DIY: shadowbox out of a shoebox

We have a little something different this week: a DIY project! This might be just the thing if you’re still on the hunt for a last-minute Mother’s Day gift. Round up the kids, a shoe box, crafting supplies, and some small keepsakes to make a shadowbox for putting those keepsakes on display.

If your shoe box is glossy or has a lot of stickers on it, you might want to cover it in paper before you paint it.

How you choose to decorate your shoe box depends on the supplies you have handy. If your kids are still pretty young, the easiest route is to cover the whole box in strips of construction paper. If your kids love to draw or paint,  let them at it. If your box has a lot of stickers on it or has a glossy finish, you’ll need to cover it in plain white paper before you paint or draw on it.

Once all the glue and paint has dried, your shadowbox will be ready for display. Hanging it up is easy. You can use small nails, Command Velcro strips, or even thumb tacks. (Just be sure to check with your landlord and use the hanging option they prefer to keep your security deposit safe.)

After hanging the box, fill it with those keepsakes you gathered. Just don’t put anything too heavy in it!

If your kids really loved the project, just give them more shoe boxes to transform. Over time, they could build a whole gallery wall.

Mother’s Day events in the Pittsburgh Area

There’s plenty to do for Mother’s Day in the Pittsburgh Area.
By Clever Cupcakes from Montreal, Canada (Mother’s Day Cupcakes) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

As everyone hopefully knows, Mother’s Day is this Sunday, so in case you forgot, here are some last-minute ideas for events you could take mom to in the Pittsburgh area.

If you’re getting tired of the typical Mother’s Day brunch, take your mom to do something artsy instead. For example, Assemble Pittsburgh is offering an art class for mom and her adult kids where you’ll paint Pittsburgh landscapes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday. Or, if you want to do brunch and something artsy, you can go to Vessel Studio Glass on Saturday for an all-ages glass flower making workshop.

There’s a 21 and over Boozy Brunch at Wigle Wiskey Distillery in the Strip District, so if mom’s brood is all of-age, this might be a fun alternative to the traditional brunch.

For the music-lover mother, Fantasia is performing on Sunday night at the Benedum Center. If you act fast, you might be able to snag tickets.

Of course these are all on the slightly pricey side. A  more budget friendly option: the Frick Art and Historical Center is offering specials all Mother’s Day weekend, including free admission to Clayton for mom. For an excellent list of affordable Mother’s Day options, check out Living Pittsburgh.

If all else fails, you can always cook mom a nice meal, the traditional breakfast in bed, perhaps. Need a kitchen to cook in? Contact Prudential Realty Company for our current availability at a number of Pittsburgh locations.