I don't want to belabor the whole miracle glue thing, but as I wandered the aisles of Michael's this morning, I was astounded at the amount of Halloween decorations out already (this whole season always comes well before I am ready).

And as I walked down aisle after aisle (I have to go down every aisle even if I only run in for one thing - I think that it is the curse of the creative mind, but I digress...) and got past my shock at how fast the seasons are changing, I actually got into the spirit of the whole thing.

...but then it hit me...

What a more perfect way to decorate for a fleeting holiday like Halloween than using the impermanent/permanent homemade glue? (if you missed the recipe, I posted it here on Wednesday's blog post - if you are really liking the sound of this glue, but don't want to go through the trouble of making it yourself, Daylilies will have their own version of this recipe all bottled and ready to send to you available on website by the end of September.)

Just bear with me one more moment - yesterday I was so caught up with the possibilities that this glue and some basic paper would have with my Thanksgiving dinner table that I did not give any time to think about how easy it would be to put up and take down decorations on windows.

Yes, windows.

The reality of this situation is that warm water dissolves the glue, so anything you glue (paper only, of course) to the window can easily be taken down with a sponge and some warm water.

What could be more perfect?

Black cats, jack-o-lanterns, bats, spider webs, witches hats....

I am headed back to the studio - I am right in the middle of designing a family fun pack for preschoolers and their families for Daylilies, but I really wanted to share my creative thought for the day. But don't just take my word on it... mix up some glue and give it a try yourself. And don't just limit this idea to Halloween! Christmas is coming, then New Year's, and Valentines... or how about pink flamingos for someone's birthday...? I can't wait to see your pictures (send to debra at dayliliescreative.com).

When I made the sandwich wrappers last week, I discovered that what I really needed was food grade glue. It just wouldn't have worked to wrap food in something that could be harmful. So, off I went in search of 'edible' glue.

Okay - so I did an web search and read a whole lot of blog posts about glue (yup, glue) and I found a recipe for mucilage. Apparently it makes a good sticker - you paint the glue on the back of your sticker project, let it dry, and then when licked, the sticker becomes sticky like a postage stamp would. I had no intention of making a sticker, but I figured if you can lick the stuff, then it should work for gluing on the sandwich wraps.

Here is the recipe as I found it on canteach.ca:

Envelope Mucilage:

6 tbsp pure white vinegar

4 packets of unflavoured gelatin

1 tbsp of peppermint extract

Bring vinegar to a boil and add gelatin. Stir til completely dissolved and add peppermint extract. Mix well.

I halved the recipe and I still had ALOT of glue. This stuff is really strong. But this glue gels to hard as soon as it cools, so you have to microwave it or warm the glue container in hot water long enough to bring it back to liquid. I also didn't use the peppermint extract.

But the real reason that I write about this glue now... is that this is miracle stuff!

If you brush it and stick it like you would normal white glue, this is very strong stuff! But more importantly, this glue is permanent until it meets warm water. And I think that this has seriously fantastic possibilities. I even tested out this theory:

I made a basic glass vase a little more fun with some old newspaper scraps and some of the leftover pieces of kite paper from my recent projects. Add a little of that miracle glue, and this is what the project looked like:

And the best news? When I don't like it anymore and want to make a change, I just have to hold the vase under warm water, and I am back to my clean and basic glass vase - ready to do something new.

I decided yesterday that I really like working with the kite paper. The colours are fantastic and it is easy to work with,  but  the reason that I decided I like this paper most of all is because it is translucent. Which means that I only need a couple of colours of paper to mix and match in order to have even more colours to play with.

In any case, when I was working on the sandwich wrappers, I couldn't help but make plans for future products.... I liked working with this paper that much. So, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise when I say that I found myself trying out new things with the paper during my studio time today. 

I created a collaged greeting card, and learned a few things along the way...

I learned that although it is translucent, it really doesn't look good on black (although this may only be because of the colours I was using. Maybe if I had been using orange or something hallowe'en-y, things might have been different).

I learned that pencil marks are almost impossible to erase, so either love them where they are in the finished product, or don't use pencil lines in the first place. (I learned to love them.)

I learned that smaller scissors are a MUST if you want to use this paper to cut small shapes or fine details - but the kite paper really does well with fine details because it is so lightweight.

I learned that a little paper really does go a long way. And just when I think that I have figured a way to use all my little leftover pieces, I realize that I still have pieces left when the project is done.

