Oh So Crafty

Popcorn Balls.

2011-10-23T15:14:00.001-04:00

Because we don't get fall weather here in FL, we do what we can to celebrate the season with food and decor. I had my friend Eva over last week and we made candy corn studded, popcorn balls. Sweet and gooey; perfect for fall festivals and Halloween parties.

They are really easy to make.

Just make sure to butter your hands VERY well before forming the balls.

Or this will happen.

If your syrup starts to harden like ours did here, just put the tray in a warm oven for about 30 seconds.

Popcorn Balls.

9 Cups of popped corn
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of water
1/4 cup of light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon of vinegar
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

your choice of candy or sprinkles. I used candy corn and indian corn.

Grease a 17x12x2 rimmed baking sheet and place 9 cups of popcorn, (all unpopped kernels removed,) on the sheet. Keep warm in a 300 degree oven.

For the syrup, in a heavy sauce pan combine sugar, water,corn syrup, vinegar, and salt. Cook and stir over a medium high heat until mixture boils. Reduce heat to medium and continue boiling, stirring occasionally to keep from burning. Boil to a hard ball stage, or until a candy thermometer reads 250 degrees.
Remove the syrup from the heat and stir in vanilla.
Sprinkle your candy or other add ins on the popcorn and pour the syrup mixture over all of it. Stir with a wooden spoon to coat the popcorn with the syrup. With well buttered hands, form into balls.

One bit of caution. The syrup mixture is very hot and can burn you pretty bad...kind of like hot glue, so be careful when you are pouring it.

Upcycled Necktie Scarf.

2011-09-18T09:22:00.004-04:00

I've seen pictures floating around Pinterest of these gorgeous scarves and knew I'd have to try my hand at making them myself. Goodwill has a plethora of ties to choose from and my daughter picked these two for me to make a scarf for her. I say scarf, but the finished product is more like a piece of art to wear around your neck.

I started by placing my ties so they overlapped a bit, with the large ends arranged so both ties are fully visible.

I formed pleats,

and pinned them in place.

I hand sewed the pleats and ruffles in place so that the stitches weren't visible, and added a snap to close the scarf; a piece of velcro would work just as well.

I've made this one to put in my Etsy shop, and I plan on making more...once you start, its hard to stop!

Danmade Bookcase.

2011-02-15T06:59:00.002-05:00

Add this to the list of projects I want to make.

Upcycled Nursing Pads.

2011-02-10T14:16:00.002-05:00

My youngest daughter just gave birth to her first little one, Oliver Liam. Being blessed with an abundant supply of milk, she is going through disposable pads like crazy, so I thought I'd try my hand at making her washable pads. I used an old t-shirt, a cotton mattress pad and a felted sweater. Yes, I save most of my old textiles. I find so many ways to reuse them.

I used cup saucers for my template, the smaller one being used for the mattress pad.

For each pad you need 1 of each layer. T-shirt, for next to the skin, mattress pad for the absorbent lining, and felted wool sweater for the out facing part. Felted wool is great for blocking moisture and is nearly waterproof.

I pinned the three layers together and zigzag stitched around the edge. That's it. Not very pretty, but these are a prototype. I think I'll play around with a thinner sweater and lining.

A Danmade Coffee Table

2011-02-06T09:16:00.003-05:00

I'm really loving Dan Faires projects.... I think I need to invest in a circular saw.

DIY Headboard

2011-02-02T08:39:00.002-05:00

I love this headboard made by Dan Faires from HGTV's, "DanMade." It is so chic and is doable by anyone. Even if you don't have a power saw, most places that sell lumber will cut it to size for you.

Crocheted Heart Garland.

2011-01-19T16:10:00.002-05:00

To be honest, I'm not always a fan of crocheted and knitted things. I think its a combination of living in Florida, where sweaters are rarely worn and that the only yarn I knew about was the acrylic Red Heart brand. Eww.
I've been seeing some very cute crocheted garlands on Etsy, and decided that after 30 years it was time to try my hand at crocheting again. I found a very helpful how to on Youtube, and spent two days crocheting little hearts and watching Grey's Anatomy.

It took awhile for me to get an actual heart shape.

Eventually, they started looking like this.

Part of my finished garland. I'd really like to get it looking more like hearts and less like strawberries.

The directions for the heart are pretty easy;

Chain 4, make all stitches in the first chain. 3 trc, 3 dc, chain 1, 1 trc, chain 1, 3 dc, 3 trc, chain 2 slip stitch. Fasten off.

This video shows you exactly how to make a heart.

And the Winner is.....

2010-12-23T19:27:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas Everyone and congratulations to #26, June! (Email me for your gift code.)

Merry Christmas $65 Giveaway!

2010-12-15T07:51:00.000-05:00

Once again the lovely people at CSN are offering up a $65 gift card to their store. All you have to do to be entered to win is leave a comment telling me which of their adjustable bar stools you think would be best for sitting in while crafting. I'll draw a winner on December 23!

Link Love

2010-12-14T07:17:00.003-05:00

Lots of crafting has been happening here, I've just not photographed it :( Here are a few links to a few of the crafts I've been making.

I made these "foofs," to hang at my daughters baby shower and they looked fabulous.

I was going for a vintage theme at the shower and made a banner.
This is a great tutorial showing you how.

I whipped up a pair of these awesome ear warmers yesterday morning, because despite the fact I live in Florida, the temperature has dropped to 28 degrees!

Anthropologie Inspired Necklase

2010-12-07T03:57:00.003-05:00

I saw this necklace in the Anthro catalog a few months ago and thought I'd try to replicate it.

I used 22 gauge wire, seed beeds and needle nose jewelery pliers. You can use any kind of small bead, this just happened to be what I had laying around.

I measured out about 18 inches of wire, put a seed bead on the end and made a loop.

Then I started filling up the wire with my beads. I used red beads and then used pink beads for the center 4 inches. Don't do this. Stick with one color.
After you've filled your wire with beads, finish the end with another looped seed bead like in the first picture.

Form your wire into a pretzel shape.

The to form the bow, twist half the pretzel up

And all the way around to finish the bow. I had a few beads pop off doing this. Its ok.
Your bow will still look fine.

Now you can use jump rings to attach it to a chain necklace. I didn't do this becaue I was FRUSTRATED that my light pink area wasn't where I wanted it. That's when I decided its probably best to stick with a solid color, like this Anthro necklace, and I would use a larger bead.

Thanksgiving Kids Table

2010-11-24T05:38:00.002-05:00

I love these ideas for a kids table. See the directions here.

And the Winner Is..

