Halloween Tricks and Treats

So, this year I wanted to do a non sweet treat for Noah's class for Halloween. In the past he has attended schools that didn't celebrate but this year he is, so I am excited to get to send treats to school. Not sure why I love sending treats for the different holidays, but I do.

I found these multi-packs of play doh in the halloween section at Kroger and I knew they were just the ticket. I grabbed some halloween Washi tape from Target today and wrapped them to cover the label. I found some free printable bottle caps on pinterest and then cut them with my cuttlebug and hot glued them to the lid for extra flair.

It took maybe 20 minutes to complete once I found the printables. Super fun treat for any little trickster. Hope that you are inspired to get hoppin on your own little one's tricks and treats! Happy crafting!

Playing With Paper

Its been so long since I have just sat and mindlessly made cards. It was so much fun to sit down yesterday and do just that. I pulled out some scraps and got to work. I love how each and every one of these cards turned out.

I have found myself lacking in generic greeting cards as of late so when the opportunity arose for me to create some, I jumped at it! All of the papers used are scrap that I had from who knows when. All brands, all textures. The twine is Jilly Bean Soup.

 This stamp is from Stampin Up! I have had it a LONG time and rarely have the chance to use it.

 This stamp was a 1 dollar stamp from Walmart last year. I think it pops with these papers!

 The sentiment here was cut out of a piece of cardstock that had several quotes and some ledger type designs on it. I think it was perfect for these vintage tulips.

 This stamp was given to me a long time ago used so I am not sure where it came from, but the sentiment is wonderful and I hope it will make someone smile.

I love the shabby feel, and I love the simplicity that allows the greetings to shine. I hope to be back later this week with an announcement, but first...I have housework to catch up on, so stay tuned!

Hope you are inspired! Happy crafting!

Christmas Already?

Well, no. Not quite yet. Though, I am already in full preparation mode. As always.

I mentioned in my last post that my husband and I stumbled onto a Hancock Fabric and I was super excited. I really don't like Joann Fabrics. Overpriced and not a lot of variety sometimes. Recently, I ordered some fabric from them and was told after I received my shipping notice that oops, they were out of the  fabric. Geee, thanks. Make my wait 2 weeks to tell me you are out.

SO. I checked out the massive remnant section and found some awesome Marvel fabric as well as some Angry Birds fabric that I will use on another project sometime.

Today, though, I am going to show you my Avengers fabric. I decided that my almost 8 year old needed something a little older than a Winnie The Pooh stocking. He says he still loves it, but I know he also loves super hero stuff.

So I made a lined and slightly padded stocking for my little/big man. I am still learning how to sew curves, so the toe looks a bit funny. You sew, you learn, right?

 I also had these fuzzy iron on letters and ironed his name onto the stocking. He especially likes that feature.

 This is the color I used to line the inside. Again, a learning process. I think I did the top wrong, but its all good. It turned out pretty nice when all was said and done.

 Now, all that is left to do is wait for the big fat man with the long white beard to come and fill it with goodies on Christmas Eve. This was pretty simple, all things considered. I created a pattern on some paper and then traced and cut out all of the parts. It wasn't overly difficult. Not bad or an hour or two of work.

Hope this inspires you to get going on your own Christmas items!! The time to prepare is NOW! Hahaha. Happy weekend!

Bunting and Something "Old"

When I was in highschool (my junior year, I believe) I had the opportunity to go to MGM studios and Disney while I was on a trip. I had just discovered the Star Wars series a couple of years before so I bought 3 postcards while I was at the park.

Little did I realize, all these years later that I would be framing and matting them for my almost 8 year old boy's birthday party in December. I think they will be perfect additions to the party decor.

Last Tuesday, my husband and I happened to come across a Hancock Fabric store. Ours closed years ago, but apparently there is still one in Bowling Green, Ky. He suggested we check it out and I am so glad we did. I managed to come out with more Star Wars fabric, bias tape and some other fabrics that will be featured in other posts.

Today was the first actual day of my 2 week vacation from work, so I decided to start off with a bang. I made some bunting for Noah's birthday party (I may make more later) and I matted and framed my postcards for use as decorations on the tables. The frames are from the Dollar Tree and then I used scrap patterned paper for the mats.

