Altered Candy Box Dots Gift

I am so excited for tomorrow night! I get to go to dinner with my long time friends who I don't get to see nearly enough! We are just going to Panera, but with my friends, it might as well be Disneyland. :) I love those ladies!!
Anyway, we get together to celebrate the birthdays that happen during each month and so, there are 4 friends we are celebrating tomorrow. I don't have a lot of money to spare right now (especially since we pay for our own dinner,) but I still like to do some kind of something crafty, just because I love to do those sorts of things. I will share with you what I came up with.
Super easy... I bought 4 boxes of candy from Dollar Tree. Then I sat down with my Silhouette machine and went to town. I printed an "L" and a greeting, which I cut into strips and dovetailed the ends to make them look oh-so-chic, and cut out white circles to act as a background for the "L"s


... and yeah... That's about it! I just used my tape runner to attach them to the boxes and that was it. Super easy and hopefully they will think I am super thoughtful too. They will, right?? They know I don't have a ton of money. Just keeping it real. ;-) Happy Birthday friends!! Love you!!

Starry Eyed Craft Idea for MOPS/MOMSnext 2016/2017

I am so excited to be on my MOPS/MOMSnext leadership team again this year!! I am heading up the creative activities for another year. It is my absolute favorite thing to do in this world, aside from going to Disneyland and eating lime Tootsie Rolls. Anyway... I thought I would share the crafts that I am doing this year since I tend to get a lot of questions about what our ladies' favorites have been etc. I am happy to share my plans (as I discover them.) ;-)
Feel free to take away any inspiration that you find!

So, here we go:

Craft for September- Painted Wood Beads and Tassel Keychain with Shrink Plastic Theme Charm

I used 20mm natural wood beads that I painted in theme colors, or at least as close as possible to theme colors. I found the beads at Joann in the jewelry making section. 

I bought the leather jewelry cording at Hobby Lobby, also in the jewelry section, along with the jump rings and keychain rings. 

I used a 2 1/2" star shaped punch to cut shrink plastic and edged the shape with a silver paint pen and used a permanent ink pen to write the theme in the middle. I also punched a hole before I shrunk the plastic and then added a jump ring to attach it to the key chain split ring. 

I followed a very simple tutorial to learn how to make the tassel, using this Youtube video.  

And then I just assembled all the pieces. It was that easy! It ended up averaging out to be around $1.50 per mom, and I planned for 65. Hopefully the ladies will love it as much as I do!

Thanks for stopping by!

Burlap Candy Corn Banner

I wish I could take credit for coming up with the idea for this super adorable burlap banner, but I actually found it in the motherland (A.K.A. Pinterest.) I came up with a pattern and got started. There are actually 6 pieces on this banner but it was too hard to get them all in the photo. You'll just have to trust me. ;-)

This project is simple. Just cut out triangles in burlap, paint them (and allow them to dry in between colors,) polka dot them (with the end of a foam brush,) then fold down the top edge about 1/2 inch and sew a loose zigzag stitch across the top and stitch them to twine, which has been hidden in the fold. Then cut various ribbons and rick rack and tie them in between the triangles. Then trim up the edges to get rid of the fraying burlap. Voila!

I keep on selling these so I am guessing that I am not the only one that thinks it is cute. I finally had a surplus and was able to keep one for myself. I think that is the hard part of being a professional crafter. You make them for others, and then miss out on having them for yourself! Oh well. It is fun to send my projects to new homes. I kind of like the fact that they value my work enough to pay for it. Very vindicating. (See kids, the messes are worth it! Yes, you can buy more Pokemon cards...) ;-)

Happy that the weather is starting to change around these parts. Can't wait for the cooler weather to stick around. Happy that pumpkin spice EVERYTHING is happening now. So fabulous. Happy Jen is happy! :)

MOPS and MOMSnext "Be You Bravely" Wood Sign

I thought I would share this sign I made recently. I am a coordinator for one of our local MOPS/MOMSnext groups here in town, and I thought I would try to come up for something cute for one of our "on-time" basket prizes. I designed it using my Silhouette (which I looooooove so much!!) and painted over the vinyl. Tada! An excellent reminder of the yearly theme of Be You Bravely! Also, I will be selling these in my Etsy store, so be sure to check back for that. Someday. Soon. I promise..