2010-10-22T17:39:00.002-04:00

Blythe! Congratulations! Since you left me your email, I'll be sending the redemption code tonight.Happy Shopping.

CSN $45 Giveaway!

2010-10-15T06:47:00.004-04:00

Yes, the generous folks at CSN are once again offering up a gift certificate for one of my lucky readers. I could spend, (and have,) hours on their site, looking at all the fabulous merchandise. Currently I have been looking at bed sets and dining sets, and while $45 won't buy you either of those, it will get you a pretty great home accessory or kitchen gadget.

To enter you must be a citizen of the great U.S of A, and tell me in your comment which one of CSN's bedroom sets you would like to own. I'll pick a winner next Friday, October 22.

Velvet Bookmarks

2010-10-12T11:45:00.006-04:00

Confession: I love pretty bookmarks but usually use a a scrap of paper to mark my place.
These are so lovely though, that I may have to change my ways. I saw these velvet bookmarks on the cover of Somerset Studio magazine last year and thought they were beautiful.

photo credit: Somerst Studio

I found all my supplies on Etsy, and while I used 1" ribbon, in hindsight I'd go narrower, just because there are more ribbon choices.
For each book mark you will need: 12" of velvet ribbon
2- 1" ribbon end clamps
Old buttons, beads or jewelry pieces
Jump rings and headpins

Measure out your 12" of ribbon.

Line up your ribbon end clamp, and use pliers to gently, (but tightly,) close the clamp. Do this on both ends.

Now the fun part. Use what ever adornment you like and attach it to the clamp with a jump ring. If you are using beads, first you must put the bead on a head pin and make a loop at the top.

Upcycled Leather Cuff

2010-09-05T16:18:00.003-04:00

Alicia, over at May Fly has a fantastic tutorial for making a leather wrist cuff from an old leather belt. Since you can make several cuffs from one belt, this would be a great project to use for making Christmas presents. Thanks Alicia!

Yes, Another Pillow Post

2010-08-08T16:33:00.002-04:00

Sharon, over at Farm and Fru Fru Made this, "lettuce leaf," pillow using what she had on hand; one brown and one green t-shirt. I think it turned out beautifully.

Painted Wallpaper

2010-08-08T08:39:00.010-04:00

While catching up on my blog reading this morning I came across this wonderful tutorial for painted wall paper.

Gorgeous isn't it? The whole room is so inviting, and the whole blog is a feast for the eyes. What caught my eye next was the pillow on the chair. Its identical to the one I made and wrote the tutorial for!

(Please see her gracious comment on this post.

I was very excited this week to have my pillow featured in The Examiner.
Rebecca has a column that features links to other, "trash to treasure projects." Check it out for some great inspiration.

Making Books

2010-08-05T14:32:00.003-04:00

I love books, always have. I remember getting my first library card before I was in kindergarten, and my mom would take me weekly to pick out new books. In the evenings I would sit on my dads lap while he read the newspaper, or read to me and I would think, "I can't wait to be able to read by myself." As well as reading books, I like making them and have always wanted to learn book binding. Today I made my first attempt at making a, "real," book. Real as in I didn't wing it but followed instructions on how to sew the binding. Because I enjoy hand sewing this was pretty easy. The entire book, from hand cutting all the papers, ( and using the corner rounder on all 74 pages,) to binding and attaching the cover, took me about 31/2 hours.

I found directions in the book, "re-bound," by Jeannine Stein.

The finished book.

The binding. The directions called for waxed linen thread. I didn;t have that and waxed some hemp that I had laying around. It was a bit too thick so I'm going to try embroidery floss next time.

The front and back.

Stella and Dot Brooch

2010-08-03T12:02:00.003-04:00

I was perusing my favorite online jewelry store, Stella and Dot, and saw this brooch in their new fall collection.

It's very similar to the cuff bracelet I made last fall.

You can find my tutorial HERE.

DIY Fabric Tape and Stickers.

2010-07-28T12:23:00.005-04:00

First I want to thank your for all the sweet comments on my pillow. Knowing other people enjoy these crafts is an encouragement to me to continue posting what I make.

This brilliant DIY is from Natalie Jost of Olive Manna. She demonstrates this oh-so- easy way to turn regular ribbons and trimmings into stickers! Just think of all the things you can adorn and customize!

Just click the photo to be taken to the tutorial.

The Finished Project. It's a.....

2010-07-19T07:00:00.003-04:00

Pillow!

I started with one of my old t-shirts, cutting 1 1/2 in wide strips from it.

Using the longest stitch, I sewed right down the middle of each strip.

I ruffled each strip by pulling the bottom thread and easing the gathering along the thread. This takes a while so I sat and watched a couple of episodes of Veronica Mars while I did it. I really miss that show.

I laid out one of my husbands old dress shirts and started laying down the ruffled strips to see how wide my pillow would be and to make sure I had enough ruffles to go all the way across the shirt.

Once I had all the ruffles down, I knew how wide to cut my pillow.

Using the side seam of the shirt as a guide, I started sewing the ruffles on to the back of the shirt, going down the center of each strip, right over the original basting stitch. I overlapped the ruffles just slightly.

Here it is with all the ruffles attached.

Turn the shirt over and button up what is now the back,

then turn the shirt inside out and sew the top and bottom of the pillow.

Unbutton the shirt and turn it right side out.

Now you can either stuff it, or make a pillow form to fit inside, ( I did this using an old sheet and the filling out of an old pillow.)

Once the pillow is stuffed, button up the back, and enjoy your up-cycled pillow!

Blue.

2010-07-14T16:54:00.005-04:00

Friday I plan on posting my finished project, but as I've been working on this project it has inspired me to change up the decor in my house. Whew knew two old shirts could do that? Currently my home is very 2002 Pottery Barn, with lots of Chocolate and Merlot colors going on. I'm wanting to go more turquoise and sand. I though a good place to start would be picking out a new table lamp, on CSN. They offer so many wonderful choices its hard to pick out just one light, but I've narrowed it down to three.

1 - I like this one because it feels, "beachy," to me.

2 - Though its purple and not blue, I love the shape of this one.

3 - Lastly, because I'm a sucker for mother of pearl, there is this lamp.

Which one do you like? I'm trying to stay away from anything that would say, "A grandma lives her." Help?

WIP

2010-07-12T06:47:00.002-04:00

I'm working on a project, but first I want to show you how I used the garlands I made for the fourth of July.

The guys were actually in a much better mood than they appear.

The project I'm working on now and hope to post later this week involves one of my old t- shirts and one of my husbands old business shirts. Here's a little teaser.

Any guesses on what I'm making?

