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    Stamping Cards Gets Me Every Time

    by  • February 6, 2013 • Craft Up, Crafts, Gallery, Made It

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    The Great Craft Up 2013 continues! This year I’m trying to use up all the craft supplies I have before I buy any more. It’s the Great #CraftUp2013, and you’re invited!

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    I have seen stamps popping up more and more in my daily internet travels. From Pinterest to blogs to Twitter, they seem to be everywhere. At first I thought they were only for scrapbooking (not into it) but after having these three stamps in my shopping cart for a while, I decided they weren’t for scrapbooking at all. They’re for making cards.

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    Needless to say, I finally got the stamps. And they are a perfect way to keep #CraftUp2013 rolling. In the last ten years I have amassed more plain notecards than any one person should ever own. I don’t know why. It’s like I’m drawn to paper stores (and the card aisle at Target) like a moth to a flame. But the stamps… these stamps are going to help rid me of my paper obsession.

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    I think the “Happy Birthday to ______” is my favorite because it does allow you to go a little crazy in saying “Happy Birthday” to the same person over and over in so many ways. I went a little stamp crazy on that striped one. The “Because You’re ________” stamp also hold lots of promise. “Because You’re Loved.” “Because You’re The Best.” “Because You’re Graduating!” The list goes on and on. In fact, I’ve already used it on some “Thank You” notes.

    StampedCards2I’m looking forward to getting some use out of “It’s Going To Be __________” in the next couple weeks. “It’s Going To Be Awesome” is my go to, but I think it could be “epic,” “beautiful” or, (wait for it) “legendary” could also work here.

    Are you joining in #CraftUp2013? My friend Elizabeth (@SeagrassStudio) is climbing aboard. Let me know if you are too!

     

    PS. My stamps were totally inspired by the fab Elise. Check out her stamp shop!

    Replanting Gets Me Every Time

    by  • January 29, 2013 • Craft Up, Crafts, Gallery

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    This year I’m trying to use up all the craft supplies I have before I buy any more. It’s the Great #CraftUp2013, and you’re invited!

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    Grow, plant, grow! Do you see that? It’s the plant I got when I picked up some succulents over the summer. I managed to kill the succulents right away, true story. But this guy? This guy is thriving! Just take a look at where he started. Maybe the pictures don’t do him justice. Regardless, he needed a new pot.

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    I picked up a basic clay pot and decided, per my #CraftUp2013, that I would use supplies I had around the house to jazz it up a little bit. I started with a coat of metallic silver paint, but I thought it needed more color. So I thought I’d add some washi tape.

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    But as soon as I put it on there, I realized two things. First, it didn’t look like it did in my head. And, it would be even cooler if I painted over it, then removed the tape to make some killer stripe pattern. Yeah. That didn’t work either. So much so that I didn’t even take a picture of an in between. The next picture is the final (for now) result.

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    This was a layer of silver, some gold metallic spray paint, then more silver brushed over top since plan A didn’t work out so well.  And you know, I like the effect. I like that some of the clay pot is still showing through. I like the brush strokes of the gold mixed with the silver. And I especially like how the paint bubbles after I water the plant.

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    This little plant of mine has taken up permanent residence in our kitchen window this winter, adding a hint of life to otherwise dreary winter days. How have you been keeping winter at bay?

     

    The Great Craft Up Gets Me Every Time

    by  • January 15, 2013 • Craft Up, Gallery, Goals

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    Along with my urge to purge this winter season comes the need, and desire, to work with what I got. To use what we have. To try not to buy anything we won’t consume or use for our own health and well-being. The place I know I need to start with—craft supplies. Which is why I’m imposing The Great Craft Up of 2013.

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    The Great Craft Up is my effort to use up those craft supplies that I have laying around the house. In drawers, in bins, in the desk, in boxes. It’s a roll of washi tape here and half a skein of yarn there. Forgotten projects, lost projects, or just projects that didn’t go quite as planned. Aside from spending a $20 craft store gift card I received as a present I will not purchase any more “for fun” craft supplies in 2013 unless, and only at which time, all “for fun” craft supplies have been depleted.

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    Now, why do I say “for fun?” Well, as you guys are well aware, one of my little side gigs requires me to keep paint, brushes, glue and a few other supplies stocked for customers. So, if I run out of neon pink paint, I’m going to have to buy more. Get it? Good. There are a few things I have on order that will come in before the end of the month that I’ll add to the “for fun” stash, but they will help me use the other supplies, if that makes sense.

