The Florida Girl

𝕝𝕚𝕗𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕪𝕝𝕖 𝕓𝕝𝕠𝕘𝕘𝕖𝕣 • 𝕞𝕠𝕞 • 𝕙𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕣 • 𝕗𝕒𝕤𝕙𝕚𝕠𝕟

Pop in and see this incredibly simple paper flower DIY!

Looking for an adorable DIY that is sure to bring lots of love? Stop right here and check out how to make this gorgeous paper flower bouquet. What a great way to pop in and show some love for spring, a birthday, Mother’s Day, or simply, just because.

My mom has been providing us so much support every day and I have been wanting to get her some flowers to thank her for all of her help. When a friend introduced me to Wrappily and I viewed their product line, I knew I wanted to use their gorgeous Eco-Friendly paper to create a DIY flower bouquet for her. How could she not love them when they are sustainable, made from recycled paper, and are this gorgeous?

When I Love Plum reached out to us and sent us their Suede tutu, I saw the teal color and immediately thought it would be the perfect compliment to our craft day!

What little girl doesn’t love dressing up and making a fun craft project? Mine sure does! Grab yourself a fun outfit and these supplies and get to work!

the supplies:

wrappily eco-friendly paper

scissors

hot glue

glue

wood dowels

twine, craft ribbon or like

glitter

pencil

This DIY comes with a quick preface… DO NOT get overwhelmed by all of the photos! I wanted it to be super clear so I took LOTS of photos to show you step by step how easy it is!

Step 1:

Cut your gorgeous paper into a 3″ x 3″ square – (I used a post it note pad as my template, it was perfect) – you can make as many as you want for your bouquet, I made six.

Step 2:

Fold your square paper diagonally (corner to corner), once, twice, a third time, and then draw a big arch as shown (you can freehand that or use a quarter coin as a template).

Step 3:

Cut along the arch and slowly open the paper up entirely until it creates a flower shape.

Step 4:

Cut ONE section out of the flower.

Step 5:

Apply a very small amount of glue on the left edge of the opening you just cut and glue the right edge to it to create a cone shaped flower. Pic 4 shows seven finished glued flowers.

Step 6:

Use scissors to create a hole about the size of your wood dowel. Use hot glue on the end of the dowel and insert the dowel until it sticks out of the inside of the flower about 1/4″-1/2″.

Step 7:

Cut a 1-2″ piece of Wrappily Hemp Cord (or craft ribbon or twine), use hot glue gun to cover the wood dowel inside the middle of the flower and begin to wrap the hemp cord around until it sticks to the glue. Use glitter to cover the top exposed piece of the dowel and, Voila!

Here’s my cutie helping with the glitter!!!

Didn’t they turn out amazing??? To boot, all of Wrappily’s Eco-Friendly paper are double sided so you get double the bang for your buck!

Here we go! Popping in to surprise Nana with her flowers!

Hendrix used the glue to create glitter flowers and an “H” for her signature on the card.

That smile, that I love Plum tutu, and those Wrappily paper flowers…winning combination!

Tic Tac Toe, I Love You So! Valentine’s Party

I love a good LOVE DAY and will use any excuse to decorate with red and pink! Wink Wink! Queue all the X’s and O’s, flowers and tutu’s! I repurposed some of last years DIY’s and some new goodies to create this little Tic Tac Toe, I Love You So Party. Scroll and pin away! X<3 X<3

This year’s Christmas gift has been coming in handy! My honey got me a new iPad and stylus and I downloaded the Sketchbook App and have been thoroughly enjoying it. Check out the sketch I dreamed up and sent to my girl Liz of Aquarelle USA for my balloon inspiration and then scroll to see the real life picture of how it came out! She nailed it!

FROM SKETCH…

TO REALITY!!

The lips form was my favorite new addition this year!!!

Hendrix helped me arrange these simple carnations in our oversized mixing bowl from the Target Dollar Spot and she was so proud! I must say, I was too!! I hope this girl grows up to love flowers as much as I do! Just look at that huge smile!

For a sweet tablescape, simply layer paper plates, decorative seasonal bowls, napkins, cups, silverware and straws and you are good to go!!

I couldn’t get rid of these cuties just yet! Here are last year’s DIY pennant wands!

Share The Love – Valentine Gift Basket Ideas

Here are some simple ideas to spoil your little one without breaking the bank! Oh, and spoiling your babes doesn’t have to be elaborate or crazy. Pick a theme or color pallet and run with it. Here are some of my go-to items I include in my holiday themed baskets!

