scraps and coffee grounds

Halloween crafts!

Halloween crafts: 2022 edition! We have been crafting a lot about autumn and Halloween and today I’ll share here all the ideas! I shared them mostly with videos on TikTok and Instagram and with the blog post they’ll be regrouped and it’ll be easier to find them!

First of all I want to share with you a great brand that I just discovered and that kindly gifted me two great items for Halloween holidays: a banner and cute cake toppers! @picopartyyy is a sustainable brand creating the cutest accessories for parties and holidays. They are reusable, recyclable and have no chemicals on it! Safe for your little ones and for the planet! You can use the code Sara20 for a 20% discount (UK). Check the video below,we have already started using ours:

Aren’t these cute? Check their website because you even can purchase personalized banners with your family name!www.picouk.net

Let’s get started with Halloween crafts: we have been using nature treasures like sticks and leaves to create Halloween/fall decorations. Hope you’ll like the list !

1. Mandala leaves: I used our chalk markers and tried different patterns to create unique mandalas,but also last year’s creations like ghosts or cute foxes.

2. Window decorations: again with chalk markers! Holidays are great occasions to decorate our windows with different templates and designs.

3. DIY spider web: just some sticks and spare yarn, great activity for fine motor skills!

4. Ghost cakes : these are the easiest spooky cakes! I used the sweet potato chocolat brownie recipe. Check the how to in this video:

5. DIY witch brew: a great STEM activity for kids, they love it! You just need to add 1/2 glass of white vinegar with the color food dying of your choice (I just used matcha) to 1 tbsp of baking soda . Always under supervision!

6. DIY Halloween mugs: you can use chalk markers or permanent ones,and customize your own mugs for seasonal occasions!

7. Last one (for now) a DIY witch puppet! A gift for you today: I made that with for the girls and they love it, so I decided to share the template here. Hope you like it!

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We still creating crafts and recipes for Halloween so I’ll maybe share a “part 2” of that blog post soon!

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Halloween cootie catcher: free printable

Halloween cootie catcher: free printable! I’ve created something for you and decided to share it on a blog post instead of another newsletter! If you aren’t a subscriber yet, these are the kind of gifts that I share with my newsletters, so don’t forget to subscribe if you like it!

Do you remember these fortune tellers ? We used to play a lot when we were kids, in Spain we call them “come cocos” and in France they call them “cocottes”. We used to sang a song and choose one number to find the secret hidden inside. I thought that it would be fun to create our own for Halloween and play with the girls, practicing folding,fine motor skills, spelling, learning numbers etc

You can scroll down to download your free printable, I created 2 versions: the blank one so you can write your own jokes, activities etc and another with some examples. This way you can add your own language too. I myself used two blanks so I could write one in french and one in Spanish.

Here you can find the video tutorial in case you don’t know how to fold the cootie catcher:

Instagram reel tutorial

I really hope you’ll like that Halloween cootie catcher free printable, it was so much fun to create and I am pretty proud about the result! Do you like it too?

Here’s the blank version:

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And here the English version with questions and activities:

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Find here last year’s Halloween activities that I shared on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scraps.and.coffee.grounds/guide/halloween-ideas/18319485259009442/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Thanks for following along! Xoxo

DIY castle cake

DIY castle cake: the newest cake idea for that summer! With that easy birthday cake you will rock any party,and it’s perfect for summer, accompanied with ice cream or for beach themed birthdays.

Sand castles, ice creams, starry nights…summer is here and also my birthday coming soon ?. So I made that easy handmade cake,with ice cream cones and the veganized yogurt cake that I shared before for other cake ideas like the bunny cake.

For that one I used 5 cones,the yogurt cake, some paper scraps to make the flags,round cookies and 4 sticks (you can reuse scraps for these too or just use 4 small chopsticks).

First of all you’ll bake the yogurt cake. I used a round mold so I cut it and make a square shape. Then I created small tours with the cookies and added the cones ( I made a door with one of them) . And finally I added some sprinkles. I cut small flags and glued to the chopsticks and carefully put it on the top of the cones. That’s pretty all! You can decorate it depending on the ingredients you already have on your pantry,no need to buy something in purpose either!

