Saturday, December 25, 2010

I have a few kits left


I was just popping in to let you all know that I do still have a few of my latest Hearts and Trees Kit left. Be sure to check it out if you haven't already. It is full of fun, easy handicraft, art and nature study projects you can use in your homeschool. If you have any questions, feel free to email me (heartsandtrees@yahoo.com). Thanks!

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Hearts and Trees Fall 2010 Kit!


SOLD OUT!!! THANK YOU!!!

Only while supplies last!!!

I am really excited to finally have my newest kit available to share with you all. Thank you for your patience. There are a lot of fun projects in this kit that I am sure you and your children will enjoy. Each kit includes the instructions and materials to complete easy and fun handicraft, art and nature study projects with a minimum of effort. (Please note that you will need to provide common art supplies such as paper, markers, watercolors, etc.)The sewing project for this kit is a fall leaf bunting. Your child will design and sew a banner to hang up as a fall decoration. Six muslin triangles and six squares of fall colored fabric, as well as the needle, thread and pins needed are all included in the kit. With this project your child will have the option to use leaves on each of the six triangles or to spell out the word "FALL" on four of the triangles and just use leaves on two of the triangles. All the templates are provided.

A shrink plastic suncatcher is another project in this kit. An 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of clear shrink plastic is included in this kit. The instructions and template for the suncatcher are included.

The featured artist in this kit is Jan Van Kessel. An art print focusing on insects is part of this kit. There is a notebooking page focusing on Van Kessel and insects as well.

There is a watercolor project based on the Van Kessel print. A 4"x6" watercolor paper postcard is used as a canvas for an insect art project. A 5" x 7" professional black mat is included as a finishing touch for this art project.

The art element for this kit is circles and dots. Your child will learn about the circle and dot families and will be encouraged to look for these shapes in artwork they view as well as to use these elements in their own sketching. A nature study color wheel finishes up the nature study part of this kit. Your child will fill in their own color wheel and then take it outside and look for things to match each slice of the color wheel. This is a fun project to get you outside and focused on fall color.

In all this kit includes:
1 sewing project, 1 handicraft project,
1 art project, 1 art print, 1 artist notebooking page,
1 art element notebooking page and 1 nature study project.

Complete Contents List:
  • Fall bunting sewing project (muslin squares, 6 fall colored fabric squares, needle, thread, pins, templates and instructions)
  • Jan Van Kessel art print
  • Van Kessel artist notebooking page
  • Shrink plastic suncatcher handicraft project (shrink plastic, template and instructions)
  • Circle and dot families art element notebooking page
  • Insect framed watercolor postcard project (watercolor paper postcard, professional black mat, instructions)
  • Nature color wheel nature study project (blank color wheel and instructions)
These kits were gathered with children ages 6-12 in mind. Parents may need to help their students, especially younger children, with some aspects of this kit.

To purchase a kit you will just need to make a PayPal payment to my account. You can do that using the "Pay Now" buttons in my sidebar. Just be sure to use the button for the right number of kits you would like to purchase.

The cost per kit is $12.95. plus shipping. Shipping for one kit will be $2.50 First Class. Shipping for two kits will be $3.50 First Class and shipping for three kits will be $5.50 First Class. (Please note if you purchase 3 kits they will come in 2 envelopes.) For information about purchasing more than three kits, please email me for shipping information. Shipping prices are for the US and Canada. (For information about shipping outside of the US and Canada, please email me.)

All kits will ship within 4 business days after I receive payment. If you are interested in purchasing any of the PDFs I am currently selling (they are in my sidebar) and you wish to make a combined payment for multiple items, feel free to email me for a total. I have purchased materials for a limited number of kits so be sure to purchase your kit soon.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at mailto:heartsandtrees@yahoo.com. Please note, I currently DO NOT have Internet at my house, so it may take me a day to get back to you. Sorry for any inconvenience.

New email address

I have set up a separate email account for Hearts and Trees. It is: heartsandtrees@yahoo.com. Please use this email address for any questions you may have about my kits or blog. Thanks!

Monday, October 25, 2010

From My Archives...

