Crafting Central

Repurposed Scarves From An Old Sweater

2012-01-17T15:08:00.002-05:00

Anyway, I took this old school sweater that I loved the feel of (but not the style of) and unraveled the whole thing and put the yarn into balls and crocheted a few scarves. So me and my two best college friends have coordinating scarves....because two of the scarves are for their Christmas.

I know I took a picture of the sweater before, but can't find it in the computer. We've had a lot going on at our house, so I'm not surprised I can't find it!! If I find the picture somewhere, I'll post it later.

Since it is weeks after Christmas, I only have two of them at my house....I actually finished one before Christmas and mailed it to one of my friends. The other I just finished and will be mailing tomorrow, if at all possible.

Tee Necklaces

2011-11-04T19:51:00.003-04:00

My mom recently sent me a site with these recycled tee shirt necklaces and I wanted to try them. So I pulled out hand-me-downs from my sister's kids and cut the tee into 3/4 inch loops.

This green one is my first attempt. I put it on and thought, "No way am I wearing that." But decided I'd wear it to the mall today, not planning to see anyone I knew and see what I thought about it after seeing it all day. I did like it better by the end of the day, but am still not sure about it. So I decided to make a few more and see if maybe it was the color/thickness that was not right.....but since I didn't 'feel it' for these either, I decided to post them here to get feedback. I am hoping someone will look at them and tell me if they're tacky, or trendy.

What do you think?

Dress Redo

2011-06-07T18:22:00.004-04:00

I took this dress that looks like it has been around for 10-15 years, and knew it had potential. I hung it in my closet for a year....until I had inspiration today to make it into something much more fun! First up was taking out the seams on the slits in the bottom and sewing it back together, no more slits. Then I cut the embroidery/lace bottom off and put a hem at knee level. I knew even though that lace looked terrible along the bottom, it had potential, so I pinned it across the chest of the dress until I liked the arrangement and sewed along the top of the lace. I think it is quite an improvement.

Here is it on:

Jersey Rosette, Take 2

2011-05-25T15:15:00.001-04:00

I did try this again, and like it better, but am still not loving the thing. This time, I kept it loose and scrunched it a bit when I glued it down. I don't think I'm wasting the hairpin though, I don't think I'll wear it. But did want you to see the less-trivet-like creation!

Gathered Hair Flower

2011-05-25T15:11:00.003-04:00

I decided to try a different type of hair flower, and I think this turned out much better than the last one (trivet!).

I took this piece of fabric from a load of fabric given me by my family, and it was already folded and sewn together. I decided to just gather it across the bottom, with folded side out and then sewed the ends together. Then for the center, I took a black stretchy fabric a couple inches wide and made a pretty knot. I put the ends through the center, hot glued everything in place and put it on the hairpin. Fastest hairbow ever!

Jersey Rosette

2011-05-18T10:55:00.002-04:00

I've been wanting to try one of those cool recycled tee rosettes for a long time. I decided that dtoday was the day and made this. Unfortunately, I thought my rosette looked a lot more like a trivet than a rosette. So I tied another knot from a little scrap and hot glued some fringy yarn to the back of it and added it to the top. Still thinking it looks like a trivet, but now with a little flair. I guess I should try again. Anyone have tips to make it look better? I think maybe I just rolled my fabric too tightly.

Paper Buttons

2011-05-11T12:59:00.004-04:00

For all those who thought I was not making cards anymore, here are the ones I made this morning after getting the weekly email from Splitcoast Stampers with the tutorial on paper buttons.

The buttons are made from four layers of punched paper (pink) with a layer of homemade paper on top. Glue them all on top of each other and then cover the whole thing with Crystal Effects. I like the finished product. I didn't think it was popping enough on it's own, so I added some color behind it on the card and tied a string though the button holes. Here are the two pink ones I did first:

Then I decided while I was going I should make a couple more, so I used another piece of homemade paper and made these. I used a piece of cardboard, coated all over with VersaMark for the brownish strip along the bottom of the card.

Bird in a Cage

2011-03-18T10:02:00.005-04:00

I feel like I haven't done much crafting lately, and when I saw this little bird cage craft, I wanted to try it for our house. So, I didn't follow the directions exactly, but here is my version:

I used an oatmeal top for the cage bottom. It was clear, so I put a white circle on one side. For the cage cross-pieces, I used a box top that I had kept around for a while, knowing that silver would come in handy sometime. Also, I didn't have a pretty piece of paper 16.5 inches long to do around the diameter of the bottom, so I cut diagonally through a 12x12 piece and used that center strip. My strips are all about 1 inch across. I think I would make them smaller next time. You can't see my bird as well as I'd hoped.

I thought I'd try making it myself, and then see if my little 5 year old girl can make one too. I definitely think she could do one with help....but it would be better for someone a little older.

Sequin Shamrock

2011-02-24T13:39:00.004-05:00

I wanted my daughter to have a fun shirt for St. Patrick's Day and decided on this:

So quick and easy. I put an embroidery hoop on the part of the shirt I wanted to use, so the fabric would stay taut. Then I grabbed a bag of her little craft sequins and pulled out the green ones. I sewed them on by stitching through them twice and putting the thread on either side to keep them down. I was quite pleased with the result.

I created a Valentine's shirt for my daughter with sequins too. Only the heart was smaller and filled in. An easy way to make a simple holiday shirt, and I think you could just remove the sequins later if you want to wear it past the actual holiday.

Kasnzashi Silk

2011-02-24T13:31:00.003-05:00

I love these hair flowers and want one for every outfit! They keep the hair out of my face and from behind my ear and they are beautiful! I made this one from the same fabric as the flower on my purse, so I will match all over when I wear it!

Then I got this sample of 100% silk fabric from the fabric store this weekend to try a silk flower. The fabric had stripes of different colors, but I thought cream would go with almost anything, so I started there. Then I decided it needed a bright red, fabric covered button in the middle - so much for matching anything....Oh well.

I think the silk is pretty, and has more of a sheen on it, but am not sure I will do many more from pure silk. It unravels like crazy and isn't the easiest fabric to work with.

Kanzashi for My Purse

2011-02-03T10:37:00.002-05:00

On recommendation of my friend to make the button bigger on my new purse, I thought I'd create something. I used a piece of the lining fabric to make a Kanzashi flower to match, added a vintage brown button to the middle, hot glued it all together and put it on an old fashioned pin back. That way I can pin it in place over the button, and if I decide I want it on the strap instead, I can just move it over! I think it makes my purse *POP* and I LOVE it. Thanks for the recommendation, Laura!

Silver Chain

2011-01-27T09:01:00.004-05:00

I really like the asymmetrical look of necklaces these days and I was inspired by a piece of chain left over from a belt from the 80's. Remember those belts made of ropes and metal that were adjustable and had a big length of chain in the back that hung down? Well the biggest chain below, the one with all the circles, came from one that we had. (I say we, because I can't remember now if it was mine or my sister's). I added a few other chains and things that I had kept to add to just this kind of thing! Here is the finished product:

I love that I can take old, broken, short chains and just put them all together and have a fun new necklace!