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    Are you guilty of purchasing craft supplies for a project and then never starting, never finishing or just plain forgetting? It’s OK! That’s my problem too. You can come clean. You too can join me in my Great Craft Up. I’ll be sharing my progress here and on Instagram & Twitter using the hashtag #CraftUp2013. I’d love to see your craftiness in action too!

    A Place To Rest Our Heads Gets Me Every Time

    by  • October 4, 2012 • DIY Decor, Gallery, Made It

    You guys. I made a headboard. And not just any headboard. An upholstered, tufted headboard. In a sunny marigold color. Made it. With my own two hands, twenty some teeth and endless frustrations. Plus one staple gun, some help from a friend and lots of encouragement. Here’s the full frontal. (headboard guys, get your heads out of the bedroom.)

    If you think back to when I revealed that DIY lyric art, the Mr. and I didn’t have a headboard. So I did the ol’ scouring of Pinterest and came up with this tufted gem. Which, as it turns out, was a little easier dreamt than done. If I were to do it over, here’s what I would do differently than the DIY.

    1. Not use pegboard, it’s hard to staple into. And a little heavy. Maybe a piece of foam core, or a big canvas covered with foam could have achieved the same effect.
    2. Gotten the heaviest of heavy duty staple guns rather than try to get by with the crafting staple gun. I ended up having so many issues with getting the staples in that I actually tied the thread together on opposing rows to create the tuft. Yeah. That happened.
    3. Not made my own buttons. Sure, they look nice, but… They would look nice if they were a complimentary color too, perhaps. This step takes patience, especially if you’re using a heavyweight fabric.
    4. Paid closer attention to the draping of the fabric. It was hard to get it to lay flat and I could have done a better job.

    Overall, it was a fun project and I’m proud of it. Might not tuft next time, but I have a feeling there’s more crafty goodness in the near future.

    A (G)Old Fan Gets Me Every Time

    by  • September 21, 2012 • Boston Love, Gallery

    Remember when I went to SOWA a few weeks ago and picked up something from the vintage market? Well, this is it. A lil retro metal fan. I promise I took some before photos of this guy, but I cannot seem to find them, so you’ll just have to take my word for it when I tell you the base was a rustic light green color. Well, most of it was. The other parts of it were bare metal that was starting to get a little rusty.

    So, I grabbed a can of spray paint, and voila. I was originally going to use a golden yellow, but I thought the metallic gold really classed it up a bit. A $20 retro fan given new life. Thanks SOWA Vintage Market!

    A Family Map Gets Me Every Time

    by  • August 24, 2012 • Gallery, Made It

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    As I mentioned yesterday, my nephew Liam was celebrating his birthday. So, to wish Liam a happy Birthday formally the way across the country, what better way than to send him the country?

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    I started by grabbing this free map from Mr. Printables and printing it on legal sized paper.
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    Then, I made the pages into stickers using a Xyron machine. And that made it easy to stick the map pieces onto a leftover piece of foam core I found in my office.

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    Then, I cut out the pieces to make a simple U.S. puzzle. Not 50 pieces, but enough to keep a four year old busy for a few minutes.

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    I also wanted to make a few flags that the kids could use to mark where there family lived. Toothpicks were perfect for this. I made small holes with a pushpin so the landmarks are easily found.

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    And of course, I needed a container for the toothpick flags and you can see that an old Altoids tin did the trick.

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    Lastly a simple brown box was the perfect carrying case for all the pieces. I added some decoration and I hope to see some color added to this box very soon.
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    I think homemade gifts can’t be beat. I’ve got a few others in mind, stay tuned.
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    Easy Art Gets Me Every Time

    by  • August 8, 2012 • Gallery, Made It

    As we saw last week, when you give a writer an art project, she’s bound to put words on it. And that’s exactly what happened again this week. This statement (If you’re not having fun, you’re not doing it right.) has become something like a mantra for me recently, so why not put it somewhere I can see it often.

    I had an old canvas board sitting around and I grabbed the same vinyl letters I used on my minibook a while back. I also grabbed a couple paint brushes, paint and an x-acto knife.

    I’ve seen projects on Pinterest where the whole piece was painted the same color, creating a cool monotone effect, but I wanted something more dramatic. So after the first coat of paint dried, I added another, in a nice, seafoamy, minty green.

    I carefully peeled the letters off (with the x-acto blade) BEFORE the paint dried. I read that’s what you’re supposed to do when making patterns with painters’ tape, so I figured the same logic should work when applied here—and it did.

