I don't know if you are like me, but when I see those cute fun foam or  felt kits that the craft stores have for kids to do, I just want to buy them all and make them with my grandkids.  But then, I end up with a bunch of little cute ornaments or just plain figures that I don't really know what to do with besides sit them on my shelves or hang on the tree.  So, when Emily brought me this cute owl with her hand prints as the wings, I thought to myself that there must be better ways to use them and enjoy the memories that come with creating them together. 

So, I brainstormed and created with some of my grandkids and we came up with a few ideas that we hope you will love! 

Of course the children can give just the craft all by itself as an ornament or a refrigerator magnet.  But here are a few of other ideas to expand their choices. 

• A bookmark for the grandma, parent or friend who loves to read!  Just cut out a strip of felt like I did for this reindeer. (I used sparkly felt.) The child could even add their name or a holiday message.  You could add the holiday book to go with it as well if you wanted.  I pictured this one with Christmas Jars.  (Here is a similar reindeer kit from Hobby Lobby that makes 12.) 

While I was looking at different craft kits at Hobby Lobby, I found a white garland of pom poms.  (They have lots of choices.)  I thought, what a great idea to make a wreath with this and the felt Santa kits that I have!  

     It came out so cute!  Here is what I did: 

1. I used a wire wreath form from DollarTree.  First, I wrapped it with white yarn that I already had.  Then, I wrapped the pom pom garland all of the way around the wreath.  
   
2. Make the craft kit figures that you want to use and place them where you think they will look the best, then glue them on! 
   
3. I had wide grosgrain ribbon that I used to made a bow at the top!  

My grandkids are going to love it! 
    There are so many different kits to choose from, you can make any theme.  A Nativity Wreath would be a great way to talk about the true meaning of Christmas as you craft it together. 
     Can you think of other ways to use these festive craft kits?  Let me know in the comments! 

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     Owls have been very collectible for the past couple of years.  They are fascinating creatures and here at 3 Winks, we love all of the cute renditions of owls out in the market place.  We also know a number of other people who are owl lovers and we thought we would put together a gift guide for the owl lovers out there in your life.  This guide could also overlap as a gift guide for women, a gift guide for the Harry Potter Lover, and a gift guide for the difficult to buy for.  Or, a gift guide for me because I love everything on this list! 

1. I loved this owl necklace with a Harry Potter theme from the moment I saw it! I would love to get one for each of us here on the blog.  Literary Emporium has a lot of other options to fall in love with.
2. If you are in an ornament exchange and you know you have the owl lover as your recipient, look at this little owl ornament! Who wouldn't love that?  You can find it at GrannyKstreasures.
3. This Owl Embossed Leather Journal Is so beautiful! The pages are nice enough for watercolors. It is a great buy, too!
4. Here is another Harry Potter themed item.  They are Hedwig and Pigwidgeon as salt and pepper shakers! They are magnetic so their wings stick together! This gift would also satisfy the salt and pepper collectors out there.  If they collect salt and pepper shakers and owls, plus love Harry potter, you are really in luck because these would be the perfect gift to cover all of the bases!
   
5. Target has a bunch of owl themed items.  Here is the page to check them out.  My favorite is this owl print towel.  It is adorable!
   
   

 6.  Look at this adorable owl print from Minted! It is available in many sizes and in many frames.  Plus, right now you can get free shipping on non-custom art with the code: FREESHIP!  I love free shipping! And, I love this little owl.  Wouldn't he be cute in a library or nursery? 
7.  For a little different, more British feel, Minted also has Mr. Owl's English Tea by Natalie Groves.  The free shipping is also available on this one.  Now I can't decide which one I like best.​
    8.  If you only want to add a touch of owl to your gift, Dollar Tree is the place to shop.  You can                 find owl themed stickers and pencil sharpeners.  They are super cute, too! 
  9.  Here is an adorable board book for your grandchildren! The thoughts are so sweet, listen to these words:  "When I made my wish upon the Grandma Star, I made my wish for you. When I first held you in my arms, my Grandma Wish came true."  It is called Grandma Wishes, by Julia Lobo and the beautiful illustrations are by Helen Rowe.
      10.  Don't forget that owl lovers will most certainly love receiving an owl calendar for next year.  There are many beautiful ones to choose from.  Here are just a few of the choices.

     So, there you have it! My top choices for owl gifts this year! I am certain that any of them would not disappoint the true owl lover! 
​     Happy Shopping! 
​

​This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.  Thanks for your support!

