DIY: Pumpkins From PaperBack Books!

"A Thrifty Mom" has an AMAZING tutorial that we cannot wait to get our own hands crafting on.  Fun, easy, good for kids, cheap (if not free)...what is not to love?  Go to her site for the full tutorial, but here is a sneak peek of her fantastical craftiness.

We can just see these on a work desk to show our love of the holiday without getting HR called on us for any rule breaking of policies!  ; )

It's Autumn!! Let's Craft to Celebrate!

Sorry I have been MIA for a few months.  We moved across the country and it's been a tad hectic!  On that note - today's post is a nod to the coming of AUTUMN!  I absolutely love this time of year.  The warmth of colors and the depth of beauty in the changing of the leaves and the way the cool breeze starts to calm the hot summer nights...breathtaking!

This craft idea comes from the amazing creators of Midwest Living and it's all about making decorations for the autumn holiday.  They have 32 awesome ideas that are easy and cheap to do!

This is our favorite of the bunch - ghostly gourds!  How adorable are these guys???  Great for the little ones, too!

Grab some fun looking gourds from the grocery store, some white and black paint, and perhaps some twine for hanging these bad boys (or set them on your mantel - no twine required)!

You have the idea - so go and do!  Send me pics of your ghostly adventures!  I plan to do this tutorial on my YouTube channel, so if you want to watch head on over that way here in the next week or so and the video should be up and running.

DIY: Mini Cake Stand

Having a Spring / Easter / ANY party?  Love cake stand DIYs?  Shaken Together's blog has an absolutely adorable mini cake stand that we don't think they could have made easier if they had tried!  We love the simplicity, but the beauty of this project.  

Be sure to head to their blog for more info and more DIY!

I purchased two inexpensive sets of solid colored dishes - one granny smith apple green and one black - inverted the cereal bowls, attached the dinner plates with scrapbooking glue dots (super sticky and easily removed) and my cake plates were born!! 

Here they are in action - sorry, this was the first picture I could find without digging out my CD of hundreds of pictures! 

We made chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with home made buttercream and offered chocolate jimmies, green sugar, coconut and mini chocolate chips ... it was a hit!

 

These would be sweet made with thrift store finds for a Mothers' Day tea, heritage dishes for an anniversary party or fun brightly colored mix & match plates and bowls for your kiddo's birthday party ... use the coffee mugs and salad/dessert plates for smaller cake stands with a little more quirky character :)  The best part is that they can be whipped up in a pinch and stored easily!
Hope you were inspired to {try this}!  And hope you want to hang around a while!  There are lots of ways to follow along ... check out my side bar.  I'm hosting a weekly Pinterest link party, too - scroll up to the top to stop by this week's party!  And I'll be sharing the amazing brownie recipe pictured above in the very near future ... you definitely don't want to miss it!

DIY: "Spring" Letters

So spring is just around the corner and we cannot wait.  Hoosier Homemade's blog has just the DIY project to get us going on spring related projects so we can be ready to roll!

This one is a "Spring" decor idea that brings color and happiness to any room!  Be sure to check out their blog for more DIY.

I just love how it turned out! Doug did an AMAZING job on it…don’t you think?

The concept for the scrapbook paper being applied to the wood is similar to the St. Patrick’s Day Door Hanging we made, but the letters were a little curved on the edge, so Doug had to cut out the paper before applying it to the wood. It was a little more time consuming, but well worth it.

And we couldn’t help but take pictures outside in the beautiful Spring weather we have!

Let’s gather our supplies…

Spring Craft Supplies:

• Wood – We used a piece of baseboard from our local molding outlet (length will depend on how many letters)
• Letters
• Scrapbook paper
• White paint for the edges of the letters
• Pre-stain and stain for the wood
• Spray adhesive to apply paper {not pictured}

Wood Preparation:

1. Cut your wood to length. Doug cut this piece, 5 inches longer than what we needed, leaving 2 1/2 inches on each end.
2. Using a rag, apply the pre-stain. Pre-stain is needed when staining soft or porous types of wood to prevent the finish from being blotchy.
3. Let sit 15-20 minutes to allow to soak in, wipe off any excess.
4. Apply stain evenly with a foam brush and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes depending how dark you want the final product to be, carefully wipe and excess stain off. {We used a combination stain/polyurethane product to speed up the process}

