Victoria Bryant: May 2012 Archives

Memories are fleeting. You wish you could reach out and grab one. One year I was looking to add another Christmas present for my daughter, I had already purchased her ''big'' presents, but I just needed something more. I stumbled across ''the memory jar''. I thought she would think it was hokey but she was very touched by it.

 What is the memory jar?  You think about the memories and good times you would like to remember.  I picked memories from her childhood and wrote them on slips of paper and put them in a decorated jar.  I added mementoes of her childhood. It was a very satisfying experience for me to make.

I decided it was time for another memory jar. This time the theme will be Motherhood.  My daughter is expecting her second child at the end of August.  This is also a great project to make with your child or grandchild.

Ingredients:

Mason glass jar

Labels

Stickers

Mother's Day coupons

Photographs

Selected memories written or printed on cardstock ( I am using blue cardstock because she is having a boy and the white cardstock is Sebastian's coupons)

When my daughter reaches into this jar she will pull out a memory of my memories as a young mother or some of her experiences with her first pregnancy. I am also throwing in some sonograms from her current pregnancy. I am calling this jar the "Just Because I Said So" jar. When my daughter was young I pledged that I would always explain my rules to her. Little did I know that I had given birth to a lawyer.  She countered all my arguments with her own thoughts. By the time she reached the age of ten, I retreated to the phrase I thought I would never say- Because I said so!

I am including some Mother's Day coupons that I will help my grandchild (Sebastian) fill out.

Use your imagination to create your own memory jar or create a different style. I found a sewing kit at Martha Stewart.com. She also has some other great Mother's Day gifts.

Sewing Kit Jar Supplies:

Mason Jar

Labels

Fabric Scraps and poly-fil (to make pincushion)

Tape Measure

Safety pins

Hand Needles

Thread

Pins

Buttons

Hot glue and glue gun

Tips:

Printing Labels- Always print your label on plain paper and align with the labels to  make sure that the printing will be centered on your label. You may have to adjust your printer settings. I found out that I needed to click on borderless printing to ensure good printing.

If you make the sewing kit jar- only apply the glue to the seal and not the rim to attach your pincushion.

If a child is helping you, let him/her select stickers to put on the job.

Resources:

Hobby Lobby

Staples

Inspirations:

Martha Stewart.com

Better Homes & Gardens

Woman's Day

Avery.com