2 Fun Easter and Passover Crafts!
This week is full of awesome holidays! Those who are Jewish will be celebrating Passover for 7 days starting tomorrow, April 19th! On the other hand, many Christians will be celebrating Easter on Sunday, April 22nd! No matter which religion you follow, learn a little bit more about each holiday & then do some fun & easy crafts to help celebrate the occasion!
Easter!
Christians usually celebrate Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday, located two days after Good Friday & three days after Maundy Thursday. The Easter season lasts for 40 days - from Easter Day until Ascension Day, which marks the end of Lent (a season of fasting & prayer). Several traditions have formed from this occasion including the Easter Bunny and Easter egg hunts and have truly become a large part modern-day family celebrations.
Feathered Bird Eggs!
- Materials: Dyed eggs, Egg carton (the cardboard kind), acrylic paints (your favorite colors), tacky glue, a paintbrush, different colored feathers & tiny black beads
- Directions:
- To start, cut cups from the egg carton as shown in the picture.
- Paint the entire cup with your desired color. Make several of these!
- Let the cups dry entirely. Then, paint on the beak with a contrasting color! Glue on two beads for eyes.
- Finally, use the tacky glue on stick several tail feathers on the side directly behind the head!
- Place your dyed (and dried) egg in your newly made cup to complete the bird!
Passover!
Passover is a Jewish festival & holy day! It pays tribute to the story of the Exodus, where the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt. This special holiday is typically celebrated for 7 days and is one of the 3 pilgrimage festivals where historically, the Jewish population would pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem!
Passover Cards!
Materials: a pencil, gold & white paint pens, a black marker, blue or silver glitter glue, a sheet of blue card stock or construction paper and scissors
Directions:
- First, print the Passover cut-out pattern. Cut the 3 letters (that spell out Pesach, or Passover) & the Star of David.
- Next, fold the construction in half to create your card!
- After, position the cut-out patterns on the front of your card. With one hand, hold the patterns in place, while you use a pencil to trace the shapes!
- Take the gold pen & trace over the edges of the Star of David, then color it in. Use the white paint pen to color in the 3 letters above (or below) the Star of David. Use the black marker to create a clean border around each letter!
- Add some blue glitter glue around the Star of David.
- After the card is dry, write a note inside & give it to someone special!
Awesome Advice from Parker!
Hello!
I want to share some tips on friendship. When it comes down to it, friendship is a difficult matter.
Over the past week, I have not spoken to my best friend, Xavier (that’s not his real name, FYI). He made fun of me in front of a lot of people, after I took him on a skiing trip. He called me “ugly”. So, I went over to him and said, “ I don’t like the way you are treating me. Why, why did you do it?” At first he didn’t answer, but then he tried to apologize. I didn’t listen because I was so mad. He finally sent me an email that was really sincere, but I deleted it. My parents found it though, and talked to me about friendship.
It was a very long talk that ended with me in tears. My parents talked about how people screw up sometimes and how everyone makes mistakes in life. They said that if you have friends you can trust and truly feel like the friendship is worth it, then you should forgive them. Or if you feel that the friendship isn’t worth the trouble and you can’t trust that person, then maybe you shouldn’t be friends with them anymore.
That made me think. I finally decided that his friendship was important to me. I called him and said that I accepted his apology. He sounded overjoyed! Hopefully you can find those tips helpful in your life too!
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Now, I want to talk about SPRING FASHION! First off, let’s start with balancing it out, aka warm weather outfits and cold weather outfits. To start, I like to wear a skirt or pair of shorts with cute knee-high socks! This way, if you are a bit chilly, you have the knee-socks on your legs or if you get a bit warm, you can simply take the knee-socks off!
For the top, it is really simple, just wear a cute-tee and a cardigan. Ta-da! Sometimes, I throw a little scarf or belt in there too. Another thing you can do is skinny jeans and open flats. To start off with the day, you might want to keep those pant legs down, but my 6th period, you probably want them cuffed.
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Thanks for reading!