I learned that the possibilities are endless. I worked on the card today, but what about frames? placemats? (oh... and Thanksgiving is coming up...Thanksgiving placemats out of this stuff would be perfect!) book covers? artwork? refinishing a really ugly old table?...or a whole wall? Christmas ornaments? Halloween masks? Jewellery?

Needless to say, I just can't seem to find an end to all of the options. My ultimately favourite idea, though has to be when I held one of my finished sandwich wrappers up to the window yesterday and realized that this kite paper would make a truly awesome window covering for a kids room - especially if your child likes to change things in their room alot because it would be fun for your child to help with and easy to change.

So really, all things considered, what I really learned is that I really enjoy creating things when I have lots of opportunity to be flexible with the craft product I am using. And since I still have leftover scraps piled on my studio table, I wonder what I will tomorrow will bring? Do you have any ideas? I would love to hear them.... comment here or send me an email.... it is always great to hear from you! (I am so inspired by all the creative things you do!)

Yesterday's blog was definitely a eye-opener for me. I went back to the studio thinking that there definitely has to be a way to make lunchtime a little more fun and cheery for everyone involved.

I loved the idea of the food games at school-lunch-ideas.com and I also have fond memories of surprise notes from my mom tucked in between the sandwich and the juicebox in my lunchbox. I brought both of these thoughts back into the studio with me for inspiration as I worked to find a creative solution to a quick, fun, creative, and good way to make lunches seem so much more enjoyable for both parents and kids alike.

The answer? I am soooo excited about the answer! (Okay, I will admit that I get a little excited about the weirdest things sometimes...but this is sooo neat.)Funky sandwich/food wraps. Fun. Easy. Creative. Quick. And they even look great too!

All you need is some food grade paper, some food safe glue, crayons, and maybe a couple of patterns or game ideas. I used Kite Paper, a brightly coloured paper that is waxed to prevent moisture issues and is food safe (I didn't try it, but crayons and plain kitchen waxed paper should work too) and a homemade glue from things I happened to have in my kitchen.

On one of the wrappers, I glued a pretty flower and coloured on the stem. On another I used some fancy scissors to cut a white second layer for a crayon printed note and attached it to my red wrapper. And on the last wrapper, I took out my favourite blue crayon and drew on a tic tac toe board (all it needs is some cucumber slices or some crackers and this lunch is a game waiting to happen).

If you want to try this, and are looking for this paper, it is available in both 12 packs of paper and as kits including the food safe glue at Daylilies.

If you are looking for glue recipes, check out www.canteach.ca.

And if you are looking for game ideas, I found some fun ones at www.todaysparent.com and www.printactivities.com.

Not only is this a really fun project - and sure to get smiles from the kids - but it could be a neat family project - an hour or two of creative activity with the kids on a weekend will give you more than enough wrappers for the lunches to come. I hope you try it - this one is really fun!!!!

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I read somewhere that if you have a child in school, you can expect to pack over 2000 lunches by the time they finish their school years.

2000.

That is a lot of lunches.

And so, this morning, the first day back to school, my thoughts are turned towards the routine and the mundane. There has got to be a way to make routine just a little more... fun...special...creative. Doesn't there?

I must admit that I am a big believer in adding a touch of creativity to anything and everything, so when I heard that moms and dads are destined to put together 2000 lunches in their child's lifetime, I figured that this was a very good place to infuse some creative energy. And now that some schools are making things tougher with 'no-waste' lunch policies, any parent out there making school lunches needs every bit of help they can get, right?

So here it is... a little inspiration for those dreary lunch bags:

The CuriousPhotos blog is filled to the brim with very creative (and very involved) ideas for the lunch box. I have to say that this all looks like a lot of work, but I am sure that the kid lucky to bring these lunches is the envy of their class! These are more a work of art than a lunch, but really are a neat source of ideas.

For more down-to-earth ideas for the busy lunch-maker, I found some really fun & family based ideas at school-lunch-ideas.com (I thought that the crazy 8's was a neat idea) and at  JustnotMartha.com (pinwheels are always fun), and then for the toddlers out there, the sandwich butterfly at snacksfortoddlers.com sounded really fun without alot of extra work.

If you are prefer to follow a recipe, check out this site for some different recipes (that look really good - I might just have to try one or two of them myself) to send with the kids (or for yourself if you are brown-bagging it too!)

And this is just the tip of the iceburg - after all, the empty brown bag is just a blank canvas... a really good oppprtunity to make the routine just a little less routine.

So...what did you put in the lunch bag today? Any good ideas you care to share?