Hand made necklaces

(disclosure: the blue animal above is a giraffe, not what you're thinking in your head)
Again, another excellent idea from Pinterest.  We decided to make our own necklaces for Mother's Day gifts and end of the year teacher gifts.  I thought making the necklaces ourselves would make it just a little more personal and something extra special for the Grandmas.  I picked up some Shrinky Dinks (I used to be obsessed with these as a child) at Michaels, along with some colored pencils, and pre-made necklaces.  I had all the beads and jewelry tools to put the rest together.  We cut out 3.5 inch circles and punched a whole in the top and I let the kids color whatever they wanted.  We baked them in the oven,  one of the funnest parts of the project.  Then they chose which ones went to which person.  I think they turned out so cute!  And they were a hit with everyone.  

My niece Lauren made some book marks out of the left over pieces.  They turned out cute too!