The Summer of Color - Week 2 {Green}

I created this piece for week 2 of The Summer of Color. Remember, I'm creating a collection of canvases, each one representing a different color. There's another theme that is emerging, here and when the collection is complete, I'll reveal what the underlying theme of the collection is. It makes me giddy every time I envision the finished collection hanging in my studio. I'm so glad Kristin created this event, because I never would have thought to create this collection if she hadn't.

To create this piece, I painted a 5x7 canvas panel with layers of various shades of green (including citron - so I completed the bonus challenge). I then cut a trunk shape out of woodgrain patterned paper. Once I had the tree trunk glued down, I tore bits of green cardstock in various shades of green (including citron). I then glued them down to the canvas using Mod Podge to create the leaves on the tree. The flowers were created using stamps and paint. I then added yellow Stickles to the centers of the flowers and green Stickles to the stems and leaves of the tree. Finally, I finished off by shading a little bit with my Big Brush Pitt Pens and added some doodling and the words. I like the whimsical feel of this piece.

Finally, I want to tell you how appreciative I am of all the comments on my last Summer of Color piece. I'm thrilled to have so much positive feedback. There's an incredible group of artists participating in this event and I'm happy to be one of them. I'm off to link up and check out what everyone else has created this week! Remember, you can join the party anytime!

Fairy Garden - a mini tutorial

Taylor, like most 5 yr old girls, absolutely loves fairies. She's watched the Tinkerbell movie countless times, and after talking about fairies all day today, I've realized, I don't think I've ever watched the whole movie. Anyway, knowing how much Taylor loves fairies, I was inspired to create a fairy garden with her. The inspiration for this perfect weekend project came from Lil' Blue Boo. The fairy village she created is absolutely adorable! Be sure to check out her tutorial for step-by-step instructions, supply details and another variation on decorating the houses and the village.

So, after seeing Ashley's cute garden, I gathered some simple supplies including some bright spray paints and mini birdhouses, plants, potting soil, rocks, and a tub to put it all in. Taylor and I got to work and after a day of fun putting it all together, we ended up with this:

We spray painted and decorated each house to match the fairy who lives there. That was Taylor's idea ;). Rosetta is Taylor's favorite fairy because she's red. She's a flower fairy, so, naturally, I love her, too. We glued colorful flowers to the roof of Rosetta's house because we're certain that's how Rosetta would like it.

The green house, is Tinkerbell's house, of course. And, Tinkerbell is buried among other toys somewhere in our house, so until she is found, another tiny doll has taken up residence in Tink's house. I don't think she'll mind, do you? We decorated the roof of Tink's house with artificial leaves, because I thought that looked so cute in LBB's garden.

Vidia, is a pollen fairy. She has huge flowers on the side of her house with glittery pollen in the centers ;). We had to make whimsical polkadots on her roof just because Taylor loves polkadots. Who doesn't, really? We created the dots by dipping an eraser on the end of a pencil in white paint and then dabbing it on the roof.

Taylor and I had so much fun playing with the fairies today! I'm sure we'll spend some time tomorrow adding a few other whimsical details. The added fun of this project is that she's always wanted to plant a garden and she LOVES that the plants are real and they'll grow! She's a little disappointed, though, that the plants have been in her garden for several hours and she's given them lots of water, but they still haven't grown yet! When I explained that we won't be able to see the plants grow, she said "Oh, because they know we're watching them? Maybe we shouldn't watch them."

The Summer of Color at Twinkle, Twinkle

OK, I know, I know, it's been for.ever! since I posted here. I'm OK, really I am. I'm great, in fact! Just been suuuuuper busy. Lots of stuff has been going on and I'll give you updates soon. But, right now, I'm popping my head back in here to share something fabulous with you. Do you remember my dear friend, Kristin? Kristin who is soooo incredibly talented she's been published multiple times in the amazing Stampington and Co. publications? Well, I think she's pretty amazing and she's inspired me to join in on her awesome blog party that lasts all summer long! That's my kind of party ;)

(image courtesy of Kristin at Twinkle, Twinkle)

Her party is called The Summer of Color. The basic idea is you check her blog every Monday to discover the color for that week. You then create art in *any* medium your lil' heart desires (she offers several suggestions on her blog), and then you post a link to your work on her blog. Posting a link enters you in her weekly giveaway. How cool is that?!? You get to make art *and* possibly win a prize just for playing along.