Recipe:

1 coconut yogurt
3 cups of flour
1 Cup of olive oil
1 tbsp baking soda
2 ripped bananas

That’s the order of how I mix the ingredients so I can use the coconut yogurt glass to measure. when the batter is homogeneous I pour it on the mold and oven 180° c 20min.

I like to make our own birthday cakes so if you want to check more ideas and birthday table inspiration,you can check my Instagram guide here .

Hope you liked this and that you are having a great summer! Xoxo

Sara

Find my DIY ideas and crafts classed by themes on my “about me” page
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Father’s day gift ideas

Father’s day gift ideas! Father’s day is almost here and we crafted something fun for the occasion! A new DIY that I never tried before, hope you like it! We also cooked something fun so keep reading because you are going to love!

Moustache cake!

First of all the special cake for daddy! The idea of a cake came because my husband’s birthday is just a few days before father’s day here in France. He likes vintage moustaches so that’s why! First of all we baked some cookies and used our letter cutters to create the word “dad”. It’s a great activity for toddlers who are learning letters too! Then I used my vegan yogurt recipe and a round mold for the cake. To create a moustache,you just need to cut in the middle like the yin yang symbol ??.

I melted back chocolate and used it as icing,with a fork I simulated the hair a bit.

Ingredients of the cake:

1 coconut yogurt
3 cups of flour
1 Cup of olive oil
1 tbsp baking soda
2 ripped bananas

That’s the order of how I mix the ingredients so I can use the coconut yogurt glass to measure. when the batter is homogeneous I pour it on the mold and oven 180° c 20min. Here’s the video “tutorial”:

It was really good! You need a large plate for that cake because the moustache will be pretty long unless if you use a small round mold (less than 30cm).

DIY scratch cards

That’s something that I never tried before, and it can be a nice handmade gift for different occasions! I made a template on Canva and printed (scroll down if you want to download it for free). Then we added cute notes or gifts inside the smallest square. I avoid plastic tape (better a greener alternative like washi tape) but for that one you’ll need it, to cover the notes and paint it with the “scratchable” paint.

To create that layer you’ll need 2 tbsp of dish soap and 1 tbsp of acrylic paint (gold). Mix and cover the tape (you’ll need a few layers)

Your cards are ready! We’ll add them to the handmade card that the girls made for daddy and they will scratch together to find the “vouchers”.

Clock here to download the templates:

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These are the two ideas that I wanted to share this year but you can find more on the DIY section of the menu. Hope you like them and enjoy your weekend! Xoxo

Vegan rhubarb pie

Vegan rhubarb pie recipe with : It’s rhubarb season! Rhubarb here is not that common so it’s hard to find it even on farmer markets, but last time we went for groceries I found it so here’s the second recipe I have tried for rhubarb.

I bought about 500 gr and payed attention to choose even stems for the geometric pattern.

Haven’t had much time that week to look for new recipes or how to create patterns with rhubarb so I went for another pie and a different “easy” pattern. You can find last year’s pie recipe here: https://atomic-temporary-64974688.wpcomstaging.com/2021/07/02/geometric-rhubarb-pie/

To make the pastry you can check the recipe here: https://test.scrapsandcoffeegrounds.com2021/04/29/zucchini-pie/?preview=true&amp=1

For that pie I used coconut cream, 2 apples, 500 gr of rhubarb, honey and 1 smashed banana as a substitute for 2 eggs?. First of all preheat the oven 180°c and cut your rhubarb stems diagonally,try to cut with same the same size all the cubes. Bake the pastry 15 min and while it was in the oven I heat the pan and add cubes of rhubarb and apple with the honey. Then I beat the cream, banana and the caramelized rhubarb and apple cubes. Add the batter in the pastry and add your last rhubarb cubes with the pattern of your choice. Bake for 30 min. The pie is ready!

