Re-post: Wrapping paper photo frames

Do you have scraps of wrapping paper too nice to recycle?
Upcycle them into these pretty photo matts.

 Image source: http://www.chatelaine.com

I love this project from Chatelaine. Really easy, and lots of impact. My favourite kind of project. You can find the details here 

It doesn't have to be just Christmas paper, use any paper at all. Metallic paper for black and white wedding photos, birthday paper, floral, graphic. I can think of some many iterations.

Lovely idea for an inexpensive gift, for Christmas or anytime!

Flower Garland and Updated Birthday Banner

I updated the "Hoppy Birthday" banner for my sister in law's birthday.I changed the "o" to an "a" and switched the bunnies for some pink and red die cut flowers. Cute, and it matched the fireplace quite nicely. 

You can find the original instructions to make the banner here 

Here's a close up of the paper flowers. I bought a large package of them at the dollarstore. Very handy, I've used them for greeting cards, embellishments for gift bags, to decorate easter baskets, the garland below and I still have more!

Flower Garland
Materials:

• paper flowers in your choice of colours
• needle and thread
• tape

This is super easy, I whipped it up in only a few minutes.

 

 Line up your flowers so that you have a relatively straight line, see how the side petals line up? Then simply string the flowers onto your needle and thread from the back side, so the thread runs along the back. Tie off and tape the end to the back of the end flowers. I used a random pattern of all the colours, but feel free to cutomize as you see fit. The only small thing that bugged me-the flowers tended to twist around. A very tiny detail no one would notice except me. I might attach them all individually, like I did with the sweet pea banner when I have some spare time. Sweet pea banner instructions are here
Everyone commented on it, it's a cute way to add a pop of colour to a party.
  And very cheap, it cost only pennies.

Re-post: Easter Egg Fireflies

This is the cutest thing ever. I had to share. I have an entire bag of these plastic eggs leftover from Easter. What a great summer craft for summer outdoor parties.
Cottage, Camping, Canada Day...

Image source: http://www.ohdeedoh.com

 Image source: http://www.ohdeedoh.com

Put them in the garden, and turn them on at night to suprise the kids.Yellow ones can be bumble bees, pink ones can be lady bugs, blue or green for dragonflies. You could make a whole slew of different kinds of bugs, as well as the standard lightning bugs.

Materials:

• plastic easter eggs (the ones that open)
• stickers or googly eyes
• pipe cleaners
• duct tape (for wings)

For detailed instructions, click here

Re-post: Balloon Garland

 Image source: http://blogs.babycenter.com/life_and_home/balloon-garlands-so-easy-its-crazy/

I love this super easy and fun balloon garland. Another great example of how a simple inexpensive item can be transformed into something fantastic. And this project is super easy. All you need are balloons and ribbon.
Check out the instructions here

Re-post: No Sew Felt Bunting

I mentioned recently that I was thinking about making felt bunting banners that could be re-used again and again.  This morning I came across a great tutorial from Style at Home, you can find it here

The instructions look really easy- I am thinking about upgrading the twine to some thin satin ribbon and maybe adding some decorative stitching.

Easter Pussy Willow Arrangement

Today's idea comes from my Swedish-Canadian friend who sent me this image of a pussy willow arrangment she made. In Sweden it is traditional to decorate branches-typically willow, birch or pussy willow with easter eggs, brightly coloured feathers and fuzzy yellow chicks to celebrate spring.
She also told me a funny story about tramping through her neighbour's field searching for pussy willows in the recent spring snow storm we had on the weekend. The snow was actually blowing horizontally.

This image is so Swedish to me-with the all white background, the brightly coloured decorations and table runner. I hope you find this image inspirational. For another take on the same theme, check out my version with willow branches, a bird and nest and butterflies.

Easter Eggs

I've come across some very beautiful and interesting egg dying techniques this week, that use common things that are inexpensive. Did you know you can use fruits and vegetables to create dyes? If you want to eat your Easter eggs (I never actually do) natural dyes are great, no worries about possibly ingesting chemicals. I've been doing some research on common things that you can dye with. Add any of these ingredients to boiling hot water, the longer you simmer it, the stronger the dyes. Natural dyes take longer, it seems at least 30 mins, to up to 2 hours, so you have to be patient. Except for the onion skins, add a teaspoon or so of vinegar, it will help set the dye.