Stuffed Burlap and Fabric Pumpkin Trio

These are some super simple pumpkins I made for an upcoming vendor fair that I am participating in. I am so excited! I haven't done anything like this in such a long time! 

It is nice to show what I have done with my time over the last month or so. Makes me feel like I am not such a lazy butt. Sort of. I have about 27 loads of laundry piled on my couch waiting for me to fold them, and I haven't cleaned my stovetop properly since the end of June. Yeah. It's been like that. SO... I am excited for this weekend so that I can put down my stuff and breathe a little. Being crafty is hard work! ;-) 

So here is the first of several posts I will be making showcasing what I have been up to. They will serve a dual purpose. I need to have a place for people to see what is available so that I can accept special orders, and I need to keep up this blog since I committed to doing it. I don't want to let myself down! Hope you will enjoy the upcoming posts. 

Special thanks goes out to my hubby for taking all the fabulous photos in his newly established photo studio in the garage. His talents are endless... ANYWAY... Thanks for stopping by!

Patriotic Pallet Tray

I was recently commissioned to make some patriotic accessories for a relative. I was given some odds and ends from a goodwill store, and challenged to make them into some cute Americana decor. One of the pieces was a woven serving tray that I just couldn't get to cooperate. I decided that it would be much easier to make one on my own. And so I did! This is what I came up with. It was a matter of cutting some wood pieces about 18" long and then painting them, then I cut the 13" rails and painted them as well. Next, I attached the handles, which I decided to distress a little with sandpaper, to give them a little more character. To further embellish my pallet tray, I decoupaged some scrapbook paper flags that I had cut out and finally added "God Bless America," that I had cut out of vinyl with my Silhouette. I used the outdoor Mod Podge over the whole piece and then finished it with Annie Sloan finishing wax to make it more durable for outdoor use. That's about it! I have plans to make some more of these. I picked up some additional handles today, in fact. I am so excited to see what I can come up with! Stay tuned!

Patriotic Wooden Fireworks Decoration

So, apparently I like wood. Or at least I like to craft with it. I can't seem to get away from using it every chance I get. But that's ok! I have been coming up with some awfully cute designs, if I do say so myself. Oh, wait... I just DID say so. ANYWAY...

It's about time for another monthly crafty group meeting and I was asked to come up with something Americana/patriotic/4th of July-ish. I had some wood 1x4" boards and some navy blue vinyl and some assorted paints and stuff on hand, so I went to town.

This is what I came up with. A cute little trio of firecrackers wrapped in twine with a little sign hanging from it. I just think it is precious. Yep. Americana preciousness. Awwwww.

So now I am on to assembling all the kits for my friends and I to put all these together. I am blessed to have friends who like to craft with me. It really is my passion. Love love love it!
I wish I could start a business making and selling the things I made. Oh wait!! I did! ;-)

Note to self: stock your dang Etsy store....

He is Risen Sign

I have been happily making a bunch of these He is risen signs for the last few weeks. They are so quick and easy to do! In fact, I recently shared this craft with a group of about 20 women, all part of my MOPS/MomsNext group. We got together on a Thursday evening and we all went home with a version of the cross sign. It was a total success! Even the ladies that aren't that crafty had an easy time doing this one.

I purchased the crosses at Hobby Lobby and cut the boards myself. The words were cut on my Silhouette machine and then we decoupaged the paper onto the wood pieces. Then we embellished.

I have posted a couple of my favorite examples. Really, the sky is the limit! Just find coordinating paper and a few supplies and you are ready for for action.

Bunny Wreath

So, I realized that I had been neglecting my little bloggy-poo. Thought I would at least post some pictures of what I had been working on lately. This little bunny wreath I created for my crafty group to do this weekend. Straightforward craft really. I just think it is super cute. Should be a fun night with my lady friends! Looking forward to it!

I just cut the bunny out of wood, tied a bow around its' neck, attached it with some craft wire. I tied some tulle around the wreath form in a bow and added some foam eggs that I had on hand. I cut the words from vinyl using my silhouette and decoupaged the decorative paper over the wood sign, which I also cut with my scroll saw.