So what fo you think? I must admit that I am not a big fan of rhubarb but that vegan recipe with apples and coconut cream is really tasty ?. And the patterns are hard but actually satisfying to create!! Definitely a new tradition for us! Hope you like it! Sara

Vegan lilacs and lemon loaf cake

Vegan lilacs and lemon loaf cake: new seasonal recipe on the blog today! Is vegan and sugarfree and it’s delicious! And looks pretty as well!

We have a wild lilac bush on the garden and every year we can enjoy the scent and some food recipes with its flowers as lilacs are edible flowers! Did you know that? I also love their color and since still citrus season I decided to try my very first lemon loaf cake but with lilacs.

First of all a little fail: I wanted to try to freeze lilac flowers but it didn’t work,they lose the color and became all withered. So don’t do it ? better to use fresh ones!

Ingredients

1 cup 1/2 flour of your choice
1/3 cup of plant based milk (I used oats)
3 tsp poppy seeds
1/2 cup Olive oil
A pinch of salt
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp baking soda
3/4 lilac honey ( https://test.scrapsandcoffeegrounds.com2020/05/24/herbal-honey/?preview=true&frame-nonce=22143d368c&amp=1 )

Glaze:

1/4 cup of stevia powder
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 coconut yogurt

How-to: mix all the solid ingredients and then add the liquid ones. Preheat the oven 180° C and then put the batter in the mold of your choice (I tried a round one).Baked it for 35min. Glaze: whisk the coconut yogurt with the stevia powder and the lemon juice. Wait to add it to the cake when it’s cold. Decorate with some lilac flowers and enjoy!

I wanted to try to make some shaped doughnuts and it turned out great! It’s delicious and another pretty way to serve it,we loved it! I will definitely try again!

What do you think? Doughnuts or regular? We love both! Hope you liked it!Sara

DIY Easter table

DIY Easter table: this year our little bunny is turning 3 on the same weekend of Easter, so the choice of the birthday theme seemed obvious! Some bunny’s 3! Scroll down to read all the DIY ideas for her bunny birthday and Easter table ?.

We like slow/small birthday parties for our girls, for many reasons since they were born the very same of their birthday is just the 4 of us, and then the days after we visit the family to meet everyone and enjoy their company ?. That’s a way to stress less about preparations too. But we like to have a nice table with a theme that the girls usually ask for.

For that bunny birthday theme, I chose the letter board “some bunny’s 3” , I cut out a number 3 and used the DIY garland that I made for her first birthday.

We made a few props ourselves, here’s the list:

Eggcardboard carrots ?, pasta bumblebees ?,bunny toppers ? a real carrot bouquet and the piñata is an upcycled one: keep reading to see!

Last week we also made these bunny ears headbands, so easy and perfect for Easter! You can see the video tutorial below. I added a small crown for the birthday girl ?.

The food was handmade too, only easy recipes! For the cake, cupcakes and doughnuts I used the same recipe: the it’s a variant of my grandma’s yoghurt cake.

Ingredients:

1 yogurt (I use plant based),1 yogurt glass of olive oil, 1 banana ripped (or sweetener of tour choice,but it’s also the alternative to 1egg), 1tbsp baking soda, 3 yogurt glasses of flour.

Mix the liquid ingredients and the solid ones separately (sift the flour). Add the solids to the liquids and mix again. Use the mold of your choice and bake for 25 min/180°c. Side note: To create a bunny cake, you’ll need a round mold.

That very same recipe works perfectly for cupcakes and I loved how doughnuts came up! Look at the photos:

I used raped coco to create a fake fur for the bunny cupcakes (that’s my favorite way to avoid extra sugar to my sugarfree recipes: frostings and icings are hard without sweeteners, and I find them very time consuming). I added the bunny ears and tails with the templates that I created for the occasion. I tried to add spread cheese to some doughnuts and it was delicious! Like a sort of bagel! And we decorated them with DIY sugar daisies that the girls use just as kind of playdough ?.