New Purse

2011-01-26T13:21:00.003-05:00

I have been wanting a new purse. My old one is getting worn and is not as cool as I thought it once was....Though it was very easy to put together and amazingly functional! I knew I wanted another one that would have a strap that I could put over my chest to my other shoulder because it's so functional and doesn't fall off when I'm holding little hands. I saw a bunch of fabric in my stash this week that my mother in law handed down to me and knew I wanted it, so I went to work. I used a McCalls pattern to cut the shape for the purse front/back and then put the pattern away because I knew I wanted it a little differently. I cut a strip and sewed it down the front and back and put pockets on the liner pieces, and used hardware from my stash that I've been keeping around for just this reason. This is my finished product. I will admit it's a little larger than I thought it would be, but know that I will love that when I can stick a notebook in there and have my hands free! I took another photo closer up so you could see the hardware and the button closure. I figure with the button, I could just reach in for the little stuff and only unbutton for the bigger things. I made the strap adjustable for when I want to wear it on one shoulder, because as practical as it is, it's just not attractive for dressing up to have a purse across your chest!

And here is a shot of the inside. I like lots of pockets for organizing so I put 5. Yep. FIVE. One for the iPod. One for the phone. One for the Kleenex. One for the wallet. One for something extra.....I don't know yet.

Screen Door 2

2011-01-26T13:16:00.003-05:00

I knew I wanted to do this, but when I put the screen door on the wall, I felt like I needed to! So, I had the kiddos stand for photos, printed them out with terrible quality in black & white, and cut around them to create a silhouette of them. Then I used it as a template to make a blue silhouette and put them on white paper and in these frames that I spraypainted silver.

I also finished off the "T". I got a glass cut for the frame and bought a mat. The silhouettes look a little funny to me, so I'm planning to change the hanging of them. I've already put them on ribbons. Maybe I'll post another shot once I've finished them off. I was thinking of fabric flowers on the top of the ribbons......

Game Room Wall & Twister Clock

2011-01-23T14:12:00.006-05:00

On a trip I took with a friend last weekend, we scoured antique stores for games to use in this room. I came home and used industrial strength velcro to attach those games and some we already had to the wall above our shuffleboard table (so we could still take them down to play). I also hung a few on the other walls in this room, but this gives you a good idea of the 'look' of the space.

Today I got out Twister to show my kiddos how to play and the 3 year old said he wanted to "spin the clock." My wheels immediately started turning and with my hubbies help, I'd created this within a couple hours:

The hands are just black cardstock stuck to fancier clock hands on the movement I already had to give me a feel for how it looks until I get to buy the hands I really want. What do you think? I originally wanted to add the numbers (12,3,6,9) on the black lines, but when I put it on there we weren't sure if it would take away from the game board. Any suggestions before I finish it off with new hands?

Jeans to Skirt

2011-01-22T10:17:00.002-05:00

There are a bunch of tutorials out there on how to take an old pair of jeans and make a skirt. I had a pair that was a little too short, but fit pretty well otherwise, so I decided to try it. I put it together in just a couple hours. First, I ripped the seams along the inside. Then I cut off the legs to the length that I wanted. I pinned it all in place at top, then took the legs and placed them in the upside down "V" at the bottom that was missing fabric. I sewed it all together with an orangish thread to match the thread on the original seams and sewed down the original seams to make it seem weathered in the right spots. Then I sewed a double seam on the bottom and unraveled the bottom edge. I think the bottom will look better after it's washed, but I am not patient enough and had to wear the thing today! Here it is:

Screen Door Wall Hanging

2011-01-19T21:24:00.002-05:00

On a girl's antique shopping weekend I found an old screen door (without screens) and knew I wanted it for my wall.

I'd hung some plates here before, but they seemed to small for this big, blue wall. The door gives presence and a finished look that I had long been wanting. I am not totally finished with the decorating here, the monogram is not actually matted/finished, and there are a couple other things I want to do for the bottom right section....but I'm too impatient to wait to show you this great find!

Car Trash Bag

2011-01-04T09:35:00.003-05:00

I have been wanting a garbage container for the van and though my husband's idea of just putting a little trash can in there was very practical, I hoped to create something a little more pretty. I found this idea this morning:

http://spoonfullofsugargirls.blogspot.com/2009/09/quick-fathers-day-gift.html

I liked how the bag was made from things that were sitting in my closet anyway, because I didn't have to buy oilcloth or something. The outer fabric is an old shirt, the inner lining fabric is from a suit jacket my hubby had that the sleeves were cut off of (don't know why!) and the sour cream container and grocery bag were headed for recycling anyway! And I really liked how the thing is 'lined' with a disposable grocery bag! That makes cleanup really easy later!

Now I just have to get the family to use it! :)

T

2011-01-02T14:16:00.005-05:00

This was an idea I saw in a book from the library (decorating with papercraft by Clare Youngs). I thought it would be a great addition to our sunroom, which I dream about decorating with maps and stuff. I cut a "T" with my Cricut, and used it as a template to cut two T's from cardboard. Then I used strips about 1.5 inches wide to space the two T's apart. I used masking tape to hold it all together.

Then I took maps from a stash I have had for ages, and tore them apart and Modge Podge-d them all on. I covered it with a clear coat of acrylic spray and put it right on top of the TV cabinet.

Now to get some fun maps for the walls, so it will match something! Maybe on my upcoming vacation where I'll brouse through antique stores for days.....ahhhhh.......

Manger Magnets

2010-12-07T13:06:00.003-05:00

I had an idea I couldn't help but get to doing today! I took one of those magnets from off the front of phone books and removed all the paper off the front. To do it, I peeled off the original picture and was left with a bunch of white. Then I wet it and scraped it off with one of those Pampered Chef brown square plastic scraper-things.

Once I got it down to black, I cut the stable, manger and star out and put it on the fridge and here it is!

I am glad I practiced up on my paper cutting earlier in the year, or I don't think I would have attempted this project. It was quick and easy though with an exacto blade and a cutting mat. These magnets are really thin and easy to work with.

My plan for this magnet set is to put it on my mailbox (which is also white) and I think if it can survive the wind & cold out there, that is just where it will stay! I love the look of the black sillouette and the simplicity of it, and had been wanting to decorate up the mailbox for Christmas. But if it won't stay put out there on the mailbox, it's coming back in for the fridge! :)

5 Minute Snowballs

2010-12-04T15:34:00.003-05:00

I made a few of these 5-minute ornaments today.

I found this frilly, white yarn, some crochet cotton, and a bow-maker in my craft closet.

Then I made a pom-pom. For those who don't know how that works, I took a photo. I used my bow-maker to hold the yarn. Wrapped it around 50 times, and then tied a doubled over piece of crochet thread tightly around the center (I left the loop on the crochet thread long and used it to hang it on the branch). Then I cut the ends, so there weren't any loops on the frilly yarn, fluffed (I recommend doing this outside, it was really messy!)

They show up so well on the tree and were so easy and my little girly-girl loves it!

Wooden Turkey

2010-11-13T14:00:00.004-05:00

I found my inspiration for this project here:

http://wmcraftgoodies.blogspot.com/2010/11/todays-day.html

I used her example, but did things a little differently - mostly to save time/effort. I used a yard timber to give my turkey a little thicker and rounded belly. I STAMPED my sticks instead of adhering paper to them. I also dyed the nose and red-hangy-thingy (which I cut on the band saw from another tongue depressor) with my stamping ink. It took me less than 2 hours (if you don't count the glue drying time!) She explains things so well in her tutorial, I don't think you'll need any more info from me!