• Yellow onion skins=rust orange
• Red onion skins=purple
• Tumeric=golden yellow
• Coffee or tea=beige to brown, depending on how long it sits
• Beets=red or pink
• Red cabbage leaves=blue
• Grape juice=purple

Source: http://bigsislilsis.com/2010/04/02/natural-dye-colored-easter-eggs/

I love these eggs, the rust colour is stunning. The designs are made with flowers and leaves. For information and the instructions on how to do this, check out it out here.

Another tried and true method is to use hot water, food colouring and a teaspoon of vinegar per colour. It's much faster than natural dyes, and you can get really intense colours. Add drops of food colouring to small containers of water until you are happy with the shade. Then add two more. That should be about right.

Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/how-to/marbelized-eggs#slide_6

 For an interesting marbled effect add some oil to the dye and swirl the eggs around.

http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/egg-dyeing-101

 To add decoration and patterns, the easiest way to do it is with the wax resist dye method. Draw patterns with a white wax crayon. When you dye the eggs, the dye won't stick to the wax, that part will stay white.
Use the mask method: Try wrapping the eggs with flat dental floss, rubber bands or strips of masking tape. Stickers are great to add words or shapes. If you want to do multiple colours, start with the lightest colour first and gradually add the darker colours. Keep in mind the rules of colour mixing-so you don't end up with grey, brown or muddy colours (unless that was on purpose).

Red+Blue=Purple, Red+Yellow=Orange, Yellow+Blue=Green, But Purple+Orange+Green=Muddy Brown


One last tip-keep the egg carton handy to allow the eggs to dry before handling. Use a spoon to lower the eggs in and out of the dye, so you don't get dye all over your hands.

For more information and ideas, I suggest Martha Stewart's website-tons of inspiration.

Be creative and have fun!

Craft Project: Spring Tree

 

Spring is finally on it's way! This is the time of year I start craving colour-I add colourful scarves and ballet flats to my winter basics, switch handbags and gravitate towards bright coloured tees and tanks. It's also the time to add pops of colour to your everyday décor. Last night I decided I would whip up a quick spring craft project using some things I already owned and adding a few inexpensive items from the dollar store and craft store. 

Materials:

• opaque vase or flower pot
• florist foam 
• knife and cutting board
• a stick (this one is willow)
• dried moss
• embellishments of your choice-artificial butterflies, birds, nests, eggs etc. 

First, pick a pot. This one I saved from an edible fruit arrangement, I washed it out well and dried it.  You can use any opaque container.

 

Cut the block of florists foam to fit inside the pot. It doesn't have to be perfect, you may have to use multiple small pieces and fit them together. Doesn't matter-the moss will cover it. I used a serrated knife-it cuts though the foam like butter. 

 

Shove the stick into the middle of the foam block and make sure it's sturdy. Cover the foam with dried moss. You could also use decorative stones, artificial grass, shredded paper or anything else you can think of. 

Next, wire on your embellishments. The ones I chose came pre-wired. If they do not come already wired, you will need some thin wire. 

I discovered the butterflies were more delicate than I had anticipated. I broke some wiring them on. So in the end, I only used two. One at the top, and one sitting on top of the moss.

The nest was a bit tricky to balance, so I hung it on a lower branch. You could glue it on if it's wobbly. 

 

I love this little bird. So pretty. When picking out the embellishments, I stayed within one colour theme-orange and pink. There are plenty of options out there, in any colour you can think of. Adjust the items according to your décor or taste. 

 

The finished piece! I love the sculptural element of the branch and the whimsy of the little nest and bird. 

I can think of so many other ways to change this piece according to season or theme. Hang little eggs for Easter, add some artificial flowers in the summer, hang miniature fairy lights at Christmas time. Add orange and red leaves for fall, I can go on and on. 

The only problem-my cat wants to eat this! Yes, I had to battle him three times to save the bird. I finally put this way on the top of  the fridge out of his reach. I am going to my Mom's this weekend, so I'll bring it over there. So, if you have toddler or cats this project might not be for you.

Spring Tablescape Idea

I was flipping through Chatelaine magazine at lunch time today and came across this cute spring table scape/craft idea. I love it for a few reasons: it's easily made from items you already have, can find or purchase cheaply; and my cat can't play with it since it's under glass. The article identities Dollarama as the source for the vase. One of my favourite stores for supplies! I would use gold or blue foil chocolate eggs in the nest.Other suggestions from the article are butterflies, seashells and driftwood or other items. It's very versatile-change it up with the seasons.