Bees energy balls recipe:

As I wanted to add spring vibes to the theme and the party needed a piñata, I thought about some bumblebees and a honeycomb piñata. We created bumblebees from pasta to decorate the piñata and the table. And also we made these carrot cake energy balls . Here’s the recipe:

1 cup of rolled oats, 2 cups of shredded carrots, 1tbsp cinnamon,1tbsp ginger, 1/2 cup of raisins, 1/4 coconut flour, 1 pinch of salt. Roll the mixture into 1 inch balls. I added almond flakes as wings and dark chocolate for stripes.

Bunny cake

So for the bunny cake you’ll need to cut the round in a half. Use the stuffing of tour choice to add the two parts and let them stand up like a rainbow. I added a bit of stuffing all over and finally put the raped coconut and the ears. To create fake grass I used more coconut and mixed to 1/2 cup of matcha. Check the video below:

Gingerbread cookies

Funnily enough, I found the perfect cutters for Easter just a week ago. I love cutters because we used them too for salt dough and other crafts, so I couldn’t resist these ones: I added some cookies to the party! Here’s my favorite cookie recipe:

165g flour
¾ tsp cornstarch
¼ tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
? tsp ground nutmeg
? tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp salt
2 tbsp (28g) coconut oil
1 ripped banana
¼ cup honey

Mix liquid ingredients,then solid ones, then everything. Put the mixture inside a reusable food bag and chill the dough for at least one hour in the fridge. Then make the cookies, pre-heat the oven and bake 180°c for 20min.

The honeycomb piñata!!

If one thing was clear for the little one’s party was the piñata. I decided to upcycle a Chinese lamp into it. I just painted it yellow, added some bumblebees with thread and cover the bottom with paper and a few laces. The girls loved it, and as we didn’t break it (just removed the bottom): they asked to use it as her new bedroom’s lamp.?

And here’s a little video of the final table! Hope you liked that DIY Easter table!Sara xoxo

Anke kemp sustainable clothing brand

Anke kemp sustainable clothing brand: you might already know that I am a proud member of the www.ethicalinfluencers.com. That means that I often collaborate with sustainable and ethical brands to spread awareness and share slow fashion brands, eco-friendly cosmetics, sustainable self-care products. We want to help the world find the right items to protect our planet, sharing ethical brands that care about your own health and our mother Earth’s one.

As I am located in France, I share mostly European brands, like www.ankekemp.com a sustainable brand located in Amsterdam who’s creating amazing sweaters and tshirts with organical cotton and recycled materials.

For that collaboration, I received 2 gifted products: the “be the change” black sweater and the basic white t-shirt.

Anke kemp sustainable clothing brand has a great collection of sweaters and t-shirts, available in different colors.

I chose the black hoodie with the brand name beautifully embroidered on the chest and the message ” be the change” on the back. Hoodies are made with 80% organic cotton and 20 % recycled polyester: each sweatshirt recycles five 1.5l plastic water bottles!

The white t-shirt is also super soft and comfortable, the perfect timeless basic with lovely details too ( love the tags mentioning that “you are the perfect size” ). Made with 100% organic cotton, they make part of the better cotton initiative. Better cotton is helping cotton communities to survive and thrive, while protecting and restoring the environment. Read more about it here .

Become a part of the Anke Kemp story;
discover sustainable streetwear with a statement and support our mission to make slow-fashion new fashion. We’re passionate about our essential collection of stylish pieces designed to inspire a new generation of forward thinkers on their journey to sustainability.
Anke kemp

Why you will love that brand?

Because Anke Kemp cares not only about fabric composition of their clothes, but also about an eco-friendly packaging: they use biodegradable mailer bags, recycled tissue (the wrap of the item when packed) and the stickers to seal the wrap are also from recycled materials.

Obviously as an ethical brand they also pay a premium for their hoodies to make sure everyone in the supply chain gets fairly paid. If they offer discounts, it affects only their growth margin, not the payment of garment workers.

Why you should choose small businesses?

