Failed Progress

Sadly, I did not finish my art project over the weekend as I had hoped. It has been more time consuming than I originally anticipated, but I am very excited with how it is turning out. My goal is to finish it and post it this weekend. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

Coasters!

I have been looking for coasters to go in my living room for a while now, but I have been unable to find any that I actually like. I decided to bite the bullet and just make some of my own. I ran across some very pretty napkins on clearance at Target not too long ago and this would be the perfect project for them. Coasters are very easy to make! I picked up some plain white tile squares at Lowes a few months ago when they were on sale. I dug them out of my craft room, grabbed some Mod Podge and got to work!

Start by cutting the napkins to fit your coaster, leaving a little space around the edges. I was able to get all four squares out of one napkin. That leaves me plenty left over for candle holders and art to match. Spread a thin layer of Mod Podge on your coasters and place your napkins on top, carefully pressing out any air pockets. Once they have dried, you can begin spreading the Mod Podge on top of the napkins. It is very important to let each layer dry before applying the next. If you don't wait long enough, the napkins will tear.
What I love about using napkins for this project is the texture! If you want a smooth surface, I do not recommend napkins. You would be better off using stationery. I applied 8-10 layers of Mod Podge. After they were dry, I hot glued sequins around the edges. I will admit, I used sequins that were already strung together, which saved A LOT of time. I finished up with some rhinestones in the corners and I let them finish drying.

I am really happy with the way they turned out. Stay tuned for some matching artwork!!
P.S. Please forgive the low quality pictures, I really need to find a new charger for my camera. My phone isn't cutting it!!

Canvas Adventures

After seeing so many projects on the internet dealing with canvas, I got inspired. I have been especially intrigued with the watercolor/glue artwork. One night when my other half was at work, I got busy creating. I started by choosing the colors I thought would look best together and painted them on in a pattern that was visually pleasing to me. I just had a basic watercolor pack that I bought at the store. You don’t need anything fancy!

It was very simple. I got a thick paint brush and just kept my strokes rounded until they looked like bright clouds. After everything was painted on, I gave them all one more quick coat. I wanted the paint to be wet for my next step. I grabbed a bottle of Elmers Gel Glue (the blue kind) and drizzled it on. Here is a close up:

 

 

Feel free to experiement with patterns. I did a lot of swirls and then added a bunch of dots where it seemed appropriate. I have to say that I am very pleased with the final product! I made one more after this. Check them out!

 Stay tuned for more artistc endeavours!

Wreath Fun

After my post on my entry way plant addition, I found myself motivated to do more sprucing up. I rummaged around my craft room until I found enough supplies necessary to make a fun wreath.

Luckily, I found a wreath base that was already well on its way to becomming a stunning centerpiece. It started out as a green foam form that had been set out by a dumpster. It had a few chunks missing, so I filled them in and wrapped the entire thing in basic grey yarn (pictured below). I also had a plethora of fabric scraps from some other projects. I grabbed my glue gun, paint, lace and a pearl/ribbon/chain necklace I picked up at a local consignment store. *If you live in or near Pace, FL be sure to check out All About Her Consignment… it is full of great deals!!*

My first step was to make some fabric flowers. Once you make a few, you will realize how easy it is. Start by cutting a long strip of fabric. Mine were 1 inch wide and about 12-14 inches long. Don’t worry about cutting it too long as you can always cut off the excess. Make a knot at one end and slowly start wrapping the tail of the fabric around the knot. Once you are finished, hot glue the end and you are set. If you won’t be using it right away or need to reinforce it, you can always glue it to a piece of felt.

 

I had a wooden “P” cutout from another project. I painted it with white acrylic paint. Once that was dry, I put a piece of lace on top of it and then hit it with a coat of black spray paint. It ended up having an almost snakeskin effect.

 

 

After that dried, I began assembling all of my pieces. I glued on the flowers, the letter and some additional lace. For the necklace, I wrapped the whole thing around the wreath and glued each strand individually on the back. I attached it to the wreath hanger with some lace. Viola!

 

As always, look below for the links to make your own!

 



Sucker for a Succulent

I may be crafty, but I certainly have no green thumb. The fact that succulents require little effort or upkeep makes us a match made in heaven. Recently I have been brainstorming on how to spruce up my boring entry way. At this point, a welcome mat was the sole decor. I came up with the idea to put several different succulents together in a big pot to put on display. I made a quick trip to the store, gathered all of my supplies (pictured below) and got to work.

 

The pot that I chose was just a boring plastic treasure that I picked up from a yard sale. It definitely needed a face lift before it was ready to house any plants. I sprayed it with two coats of my new favorite spray paint. You can find it at Lowes and it is amazing! It adds texture, which makes it great at covering up any imperfections.

 

After my paint was completely dry (about two hours) I got to work. I didn’t want to fill the entire pot with soil because it felt like a waste. The succulents I chose were not big and wouldn’t require much soil anyway. I grabbed some brick pieces that were left in our yard from the previous owners. They took up just enough space.

 

As you can see, I chose not to paint the entire inside of the pot. I only covered the part that would be seen. Why waste paint? Its expensive! Once the brickes were in, I poured in my soil and began positioning my plants. I set them in the soil very loosely until I was certain where I wanted all of them to be placed.

 

 

If you are planting a cactus like I did, please be careful. Even the smallest cactus can pack a powerful punch! I loved how everything looked so I was off to the front yard to display my nature artwork.

 

 

I think it looks pretty awesome! Little by little, my entry way is coming to life!! Stay tuned for more progress.

Renewed Containers

Have a bunch of old, empty jars taking up counter space? Here is an easy way to turn them into cute containers! I took a quick trip to Lowes to grab some wooden knobs and spray paint. I forgot to take a picture for you guys, but the paint I used was black hammered metal spray paint. It has a textured finish and is great at hiding imperfections. I started things by screwing the knobs onto the lids. Once they were secured, I took them outside for a few coats of paint.

 

While I waited for my lids to dry, I hit my jars with some Goo Gone. It is amazine how well it will take off a sticky mess! Here is a before pic

 

Once my labels were gone and my jars were washed, I found things to fill them up with. I had three jars, so I decided on cotton swabs, cotton balls and bobby pins. Check out the finished product!

 Viola! Now I have something cute to keep my bathroom supples in. I am thinking about doing this on an oversized jar next and filling it with guest soaps and hair products for my guest bathroom.

Glade Candle Jar Repurpose

This project started out as trying to show a variety of ways to repurpose glade candle jars. Instead, I got inspired to decorate a set designed to go together. I think they turned out super cute!

It is really simple to do. Once your glade candles have burned down to practically nothing, it is easy to remove the left over wax. There are several ways to do it, but this is the way that has worked best for me. Heat up some water in a tea kettle. Set out your candle jars and peel off the labels while you are waiting for the water to heat up. Once the water is ready, pour it into the jars leaving about 1/2 inch of space at the top. The wax will eventually loosen and work its way to the top. If it doesn’t start to float, carefully separate it with a plastic knife. If you have sticky residue, just wipe it away with some Goo Gone.
There are so many things you can do with your jars at this point! I gathered some twine, sequin strands and my hot glue gun. Originally I was just going to make one covered in twine and one in sequins. As I set the jars next to each other I loved the way the materials looked together, so I decided to make a set. What do you guys think? I can’t decide whether I want to keep them or sell them on my Etsy shop. As always, check out the links below if you want to make your own!