"Take a picture of me hugging the tree Mommy." Our little tree hugger had a lot of fun on her very first camping trip. And so did we. For those of you interested in a few candid snap shots you can view the set here at Flickr.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Wednesday on Wednesday
"Take a picture of me hugging the tree Mommy." Our little tree hugger had a lot of fun on her very first camping trip. And so did we. For those of you interested in a few candid snap shots you can view the set here at Flickr.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
How To : Vintage Halloween Garland
Before you say anything I know! I know that Halloween is months away. Two to be precise, and to celebrate I thought I would post my first Halloween tutorial! I love Halloween, I love the costumes, the parties, the trick or treating (Which I did off and on until I was twenty!)the decorations and of course watching Wednesday get excited about it is wonderful as well.
Pretty sweet right? Sorry if the photo is kinda meh, but I have yet to learn the finer art of garland photo taking. Moving on. The images were all courtesy of The Graphics Fairy. I found her site when I was searching for Alice in Wonderland Images but hadn't been back to it. When it popped up in a search for vintage Halloween images, it was a match made in heaven. I didn't need to look elsewhere because I found all of the great images. I recommend visiting her site if you haven't already.
This craft is great for many reasons. The first being it's nearly free-ness. And if you have all the materials on hand like I did; it pretty much is. The other awesome thing is the recycled content. The graphics can be printed on scrap paper and upcycled box board is used to back said images. Plus tea and jute, very natural. Okay, enough talky talky, let's get to the crafty crafty.
Materials:
Paper
Vintage images (I do provide some but you can always google more)
Recycled box board
Mod Podge
Jute twine
Black and orange ribbon
Tea bags
Black embroidery floss
Scissors
Embroidery needle
Click here for the first image and here for the second in a larger size that prints on letter size paper.
First things first, collect your clip art and re-size accordingly so they print out on letter sized paper. For your convenience I have shared the two sheets that I made up. Click on the links to take you to print sized copies.
Once you have printed your images, cut them out.
Collect your box board.
Glue images to cardboard,but learn from my mistake, glue to printed side of boxes so that your painted side isn't slick.
Steep tea bags.
Squeeze tea out of tea bag and dab it on the image.
If you have the patience to do this in layers, it looks really good when you're done.
Once the tea has dried cut out the images.
Turn images over and paint the reverse side black. This took two coats for me because I glued them to the wrong sides.Don't worry if some paint end up on the front of the image, it lends to the aged look.
Once paint has dried, apply one coat of Mod Podge to front of image.
When the Mod Podge on the front is dry, apply a coat to the painted side.
This is after the Mod Podge has dried. See how the black ink has popped out a bit and the black paint splotches look awesome. What a happy mistake.
Cut three pieces of jute twine roughly six feet long. Loop together and knot at one end. I made this knot big enough to fit over a doorknob to aid in braiding.
Once you have braided the length of twine and looped the other end in a knot for hanging, you can add your ribbon now by wrapping it around the twine. I waited until after I hung the images though.
To hang images on the twine and knot, thread your needle with black floss. Insert needle through back of image.
Insert needle through front of twine and tie to the knotted end of the image.
Knot thread tightly.
Trim.
Close-ups of the images. I think they look fab-u-lous!
That is all she wrote! Have fun crafting!
Linking to some of these parties as well as:
And I just discovered Iron Crafter @ Fireflies & Jellybeans and it just so happens the round five secret ingredient is cardboard boxes! How much of a super awesome coincidence is that? So I am adding the Iron Crafter button to my post to be considered for judging!
Pretty sweet right? Sorry if the photo is kinda meh, but I have yet to learn the finer art of garland photo taking. Moving on. The images were all courtesy of The Graphics Fairy. I found her site when I was searching for Alice in Wonderland Images but hadn't been back to it. When it popped up in a search for vintage Halloween images, it was a match made in heaven. I didn't need to look elsewhere because I found all of the great images. I recommend visiting her site if you haven't already.
This craft is great for many reasons. The first being it's nearly free-ness. And if you have all the materials on hand like I did; it pretty much is. The other awesome thing is the recycled content. The graphics can be printed on scrap paper and upcycled box board is used to back said images. Plus tea and jute, very natural. Okay, enough talky talky, let's get to the crafty crafty.
Materials:
Paper
Vintage images (I do provide some but you can always google more)
Recycled box board
Mod Podge
Jute twine
Black and orange ribbon
Tea bags
Black embroidery floss
Scissors
Embroidery needle
Click here for the first image and here for the second in a larger size that prints on letter size paper.