- Parker
From our CEO: Coming Soon - A Fresh Take on FashionPlaytes
After months of planning, we’re excited to preview our new logo and site design with you!
What’s New? Our site may look different in a few days, but the experience you know and love isn’t changing – you can still design custom clothes, save them to your collection and share them with friends and family.
Stay tuned! We have more changes planned, including new gaming features that offer girls even more options for creativity and self-expression. Look for more changes next month.
As always, we invite your feedback! Please send comments or questions about our new site design to feedback@fashionplaytes.com
We are particularly grateful to the many customers – both girls and parents – who weighed in with their feedback on our new logo and designs. Together, we are building a better FashionPlaytes, step-by-step.
Regards,
Sarah McIlroy, CEO and Founder
Groovy Baby: Tie-dye is Back!
Get groovy people! Tie-dye is making a comeback!
Moms: Remember the 70′s? Hippy & bohemian-inspired fashion was all the rage because that’s actually what many people wore! Girls: Remember that really fun day at camp when you got to tie-dye your own t-shirt? It was the best day of summer, by far!
Today, everyone can share in this awesome trend - especially for Spring! Go bold with full-out tie-dye looks, like our new Olivia peasant dress with awesome swirls of color! Or, take it down a notch and add smaller accents with our Lauren headband & our Violet canvas messenger bag!
Tracy L. from Glamour Magazine says, “It’s an incredibly easy trend to wear. [You can make] it chilly weather appropriate with a black leather jacket and [black boots]. You can try out a tie-dye cardigan with jeans and flats, a pair of tie-dye shoes with an all black ensemble, or an artsy-looking scarf around your neck with a denim jacket and skinny black pants.”
And since we LOVE crafts, try making these super pretty Multi-purpose Tie-Dye Coffee Filters! They’re great because “tie-dying” is special no matter how old you are. Thanks to Alicia at Magical Childhood for the inspiration!**
Cute kids tie-dying!
*Materials: Large coffee filters, spray bottles or eye-droppers (with water), magic markers, paper towel
*Tie-dye Your Coffee Filters:
1. First, cover your craft surface with a table-cloth or newspapers to protect from any staining.
2. Next, use the magic markers to create awesome designs (swirls, shapes, patterns) on one side of the coffee filter.
3. Take the eye dropper or spray bottle and gently drop water or mist the coffee filter and watch the colors bleed and blend together!
4. Allow the coffee filters to dry on top of paper towel or use a hair dryer on low to speed up the process!
Afterward, you can use the filters to wrap up little gifts, create pipe-cleaner flower bouquets, hang them with string in front of windows, display on a wall, or use as coasters on a coffee table. Frankly, the options are limitless! Get creative & share the tie-dye love!
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Take pictures of your creations & share them with us on our FashionPlaytes Facebook wall!
Top 3 Ways to Wear Lace!
The lace trend for Spring 2011 is totally taking the fashion world by storm! Personally, I love this delicate trend! It’s super exciting, especially because it can be worn & styled in many different ways! Whether as an embellishment or as an all-over look, wear lace with confidence & make people look your way! Here are the top 3 ways to wear this latest trend:
1. Accessorize! With Spring almost in full bloom, look forward to seeing super girly bows, delicate floral pins & lots of lace-covered jewelry. Add a piece to any or every outfit for a definitive note of femininity & style.
2. Embellish! Get a “bohemian” look with your basic tops & dresses by adding romantic lace trim! By incorporating dainty crochet/lace eyelet features, you’re showing off your fashionable side, while keeping it understated & classy.
3. Be bold! Whether in color or classic white & ivory, lace can be worn as a full look! This means lovely dresses, skirts & tops made completely of lace that will truly make you look & feel like warmer days are right around the corner. Check out Taylor Swift (see picture above) to get inspired!
No matter how you choose to wear lace, make sure you do it soon to be a true trendsetter! Need someplace to start small with this hot style? Head on over to FashionPlaytes.com & design your own tshirt or dress with our peace-print trim & lovely crochet collars! They’re perfect for Easter or Passover!