Letter Preparation:

1. Slightly sand the edges of the letters with 180 grit or finer sand paper. {the higher the number the finer the grit}
2. Paint the edges (2 coats) we used a satin latex that we had on our shelf {the washers are just to keep the letters up off the drop cloth}
3. Glue a small block of wood to the back side of the letters to give more area to glue to base.
4. Trace the letter onto the back of the scrapbook paper and cut out

Decorating the Letters:

• Spray the back side of the paper with adhesive and carefully adhere to the wood letters
• To attach the letters to the wood, use a hot glue gun {note: Doug tried wood glue and even super glue, but the glue gun worked the best}

DIY: Free Printables (Chevrons)

Who doesn't love free stuff?  Who doesn't love free printable / customizable stuff?  That's what we thought.  ;)

So, we are happy to share HGTV's wonderful (and FREE) printable chevron invitations and favors in 6 different color choices.  You.  Are.  Welcome.

I was recently asked to design a few all occasion invitations and favor ideas for the entertaining section of HGTV’s website. Both stories just went live, so you can download these fun, easy printables for any event! Available in pink, orange, lemon, lime, aqua or black. The invitations for free download are fill-in invitations. If you would like the text customized, they will be available in our shop!

I designed coordinating favor tags in two shapes. Our regular party circle size, as well a rectangular version.

DIY: You've Been Bugged!

LOVE LOVE LOVE this idea from Jen's Happy Place.  I'm doing this around my office place starting Friday.  What do you guys think??  Head to her blog for more!!

I think everyone will get a kick out of putting the

sign up by their desks that says "Don't BUG me!"

That will really show off our customer service- LOL!

One of the complaints from the boo'ed game in October was that people had to do two treats (and some people went overboard with what they gave), and also we started running out of co-workers to boo. So, I thought I would get it going by bugging two people, but then after that, each person would only have to assemble one treat. Hopefully this will work out better.

Here are my treats that I will secretly place on two of my co-workers' desks today:

This is how they will look when first given . . .

The pink mailbox!

Yep, still obsessed with vinyl! I had so much fun

with the mailboxes I decorated for Christmas gifts (HERE)

that I just couldn't pass up these Target dollar section cuties!

And the classic valentine red mailbox!

I will flip if my recipients win the $1000 a week for life!

This Target sticky note pad is so cheery-

much needed in our boring office! 

And could one ever go wrong with chocolate????

Here are the mailboxes dumped out . . .

Another fun sticky notepad from Target!

Supplies:

• Cricut Quarter Note cartridge for name lettering (welded on my Gypsy)
• Cricut Designer's Calendar cartridge for heart
• Cricut white indoor vinyl
• Metal mailboxes from the dollar section of Target
• A rolled up copy of the sheet shown above rubber-banded to mailbox flag (I forgot to add it before I took pics, but I did add valentine ribbon from Michael's and tied it in a pretty bow which covered up the rubber band-Oops!)
• Love Bug graphic found on the internet HERE
• GeoSlab703 XBd BT font for headings
• Kabel Bt BT font for body text
• DelRay font for "Happy Valentine's Day"
• Instant lottery tickets
• Ande's Valentine mint chocolates with sweet thoughts/messages on them
• Lindt Lindor chocolate truffles
• Reese's peanut butter chocolate hearts
• Sticky note pads from Target's dollar section

Hope you enjoyed and are inspired to start something fun like this in your own workplace! Help yourself to the sheet I created. All I ask is that you credit me and leave me a comment that you used it! I would love to see your take on it! :)

I am entering this fun "party-starter" in Decorate to Celebrate's Valentine Party challenge!

DIY: Gumball Candy Dish

Who doesn't love candy?  We certainly love candy and that makes this Gumball Candy Dish from Wrapcandy Crafts right up our alley!

