdy as I thought. It didn’t take long until it fell off the door. At that point, it was an easy fix. I laid it on the floor in the kitchen to fix later. But I waited too long, because Winter decided that she needed to walk through that area that no one ever walks through. So needless to say, the whole thing was trash at that point. I did take a few things from it to use again.

Here is what the first one looked like…

I do like the new one better though. It just feels a bit more lively for the season. I just love orange and black for Halloween too!

You could totally make this in a couple hours, if you are uninterrupted… *ahem* kids.

Supplies

12 inch Wreath Wire

2 spools of 6 inch Tulle, 25 yards (1 black, 1 orange)*

Felt Bat

Fake Black Peonies

Hot Glue Gun & Glue Sticks

Fishing Wire

Ribbon

Instructions:

First thing you want to do is get your tulle ready and cut. I just used the wire wreath as a guide and cut about 12 inch pieces. I cut the whole roll of each and used almost the whole spool.

Next, start adding the tulle to the wreath wire. I took a section of tulle and folded it the long way and then folded it again to loop it on the wire.

Notice the direction I did the tulle. I added it from the inside out, if that makes sense. This way it stayed better and it made it lay nice and flat.

I kept it simple by adding evenly to each section just so I didn’t get ahead of myself and have to go back and fix sections.

I then started to get into a groove and this is how I patterned the pieces to try and keep it all even.

After I continued and made each section the same, I went back and added tulle pieces where I felt it needed it. Or if you feel like you want yours to be fuller, go ahead and add more. *Also depending on how full you want it to look, you may need more tulle.

Once I got it looking how I wanted, I hot glued the leaves of the peonies. Then I added on the peonies. Next, I looped the fishing wire to add the bat to hang in the middle of the wreath. I also eyeballed the length and used hot glue and cut any excess.

I then took my ribbon and looped it through the top of the wreath, on the first wire. I just tied a tight knot and cut any excess.

I am obsessed! As you can see, I did copy my original wreath with the same feel, but this one is the mic drop. It’s so pretty and I’m so happy I have it hanging on my door!!

How amazing is that wreath?! Rachael absolutely rocked it! For more from this lovely guest blogger, give Rachael a follow on Instagram: @kavebabe, check out her blog, and visit lifewithlilred tomorrow for her pumpkin milkshake recipe. Thanks again, boo! ❤

Do you like to make your own seasonal decorations? What is your favorite holiday to decorate for? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

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