FashionPlaytes Peace Trim!
FashionPlaytes Lace Embellishments!
2 Delicious Springtime Recipes!
- Can’t wait for warm weather, chirping birds & beautiful blooming flowers? Cheer up with these fun & totally delicious sandwiches & stuffed cucumbers cups! Enjoy them at family parties or simply as easy after-school snacks! Thanks to Disney’s FamilyFun website for the great recipe ideas!
Scrumptious Flower Sandwiches!
- Ingredients: Flower cookie cutter, bread (white or wheat), peanut butter, your favorite flavor jelly and a water bottle cap!
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- How to Make It!
- 1. Use the cookie cutter (or a knife - with the help of an adult!) to make flower cut-outs in 2 slices of bread!
- 2. Next, press the cap of a water bottle into the center of one of the flower shapes to make a hole.
- 3. Spread your favorite PB and jelly on the whole flower slice.
- 4. Finally, place the slice with the hole on top & you’re done!
- 5. Repeat steps 1-4 to make a whole bouquet!
Tasty Hummus-stuffed Cucumbers!
- Ingredients: (2) large cucumbers, (1) cup of regular hummus, red/orange bell peppers (chopped) and/or scallions (chopped) as garnishes!
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- How to Make It!
- 1. To start, use a metal fork to mark the sides of each cucumber to make a fun and fancy pattern!
- 2. Next, cut the cucumbers into 3/4 - 1/2 inch slices.
- 3. Take a small spoon to gently take out the middle of each slice!
- 4. Lastly, scoop hummus in the middle of each “cup”.
- 5. Top with finely chopped scallions & peppers to complete this healthy snack!
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Who’s the Ultimate Queen of Teen?
Who’s the girl with the most style, prettiest voice AND best acting skills? That’s up to you! Below you’ll find some quick facts about each starlette. Check them out & tell us: Who’s the Ultimate Queen of Teen!? Is it Miley, Selena or Victoria? (Don’t see your favorite listed below? Leave a comment with the starlette who you think is the best!)
Miley Cyrus!
Miley (17) is an American actress & singer who made a splash in Disney’s Hannah Montana! Afterhaving several successful seasons with the show, Miley signed with Hollywood Records in 2007 to go after a solo career! After the cool Best of Both Worlds Tour and a very popular concert film Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, Miley continued to succeed. She has also had 3 solo albums including, Breakout (2008), The Time of Our Lives (2009), and Can’t Be Tamed (2010)! Her rise to stardom - from a little girl to an alluring young woman - has caused some controversy, but it hasn’t stopped her from taking over the music world!
Selena Gomez!
Selena (18) is an American actress & singer, originally from Texas! Her career first took off in 2004, when she was spotted by the Disney Channel! She’s was a star in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody & Hannah Montana and was finally cast as the main role in the Disney Chanel Original Series, Wizards of Waverly Place! Now, Selena is busy as the lead singer of the new band Selena & The Scene. Their 2nd album A Year without Rain was released in 2010 & reached #4 on the Billboard 200! Just recently, she won “Favorite TV Actress” for her role on Wizards of Waverly Place at Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards!
Victoria Justice!
Victoria (17) is an American actress & singer who first made it big when she was just 10 years old! She’s made appearances in several Nickelodeon series, such as True Jackson, VP, The Troop & iCarly. In 2005, Victoria was given a main role in Nickelodeon’s Zoey 101. Because of her awesome voice, Victoria was cast as the main character on musical show, Victorious (2010)! Victoria sings too! She was in a few songs on the Nickelodeon musical soundtrack, Spectacular! and has even recorded great hits for her series, Victorious. Her debut album is rumored to be dropped this summer!
Which star is your favorite?!
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Get a “Head Start” on Spring with Flower Accessories!
FashionPlaytes Flower Headbands!
Whether in a delicate floral print or as a bold piece of jewelry, flowers are a cool addition to any outfit. Rocking them with confidence will give you automatic style!