Materials:

1 (one) 4″ Terra Cotta Pot
2 (two) 4″ Terra Cotta Saucers
1 (one) Bubble Bowl...Found at Walmart sku# 3100927117
1 (one) Wooden Ball – 1 1/4″
1 (one) E-6000 GLUE  

1 (one) Spray Can Clear Gloss ( Triple Thick – Rustoleum , your choice )
Acrylic Paint

 

Assembly:

1. Paint Both Terra Cotta pot and saucers –and knob- let dry overnight..
( if you were going to add a graphic and/or face plate , you would do this after the paint has dried overnight )
** Note – Face Plate directions below **

2. Place Terra Cotta Pot upside down…apply E6000 to the bottom rim of the pot..
apply Saucer-  let dry OVERNIGHT.

Add Wooden Ball to Saucer number 2, with the E6000 (let dry overnight)

4. Add lid to top of Bubble Bowl

 

FACEPLATE:

The face plate size is pretty much up to you… I use the dimensions either
2 1/4 x 2 1/4″… choice is yours…

DIY: Wood and Felt Arrows

"Today's Assignment: Be Inspired" is a wonderful blog with tons and tons of fun ideas.  We especially love these arrow that could make for a stunning center piece or hanging mobile!

Here’s a sweet little project that your little crafters can make for Valentine’s Day.

Make some simple Valentine Cupid’s arrows out of items on hand like twigs and felt. Use craft glue to adhere the felt arrow heads and feathers to the twig. 

Add Baker's Twine or even attach a sweet message. For little crafters who are too young for twigs, you can use straws instead of twigs.

DIY: Plantable Paper

Hill City Bride has a wonderful DIY that incorporates plantable paper and Valentine's Day tags / cards!  We love the eco-friendliness of this idea and also how adorable these little hearts are - so head on over to their blog for more!!

To make your paper, gather everything you will need: a blender, a packet of seeds, a heart-shaped cookie cutter, paper scraps and a mold. A mold is a piece of professional papermaking equipment: a screen is pulled very taught across a wooden frame. You can make your own with an old picture frame without the glass and some screen from the hardware store (you can find directions on the internet) or you can buy them through papermaking suppliers. A mold must have a very tight screen so that there are no sags where water might puddle and create uneven thickness in your handmade paper.

Begin by tearing your paper scraps into small pieces. Make sure to remove any staples, plastic windows from envelopes and any other non-paper materials. Soak them briefly in water to soften the paper so that your blender motor doesn’t have to work too hard. (Make sure to use a blender that is dedicated to papermaking. Because paper is made with chemicals, you will want to buy an inexpensive blender at a yard sale that will never be used for food preparation.) Toss the scraps into a blender with some water and pulverize. You can make a fine pulp or keep the paper in smaller chunks. Once you are happy with the consistency, add a handful of seeds to the blender, and give it a quick pulse to blend the seeds throughout.

Place your cookie cutter on top of the screen, and place in a sink. Slowly pour the pulp into the cookie cutter, using your finger to push the pulp into an even layer as the water drains into the sink. When most of the water has drained off, lift the cookie cutter, move to another part of the screen and repeat. When your screen is full, place the screen in a warm place or outside in the sun until dry. As the paper dries, the individual fibers will start to lock together and get stronger. To dry the paper more quickly and make a stronger paper, put another piece of screen on top of the heart and press the water out with a sponge. Once dry, lift the paper off the screen, punch a hole in it and thread a piece of string through the hole.

Remember to give your guests directions on how to plant their paper: place the paper into raked ground, cover with a quarter inch of soil then water and keep moist until germination, about 6 to 8 weeks. Take a look at the last photo to see seedlings popping out of some white plantable paper!

I love this idea, and the little seedlings bursting through with life convince me that this indeed is a darling little project. If you love the thought of doing something “green” for your wedding, but you do not want to tackle a project, be sure to visit Pulp Art and check out what have for your wedding day! They make place cards and rectangle hang tags in addition to the heart shaped ones featured today. Thank you again, Pulp Art, for inspiring us to make some plantable paper of our own!

DIY: "Love" Yarn Letters

Thanks to My Sister's Suitcase we now have a new yarn letter DIY to add to our list!  This is a great tutorial that really shows you how to go above and beyond with letter wrapping so that each side looks perfect and the yarn is going in the right directions from every view line.

Be sure to check out their blog for more fun ideas!

