Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Sorry for the long dry spell....
I was off on vacation with my baby daughter. We went to San Francisco and had so much fun. We actually tried to eat our way across town, but had to give up mid-way. I have never eaten so much good food. My daughter, Carly, is hilarious and we laughed quite a bit. We also walked and walked and walked and then we walked some more. My legs, hips and feet are still sore! Here are just a couple of pictures from our time in San Francisco.
You can't tell from the pics, but it was really crowded on the streets. People push and shove you and will run you down in a second. We must have taken these pictures either very early or very late. It was so cold there. I left Austin at 102 degrees and arrived in San Fran at 54 degrees. It did get up to a whopping 74 degrees while we were there, but then I got off the airplane to a chilly 104 degrees. I am so confused!!
To add insult to injury, I now have a sore throat from the extreme temp changes and being on airplanes with so many strangers. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I had a really lovely time and enjoyed spending the time with my baby girl.
Next year, I hope to plan a vacation with my other daughter and my grandsons. I want us to all go to see the Grand Canyon. That's on my bucket list and I'd love to do this visit with my daughter and grandsons.
Just wanted to let you know why I have been silent for a while. Hopefully, I'll get back to art and posting now. Until next time, have a wonderful time and enjoy each and every day!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tuesday Tutorial -- brenna’s paper capiz shell chandelier
This is in the catagory of "Oh my God!" This is just too beautiful to believe. I hope someone has a place they can hang such a beautiful chandelier and they make this because I am dying to know if it turns out just as beautiful as this picture. Maybe when I move to a new house, I will get to try this. I certainly hope so.
This is from Design Sponge and there are many other wonderful DIY items also.
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i love wax paper for packing lunches; i wrap sandwiches in a piece of wax paper and tie it like a present with a little cotton string. it’s so much better looking than a
plastic bag. wax paper comes in handy for more things than i realized, like rolling it up to use for a funnel, or how about rubbing a piece of wax paper on the top of your
shower curtain rod to cut down on that terrible screeching in the morning…problem solved. but who knew that if you iron layers of wax paper together it looks remarkably similar to a capiz shell? this discovery brought me to today’s project: the faux capiz chandelier. hung over your dining table, or outside at an outdoor dinner party, it is an easy solution to a dramatic light fixture and will look phenomenal in either setting. i hope you enjoy making your own as much i did! -brenna
Materials:
- hanging planter basket
- white spray paint
- ribbon
- scissors
- 1-2 rolls wax paper
- 2 big pieces of parchment paper
- iron
- hot glue gun & glue sticks
- circle cutter (i didn’t have any luck with a “punch”)
- cutting mat
Instructions:
1. spray paint your planter basket. let dry.
2. start making the capiz shells. lay out the two pieces of parchment paper on your ironing board or on a clean dish towel on the floor or table. (if you use your floor or
table, just make sure it wont be damaged by the heat of the iron)
3. cut three pieces of wax paper about the same length. mine were about 18”. sandwich the three pieces of wax paper between the parchment paper. the parchment paper allows the wax to stay within the layers of paper, helps it stick together, and gives the wax paper a smooth finished surface.
4. iron the paper sandwich on a low setting. remove the layered wax paper from between the parchment, and repeat.
5. set the circle cutter to cut 2 ½ inch circles. with the circle cutter, cut circles from the layered wax paper on your cutting mat. it helps to tape the wax paper down to
the mat.
6. cut ribbon pieces and attach the ribbon to the planter basket. the length of the ribbon will depend on the method of attachment to the basket… (single or double strand). my lengths were between 7 (single) and 16 inches (doubled). you can attach them to the basket either by hot gluing the end of a single strand to the basket wire, or by folding the ribbon in half, and creating a knot over the wire. start at the bottom, and work your way up.
7. once you finish one tier of ribbon, attach the capiz shells to the ribbon with a tiny dot of hot glue near the top of each shell. i alternated two and three shells on each ribbon and only attached shells to every other ribbon. overlap the shells by about ¼”. finish an entire lower tier, then move on to the next higher tier.
