I Love to Create - Creepy Creature Canisters

Excuse last week's neon bachlorette interruption, it is back to all Halloween all the time around here. This week for I Love to Create I present you with some creepy creature canisters.


SUPPLIES
Set of Canisters
Sheep (ish) yarn
Felt
Scissors
Aleene's Tacky Glue

I love recovering old canisters and making them into something new. Remember my wallpaper covered canisters from last year? This time I went the yarn route. I had a set of 3 canisters from Ikea just waiting to celebrate Halloween properly.

This project is so super duper easy. All you need are some canisters which I see regularly at the thrift store. Round or square will work. Next you will need some Tacky Glue, my preference is some sort of fast grab. I am in love with the colors in my friend Vickie Howell's new yarn line Sheep(ish) so I grabbed a ball of blue, green, orange and got to wrapping.


Starting at the top or the bottom wrap your entire canister in yarn. You will need a dab of glue when you finish to keep your yarn from unravelling. I wrapped the starting piece of yarn to hold it in place.


Once your canister is totally wrapped it is time to adorn with felt and more yarn. You could use white yarn for ghosts or mummies, brown yarn for werewolves, green yarn for witches - the options are endless. Now what kind of sweet treats shall I put in my canisters?


Check out more Halloween fun here and more I Love to Create posts here.

***This is a sponsored post by I Love to Create - I was compensated & given free supplies. Mama has gotta pay the bills somehow and really who in their right mind would say no to free craft supplies***

Naughty Secretary Club in Seventeen

Have you seen the current issue of Seventeen Magazine? Perhaps you noticed the Naughty Secretary Club 'Love Is' Necklace adorning a carousel riding cutie? My favorite part is the back of the necklaces, some read "Love is fighting Korea". Makes me giggle.

We Talked About Wedding Anniversaries

Today is my wedding anniversary. 8 whole years, like whoa. That man o' mine is quite a catch. Whether he is changing a dirty diaper or rocking out with the band, he still makes my heart go pitter patter. Speaking of him with bands..check out this video he filmed with his mother's old 8mm camera and edited himself. The song is called "Promise Play" and is one of my faves by his old band We Talked About Murder. Is there anything he can't do? Super husband I tell you.

Couch Conundrum

I am so over the black leather sofas in my house. They seemed like a good idea when I got them, but now I just feel like they look like I stole them from Andrew Dice Clay's house. Maybe it is the red walls, big black Ikea shelving or giant black entertainment center in the room that is adding to my hatred. I'm hoping to get the room painted white this fall so that should help a bit. However, I am still on the lookout for new couches and I am quite smitten on a few I have recently seen. I am kind of in love with this sofa by Austin's own Spruce called Painting the Roses Red. Could I live with that pattern forever? Am I better going with a solid colored couch and lot's of colorful throw pillows?


I spotted this claw footed bathtub couch by Ruff House Art on Handmaker of Things. I'm thinking the comfort level is low, but the cute level is way high. If you did the cushions in a weather proof material and put it on the patio it would be extra fabulous.


Why couldn't I have a grandma with a couch like this to pass down to me? Why can't I be the lucky one to get to the thrift store before that reseller to snag this couch first? Why can't I get up early enough to go to estate sales and get the good stuff? So many questions... Thanks Bluebird Vintage for sharing the couch.


So here is an old picture of my black leather conundrum. Any home decor suggestions? Throw pillows don't really stay on leather couches so that is out. Can you paint leather? Should I sell these bad boys on Craigs List and move on? With two small children and a 140lb dog should I stick with leather or brave fabric? I'm open to any and all suggestions

Craft Lab - All That Glitters & Bamboo Paper

Guess what? Craft Lab is back on the DIY Network Monday mornings at 8am e/p and HGTV Wednesday mornings at 6:30am e/p. Whoo-hoo! Twice a week tune in and let's get our craft on.


All That Glitters
DIY Network
Monday Sept 26, 2011
8am e/p
Tune in tomorrow to watch me craft with one of my favorite people in the world, Kathy Cano Murillo on an episode called All That Glitters. Kathy has a tiny obsession with glitter. Hang out with us as we gab away through several glittery projects, including a simple glittered greeting card, a garden of artificial cacti and flowers, and glittery opulent drawer knobs personalized with Milagros, glitter and other ephemera.