 

source: http://www.chatelaine.com/en/article/25368--make-a-decorative-diorama-for-a-shelf-or-mantel

Felt Soft Toys

Materials:

• Felt in various colours. Two pieces per toy
  
• Polyester or cotton batting (for stuffing)
• Needle and thread or sewing machine
• Scissors
• Pencil
• Optional: ribbon scraps
  

Yesterday was Family day in Ontario, so I had the day off. I had a rare weekend where I didn't have much going on. Friday night I was browsing the craft section of Chapters with my friend and came across alot of books about making your own soft toys. Since I had a lot of extra felt left over from previous projects, I decided I would make some. I don't have a sewing machine so I hand sewed all the toys. If you are making toys for children I really recommend using a sewing machine for the body of the toys, and make sure any elements are firmly sewed on. You don't want your toy to unravel!

I didn't use a pattern, I drew the shapes freehand. If you like, you make a pattern from a piece of scrap paper first before cutting out the felt shapes. There are plenty of craft books with patterns, and I'm sure you can find some online.

Green One Eyed Monster:

This guy is a rip-off of Mike from Monsters Inc. The body is 6 inch circle. I used my circle cutter to trace the shape, but you could use a dinner plate. The eye is traced from a drinking glass, and the pupil is traced from a shot glass. The mouth is a scrap of ribbon. Use sharp scissors to cut the pieces, you'll get cleaner edges.

I stitched the eye and mouth on first before sewing the body together. I sewed up each hand and foot, stuffed them and then stitched up the body. Make sure to leave an opening when you sew the body, so you can stuff the toy. If you like, use the end of a pencil to stuff the fingers and toes. If you happen to have a stuffing tool, obviously you can use that. Use pins to hold it together if you find it hard to hold it all in place.

The finished toy is about 15 inches from finger tip to finger tip, and 9.5 inches from the head to toe. Because I sewed the feet on separately, he can sit up.

Pac-Man Monster:

Hopefully you recognize this monster from Pac-Man, the retro video game. The colour is a bit off in the picture, it's made from light pink felt. Again-the eyes are traced from a drinking glass, and the pupils from a shot glass. Again, I sewed the eyes on first, then stitched up the body. This guy is easier to sew up than the green monster, so you can practice your technique first before starting the more complicated projects. The finished toy measures about 8.5 inches square (ish). I didn't stuff it too much, so it's nice and soft like a pillow.

Owl:

This owl is about half the size of the other toys. I used a single sheet of dark brown felt and scraps of the other colours. First I cut out all the shapes, sewed up the feet and wings. Then I stitched on all the face details before sewing up and stuffing the body. This one took the longest time. The owl is about 8 inches from toe to ear, and the wing span is about 7 inches.

In retrospect, I should have spaced the feet further apart, they overlap a little bit. I'm sure I am the only one who notices.

I really like crafting from felt. It's inexpensive, likely made from recycled bottles. It has great colour and doesn't fray. It take the decorative stitching well. For just a few dollars I made all these toys!

Sweet Pea Banner and Garland

This project is super adaptable and actually really easy. The same method can be used for any garland in any colour, for any season or holiday.

Materials:

• card stock (2-3 colours)
• string of some kind ( I used embroidery floss)
• letters-can be stickers, scrapbooking or cut out your own
• gluestick
• sewing needle
• circle cutter-not necessary but highly recommended
  

To make the banner-first figure out how many letters you need to spell your word. I used 8, and added 3 extra as spacers. I decided on 2 3/4 inch circles-big enough to see clearly but not so big to use up too much card stock.

I used the teal green colour for the background colour, and the kelly green for the letters and the accents. As you can see from the picture, I cut out 8 circles from the teal cardstock, and 3 circles from the kelly cardstock.

I drew the letters freehand-they are about 2 inches high on the kelly and cut them out with scissors. Feel free to use a template, stickers or die cuts if you are not comfortable drawing freehand.

Glue the letters to the circles. I find a glue stick is best. Liquid glue tends to wrinkle the paper when it dries.

To attach the circles together, I punched a hole with a sewing needle on each of the circle, making sure the holes lined up in a row, then I strung the circles onto the embroidery floss.

For the garland, I used 1 1/4 inch circles in three colours: the same teal and kelly green, and added a third colour-a sage green. I also punched a hole in each side of the circle and strung with embroidery floss. The hardest part of both these items is cutting out the circles. If you have a circle cutter, it is much faster and easier. The nice part of these garland is that they fold up nicely into a stack which is easy to transport and store and doesn't tangle.

