FREE BEST SELLING Woven Headband EBOOK

It's craft time again! You've mastered the loopy bows, pom pom bows, original tutus, and criss cross tutus. Now it's time for woven headbands!

LINK to ebook -- Please remember I wrote this ebook when I still owned Nellie Bug's! Please do not use the email in the ebooks to ask questions.

FREE BEST SELLING Spiky Pom Pom Bow EBOOK

These are so stinkin' cute! And just in time to match with back to school outfits. Spiky Pom Pom Bows are so easy to make, they literally take just a few minutes and you can match them with anything! They can be put on a clip or a pony-o, so they are perfect for any length of hair!


While you're here, be sure to check out my other hair bow tutorial, as well as my tutu tutorial (say that 10 times fast)!

LINK TO EBOOK -- Please remember that I created these ebooks while I still owned Nellie Bug's. Please do not use the email in the ebooks to ask questions!

Make $$ Blogging: Escalate Tutorial

I've received a few emails asking how to use Escalate. I created a video tutorial. Hope it helps! Let me know if you have any questions.

FREE BEST SELLING Criss Cross Tutu EBOOK

So you've tackled the perfect no-sew tutu, and even some awesome loopy hair bows to match, but this is the ultimate test. Are you a Super Star Mommy? If you can make one of these rockin' criss cross tutus for your little girl, you'll be Queen for a week!


Click here for the tutorial. Please remember I created these e-books when I owned Nellie Bug's so do NOT email the address in the e-book with questions. :)


PREVIEW of the tutus you will make with this ebook:

How to Create a Blog in 5 Minutes

I've gotten quite a few requests from readers to make a tutorial on how to create a blog. I hope this basic video helps. I just created a Suggestions tab so if you have any suggestions please leave them there! :)

4th of July Crafts

With the 4th of July coming up so soon, I wanted to share a few of the crafts my family will be doing this week. :) You can click on the picture to visit the tutorial.

4th of July centerpiece (made with sand, so easy!)



4th of July Planter


How to fold an American Flag



A penny pendant (at one of my favorite sites: Enchantedlearning.com)


A confetti launcher, how fun!


Fireworks pens (or you could make red white and blue duct tape pens!)


If you have a huge ribbon stash like I do, this flag is for you!


Can stilts!


If you're a homeschooler, or just looking for boredom busters, check these worksheets out.


A star spangled welcome!


How stinkin cute is this centerpiece?


Now this takes talent...


And last but not least... some chocolate (and lots of other recipes)


Okay, so I might not get around to all of them this week, but they're awesome and I had to share! Leave a link in the comments if you are posting patriotic crafts so I can check them out!

Duct Tape Flower Pens

Aren't these the cutest pens ever? And of course, because I'm so sweet, I'm going to teach you how to make them!!

All you need is... you guessed it, duct tape and pens! Oh, and some scissors would be helpful. I have no clue why this picture will not rotate -- it's an issue Blogger is giving me at the moment.

You will need one piece of duct tape 2" shorter than your pen, and 2 pieces of duct tape 1" wide.

Take the 1" wide pieces and place one at each end. On the writing end, you'll wrap it around and around until it is secure. Get as close to the tip as you can. Cover the other end completely. Take the bigger piece and wrap it around the pen. 

Next, you are going to make the petals. For a small rose, you will use about 25 petals. I use about 50 and make a bigger one. Petals are just 2" pieces of duct tape, folded. Fold the right corner up towards the top of the piece, leaving a little bit of the sticky side exposed. Then take the corner you made, and fold it down to form almost a pyramid shape.

This isn't the best picture but I just wanted to show you there there is an opening towards the top on the side. That is how it is supposed to look, so don't freak out. :)

This next set of pictures will show you how to start wrapping the petals. 

Some important things to remember when wrapping the petals:

• Keep them close together. Where one point ends, another needs to begin. You can start to spread them out more as the rose gets bigger, but if you spread them too far apart it looks sloppy.
• Keep the petals even. If you raise the petals up each time you go around, the rose is going to look like a tunnel.
• You can make the rose as big as you want, just make sure you stick the tape down firmly each time or it will fall apart.

                                      

Just keep wrapping, and wrapping, and ... wrapping... 

With all the different designs available in duct tape, the possibilities here are endless! 

I think I'm going to start giving these to my Mary Kay customers. Or using them when I set up a booth. They're so fun! :) If you don't have the time (or desire) to make these pens, you can check them out at Brylee's Boutique on Facebook. Hers are great!

Boutique AKA Pillowcase Dresses

**UPDATED 5/24 WITH NEW LINK**

You know how a lot of the boutiques sell simple dresses for $30 or more? Well, here's your chance to make one for under $5. These are pillowcase dresses but can be made from fabric or bandanas as well.