Cute Basket or Crate – Doubles as Presentation and Storage

Pajamas

Books

Small Sweet Treat

Accessories

Themed Holiday Tumbler or Cup

1 – Love Is Book – Amazon

2 – Pajamas – Old Navy

3 – Heart Shaped Waffle Maker – Target

4 – Pajamas – Old Navy

5 – XOXO Sunglasses – Paper Source

6 – In My Heart Book – Amazon

7 – Foldable Crate – Urban Outfitters

8 – Hot Cocoa Bomb – Target

9 – Snickers Bar – Target

10 – Pajamas – Old Navy

11- Heart Shaped Tumbler – Paper Source

12 – Heart Shaped Pop It Keychain – Amazon

13 – I Love You To The Moon and Back Book – Amazon

visit @the_floridagirl for more holiday inspo!

Also, check out the past few years of LOVE!

Love Day Gift Basket Post

A Love Affair Post

Nothing But Love Post

Let Me Love You Valentine’s Day Basket Post

You’re Going to Love This Girly Football 4th Birthday Party

SCORE! Hendrix is FOUR!

Initially when my daughter Hendrix told me she wanted a football themed 4th birthday party I was a bit scared to be honest. I do love a good challenge, but my oh my, that was a huge one in my eyes! How does one create a girly, whimsical, colorful football party?

She gave me a few absolute wants for the party and that gave me a jumpstart I needed.  Cue all the footballs, whistles, cookies, and a bounce house. 

After establishing the theme I immediately put together a color pallet and created a mood board. I began reaching out to local vendors I knew would comprise the winning team.

I sketched the game plan & design ideas for months and sent all of them out to the team and they executed the plays perfectly!  There was zero chance of letting Hendrix down!  It was a huge victory!

Party Planning + Concept + Styling: Jen Feliciano, The Florida Girl @the_floridagirl

Venue: Veterans Park, Delray Beach, FL

Photography: LV Photography @lvphotographyllc

Picnic Setup + Curation: Magnolia Sunsets @magnoliasunsets

Bounce House: Island Bounce House @islandbouncehouse

Balloon Backdrop + Installations: Aquarelle USA

Locker + Peg Board Backdrops: Jen Feliciano, The Florida Girl @the_floridagirl

Acrylic Signage + Accessories: Floral Dust @floraldust_

Marquee Letters: Alpha Lit South Florida @alphalitsofl

Floral Design: Jen Feliciano, The Florida Girl @the_floridagirl

Cake + Cakecicles: Petal & Pear Cake Design

Cookies: Confetti Confections

Vegan Artisan Ice Pops: Pop Shack 561

Paper Goods: The Party Darling @thepartydarling

Custom Color Table Cover + Football Crayons: Creative Crayons Workshop @creativecrayonsworkshop

Kids Football Jersey Shirts: Amazon by: Jen Feliciano, The Florida Girl @the_floridagirl

Custom Favor Boxes: Amazon by: Jen Feliciano, The Florida Girl @the_floridagirl 

simple back to school DIY kicks they’ll love

Supplies: Any Style of white shoes & Colorful Fabric Markers

Instructions: Let your babe design and color their very own back to school shoes with the markers!  The more creative & original, the better! Pair with the best tutu & accessories by @iloveplum

“Mom, I’m too cool for school!”

Hop in and get excited! Simple DIY bunny headband

These simple DIY bunny ears are sure to get you egg-cited! Follow along to make your own DIY Easter Bunny ear headband!

What you’ll need:

  • Plastic bunny ear headband
  • Yarn to wrap around headband
  • Felt – two colors (I used classic brown and pink – you can use any set of colors)
  • A pen
  • Hot glue gun
  • Scissors
  • *Opt. decorative “fuzzy fur” yarn” & other ribbon or embellishments

Instructions:

  1. Use a piece of scrap paper to cut the shape of a bunny ear.
  2. Trace onto brown felt.
  3. Use that same piece of paper and trim it a little smaller to make the template for the inside of the ear.
  4. Trace onto pink felt.
  5. Use hot glue gun to glue the pink cutouts onto the brown ones.
  6. Start by placing a small bit of hot glue on the end of the headband and begin wrapping the headband with yarn.
  7. Continue until the entire headband section is wrapped and covered. *No need to cover the ears.
  8. Use hot glue to attach the felt cutout ears onto the plastic ears of the headband.
  9. Add fuzzy “fur” yarn as an accent on the ears if you would like.
  10. Add embellishments like other decorative ribbon or flowers if you would like.

Some bunny thinks they can get away with slackin’ & snackin’.

Well, I guess you can when you are this cute!

What do you mean Easter carrots? I wanted Easter candy!

Easter Basket For Kids

Easter is no longer just about candy for me anymore since having kids. I love to see the joy and excitement on their faces when they see their holiday gift baskets. Last years Easter basket had huge meaning for us! Check out the blog post here, Easter Basket Gender Reveal. I knew it would be hard to top that set of baskets, but these come pretty darn close! They are filled with all the best goodies!