8. once you cover the hanging basket you are done! you can attach a simple bulb of you want this to be a source of light. hang in your desired location, stand back and
admire.
This is from Design Sponge and there are many other wonderful DIY items also.
____________________________________________________________________________________
i love wax paper for packing lunches; i wrap sandwiches in a piece of wax paper and tie it like a present with a little cotton string. it’s so much better looking than a
plastic bag. wax paper comes in handy for more things than i realized, like rolling it up to use for a funnel, or how about rubbing a piece of wax paper on the top of your
shower curtain rod to cut down on that terrible screeching in the morning…problem solved. but who knew that if you iron layers of wax paper together it looks remarkably similar to a capiz shell? this discovery brought me to today’s project: the faux capiz chandelier. hung over your dining table, or outside at an outdoor dinner party, it is an easy solution to a dramatic light fixture and will look phenomenal in either setting. i hope you enjoy making your own as much i did! -brenna
Materials:
- hanging planter basket
- white spray paint
- ribbon
- scissors
- 1-2 rolls wax paper
- 2 big pieces of parchment paper
- iron
- hot glue gun & glue sticks
- circle cutter (i didn’t have any luck with a “punch”)
- cutting mat
Instructions:
1. spray paint your planter basket. let dry.
2. start making the capiz shells. lay out the two pieces of parchment paper on your ironing board or on a clean dish towel on the floor or table. (if you use your floor or
table, just make sure it wont be damaged by the heat of the iron)
3. cut three pieces of wax paper about the same length. mine were about 18”. sandwich the three pieces of wax paper between the parchment paper. the parchment paper allows the wax to stay within the layers of paper, helps it stick together, and gives the wax paper a smooth finished surface.
4. iron the paper sandwich on a low setting. remove the layered wax paper from between the parchment, and repeat.
5. set the circle cutter to cut 2 ½ inch circles. with the circle cutter, cut circles from the layered wax paper on your cutting mat. it helps to tape the wax paper down to
the mat.
6. cut ribbon pieces and attach the ribbon to the planter basket. the length of the ribbon will depend on the method of attachment to the basket… (single or double strand). my lengths were between 7 (single) and 16 inches (doubled). you can attach them to the basket either by hot gluing the end of a single strand to the basket wire, or by folding the ribbon in half, and creating a knot over the wire. start at the bottom, and work your way up.
7. once you finish one tier of ribbon, attach the capiz shells to the ribbon with a tiny dot of hot glue near the top of each shell. i alternated two and three shells on each ribbon and only attached shells to every other ribbon. overlap the shells by about ¼”. finish an entire lower tier, then move on to the next higher tier.
8. once you cover the hanging basket you are done! you can attach a simple bulb of you want this to be a source of light. hang in your desired location, stand back and
admire.
Friday, August 13, 2010
What I've been up to...
Aside from working at my day job for many extra shifts and going in for numerous committee meetings on my days off, I'm having a massive block and not wanting to do much of anything artistic. I have been looking at some of these crafts I am posting for inspiration. So, I have started with making paper beads. I am practicing making them and I find that not only are they easy to make, the making is rather soothing and your mind can do other things while your hands roll the bead. I really like that.
I need to make another and this time be a little more exact in the cutting of the paper strips so my tree will sit up straight. I think, though, that this type of tree will work and I can spray paint it or spray flocking, or just cover it with glitter and it will look festive sitting on the patient's tables on the unit.
I also have been feeling the need to finish my faces painting, but by using multimedia. I'll let you know how that turns out.
So, I have been busy, just not making much. Hope you have been more productive than I have been.
I also have been experimenting with making some type of paper Christmas tree to use to decorate the unit I work on. I am a psychiatric nurse, so my options are really limited due to the prohibition for most items used to decorate for Christmas. I have been using paper and have made a so-so effort. I think it will look cute with a Star on the top!
So, I have been busy, just not making much. Hope you have been more productive than I have been.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Window Shopping Wednesday -- Christopher Maloney
All I can say about this man's work is "Oh, my!"
I hope you feel the same way after seeing some of his work here.
