Simply…

I love it when craft projects use the word “simple”.  And every time I read it, I’m sucked in!  So as I was perusing my new Family Fun (April 2012), I saw a wonderful organize-your-kids-collections idea using glass and plastic food jars.  Since Little Miss loves to pick up stones and shells, I thought this would be a great solution. 

So I went to my collection of clean pickle jars (you never know when there will be a pickle jar emergency!) and collected a few to make them.  The first problem I ran into was the labels.  See, you can soak them off, but the glue won’t come off!!  I thought, well, Downy takes off wallpaper, so let’s try pickle jar labels.

I soaked my jars overnight and end up with two that were clean enough to use.  I did some scrubbing with an abrasive sponge and ended up with 4.   

Now we are 27 hours into this project.

Shew!  Now to attach the “specimens” to the lids.  Well, I don’t have the Amazing Goop they suggest, and my superglue has dried up.  So I pull out my trusty hot glue gun and get to work.  The rock is just fine, and glues nice and snug.  But the nautilus shell that Little Miss chose isn’t sticking too well.  So I decide to paint the rock lid, and grab the tempera.  Again, the suggestion is to use spray-paint, but I’m a little too smart to allow a 7-year-old to use spray paint.  So, she paints the lid for the rock jar while I glue the shell and it looks great.  On to the shell, but as she’s painting it, the shell drops off and rolls away, leaving a pink trail across the kitchen floor.   

Oops.   

OK, fine.  Paint the lid, paint the shell, we’ll glue them in the morning.  In the meantime, we paint the other two plain lids for the yet-to-be-discovered treasures.

Now we’re 40 hours into the “simple” project. 

I’m holding the glue gun again, saying words in my head that my 7-year-old doesn’t need to hear yet as I use a generous amount of glue to attach the %*(*^T%$@ shell to the $$^()^$@ lid.  Once that is done, I forbid Little Miss to touch it while the glue cools, and I go off to nurse my burnt finger. 

45 hours: Repainting the shell and lid.  Thank goodness, the shell seems to be staying put this time.  Little Miss wanders in to the kitchen and says, “I don’t like that color pink.  Can we paint it again?”   

(*^(%#^%$@.

47 hours: Lid is repainted again, and drying.  We have placed the “special” rocks in one jar and the 4 million silly bands she doesn’t wear in another jar. 

49 hours, 23 minutes: Shells in the jar, lids are all placed.  Grudgingly I say that they look pretty good. 

Two lessons learned here. 

1) “Simple” is a very objective word.  What is simple for people who spend their days crafting might not be for the rest of us. 

2) Take the time to shop for the correct ingredients.  Trying to substitute may bring about those words that a 7-year-old shouldn’t hear.