So, I wanted to be sure to tell everyone about this awesome party so you can all join in the fun, too. Those are the basics but if you want all the details, then head on over to Twinkle, Twinkle and read all about The Summer of Color. See you at the party!

Pot of Paper Daisies Tutorial

Check out the Crafts Unleashed blog today for my Pot of Paper Daisies Tutorial.

Happy (almost) Spring!

Mom's Lucky Charm Scrapbook Page

I know, I know. We just got over Valentine's Day and we're already moving on to St. Patrick's Day. Today, I'm posting over at Crafts Unleashed sharing step-by-step instructions on how I created this 12x12 layout using my new Storybook Cricut Cartridge from Consumer Crafts. So be sure to pop over and check out my latest project as a member of the Crafts Unleashed Design Team!

Storybook Cricut Cartridge

I've written a feature post to highlight the awesome Storybook Cricut Cartridge over at Crafts Unleashed, today. So, head on over and check it out!

More Pretty Craft Storage - Altered Jar Mini-Tutorial

You all know how much I love flowers, and I use them in almost all my crafty projects. Well, I've got quite the collection of flowers and I used to store them in their individual packages or little baggies and whatnot. While organizing my craft room, I decided to use this large jar to store my whole collection of flowers so it can sit on the shelf as a pretty and inspiring piece in the room. The lid was stained wood, and I painted it using a rag with purple, pink and turquoise acrylic paint. I cut the pink scalloped rectangle and the turquoise label from my the Storybook Cricut Cartridge (Thank you, Consumer Crafts). I punched holes at each end of the label and tied the pretty ribbon through to hold the label onto the jar. I stamped the word "Flowers" using the Classic alphabet stamps from Stampin' Up. Finally, I embellished it with a multi-layered flower, of course! Aren't flowers just the perfect embellishment?

The jar coordinates perfectly with the rest of my craft room and the cardboard caddy I made, too.

Thrifted Shutter Photo Display Tutorial {Thrifty Thursday}

I love the look of shutter photo displays and one of my goals is to print and display more photos in our home. I scooped up these shutters from a thrift store a couple of months ago for just a few dollars. I finally finished this project and I'll show you how I did it! If you don't have thrifted shutters, then you can always purchase some from a home improvement store.

For this project you'll need:

- shutters

- paint (I used house paint, but you could also use acrylic paint)

- paint brush (I used a 2 1/2 inch bristle brush)

- wire

- wire cutters

- photos to display

- mini clothes pins, paper clips or bind clips for hanging photos

This is what my shutter looked like when I bought it.

I got these paint samples from Home Depot. They were pre-mixed and were less than $3/bottle. One is black, the other is a pale blue.

I started by painting a coat of black paint over the shutter. I was going for a rustic look, so I intentionally left areas unpainted and was not "perfect" in my painting. Once dry, I flipped the shutter over and painted the other side. Be sure to open and close the shutter so that the slats don't dry closed and get stuck.

Next, I used a dry brush technique and painted a light, coat of the pale blue over the black paint. To do this, dip your brush in the blue paint and then paint on a scrap piece of newsprint, or a rag so that most of your paint is off your brush before you paint your shutter. Again, I left areas of the natural wood, unpainted, and I left lots of the black showing through to give it that rustic, layered look.
Once that coat was dry on both sides, I attached my wire that my photos would hang from.

I wrapped the wire around the edge of the shutter, and then thread it through the hooks that hold the dowels used to turn the shutter slats. I used three pieces of wire for each tri-fold shutter, so I could hang three rows of photos.

I'm using my finished display as a screen to hide some mismatched baskets that sit on top of my sewing station. You could also do this with shutters that are doors and use it as room divider or a screen to hide a cluttered corner.

Paper Flower Tutorial

Here's a simple tutorial on how to create gorgeous 3D paper flowers using your Cricut. I created these flowers to go on my mixed media love canvas for my first project on Crafts Unleashed.

Supplies:

Paper or cardstock

Cricut

George and Basic Shapes Cartridge

Mod Podge

Paint Brush

Scissors

Glitter

Hot glue

1) Place your paper or cardstock onto your Cricut cutting mat and load the paper into your Cricut. With your George and Basic Shapes cartridge in your Cricut, select the flower shape indicated below (you want to press shift, then the flower key to get on your cricut display). Then press the Shadow Blackout feature button as indicated below. Set your size dial at 2 1/2 and press Cut.

You will need 3 flowers to create one 3D flower.

