Let's Dare to Share!

It's Friday night, and you know that means..

It's time to Dare to Share! 

Happy September! I know I say this every month, but how is it already almost fall?  While I do not look forward to the cooler weather, I am super excited about football season starting and Halloween.   Another very exciting thing going on this September is we have a wedding in the family.  D's oldest daughter is getting married in a couple of weeks, and we are busy helping with preparations.  One very important thing that I need to do this weekend is find a dress to wear.  While I am not the mother of the bride, D is the father of the bride. He will be wearing a tux, so my dress can't be too casual.   It is not a super fancy wedding, so it should also not be too dressy.  The wedding  will be outdoors (weather permitting) and the reception is in a quaint hall at a park reserve.  I have an idea of what type of style that I would like in my mind, now hopefully I can find something like it.  

I am in the process of making several Dollar Tree fall/Halloween DIYs that I will be sharing on the blog and Instagram when they are finished. I am still looking for a few supplies.  One of my favorite easy DIYs is how to make Halloween Gnomes. I originally made my gnome twins a couple of years ago. I reposted how I made them this week, since the craft pumpkins are back in stock at most Dollar Trees. 

Over in my Etsy Shop my newest Halloween Treasure/Scavenger Hunt will be going live this weekend.  Spooky season is such a fun time of the year, and I have so much fun creating new listings for my shop.  I hope to add several this month if time permits. If you ever thought about making and selling printables, I took this course and loved it. It really helped me get started with my shop.  Students receive so much support, and the Facebook group is one of the best I have ever been in.  I do need to disclose that I am an affiliate for the course, but I would definitely share how much I love the course even if I wasn't. 

Update on the Halloween Hunt. It is now live and if you would like to check it out, you can find it here.

Speaking of time, it is now time to get this party started! Link up and HAVE FUN! 

 

 

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Easy Halloween Gnome DIY

Gnomes can be very easy, and inexpensive to make, and there are a lot of different ways you can make a gnome. The way I am going to show you today, all you will need is a few items from the Dollar Tree and a glue gun. 

Another thing nice about this craft is you can easily change out the gnome hat for each holiday or season with different fabric.  I used Halloween fabric for this tutorial, but Dollar Tree has so many cute patterns available throughout the entire year.  

** This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links

The items you will need are: 

• Dollar Tree styrofoam craft pumpkin  - they are  available in orange, white and black in store and online.  You can currently buy the orange and white pumpkin in smaller quantities of only 4 on their website.  Another cool thing is when you order online, you can often have your order shipped free to your local store.

string mop head

• Crafters Square fabric cuts -  you probably wont need to buy this in bulk, but you can see some of the fun Halloween prints available this year with the link.

• wooden beads - Dollar Tree has beads available in all shapes in sizes that would be great for gnome noses. 

• floral foam styrofoam cone - they are currently available online in small quantities of 4.

• Crafters Square glue sticks

The first thing I like to start with when making my gnomes is the beard.  You will need to pull out 16 strands from the mop and lay them on a flat surface, 

Cut each strand in four pieces.  The easiest way to do that evenly is to cut the strand in half, and then cut each half into half.  You should end up with 64 pieces each about 4 inches long. 

With your glue gun start gluing the pieces at the top of the pumpkin. The strands will be longer than the pumpkin. Glue them as close together as you can if you do not want the pumpkin to show underneath. 

Continue gluing on strands until they cover the half of the pumpkin.  

After you have all the strands attached to the pumpkin, the next step is to pull out the stem.  The reason why you want to remove the stem is so the cone will lay flat on the pumpkin in the next step.

Glue the cones on the top of the pumpkins. 

 After the cone is in place it is time to make the hat.  Fold the fabric into a triangle shape, and cut to the size you would like for your gnome.  The smaller the triangle, the smaller the hat.  I made mine a little bit on the bigger side.  