Please go to his website and look at all of his work if you can, it is worth it.
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I hope you feel the same way after seeing some of his work here.
Please go to his website and look at all of his work if you can, it is worth it.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Tuesday Tutorial -- Recycle with flair: Turn your newspaper into a stylish vase
Here's a wonderful use for what would usually end up in your trash. I love finding alternative ways to use newspapers, so this is just the ticket. I hope you like it and I hope you try this for yourself. It certainly gives a really pretty outcome from such a lowly start, don't you think?
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Rescue some of last week's copies of The Oregonian from your recycling bin and transform them into a beautiful piece of home decor. All you need are a few simple materials and a little time.
MATERIALS
Assorted newspaper pages, color or black-and-white
Two bamboo skewers
Glue stick
Small cardboard box
Glass vase that fits inside the box
Tacky craft glue
Sharp, strong scissors
Clear polyurethane spray sealer, gloss finish
DIRECTIONS
Make newspaper reeds
1. Tear or cut each newspaper or ad circular page along its folds (both the spine and where the paper folds in half). You should end up with pieces that are roughly 10 to 11 inches square; they can be a little larger or smaller than that, and a rectangular shape works as well as the square.
2. Place one piece of newspaper on your work surface. The side of the page you want to show on the finished reed should be facing down. Place a bamboo skewer on the bottom right corner of the paper at about a 45-degree angle.
3. Beginning at the corner, roll the paper snugly around the skewer. As you roll, gently pull the end of the skewer out of the reed a little, so it doesn't get lost inside as you're rolling it. (If your skewer does disappear inside the reed, not to worry -- use the second skewer to poke it out.)
4. When you've rolled about half of the sheet around the skewer, stop for a moment and apply glue stick along the two edges of the paper that are still showing. Then, continue rolling the rest of the paper. Make sure the last corner of the paper is securely glued down. Remove the skewer.
5. Repeat this process to make enough reeds to cover your box.
Make the vase
1. Cut away the top and bottom flaps of the box, so it's open on the top and bottom. You'll be covering the outside of the box with reeds.
2. Place the box on some newspaper to protect your work surface. Apply a generous amount of tacky craft glue along one corner of the box.
3. Take one reed and cut it straight across, about 2 inches from one end, with scissors. Gently press the reed into the glue, placing the cut end at the bottom edge of the box, flush with your work surface. The rest of the reed will extend above the top edge of the box; you'll cut it later.
4. Apply more glue to the box and repeat Step 3 until one side of the box is covered with reeds. Let the glue dry about 30 minutes.
5. Once the glue is dry, use a pair of sharp scissors to trim away the ends of the reeds so they're flush with the top edge of the box.
6. Repeat Steps 3 to 5 to cover the other three sides of the box.
7. Cut eight reeds to match the width of the box. Glue these along the top edge of the vase, two per side. You may need to trim them a little to fit. Let the glue dry.
8. Apply two to three coats of clear polyurethane sealer to the inside and outside of the finished vase, letting the varnish dry thoroughly between coats.
9. Slip a glass vase into the cardboard one and fill it with flowers.
Note:
You can use newsprint pages or glossy ad circulars for this project, or a mixture of both. (I used ad circulars.) The number of reeds you'll need for your vase will be determined by the size of the box you use. The 6-by-6-by-6-inch box pictured here required about 120 reeds.
-- Portland freelance crafter and writer Diane Gilleland
You can visit her blog at Craftypod.com.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Rescue some of last week's copies of The Oregonian from your recycling bin and transform them into a beautiful piece of home decor. All you need are a few simple materials and a little time.
MATERIALS
Assorted newspaper pages, color or black-and-white
Two bamboo skewers
Glue stick
Small cardboard box
Glass vase that fits inside the box
Tacky craft glue
Sharp, strong scissors
Clear polyurethane spray sealer, gloss finish
DIRECTIONS
Make newspaper reeds
1. Tear or cut each newspaper or ad circular page along its folds (both the spine and where the paper folds in half). You should end up with pieces that are roughly 10 to 11 inches square; they can be a little larger or smaller than that, and a rectangular shape works as well as the square.
