Craft Tips:
Ahhhhhh, Spa......
Treat yourself to a pedicure, then slip those toes into some special slippers. Hot glue scrumptious silk roses onto the toes of a pair of terry cloth slippers and the smile on your face will match the tingle in your toes!
Not your usual Screen Saver....
Take an old screen door, or even a new one, and paint it to match your craft room. Hang it or lean it on the wall, add a ton of “S” hooks, and you have a creative place to hang all of those scrapbooking scissors and tools. Hinge two doors together for a darling room divider!
Cuddly Wuddly....
Don’t throw away those old worn out sweaters! Cover toss pillows with them. Just sew them up like any other fabric, to make perfect pillows for cuddling!
Underfoot....
What’s more fun than mud between your toes? Paint! Create a super fun bath mat for the family. All you need is a flat surfaced mat, a little foam paint roller, fabric paint, and some feet! Cover the floor with a drop cloth in case of spills, then roll the paint on your family’s feet. Let each one stand on the mat for a bath mat that will tickle their toes, and their funny
bone!
Have a Ball....
Remember pompoms? You can have a ball with a bag of pompoms and a bottle of glue. Go crazy with an assortment of colors, or even go all white for a polka dot look. You can decorate everything from lampshades, pillows, frames, window valances, or even a teddy bear!
Don’t Look!...
Need privacy in the bathroom, but don’t need a curtain? Etch it! Place small stickers, such as hearts, stars, or dots, randomly onto the window glass. Mask the molding with painter’s tape. Brush on etching cream and wait about 5 minutes. Wearing rubber gloves, carefully remove cream with rags and water. Peel off the stickers & tape, and viola! No more peeking!
Sweet Dreams....
Make bedtime more special when the kids cuddle up with their very own personalized pillow. Take a white pillowcase and slip a waxed paper covered cardboard into it for each child. Let the kids show off their artistic flair with fabric paints or markers. Great idea for a slumber party!
Grey Poupon, anyone?...
Who knew? Mustard is a dandy fabric dye. (Moms trying to get out stains already know this!) So, why not craft a cute curtain by drawing designs on it with a bottle of mustard and let it set until nearly dry. Then, rinse out the mustard, iron it, and you’ve got a curtain with good taste!
Lighten Up!...
Need a little light on the patio when the sun starts to set? Just grab all of your clay pots and fill them with sand. Place around the patio and plunge clusters of taper candles into the sand & light them up!
It’s For the Birds...
Brighten up a bird’s day with seedy spheres! Simply cover foam spheres with peanut butter and birdseed, then place in lovely urns or colorfully painted clay pots. Be sure and place them off the ground, and close to a window so your family can sit back and watch the show!
Quilter’s Block...
Most quilters have a drawer full of quilt blocks they have never quilted. Why not make them into pretty pillows, placemats or afghan sized throws? Not nearly as much work, but very gratifying to see them put to good use!
Terrific Table-top...
Brighten up a any blah table with a piece of glass cut to size with smoothed edges. Now place all of your prized photos on the table and lay the glass on top. What fun it would be to surprise your family with pictures of themselves placed at their special spot at the dining room table!
Hooray for Bouquets....
A quick way to chase away the blues is with a fresh bouquet of flowers. But why not get crafty with it, and drop fun items into the clear vase before you add freshly cut stems? Add old buttons (with white roses)....or marbles (with red tulips)... plastic checkers (with white daises)....sea shells (with callas)....and kiss the blues good-bye!
Sew & Sew....
Scrapbooking textures are sew easy when you use zig zag stitching instead of glue. Sew layers of torn paper together that have been rubberstamped, and add a favorite photo for a brilliant scrapbooking page, or pretty enough to frame!
Metamorphosis....
Glass pebbles transform script or images when their flat side is glued to the paper and trimmed around. Marvelous magnets, pushpins, and scrapbooking, or even boxcrafting embellishments are born!
Furniture Facelift....
Change an entire room with slipcovers sewn from fresh new sheets. The fabric store has plenty of patterns to create the perfect facelift for that frumpy sofa!
Frosted Lace....
Lay a piece of lace over the back of a glass plate. Spray a mist of white spray paint over the lace. When you lift off the lace, you will see a frosty shadow of lace. What a lovely addition to a ladies luncheon or to display on an easel for the mantel. If you get really brave, this technique is fabulous on an entire wall!
Faux Real?....
Scan or make color copies of beautiful china. Then cut out the images, and cut them up as if you broke the china. Now decoupage onto your project with 1/4 inch of space between each piece. Your friends will have to touch it to see if it’s real!
Stylish Statement....
Need some color to add a statement to your decor? Take a collection of odd shaped bottles from the recycle bin, and spray paint them all the same color. Place together on a tray, and watch the eyebrows go up!
Craft Tips for a Celebration of America:
Your home can become a CELEBRATION OF AMERICA this year with these exciting craft projects. Independence Day will be here before you know it. Let your creative spirit inspire your family to celebrate!
* Keep the toddlers happy with a CELEBRATION SHAKER! Simply transform a
cardboard tube into a musical instrument. Fill it with dried beans, seal the
ends with tape, and wrap it with patriotic paper.
* Decoupage old jelly jars with red, white and blue tissue paper to make
instant CANDLE LANTERNS. Hang up high with wire wrapped around the rims, and
then form a handle to light up a star studded night.
* Turn an egg carton into a DOODLE DANDY BIRD FEEDER. Remove the lid from
the carton. Let the kids paint stars and stripes with tempura paints. Poke a
hole in each of the four corners, and attach a string through each hole.
Gather the strings together at the center of the carton, then knot. Fill the
carton sections with birdseed, hang the feeder from a tree branch, and watch
the birds flock in for a fancy feast!
* CELEBRATION SHIRTS are easy to make. Prewash your shirt, and then write
your favorite phrase....I Love America...Let Freedom Ring...God Bless
America...America the Beautiful...Celebrate!....on a contrasting fabric.
(Alphabet stencils are good for this.) Iron fusible webbing to the back of
the fabric, cut out the letters, peel off the paper, and then iron onto the
front of your shirt. Now you can celebrate America all summer long!
* For STAR-SPANGLED LAWN CHAIRS, simply spray paint in red, white and blue.
Now use star shaped sponges to paint white stars in assorted sizes, in a
random pattern, all over the chairs. You’ll be seeing stars!
* Keep the kids happy all day long with STAR-SHAPED BUBBLE WANDS! Wrap
heavy wire around a dowel rod, then shape into a star, ending the star shape
back onto the dowel rod to complete.
* BLOWIN’ BUBBLES RECIPE: In a large shallow pan, mix 5 cups water, 2 cups
liquid dishwashing soap and 1/2 cup corn syrup. To make really big bubbles,
be sure the bubble wand gets completely immersed in the bubble mixture. Now
watch the fun!
* Need a little cover-up when the sun goes down? You still have time to
make a quick AMERICANA BANDANA QUILT. Simply sew nine patriotic colored
bandanas together, cut a piece of fabric the same size as the sewn bandanas,
and cut quilt batting the same size to sandwich in between. Now sew all four
sides together and then trim the seam to 1/4-inch. Bind the edges with
2-inch wide satin ribbon, and then tie yarn through all the fabric at each
bandana intersection. Now watch everybody snuggle & giggle under the stars
as they sing “God Bless America”........
I want to thank Darsee and her latest Hobby Lobby project book for being my
inspiration for these 4th of July projects. If you are lucky enough to live
close to a Hobby Lobby Store, you just have to go by and pick up the latest “
Celebrate the Home” magazine!
http://www.pattiewack.com/craft_tips_june.html
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