Give Thanks Banner

2010-11-13T10:00:00.007-05:00

I have been wanting to make one of these for a long time, but as we don't have a mantle, I didn't think I'd have a place for it. The thought occurred to me this week that I could put it on the piano. So I got to work. This was a fairly quick project. I cut the "flags" in 3x4 rectangles and used my brayer and brown ink to distress them. Then I glued white die cut letters onto bluish circles and patterned cardstock scalloped circles. I thought they needed a little more pop, so I glued a white scalloped circle the same size under the patterned one so you could just see the scallops. Then glued these to a brown rectangle and onto the tag. To dress up the top a little, I put a 1/2" circle where I wanted to punch the holes and then punched them. I strung this on twine (can I just say that I am VERY excited that twine was on many of the crafts I looked at this week! I love the earthy look and it reminds me of my parents!) I tied little pony beads on the end of the twine to keep it under the piano top and stuck the ends in there. Once I got the spacing right, I thought it needed a little more umph, so I added ribbons, tied on to the twine randomly, between the flags. I took a close-up so you could see the specifics better. Now maybe I can resist a little longer taking down the fall decorations to put up the tree!!

What do you think? Do you think they need something else?

ASK Sign

2010-11-09T20:25:00.008-05:00

I have been wanting to have a long sign to hang in my photo area in the living room to offset the small frames. I decided to use the opportunity of my hubby being out of town to make one myself! It started out like this:

I wanted to try Modge Podge (My new favorite craft item!! Why have I never used this before??) with letters that I cut out of paper using my Big Shot Die Cut system. So, I got to work. I cut all the letters from white cardstock.

And I needed a background. A blue one. Then it hit me, I had this shirt I'd been saving for a project....So, I cut the fabric from the back of the shirt to match the board that I found, already a good size, in my hubby's shop (Here's to hoping he didn't already have a plan for this board!)

I put on the fabric, then put on the letters, then realized I had NO IDEA what to do with the empty space. So I set it aside for a while. I came back to it when I realized I had flower die cuts too! So I cut out a bunch of flowers, and this was almost what I ended up with:

Then I emailed back and forth with my patient husband to get an opinion - I can't craft without someone else's opinion - which some of you know already! And on his suggestions I made a few changes. I modified some of the flowers with scissors for more variety - like the burst looking one was the same as the one on the upper right before my scissors got to it! And I added curlies and dots and stuff. Then we were pretty happy with it. So, I gave it a coat or two of Modge Podge, painted the edges the same color as my accent wall in the living room and added hangers. Yeah, I know you can't get the full effect with the frames turned around, but I'm not about to put my whole family on this blog! :)

My First Quilt

2010-11-01T09:33:00.005-04:00

My husband took the kids for a couple days so I could concentrate. So they played and shopped and I locked myself into the sunroom to sew. I got the inspiration for this quilt from a blog that I follow called Home Joys. I gathered denim from all the grandparents and cut these squares months ago, but was waiting for a time to sew them, and my hubby allowed me to concentrate on it this weekend. First, I set all the squares out in a random pattern that I liked.

Then I layered the top square, a square of an old sheet and another denim square for the back. I sewed it to the next square (layered) with the seam exposed on the top. My sister had given me a tip ages ago to sew a line together, then another line together, then sew the lines to each other. This is what I did.

When finished, I put it in the dryer to unravel. Unfortunately, it did not do as I would have liked, so I'm hand-unraveling it. Me and my ripper will be boosom buddies before this job is finished! I anticipate that I'll just go and unravel a few rows when I have time. I am so glad to give him this quilt of heritage and warmth! I hope he grows to love it and it's meaning!

Pallet Book Shelf

2010-10-26T20:37:00.004-04:00

I found this Pallet Shelf on a website this month, and immediately wanted to make it for our little guy's room. He's really into construction, as all little boys are. Here is our version:

I started this shelf with my husband not at home, but when I restarted with him at home, he jumped in to help. And boy am I glad he did! This was NOT A 5 minute job! It took us an entire evening together, after I had worked a whole nap time on it too.

Anthropologie Copy

2010-10-26T19:02:00.004-04:00

I attempted to copy the Verevine Necklace from Anthropologie, because I thought it was beautiful, but would NOT spend $42 on it!

I tried a bunch of different things, had a lot of things I had to re-do, but this was the final product. My knock-off:

I took the photo on two different shirts to let you see it well.

While I am aware that mine looks nothing like theirs, except in general structure, I am pleased with the final product. Now I just have to have enough guts to wear the thing!

Kanzashi Butterfly Ornament

2010-10-01T13:36:00.005-04:00

I have started working on Christmas ornaments! I like to give a different one each year and I am bound & determined to have them finished for the season. This is not the one I'm making to give everyone, and I had never made one of these, so I thought I'd share a photo:

It is made with fabric, using a kanzashi fold. The larger wings are simply a larger square of fabric. Then you put a string through the wings at the bottom (order: small, lg, lg, small) the same way you would a kanzashi flower petal and they gather together to make the shape of the butterfly. I hot glued on a piece of black cording I had that is kind-of flat and put a hanging string through the back of one of the large wings.

I know I hung it on a pineapple plant...I do like to put my Christmas tree up early....but even I can't do it this early!

Happy Birthday Taylor!

2010-09-25T14:36:00.003-04:00

I made these for the 15 year old across the street's birthday party today. I hope she actually likes them and wears them! :)

Crochet "O"

2010-06-25T14:18:00.004-04:00

My mom had a framed filet crochet "O" that my sister made in her bathroom. It was backed with a peach floral fabric to match her bathroom, but after their recent remodel of the bath, it no longer matched. I told Mom that I'd take it and make it match her brown bath. This is what I came up with.

I took the cardboard out of the frame and used a roller to roll brown ink all over to give a leathery appearance to the backing. Then cut the fancy corners with the cuttlebug Mom had given me a while back. Then put it all together. It was a pretty easy project, and I love taking something that is no longer useful (did not match) and making it beautiful again! I hope she likes it!

Pink Earrings

2010-05-11T16:44:00.003-04:00

I made these the same as the green pair in the last post, but different size ring and different beads. I am liking these earrings! Especially since it is so easy to customize a color! That embroidery floss is in every color imaginable!

Green Earrings

2010-05-08T15:57:00.003-04:00

A pair of earrings that I created today. I made the green circle from getting a plastic washer and knotting around it with embroidery floss. Then topped it with beads I already had and put it on wire. Lightweight and showy. I like it!

Dainty Earrings

2010-04-16T13:22:00.004-04:00

I think this is my favorite project of the year! I just crocheted this pair of earrings! My first completed crochet project in years. They were quick and simple, they're so light I can't tell I'm wearing them, and they're grey/silver - my fav! I bet my mom and sister will be asking me to bring some of this cool thread before I see them next week so we can make some! :)

Here's the site with the pattern for anyone who would like to try them!

http://www.jpfun.com/patterns/free/jewelry/f107008_daintyearrings.shtml

Quilled Layla

2010-03-12T14:02:00.003-05:00

I made this to go in a Pooh themed room for a cousin of mine. I didn't want to do the actual characters, because I'm sure I couldn't make them look right, and because I thought it could be used in the room longer. I decided to go with the honey/bee theme and found a proverb about honeycomb for the bottom. Hope it matches!

Finished Curtain

2010-03-09T09:48:00.005-05:00

My dad made this shelf/curtain rod hanger for me while he was here last weekend playing with the kids. I painted it and stapled a topper for this curtain and my hubbie hung it on the wall on Sunday. Looking good! Now I'm looking around the house for some fun, decorative things to put on it. I was thinking some little monkey figures would be cute....