With  the right side of the fabric on the inside, glue the edges of the flat side of the triangle together.  (you can also sew this edge if you do not want to use glue). Once the glue has cooled, turn the fabric right side out.  

Place the hat over the cone and adjust it so it looks something like this.  You can glue the hat in place, but if you plan on changing out the hat for different seasons, you may want to use a small push pins to hold it place. Once you have the hat in place, glue on the nose.    I named this gnome Trick because I used the fabric with scary jack-o-lanterns. 

I named this gnome Treat because of the candy corn on his hat. 

Trick and Treat 

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It's Dare to Share Saturday!

It's Friday night, and you know what that means.. 

It is time to Dare to Share! 

Have you been affected by crazy weather this week?  I am currently visiting my family and friends in Michigan this weekend.  In the last two days Michigan has experienced several tornados.  My kids who are in Michigan live over an hour apart and both of them had one of the tornadoes in their areas. (both are okay)   There is a lot of damage around the state, power outages, and a lot of clean up to do. One of the main highways near where I used to live has been closed for over a day now because over 20 vehicles (semis and cars) were affected by at least one of the tornados. There have been some deaths and major injuries in a few locations. I will found out more about the damage this weekend during my visit.  

In addition to working at the preschool/daycare, and my Etsy Shop, I have also started helping a friend with her bakery.  We have a few events and markets coming up in the next few months.  This week we were asked to make Devil Fruit Cakes for a birthday party.  Neither one of us knew much about Devil Fruit cakes, but I did some research and was able to learn enough that we were able to make a few of them.  Here is a few of the cakes in progress.  I am planning on sharing more about them in a blog post. 

Since it is really late right now, I want to get this party started.  

I would love to see what you have been up to this week, so link up and HAVE FUN! 

 

 

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Dare to Share Saturday Party!

It is Friday night, and you know what that means.. 

It is time to Dare To Share! 

Whew!!! I am so glad that it is Friday! We had another extra busy week at work, so I am ready for the fun we have planned for the weekend. I am also very excited about my Dollar Tree finds this week. I have been searching for this Candy Shop sign, and another adorable sign at Dollar Tree (Plus) for weeks.  If you are interested in seeing all of my Halloween finds and hauls, you can see them over on my Instagram page. 

I am still working on my new Halloween listings over in my Etsy Shop. I had a lot of fun making my Truth or Scare Game which is live now.  I will also been adding a few new Scavenger Hunts in the next few days.  :) 

I have a few blog posts in the works, and if work cooperates, I hope to have them up next week. 

Now that you know what I have been up to this week, I want to see what you have been up to, so link up and HAVE FUN!! 

 

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Let's Dare to Share!

It's Friday night, and you know what that means.. 

It is time to Dare to Share! 

This is not my dog, but isn't she adorable?!  I saw her last night while I was helping a friend at an outdoor market.  It was the best part of a very long busy day. We got to sit for a few hours in great weather, and meet nice people and cute dogs.  Do you ever notice that when you are busy everything happens all at the same time.  After a busier week than normal this week, we also have an extremely busy, but FUN weekend planned.  We are going to a friend's birthday party, a big celebration in our home town, and also a festival in our current home town.  Tonight we went to order D's father of the bride suit for his daughter's wedding, and then we took his daughter and her fiancé out to dinner.  The next few weeks will be busy with wedding prep as well.  

Since Dollar Tree already has their Halloween craft items in the store, I shared a post called Dollar Tree Pumpkin Crafts.  For years I have made themed pumpkins and you can see them with directions in the post. 

I have an new Halloween game listing thisclose to being posted in my Etsy Shop .  I was trying to finish up the listing tonight, buy my computer kept freezing. It will be up tomorrow or Sunday.  

Now that you know what I have been up to this week, I would love to see what you have been up to.  Link up to the Dare to Share Party and HAVE FUN! 