Though you can't really tell very well in this picture, I used some light pink ink and a sponge to the inside of the bunny ears, just to give it some color.

Let's call this bunny done. Tada!

Custom Christmas Pallet Decoration

My craft "differently abled" friend (hahaha...) asked me if I was available to make something for her based on a photo that she shared with me. My first thought was WOW that was a big project! I decided to give it a try anyway. I am pretty happy with the results! Took me a while but I think it is a good take on the inspiration piece. Hope she finds a good spot for it. It reads "Oh come let us adore Him." I have had that song stuck in my head all day as a consequence of making this thing. Luckily I am into Christmas songs.

Anyway, I may need to schedule visitation. I am kinda in love with it and wish I had made a second one. Seems I have that feeling quite a lot these days. Sigh...

So, how I made it: I got the "o" at Joann, painted it in an off white color and did ombre style with 7 different brown paints for the boards. Then I used my Silhouette to design the words with different fonts, and cut them out of vinyl. I used the vinyl (the cheap kind,) as stencils and traced around them with a pencil. Then I removed the letters and hand painted the words with a white wash paint. Then I floated some milk chocolate paint around the edges to age it. Then I washed the whole project in diluted muddy colored paint and then wiped it off. It is 20" wide x 24.5" high and has two braces in the back to hold  it together. That's about it! Not sure I would make another one or not. I guess it would depend on how much coffee they bribe me with...

Stocking Decorative Christmas Woodcraft

I don't know what is wrong with me! I keep meaning to put all the stuff I have been making on my blog, but life gets in the way. And that is ok since real life is more important than making sure you all admire my projects. ;-)

Anyway, I should let you know that I opened up an Etsy store!! Yay! Finally! However... it only has 3 items in it right now. Why? Well, you know. It's that life thing again. It isn't that I haven't been finishing things, I have! But I have just been giving them away or selling them for special orders. I am SERIOUSLY enjoying my life these days! I can call myself a professional crafter again. I love it!

I may just have to post pictures though instead of blogging all these words and things.
Seems weird to spend my time doing all the "business" stuff when I actually want to be creating. That is why I am handing it over to my husband now. (Finally got smart...)
So, no tutorial or anything. I created the design myself. I am selling these in my Etsy store. Aaaaaand, that's about it! Have a great week!

Spiced Spider Cider

I have not had a whole lot of free time lately- but for good reason! This time of year starts my busy crafting days and I love every minute of it! MOPS is in full swing and I have been planning and making gifts to bring them each meeting. A recent one came to me while I was at Winco doing my weekly shopping. I came across an excellent deal on Langer's apple cider. $1.78 for a gallon! I thought that was a good place to start.

Next, I had to decide on a cute way to present my great deal on cider. What better way than jarring it up and making a cute little tag?! So that is what I did. It reads, "Along came a spider and sat down be... Cider. Empty contents of spice pack into a saucepan (should have also said, "with the cider," )and simmer for 30 minutes or more. Remove cinnamon and oranges. Enjoy! And BEWARE!" (get it??)

I decided to fill quart jars with cider and water bath
canned them, (covered the jars in boiling water in a big pot and let them simmer for 15 minutes.) Then, I created and added a fabric topper and a tag with a little plastic spider glued to it. I decided on a clever little pun that added to the "cute factor." Hadn't seen it anywhere, so I think it might be my original idea. Don't sue me if I unintentionally copied you... Haha.

It didn't quite seem finished at that point, so, I came up with a little something else. I thought I would add some simmering spices. So, I bought an orange, cut it in slices, dried it in the oven on a rack for 2 hours at 200 degree (flipping them half way through.) When they were good and dried, I added them to a little cellophane bag with a couple of cloves, a cinnamon stick, a pinch of nutmeg and allspice and 1 heaping tablespoon of brown sugar. I then attached that to the lid of the jar with some baker's twine. And voila!  I got lots of compliments on the idea, so I am assuming it went over well. I just think it is so stinking cute!!

I like Halloween, but I don't like the scary aspect of it much. This was my little way to enjoy the spook without blood, guts, and gore. Now, on to my next project...