Paper Cutting

2010-03-06T07:33:00.003-05:00

I tried my hand at a new craft yesterday. I was again inspired by a library book, so I brought it home. I tried to get my husband to try this craft with me, but he was totally UN-inspired! :) The book recommended you start with scraps of low-quality paper so you won't be upset when throwing them away because you won't like the first things you make. So, during quiet time yesterday - one hour - I took a paper bag that I'd gotten while shopping the day before, my little scissors from the kitchen, and cut these shapes.

I did not trace a pattern, but looked at the pictures in the book as I cut and didn't throw one of them away! I was so proud when our daughter came out of quiet time and named them. She could tell what they all were....except the birthday candle, she thought it was an arrow.

Hairbow

2010-02-18T11:00:00.004-05:00

My daughter finally wants to wear hairbows, so I made this one for her today! Loving the site:

http://www.girlythingsbows.com/

which shows you how to make almost any hairbow you would want to make! This is mine, with a scrap of ribbon from who knows where that was in the disaster I call my craft closet.

Hairbow

2010-01-22T12:00:00.005-05:00

If you've been folowing for a long time, you will know that I used to carry a purse from this fabric. I really like it, and I really liked this flower. I wanted to be able to show it off a little, so I decided to try to put it in my hair. I sewed and glued it onto a bobby pin and had my little girl take some photos:

Also, I put this one one an apholstery tac and stuck it into a candle.

Just when I think that I've finished with these flowers, I

think of something else.

More Kanzashi

2010-01-21T13:30:00.002-05:00

A few more flowers from today and yesterday:

Information on how to make Kanzashi

2010-01-20T09:07:00.004-05:00

All these flowers after just a quick look in the "New Books" section of the library. When I saw this book, I knew I wanted to take a closer look! I am so glad I did!

http://www.amazon.com/Kanzashi-Bloom-Fold-Sew-Projects/dp/0823084817

After a look, this was the best tutorial I found on the internet for how to make the two types of flower petals I have been making.

http://gabriellepollacco.blogspot.com/2009/11/kanzashi-bloom-tutorial-fun-handmade.html

My Favorite Kanzashi

2010-01-19T22:08:00.003-05:00

My absolute favorite, so far, was taking this boring hat of my husbands that he doesn't want anymore.....and adding this!

Kanzashi

2010-01-19T14:15:00.005-05:00

What am I doing with all those little flowers, you ask? Here are a few:

I put a few flowers on a pillow, which was my Mom's great idea! I've not sewn them on yet, because I want to be sure I like these spicific colors/flowers first, but I think they look great on there!

I made one in colors to match my room and glued a button to both sides so both sides are finished and sewed it onto a piece of chain for my new fan pull in my bedroom. So fun!

And then I made two almost alike:

And put one on a nail that I hang this souvenier from our honeymoon on, the other I put on a ribbon necklace, though I think it might be a little too big....what do you think?

Pillows

2010-01-18T19:08:00.006-05:00

I made these two pillows for the new living room to bring the colors together a little more. The one with the fabric that matches the curtains has a frilly fringe that I put around the outside. The creamy colored one has a cording (I don't know what this is actually called) that I made by sewing the same fabric over a cord made for that purpose . It was my first time doing either of those techniques and I am quite pleased with pillows that don't look so homemade!

Almost feeling finished in the living room! Do you think I need another pillow on this loveseat, and if so, what color?

Addicted?

2010-01-18T10:59:00.003-05:00

I am really enjoying this quick craft that uses up scraps of fabric. Not to mention I get to hunt through my button stash, and I used to love that even as a child, right Mom?!

Don't you love those sweet little girl hands too?! Won't be long and they'll be as big as mine!

I made this one to match the new living room with fabric scraps from the curtains.

I almost stayed up late last night making some more, but my husband talked sense into me....I am looking forward to naptime though!

New craft

2010-01-15T22:17:00.003-05:00

I tried my hand at a new craft today: Kanzashi.
I made these little flowers out of fabric. Each petal is a 2 inch square, folded Origami style, then sewn together. Then the button is hot-glued in the center.

I like it! Cute, fun and a quick little craft. I am thinking of adding one to my winter hat to girly it up.

Updated Living Room II

2010-01-10T16:32:00.003-05:00

Here are the before and after pictures after the other wall was painted today.

You can see better in this picture what a difference the paint makes to change our room from bare and white.

Updated Living Room

2010-01-09T16:00:00.004-05:00

I feel quite accomplished. It's only 4pm and I made curtains, got paint, painted this wall, and got it all put back together today. Here is the before picture:

I found this fabric at the store near my house and I had to have it for this space. I love the blue leaves and the monkeys. The tan background and monkeys inspired me to pick this color tan for the wall. It is a couple shades darker than the sunroom we just painted, and we will probably paint the kitchen the same at the sunroom too....

I know it might not look very different to some of you, but when you see the whole area, all white and bland, this one wall made a huge difference. I intend to paint the wall to the right too, this same color, but the right wrist had quite enough and was not willing to paint another wall today. It will have to wait. I would also like to make a topper for the curtain panels, because they are a little bland - and I want to recover the glider cushions (with the blue blanket in foreground) but they will have to wait as well.

Carpal Tunnel

2009-11-05T22:01:00.001-05:00

Just so you know why you won't be seeing much from me for a while. I'm having carpal tunnel surgery on both wrists tomorrow morning. Hoping that in a few months I can be a crafting fool!

Stamped for the Kitchen

2009-10-29T07:21:00.004-04:00

I stamped these a while back and just hadn't posted them. I have been keeping salt, baking powder, baking soda, etc on the top of the stove and thought it looked a little messy. I had the idea to dress up an old baking powder container, instead of throwing it away to put the salt in. When I finished and liked the way it looked, I decorated one for the baking powder as well!

I stamped white paper with two colors blue (one for flowers, a darker for the letters) then attached it. To keep it nice and keep it from falling apart, I covered it with a couple strips of clear packaging tape. That's why it's so shiny!

I like the containers because they have the metal across the top for leveling, which makes it easier for my little girl to help me measure in the kitchen, and I think they're the perfect size. I'll be saving these container every time now and making more!

Another Wedding Invitation

2009-10-20T13:59:00.003-04:00

Here is the invitation I quilled for my friend's wedding this past weekend in Quebec. I tried to work in her color for the wedding (and a favorite color of hers and her husbands)- red.

Quilled Owen

2009-10-03T21:47:00.002-04:00

Here's the quilled name plaque I made for a new baby in our group of friends. His bedroom is painted in green stripes and has a jungle theme.

Quilled Invitation

2009-09-27T19:40:00.005-04:00

I have been doing a bit of quilling. This is the only one I'll post now, because I don't think Kim checks my blog. The others will have to wait until the gifts have been given....but I'm looking forward to sharing. I've never been very good at waiting for things like that!

This was my first time doing some non-quilled flowers on one of my projects. The lilies are made by curling the wide end of a teardrop shape and attaching a stem. Then putting a yellow quilled cone in the center. (You can click on the photo for a better look) I wan't too sure of the look at first, but it has grown on me and I do like the result. Do you think I've done enough to this one. It feels a little plain, but I can't decide if that just makes it elegant?

