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..

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!

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!! 

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!

Teacher Appreciation Pencil Decoration

I was hanging out with my husband the other day on one of our ultra glamorous dates, and we ended up at Home Depot. As we were wandering around the SUPER fun brick section (sense the sarcasm,) I saw a small little box full of what looked like potential pencils. I had seen an inspiration piece on Pinterest and thought I could totally swing my own version. What a perfect gift for Teacher Appreciation week!! I was able to finish 3 of them in about 1 1/2 hours.So, I had recently finished a project for my Mom and had some left over paper that was the same color as a pencil. Score!! I also found some paper that reminded me of an eraser, so it seemed like I was in good shape. I used my handy dandy Cricut to cut the names out of vinyl, some twine and ribbon for a hanger and some eye hooks from my craft stash. I painted the tip of the project with black paint to simulate the lead. And that is about it! I suppose I could have cut the wood with my new scroll saw, but if you find a box of 12 stakes on a glamorous Home Depot date, for $2.79? You buy them. Then you make pencils. The end. ;-)

Patriotic Chevron Decoration

This is another one of the crafts I made recently for a friend of mine. She had shown me a picture as inspiration and asked me to come up with some patriotic decorations. Not sure why, but this was a brilliant idea I had. I keep seeing chevrons everywhere and thought it would be a perfect way to represent the stripes in the flag. I think it is a super fun way to do it! I am just now kicking myself for not doing one of my own. I think it will be my next project. After all, it is my original idea!! Can't only be one of these in the world! ;-)

I made it by base coating the top of the wood board (purchased in the wood section at Joann Fabrics,) in navy blue and then base coating the bottom in red. I waited for the sections to dry, measured for the center of the board with a ruler, and then, using the width of painter's tape (about 1 1/4th inches,) I taped off the chevrons. With a light amount of paint, I painted the white chevrons with 2 coats of paint. Then when it was dry, I lightly sanded the whole surface to very gently distress it. I found the two layered wooden star at Joann Fabric store and painted the whole thing in the white color and then painted the surface of the small center star in navy. Sanded that piece lightly too. Before I attached the star, I wrapped the top blue section in red and white baker's twine, in a random fashion. Lastly, I used simple hot glue to attach the star to the board. Simple as that!

I am hoping that I will actually get motivated to make myself one. My friend just posted a picture of it decorating her mantel and it is just perfect! Very proud of this one...

Wooden Owl Magnets

I just had a birthday! Yes indeed. I also have a daughter and a friend who share it with me! Now, my daughter has a party planned for this coming weekend and I am busy busy doing projects for her. (More to come about that in a later post.) Turns out that I got to be celebrated too! My friends all got together to celebrate our groups early April birthdays with a potluck. SUPER fun!! I just love those ladies. So blessed to have them in my life. So we had chicken tacos, salad, fruit, beans, and yummy oreo cupcakes for dessert. Mmmmmm. (Beats the sandwich I usually have...)

Anyway, I really like to give handmade gifts to my friends, since we all like the crafty stuff. I wanted to make a little something for my friend Dana. I searched Pinterest and found the cutest owl magnets with clothespins to hold art or business cards, etc. Since I was given a new scroll saw from my Mom for my birthday, seemed like the perfect opportunity to get back into wood crafting. Discovered just how much I missed it! I am so excited!! SO... I sketched out a template and went to work. I sanded the cut out shapes, painted them, decoupaged paper pieces to the owl body and to the clothespins. I added heavy duty magnets to the back with hot glue and attached a jute twine hanging line. I figured that her name will be removed to allow for her beautiful children to display their artwork on the fridge. OR she could just take ownership of whatever metal surface she chooses... I really love the results. I want to make them for all my friends now!

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. ;-)

Vaseline Distressed Wood Cross and "E"

My sister decided to "girlify" (yes, it's a word...) a few of the spaces in her house and she hates to shop. What is that sister to do?? Call her shopping, decorating, and crafting loving sister to help her out, of course! And so she did. "Where should we go?," I asked. "Hobby Lobby," she replied. "Heck yeah!," I exclaimed. Soooooo, off we went. She chose some fabulous items and her mantel area is nearly complete. Imagine lots of turquoise and brown and fleur de lis stuff and you will have a good idea of what she was going for. Shabby chic-ish and super cute. She had wanted a cross but we just couldn't find exactly what she had pictured, so, sister shopper/crafter to the rescue again!! I volunteered my crafting expertise and offered to make her one that she would love. I found some blank wooden crosses and she picked some colors that complemented her chosen scheme. We happened to walk by the paper mache section too and she wanted an "E" to go with her stuff. "Ok," I said (and secretly squealed with happiness in my mind.) I was so proud of her! Shopping and picking stuff out and acting like a real grown up house decorating lady! ;-)

Since I recently made a Vaseline distressed letter and it was so easy, I thought that would be a perfect technique to do with my sister's decorations. These were a little different because I decided to double distress them. I started by base coating the items in a dark brown, then dry brushed some turquoise over the brown once it dried. Then I added the Vaseline in spots all over, in places I wanted distressed. Then I painted an ivory color over the whole piece. Waited a few minutes for the paint to dry (ok, almost dry... I am impatient...) Then with a paper towel, wipe away the Vaseline gently.and allow the remaining paint to dry completely. Then embellish! Simple as that. Since I already had a muslin rag rose left over from my last project and some jute cord, it made it even easier. I bet I can do these letters in my sleep pretty soon!
As for the small cross, I base coated in brown then I dry brushed it in ivory. I decoupaged some basic scrapbook paper to the painted surface and then added the Cricut cut vinyl "faith" word. I coated the whole cross with a layer of Mod Podge to seal it and that was it! Super easy.
For a good tutorial on the Vaseline distress technique, check out Shanty 2 Chic. :)

Be Happy Shadow Box

On one of my dollar store excursions, I ran across a couple of wood items that seemed promising. I found a little shadow box that was a great size but had a beachy scene outlined on the inside and appeared to be intended for kids to paint. I thought it would be better off as some other kind of craft.
I started by painting the whole box in a buttermilk color and sanded the edges. I decided on my scrapbook paper and attached it with Mod Podge and cut out the letter with my Cricut and put them in place. I covered that with a layer of the MP too.

Then I made a cute little burlap, fabric and button flower and attached it to the inside. I used twine around the outside of the frame, just to rustic it up a bit. It had hanging hooky things on the back which I decided to ignore and placed it in one of my plate stands instead. Super easy craft and only cost me $1 plus supplies I already had. LOVE the cheap stuff. :)