Small businesses are limited to order quantities when starting out, the reach isn’t the same as big corporations who are able to order thousands of items resulting in lower prices. Everything in the fashion industry is based on quantity, if you can order a higher quantity, you get a lower price point per item.

If you continue to support small businesses, they then can eventually grow/ order higher quantities and offer better prices. But to get to that point, they need support.

Thats one of the reasons why small sustainable businesses seem to be pricier compared to for example fast fashion brands. Fast fashion brands are starting to create sustainable lines ( you might have heard about green washing ) and they are able to keep the price down cause of higher quantities and their non sustainable line absorbing some of the costs.

It’s our responsibility to be more conscious about our wardrobe choices, choosing the right brands and items that will last long because of their quality and timeless style.

That’s why I loved Anke kemp’s collection. And I am sure you will love it too! You can use the code Sara20 for a 20% discount on your purchase. BE THE CHANGE!

Follow more sustainable tips on my Instagram https://instagram.com/scraps.and.coffee.grounds?utm_medium=copy_link

Find my DIY ideas and crafts classed by themes on my “about me” page
https://test.scrapsandcoffeegrounds.coma-propos/?preview=true&preview_id=1&preview_nonce=b6a95f434e&frame-nonce=d2ac28a990&amp=1

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DIY cardboard fish

DIY cardboard fish: why fishes? Well tomorrow it’d April the first and here in France that is how we call April’s fool : “poisson d’avril”.

Every year we craft fishes from cardboards like last year we did with toilet paper rolls. This year I was looking for another zero waste activity so I thought that these foil chocolate wrappers would be perfect as fish scales. We try to avoid them and as your know we avoid sugar as much as possible (specially for the girls) but we (my husband and I) do love a chocolate bar from time to time.?

How-to

You can check the video tutorial if you scroll down, but the how-to is pretty simple: draw a fish on a cardboard (if you can recycle something, it’ll be a plus!) Cut it, also cut the scales with paper news and chocolate wrappers, glue them to the cardboard, add some color to the face and fins and it will be done! I added a fun tail with just a long fastener.

I link here the fish drawing for those who prefer to print it:

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I have never been a fan of pranks and April’s fool is definitely not one of my favorite celebrations, crafting fishes for that day has become a new tradition that I am loving!

Here’s last’s year version with toilet paper rolls:

So what do you think about that diy cardboard fish? And will you prank someone? Hope it’s just a nice prank!?

And feel free to subscribe to my newsletter for monthly gifts ??

J’ai vu 3 chats bleus, à la queue leu-leu
Marchant sur un fil… Poisson d’avril !

J’ai vu un chameau faire du vélo
Tout autour d’une île… Poisson d’avril !

J’ai vu un gros ver en hélicoptère
Traversant la ville… Poisson d’avril !

J’ai vu une vache avec des moustaches
Et de très longs cils… Poisson d’avril !

J’ai vu 10 corbeaux assis sur le dos
D’un vieux crocodile… Poisson d’avril !

Paul Géraldy, in Vous et moi

Diy cardboard Tetris

Diy cardboard Tetris: our new craft made from egg boxes!

Do you remember Tetris? How cool Gameboys were, I am not a huge console fan but I’d love to play again Tetris in a vintage Gameboy.

So when I saw this a few months ago on Instagram (@actividades_infanties) I totally wanted to try! But I haven’t these big egg boxes (if we buy eggs it’s usually by twelve). When I visited my parents and saw that box I instantly asked for it.?

The craft is pretty easy, you take the “lid” part of the box and choose which parts you will cut (I draw a small dot on each part) . Be careful when you cut the parts of the puzzle so you don’t break the cardboard. Then we painted it with acrilic. That’s all! It’s a fun craft for kids involving fine motor skills,art, solving solutions and it’s zero waste. ?

Here’s a video so you can see better:

What do you think? DIY cardboard Tetris:Cool or not? The girls loved it so it’s a win for us!?

Living is like Playing Tetris: when you fit in , you disappear.
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