Earrings

2009-09-01T14:00:00.004-04:00

I made a pair of earrings to match the red necklace from yesterday.
I was inspired from a library book I found while just browsing this morning. So, I took these earrings from my school-days....

And with a few red beads, some thin jewelery wire, and a nap-time at home, I made this....

I'm quite happy with them and can't wait to wear them out!

Necklaces

2009-08-31T20:13:00.007-04:00

I spent my morning making necklaces.....

This was a super-long, red/black/silver. I expect I'll wear it both ways, so I took both shots.

My medium-long yellow. Doesn't fit twice over my big noggin...

My shortest, a blue.
,..

I couldn't get good photos of them because the glare made the necklaces a blur, so I had to do this weird sideways view.

More Funny Cards

2009-07-27T13:57:00.002-04:00

I made these two today:

This one says "...if you're a tree!" on the inside.

3 Cards & a Favor

2009-07-25T12:43:00.003-04:00

Here is a favor my dear friend Amanda and I made for a baby shower last month. It was two of those small (5 piece) packs of gum, wrapped in cardstock that we put a Wild About You giraffe on and a "Thanks" sentiment on the side. A take on the favor we made 2 years ago for Amanda's shower with a larger pack of gum. I love making the colors/theme match the shower decor....and so fun to give something useful!

I have been working on some cards with humorous sentiments too....I hope you think they're as funny as I did!

Inside "It just comes in flashes now!"

Inside "...enjoy a new floral moo-moo"

I put some flower eyelets on the cow and colored her yellow to make her look like she was floral! It was so fun to see it come together!

Inside "I'm udderly embarassed"

Necklace2

2009-07-16T20:22:00.003-04:00

I decided while I was posting the last one, I might as well do this little necklace I made a while ago. It's nothing really special, but it goes with a lot and it adds a little fun to the neckline. It's simply 3 strands of different shades of seed beads on a clasp that has multiple loops for different strands.

Necklace

2009-07-16T20:14:00.003-04:00

I saw my friend wearing a beautiful necklace on Saturday at church and thought, "I could make that!" I got out the beads yesterday, and this is what I ended up with today.

I used a bunch of glass beads my mom had given me a while ago and put three seed beads (clear, brown, clear) in between each glass bead. Then for the back of the necklace, I strung on about 40 brown seed beads so I wouldn't have a bunch of those big glass beads in the back - and in hopes that it will keep the necklace in place well. I think it's great and I'll wear it a lot, but it is not as beautiful as yours, Adrianne. (I hope you don't mind my copying!)

Quilled Ben

2009-06-22T15:35:00.004-04:00

This is the latest name quilling I have been working on. Another little boy! I have quite a few friends having babies, and I'm so glad to have these special gifts to make for their new babies! The shower is tonight. I hope his mom likes it!

I originally made it with a tiny little car in the upper left, but switched it later for the clouds. I thougth they were better because the white was less 'busy' than the red & black car, tied in the white mat, and the little car was just not as cute as I wanted it to be!!!

Quilled Sean

2009-06-18T13:33:00.004-04:00

I made this over the past couple weeks for a friend's new baby. I am bringing them dinner tonight and bringing it along. I made it to match his sports themed lamp and mobile. I enjoyed making the football and bat. I have never made these boyish things with quilling!

Mother's Day

2009-05-09T15:22:00.003-04:00

I get to make/send three Mother's day cards....I made the all different - as different as the Mom's!

This pink/blue purse is made from a tag punch, folded down to make the flap. An idea my Mom sent me a month-or-two ago and I decided to use it on her card. :)

I decided to showcase the die-cut letters on this card for my mother-in-law, and made the flower a theme, as she loves to garden. Her favorite color is blue.....

The last one is made with paper my step mother-in-law gave me for Easter. Love the earthy, rich colors and wanted to use them with this trendy bird stamp for her card.

I hope they all 3 enjoy them & feel special!

Wrap Pants

2009-05-04T13:25:00.004-04:00

So I saw these pants and thought I would like to try them. They are comfortable, adjustable to the waist and big at the bottom, which I liked.

http://laupre.wordpress.com/2008/06/29/easy-breezy-wrap-pants-tutorial/

They look so cool and trendy on her.

Well, I got out a sheet that I had in a box and tried them. This was the original, made to her instructions, except that I used buttons because I found that they were so big around the waist.

You can see that my pair is not near as cool and trendy - and look terrible on me! So I cut the front of the pants off to make them a little less huge and put a string on them instead, thinking this would make the legs less humongous. I don't think I'll be wearing these babies anywhere except to bed! They are quite comfortable, as promised, but my, they don't look good!

Congrats Lion

2009-04-14T14:03:00.003-04:00

I made this for baby Sean today and plan to send it to his mom tomorrow. So thankful for a healthy baby boy! Maybe not the most baby-ish of colors, but I like the looks of the card, and just wasn't in a baby blue mood today!

I aged all the pieces of vanilla cardstock by patting an old toothbrush in my Chocolate Chip ink pad and then patting it on the paper. I thought the technique was really easy and fast and not near as messy as splattering the ink with the toothbrush (though that was the technique I was planning to use if this failed!). I plan to do it again.

Sympathy

2009-03-10T13:29:00.003-04:00

I regret to say that I made two of these this week. Not that I dislike the card, but it is my least favorite kind of card to make. I put a few clear flowers stamps on my clear block and stamped them randomly in Cranberry ink on the Vanilla cardstock. I stamped the sentiment on barely patterned paper in the same ink, put a cut of ribbon behind it off to the side and matted it a few times to make it pop. Then set it all at an angle. I almost didn't angle it, but it seemed too boxy.

I just can't get stop myself from making monochromatic cards. I don't know why, but I seem to like them best....and they are so easy! No matching necessary.

Happy St. Patricks Day

2009-03-10T13:26:00.003-04:00

I wanted to create a card for St. Patrick's Day, but only had one stamp for the holiday and that was this shamrock. I decided to go with swirls and dots since the shamrock was covered with swirls and this sentiment had dots following the butterfly. Since I do not believe in luck, I wanted to use this sentiment instead of the traditional "good luck" type ones. I simply stamped the shamrock three times, put it on the green strip, evenly spaced with a little extra on the right. Added a torn circle of coffee fliter and a green jewel brad on that empty space. Then I stamped the card and the light green with the same stamp and green ink. I simply stamped it closer together on the light green to give it some variety. I mounted the sentiment on an angle on the right.

2009-03-10T13:17:00.004-04:00

I made two more cards with the die cuts that slide on ribbon, and the stickers I got from my mom. On all these cards, I tried to just match color scheme to the stickers.

This first one, I used a piece of paper to put through the holes on the die cut and stamped in Chocolate Chip and More Mustard on the Vanilla cardstock. I also pressed the die cut into a Mustard stamp pad before I put the sticker on so that it would have a little texture. Stamped the branches onto the Chocolate cardstock in VersaMark and put it all together.

On the second one, I used an over

sized Vanilla ribbon that I had to fold to fit it into the holes, and I put it all on some patterned cardstock. I stamped the bird in Cranberry and the flower in Mustard and put it all on Mustard cardstock to form the card. These are so easy!

2009-02-26T17:24:00.003-05:00

I decided to make a cover for my Bible to match my new purse. Thanks Tracy for the idea and the link!

http://www.fiber-images.com/Free_Things/Projects_Patterns/free_patterns_sewing.html#BookCover

These instructions were pretty easy to follow and I made it in less than 2 hours. The next one will probably take a lot less time, but I had to take the handles out and put them on again because I incorrectly put them in when stacking the pieces for sewing.

