Halloween Craft Idea: Firefly Glow Jars If any of you are Pinterest freaks like me, you might have seen this picture making its way around many boards. Pretty sweet right? I thought so, too. Soooo…I decided to make some for myself! Check it out: What You Need Glass Jars (Either save your old pickle jars or pick up some cheapies at a thift store)Glow Paint, as many colors as you want (Find it at a craft store or any place that sells craft supplies)Small Paintbrushes Optional Whisk GlitterSmall Spray BottleWater How You Do It: Make sure your jars are clean (Spaghetti sauce smears don’t look so hot when lit up)Assemble your supplies Pour Paint into small bowls (ones you don’t care if they might … *cough* … be glowing for many years to come.) Dip your paintbrush into the paint and try to coat the bristles evenly. Continue tapping the brushes with the various colors of paint until you get the desired coverage and colors. Once you’re all done, allow the paint to dry. Gonna try this for yourself?
Book strap tutorial Ladies and gentlemen, I'm delighted to share a guest tutorial today from Lorraine (LiEr) Teigland of Ikat Bag. She's a former physics teacher, which speaks volumes about the smart projects her creative brain concocts. (Her pig and chicken patterns kill me.) Today's project is a book strap. I must admit I sheepishly had to ask Lorraine how to use this fancy item: does one grab the long end of the strap and use it like a handle, so the book stack dangles from it like a dog on a leash? Hello all! This is a simple and quick project but if you are unfamiliar with working with vinyl, I've included some tips at the end of the tutorial. First, make the strap, using your favorite strap-making method and whatever width works with the print of your fabric and the hardware you have. sewing along one long edge and around both ends, leaving most of the second long edge open to turn them right side out. Then top-stitch all around to complete the strap. Next, make the buckle. Ta-da! or left-handed?
Make a modular felt trivet Related to yesterday's coaster project, here's a template for making a larger modular felt trivet. No sewing or gluing required. Connect as many pieces as you like to make bigger projects, too--placemats, a runner, or sew two pieces together for a pillow cover. Download the pattern here. Begin locking pieces together by pulling the arrow-shaped tabs through the slots from the back through to the front side. To finish the trivet, trim off the excess felt around the edges and nip the points off the triangular tabs. Shadow Box Photo Display for Photographers Need help turning your post-vacation keepsake clutter into a divine display? Our resident do-it-yourself expert, Ashley Campbell, has just what you’ve been looking for: As spring break and summer approach many families begin planning vacations and time to just enjoy being together. In my family unpacking from a trip often includes trying to find places to store or display random keepsakes we’ve picked up along the way. Filling your shadow box with too many pictures or items and result in framed collection of clutter. Supplies: 12×12 Shadow Box 12×12 print a select few of your keepsakes double sided tape craft supplies (clothespins, masking tape, decorative labels, hot glue gun, etc.) Step 1: Create your background using the Alphabet Frames templates. Step 2: Remove the label inside the shadow box and attach your 12×12 print using the double sided tape. Step 3: Begin creating simple displays for some of your items. Step 4: Tilt the shadowbox and begin placing your keepsakes inside.
Wallet-to-Tote On the Go ~ Tutorial Lorraine from ikat bag is a favorite around here… She has tons of fun tutorials on her blog and she’s joined us before with this wonderful Back to School Pencil Case tutorial. Today Lorraine shares a tutorial for a new summer essential, the On the Go Wallet-to-Tote! Construction includes three main parts: Assembling the Wallet, Assembling the Outer Bag and Making the Lining. From Lorraine: Hello, Everyone. These little bags have been around for as long as I can remember, and I thought they’d be a useful addition to the arsenal of summer gear I stash in my car and/or purse. I have three little girls, aged 3,4 and 6, and we’ve found that summer always takes us on adventures we hadn’t planned for– detours to farmer’s markets, dancing in the rain or treasure hunting en route to the park. We always appreciate an extra bag or two for our loot (and wet clothes)! Part One: Assemble the Wallet:You will need: Note: Please see Part Two & Part Three for a full list of supplies. The bag is completed!
How About Orange Here's a look at our upstairs guest bathroom. Last night I covered an accent wall with removable wallpaper. I love it! This bathroom has a peculiar layout. You walk in past the shower stall on the right, and when you hit the sink, you turn right to get to the toilet. The kind folks at Walls Need Love sent the product to review. Like the Sunburst wallpaper I designed last year, this paper is essentially a giant self-adhesive wall decal, and it's easily to peel off and reposition. I measured the wall and cut a length of paper that would leave a little extra overhang at the bottom. After a couple tries I had it, and then it was just a matter of peeling off the backing paper gradually while smoothing down the paper with the tool provided. I cut another piece to place next to the first panel, overlapping the seam by a quarter inch to match the pattern. Then with a craft knife and straight edge, I trimmed off any overhang that wrapped onto the adjacent walls and baseboard.
{Valentines day} pixelated popup card I‘ve been scratching my head trying to come up with a card for my hubby {AKA the non-romantic type}. I finally decided to make this pixely popup heart card! They are really minimal (which I love) and take about 20 minutes to make (that includes the card, insert and envelope). You can even make some pixely confetti to put inside the card (if you are a big kid like me!). Full instructions and printable templates below! (BTW I remember seeing something similar in a popup book years ago. How to 1. (If you have a cutting machine then see note at end of post!) Cut along the black lines and score the grey lines. 3. 5. 7. Edited to add: The lovely Kayla from saynotsweetanne has send me a .dfx file of the card which you can use if you have a cutting machine. I‘ve been scratching my head trying to come up with a card for my hubby {AKA the non-romantic type}. They are really minimal (which I love) and take about 20 minutes to make (that includes the card, insert and envelope). How to 1. 3. 5. 7.
How to make a fabric rose It's the last stiffened fabric project and then I'm moving on! I wanted to try an oversized, realistic fabric rose just for fun. Make a template with six petals. I traced around a dinner plate and a small bowl on the back of some ugly wrapping paper. (Tip: if the paper is too curly, iron it flat and your life will be better.) I've included my feet so you can admire my cute socks. Prepare some stiffened fabric. Using the template, cut three flower shapes from the prepared fabric. In the first flower, cut a slit along one of the fold lines to the center. On each flower, overlap the two petals adjacent to the slit and secure with a little glue. While they're drying, curl the double-petal and single-petal cutouts. Heat the remaining flower petals one at a time with your iron and curl the edges back. At this point I stacked the pieces to see if they looked nice. So I cut off the point. I hot glued the petals together at the base, then added a felt circle to hide the trimmed ends.
DIY stiffened felt boxes I love the thick wool felt that's increasingly popular, but man. Wool felt in the 3mm to 5mm range is really expensive ($130/yard or so). The boxes, bowls, and vessels made with it are very cool, though. So when I was poking around my local craft store, I found a poor girl's substitute: Eazy Felt. You know it's cheap when "easy" is spelled with a Z instead of an S on the product label. To make felt boxes, I cut a 9" square for the bottom piece, then added four slits and four diagonal cuts to trim away some of the excess felt on the tabs. I used a rotary cutter and ruler to cut out the main shape, then made the slits and diagonal cuts with an X-acto knife. The box top is similar, except the center area is larger to fit over the box bottom, and the sides are half the height. After the pieces are cut, crease the tabs against the edge of a ruler to make assembly easier. Fold the triangular tabs inward and bring the sides of the box up.