Over the years I have complied some list of links of fun fall handicraft projects. I just wanted to share them with anyone who hasn't seen them. Enjoy!


I also have designed a Fall Nature Walk Scavenger Hunt Worksheet which you may want to use on your next family nature walk.

If you do any of these projects feel free to leave links to your blog in the comments or email me photos and I will share on my blog. Thanks!

And be sure to check out my Fall 2010 Art, Handicraft and Nature Study Kit if you haven't already. I reaching the end of my supplies.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Fall 2010 Kits Shipped


So my first group of Fall 2010 kits have been shipped. Thank you to everyone who has already purchased one. I am 2/3 of the way through my supplies, so if you haven't purchased a kit already be sure to do so soon before I run out! You can find all the information in this post. If you have any questions feel free to email me. Thanks!

Friday, October 1, 2010

It's really getting close...I promise


So I am really almost done with my Fall 2010 kit. I've finalized the projects, ordered supplies and have a timeline all set up to get the kit ordering launched next week. I thank everyone for their patience. Thank you also to everyone who has sent me an encouraging email asking about when I will be offering my next kit. It's getting really close. I promise. :) This has just been the busiest summer I've ever had. Between my secular work and my volunteer construction work and trying to fit in some summer activities, this summer has really just flown by. I can hardly believe it's October! Anyway, look for a post introducing my Fall 2010 kit at the end of next week.

You can subscribe to my blog in the sidebar (or follow me on Blogger) so you'll be sure to hear about my newest kit as soon as it's available.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Well hello there....


I can't believe it is almost August! And I haven't finished putting together my summer kit. I have every intention of getting my newest kit up for sale in the next couple of weeks. It has been such a busy summer-I've been working extra hours at my "real job" and doing lots of volunteer work- including volunteer construction work which is so much fun. :) I have all my ideas for my Summer/Fall 2010 kit on paper and I am working on gathering all the supplies and putting together all the instructions. I want to thank everyone who has emailed me curious about the status of Hearts and Trees. Be sure to check this space in the coming weeks for more information. Have a great day! ~Amanda

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Hearts and Trees Winter/Spring 2010 Kit!

Introducing the Hearts and Trees
Winter/Spring 2010 Kit!!

I am really excited to finally have my newest kit available to share with you all. Thank you for your patience. Because it has taken me so long to put together, I am again combining two seasons for this kit. This is my Winter/Spring 2010 kit.

There are a lot of fun projects in this kit that I am sure you and your children will enjoy. Each kit includes the instructions and materials to complete easy and fun handicraft, art and nature study projects with a minimum of effort. (Please note that you will need to provide common art supplies such as paper, markers, watercolors, glue, etc.)

The themes of this kit are: owls, salt, silhouettes and nightscapes.


The sewing project for this kit is an adorable felt owl stuffie. Your child will learn 3 basic embroidery stitches and complete this easy sewing project. As a new feature, included with the purchase of the kit will be an invitation to my private Hearts and Trees Resources blog. On this blog you will find step by step videos, instructions and printable PDFs for all three of the stitches used in this project.

There is a notebooking page focusing on facts about owls and your child is encouraged to research an owl that lives in your area.

The art project in this kit is a owl watercolor nightscape silhouette. The watercolor paper, black cardstock and instructions (including a template for the silhouette) are included in the kit. You will learn to make an interesting texture for the background using watercolors and salt.

Another handicraft project included in this kit, is a set of plastic canvas coasters. Using two colors of yarn and learning two different stitches, your child will complete their very own set of coasters. This would be a nice introduction to plastic canvas. The yarn, plastic canvas, plastic needle and instructions are all included in this kit.

The featured artist in this kit is Vincent Van Gogh. There is a notebooking page focusing on VanGogh as well as an art print of his Starry Night.
The art element studied in this kit is silhouettes. A notebooking page is included which ties in with the included Van Gogh art print.

Once again I am including a lapbook in my kit. This one was put together by my mom. It is all about salt. You and your child will complete four different salt experiments. The four experiments are entitled: Making Salt Crystals, Salt and Ice, Will an Egg Float?, and Freezing Salt Water. This is bound to be a lot of fun. I have included all the instructions and lapbook elements, you will need to provide the file folder, salt and some basic household items to complete the experiments.
In all this kit includes: 1 sewing project, 1 handicraft project,
1 art project, 1 art print, 1 artist notebooking page,
1 art element notebooking page, 1 salt lapbook,
and 1 nature study notebooking page!