These are my top 4 simple tips in order to create the perfect holiday basket:

1) Buy items you would already be purchasing or need anyway.

2) Purchase shoes in the next size to get longer use.

3) Purchase one seasonal/holiday item.

4) Add a little sweet treat or novelty item for a special surprise.

When it comes time to staging them and having all of the items show (especially if you are photographing them) use old rolled up hand towels and filler to stuff and fill the baskets. I used brown construction paper to fill the bottom of the baskets and bring all of the goodies up to the top to be more visible. I rolled hand towels and used them to fill and prop the items up as well.

Here are all the items I snagged for Bodhi’s basket:

And check out all the goods for Hendrix:

For more holiday basket inspiration, head to these posts: Valentine’s Day “Love Day Gift Basket” or “Let Me Love You Valentine’s Day Basket” , St. Patty’s Day “Ultimate St. Patty’s Day Basket Guide”

Love Day Gift Basket

One of my favorite quotes is “Love always, in all ways”…and I’ve got nothin’ but love so I sprinkle it like confetti!

Are kids Valentine’s Day baskets necessary? No. Are they fun? Yes! My babes are only so young once and I love spoiling them when I can and spreading the love. That is why I enjoy creating and giving special gift baskets like these for the holidays.

Some of the basics I like to include in my holiday themed baskets are:
An original/unique “basket” of some sort
Cute name tags
Books
Pajamas
Flowers
Sweet treats (this year hot cocoa bombs were all the rage!)
Holiday Pennant Wands (see my Instagram highlight reel for DIY)
Themed Cups or Tableware
*The links to most all of my items in our baskets this year are below*

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13

Here are a few other holiday baskets I have created in the past! Happy viewing! Hop to it, Spring! Easter Basket Gender Reveal Ultimate St. Patty’s Day Basket Guide

DIY Fall playhouse decor

Florida fall…it’s is a real thing. Well, it actually might require asking a friend to mail you some fall leaves but, hey. This year I was determined to bring all the fall feels to South Florida and deco out Hendrix’s new playhouse! Here are the steps to creating this gorgeous fall boho wreath & boho initial door emblem.

Brand New Iloveplum Pearl Ivory Tutu & Plie Twist Crop Sweater
Items Needed:
-fresh Fall leaves 
(or store-bought fake ones here)
-hot glue gun
-scrap cardboard
-decorative yarn
-floral wreath hoop
-scisscors
-boho dried flowers, pampas, palms or pinecones
-twine
FALL BOHO WREATH
Directions:
-Use hot glue gun to glue dried flowers & palms to floral hoop
-use twine to wrap the stems (this is decorative and functional,
it helps keep the flowers on tight)
-keep the design very asymmetrical and simple
-use fall leaves for final accent
BOHO INITIAL DOOR EMBLEM
Directions:
-use scrap cardboard to draw initial (can be in script or print)
-use sciscors to cut out the initial
-use hot glue gun & start wrapping the cardboard initial with decorative yarn
-use a piece of twine as the "hook"
-add a few leaves as an accent to conveal command hook

I layered the boho wreath with some cool textural pumpkins on the ledge of our playhouse and used the initial emblem on her front door!

The most fun part of it all was seeing Hendrix’s face as she threw the leaves up in the air like confetti!

DIY Ghoul-friend Bowling Set

Hey ghoul-friend, hey! This year’s holidays look a little different. We are not only getting creative with designs we have to get creative with activities that keep us entertained! 🙂 Que the ghoul-friend ghost bowling set!

This Halloween season may not be filled with trick-or-treating, costumes, or goblins, but it can still be loaded with fun! This simple DIY sure did keep Hendrix occupied for weeks.

A quick order from Michael’s craft store and some things I had around the house and strike, we have the perfect game.

Acrylic Paint
Plastic Mason Jars
Sponge Paintbrush
Sharpie or Black Acrylic Paint

Optional: Tulle Ribbon for decor, interest & texture as well as a filler for inside the jars to make them heavier in order to make it harder to knock them over.

Step 1: pick your favorite paint and let the little hands help you paint the plastic jars.

Step 2: After allowing the main color paint to dry, use black paint or sharpie to draw a ghost face.

Step 3: Allow all the paint to thoroughly dry and then return the lids back on the plastic jars. You can fill the jars with crinkle paper, candy or leave them empty. *I added a tulle ribbon and tied it around a few of the jars to create more texture and interest. We also made those with the ribbon worth more points if she could knock them over.

What’s so great about this little craft is, they are dual-purpose! These jars would make the perfect little gift for neighbors, family, and friends once you are done using them as bowling pins.