First things first, collect your clip art and re-size accordingly so they print out on letter sized paper. For your convenience I have shared the two sheets that I made up. Click on the links to take you to print sized copies.
Once you have printed your images, cut them out.
Collect your box board.
Glue images to cardboard,but learn from my mistake, glue to printed side of boxes so that your painted side isn't slick.
Steep tea bags.
Squeeze tea out of tea bag and dab it on the image.
If you have the patience to do this in layers, it looks really good when you're done.
Once the tea has dried cut out the images.
Turn images over and paint the reverse side black. This took two coats for me because I glued them to the wrong sides.Don't worry if some paint end up on the front of the image, it lends to the aged look.
Once paint has dried, apply one coat of Mod Podge to front of image.
When the Mod Podge on the front is dry, apply a coat to the painted side.
This is after the Mod Podge has dried. See how the black ink has popped out a bit and the black paint splotches look awesome. What a happy mistake.
Cut three pieces of jute twine roughly six feet long. Loop together and knot at one end. I made this knot big enough to fit over a doorknob to aid in braiding.
Once you have braided the length of twine and looped the other end in a knot for hanging, you can add your ribbon now by wrapping it around the twine. I waited until after I hung the images though.
To hang images on the twine and knot, thread your needle with black floss. Insert needle through back of image.
Insert needle through front of twine and tie to the knotted end of the image.
Knot thread tightly.
Trim.
Close-ups of the images. I think they look fab-u-lous!
That is all she wrote! Have fun crafting!
Linking to some of these parties as well as:
Monday, September 6, 2010
My Crafty Weekend - Labour Day Edition
Happy Labour Day fellow crafters! Lately I have been spending my spare time burning polyester ribbon. Why you ask? Well, I finally had all of the supplies to attempt some burnt roses and well, like Lays potato chips, you can't make just one.
Pretty special yes? I only have a photo of one because I have been waiting for better light for a couple days now. We have had on and off showers all weekend. But you wait, you'll be seeing oodles of them soon enough! I love how they look, how easy they were to make and how when you make one, it inspires you to make another one and another one and yet another one. Super awesome fun times.
There is a learning curve, I think I spent about a half hour melting polyester before I finally got the hang of it. Worth it in the end though. Because now I can make lots of hair pieces, necklaces and brooches. really, the possibilities are endless!
Speaking of endless possibilities, here are a couple fabulous links from last week!
This brilliant number was created by Lori of Paisley Passions. Who doesn't love chalkboard paint? And a chalkboard paint project that aides in math homework, well sign me up for two! To learn a few helpful hints about working with chalkboard paint, visit the post here.
Melissa of Those Northern Skies has a fabulous link party called My Creative High. Last week for her creative high she posted about this whimsical art made from recyclables. I love it. It makes me want to run out and buy some Krylon for plastic and then raid a few recycle boxes. Visit here to read more about it.
These two pouches full of goodness were made by Michelle of Falafel & The Bee. She made the pouches as gifts for her teenage niece. I have two words for the fabric and they are bad-ass! fabulous use of a Halloween tablecloth! Visit her blog to see more pictures.
So what have you been crafting,sewing,baking,painting and building these days? Shaer with us. The rules are simple,link up your project below and visit the link previous to you and leave a fabulous comment. Too easy right? I know! If you need more of a challenge, you could always add my button to your post as well.
Pretty special yes? I only have a photo of one because I have been waiting for better light for a couple days now. We have had on and off showers all weekend. But you wait, you'll be seeing oodles of them soon enough! I love how they look, how easy they were to make and how when you make one, it inspires you to make another one and another one and yet another one. Super awesome fun times.
There is a learning curve, I think I spent about a half hour melting polyester before I finally got the hang of it. Worth it in the end though. Because now I can make lots of hair pieces, necklaces and brooches. really, the possibilities are endless!
Speaking of endless possibilities, here are a couple fabulous links from last week!
♥
So what have you been crafting,sewing,baking,painting and building these days? Shaer with us. The rules are simple,link up your project below and visit the link previous to you and leave a fabulous comment. Too easy right? I know! If you need more of a challenge, you could always add my button to your post as well.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Giveaway Numero Uno!
Are you excited? I am! I am also a little nervous so we should just do this!
The first giveaway is a three piece set I made a couple weeks ago. I had opened up my box of clothing cast-offs and there were two grey and white pant leg bottoms my mom had kindly donated to my cause. I was instantly inspired to make a folding clutch. (Pant legs make the perfect folding clutches.) I rooted through my stash and found some really nice grey lining fabric and when it came time to add the button I was inspired by some beautiful vintage red ones I had collected on a recent thrifting trip.