Sweet Pea Mobile

Materials:

• card stock in your choice of colours ( 3 colours look best)
  
• fishing line or clear jewelry thread
• fishing weights or beads
  
• something circular for the top
  

The first project I started was a mobile. The inspiration came from Ohdeedoh. I saw this mobile on their site:

http://www.ohdeedoh.com/ohdeedoh/make-a-plexiglass-top-for-a-diy-mobilehow-to-138193

The article is really about the plexiglass top, but I loved the three tones and the circles. Because if you think about it, peas really are circles, aren't they? So, circles became the starting point. I repeated the circle theme in the other decorations, including the polka dot balloons.

I really recommend getting a circle cutter, if you want to try to make a mobile like this. It will save oodles of time and painstakingly cutting out circle after circle. I got one a Michael's, I had a 40% off coupon. Bonus! Circle cutters look something like this:

Martha Stewart Circle Cutter

I didn't get this exact one, but they all basically work the same. One tip I discovered, it is helpful to tape the edges of the paper down to the cutting matt, otherwise the paper may slip and you won't get a perfect circle. I picked up 3 colours of card stock: kelly green, teal green and sage green. Card stock was on sale 5 sheets for $2 so I had more than enough paper for this project. I did a few tests on a scrap piece of paper first, and I decided 1 1/4 inch circles was the perfect diameter. I cut out lots and lots of each colour, I don't know how many exactly but I do know I used 48 circles in total. There are 6 strands and each strand has eight circles. For the top, I used a needle working circle. It was 89 cents, and it already had perfectly spaced holes. It made the whole thing alot easier.

Using a sewing needle and fishing line, I poked holes in the top and bottom of each circle and strung eight onto each strand. Don't worry if it's not perfectly even, you can adjust the spacing after. Once I had all the strands I needed, I tied them to the plastic circle top and balanced the whole thing out. I had trouble getting the strands to hang straight so I added some fishing weights to the end of each, and that solved it. They look like beads, but they aren't.

Once you are happy with the way it hangs, adjust the spacing between the circles and trim any excess fishing line. That's it! This project is very inexpensive, but it is a time commitment. I estimate I spent about $4 on this project, but I spent 3-4 hours working on it. But, considering mobiles are super expensive to buy, it makes sense to make one. There are so many options, that it is easy to personalize this project to your taste and colour scheme.

Easy and Frugal Table Setting

Here is how I made an easy and affordable holiday table setting using things I already had around the house.

Step 1:
Create a table cloth from gift wrap. I already owned this paper, I just unrolled and cut to the size I wanted. If you have a dark wood table like mine, you might want to let some of the wood show through. I left a space on all sides. Next, I folded the cut edges under and taped them down on the underside for a cleaner look. You can cover the entire table if you are worried about spills, scratches or hot dishes marring the surface. Other options: create a runner down the table or cut out rectangles for individual place mats.

Step 2:
I set the table with my basic white plates, cutlery and wine glasses.

Step 3:
I already had this centrepiece, it was one I used at my wedding in May. The set comes with the mirrored tray, the square vase and the round candle holders. I simply added the silver glittered foliage (from the dollarstore) and some clear crystals. If you want to create this look-any piece of mirror will do. You can find the other items at any dollarstore-the vases, the foliage, the crystals and the tea lights. Adapt the centrepiece to suit your theme. An even more affordable idea-collect fresh greenery from outside.

Step 4:
I simply rolled basic white napkins and tied with a length of satin ribbon. I prefer knots to bows. If you like, tuck a sprig of greenery under the ribbon.

Step 5:
Place cards are optional. For a small table like mine, you don't need them but I wanted to include them anyway. I simply used a pinecone and a small rectangle of paper. Couldn't be easier. I bought a whole bag of pinecones, but by all means collect them outside if you live near pine trees. Just be wary of any sap residue. These ones are spray painted white in some areas, that can easily be done if you want to add a bit of pizzaz. Or dab on some glue and sprinkle glitter on top.

That's it! If you start with basic white dinnerware, you can add details in any colour scheme you like. A good general tip is to stick to no more than four colours. A nice thing about using wrapping paper is that everyone has it at Christmas time and it comes in a multitude of colours and patterns. For a kid's table, lay down kraft paper and give out crayons.

*I did recycle the paper I used, I wrapped a large gift with it later the same day.

I was so pleased with the results, I continued to decorate other areas of my apartment with gift wrap. The colour scheme is red, white and silver. I chose paper in different prints, but they are all the same colours, so the overall scheme works.

This is actually an office armoire, but it looks like a buffet. I simply laid out the paper and cut to the size I wanted. I decided to cover the entire surface. I folded under the edges and taped them down on the underside, same idea as the tabletop. The armoire is my entrance way-it's nice to jazz up the front hall or foyer to greet guests with Christmas cheer. For a party, I would set this up as the bar or hors d'oeuvres station.

