Flower halo | Flower Chandelier

Hi guys!  I owe you all some crafts so I’ve come today with two!


That sweet little girl above is my daughter Ellie.  She recently went to the most fabulous birthday party I’ve ever seen.  It was a fairy themed party complete with costumes for all the girls to wear and keep.  They included fairy wings, a tutu, a top, a large fairy wand with flowers and ribbon attached to a bamboo stick and those sweet little flower halos.  The moment I saw the halo on Elliott, I knew I had to make some.

Fabric block coasters tutorial

I love looking through my mom’s fabric stash.  A lot of the fabrics remind me of special times.  I get my love of sewing from her and we’ve been through a lot of adventures together just since I started sewing.  From the time she taught me to sew at her first sewing studio to the trip we took to Ohio to buy the fabric for her fabric store.  We’ve brainstormed many ideas together; some awesome and some not so great.  We are both really bad about not finishing projects or making things and not doing anything with them. 

As I was looking through her fabric, I found a bunch of these that she had been making for Christmas some years back and I remember always liking the idea.  She used to make them as ornaments but I really like them as coasters.  I think these would make a sweet hostess gift.

So today I’m going to show you a really easy tutorial on how to make these fabric block coasters.



This is a perfect scrap buster project.  It requires small pieces of fabric and is soooo easy.



You need five squares of coordinating fabrics.  I cut mine out at 4” but the size is up to you.  The finished coaster will be 1/2” smaller than that.



Decide which square you want to use as the bottom piece and set that one aside.  Fold the other four in half and press.



Next, assemble the pieces, one by one, like above.  Be sure to lay them out with the raw edges to the outside of the square.



Now lay the bottom piece on top of your assembled square with it’s right-side down and pin.



Sew around all four sides using the edge of your presser foot as a guide and clip the corners.  Don’t worry about leaving an opening like you would on pillows and such.  Just sew all around the square.



Flip it over and using the opening in the center, turn it right side out and give it a good press with your iron.



I’m using mine as I type up this blog post.  ;) They are much more absorbent than tile coasters and they can be thrown in the wash if needed.




Thanks, Mom, for the inspiration!  I must say, I’m your biggest fan!

Colored votives

Lovely colored votives look so happy, don’t they?




My kids made sun catchers the other day and there was a lot of paint leftover.  The paint was perfect for painting glass, obviously, so I painted some glass votives I had on hand.  Whether washed in sunlight or holding a dancing flame, these colored votives add a bit of happy to the room!

Make some carnations and a vase

If I’m going overboard with the flowers and vases, let me know, but I just can’t help it!  I love the feeling that flowers can give a room. 


The vase is actually a drinking glass I bought from the dollar store that I thought had a nice shape for a vase.  I just made some drapes for my best friend’s bedroom and I really wanted to make her a vase with some flowers to go in her room.  (BTW, I will have a tutorial up soon on how to make drapes, so if your interested, be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss that post.)  I painted the inside with acrylic craft paint, letting each color dry for a day before going on to the next.


The carnations were made using a tutorial from Craft Passion.  I think mine actually look more like roses.
How do you feel about making flowers?  I’m totally addicted and if you look through Pinterest, it seems as though a lot of people are.

How to make a feather arrow

Have you been inspired by the arrow trend yet?  I’m totally loving it right now and I want to show you how to make some feather arrows that look almost as cool as Katniss Everdeen.

Make a felt box

I love making things to hold things.  I love containers, boxes, jars, envelopes, bags and anything else that can fit in that category.  So I was super excited when I found this tutorial on How About Orange for how to make a stiffened felt box.  I just love that blog.  Have you ever been there?
I did mine a little different than hers, though.  She made hers from pre-stiffened felt and made a lid for the box.  I didn’t have any stiffened felt but I did have a lot of regular felt and a bottle of fabric stiffener.  Bam!  Stiffened felt!  I’d like to make some larger boxes for the kids toys if I can find some felt for a good price.  Yesterday I entered a give away on I Heart Organizing to win a set of felt boxes from The Land of Nod but I’m not holding my breath.  Her giveaways are like trying to win the lottery. 


Would you like to make some of these adorable little boxes?  Head over to How About Orange to see the full how-to with a template.  What would you use your box for?  Would you embellish it or modify it?

Sweet flower vase

My daughter received a bouquet of carnations after her performance in show camp and I just couldn’t resist making a vase that was just as sweet as them and her.

I taped off the top and bottom of a salsa jar and sponged on some little pink paint.  Then I cut out a flower shape print from some fabric that I’ve been loving lately and glued it on.


Not so perfect on the lines, the paint kind of bled through the tape but I love it all the same.

Coffee mug + Sharpie

 
Ok, I had to jump on the decorated coffee mug bandwagon after seeing such cute ones on Pinterest.  The tutorial on Beautiful Mess really explains it well; how to do it and how well it holds up afterward. 
I did just as they said, 30 minutes at 350 degrees.  It came out beautifully but I made the mistake of grabbing the handle with my oven mitt and it smeared the dots I made.  You have to let it cool before you can touch it.  I haven’t yet tried to wash it but I think I’ll just stick with the suggested hand-washing. 
Have you tried this technique?  What about the ceramic paint?  I’d really like to delve into that since I’m a dishwasher girl.

Birdhouse tutorial

Birdhouses are so charming, even so when you bring them to the indoors.  Now you can make one yourself!  (No woodshop experience required!)

Fabric picture frame tutorial

I want to show you how you can make a picture frame with cardboard and fabric.  Keep reading for the tutorial.

Yarn balls ya'll!

I didn’t know what else to call them.  They’re balls, wrapped in yarn.  Yarn balls.  I know, it’s silly.  But if you’d like to know how to make some to add some pretty silliness to your space, I’ve got a tutorial for you.

Fabric wall pocket tutorial

Here’s another no-sew project for you!  This is super simple and will add color and organization to your space.  Read on for the quick and easy tutorial.

CHEAP UGLY CLOCK FINDS LOVE

There once was a cheap, ugly clock that sat on a shelf in a Wal-Mart.  It was dull and boring and very sad that it was hardly ever noticed.  Then one day someone heard the clock crying, “Nobody loves me.  I wish someone would give me a chance.”  That’s when I came along.

PEEK-A-BOO JAR

Add interest to a plain glass jar by using stickers before you paint.  A little peek into the contents of a jar can be made by spray painting over stickers then removing them after you paint. 

BROWNIE CAMERA CLOCK DIY

Image source: David Richert

The above pictures are of the camera in it's original condition.  Read on to see it’s transformation.

DIY DECORATING (THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX)

I’m all about decorating my children’s rooms and I’m used to doing it on the cheap.  Luckily, I’m creative and all about DIY.  I’m going to show you a few little things you can do to add detail and think outside of the box.

DOLLAR STORE MANTLE DISPLAY

Out of town guests were cause for a quick impromptu trip to the dollar store to clean up our mantel.  Who says the Dollar Store can’t be classy?

FABRIC FLOWER TUTORIAL

It’s here, like I promised!  I have had an enormous amount of traffic to the original post of the fabric flowers and I mentioned that I would eventually give a tutorial on how I do it.  This project was not created by me, nor was it created by the person from which I found it.  Apparently, it’s a craft that’s been done since the 60s or 70s I’ve heard. 

SUPER STRONG FABRIC MAGNETS TUTORIAL

What you need and how to make super-duper strong fabric magnets.  Read on my friend.

BARSTOOL MAKEOVER

Scrapbook paper + lots and lots of glue = Prettier barstools!  Read on for a how-to.