     As you know, from past posts, I am one happy grandma! Grandbabies #8 & #9 are on their way this year.  Lindsey and Alicia are both having girls! That will help even up our count right now of 5 boys and 2 girls. 
     Alicia is due in September. Her first little baby boy was delivered at 32 weeks and had to spend some time in the NICU.  We are hoping that she makes it all of the way to September with this baby girl.  
     Since Alicia lives in California, and not far away from most of my side of the family, I am thinking a shower with family may be in order to welcome the new baby.  Planning a shower from long distance can be tricky, but Beau-coup is a great place to start finding what I need to throw a great baby shower!  All of my photos and colored links are clickable and will take to you to the site where you can order them or shop the site for any of your party needs. 

Owl Party Supplies:     When I saw the adorable owl themed items that Beau-coup has to offer, I knew it was the theme I had to use! To begin with, they have this adorable complete Party Kit that has almost everything you need to get the party started!
The Party Kit includes:

• 1 Pennant Banner - 9 triangles total (size 5" x 6.25" per triangle, string not included) 
• 1 Party Sign (blank in center as shown, size 8.5" x 11")
• 25 Striped Straws
• 24 Cupcake Wrappers/Toppers with coordinating themed labels 
• 12 Menu / Place Cards (size 1.9" x 3.7")
• 32 Decorative Stickers with assorted designs (size 1.25" round) ​

     I think the menu/place cards, would be great to label the foods on the table, or to label other games or items throughout the party! If you want something other than an owl theme, this kit also comes in 14 other themes! They are all adorable! 

     Since the kit comes with Cupcake Wrappers/Toppers, I thought a small owl shaped cake, like the one I did in a past post, surrounded by cupcakes. Of course, I would change the colors to match the baby shower theme! Anyway, cake and food means that we need plates! I didn't find specific owl plates on Beau-coup, but I did find some adorable plates that I think would be terrific for our theme.

     For cups, I will probably use a simple clear plastic with a pretty pink punch to add color to the day. I may use the stickers from the kit to decorate the cups or plates.  I haven't decided.

 Owl Shower Invitations: Beau-coup does offer a fill-in invitation for Baby Showers. 

Or,  I could use these labels to  fit the theme.  I could purchase plain white or pink note cards and make my own invitations with these printable labels.

Owl Themed Party Favors: A shower is always better when there are favors for the guests to take home.  I  love little boxes filled with candies or some other little gift.  Look at these! 

Owl Themed Game:  A lot of people don't like shower games.  I don't mind them because I have a game playing, competitive nature. So does my family, so since this is a family party, games are a must! I recently attended a baby shower that played a similar game to this and everyone love it because It was played as you watched the mama open her gifts, which made that part of the shower a lot more fun for everyone, instead of just the usual oohs and ahhs! Beau-coup has made it into an Owl Bingo Game.

Owl Themed Gifts:  We have all seen cute gifts made out of diapers, so believe it or not, I have even seen owls made out of diapers, with an owl bib on the front as well.  There are so many cute things, that as the host and the grandma I could give to Alicia that would also add to the Owl theme of the shower.  There is one adorable thing on Beau-coup's site that I think would be a great gift and centerpiece!  And since Alicia lives in the cooler climate of northern California, this would be perfect for her baby! Take a look! 

     With Beau-coup's help, I think that this Owl themed Party should come together nicely! Now all I have to do is let my sister know that we are having a party at her house! (I am sure she will be thrilled!) I will let you know how it goes!  In the meantime, if you have any other great Owl party ideas, please let me know! 

​This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.  Thanks for your support!

     It is amazing how many people love owls.  Back in September, I wrote an Ode to Owls that was very popular.  You can check it out here.  Because so many people have begun to recognize that our brand, 3 Winks Design, has owls in the logo, I have been receiving some little thoughtful gifts of owls in various forms!  I love it! I thought I would share a few with you, and I realized that I haven't shared the recipe for the owl cookies yet!  So, I will include that today as well. They are super tasty and fun!
     First, here are the new things that I have been gifted for my collection!  I will try to show you where you can find similar items, but some of mine are pretty unique!  Click on these pictures to find out more about them.

     Here are a few similar things I've found if you are interested in owls like these for your own collection or as a gift to an owl lover that you know.  Just click on the picture to order.

     I couldn't resist showing you these 3 pewter owls sitting on an amethyst base.  Such a statement piece.

Now!  On to the cookies!  
    I found these cute owl cookies on the Whoot and thought they were adorable.  The only thing was that they made theirs with a peanut butter cookie and I decided to make mine with a sugar cookie.  I used this recipe:

     Chill the dough before you do your decorating.  Here is what you will need

•  Chocolate chips
•  Sliced and slivered almonds
• cocoa powder
• round cookie cutter, about 3-4 inches in diameter.

     Click on the pictures in the gallery to see how to decorate them.

     These would go so well with the mug full of milk that I mentioned earlier!
​     Hope your day's a "HOOT", 
     Helen