Bamboo Paper
HGTV
Wednesday Sept 28, 2011
6:30am e/p

My good friend and fellow Austin Craft Mafia member Susann Koehanne stops by putting a new twist on the bamboo arts. We whip up a fibrous bamboo paper from the sheath of the plant, adding old brown paper bags to help bind the pulp. We also show you how to make a bamboo photo frame. We also promise to have fewer cocktails than we have had in this photo.

I Love to Create - Cake Pop Display with Fluorescent Bunting

I am hosting a bachlorette party for my sister Hope this weekend, and of course there are some handmade hot pink touches. Nothing makes the party like a cake pop, but finding a clever way to display them is always a bit of challenge. Today for I Love to Create I came up with a bunting/display combo!


SUPPLIES
Paint Brush
2 Floral Foam Cones
Sticker Letters
2 Hot Pink Pom Poms
Tacky Dot Roll
Neon Pink Paint
Scissors
Pen
Neon Pink Paper
Brown Paper Bag
Triangle Shape to trace
Striped Twine
Cake Pops


The first thing I did was paint my cones fluorescent pink. This proved to be trickier than I had anticipated since styrofoam does not take to being painted too kindly. It took a couple of coats.


Remember how I was all-a-flutter for fluorescents mixed with brown? Well I decided to get crafty with the color combo. Using some triangle shaped blocks I borrowed from my toddler I cut out triangles of pink and brown. The brown triangles were slightly larger.


Cut out all your triangles. Using Tacky Dots attach your triangles to each other.


I could browse the letter stickers in the scrap book aisle all the day long. I was so excited to finally have an excuse to use some. I spelled out "Hope's Gettin' Hitched" on my triangles.


Using a smaller sized Tacky Dot I attached the corners of the triangles so that all the words came together.


On the back side of the connected words I attached striped twine using Tacky Dots.


I used a lollipop stick at the top of each cone to anchor my bunting. I tied the ends of the string to the stick and used a glue dot to hold it in place. On the top of each cone I used a glue dot to attach a pink pom pom.


All that was left to do was insert my cake pops. You have to be sure to alternate putting one in each cone so that your display does not get too heavy on one side and topple over. Hopefully this weekend's festivities and cake pops are a big hit.

***This is a sponsored post by I Love to Create - I was compensated & given free supplies. Mama has gotta pay the bills somehow and really who in their right mind would say no to free craft supplies***

It's Your Birthday - Have a Bowl!

Thanks Scrumdilly-Do for your adorable paper bowl hat idea. It was a big hit for my husband's birthday yesterday.


Gather up the craft paint, glitter, glue, pom poms, ribbon, scissors and hole punch. The plan was to let Tallulah go crazy on the bowls, but truthfully Chris and I had as much fun adorning bowls as she did.


Once our bowls were dried I punched holes in either side and attached ribbon so all our party guests could wear their hats.



The second best thing at our wee little birthday, next to the hats, was the skateboard themed birthday party set from 1986 I scored at the thrift store. I even served cupcakes on a skateboard to keep up the theme!


Happy Birthday Chris! I hope you had a bowl.

I Love to Create - Halloween Black Cat Party Favor

I tried really hard to wait until October to start the Halloween crafts, I really did. I figured if my Halloween decorations are already up, the pumpkins are all out at the grocery store and Target's Halloween department is brimming with orange and black goodness I could go ahead and start the creepy crafts. Today's craft is a double whammy, creepy and educational.


I am gearing up for my annual kids Halloween party. I already bought the goodie bags all I have to do is fill them. In years past I have made soap and crayons, this year I thought the kids were old enough for a little game. Clothespins are a great way for toddlers to practice their fine motor skills - all that squeezing to open and close the pin.