2. Place one piece of newspaper on your work surface. The side of the page you want to show on the finished reed should be facing down. Place a bamboo skewer on the bottom right corner of the paper at about a 45-degree angle.
3. Beginning at the corner, roll the paper snugly around the skewer. As you roll, gently pull the end of the skewer out of the reed a little, so it doesn't get lost inside as you're rolling it. (If your skewer does disappear inside the reed, not to worry -- use the second skewer to poke it out.)
4. When you've rolled about half of the sheet around the skewer, stop for a moment and apply glue stick along the two edges of the paper that are still showing. Then, continue rolling the rest of the paper. Make sure the last corner of the paper is securely glued down. Remove the skewer.
5. Repeat this process to make enough reeds to cover your box.
Make the vase
1. Cut away the top and bottom flaps of the box, so it's open on the top and bottom. You'll be covering the outside of the box with reeds.
2. Place the box on some newspaper to protect your work surface. Apply a generous amount of tacky craft glue along one corner of the box.
3. Take one reed and cut it straight across, about 2 inches from one end, with scissors. Gently press the reed into the glue, placing the cut end at the bottom edge of the box, flush with your work surface. The rest of the reed will extend above the top edge of the box; you'll cut it later.
4. Apply more glue to the box and repeat Step 3 until one side of the box is covered with reeds. Let the glue dry about 30 minutes.
5. Once the glue is dry, use a pair of sharp scissors to trim away the ends of the reeds so they're flush with the top edge of the box.
6. Repeat Steps 3 to 5 to cover the other three sides of the box.
7. Cut eight reeds to match the width of the box. Glue these along the top edge of the vase, two per side. You may need to trim them a little to fit. Let the glue dry.
8. Apply two to three coats of clear polyurethane sealer to the inside and outside of the finished vase, letting the varnish dry thoroughly between coats.
9. Slip a glass vase into the cardboard one and fill it with flowers.
Note:
You can use newsprint pages or glossy ad circulars for this project, or a mixture of both. (I used ad circulars.) The number of reeds you'll need for your vase will be determined by the size of the box you use. The 6-by-6-by-6-inch box pictured here required about 120 reeds.
-- Portland freelance crafter and writer Diane Gilleland
You can visit her blog at Craftypod.com.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Thursday -- Spa Day
This sounds like a wonderful way to help your skin while soothing your mind and relaxing your body. I cannot wait to try this. Let me know if you try it, too. I just hope I don't eat it first!
This is from The Green Beagle and there are many other options available there, too.
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You may not always have the time to go to the spa or the money. Why not make your own spa treatments at home? You can invite some friends over and have a spa party or make your own recipes in your spare time. It’s a fun way to learn about the healing and nutritional properties of the foods you love.
Organic Yogurt Walnut Scrub
This treatment works best on normal or combination skin. The nuts exfoliate old dry skin while the yogurt soothes, and the honey promotes calmness.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup organic plain yogurt, chilled
1/4 cup organic walnuts; ground or pulverized
1 tbs Organic Fair Trade Raw Honey
Instructions:
Stir ingredients together. Apply to freshly cleaned face and gently massage to exfoliate. Let the mask sit on your face between 5-10 minutes, then wash off with warm water and pat dry.
This is from The Green Beagle and there are many other options available there, too.
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Organic Honey, Yogurt, Walnut Mask
You may not always have the time to go to the spa or the money. Why not make your own spa treatments at home? You can invite some friends over and have a spa party or make your own recipes in your spare time. It’s a fun way to learn about the healing and nutritional properties of the foods you love.
Organic Yogurt Walnut Scrub
This treatment works best on normal or combination skin. The nuts exfoliate old dry skin while the yogurt soothes, and the honey promotes calmness.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup organic plain yogurt, chilled
1/4 cup organic walnuts; ground or pulverized
1 tbs Organic Fair Trade Raw Honey
Instructions:
Stir ingredients together. Apply to freshly cleaned face and gently massage to exfoliate. Let the mask sit on your face between 5-10 minutes, then wash off with warm water and pat dry.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Tuesday Tutorial -- DIY Tissue Garland
This is a simple but beautiful craft to spice up any activity or to just make a porch or deck look festive. This will be useful for those last of the summer garden parties and these are so easy to make. Let me know if you make these and how it worked out please. I plan to make this garland and use it to decorate the psychiatric unit where I work to make it feel more festive. I'll let you know if it works out or not.
