I had an opportunity to travel to Michigan  a couple of weeks ago to participate in a community service project with The Home Depot Foundation's Celebration of Service. I expected it to be a wonderful experience, but I had no idea that what was in store for me was more than I could have ever imagined.  It was such an honor to play even the very small part that I did in such an incredible project, and I will always hold it dear. Along with eleven other bloggers, I spent the day at Stiggy's Dogs, an organization that "by uniting  military veterans and rehabilitated shelter dogs,  we are rescuing one to rescue another". There are people in this world that are "do-ers".  Jennifer Petre, … [Read more...]

Hello Everyone, I'm Cindy and I am thrilled to be guest posting! I would love for you to come visit me at Skip to my Lou for some crafty tutorials, handmade gift ideas, teacher appreciation ideas, sewing patterns and recipes! Please stop by and say hello! When school begins I try to send a little something to school for my child's teachers to start the year off right and open the lines of communication. By sending this little gift I want them to know that I want to be involved and that they can call on me during the school year for any help they might need. I have always loved volunteering at my child's school. My children see that school is important to me too and I get a peek into their … [Read more...]

Hi Everyone! I wanted to tell Kierste thanks so much for having me guest post here today! I LOVE LOVE LOVE back to school time. It's one of my absolute favorite times of year - although this year I'm sending my first off to kindergarten so it will definitely be the toughest so far!  Before I became a mom I was a second grade teacher and loved throwing myself into finding fun new ways to make learning fun for my students. I would scour books, the internet, and other teacher's brains for fresh ideas that I knew my student's would love. These days my teaching is focused on my children and although we still do learning activities throughout the summer when school starts we dive in full force … [Read more...]

Hello there! I'm Kristen from Capturing Joy with Kristen Duke. I am a mother of 4, photographer, diy-er, and author of 2 photography books. I love to share my passion in life, and write about anything and everything. I'd love to have you over to see how I find Joy in life. Today, I am sharing a little gift we made for our teachers. It is completely homemade by the kids, but you can customize the idea to make it as fancy as you'd like. It is actually a great gift for grandparents as well. It is a mini "All about Me" accordian book that just uses one 8.5x11 sheet of cardstock, and a bunch of stickers, colors, etc. It was a way to let our teacher know fun things about our girl right at … [Read more...]

I am posting the winner on both this site, and on brown paper packages, because the transfer isn't quite complete.  So don't worry--the winner should be able to see it either way!!! A HUGE congrats to... #775, Kori!!! I'm so excited for you!!! Please contact me at brownpaper_packages@yahoo.com within 48 hours, or I will select a new winner. {kierste} … [Read more...]

 My goodness, this is a post that I didn't ever think I would be writing.      In a few days, Brown Paper Packages will not be the same...it's getting a new name!  Yes, it's true, and it's been one of the hardest things I've had to do.  When I started this blog three years ago, I thought I was being SO creative in choosing a name. It was one that I loved, and thought would represent me what I wanted to blog about--all of my favorite things.  Apparently I was not the only one.  :) A couple of months ago I became aware of a couple of other blogs with the same name, but it wasn't until I saw one of them being featured on a friend's blog and seeing … [Read more...]

 Hi there friends!!! My name is Kristyn from Lil' Luna, and I am SOO happy to be here today on Brown Paper Packages. I just love Kierste and all her creative ideas!! I was thrilled when Kierste asked that I share a Back 2 Basics tutorial with all of you. Since my oldest started Preschool last week, I thought it would be perfect to share with you the little Back to School Gift we made for her. I'm always trying to think of practical gifts and thought this next one would be good for any teacher. It can be filled with goodies or other red or green school supplies. I had found these cute paper clips at Target and knew these would be perfect. Here is how you can make it too...   … [Read more...]

Guess what!!! I'm in Michigan for Home Depot's Celebration of Service kickoff, and already I've met some fabulous bloggers and can't wait to meet more! I'm so looking forward to tomorrow's project, and can't wait to tell you all about it. Meanwhile...there is a new Silhouette promo I want to tell you about, AND a............GIVEAWAY!!!! One very lucky Brown Paper Packages reader is going to win a Silhouette Cameo!  But that's not all, you'll be winning the whole promotional bundle, which also includes 1 package of gold foil, 1 package of silver foil, and 1 package of sticker paper!  These products are SO SO fun, and convenient, too. Just look at this darling label using … [Read more...]