SUPLIES
Pre-stiffened Black Craft Felt
4 Wooden Clothespins
Black Crafty Chica Paint
Black Fun Fur
Martha Stewart Black Cat Face Template
Scissors
Aleene's Tacky Glue
June Tailor Fabric for Printers
Printer
Steam a Seam 2
Oval Shaped Wooden Disc


The first thing I did was paint all 4 of my clothespins black. Two pins will act as legs for the cat, one will be the tail and the other will hold the cats head.


Next I cut my stiffened craft felt into the shape of a cat body. You could also use black foam or card stock for the body. The point is you want it stiff enough to hold it's shape. I found that I needed to glue a piece of wood to the back. I used Tacky Glue and a thin wooden oval from the craft department.


After your body is cut it is time to make the tail. Trace the shape of the clothespin onto the un-furry side of the fun fur. Next cut out out the small rectangle trying not to get fun fur all over the place. Using tacky glue attach the strip of fur to one of the clothespins.


For the head I used a template from Martha Stewart's most recent Halloween magazine. Print out your head onto June Tailor fabric for printers. I enlarged the heads a bit. Peel the protective top coat from one side of your Steam a Seam and attach to the back of your cat head. Next cut a piece of stiffened felt about the size of the head. Peel the second backing from your steam-a-seam and attach to your felt. Cut out the shape of the cat head. Use a hot dry iron to fuse everything together.


Once your head is ready using Tacky Glue attach it to one of the clothespins.


All that is left to do is assemble all the pieces or help your toddler do it. Now I just have to make like 30 more of these and I'll be ready!


*I would also like to mention if you kids are under 3 or still prone to putting things in their mouth this is not a great project. It does not take much for the metal clothespin center to pop out and become a choking hazard*

***This is a sponsored post by I Love to Create - I was compensated & given free supplies. Mama has gotta pay the bills somehow and really who in their right mind would say no to free craft supplies***

Digital Scrapbook Doodles

Thought I would share a few of my latest digital scrap booking escapades. Whatcha think?

Digi Sources: Kitschy Digitals, Minitoko, Cosmo Cricket & Creativity by Crystal.


Digi Source: Kitschy Digitals, Todd Designs & Minitoko.


Digi Source: Kitschy Digitals & Nutmeg.


Digi Source: Kitschy Digitals & Cosmo Cricket.


Digi Source: Kitschy Digitals, Maybe Me J, Minitoko & Cosmo Cricket.

Font Crafts: A Font-a-liscious Journey Through Some of my Fave How-to Projects

The ever crafty Alexa Westerfield AKA Swelldesigner has started a brand spankin' new website called Font Crafts. If it involves fonts and is crafty she is showcasing it, making it or writing about it. I never realized how fonts and crafts correlated until I took a peeksie through her site. There are also interviews with crafters like Heather Mann of Dollar Store Crafts, a resource guide helping you find spiffy free fonts, how-to videos and lot's more. I suddenly started realizing the ways I had done my own font crafting through the years. Wanna take a little stroll down memory lane with me?


Making monogrammed sweaters is one of many fashionable ways to wear fonts.


Years ago when I still produced the Stitch fashion show we did a display in the Beauty Bar window which showcased a big font-a-liscious necklace I made.


The Personalized Placemats I made used a font I like to call "Jennifer Perkins" since it is my handwriting. It will be available for download soon. Ok not really.


Baby Blocks have a very iconic font and can be used for all kinds of crafty goodness.


One of my very favorite fonts is on my Naughty Secretary Club T-shirts. I made one of the T-shirts into a spiffy apron once using the T-shirt necklace from my book The Naughty Secretary Club: The Working Girls Guide to Handmade Jewelry.


Chipboard letters in the scrapbooking aisle have all kinds of crafty possibilities and come in oodles of different fonts.


When pregnant with Tallulah I had a onesie making baby shower, cute fonts abound.


How about fonts you can walk over like with this doormat.


Felt fonts on baby booties, and for those of you keeping track no I don't have a child with the initials LW.


For Tallulah's 1st Birthday I had a customized logo designed, complete with spiffy font.


I got a lot of use out of these gold sparkly letters. Here they make another appearance on a Black Cat Banner.

Be sure to stop by Font Crafts and check things out. How do you use fonts in your crafts?