At FashionPlaytes, we offer our own tween versions of the trend: a cool blue peace sign/flower print & our sweet organza flower headbands! Although we’d love for you to get your own today at FashionPlaytes.com, we also totally encourage creativity in making your own! Thanks to the Make It and Love It blog for the really wonderful idea!
DIY: Homemade Satin Flower Headbands!
Supplies: Varying colors of satin material, thin black stretchy headbands (from Walmart or CVS), brown or green felt, small clear beads, a lighter, a glue gun & scissors
How to:
1. Cut 6 circles in decreasing size from the color satin materials (with the biggest circle about 3 inches in diameter). Take a lighter & lightly melt the edges of each “petal” to create a curled look!
2. One by one, hot glue each petal to the circle that is the next smallest in size. After you glue the smallest petal to the flower, leave a large circle of glue in the center. Sprinkle the clear beads on the circle of glue and press in until it is completely covered with beads. Discard the extra beads.
3. Next, cut out two leaves from the brown or green felt. Delicately melt the edges of each leaf with a lighter to get a more polished look. Hot glue the two leaves together.
4. Finally, hot glue the the flowers onto the leaves. When completely dry, hot glue the flowers & leaves to the black stretchy headband & you’re good to go! A fun & pretty flower headband is ready to wear!
PBS KIDS Loves FashionPlaytes!
Why? Because we allow girls the awesome opportunity to be creative by virtually designing clothes, “with the added bonus of actually being able to have their creations made!” But you already knew that, right?
So, although we absolutely LOVE when any mommy blogger or publication includes FashionPlaytes in a blog, article, tweet or Facebook update, we were particularly honored to be mentioned by PBS KIDS GO! in their “It’s My Life Blog“. The entry includes advice for designing your own clothes, with special tips from our very own CEO & Founder, Sarah McIlroy! I’ve included an excerpt from the actual entry, but feel free to head to their site to read its entirety!
Thanks again to PBS KIDS for taking the time to highlight FashionPlaytes!
“We were excited to discover a new website called FashionPlaytes that gives girls the opportunity to do this virtually, with the added bonus of actually being able to have their creations made! We asked FashionPlaytes founder Sarah McIlroy to share some tips for IML’ers who want to play around with clothing embellishment, whether it’s online or on their own:
- Start with a theme or color. This will help guide you through the design process and give you a good start and vision for what you’d like to design. If you have an existing piece of clothing you’d like to work with, let the style of it inspire you. For instance, a simple solid-colored t-shirt is a great blank canvas to do something fancy, while a tank top that already has ruffles and a pattern might look best with only one or two simple accents. Don’t use too many patterns or colors that might clash with one another and distract from your design.
- Don’t forget that clothing’s not the only thing that can be embellished. Purses, backpacks, tote bags, and other accessories like hats, scarves, etc. can also be spiffed up!”
- PBS Kids Go!
3 Totally Classic April Fools Jokes!
Eek! Blue Milk!
Happy April Fools Day! Today is the best day to be super silly & prank your friends and family! While some people might spend weeks planning the perfect jokes, we have really fun last-minute ideas to get laughs at school, the office, or at home! Read on to get your prank on! (Thanks to AprilFoolZone & Kidz World for the inspiration!)
1. Put a few drops of food coloring in your milk container (especially if you buy the kind that comes in a cardboard container). Use weird colors like green or blue & watch as your family members crack up when they try to pour a tall glass or add in their bowl of cereal as an after-school snack!
2. Buy some super colorful fake flowers from a craft store & put them in your victim’s garden. When they walk outside today, they’ll be SO surprised to see that Spring has come earlier than they thought! Extra points (& laughs) for the adding large amounts of flowers all over their yard!
3. Tape a long & thin string to a $5 bill. Place the bill in the middle of a room or on a sidewalk and hide around a corner. Wait for an unsuspecting victim to enter the room or turn the corner on a street & see the money on the ground! When they do, gently tug the string to pull the bill away from them making them chase it till they figure what’s actually happening!
We want to hear your BEST April Fools jokes!
Comment back & give us some more ideas!
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