4th of July Garlands.

2010-07-01T13:34:00.005-04:00

I had planned on doing so many crafts and tutorials for the July holiday, but my daughter gave birth to my newest grandson and I've been helping out around her house and taking care of my two granddaughters; so this is all I've got.
The first is a really simple garland I made using a sheet of scrapbook paper, a 1" circle punch, hot glue and quilters thread (because its heavier than regular thread and I had it on hand.)
First, just start punching out lots of circles.

Then I took my thread and put a circle under it then put a dot of hot glue on it and stuck another circle on top of it.

In hindsight, (and with many burnt fingers) I would use double sided tape instead of hot glue, especially if you are going to have kids helping with the project.

I placed my circle punches about four inches apart, but hey, do what ever looks best to you.

Here it is hanging in my window. Yeah, I know it looks like a bunch of dark dots or kamikaze bees attacking my house. It was bright outside.

The second garland I made using the classic Martha Stewart, tissue paper flower tutorial; except that I reduced the size of the flower to 5 inches so I could wire them to a string.

No, no photo of them hanging as a decoration yet....maybe tomorrow.

And the Winner is...

2010-06-01T14:25:00.001-04:00

Comment #22, Megan.

Email me your address and I'll get the CSN certificate to you.

Alarm Clock Turned Picture Frame.

2010-05-27T07:14:00.006-04:00

I love clocks. I don't know why, but it seems I can't pass up a vintage clock, working or not, while I'm out at garage sales. I come across broken alarm clocks all the time and I've never paid more than $1 for them, but what do you do with a broken clock?
Turn it into a picture frame.
First you take your alarm clock apart. Unscrew all the screws and remove the insides. This can be a bit like a puzzle, but with a some patience and some tiny screw drivers, you'll end up with a clock that looks like this. (Sorry I don't have any before photos, I often get so excited about a project I forget to take pictures.)

Next , find a photo or picture you like. Take the glass face from the clock and use it as a template to trim your picture.

Make sure the glass is clean, and reassemble your clock, (leaving out the clock mechanism.) You now have a one of a kind picture frame!

*Don't forget to enter my $60 giveaway!*

$60 Giveaway!

2010-05-25T05:31:00.008-04:00

I admit it. I've become quite lazy with crafting lately. It seems that in the evening when I feel most like crafting, I lack the lighting to see and take photos by, a poor excuse, but the truth. To make up for my lack of blogging I'm going to have a giveaway!

Want to win a $60 gift certificate?

The generous people at CSN have a $60 gift certificate to bestow upon one of my blog readers. Have you visited any of their online stores before? They are pretty awesome. While the winner can use the gift certificate at any of the CSN stores, to enter this giveaway I'd like you to visit their lighting store and suggest a light for my poor dark craft room.

1. Leave a comment on this post.. suggesting a light for my craft room. Make sure to leave your correct info in the proper comment fields.

2. Tweet to your followers about the giveaway then leave another comment on this post that includes your twitter name. (private Twitter feeds not allowed):

3. Mention the contest on your blog and include a link back to this entry. Then leave another comment with a link to your blog post.

The most crucial thing to remember is to make sure you leave a SEPARATE COMMENT for each option because the winner will be chosen using my good friend the Random Number Generator and, obviously, the more comments you leave the better your chances!

I'll chose a winner around noon on June 1st!

Le Creuset giveaway!

2010-05-07T10:45:00.003-04:00

Want to win this beautiful Le Creuset 2-Quart Batter Bowl?

Visit my daughter's blog to enter her giveaway: http://megkat.com/2010/05/le-creuset-giveaway.html

Contest is open until May 14th!

I'm a Winner!

2010-04-25T21:21:00.001-04:00

No, that's not some self affirmation; I really am a winner!
Look at this gorgeous Bloom Flower Brooch I won over at one of my favorite blogs, Isabella and Max Rooms! If you haven't visited Sella and Dot yet, do so; they have the most beautiful jewelry!

Any Reccomendations?

2010-03-23T09:54:00.001-04:00

I want to purchase an inkjet printer to expand my crafting horizons. I had one a couple of years ago but it went through ink like a hot knife through butter so I gave it away.
So, can anyone out there steer me to a good printer?

Favor Boxes

2010-03-21T13:53:00.001-04:00

Aren't they sweet? Allison and I spent a couple of hours happily crafting these for Leah's wedding shower. Each one held a Dove chocolate. I had made a few of these for Matthew and Megan when they got married, only I used BIG match boxes and left the matches in; you know, for lighting candles on romantic evenings. I have a couple of the big boxes left and am thinking of decorating and using them to hold Easter treats.

Papier Mache Bird FAIL

2010-03-09T07:34:00.002-05:00

I have been avoiding my craft blog because of this unfortunate mess.

Yes, that would be my bird. I knew I should have either sanded it, or put on a final layer of smooth paper strips before painting it, but I got impatient and thought, "How bad can it look." Obviously, pretty bad. So I abandoned my bird for the time being and started a new project.
I had bought some unfortunate looking 1980's teddy bear prints at a garage sale a while back because I liked the square frames and triple matting. I painted over the bear print and the blue matting to end up with a totally blank canvass.

I found some pretty scrapbook paper and cut it to fit over the top piece of mat board.

I cut a piece of coordinating solid colored paper to glue over the center of the board, where the teddy bear had been.

I went online and found a font I liked for the letter, "K."

I then pulled out my massive button collection, and using glue dots to adhere the buttons, I made this for my granddaughter Kate.

Today I may go and try to salvage my bird.

A FInished Papier Mache BIrd

2010-02-25T08:34:00.003-05:00

But....its not mine. Instead of working on my bird this past weekend, my sweetie and I went to the beach. What can I say? Its one of the hazards of living in Florida :)

However, while I was off playing, Doro was busy creating her own papier mache bird. Isn't it gorgeous?

I like it even better than the inspiration birds at Anthropologie. Check Doro's blog and her links, she does beautiful illustrations.

WIP Papier Mache Birds

2010-02-19T08:49:00.002-05:00

I was inspired to do a little papier mache after seeing these birds at Anthropologie.

Cute, but at $328 each, a bit pricey.
I hadn't done any papier mache projects in about 20 years, but its a simple craft, with the most challenging part being having the patience to let the project dry in between steps. I'm hoping to have the project completed this weekend, but until then, here are the beginning steps.

Supplies:

paper bag
masking tape
newspaper
a small piece of wire
old cereal or cracker box
craft glue
blender

2010-02-01T12:18:00.000-05:00

FREE SHIPPING on the paper heart garland in my Etsy shop!