Thanks for all your sweet comments on my Valentine's Day Mantel! I'm back today to share my tutorial for the LOVE yarn letters I created. I had never tried wrapping anything in yarn {other than a wreath}, so I had a few trial and errors along the way :) I'm going to share the technique that ended up working the best and fastest for me.
Start with your letters... mine are 8" hollow cardboard letters. I found them at JoAnn's for $1.99 each, but I'm sure you could find something similar at any craft store. I used 3 different colors of yarn because I wanted to create an "ombre" effect, but I think they would look just as cute in one color if you have some yarn you need to use up :) {I will say, after using a pretty thin yarn I think next time I would try something a little thicker. It would take less wrapping and might give it a more textured look.}
The trick to wrapping these letters is the number of surfaces that have to be covered. You can't simply wrap in one direction and cover the front, back, and all the edges. On a few of my edges {ends of the letters} I ended up using a technique where I glued the yarn instead of wrapping. I tried both ways, and this ended up being much faster. You need to figure out which edges need the "glue" method and do those first. Here's how I did it:

1. E was the hardest letter so I figured I'd show you that one :)
2. Loop your yarn into 2" segments, then cut the loops with scissors to create several small pieces of yarn.
3. Take 6-8 pieces of yarn at a time and group them together. {Make sure your glue gun is ready!}
4. Apply a generous amount of hot glue on the edge of you letter - enough to cover the width of your 8 pieces of yarn - a little less than 1 inch. Place the yarn on the glue and press down quickly. Make sure the pieces are nice and snuggled together so you get a tightly wrapped look :)
5. Once the top has been glued down, the ends of the yarn will be sticking out. Just trim them evenly, leaving enough room to glue them down on the sides.
6. You only need to cover the edge to the point where the actual wrapping will begin. {See, I only went about 2 inches in on the top and bottom of the E.} Here's a view of the top:

Now you are going to start wrapping!

7. For the letter E, you will need to wrap each of the 3 "arms" first, in a vertical direction. Wrap each section separately, and secure the ends of the yarn on the back of the letter with a drop of hot glue {or tape, if you don't want to burn your fingers like I did!}
8. Once all 3 sections have been wrapped vertically, you will start at the top of the letter and wrap in the other direction - horizontally :) Do you like my arrows? This will cover the long section of the E, as well as the remaining exposed edges. Just make sure if you are using different colors that you switch your yarn accordingly :)
9. Finally you're done! I'm going to be honest, it probably took me at least an hour to complete each letter. I'm not exactly sure because I was working on them random times during the day and night {whenever my kids let me!} So I dragged out the process for several days before I finished :) But if you had one night to completely devote to the project, you could definitely bang it out.
Here is how I made the transition between colors to create the "ombre" effect:

DIY: Felt Bird Sachets

These are ridiculously cute!  We can see these being a year round craft - but why not bust them out for Valentine's Day since they are adorned with heart wings??  Check out Positively Splendid's blog for more DIY fun!

Supplies:
Bird Sachet Template {{click here to download}}
Felt in assorted colors (the brighter the better!)
Coordinating embroidery thread
Embroidery needle
Buttons
Cotton batting
Dryer sheets

To begin, print and cut out your templates and use them to cut out your felt pieces: 2 bird bodies and 1 heart wing for each sachet you are making.

DIY: Valentine's Mirror

The 36th Avenue has an adorable mirror DIY that would make for the perfect home decor and / or kid's project depending on how decorative you want to get with it!

My plan was a little bit different in the beginning since I was aiming for some type of cool frame.

This is what I used. An IKEA mirror-frame that I already had,

 DecoArt Paint, glue gun and Valentine’s plastic necklaces. 

TUTORIAL

1

♥

The first thing I did was paint the frame in white.

{ TIP: I always use a garbage bag to protect my table,

then when I’m done I throw the craft mess away inside of it. }

2

♥♥

After a few coats of paint I added one light coat of Silver Glamour Dust from DecoArt.

I love this stuff because you get to see the white through it under the silver glitter dust.

So pretty!

While the glue gun heated up I took the time to cut a bunch of necklaces that

I found over at Big Lots. I bet the Dollar Store will have something similar.

To get the right size all I did was to put the necklaces on top

and cut it in each corner.

I ended with this…

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♥♥♥

The last step was to glue it!

I wish the picture could show how much the silver dust actually shines…