Happy Halloween!

Custom Family Rules Subway Art

I have just been on a subway art spree lately. Got another custom order for one. This time the request was for a family rules sign. Got right to work designing. 

I used my Silhouette SD to cut out the vinyl and bought the 12 x 24" plywood board at Joann. There really isn't a different technique to explain on this one. It is the same concept as the others I have done. 

To make one, you just paint the background and then tape off the sides with painters tape after it dries. Then, paint the thin line border by applying a second row of painters tape. Next, remove the tape and paint the outer edges. Lastly, you apply the vinyl words using your transfer tape and hope that they end up straight. That part is the nail biter... 

There IS one thing that is necessary when you do one of these projects... Patience. Go slow and take your time. That is all. Not hard, just a tad tricky is all. 

I will say though, the satisfaction that you get when you are all finished is definitely worth the effort. 

Give it a shot! Much better than spending a fortune on one from Etsy!! 

Shabby Topiary and Table Decor

The topiary on the table with the other decor.

I was asked by a friend of mine to help decorate a table for a church women's gathering. I was super excited since I love to do things like that but was afraid to do it by myself. We had so much fun planning! My friend came up with the theme "burlap and lace" and told me to "run with it!" Yay!! My favorite thing to do ever!! I love to be shown or told what to use as inspiration but then given the trust to come up with my own interpretation. So... here is the inspiration I used. Found on Pinterest, of course. Super easy project and I am loving the results!

Go Chargers! Custom Mantel Decor

I was commissioned to do some projects for my friend again. Crafty Jen to the rescue! Haha. This time it was a football theme. Her family is particular to the San Diego Chargers so she requested they be blues and golds/yellow. I got to work. I made a wreath, a "C" decoration, a customized football word/personalized subway sign, and a yarn poofball banner. Each project deserves its own blog page but I have been so busy lately, I will just show you her finished mantel and leave it at that. I am already in the planning stages of her fall mantel. Coming up next...

MOPS Leadership Nametags

With the beginning of each school year, a new year for MOPS and MomsNext begins. For those of you not familiar with these organizations, they are groups for moms of all ages- MOPS for those who are pregnant through preschool age and MomsNext is for moms of school age kids. They are great if you are in desperate need of friends or support or just an outlet for relaxation. I have benefitted so much from joining the group and am on the leadership team. I do creative activities with a couple other ladies. We are having so much fun planning for the new year! The next theme is "A Beautiful Mess" and the Bible verse that accompanies it is Ephesians 4:10- "For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago." I am so excited!! 
Anyway, we recently had our leadership planning retreat and it was decided that we needed to stand out a little, in the sea of moms. We wanted them to know that we were available if they had a question or if we could help them in any way. Thing is, we only had generic looking plastic covered boring nametags. Those wouldn't do for me. Nope. So... I volunteered to come up with a design and to create a tag for each member of the steering committee. 23 in total. This project was so fun! I just went to Hobby Lobby, invaded their ribbon section and started my collage. I ended up using my Silhouette to cut the vinyl names and my labeler to create the position titles. I had blank bottle caps and found the jewels that I put in the center in the scrapbook section. I bought the paper, feathers, and burlap flowers there too. The chevron washi tape was something that I got online somewhere. I honestly couldn't tell you where. Maybe Pick Your Plum?? Not sure. But that stuff is everywhere these days. I cut out the oval shapes with my Big Shot machine. Then I glued all the pieces together with my hot glue gun and decoupaged the whole surface with Mod Podge. Simple as that! Not a hard craft, but definitely time consuming. It took me "some" hours to finish them all. But I think they are totally worth it. I am sure we will be easy to identify with our beautifully messy tags.