This is what the flowers will look like once they are cut and removed from your cutting mat:

2) From your first flower, cut one petal as shown below. From the second flower, cut 2 petals as shown below.

3) Next take your first flower and bring the sides of the opening together to form a cone as shown below:

4) then add a thin line of hot glue to the one edge of the petal to finish your cone shape. Repeat this step with your 2nd flower to create another cone.

5) Next, take your third flower (with 5 petals) and fold it in half to find the center. cut a small slit in the center as shown in the first picture below. Then, fold the same flower in half in the opposite direction and find the center. Cut a small slit, just as you did before, which will leave you with an x cut in the center of your 5 petal flower.

6) Next, you'll begin to assemble your flower. Cut a small amount of the point off of your 4 petal cone. Apply a dab of hot glue to the tip of your 4 petal cone and poke it through the x that you cut in your 5 petal flower (see the picture on the left below). Then apply a dab of hot glue to your 3 petal cone and add it to the top of your bottom 2 layers of your flower. You should now have a flower that looks like the picture below on the right.

7) Next, curl the edges of each petal by wrapping the edge around a tiny paintbrush or other round tool. Once all the edges of your petals are curled, dip your flower in Mod Podge as shown below.

8) Scrape off any excess Mod Podge. Then pour glitter over your flower and tap off any excess. Repeat as desired until you have even coverage. Finally, place a scrap of tulle into the center of the flower and push into place.

Now step back and admire your glittery goodness!

These gorgeous flowers can be added to any project your heart desires. Think scrapbook pages, cards, banners, wreaths, photo frames, decorative candles, really the sky is the limit.

Happy crafting!

(Don't forget to check out the canvas I used these on over at Crafts Unleashed)

No Sew Stocking Garland

A close up...

and a full view...

Yesterday I gave you a sneak peek of what I've been making over the last few days. I was inspired to create this stocking garland by this project featured in a recent special issue of Woman's Day.

As I flipped through the magazine in line at the grocery store, this adorable garland caught my eye. I thought it was made from felt or fleece stockings. I thought it was a sewing project. I didn't have time to read the instructions but I knew I had to make it (and I loved several other ideas I saw in the magazine, too!). So, I tossed it on the conveyor belt along with my other items.

Well...when I finally read the instructions I realized it wasn't a sewing project. The stockings were made from...

baby socks!

I LOVED the idea even more once I realized this would be a special keepsake for my daughter's baby socks! Yes, my daughter is 4 1/2 and I still have socks from when she was an infant. In an effort to simplify, I always bought her the same white socks from Target. So, I have the same socks from 0-36mos. I read the first couple of steps of the tutorial in the magazine and then I let my own creative juices flow...

So, I started with several white socks and a bottle of red fabric dye.

I followed the instructions on the bottle of dye to dye the socks red.

(there's no cooking involved I just used my stock pot because I was afraid of staining a bucket or my white sink!)

When the dying was done, I washed them and dried them and I had beautiful red stockings!

Then I used a whole lot of this:

Some puffy paint, and little bit of this:

to create embellished stockings like this:

To create the snow effect, I used white puffy paint to create a snowman. Then, I sprinkled the Diamond dust on top of the paint and used my heat gun to dry it. It puffed up the paint and sealed the Diamond Dust, creating a look of real snow! I also use Diamond Dust on top of Glossy Accents to create a "sugared" look on fabric and paper flowers.

I had a whole lot of fun embellishing all of these little stockings to create a festive garland.

To create the peppermint swirl candies, I used this cording that I found by the spool at Michaels. I simply curled it and wrapped it tightly to create a circular candy shape. I've got a whole candy them going on this year...I really need to post pics of the tree and another handmade garland!

I embellished the other stockings with paint, felt, buttons and ribbons. Did I mention I had fun??? Then I used my Crop-a-Dile to punch a hole in the upper corner of each stocking and threaded a ribbon through the whole. Next, I hung the stockings from a wide piece of red ribbon and then tied various widths and colors of ribbon to the red ribbon.

The stockings would also work on their own as ornaments. What a wonderful keepsake to give a grandparent as a memento of baby's first Christmas. Or, if you've got a houseful of kiddos you could have them each decorate a few of their socks and keep it as an on-going keepsake that you add to each year. Or, do a collection of stockings for each baby's first Christmas.

However you choose to personalize this project, if you create your own I hope you have fun and be sure to send me a link!