I think both turned out pretty great! My first time making fabric bunting. It was pretty easy. I just created a stencil with cards stock and then used some allowances to create neat edging.

 Getting very excited to see how everything comes together on the day of the party. However, we are nervous that ALL the kids will show up that we invite, haha. It would be a blessing, and a curse.

Happy weekend and hope that you are inspired! 

Shabby Chic/Girly, Challenge #97 With The Southern Girls

So glad to be back with you for yet another Southern Girls Challenge! Yay! Can't wait to see what everyone shares with us, but for the moment, let me share mine with you.

For this challenge, one of the sponsors is the delightful Emerald Fairy stamp company. They are so stinking adorable and I had a blast coloring this one. I used my copic markers on her and added some glitter to her wings with a quickie glue pen.

I used papers from Teresa Collins. LOVE this stack. I used the layering to add more shabby-ness to it. I distressed the edges of some of the papers with scissors and memento ink. I went a little crazy with the sewing. It got away from me so I had to improvise. I think its still cute, though. Made it a little more shabby. ;) And you can't get much more girly than an adorable fairy day-dreaming?

I hope that you have fun playing along with this challenge! Can't wait to do my rounds and see all of the lovely submissions! Be sure to check out of the rest of the design team as well! All of there links are here on the left side of my page. Happy Crafting!

Bubble Lightsabers!

So I think I mentioned awhile back that we are planning a star wars party for Noah. Its going to be epic...at least, I HOPE it will be. I had the chance to work on the bubble lightsabers this weekend.

I managed to find a WHOLE bunch of these bubble wands at walmart for 50 cents a piece right before school started. I bought as many as I could imagine needing. The colors were limited, but I am NOT complaining! Going to be a great, non "sit around and take up space" party favor!!

To paint the handles I grabbed rust-oleum. MAN does this stuff work well! Talk about good coverage! Def pays to buy the "good" stuff. I will never buy cheap spray paint again!!

I also grabbed a box from work and cut slits in the top to shove the wand portion of the bubble wands into the box for protection from the paint. I only wanted to paint the handles, not the colored part. I now realize that I didn't consider the slit down the CENTER of the bottom of the box so there was a bit of over-spray on some of the sabers but I really don't think it will matter. They look awesome. That paint is SHINY!!!

 And, after dry time, VIOLA!!! I have lightsaber bubble wands! The first goody for their goody bags! This is seriously going to be a fun party! Now, to get the rest of my fabric so I can make bunting!

Have a great week and be inspired!!

Butterfly in the sky....

I can go twice as high! Okay, not really but this week at my son's school they are having a monarch butterfly release. It is a tradition there and they even sell t-shirts for the occasion. I, however, and too much of a cheapskate to buy a tshirt that will be worn for ONE day and be hidden beneath my apron at work. SO....I decided to make myself and the ladies I work with some hair clips to wear on the day of to celebrate.

Using various scrap paper I had (and by scrap I mean, tiny pieces that have been around for years) and a Spellbinders Shapabilitites set (s4-395) and just the smallest amount of hot glue and tulle I created some hair clips! It was super easy, I promise.

I would suggest that when using the more detailed spellbinders dies it is VERY useful to have a metal shim. Otherwise a lot of fine details are going to be lost and merely embossed instead of cut out.

I had a lot of fun making these. The paper that I unearthed was White Wash Core-D-Nations. Man I love me some core'dnation papers. They are never a disappointment. I also used some tulle from a yardsale last year and some left-over adhesive pearls that I have had for ages. However, I did use hot glue to really make sure they were going to stay put. 

The clips themselves came from Walmart in the sewing section. They have an entire hair bow accessory section. Much as I don't like Walmart, it is a necessary evil until the new Hobby Lobby opens 15 minutes from my house. (insert happy dance here)

And viola! Cute hair butterflies! I can't wait for Friday to wear them! I am such a kid when it comes to accessorizing. 

What are you working on this weekend? I am doing my best to do as little as possible today. This was my "me" time for the week. I am counting the days until this week is over. I get a 2 week vacation from work! WOO! Thank you, Fall break!