Custom Pallet Sign

I have a friend who likes to say that she isn't very crafty. But I say she has potential. She says she doesn't really have much interest in trying. But what she does have an interest in, is being generous, and supportive, and awesome. (lucky me!!) So lately, she has no problem asking me to make all kinds of stuff for her. (And I couldn't be happier!)
Thankfully Pinterest provides ample inspiration for her requests. She told me a little story behind her particular request, showed me a couple of pictures and gave me the green light to come up with something for the fence by their pool. I went in search of some pallets that would fit the bill and it took me a little while. It seemed that all the ones I was finding were spray painted on the sides or completely demolished. I just kept looking. Finally I found one near the dumpster of our local beauty school. Hopefully they didn't need it... In retrospect, I probably should have asked them before I loaded it into my car... but trash is trash, right? Let's hope so. I am sure they would appreciate the "art" that it became and they would be glad to let me have it. Right? Yeah. (Can you tell I have a guilty conscience??) Nonetheless, I made this sign with my "found" pallet.

First, I had to rip it apart. Thought it would have been easy. NOT! I mean, it was just wood and I am used to working with that particular medium. But...I was out in my driveway hacking away at this thing for what seemed like an eternity. I am pretty sure that when they put these things together, they use some impenetrable adhesive or something. Eventually I got the pieces that I needed loose from the main structure. Then I added a couple of rails to the back to keep the boards in place.


To do the design, I taped off the edges and painted the main space in an off white chalk paint. I used a sponge brush to freehand paint a wave-like row at the bottom and a bold blocky sunshine in the top right corner. Then I used my cricut to cut out cardstock and pieced the negative space together to creat a stencil. I stenciled the letters with a pencil and removed the paper. I hand painted the words and then let them dry. Next, I distressed the whole surface and edges with sandpaper. Finally I made an antiquing medium out of brown paint and water and lightly coated the project.

I really should have sprayed it with some kind of varnish or something. Of course, this was decided after I had already delivered it to its' new owner. Shucks. She said she would take care of it though, so I am hoping that it is actually ok. Now that I think about it, I should probably check in with her about that... Ok... will do. :)

Wooden Disc Necklace Gift

A while back, I had made some washer jewelry with Mod Podge Dimensional Magic and scrapbook paper and a couple of embellishments. They became pretty popular both on Pinterest AND in real life with the people who received them as gifts. Got me thinking... I wonder if I could come up with something else using the same technique. I had recently picked up some wooden circle discs and discovered that they would be perfect to make some pendants with. So, as luck would have it, I needed another gift idea for my MOPS table mates to celebrate the end of our year. I made them each their own necklace with an affirming word decoupaged onto it and some little rhinestones and a scrapbooking paper flower embellishment.While I was at it, I made myself one, only I skipped the affirmation and rhinestone and added my initial and a pearl bead. Finally, I screwed in a tiny eye hook and hung it on leather cording. Works for me!

Patriotic Wreath

I wanted to share a wreath I made recently for my "benevolent benefactor," AKA, friend Kim. She showed me a picture on Pinterest of a patriotic mantel, said she loved it all and then told me to go for it. I mostly used the photo as inspiration for the feeling of the projects that I ultimately completed. I did 5 total and will be sharing them all as I find time. This wreath is the first that I completed. I made it by wrapping two kinds of ribbon around a straw wreath form. I then made a poof out of tulle, and added some rick rack to the back of a tin star ornament that I disassembled to make it more simple and usable for me. The small tag was actually part of the star ornament but the design on the other side of it didn't match, so I used my Cricut to cut out the "4th" in navy blue and mod podged it to the tag. Then I hung that from baker's twine and a ribbon bow which served to separate the two ribbon colors. That was it! Easy and fun! 

Mickey Mouse "Wash Your Hands" Sign

I was asked by a friend to make something to go in her kid's bathroom. She showed me an inspiration photo and told me that she wanted a Mickey Mouse "something" to hang on the wall over their toilet. I had never seen their bathroom before but was given the freedom to be creative. So, I just went for it. I was so excited to see a picture of the finished product hanging on the wall and the colors matched almost exactly! So relieved! She said she was happy with it and so that makes me happy too! I am once again, a "professional" crafter! Yay! How I did it: I found some cute Disney themed scrapbook paper and rickrack and ribbons and started crafting. I made rag roses into the shape of "mouse parts," and printed the cute little reminder saying on the paper and cut the printed paper strips down to size. I decoupaged them onto a 12x12 mdf board that I purchased at Joann craft store, and then added the embellishments. I ended up adding white buttons to the corners to finish it off, right before it was delivered. You'll have to take my word for it. ;-)