You can visit the original blog to find this and other really fun things to make and do.
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Y'all, this might be the best... fastest, cheapest, eye-pleasing-est party decorating trick ever. You can literally make this Tissue Garland that I made for Clare's Buggie Birthday an hour before your party starts when, eh-hem, you should be showering.
Click here to get the so easy DIY for Tissue Garland.
DIY Tissue Garland
These directions are for the flower garland that I made but you could easily make squares, circles or pennants... any shape really! Ooooh snowflakes!
1. Grab a few sheets of tissue in party coordinating colors. I used about 6 sheets to create 4 - 6' strands
2. Fold a few sheets up until the short width is the width of your large flower (mine were about 5") and then cut off the extra. Cut through the folds on all sides so you have a stack of squares.
3. The extra becomes your smaller flower. Cut it square. Cut through the folds on all sides so you have a stack of squares.
![]()
4. Take a few squares (depending on scissor performance) and fold them in half. Then fold them in thirds to a point on the folded side (like a sliced pie)
mmmm pie.
5. Cutting through all layers at once, cut the top into the rounded curve of one petal.
6. Unfold and you have a flower (hopefully.)
7. Repeat with the rest of your tissue squares.
8. Arrange your stacks of flowers by color and size next to your sewing machine.
9.And start sewing! Just place one flower into your machine and start and as that flower finishes slip another flower in. You can leave a bit of space between or overlap the flowers. I will overlapped even more next time. Perhaps even sew through multiple layers at the same time and fold them to create 3-D flowers.
Note: My machine did best on a standard stitch length (2.5), when I tried a (5) it started to bunch. If you are having trouble with bunching, you can pull the tissue from the back of your machine (gently) and it should stay smooth.
The strands are so light that you can easily hang with tape. They look great on windows!
This was so fast and easy and it added alot to the party!
You can visit the original blog to find this and other really fun things to make and do.
____________________________________________________________________________________
Y'all, this might be the best... fastest, cheapest, eye-pleasing-est party decorating trick ever. You can literally make this Tissue Garland that I made for Clare's Buggie Birthday an hour before your party starts when, eh-hem, you should be showering.
Click here to get the so easy DIY for Tissue Garland.
DIY Tissue Garland
These directions are for the flower garland that I made but you could easily make squares, circles or pennants... any shape really! Ooooh snowflakes!
1. Grab a few sheets of tissue in party coordinating colors. I used about 6 sheets to create 4 - 6' strands
2. Fold a few sheets up until the short width is the width of your large flower (mine were about 5") and then cut off the extra. Cut through the folds on all sides so you have a stack of squares.
3. The extra becomes your smaller flower. Cut it square. Cut through the folds on all sides so you have a stack of squares.
4. Take a few squares (depending on scissor performance) and fold them in half. Then fold them in thirds to a point on the folded side (like a sliced pie)
mmmm pie.
5. Cutting through all layers at once, cut the top into the rounded curve of one petal.
6. Unfold and you have a flower (hopefully.)
7. Repeat with the rest of your tissue squares.
8. Arrange your stacks of flowers by color and size next to your sewing machine.
9.And start sewing! Just place one flower into your machine and start and as that flower finishes slip another flower in. You can leave a bit of space between or overlap the flowers. I will overlapped even more next time. Perhaps even sew through multiple layers at the same time and fold them to create 3-D flowers.
Note: My machine did best on a standard stitch length (2.5), when I tried a (5) it started to bunch. If you are having trouble with bunching, you can pull the tissue from the back of your machine (gently) and it should stay smooth.
The strands are so light that you can easily hang with tape. They look great on windows!
This was so fast and easy and it added alot to the party!
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