Popsicle stick bracelets

It could be I am possibly too excited about this craft that Baby A. and I did last week. I'm a very crafty person -- but Anouk isn't, which means that most of our art sessions end up with a toddler crying because her hands are covered in goop. But I still keep pressing on because I want my child to grow creatively... and because, come on, getting to do art projects as an adult is about 40% of the reason

to have a kid in the first place.

These wooden bracelets, made out of popsicle sticks, were a big hit with both mama and baby. Luckily, my girl loves a good accessory more than she hates getting her hands dirty.

The bracelets are a little tricky to make -- here's how to do it.

First, the craft sticks have to be soaked in water overnight, then they have to be bent into shape and let dry for another 24-48 hours. When ours were waterlogged to the point of flexibility, we very, very slowly bent them and fitted them into the opening of a glass and mason jar, for adult-sized bracelets. To make ones that would fit little toddler wrists, we bent the wet sticks around a paper towel roll and secured them in place with rubber bands. (Some of them will break in this process, so I suggest prepping a few extras, just in case.)

We left the sticks outside all day and night on one of the warm days last week and by the next morning, they were dry and ready to paint. We carefully took them out of the glasses and sanded the rough splintery bits with sandpaper. Then we painted them, using acrylic paints and some paint pens.

For the finishing touch, we added foam sticker "jewels" to a select few.

I think our bracelets turned out very nicely and I found myself admiring mine as I worked around the house over the weekend. Anouk loves her new bling and has barely taken her bracelets off since we first put them on her wrists. (She lost her sticker jewels pretty quickly, so if you want added durability, I suggest a few drops of glue to hold it more firmly in place.)

Even James got one. He says he likes it -- in a manly way.

Please excuse the mess in that picture. After a very long week, the last thing we wanted to do was laundry, etc. Here's to a better week than the last one. Happy Monday!