Paper Heart Wreath

2010-01-26T14:34:00.005-05:00

I saw this heart wreath on Flower Patch Farm Girl, and thought it was FABULOUS!
Find the directions Here.

photo by Flower Patch Farm Girl

And the winner is....

2010-01-11T12:23:00.005-05:00

Kathleen W. Email me your address and I'll put your heart garland in the mail!

Valentine Garland

2010-01-06T22:32:00.004-05:00

And a give away!
My house looked very barren after taking down my Christmas decorations, so I whipped up this heart garland using a my trusty paper punch and a stack of old magazines.

I wanted my hearts to be in shades of red and pink, so I found pages with those colors and in no time I had a pile of paper hearts.

I took the hearts to my sewing machine and just started sewing them together to make my garland.

I had so much fun with this project that I made an extra 12 foot long garland to give to one lucky reader! To enter just comment below and leave your email address so I can contact the winner. You can get a second entry by linking to my blog, and commenting a second time letting me know you did this. I'll pick a winner at noon on Monday, Jan. 11th!

A Very Merry Wine Bottle Christmas Tree

2009-12-16T18:34:00.006-05:00

This is a guest post with writing and photography by my daughter, Megan, from http://imperrfections.blogspot.com

These are photos of the ridiculously awesome Christmas tree my mom built several years ago.

Because she's allergic to pine as well as plastic artificial trees (as a result of her MCS), she wanted to come up with something to replace her traditional tree and so she developed and constructed her very own glass wine bottle tree.

It consists of a 4x4 wooden fence post, wooden dowels, 64 wine bottles (most given to her by a local wine shop), 13 beer bottles, ornaments, paper snowflake garland, Christmas lights, and a vintage lace table cloth for the tree skirt.

It is beyond cool.

Now, I'm not sure if she was the first to invent this, all I know is she had never seen one before and came up with the idea back in 2007. After I blogged a photo of it that year we started seeing other versions pop up online (there is a very beautiful and huge version at Gaylord Texan Resort)

An Anthropologie Inspired Bracelet.

2009-12-13T13:26:00.002-05:00

Unlike this beautiful, $198 Anthropologie ribbon bracelet, mine cost $1.25 to make. Granted, I already had all the supplies on hand, but the ribbon was out of Micheal's dollar bin, the vintage pin was .25 at a yard sale and the old broken watch was in my bin of jewelery bits.

My supplies:

The bracelet is basically a layered bow. If you've never made bows before, Save-on-crafts has great instructions.
I wanted a 2 inch loop, so I measured out 6 inches of ribbon, and leaving 2 inches for the tail, I folded the ribbon in half and pinched it.

I held my bow tight and twisted the ribbon so that the shiny side was facing out.

Then you repeat the process, make a loop, pinch and twist, until you've made four loops.

Then take a piece of floral wire and secure the bow in the middle.

I then made another four loop bow, slightly smaller thatn the first.

Stack the smaller bow on top of the larger and twist all the wires together under the large bow.

You now have something that looks like this. Fluff and play with the loops until you're happy with how they look.

Pin or hot glue your rhinestone jewelry in the center of the bow, then hot glue it on to your cuff bracelet or in my case, an old cuff watch. If you don't have either of those, you can use an extra piece of ribbon as your bracelet and glue the bow to that and simply tie it on your wrist.

If I make more of these, I will definitly try to find a pale ribbon with a dark edge. While I like the green, it doesn't have the definition I want and the green seems to become just a big blur of color.

Cashmere Wrap

2009-11-22T19:33:00.004-05:00

A couple of months ago I bought a large, purple, cashmere, turtleneck sweater at a garage sale for $1. Living in Florida, I knew I'd never wear the sweater even if it did fit, but it was only $1 and I knew I'd eventually find a use for it.
Last week while reading through other craft blogs, I came across this awesome project, turn a sweater into a fashionable wrap!
I followed the tutorial, and am thrilled with the results!

To make your own wrap, go over to My Mama Made It for easy to follow, step by step directions.

Crafty Cakestand

2009-11-17T15:27:00.005-05:00

This is so easy and inexpensive to create, and makes a great Christmas present.

Take an old tarnished candlestick, (these are easy to find in thrift stores as nobody likes to polish silver or brass,) and spray paint it.

Find a pretty plate, also easy to find while thrifting, and get some silicone glue, or e6000 glue. DO NOT use hot glue, it won't hold.
Put a ring of glue around the top of the candlestick then center it on the face down plate. Let it dry 24 hours before moving.

Voila! A pretty cake stand to hold all manner of treats!

Thank You Apartment Therapy

2009-11-12T18:56:00.001-05:00

For featuring my book page wreath.

Lanvin Inspired Bracelet

2009-11-11T16:02:00.003-05:00

Barneys is selling this necklace, (and no those are not real pearls,) for $890.

Seriously? $890 for some ribbon and faux pearls?
I made this bracelet in about 30 minutes using supplies I had lying around.

I'm sure I could replicate the necklace completely with a trip to the craft store.
Here are the basic instructions.

I used some satin ribbon, a broken pearl necklace and thread. Next time I will use grosgrain ribbon and a strand of embroidery thread, as I think they would be better suited to the project.

I started about 12 inches from the end of the ribbon sewing the pearls on with a basic running stitch, leaving a space the size of a pearl between each bead.

back view

For my bracelet I used eight pearls

Once my pearls were on I started pulling the thread, just like you would if you were gathering fabric.

This is what it looks like all gathered

I tied a simple knot by the last pearl, at each end of the bracelet

Thats it. If I make these for gifts I will buy some jewelry findings and put a proper clasp on, but I did this on the fly, and it worked out pretty well.

Not a Craft but Creative...

2009-10-31T09:58:00.005-04:00

My wonderfully talented daughter Megan is featured on the front page of Saveur magazine today!

Halloween Fun

2009-09-22T19:08:00.006-04:00

I've been a bit under the weather and unable to do crafting, so I thought I'd share some of these fabulous Halloween crafts that I've found .

The first is a Halloween countdown calender from the talented, "Just a Girl." This is a great idea for a Christmas advent calender.

Photo by "Just a Girl"

Look at this adorable ghost from ArtMind. I love its happy little face. What a fun project to do with kids.

Photo by ArtMind

Check out Claudine Hellmuths' Halloween Village. So cute! (sorry no pic. her images are copyrighted.)

I'm Shaking Things Up

2009-09-11T16:22:00.000-04:00

A lot of my crafty endeavors happen outside the craft room, and I've decided to start sharing them here. In honor of that I give you my signature drink, The Raspberry Lemon Drop Martini.