I love the colour combination here. the red button, red zipper and red beads on the flower pin just pop against the greys and white. The pieces were all super simple to make, but I am nervous about handing them off. I am relatively new at this sewing thing and I am a little self conscious about the quality. But, having said that, I really like these pieces and I hope you do too!
I will draw a winner on Thursday September 9th. And on Friday I will announce a new giveaway!
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Giveaway Goodness!
I meant to post this yesterday, but with all the camping hoopla, well I forgot! But, here it is! What is it? Well, for the entire month of September I will be holding a giveaway every week! I know, crazy right?! Lots of different things too, things I have made, things I like and things from people I have never met!~ beginning tomorrow I will announce a draw every Friday until the end of September. So, you will have to check back often, and enter often!
And, if that is not enough for you as a completely unrelated but super duper awesome coincidence, The Sewing Dork is hosting her first ever Dork-A-Thon complete with giveaways! I love her stuff. She is probably the most generous blogger on the planet so it would be super if you stopped by her place and entered a few draws as well!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Wednesday on Wednesday
Around here, we keep the toys outside the tub, and wear the buckets. How do you have fun in the tub?
Monday, August 30, 2010
My Crafty Weekend - Gone campin'
Hey there crafties! So, our cottage vacation was cut short due to the discovery of mold! It started with me sneezing constantly and ended with us discovering mold in the crawlspace of the newly-renovated-super-posh-wish-we-lived-there cottage! So, we have been puttering around here trying to figure out what to do. We decided on a short two night, three day camping trip at Bon Echo Provincial Park. So instead of sharing with you what I did this weekend (in the interest of full disclosure this was not much at all) I'm going to share a couple links from last week! Okay, on to the goodness!
First up are these adorable Corn Niblet Cupcakes made by Patti of A Crafty Escape. The original design came from the book Hello Cupcake
which I also have but have not tried. Thanks to patti and her fabulous cupcakes though, I am super excited to get down and make some cupcakes!
I don't know what I love more, this Vinyl Hallway Tree, made by Kattie of Holm Made or her clever blog name. She has some great tips on making your own vinyl murals though, you should check it out.
Denim, denim everywhere! This gorgeous piece of practical fibre art was made by Michelle Made Me. I thought about making my own but hers is just so nice I don't know if mine could live up to those expectations! You should totally do it and to help, she has a tutorial here.
Recently, I was over at Life in the Pitts. Great blog, although I only recently discovered it. And for those of you that don't know, last week's edition of Creative Therapy was deemed the last. *Tear* I know, it is/was a great link party! But!~ To help carry on the tradition of that wonderful party, I promised to make an adendum to My Crafty Weekend. It goes like this: Once you have added your link, please visit the link before you and leave a comment of encouragement! You can visit as many or as few blog as you like, but I do ask that you visit at least the one, after all, we can al use good karma right?
Okay, and now for the linky linky fun! Below are some buttons that would be super swell of you to share but it is not required to play along. I added a felt cookie tute from the archive to get things started. Have fun and happy crafting!
which I also have but have not tried. Thanks to patti and her fabulous cupcakes though, I am super excited to get down and make some cupcakes!
Recently, I was over at Life in the Pitts. Great blog, although I only recently discovered it. And for those of you that don't know, last week's edition of Creative Therapy was deemed the last. *Tear* I know, it is/was a great link party! But!~ To help carry on the tradition of that wonderful party, I promised to make an adendum to My Crafty Weekend. It goes like this: Once you have added your link, please visit the link before you and leave a comment of encouragement! You can visit as many or as few blog as you like, but I do ask that you visit at least the one, after all, we can al use good karma right?
Okay, and now for the linky linky fun! Below are some buttons that would be super swell of you to share but it is not required to play along. I added a felt cookie tute from the archive to get things started. Have fun and happy crafting!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Storybook Sunday : A Tale of Two Denim Books
This Storybook Sunday is for the refashionistas out there. I have recently purchased two books about deconstructing and reconstructing denim. You know my love for recycled denim, so it is natural that I would start collecting books about using it in fashionable ways.
The first book I ordered, a little over a month ago is called Jean Therapy
and was written by Scatha G. Allison aka Miss Velvet Cream.
This hard-cover-coil-bound beauty of a book comes with four full size patterns. (Conveniently they are for my favourite projects.) But, there are also twenty one in depth and well illustrated projects for you to do and twelve more gallery photos to further inspire you.
You know how some refashion manuals are more inspirational then do-able? This book is not one of them, while there are a few projects you would not catch me making and/or wearing, there are more that I am looking forward to both make and wear. Like what? How about the grommet cuff or Pencil Skirt? Two very simple projects that are too simple to personalize.