Complete Contents List:
  • Van Gogh art print Starry Night
  • Van Gogh artist notebooking page
  • Plastic canvas coasters- set of two- yarn, plastic needle, plastic canvas, instructions
  • Owls nature study page- owl information, research project and sketching assignment
  • Owl Nightscape Silhouette project- ½ sheet black paper, ½ sheet watercolor paper, instructions
  • Silhouette art element notebooking page with instructions to make a profile
  • Owl Stuffie Embroidery project- felt, needle, pins, embroidery thread, instructions
  • Salt lapbook- lapbook element pages, 2 plastic baggies, strip of watercolor

These kits were gathered with children ages 6-12 in mind. Parents may need to help their students, especially younger children, with some aspects of this kit.

To purchase a kit you will just need to make a PayPal payment to my account. You can do that using the "Pay Now" buttons in my sidebar. Just be sure to use the button for the right number of kits you would like to purchase

The cost per kit is $11.95 plus shipping. Shipping for one kit will be $3.25 First Class. Shipping for two kits will be $5.75 Priority and shipping for three kits will be $8.25 Priority. For information about purchasing more than three kits, please email me for shipping information. Shipping prices are for the US and Canada. (For information about shipping outside of the US and Canada, please email me.)

***Right now I am accepting PRE-ORDERS for this kit. I will ship all kits purchased before March 1st on March 2nd.***

After March 2nd all kits will ship within 4 business days after I receive payment. If you are interested in purchasing any of the PDFs I am currently selling (they are in my sidebar) and you wish to make a combined payment for multiple items, feel free to email me for a total. I have decided to limit how many of the Winter/Spring 2010 kits I am going to be putting together, so that I can better order supplies, so if you are interested, be sure to purchase your kit soon.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at amandachristina@yahoo.com. Please note, I currently DO NOT have email at my house, so it may take me a day to get back to you. Sorry for any inconvenience.

Free Download PDF Links

All the links under the heading My Free Downloads in my sidebar are all updated and working again. You can also find all of my downloads here: www.scribd.com/heartsandtrees.

Be sure to check out all my nature walk worksheets.
Spring Nature Walk Worksheet

Monday, February 22, 2010

Salt Experiment Lapbook Pages PDF


I have decided to offer the lapbooking pages from my Winter/Spring 2010 Kit for sale separately as a PDF (like the other PDFs I already sell on my blog). This lapbook was put together by my mom.

You and your child will complete four different salt experiments.

The four experiments are:
  • Making Salt Crystals
  • Salt and Ice
  • Will an Egg Float?
  • Freezing Salt Water

This is sure to be a lot of fun. The PDF includes all the lapbooking elements and instructions. You will of course need to provide the salt and other common household items to complete these experiments.


If you would like to purchase the 6 page set of Salt Experiments Lapbooking Pages as a PDF, I am offering it for $3.95. To purchase the PDF you can use the Pay Now PayPal button on my blog sidebar.

***Please note, this is not automated, so I will have to email the lapbooking pages to you once I receive your PayPal payment. I currently DO NOT have internet at my house. So you can expect the PDF to be emailed to you within 72 hours, but usually sooner. (I currently do not have Internet access at my house.) The PDF will be emailed to the email account associated with the PayPal payment I receive.***

Be sure to check out the other PDFs I have for sale. Links are in the sidebar of my blog. Right now you can also purchase a Winter/Spring 2010 Kit which includes the salt experiment lapbook pages along with a number of great handicraft and art projects. This is perfect if you are looking to add art, handicrafts and nature study to your homeschool.

If you have any questions about the Salt Experiments Lapbook PDF feel free to email me at heartsandtrees@yahoo.com.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Winter/Spring Kit Coming Soon


I just wanted to drop in and let everyone know that I am busy at work on my Winter/Spring kit. I will have it up for pre-ordering within the next week. Be sure to check my blog for information.