The Raspberry Lemon Drop

Ingredients:
(Makes 2 drinks)

Juice of 2-3 large lemons
4 shots Stoli raspberry vodka
1 TBS sugar + extra for the rim

Rub a little lemon juice along the edge of the martini glasses then dip onto a plate lightly coated with sugar. Shake together the ingredients with lots of ice and serve with a spear of berries.

Snap Swivel Bracelet

2009-09-08T20:14:00.003-04:00

I know, I know, What's a snap swivel you ask. I had no idea that's what these little brass things were called. They are used on a fishing line and you can buy them in the sporting goods section of any store...and they're cheap.
I used to make these bracelets in the 80's. They were all the rage with high school kids. I like wearing them in multiples, and whats really nice, is that because they're made of brass, you can shower in them, swim in them and leave them on forever, and they still look good.

These are the swivel snaps; they come in different sizes. I'm using a size 5 which is the largest I could find. (It photographs better.)

Here is what the snap looks like.

Open the back of the snap just like a safety pin.

Hook it to the ring part of another snap. You can make a bracelet just by hooking a bunch of snaps together, but I like to add seed beads.

Here I've added seed beads and closed the snap.

Continue until you get a bracelet that fits around your wrist. Pretty isn't it?

I decided to take it a step further and add some larger beads.

The end product looked like this. (I hadn't attached all the large beads yet, but my light was fading.)

You can use the snap as your bracelet closure, but you'll probably need someones help closing it. I would suggest adding a regular clasp to make things easier on yourself.

Felted Wool Flowers

2009-09-02T12:43:00.007-04:00

Here is a photo of the headband being worn by daughter, who was not so keen on having her picture taken...so I snuck up on her. Its the best I could do. Sadly, my photographic skills lack compared to hers. She took the amazing photo, and made my new banner. Check out her other work here.

The inspiration for these roses came from two different sites. the first was Creature Comforts and her tutorial for a paper flower. I made some from paper, and then saw that Betz White had used the same technique on felted wool. The first step is to cut a circle out of your wool.

Starting on the outside edge, start cutting towards the center, making a spiral.

Beginning at the outside of the spiral, start rolling the wool up forming your flower.

I always end up with a tail on the bottom of my flower and I just snip it off with my scissors.

I had been sewing the layers of wool together with neat little stitches, but now just glue them together using a hot glue gun. I all so used the glue gun to attach the flowers to my headband.

Tada! Thats it, you've made a flower!

Felted Sweater Headband.

2009-08-29T14:12:00.005-04:00

While I don't wear headbands myself, (I have very short hair,) my daughters do wear them and I wanted to make a fall-ish headband for Megan.

The first step was to cut a strip of wool from the bottom of one of my felted sweaters.

Then I trimmed it to 16 1/2" long by 1 1/2" wide. I then tapered the ends by folding the wool in half and measuring down an inch I cut the corners off. (Please excuse my ragged crafters cuticles.)

I then cut 5" of elastic to make the stretchy part of the headband.

With matching thread I made two little rows of stitches to attach the elastic to the ends of the wool.

Then came the fun part. Embellishing. I made a bunch of felted wool flowers and attached them with a glue gun. I stuck a few pearly buttons in too, to brighten things up.

I did a little embroidery on the band as well.

And here we have the finished product. Honestly, the purple flowers looked better in my head than they do in reality, but my Megan deemed it cute, so I'm happy. More importantly, she loves how soft and comfortable the headband is to wear.

Wood Salad Plate Turned Art

2009-08-16T13:27:00.005-04:00

While out on one of my garage sale-ing adventures, I came across a stack of these 1960's wooded salad plates. As you can see, they were heavily used, and I wasn't sure what I would do with them but bought them anyway. When I got them home I noticed that while the front of the plate was pretty useless unless I sanded and stained it, the back side, was untouched and beautiful.

Yucky side:

I decided I wanted a stylized flower on the plate, with the petals being the natural wood, so I cut lots of little petals out of clear contact paper, to use as the resist. Here they are stuck to the plate in my flower shape.

I spray painted the plate with Krylon's Blue Ocean Breeze, because according to the cap color, it was a perfect match to my bedroom pillows. Unfortunately, the cap color and the actual paint color are vastly different. As you can see, the paint is more of a Tiffany blue.

Once the paint had dried I peeled off all the contact paper petals.

This is the finished product, looking pretty much how I envisioned it.

And here it is hanging in my bedroom. Yes, those are the pillows that the paint cap matched.

I've been asked how I hung the plate, so here it is. Two thumb tacks and a piece of floral wire. I chose the thumb tacks because I knew they were short enough that they wouldn't go through the other side of the plate. It isn't pretty, but it works.

Doodling

2009-05-29T19:50:00.002-04:00

Not much crafting happening...just doodling. Try it!

Crafting with Kids

2009-04-05T20:00:00.002-04:00

Gregory is a rough and tough four year old, but he has a soft side that loves to cuddle so I thought making a stuffed animal together would be the perfect craft. We decided on a kitten and cut out a rectangle of felted wool. Instead of stitching, I put hot glue along the edges and had Gregory carefully press the sides together. He picked out some buttons to glue on as eyes, then decided to cut a mouth and fangs out of some spare wool. I did show and help him stitch on some whiskers, but the rest of the kitty was all his doing.

Haute Couture

2009-02-25T20:45:00.002-05:00

As soon as I saw this fabric flower brooch here, I knew i had to make one.

Designer flower:

My flower:

The only supplies you need are fabric, glue, 28 gauge wire and pinking shears.

1. cut about16 inches of wire and form it into a petal shape, twisting the ends together to secure and form a stem.
Make 10 large petals, (mine were 7" long,) and 7 small petals, (5" long.)

Cut fabric wide enough to enclose the stem when folded in half.

Lay your stem on half the fabric and run a line of glue over the entire stem. Then fold the fabric over to cover the stem, pressing the fabric firmly to the wire.

Now comes the hard part. Wait and let the glue dry thoroughly!

Once it is dry, take your pinking shears and cut out the stem shape, following the outline of the wire.

Once all your stems are cut, make 2 stacks of 5 large stems, and 1 stack out of the 7 small stems, then lay the stacks on top of each other, Large-small -large.

Once they're stacked, twist the stems together to form one large stem.

Now the fun part! Start opening the petals, spreading them out like a flower.

Turn the flower over and curl the stem so it lies flat around the flower. I covered mine in duct tape first.

Thats it! I used a large safety pin to pin the flower to my jacket. This was my prototype. I think I'll make my next flower a bit smaller.