    Do you think this is a good phrase to live by on the daily? Do you have one too? Let me know, or I’m sticking with “if you’re not having fun, you’re not doing it right.” Now, off to have fun.

    A Statement Piece Gets Me Every Time

    by  • July 25, 2012 • Crafts, Gallery

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    My friends know me well. Very well. Well enough to forward this DIY link to me. They probably even know me well enough to figure I would have all the supplies I need for this: sunglasses case, mini animal toy, paint, glitter, mod podge, glue, paint brush. Check, check, check, check, check and check. A no-brainer craft project… with one tiny tweak.


    Here’s the thing. I’m probably not going to any derbies or polo matches soon. So, when else would I carry a glittery clutch? Nighttime is the right time. And if it’s evening, I can think of no one but this little night owl to accompany me out on the town. (Well, other than Mr. Gets Me Every Time of course. But, I didn’t think he wanted to be painted silver and superglued to anything.)

    If you’ve been around the blog a while, you know that (because of the shop) I pretty much had an unlimited choice of animals to top my newest accessory with. And don’t think I didn’t experiment with some other guys. Have a look.

    I was digging the preppy look of some of the red puppy, but in the end, the owl just really won me over. I mean, who doesn’t love a great hooter accessory?

    I’ve got my eyes on some other inspired crafty DIY projects. Stay tuned.

    DI-WHY Gets Me Every Time

    by  • July 13, 2012 • Gallery, Made It

    OK. I’m going to start off saying that I love DIY just as much as the next craft-loving lady. But, I am starting to feel like things are getting out of control in the blogosphere. So, without any ado, I’m dusting off and climbing onto my soapbox.

    I made those notebooks up there. Well, I DIY-ed them, according to anyone’s standards. They were covered with logos of the companies that gave them to me for free. I just doctored them up with washi & paper tape. But I’m not giving you a tutorial on them. D-I-WHY would I? It’s simple, people. Unroll the tape, stick it on, snip the ends ta-da!

    I’ve come across quite a few D-I-WHY projects across the web recently and while I won’t link to them, I am going to unashamedly call them out. Some of the projects you will never get a tutorial on from this blog include:

    • Dip-dyed marshmallows
    • Painted Rocks
    • Putting hooks on a wall
    • Putting a collection of (buttons, shells, change) in a jar
    • Skewering marshmallows, candy, etc
    • Abstract Art
    • Putting colored tape on a notebook, chair, desk, frame, etc (see above)
    • Adding glitter to everyday objects
    • Printing Instagram photos

    Remember, I love DIY. I just don’t want another blog post on how to print a printable or how to cut out strips of paper and make a paper chain. Let’s push ourselves. Let’s make something new. Let’s make something to be talked about. Or let’s get offline altogether and make some memories.

    Am I the only one? What’s got you screaming DI-WHY? these days?

    Spooning Gets Me Every Time

    by  • May 18, 2012 • Gallery, Made It

    As much as I’m sure you all could tell from my Mother’s Day sneak peek, I can now finally divulge the gifts of mommyhood bestowed upon mine and Mr. GMET’s mothers. (It’s my own fault really, that I couldn’t have shared sooner. My DIY schedule and shipping times just don’t seem to be adding up.)

    The Mr. And I are completely blessed with two of the most caring, loving, supportive mothers ever. So, I wanted to put love into whatever we gifted them this year. That’s why I got in on the painting and dipping craze that’s been going around.

    This is truly one of the easiest DIY projects I’ve ever completed with such impressive results. I’m telling you, these painted spoons were a hit according to both moms.

    To start I simply taped off the area I wanted to paint with washi tape. I would have used painters’ tape but we didn’t have any. Masking tape would have worked here too.

    Then, as you see in the above pictures, I clamped the ends with the fanciest of office supplies. This was so I could paint both sides of the flat one and all surfaces of the spoons with cylindrical handles and not worry about messing up the paint.

    I simply took down a few mugs and hung the spoons from our mug hooks to dry. Some needed two coats, some needed only one; I just eyeballed it.

    After the paint I applied a clear sealer to the handles to keep them from chipping. I know our moms will take great care of them but I know they’ll need to stand up to some mixing too.

    Again, I really cannot emphasize how easy peasy this project was. After everything was dry I carefully removed the tape and was finished. Really. Just some tissue paper and ribbon and we were good to go.

    This project got me thinking of other tools that could be easily transformed with a little bit of paint… Pencils and paintbrushes of course, and makeup brushes too. Maybe some terra cotta pots? Who knows?!

    What have you given a quick makeover to recently? Maybe your project will inspire my next one!