I made the handles from strips of fabric that I sewed into a tube, turned inside out and pressed flat. I think the cover looks great, if I may say so myself!

New Die Cuts and Stickers

2009-02-22T16:25:00.000-05:00

For Valentine's Day my mom gave me some fun new things that inspired me on these four cards. I decided to post them all together, since they're all kinda similar and I didn't think they needed a whole lot of explaination. She gave me some of those glossy, raised stickers in different shapes with different words on them, and she gave me a set of die cuts that cut these great little shapes for you to put a ribbon through. I put the two of them together and made these great cards! Aren't they fun?! The last two, I used a piece or two of cardstock instead of ribbon because I didn't have the right color ribbon.

Second Hobo and Skirt

2009-02-17T13:49:00.001-05:00

This is the purse I ended up making. The fabric wasn't my favorite, but I wanted something that would work with brown or black - because I am not the type to be changing my purse with every outfit - but do think it's important not to wear black shoes with and a brown purse. I put a couple pockets into this one and added a middle layer of some black-out fabric I had left over from the sunroom curtains for stability (only because I didn't have interfacing, and refused to wait to go to the store another day). I made the straps a lot longer so I can wear it across my chest because my purses tend to fall off my shoulder when holding the toddler hands and walking across the parking lot! Now, I think it needs a snap in the center to hold all the stuff in that I'll be stuffing into this large bag!

I also have reconstructed a skirt - another result of playing "What Not To Wear" in my closet. I had this jumper/mini-dress from at least 10-15 years ago and have always loved the feel of the material. Since I was just not totally willing to give the thing up, I decided it might work as a skirt. So I cut off the top of the jumper and folded down and sewed a waistband. Easy as that.

Here I am wearing both!

Galloping Horse

2009-02-17T13:42:00.000-05:00

I needed a fun and special card for my niece's 5th birthday, and also wanted to play with some of my new toys, so I got out my Big Shot and set to it. I stamped the purple cardstock (her fav color) with 5's in VersaMark ink. She is very into horses, so I decided to use this fun little kids sticker on the die cut and put it on a piece of ribbon. That way she can 'gallop' across the card with the little horse! I used the star shaped dies in a teal color to match the horse and placed them randomly on the front. The inside says something like "Happy Birthday - from our herd." I hope she has fun with it!

Practice Purse

2009-01-30T13:59:00.001-05:00

I have been wanting to make a hobo purse for ages. Bought the pattern a year or two ago. Never have done it because I'm intimidated by the thought that I'll have to completely decipher the pattern myself! (My sister is the sew-er, not me!)
I decided to look for an easy and well explained pattern on craftster, and found a purse that I thought I could do. Then, since I was still not sure of myself, I decided to cut up a skirt that was in the trash heap in my room. (I played What Not To Wear last weekend with a friend and cleared out my closet!) This was the result:

I used an old bedsheet for the liner and the floral print is the old skirt fabric. Both were very flexible/flowing fabrics, so I ended up with a purse that is quite floppy. I decided to tie the handle, instead of sewing the top together, like the pattern suggests. Maybe it's not quite my style with the big florals, but I think I'll start to look for a different fabric and try this again. I will plan to make the strap longer though....

Jewelery Frame

2009-01-04T21:49:00.001-05:00

I admit it. I am a ripper. I love to rip pages out of magazines to save for ideas. I have folders of garden ideas, folders of holiday ideas, folders of ideas for certain rooms of the house. I have been looking through the ideas for some fun projects to do, and this one caught my eye this week.

I took an old frame someone handed down to me (Yes, I admit to being a pack-rat too!) and spray painted it this hammered silver color. Then got some little screw eyes from my husband's shop and put 6 of them (3 on each side) on the inside of the frame at equal distances from the top. Then I strung a wire between the screw eyes and twisted the ends.

Then just put two nails in the wall over my jewelery box, and hung on some of my dangle earrings. I love it because it's functional, and it shows off the baubles that usually sit in a drawer. I also think it will inspire me to wear them more....and I definitely think I look better with earrings on!

RibbonBoards

2008-12-13T21:35:00.001-05:00

My sister requested ribbon bulletin boards for her girl's rooms for Christmas. I am planning to make one for our daughter as well, but lost steam today after doing these two and will do it another day. I decided to take pictures of the process, in case anyone was interested in seeing how it was done. First, I got a piece of 1/4 inch particle board from Lowes, and had them cut it in thirds before leaving the store.

I placed the boards on batting and cut it a little larger. This gives a little padding under your fabric. I thought it was optional, but now that I have it made, I think it is necessary! You'd feel every particle in the board and it gives a little cushion to the ribbon later on.

Then I put the fabric around the board, on top of the batting, and stapled it all around the edges, making the corners crisp.

Then wrap the ribbon (I bought some cotton-ish white strip at the fabric store. Don't know what it was called, but it was 10 cents a yard, and I liked the look of it. )around the board on a diagonal. I placed mine 6 inches apart. Put all the ribbons on one direction first. When you add the ribbons the other direction, weave them over/under the first ribbons to give everything more stability and help hold the papers in. I would probably do less than 6 inches if I had it to do over....I didn't realize that the smaller papers will sometimes fall out.

This is the finished product. These are really big, and I think they will hold a lot of their artwork safely and easily. Fabric is their favorite colors - so I hope they match their rooms for years to come!

Christmas Card Ribbon

2008-12-12T15:36:00.001-05:00

I have been wanting to do a little greenery in our house. For one, I love the look of live greenery. For two, we use an artificial tree, so I wanted a little green-smell. For three, the rosemary grows like a weed, and we have a bunch of it.

So I pulled out these ribbons that we used in the church when we got married, wired together a little trimmings and put them on either end of a ribbon that I'm using to fill an empty wall and to display the Christmas cards this year. I like it! The greenery really adds a lot to it.

You will see in the bottom of this photo that we have a fun recent purchase! Anyone want to come over for a game of shuffleboard!?

Recycled Ornament IV

2008-12-05T16:21:00.001-05:00

Another envelope craft! This was red & white. I thought it was perfect for Christmas! I did every other scalloped circle red and added the ribbon. See two posts below for the other sample!

Quilled Invitation

2008-12-05T16:18:00.002-05:00

Here's a wedding invitation I framed with my quilling for the gift at shower we're going to tonight! I hope they like it! The invitation was printed in the exact color of Elegant Eggplant, so I mounted the invitation on the cardstock, quilled flowers and vine and added them. I had a hard time finding the right frame, I didn't really want black. It is an 8x12. Not many of those around, but it grew on me.

Recycled Envelope Ornament III

2008-11-25T11:41:00.001-05:00

Another ornament from recycled envelopes. I am really enjoying these! 10 punches from the scalloped circle punch, folded into triangles, glued the edges together. There are lots of samples of these out there, but mine are almost FREE!

Angel Ornament

2008-11-22T15:46:00.001-05:00

My mom sent me this idea. Fun, and didn't require much time or any stamping. It was meant to be a tag, but I made it an ornament instead. The dress is just a section of the scalloped circle punch. The wings are vellum and the head a simple, 1/2 inch, circle punch.