Click here to view the ebook where I show you how to make them!

FREE Woven Headbands E-Book

Still on a semi-hiatus, which just means I'm not following my schedule right now. I've had a crazy few weeks and I'm not sure when things will slow down, so this is just what works for now. That's good new for you, though, because that means my filler posts will be e-books that I have already typed up.

Please ignore the email address in the e-books. It is no longer mine. If you need help, leave a comment here. Please do not email tutus@nelliebugs.com!

This popular e-book is one of the most detailed ones I've written. It has lots of pictures and very clear directions,  and even though it might seem tough to make these at first, it's not. :)

There is also some wholesale information at the end of the e-book so you can buy headbands and ribbon at low prices and make a profit if you decide to sell these items. Great for boutique owners!

Click here to view the e-book in Google Docs. Click here to view my other tutorials. Please leave a comment if you like the e-book, so I know to post more of them!

Our Family Portrait

My project was featured over at Karina's Challenge. :) Check it out!

Best Selling No-Sew Tutu E-Book

Who doesn't absolutely love tutus? They have been my life for about 2 years now, since opening Nellie Bug's back in 2009. I realize there are lots of no-sew tutu tutorials on the web. Many are free, and many are for sale. I've been selling this exact e-book for a while now, and have had 100% positive feedback! So I am confident that you will fall in love with it! :)

As most of you know, I sold Nellie Bug's recently. While it was sad, it was happy at the same time because a fellow tutu maker took over my business. She learned how to make tutus from my e-book, and started her own business. And now she owns Nellie Bug's! It's amazing what a little hard work can do for you. If you want to start your own boutique business, go for it! You can do it.

This tutu e-book has been one of my best sellers for a long time! These instructions will show you how to make THE best no-sew tutus. I held nothing back. I am not keeping any secrets. It's all laid out in black and white in this e-book. You can view it, you can print it, and please.. please share it!! (Share the link to this post, please.) This e-book also includes my oh-so-easy cutting method which will save you tons of time and guarantee always even tulle!

You can easily make your own no-sew tutu for under $10. Sometimes even as little as $5. You will use about 100 yards of tulle for each tutu unless you are doing newborn sizes, then it will be less. If you have any questions whatsoever, please ask. :)

Click HERE to access the e-book. It's in google doc format. Please leave a comment and let me know what you think of it!

School Time: Paint Chip Learning Tools

A FREE project! I'm all about inexpensive homeschooling tools. This one is really versatile.

You'll need: Paint chips/cards, hole punch, and thin ribbon.

Choose a side. Punch a hole (or two).

You can write numbers, colors, letters, etc. Tie the ribbon through

the hole, or you can use a jump ring.

We made a book of colors (above), and an addition book (below).

And a vocabulary book (will be adding definitions, too!).

Store them in a cute little shoe box! :)

Recycled Crayon Tutorial!

These will make great Easter basket fillers, so I'm throwing my schedule off a bit and posting this now. :)

One quick question before I start: Do you like when I post the text ABOVE the picture or BELOW the picture that it goes with?? In this post, the text will be above the pictures. Please let me know in the comments. :)

You will need: crayons, cans from vegetables, and a muffin tin, silicon baking molds, or hard candy molds. Optional: exacto knife.

Grab your crayons and start peeling. I've heard if you soak them in water they are easier to peel, but I just use an exacto knife and slice the wrapper down the middle to peel it off. Or I have my kids do it. Child labor. Shhh.

Take the labels off of your cans, rinse them out, and fill them with ONE color each.

Or, if you have silicon molds (or are using a muffin tin), peel the crayons and break them up. Place them directly into the molds.

"Bake" crayons at 300F for 10-15 minutes. Longer if necessary.

When they are ready, they will be 100% liquid.

Quickly and carefully pour the liquid crayons into your molds. If you want to mix colors, pour them in one right after another. If you want them to be "rainbow", let each color set before pouring the next.

After about 15 minutes I place mine in the freezer, but sometimes that will make the crayons brittle. So if at all possible, just let the crayons cool on the counter. It will take 30-90 minutes, depending on the mold being used, size, etc. Flip the mold over, and the crayons should pop right out.

These are from the Easter Egg silicon baking mold:

And these are the famous crayons everyone always asks about...

Here are the molds I use. I got them off of e-bay. Just search "lego molds".

These are GREAT for party favors... I have made princesses, airplanes, race cars, trains, and lots more. Just pick out your favorite hard candy molds and go to town!

If you have any questions, please let me know! Click here to see where I will be linking up.