Beaded Flowers

2009-02-19T17:28:00.003-05:00

I like these because they have a vintage look, and can be made into a necklace, hair accessory, pin, or even a magnet for your refrigerator.

Supplies: Beading wire, I used 24 gauge
a package dark color rocaille beads
a package of light color rocaille beads
a package of assorted rocaille beads
a small piece of felt
glue gun
pliers/wire cutters

1. Forming a petal.
Cut a piece of wire, 9 inches long. string on two of the assorted color beads, (I used clear,) then string on 10 of your dark color beads and 2 more of your assorted color beads. Push the beads until they are about 2 inches from the end.

Form a loop with the beaded portion and twist once to hold the beads in place.

Working with the long end of the wire string on two assorted color beads, 20 dark color beads, and two more assorted color beads.

Form the beaded section into a loop going around your first loop, and twist to hold.

Working with the long section of wire, add 4 of the assorted color beads, 25 dark beads and 4 more assorted color beads. Form into a loop and twist.

You have now completed one petal. Follow the steps to make a total of 5 dark color petals, and 5 light color petals.

2. Assembling the flower.
Stack 5 petals together alternating light and dark. Twist the stems together.

Put on stack on top of the other and twist the stems together.

Spread the petals out, overlapping them.

On the back of the flower, curl the wire around, flat to the flower and trim.

Hot glue a piece of felt over the wire.

On the front of the flower, put a dab of hot glue in the center where the wire is showing. Sprinkle on some of the assorted color beads, a rhinestone or a large bead.
(I used the clear beads.)

Now you can add a pin back, barette, or magnet to make the flower into what ever accessory you want.

2008-12-09T06:38:00.004-05:00

This poor blog has taken been sadly ignored lately, and I hope to remedy that in the coming new year. Until then, head over to Renovating a Brookyln Limestone and submit your Christmas craft/decorating idea, for an entry into her blogversary giveaway.

While I haven't been doing much crafting myself, I did receive an email and photo from Kelly, who made her own book page wreath. I love when ya'll send me photos of your projects!

Isn't it cute?

Felted Fower Pins

2008-10-30T20:09:00.004-04:00

I've been felting lots of sweaters, inspired by all the great projects in Betz Whites' book, Warm Fuzzies. I have small bits of felt left over from the projects and have been making these pins to put in my Etsy shop.

Velvet Embossing

2008-09-17T11:39:00.003-04:00

Fifteen years ago, the look of cut velvet in home decor was all the rage. This is the technique I used to achieve the look at home on the cheap, for table runners, Christmas stockings, and wine bottle bags. What ever tickles your fancy.

The cast of characters: An iron, a water mister bottle, a rubber stamp, and velvet. The velvet must be made of rayon or rayon-acetate.

Set your iron on the wool or cotton setting with no steam.
Mist both sides of your velvet lightly, with water.
Place the velvet nap side down over your stamp. While I'm using a foam stamp here, a regular hard rubber stamp is preferable. The foam stamp starts to melt after a few uses.

Press the iron on the fabric over your rubber stamp. Do NOT move the iron, just press for 30-40 seconds. Use a piece of scrap velvet to start with so you can determine the time that works best for your fabric.

Lift your iron and look at your amazing handiwork.

Move the stamp to anew section of fabric and continue with your design.

Embroidery

2008-08-22T22:11:00.003-04:00

I've had this idea in my head for some time now, and its been a great project to work on as we wait out tropical storm Fay.
Its my interpretation of Paris in the spring.

Gift card bracelet.

2008-07-10T05:00:00.006-04:00

Lots of crafty things have been going on here; I just get too lazy to take and post pictures. I made this bracelet for the birthday of a coffee loving friend, out of a Starbucks card. I cut the card into squares, then rounded them with my Dremel. I used the Dremel to drill holes in each piece also. Then I strung the bracelet using a piece of gold jewelry wire, I'm including a matching Starbucks gift card with the bracelet.

Button Bracelet

2008-06-05T11:48:00.003-04:00

Inspired by Creative Kismet's button bracelet, I made this bracelet using gold jewelry wire and white buttons. I wanted a summery , seashell look and I like how this turned out.

Crafting Mojo

2008-05-29T10:03:00.003-04:00

After being sick for some time now, I'm trying to get my crafty mojo back. I've been doing some embroidery, I adore monograms, but after seeing Hanna's free form needle art, I'm inspired to give it a try.

My monogram. Just find a font you like and print it out. Then using transfer paper, trace the letter onto your piece of fabric.
Primrose Design has a great online stitch school that I've found to be very helpful.

(Monogram Momma has a great tutorial on making a monogramed tie for Fathers Day.)

Little Birds

2008-04-20T12:12:00.003-04:00

Friday I painted a trio of little sparrows above my front door. A pretty easy project, other than some very bumpy orange peel texture on the walls making the outline of the birds kind of wobbly.

(I saw something like this done on one of the design blogs I read. I wish I had noted which one as to give credit to the artist who originally had this idea.)

Finally, a Real Project!

2008-04-17T15:35:00.002-04:00

With May Day on its way and the weather being perfect for outdoor dining, I thought I would make up a bunch of these jar tea light/flower holders.
All you need are some clean jars, (I love the shape of this jelly jar,) 22 gauge floral wire and wire cutters.

The first thing I do is cut a piece of wire double the length of the handle I want. Then fold it in half and twist it just like you do for the button flowers.

Take your twisted handle wire and position it on the jar leaving a, "tail on each side. Take your floral paddle wire and start wrapping it around the jar, securing the "tails" and twisting the wire to secure the end. Continue wrapping the jar, about eight times.

Finish wrapping the wire near one of the tails and cut the wire from the paddle. Secure the loose end to the tail, then bend the tails up, twisting them to the handle.

At this point you're finished. You can use it as is or embellish with ribbons or anything else that tickles your fancy. I kept mine pretty simple, putting pea gravel and a tea light in the bottom.

Using an S hook, I hung the light from y patio umbrella. I plan on making more so I can have a nice candle lit dinner.

You can use this for May Day by filling it with flowers and hanging off of a doorknob.

I Wish I Had Thought of This.

2008-04-09T19:27:00.004-04:00

Patricia over at A Little Hut, made this candle ring out of a paper towel tube. Genius I tell ya.

2008-04-02T17:32:00.001-04:00

I wish I could remember where I found this image and who did it...but I can't. Not only is it a nice piece of art but it is dear to my heart since it is made from discarded cardboard.

I Have a Sewing Machine!