Recycled Envelope Ornament II

2008-11-20T13:23:00.001-05:00

My second ornament made from recycled envelopes. I have kept these envelopes aside because I love the rich mustard color of the pattern, and thought they would be a great ornament. I punched 5 scalloped circles from the envelope, folded them in half and glued them together. Before gluing the last one on, I put the wire on the inside of the middle. Then added the beads to the bottom of the wire and made a little loop on the top. Easy, simple ornament...made almost for free!

Recycled Envelope Ornaments

2008-11-17T17:03:00.002-05:00

I saw an ornament in a magazine that gave me this idea....

I cut strips of an envelope in about 1/2 inch by 4 1/2 inch lengths, then folded them in half twice to get crisp creases. Then I unfolded them only once and glued the bottom half of each side to the next strip. Then glued the strips all together in the center with a 1/2 inch circle on the front. You can see (I hope!) that the difference between the two is the pattern in on the inside of one and on the outside of the other.

What do you think? Cool, or cheesy?

New Stamps

2008-10-31T14:59:00.000-04:00

I got some new stamps off Ebay. I look on there all the time, but very rarely actually bid on anything. I am SO happy with this purchase. I got a set of 239 stamps for $32. I think that is a pretty good deal!

All the stamps used in this card are from the new stash. I love the monochromatic look and the placements on here. Used the ink to match the Eggplant cardstock on all stamping. Then used a paler color for framing the two stamped pieces. Added a Vanilla sheer ribbon and was done.

Collar

2008-10-21T21:09:00.001-04:00

I know what you're thinking....."That's not exactly trendy!" What you may not know is that it is a prop for my clowning costume. I decided to really make my clown costume better for wearing this Halloween and am hoping to do some clowning around town after Halloween. I was thinking of visiting a children's home, nursing home, etc.

I took a piece of red fabric and doubled it over then doubled it over again, a little longer to make a two-tiered gathered piece. Then I sewed it and gathered it and sewed again at the right length. then took piece and sewed it over the collar to make it finished on the top. I'm not a great seamstress, but think this will add a big punch to the clown costume! Now if I could just find a shirt I like to go under it!!

Ornament Trio Card

2008-10-09T14:08:00.001-04:00

I got the inspiration for this card here. http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/gallery/photo/1078313?cat=all&what=keywords&si=CCC08

It's supposed to be three ornaments. Sometimes they just do not look as good in real life as they do in my head! I stamped the three ornaments on ivory paper in burgundy ink. Then I colored them in with pencils. I punched out the three circles wiith the only size circle punch I had (I think it looks much better in the example with different sizes). I stamped on the burgundy bow and used a ruler and marker for the hangers. Then stamped the grey cardstock with the linen background and Versa Mark Ink and a sentiment. I put the ornaments in place and then glued down the grey piece to a burgundy card. Ta da!

Sweet Little Card

2008-10-07T09:08:00.001-04:00

I was inspired by a cute little card my sister gave me, made with the same set-up but different stamps/colors than this. I wanted to do a baby card with this plaid paper and this is what I came up with. I stamped the baby 3 times, colored her in different colors from the plaid background. I used a deckle edge for the patterned paper and the pink cardstock. I stamped the sentiment on the green that matched, framed it in white, and added the button. The button really makes the card in this case. I was really not liking it at all until I put the button on.

New Stamps

2008-09-17T10:32:00.000-04:00

My Mom brought these stamps to my 3 year old daughter. I told her I'd have a hard time leaving them in her craft closet and not using them myself. I had the girlfriends over last night and created a couple cards with them.

Both were fairly simple. I stamped the fashion themed one with brown ink and used chalks and a blender pen to color them in. Then stamped the sentiments in brown onto the red cardstock. I like it, but think it's super simple. The ladies said it looked finished, but I feel like it needs more....

On the cat one, I stamped stars in the background with red, then the cat was stamped in brown as well and colored with aqua chalk. Working with the gals inspires me to put together fun color combos. Stamped the same sentiment with brown onto red. Fun!

New Cards

2008-08-18T09:26:00.001-04:00

I worked on some cards this week. I am not going to explain them all....they're not difficult to do. If you have any specific questions about technique/stamp set, let me know. I had a set of stamps that I'd hardly ever used with these small sayings on them. I was trying different ways to incorporate them into my cards. The set is Cute Converse. It's on the last three of the cards.

Quilled Invitation

2008-08-05T12:54:00.001-04:00

Here's my friend Tiffany's wedding gift! I've not mailed it yet....so I hope she doesn't check this site! I did some quilling on her invitation, matching the blue on the invitation and adding a creamy base color for the swirls and framed it! I hope she likes it!

I've never done that bow on top before, and it posed a little challenge, but I like it and think I'll do it again!

New Gaucho Pants

2008-06-24T09:25:00.001-04:00

I saw the idea and instructions on craftster.org (http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=99090.0) for these gaucho pants made from tee shirts. The instructions were easy, because all you do is cut the shirt sleeves off and cut it down the middle. Then you re-arrange the pieces, sew up the sleeve areas to be the crotch and sew down the sides for the legs. They were too low riding for me, so I took a second tee and made the waistband, sewing a button hole in before closing it up and then inserted a drawstring. Tee-shirts are very stretchy and my hips/bottom wouldn't hold the pants up! Man, are they comfortable! I plan to make more of these! And you can buy/use shirts in any color to make them different....to match bathing suits, shirts, anything! How fun!

Jewelery Party

2008-05-31T13:16:00.000-04:00

I went to a jewelery party last night with my friend, Laura. A couple ladies from our church make jewelery and wanted to sell some for some extra money. This is my loot. Cool, huh?! And the kicker is that I got it ALL for $20! Amazing! It was a very fun, relaxing, girls night out. We even went out for ice cream at Marble Slab afterwards! I feel inspired to get into making some more jewelery now! Ahhh...if only I had the time and money to do all the crafts I wanted to....

Boy Birthday

2008-05-30T10:49:00.001-04:00

I made this card for a 3 year old's birthday Saturday. My husband started laughing at the bird riding the back of the alligator....It was an idea from theStampin' Up! Idea book....

I stamped the animals from Wild About You set with Versa Mark on the card to give it some background. I stamped the sentiments in blue on white cardstock, and used green and more white to give the tag some extra dimension, and cut the top to go in by hand, then I put it onto the card with a blue brad. The bird I stamped in blue and then brown and cut out the feet of the brown bird and attached it to the bottom of the blue bird. The paterned paper is the inside of another envelope! Love the animal print with this stamp set!

Thanks

2008-05-25T14:31:00.001-04:00

OK, so I have needed some alone time this week and I've been motivated to get in the craft closet! I used a tag stamp to stamp the sentiment, and stamped it in Chocolate Chip, More Mustard and Cranberry Crisp. I cut out the flowers of the Mustard & Cranberry ones and adhered them to the Chocolate one, then matted it with a piece of Chocolate cardstock. Then I took a strip of Chocolate cardstock and dry embossed polka-dots in a line and put a white dot in the center of each. I Got a piece of Mustard cardstock and Versamark stamped polka-dots to it, and cut it with a fancy edge. I adhered the two together and put a ribbon across them and tied it. I got out a piece of Cranberry cardstock that had these leaves Versamarked all over it and put them on. Ah. At least I remembered to have a jazzy background on this one!