 

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Dollar Tree Pumpkin Crafts

It's been a busy week, but I still  wanted to share a new post this week.  Mid August is such a weird time. It's still summer, but fall is just around the corner. Its 80s degrees, but I'm so excited about football season.  There are people who refuse to start thinking of Halloween, and others who were ready to decorate yesterday.  I am one that does not want to summer to end, but I am also excited about all the Halloween items in the stores. I have already started picking up items to put out in about a month or so.  

** This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

Since the Dollar Tree craft pumpkins are back in orange, white, and black,  I thought it would be a good time to post about my pumpkin gang again.  If you are not able to find the pumpkins in stores, they are currently available on the Dollar Tree website in quantities of only 4!!  You can also have them shipped to your local store for FREE

For the last several years, I have used Dollar Tree pumpkins to create different pumpkin characters that I like to call the Pumpkin Gang.  There were a few years when I lived in apartment that I did not have the room to put them out. Now that I am living in house again, I am so looking foward to decorating again this year.  If you would like to see how to make one of the pumpkins, I am linking to the post with directions under each photo.  

Scarecrow and Crow Pumpkins

Frankenpumpkin

Monster Pumpkin

                                                                  Mummy Pumpkin

Bat and Spider Pumpkins

 

Olaf Pumpkin

Black Cat Pumpkin

Owl Pumpkin

Witch Pumpkin

Pumpkin Gnomes - Trick and Treat

Turkey Pumpkin

I have a few ideas on which pumpkins I would like to add this year.  I am not going to mention what they are yet, just in case it does not happen.  :)   Happy Crafting! 

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It's Dare to Share Saturday!

 It's Friday night, and you know what that means..

It is time to Dare to Share! 

Welcome to August! Where has the summer has gone?  For many years, August meant that it is time to think about going back to school.  This is the first year that all of my own kids (and bonus kids) are no longer going back to school. I do have one  currently in college, but he goes year round and doesn't need me to buy him clothes and school supplies.  :)  I am teaching again this year, but it will look different than in years past. Instead of being a building sub in elementary, I am teaching toddlers with another teacher at the pre-school/daycare.  It will be a change, but I am looking forward to it.  Speaking of work though, one of the downsides of working with little ones, you are also exposed to a lot of germs.  I had to miss a couple of days of work this week because I caught some kind of virus. I am starting to feel on the mend, so all is good now.  

Last weekend while in Michigan, I had a great time with my family and friends.  One thing that we were able to do was visit German Park.  On the last Saturday of each month in the summer, they have a German festival with food, beer, music and dancing.  It is always a lot of fun and we try to go when we can. 

Do you remember when I shared about my viral Barbie post on Instagram?  Well it is still growing, but has slowed down some.  It is currently at 3.1 million views. WHAT?!!  Another Barbie Dollar Tree post is close to a half million.  Today I shared a reel about the gorgeous fall Walmart finds that are under a dollar.  If you make fall crafts, you definitely check them out.  If you would like to see my Dollar Tree and other fun finds be sure to follow me over on Instagram.    

I am still working on my new Halloween listings and hope to have them up in my shop soon.  I am sharing my Road Trip Scavenger Hunt Bundle from my Etsy Shop again, because the end of the summer is time to get those last minute road trips in before school starts.  If you have kids, printable games are a great way to keep them busy in the car. 

 

Now that I shared what I have been up to, I would love to see what you have been up to.  Link up and HAVE FUN!! 

  

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Join the Dare to Share Party

It's Friday night, and you know what that means.. 

It is time to Dare to Share! 

I'm sorry to be a little late to get the party started tonight. I am visiting my friends and family in Michigan again and we just got in for the night. I had something really exciting happen this week!  If you follow my blog or my Instagram you know that I share Dollar Tree reels.  Well this week one of my reels about the Barbie trend went viral.  It was such a surprise! As of the writing of this post, my reel has over 2.5 million views.. While I have had a few posts do well, I am still blown away at how fast my reel grew.  The Barbie trend is huge right now. 