2008-03-30T06:40:00.001-04:00

Sometimes I just lose my crafting mojo, so I peruse the internet for ideas. This is one I think I'd like to try.

Salt Scrub

2008-03-03T20:45:00.003-05:00

I know you've seen it in stores; jars of colored, scented and oil infused salt to use as a scrub to make your skin all soft and
glow-y. I'm sure you've seen the price tag too. Much more than I want to pay , so here is a recipe for salt scrub that will rival any store bought product. (Put in an attractive jar, this makes a great present.)
Scrub for one: 1 cup of coarse sea salt. I used Alessi brand and really like it.
2 tablespoons of grape seed oil. Olive oil works too, grape seed is just lighter
2 tablespoons of water
1-2 drops of essential oil (optional)
Put all of the ingredients in a glass bowl and mix well. Thats it. Easy and inexpensive. To use, get in the shower or bath and wet your skin then scrub with your salt, and rinse. You won't believe how soft your skin feels! (And if you have someone scrub your back for you.....ahhhh...sheer bliss.)

How I Made the Candy Buttons

2008-02-26T10:23:00.002-05:00

The candy buttons are pretty easy to make, just time consuming. I bought a candy mold, ($1.99,) at my local cake decorating store, (you can all so find them online,) and a couple of bags of white candy melts and oil based candy coloring at Micheals. (Using my 40% off coupons.) The button molds are pretty small, the size of real buttons, so I put the melted candy in a disposable cake decorating bag to fill them. I popped the filled mold into the freezer for about 5 minutes. Once the candy is cold I took the mold out of the freezer, bent it slightly to help release the candy, then turned it upside down on my kitchen counter and tapped the back with a wooden spoon to get the buttons out. There were always a few that would be stuck, so I pried them out with a pin. The directions on how to melt and color the candy is on the back of the candy bag. For the coloring I bought basic primary colors, (red, yellow, blue,) and mixed them to get the colors you see in the buttons. Viola! Candy buttons!

Megan and Matthew.

2008-02-24T07:10:00.000-05:00

The Cake!

2008-02-23T05:20:00.003-05:00

Candy Buttons

2008-02-20T18:37:00.004-05:00

Instead of crafting, I've been making these:

Hundreds of candy buttons for my daughters wedding cake.

She is getting married in our back yard on Saturday. Sunday I turn her bedroom into my craft studio.
I'm looking forward to being able to work on projects whenever I want and not having to think about cleaning up and putting stuff away all the time.... meaning I'll be able to post more crafty ideas!

Paper Clip Hearts

2008-01-31T14:19:00.001-05:00

Using 4-5 inches of wire, find the middle and bend it into a point, then take your needle nose or jewelry pliers, and curl each end.

I use my fingers to bend the curled ends in forming a heart.

Heart shaped paper clips!

How to Remove Labels

2008-01-24T23:14:00.000-05:00

I was asked how I removed labels from all those wine bottle, so this was my method. I filled up a big rubbermaid bin with water and a little dish soap, then sunk all the bottles and let them soak over night. By morning, some of the labels had lifted off and were floating ing the water. For the rest off the bottles, I used a single edged razor blade and scraped them off. Another method you can use with labels that don't soak off, is to use a heat gun to soften the glue. The label then peels right off, though this method can be a bit smelly.

This Could Be Addictive

2008-01-22T09:01:00.001-05:00

So this cold has lasted longer than I thought, and I haven't been able to work on many projects. Being inspired by the video I linked to in my last post, I did make this picture.

I had so much fun cutting up magazines and gluing down the strips of paper! I think I must have made a dozen of these while resting on the sofa and watching, "Friends," one afternoon.

Coming Soon!

2008-01-13T19:28:00.000-05:00

I've been dealing with a cold since New Years Day , but hope to get a new craft up this week! Until then, enjoy this video.

Little Valentine Note

2007-12-28T15:29:00.000-05:00

These are quick and easy to make; perfect for little love notes, tucked into pockets or lunch boxes.
Simply cut out a heart, and fold as illustrated, tucking the pointy tail end, into the curved opening.

2007-12-24T08:21:00.001-05:00

Glittery Acorns

2007-12-20T11:28:00.000-05:00

Things have been so busy around here, there isn't much time for crafting. So many things I wanted to make for Christmas have gone unmade: ( I was able to whip up some gift tags using acorns I picked up on my walk around the neighborhood though. I like the acorn part, not so much the ribbon.

Why a Glass Tree?

2007-12-14T09:27:00.000-05:00

I realized I never addressed on this blog my reason for building a Christmas tree. You see, I'm allergic to real trees and artificial trees...and the paint covering the lights..... actually, I'm allergic to EVERYTHING. Its called Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, and I'm pretty much a prisoner in my bubble of a home. But it leaves me lots of time to craft, (with non toxic supplies.)

For the wine bottle tree, 25 of the bottles were mine, saved for over a year. The rest came from neighbors recycling bins and a wine bar near my home. The center post was picked up curbside from a neighbors trash; the dowel rods I had to purchase. My husband drilled all the holes for me, and my daughter helped me with de-labeling the bottles, so it was a family project.

I'm pretty pleased with the results, and as all my friends who have come to see the tree in have told me, pictures don't do it justice, its much prettier in person.

Here It Is!

2007-12-10T21:52:00.001-05:00

My wine bottle Christmas tree:

Christmas Garland

2007-12-06T08:09:00.001-05:00

Living in Florida, its hard to get that Christmas feeling. We don't have snow, or cold weather. To light a fire in the fireplace requires cranking up the a.c. Last year I decided to decorate for Florida and used natural materials I found outside to make this shell garland for my tree. First thing I did was drill holes in the top of all my shells, then gathered my string and some pearls.

fold your string , with the fold being where you want your shell.

push the loop through the hole.

slip the loop over the shell and gently pull tight.

continue adding shells, (and I put pearls on mine using the same method,) until your desired length.
You can use this technique to make a garland using just about anything!

W.I.P.

2007-11-29T05:51:00.000-05:00

Crafting time has been spent on a large project. I'm working on a wine bottle Christmas tree and hope to have photos up by the weekend.

Paper Beads

2007-11-11T14:40:00.001-05:00

Strolling through the Martha Stewart section of my local craft store I was surprised to see a craft kit she has that teaches you how to make paper beads. I learned how to make them as a kid and thought everyone else must have also. I saw that most of her craft kits were things I already knew how to do. It hit me then that I am what the french refer to as a, "woman of a certain age," So for all the spring chickens out there, here is how to make paper beads.

Cut out strips of paper. I used heavy glossy advertising pages from a magazine.