The second book I ordered (and received almost creepy fast) this week. It is called Denim Revolution
and was written by Nancy Minsky who also has a fabulous blog called Jean Repair about restyling denim. This book as a whopping thirty two projects and even a chapter on distressing your denim that I found fabulous. (I can't wait to take a hammer and nail to my jeans!)
While this book does not have the full sized patterns that Jean Therapy does, it does come with patterns and templates for you to trace,copy and enlarge.
This book, had fewer projects that I myself would tackle but I found it more inspiring than Jean Therapy. (Did that make sense?) My notepad has a few full pages after reading this one. I should mention though, I love Nancy Minsky's use of trims and patches. Particularly on the Alice in Wonderland Pedal Pushers.
Both books had some similar projects such as denim cuffs of both a romantic and hipster nature. Both books had projects for gauntlets, jeans to skirt remodels and the denim bag. But, in all fairness these accessories are the go tos for many a crafster who loves denim.
That is wear the similarities end though. There styles as designers differ greatly, so even the projects that are based on the same idea branch out very differently. Which was nice, I was worried I would end up with two books almost exactly the same.
The one complaint I have against both designers is there lack of finished edges. While I love a shabby chic look as much as the next gal, and I do appreciate denim for it's beautiful fray, not every piece has to have unfinished fraying edges. With a lot of the projects in this book, where jeans were deconstructed rather than embellished, I found almost all seams to be unfinished. And while it works for some pieces, I think other pieces could use more finishing. Such as the Pencil Skirt from jean Therapy. For this particular project, added measurements for finished seam are given, but wouldn't it have been nice to see a more polished finished project? Just saying.
That being said, I would recommend both books for any refashionista looking to expand both their library and denim sewing repertoire. I can't wait to actually get to some projects from both.
and was written by Scatha G. Allison aka Miss Velvet Cream.This hard-cover-coil-bound beauty of a book comes with four full size patterns. (Conveniently they are for my favourite projects.) But, there are also twenty one in depth and well illustrated projects for you to do and twelve more gallery photos to further inspire you.
You know how some refashion manuals are more inspirational then do-able? This book is not one of them, while there are a few projects you would not catch me making and/or wearing, there are more that I am looking forward to both make and wear. Like what? How about the grommet cuff or Pencil Skirt? Two very simple projects that are too simple to personalize.
and was written by Nancy Minsky who also has a fabulous blog called Jean Repair about restyling denim. This book as a whopping thirty two projects and even a chapter on distressing your denim that I found fabulous. (I can't wait to take a hammer and nail to my jeans!)While this book does not have the full sized patterns that Jean Therapy does, it does come with patterns and templates for you to trace,copy and enlarge.
This book, had fewer projects that I myself would tackle but I found it more inspiring than Jean Therapy. (Did that make sense?) My notepad has a few full pages after reading this one. I should mention though, I love Nancy Minsky's use of trims and patches. Particularly on the Alice in Wonderland Pedal Pushers.
Both books had some similar projects such as denim cuffs of both a romantic and hipster nature. Both books had projects for gauntlets, jeans to skirt remodels and the denim bag. But, in all fairness these accessories are the go tos for many a crafster who loves denim.
That is wear the similarities end though. There styles as designers differ greatly, so even the projects that are based on the same idea branch out very differently. Which was nice, I was worried I would end up with two books almost exactly the same.
The one complaint I have against both designers is there lack of finished edges. While I love a shabby chic look as much as the next gal, and I do appreciate denim for it's beautiful fray, not every piece has to have unfinished fraying edges. With a lot of the projects in this book, where jeans were deconstructed rather than embellished, I found almost all seams to be unfinished. And while it works for some pieces, I think other pieces could use more finishing. Such as the Pencil Skirt from jean Therapy. For this particular project, added measurements for finished seam are given, but wouldn't it have been nice to see a more polished finished project? Just saying.
That being said, I would recommend both books for any refashionista looking to expand both their library and denim sewing repertoire. I can't wait to actually get to some projects from both.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Link Parties 'R' Us!
There are so many link parties out there, I don't think I could list them all without some serious time on my hands. But, with the help of the Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V buttons, I was able to make a quick go of the most popular ones. This way, when I link to parties other than my own fabulous My Crafty Weekend I have a great go-to list as well as proper credit to those wonderful blogs hosting them! If you host a party that you don't see here, please let me know! I have not visited all of these parties yet, but I am hoping to in the next few days, feel free to recommend some! For those of you that are with me on the unfamiliar ones, maybe we'll see you there soon. ♥
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday:
Friday:
Saturday:
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