Chocolate Nugget Snowman Craft

How to Make:
Go to the Dollar Store and pick up several pairs of red or blue gloves. 
When you are ready to begin, cut off the fingers to each of the gloves. (The fingertips were going to be used to make the snowman hats) 
Next, roll up the fingertips to form a hat.
Hot glue a small pom-pom to the top of the hat.
Wrap snowman face and body stickers printed from the template below around wrapped chocolate nuggets.
Finally, put the hat on the top of one of the snowman face nuggets. 

Snowman face and body stickers template.
I have included the image of the snowman faces and bodies that should be printed onto the address labels. These are created to fit on white Avery US letter 5160 Easy Peal Address Labels. This size label fits around Hershey nuggets perfectly.

Please add a comment with your e-mail address or facebook page if you would like me to send you an editable MS Word file of these stickers.

Easy and Fast DIY Fairy Bridge

So many cute bridges to choose from, but none that fit your fairy garden space exactly?

Why don't you do it yourself!

I will show you step by step how this fast and easy popsicle stick bridge is made, so you can make your own bridge that matches your preferred scale and dimensions.

Here's the story:

I've been into creating miniature fairy gardens lately. 

I got this far (see above) when I decided the garden would look great with a bridge over the river rocks. 

I searched far, and I searched wide, trying to find a relatively inexpensive bridge that would fit. I found many cute bridges on this epic search, but there were some major issues with the bridges that I saw.

 #1 - They were too expensive...who wants to spend a fortune on a fun little hobby. 

#2 - The bridges that I found were either too big, or way too small to fit the scale of the garden. Scale is important when creating a fairy garden (see this blog for details on scale).

#3 - Nothing I found really and truly fit the exact dimensions of my personal garden.

and lastly, #4 - I wanted a bridge now! I couldn't find anything close enough to perfect in any of the stores nearby, and who wants to order anything on-line and wait for it to arrive more than a week or 2 later?

So I decided to made my own bridge.

Directions:

You will need 5 or more popsicle sticks (depending on how long and wide you want the bridge)

Medium sized bowl of warm water

4 Shaker pegs from the hobby store

Wood glue

Saw and miter box

Drill with 1/32 in bit

Wood nippers or wire cutters

sandpaper

Picture wire or natural twine

1. Place 1 or 2 of the popsicle sticks into the warm water, soak as long as possible until the sticks are able to be bent. Keep the bent shape by placing the bent stick into the rim of a smaller vessel, until it dries bent.

2. Cut popsicle sticks to the width of plank that you desire. Make sure to cut enough of them to make sure the bridge will span the length desired. Sand the edges to make sure they are all smooth and even in length.

3. Glue the "planks" perpendicular to the bent popsicle stick(s). Let dry.

4. Using a miter box and saw, cut each shaker peg to the height desired for your bridge. Sand the cut edges until they are all smooth and of equal height.

5. Drill a shallow hole near the top of each peg. You may drill through also, depending on if you wish your rope or cable will tie on the outside of the pole, or just connect with glue on the inside of the pole.

6. Glue the shaker pegs with the shallow drilled holes facing each other over the bridge for the cable to connect on each side of the bridge. Let dry.

7. Add cable or rope by inserting the rope or picture wire into the drilled holes with glue (if drilled through, tie knot on the outside of the pole facing away from the bridge).

8. Stain bridge using diluted brown acrylic paint in water. Use as many coats of stain as needed to attain desired color. Let dry. Spay with sealant to keep moisture out.

Then, add your fabulous bridge to your garden.

I am a part-time management consultant, wife, and mom of one quirky and adorable 9 year old boy, I'll call him J. (We never get a "normal" picture of J, but that is his personality, so I wouldn't have it any other way).

Who doesn't smile when they see a grinning monkey?

"Monkees Grin" is a place that doesn't take itself too seriously; where you can come for some great party planning ideas, home decor tips, and general advice about how create a fun, frugal, and fantastic life, without spending an arm and a leg to get it. This "girlfriend" knows that sometimes another persons ideas can kick-start your own creative process, and creativity is the key to working within a budget.

My husband is a teacher, and I work only part-time, so we definitely know how to work on a limited budget.

About me:
I worked for over 12 years as a Clinical Dietitian Nutritionist in hospitals and nursing homes, I've also directed and manged food service operations in both health care and restaurant settings. Later, I launched a second career as an Esthetician / Skin Care Therapist, in order to find a more tranquil work environment. In the last decade, I decided that I wanted to stay home with my son instead of paying someone else to raise him. When my son began preschool, I started my own business working part time as an administrator and management consultant. Now that my son is in school most of the day, I work from an office downtown, at a company that I consult for.
I consider myself very lucky to still be able to drop my son at school and pick him up everyday despite being a part-time working Mom.