Art & Craft Tutorial - Make a Money Box

I write an art & craft column for the fabulous family oriented magazine, NI4Kids. Visit their website to see step-by-step photos of this project. You'll also find lots of other fun projects to try.

Supplies needed: empty snack container with a plastic lid, pretty leftover papers from the holidays, scissors, ruler, tape, felt tip pens, tray to keep your materials tidy. Optional: glue, elastic bands.

1. Cover your work area with an old tablecloth and put your materials in a tray to keep them tidy.

2. After eating your Cheeselets, Pringles or any kind of snack that comes in a container with a plastic lid, clean out the inside with a damp sponge. Try to avoid getting the outside of the container wet.

3. Lay a pretty piece of wrapping paper face down on your table. If you don’t have leftover wrapping paper, you can use any paper that you have lying around. I used paper that I had hand decorated and was leftover from a previous craft project.

4. Mark where you will need to cut the paper by using the empty snack container as a template. Set it on its side, mark the paper at the top and bottom of the container, then roll it several centimetres and repeat.

5. Use a ruler to connect the marks. You should end up with two straight lines (one for the bottom and one for the top of the container).

6. Cut along the lines.

7. Wrap the paper around the container and tape it together where the paper overlaps. My paper wasn’t quite long enough to cover the whole container, so I cut another piece to fill in the space. If you prefer, you can glue the paper on instead of using tape. You’ll need to secure the paper to the container with elastic bands and leave it for a few hours until the glue dries.

8. Use the felt tip pens to decorate your money box. I personalised mine with my name and added some flower doodles, but you can decorate yours with any design that you like.

9. Ask an adult to cut a coin slot in the lid with a pair of scissors.

10. Voila! Your money box is done. Now all you need to do is find a place to keep it safe and start saving those pennies!

To see more creative project ideas, subscribe to:  www.youtube.com/joliedennison and www.facebook.com/jolieart.

Wine, Dine & Design - The Perfect Evening out with JolieArt

What do you get when you combine your favourite wine, yummy food, great craic & and creative entertainment?...the perfect evening out with Wine, Dine & Design!

If you’re tired of doing the same old thing at the weekend, you’ll love this new and exciting  alternative to the traditional night out. Learn to create your own masterpiece in a fun, relaxed, adults-only environment while sipping your favourite wine and enjoying  delicious food. Even if your last artistic creation was a stick figure, never fear because I will give you all the guidance you need to create your painting with confidence.

Journalist, Heather McGarrigle, who often writes for the Belfast Telegraph, attended the January launch of Wine, Dine & Design and described her experience as such, “It really didn't matter how it turned out; not only has it got me over my fear of putting paintbrush to paper, it will always serve as a reminder of a fun evening with my mate and the lovely people we met. We arrived at 7pm and by 10pm, we had completed our artworks, marvelled/guffawed at each other's efforts and were preparing to head to the pub to round the night off. It was a nice, non-cringey way to meet new people.” Be sure to visit Heather's blog to see her entire post.

Siobhan McGarry had this to say about her experience, “Oh Jolie - just have to say last night's 'Wine, Dine & Design was absolutely brilliant fun. My friend Jenny and myself had great craic! Great girlie night - thoroughly recommend it for getting a hen night started - or just a really lovely idea for a friends night out. Two words - Red & Town....let's just say the painting didn't stop when we left the building!”

For just £40 per person you’ll get step-by-step instruction, a canvas, use of paints and materials, a casually elegant buffet from the equally creative Whoosh Catering and, of course, a fabulous social experience that you’ll be talking about for ages. All you need to bring is your own bottle of wine and a few friends – or come and make new ones!

Wine, Dine & Design takes place in Belfast on the 3rd Friday of each month (or book a private event anytime). For more information, phone Jolie on 07830 429618 or visit www.joliedennison.com.