Over on the blog I did add a new post.. Are you ready for Halloween?  If you have Dollar Tree Plus store, I have found some amazing things for only $3 and $5 that I have already been picking up for Spooky Season.  

I wanted to try and get a few things done on my Etsy Shop, but things were pretty busy this week.  I do have a few back to school listing and starting something really cool for Halloween. 

Well it is looking to be that time.  Now that you know what I have been up to.  I would love to see what you have been up to.  Link up and HAVE FUN!! 

 

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Are you ready for Halloween? Here are must see Halloween finds!

 

Are you ready for Halloween?  I am on the fence about rushing into fall, but I do love Halloween.   While it is still the middle of summer, August starts in just a couple of days. Once August is here, you start thinking of back to school and fall.  Then before you know it, BAM.. it's Spooky Season!  One reason I am posting about Halloween in July is I have been finding some amazing Halloween finds already at the Dollar Tree in both the regular aisles, and the Plus aisle.  If you are a Dollar Tree shopper you know that things sell out very quickly.  I start buying items for Halloween a week or two ago.  I want to share what I found, so you can watch for them too.  

** This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links

I am going to start with my Plus aisle finds. I LOVE their easel signs.  I bought this one, and would have bought a few others, but they were already gone.   I am searching for the orange Hocus Pocus Candy Shop sign and maybe the white one too.  You can see all four signs available here.

These Halloween table decor signs are huge, and very cute.  This Be Our Ghost sign is  my favorite.  They also have a Magic Happens with witch hats, and a Spooktacular with skulls.  You can see all three of them here.  

I was so excited to find this Hocus Pocus tray.  It flew into my cart. :) They have this style, and two other spooky styles that you can see here.

I have been hearing a lot of good things about these large solar lanterns. They are the size of a regular lantern, and give off a lot of light.  In addition to the Halloween Lanterns, they also have a black everydat lantern that I just found for 50% off ($2.50) that will work great for Halloween.  

 

If you have followed me for awhile, you know that I am a big fan of gnomes.  I just happened to have been in the Dollar Tree when they were opening the boxes for these amazing Halloween gnomes.  They are huge and only $3!  I could not decide which ones I wanted the most, and bought one of each.   They available on the website, which you can see here.

I bought this Halloween projector, but have not tried it yet.  I know they work well in small dark spaces.  They have different scenes which you can see more about here.

I also bought this LED shadow light and wish I got a couple more.  I have seen a few people on YouTube show how these work and they are really cool.  I will be hopefully sharing mine on Instagram very soon! (Be sure to check over on Instagram for more Halloween and other Dollar Tree reels!)  I am not seeing the projector lights on the website yet, but keep an eye open at the stores.

Did you know that Dollar Tree has 4ft Halloween inflatables for $5.  They are a little different than the large inflatables from others stores.  They do not plug in, instead you weight it down with water then use an air pump to inflate it.  I bought the pumpkins inflatable (it's still in it's box)   They have several other versions which you can see here.

I also bought the black tiered tray/cupcake holder.  It's currently in the box in the back of my car, but will be on display soon.   If you love the look of tiered trays but not the high price of some stores, you will like the plus aisles price of $5.  You can see more information about these trays here.

While I have not seen these in my stores yet, I am excited about both versions of the Halloween solar lights. I can't decide between the black lantern style lights or the colorful tombstone lights. All I know is Dollar Tree solar lights work really well, and are a great price. 

Even if you are not in the Halloween mood yet, pick up these items as you see them, so when you are ready you will have everything on hand.  If you wait until closer to Halloween some of these item will no longer be available because things sell out quickly at the Dollar Tree.  

If you do decide you would prefer to buy online, you are in luck!  Now between the dates of July 27 and Aug 7, shipping will be 50% off with the exclusive code SCHOOL23.  You can buy anything on their website with that code, not just school supplies.    Happy Shopping! 

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