Last week my friend Brandi explained to me a DIY project she had seen on
Small Fry Blog…sounded easy, yet super adorable and unique! I knew I had to share…
DIY TIC TAC TOE Buddy Gift By: Brandi {Inspired by Small Fry Blog}
A couple of my friends had mentioned the Small Fry blog to
me, and I finally had a chance to check it out last week (seriously
adorable!). That day’s post was about
inexpensive buddy gifts for children or families to give their little friends,
and I loved the simplicity of their ideas, and of course, the thought behind
it!
Let’s be honest, my holiday to-do list has me running in a
million different directions right now, but their individual Tic-Tac-Toe games
were just easy enough that I knew my first grader and I could whip them out in
an afternoon and have them ready to hand out at his Christmas party later this
week. Quality together time + hammering
home the “giving is more than receiving” value = a total parenting win!!!
What
you’ll need (yes, you still have time to make this happen for your
little buddies for Christmas, too!):
-Mardi Gras beads
-Scissors
-Glassine bags
-Computer & printer
-Photo paper or cardstock
-Paper cutter, optional
-Marker
-Ruler or straight edge
-Washi tape, sticker, or label
1. Cut the strands of
Mardi Beads into individual beads, sorting and dividing by color. My 7 year old was able to do this unassisted,
and my 4 year old managed to do some cutting, too, with my supervision. We separated the colors into plastic bags,
and I will admit to taking about 75 unnecessary pictures of the beads in
various locations in my house, just because they looked.so.cool. I couldn’t stop! Don’t worry about the little strands that
stick out on either side of the bead; those bothered me at first, and I wanted
to go back in with tiny scissors and trim them off, but they actually serve a
purpose and help the beads stay in their spot on the Tic Tac Toe board!
2. The original Small
Fry Tic Tac Toe board had an acorn on it, making it look kind of autumnal, so I
made my own as a Word document, replacing the acorn with a snowflake. I printed 3 to a page, using photo paper I
already had.
3. I used a paper
cutter to cut the boards out into “squares.”
I use this term loosely because none of the boards are exactly the same
size, and I’m sure they aren’t perfectly even.
I’m totally okay with that J
4. Trying to figure
out how to print the actual Tic Tac Toe board on the reverse side of the paper
was going to require way more brain power than I felt like devoting to this
project, so I simply drew them by hand using a black Sharpie and a ruler. Again, they aren’t perfect. Just letting this go, friends.
5. I slid the board
into the glassine bags, dropping in 4 beads of 3 different colors so that each
player would have enough of one color to use for his or her game pieces. When I was finished and saw that I had plenty
of leftover beads, I put about 10 more beads in each bag because I thought it
looked nice.
6. I cut about 4
inches off the top of the bag so they would fold nicely, and we sealed them
with a label. This is another great
opportunity for your child to get involved by writing a personal message or
signing his name.
Thanks to Small Fry for the wonderful idea, and to my friends
for turning me onto their goodness! This
is the perfect gift for classroom parties or to keep by the door when little
buddies and neighbors stop by. I love
the idea of starting the love and appreciation for homemade gifts at a young
age!