Cut each strip into two triangles. Do this by cutting from the top left corner down to the bottom right corner.

Get a skewer, (this is what you'll form your bead on,) and put a drop of glue on the endof the piece of paper. Then roll the triangle of paper up evenly and tightly, gluing a bit as you go.

You will end up with a bead that looks like this. The bead will need to be sealed, I've always used clear nail polish or matte medium. I lke sealing it while still on the skewer, but be very careful not to seal it to the skewer. Slie them of the skewer when they are dry, and use them in any jewelry making project.

Laura's Paper Flowers

2007-10-24T08:07:00.000-04:00

I really enjoy seeing how people take an idea, change it and make it their own, Laura, who has a lovely blog, (and Etsy shop,) has posted pictures of her adaptation of paper flowers. I love how she has used book pages for some of the petals.

Just in Time for Christmas.

2007-10-22T10:08:00.000-04:00

I started making and selling these sweet little ornament hooks 15 years ago. When people bought them they would tell me I needed to patent the idea. I didn't, and now I see these everywhere! They are very easy to make, I use vintage beads and wire from the hardware store, No directions really, just bending and twisting wire with your hands.

Book Page Wreath

2007-10-10T16:26:00.000-04:00

Inspired by a wreath I saw in a Pottery Barn catalog, I cut a cardboard circle from a box I had laying around. I then gathered up a few old books and started cutting pages out of them. I rolled the pages and stapled them together in "hands of 5-6, then hot glued them to the cardboard. I'd like to get more books and add to the wreath as well as vary the size of the pages attached.

Wired Ribbon Favor

2007-09-22T15:13:00.000-04:00

I made these for a bridal shower and then again for a tea party, placing one on each persons plate. I normally put a couple of little chocolate bars in them, but since all of those have been snacked on, this favor holds a box of matches.
The only supplies needed are wired ribbon, small ribbon roses and a glue gun.

I cut my ribbon to 7 1/2 inches in length, and I use a piece of cardboard that is 2 3/8 inces in width as a guide for wrapping the ribbon around. I start by ffolding about 1/4 inch ribbon over the edge of the cardboard.

Wrap the ribbon around the cardboard one complete rotation. Fold the tail end in half, then fold the front flap over.

Slide the piece of cardboard out.

Open the ribbon and glue up the two sides that will make the sides of the packet.

Fold the front flap down and sttach a ribbon rose.

Reusable Shopping Bag

2007-09-18T13:15:00.000-04:00

Using the directions from this post on Craftster, I made a reusable shopping bag out of thrifted fabric, (more recycling!) The bag folds up into itself making it easy to tuck into my purse. I 've been cutting out fabric all day so I can make a bunch to put in my soon to open Etsy shop.

Thank Yous.

2007-09-13T22:30:00.001-04:00

First to Kim at Todays Creative Blog, for featuring me on her blog back in August, and saying such sweet things about me.
Second to Laurie, at Tip Junkie, for giving me the Rockin Girl Blogger award!
Thanks, you two!

I'm passing the award over to Jessica at Sweet Pea Designs. Who is just getting her craft blog started.

B is for Bird

2007-09-10T20:12:00.001-04:00

The latest of my bird collages.

Paper Flowers

2007-09-08T17:12:00.000-04:00

I had all my scrappy bits of paper pulled out for doing the paperbag book tutorial, and because I'm fidgety, as I talked on the phone or watched tv, I would start cutting out shapes. Those shapes turned into hearts, which in turn I glued together to make paper flowers. The bottom picture is of Lisa's newly crafted memo board, adorned with one of the paper flowers. She stopped by my house Friday morning with an old cork board, trim from Walmart and some scrapbook paper to use as inspiration for color. She rightly figured I'd have the rest of the supplies needed to put together her new memo board, and it made for a fun morning!

Paperbag Book Tutorial

2007-09-04T18:18:00.000-04:00

Supplies needed:

Lunchbags, stapler, glue stick, paper trimmer, scissors, glue dots, decorative paper, ephemera.

For a six page book, use 3 paperbags. Alternate the opening of the bags and stack them on top of each other.

Fold the bags in half.

Now you can pull out your sewing machine and sew up the middle, or do it the fast and speedy way and staple the center. I like fast and speedy.

Pull out all your collage and scrapbook supplies. This is where the fun begins.

I cut a piece of decorative paper to cover the spine of the book and glue it on with a glue stick. I've tied riboons around the spine on this book. You can also punch holes and thread yarn and ribbons through.
Now you can turn this into anything you want. I mailed cds to a friend using the bag openings to hold the cds. You can use this as a photo book, an art book, keep recipes or decorating ideas in it. Whatever you want!

Coming Soon!

2007-09-03T17:49:00.000-04:00

I'm working on the tutorial for the paperbag book. Hope to have it posted in the next day or two.

Cheap and Easy

2007-08-29T21:44:00.000-04:00

I was able to make three of these arrangements for Megans shower for $10. It helps that I have a healthy stash of all kinds of ~~junk~~ supplies. I bought flowers at the grocery store, three bunches for ten bucks. I had a few leftover Chinese takeout boxes from party favours I did years ago. I filled them with oasis, randomly stuck in my flowers and added chopsticks. These are so very Megan as she practically lives on Thai and Chinese cuisine.

Pom Poms

2007-08-26T20:06:00.000-04:00

Allison asked if I would put up a tutorial for the pom pom flowers I made to decorate Megans shower. I remember making them when I was a kid, using kleenex and pipe cleaners, These are a bit nicer : ) I found a tutorial for them at Martha Stewart
Basically you accordian fold sheets of tissue paper, wire them in the middle, round the ends with scissors, then seperate the layers and give them a good shake to fluff them up.

Button Flower Tutorial

2007-08-24T07:38:00.000-04:00

First let me say, I saw this on Kiddley, I didn't come up with this great idea on my own : )

You'll need floral wire, buttons and wire cutters. Cut a piece of wire, about 20 inces long, then fold it in half.

Thread on 2-3 buttons

Hold the wire taut and start turning the buttons to make your twisted stem.

Thread on a couple more buttons, and twist again.

Make your stem as long as you like, and trim.

Wedding Shower Favors

2007-08-23T16:49:00.000-04:00

These were quick and fairly inexpensive to make. All it took was wrapping paper, chocolate bars and some initial stickers.

A Valentine for Jessica

2007-08-17T20:42:00.000-04:00

There is some junk mail I enjoy recieving, like the little boxes that AOL mails their cd's in. I used one of them to make this McDreamy valentine for Jessica.
yeah, I know its August, but I was going through my photos and realized I had never posted these.)