This arrangement was created from elements I already had. I dug through my bin of Christmas stuff and pulled out a silver charger plate and a red pillar candle. Next I added some more pinecones. It needed a bit of sparkle-this is a snowflake ornament that is too big for my small tree. The vase is a smaller version of the one on the table. I had one more piece of foliage leftover from the centrepiece. The stack of gifts are actual presents waiting to be delivered.

This shelf is in my hallway, and it is one of the first things visible upon entering the apartment. Normally it looks like this:

Lovely, but not very Christmas-y, is it?

So, I simply wrapped the framed prints to make them look like gifts! So easy.

A bit of coordinating ribbon, and there you go. I think it looks great. I love the graphic punch of the prints. The paper and ribbon are all from Ikea, if you are wondering. I left the lengths of ribbons long enough that I will be able to re-use it to wrap gifts next year. The ribbon on the two smaller prints is actually tied at the back. The little red bow is meant to decorate a wine bottle, I just taped it to the white ribbon with double sided tape. Double sided tape is fantastic, I use it to wrap gifts all the time.

It seems like I used alot of paper, but I didn't really. I have plenty leftover to wrap gifts. I even have an idea on how to re-use scraps of gift wrap-all those pieces that are too small to wrap gifts but too nice to put in the recycling bin. Keep an eye out-I am going to the craft store tomorrow to get the things I need.

Happy Decorating!

Corporate Christmas Decorations

I was asked by the head of a public building to decorate both the public spaces and the staff lounge with "seasonal" decorations. The stipulations were that they had to feature a white colour scheme, had to be non-denomational and nothing could be permanently affixed to any surface. Oh, and of course the whole thing had to be done on a budget.

The key points:

• Main level reception desk
• Main level public space
• Fireplace seating area on the third level
• Staff lounge on the fourth level

So! The first step was to gather everything the company had from storage and go through it all. The majority of it was horrible and 80's tacky. I did manage to re-use the following:

• a 6 foot artificial tree
  
• several artifical garlands
• several yards of faux white pearl garland
  
• white indoor lights
• some lovely glass ball ornaments in blue, gold, white and clear with crystal embellisments
• some vintage silver glass balls with wire stems

The client wanted some form of wreath, as long as it was white. I scored this beauty at Home Sense for about $65, not bad considering most were $85-$90. It's a very good size too, quite substantial. The client loves it, so I used the wreath at the inspiration point for the other decorations. Some of the key features of the wreath are pinecones, white poinsettias and roses, and assorted greenery. I hit up my favourite dollarstore and loaded up my cart.
I picked up:

• white satin bows
• lots of wired pinecones
• assorted greenery
• plenty of decorative floral accents
• assorted tree decorations, including a plastic star topper
  

The wreath is hanging on the wall above the main reception desk. I picked up the heftiest 3m removable hook I could find so I could hang it on the wall without damaging the paint or drywall.

The next place I decided to utilize is a small half wall in the public area on the main level. I used small clear 3m hooks to hang some of the artificial garland. I added faux white poinsettias and white peonies, wired pinecones, some assorted faux greenery, the white satin bows and faux white pearl garland. Then I wired in the vintage silver balls I found here and there.

This picture is quite horrible, it was hard to get an overview shot. I do apologize. Here are some details shots:

The fireplace lounge on the third level is blessed with a very wide mantle. I simply laid the garland across, no need to attach anything. In this area, I added some gold accents. Again, I used white flowers-poinsettias, peonies and roses. The same wired pinecones, assorted greenery for texture and some decorative floral accents with gold here and there.

The natural tones of the pinecones and floral accents echo the wood surround quite nicely.

In the staff l0unge, I had a bit more freedom. The colour scheme of the room is tones of teal blue/green, you can see the colour on the accent wall behind the tree. I saved alot of the decorations they already had-the overall scheme is tones of blue, gold, and silver with crystal accents. I found an inexpensive white and silver felt tree skirt at walmart, as well as some inexpensive blue and silver ornaments. The tree itself is more yellow-green than spruce green, so that worked well with the tones of the room.

I had some crystal floral picks I originally intended to use for the fireplace, but I didn't like the way they looked. So-I snipped apart the bunch, cut off the floral wire and bent the wired end into a loop. Hanging on the tree, they look like icicles. Very pretty. A bunch of 5 cost $1, so really they are only 20 cents each. So affordable!

The entire cost came in under $150. Gotta love the dollarstore.