Birthday From the Heart

2008-05-25T13:43:00.001-04:00

I was in the mood to try another spring-y yellow card, and I liked the look of the torn coffee filter from my last card, but I wanted it to be a little more fun! So I added the bright pink to the card. I stamped the gift in black ink onto glossy white cardstock, then I used a yellow crayon to color in the polka-dots and the ribbon. I then took a cotton ball and rubbed into the pink chalk and onto the gift box to color it in pink. Then you can rub harder over the yellow crayon, and all the pink chalk comes off those areas. It's a neat way to get two colors onto one stamped image easily. Then I matted it with matching pink paper, and put it onto a rectangle of torn coffee filter (see previous post for instructions). I added a scrap of ribbon to a strip of pink and put it across the card with the gift on top. Then I stamped the sentiments in pink and then in black to give it the shadowed look. I thought the second one needed a little something to fill the empty space above the "f" so I added a pink heart eyelet.

I often finish a card and wish I'd put something on the background cardstock. This is one of those projects. It always looks nicer with something stamped onto the background....If only I could remember that before I start attaching things!

Wedding Card

2008-05-24T17:58:00.001-04:00

I made this for a friend who's getting married. Her wedding is in December, but she chose yellow for her color! Daring and untraditional, but it is my favorite color, so I love it!

I stamped the background of the yellow card with hearts and Versamark ink. Then tore a coffee filter to put behind the stamped image. (I folded it across a ruler, wet it along the tear mark, then pulled it along the ruler to tear it in a straight line) I stamped the image from Year After Year in black ink, colored in the areas with a yellow colored pencil, and then added Dazzling Diamonds glitter to the areas I wanted to highlight. Then I stamped the 'always' with Versamark and heat embossed it with white powder. I matted that piece with white, and then put a black piece across the horizontal area of the card with a ribbon around it and called it a night! I like the contrast of the soft yellow and the black.

Happy Birthday Laura

2008-05-20T07:57:00.002-04:00

I made this card last weekend for a friend. She loves bright colors and I couldn't pass up these pink and green flowers! It is simple, but I thought it was girly and fun.

Stamped a little starburst from a non-stampin' up set in the green and pink on some vanilla cardstock. Then I stamped the starburst and flower from Stippled Celebrations in the colors, as shown. I stamped a few extra to cut out and mount (popped-up) on the center flower. Then I stamped Happy Birthday....or at least I meant to stamp it on the inside of the card. It occurred to me moments ago that I might not have done that!!! OOps! Sorry Laura!

Thanks, Dad

2008-05-20T07:45:00.001-04:00

I know, I know. It's been a long time....but we've been so busy with the building of a new room onto our house and getting our vegetables into the ground that I have been able to do little else than that and caring for my kid-o's.

Anyways, I made this card for my dad, who has helped us tremendously on our addition to the house. It was an idea from a card making magazine I got in the mail last month. In retrospect, it should have been a hammer, not a neck tie! Oh well! That's the thing about retrospect....you can't change what you've already done!

The dots on the funky tie are stamped with black ink and a background from Beyond the Basics. The 'Thanks' is from the word "Thanksgiving" on a stamp. I markered only the first six letters to get it to say thanks instead, then stamped it. The DAD is from my alphabet stamps. Other than that, no stamps on this card. It is not like any of my typical cards, which is why I wanted to challenge myself with it. I liked the end result.

LadyBug

2008-03-17T13:16:00.002-04:00

I made two of these, because I thought they were so cute! This was also a card idea from the Paper Crafts magazine. I used a couple of cards someone had sent to me for the red half-circles and the blue/white polka-dots. I punched a couple snowflakes and then cut them smaller, for the white around the eyes (they used a flower punch in the magazine, I don't have a flower punch! - yet) Then I used black circles & tiny white circles I punched out to put in the center of the 'snowflakes' for the eyes. I cut a few strips from the same blue/white paper for the antenna and added black brads to the ends. Then I stamped the little sentiment from Very Punny and matted it in the red matching paper. A card made almost entirely from recycled materials! It's not my usual style but I thought it was super-cute and wanted to make a fun card that day!

Thinking Of You

2008-03-17T13:10:00.001-04:00

I made this card for my uncle who has just been diagnosed with cancer. I know it's not very manly, but I felt like I had to add some more to it and I grabbed my flower stamps without really thinking!

I got the idea for the three big pieces of cardstock placed this way from the PaperCrafts magazine. Then I adapted it to what I had. I inked the individual words of the sentiment and stamped them each on a different piece of cardstock and then cut to size. I put a flower on each piece with VersaMark ink, and then decided to add cut flowers to them too. I punched tiny holes and added the flowers to the card with silver brads. Then I still felt it was missing something, so I added VersaMark flowers to the off-white paper. It isn't my favorite, but I know he will enjoy getting it in the mail.

Bright Birthday

2008-01-19T13:59:00.001-05:00

One of two of the bright birthday cards I made today with the inside of security envelopes. You can see the only stamp on the card is the sentiment in orange, becuase I do not have this turquiose ink! Then to give it some flair, I cut circles and squares to put as a medalion on the top right, and for the middle circle, I punched a part of the envelope to bring the pattern in at another spot.

Wild Congrats

2008-01-19T13:55:00.001-05:00

I decided to try to use some of the colored envelope insides. A difficult feat when you don't quite have the right color ink. This is my first attempt, and I used the two different blue inks to make up for the fact that neither was the perfect match. You can see I cut out the darker ear and put it on the lighter blue elephant with a pop-dot. Then I used a small piece of blue paper with a jewel brad and a little white ribbon. I stamped the 'congrats' with the Brilliant ink and put it all on the blue & white envelope inside, and put it on a Whisper White card.

Crafting Central

Repurposed Scarves From An Old Sweater

Tee Necklaces

Dress Redo

Jersey Rosette, Take 2

Gathered Hair Flower

Jersey Rosette

Paper Buttons

Bird in a Cage

Sequin Shamrock

Kasnzashi Silk

Kanzashi for My Purse

Silver Chain

New Purse

Screen Door 2

Game Room Wall & Twister Clock

Jeans to Skirt

Screen Door Wall Hanging

Car Trash Bag

T

Manger Magnets

5 Minute Snowballs

Wooden Turkey

Give Thanks Banner

ASK Sign

My First Quilt

Pallet Book Shelf

Anthropologie Copy

Kanzashi Butterfly Ornament

Happy Birthday Taylor!

Crochet "O"

Pink Earrings

Green Earrings

Dainty Earrings

Quilled Layla

Finished Curtain

Paper Cutting

Hairbow

Hairbow

More Kanzashi

Information on how to make Kanzashi

My Favorite Kanzashi

Kanzashi

Pillows

Addicted?

New craft

Updated Living Room II

Updated Living Room

Carpal Tunnel

Stamped for the Kitchen

Another Wedding Invitation

Quilled Owen

Quilled Invitation

Earrings

Necklaces

More Funny Cards

3 Cards & a Favor

Necklace2

Necklace

Quilled Ben

Quilled Sean

Mother's Day

Wrap Pants

Congrats Lion

Sympathy

Happy St. Patricks Day

New Die Cuts and Stickers

Second Hobo and Skirt

Galloping Horse

Practice Purse

Jewelery Frame

RibbonBoards

Christmas Card Ribbon

Recycled Ornament IV

Quilled Invitation

Recycled Envelope Ornament III

Angel Ornament

Tags

Recycled Envelope Ornament II

Recycled Envelope Ornaments