Art and Crafts

Art and Crafts ENJOY Visit my main blog on tumblr! See page below. ^___^

[loveartandcrafts]

Mini Wreath Ornament DIY

Mini Wreath Ornament DIY Have shower curtain rings lying around your house? Why not recycle them into something festive? Make a cute ornament with them!

What you Need: Shower curtain rings ($1.16 for 12 @ Walmart), Yarn, ribbon or other embellishments, glue gun, scissors

First, cut your length of yarn. About 4 nose-to-hand lengths is enough yarn for the wreath. If you think you will wrap tight, then do an extra arm length to see. After the first wreath you’ll get a better idea of how much yarn you may need. If you use thicker yarn you will also need less than if you are using thinner yarn. Secure your end with a drop of hot glue

Then start wrapping! It’s easiest to bunch up all the yarn in your wrapping hand then it is to slowly pull it around and through each time.

Be sure to twist & tighten, push back, and fix your yarn the way you want as you go, but it doesn’t have to be perfect unless you want it to be.

When you get to the end, just layer the yarn until the skinny part of the ring matches the rest of the ring.

glue down the end.

Then tie a loop and a knot the best you can.

Glue down the knot onto the back. *keep all your glued down parts on one side of the wreath—dedicate that side as the back of the wreath.

Then the fun part! Embellish to your heart’s desire

Now play around and experiment with yarn & embellishments to create different looks!

For stripes, it may take some practice…

Now a little bit about thickness…

Your wreaths will take on different looks depending on the thickness of the yarn you use, and also how many times you decide to wrap the wreath. The more you wrap around the fatter it gets.

[loveartandcrafts]

Tag Wallet DIY

Here's a cool DIY Wallet I found here.

What you need:

-4 pieces of 8-1/2 x 11 handmade paper

(the handmade paper looks like paper fiber pressed together, it's stronger and has more flexibility than card stock).

-lots of clothing tags in preferred colors

- colored ribbon- optional

-fray check

-a glue stick

-thread

-a piece of poster board

- a Dritz snap and pliers

- one button

Step 1: cutting the main parts

Cut three pieces of paper into the wallet shape. A black sheet for the outside (it was covered with the tags) and a green sheet for the inside. An  extra blue sheet for the middle to add support.

Using a paper cutter cut the black and green sheets down to a 7 -1/2" x 10" and the blue sheet to 7- 1/4" x 9- 3/4". You want the blue sheet to be a little smaller so it doesn't stick out of the sides during construction.

Next make  the curve at the top. With the green paper on it's back side make two marks. First mark the middle of the paper and then 2-3/4 " down the side. Next draw a curve between the two marks.

Cut the curve out. So that at this point only half of the top has a curved edge. Then traced the curve onto the black paper and cut it out. Flip the green paper over and traced the curve onto the other half of the black paper. After cutting out the curve on the black paper trace the other half back onto the green paper. Now both pieces have a curved top. Since the blue piece won't be seen cut it's curve by holding it up to the others.

Step 2: Constructing the front

Take a sheet of black paper and lay out all the tags in a random order, so that the entire surface was covered with tags. It's like a puzzle and will take some time to find the perfect fit for all the tags. Check for the frays on the tags, trim, and cut to fit.

Use a glue stick to hold them in place while sewing around all the edges.

Sew the tag edges down by hand. Both hand and machine sewing works.

Step 3: Constructing the Inside

First cut five squares of paper each 3" x 3-1/4". Three different papers were used. The lighter green and black were cut from the scraps. Sew a seam 1/4 " down on four of the five squares. This keeps the paper from ripping when pulling cards in and out of the pockets.

Next sew the pockets onto the main green piece one at a time. Starting with the square with no seam at the top. Place the square so that the left side of the pocket was 4 " from the bottom of the wallet and the top of the square lined up with the side of the wallet. Once it was lined up sew a seam at the bottom of the square to hold it in place. (this square isn't an operating pocket it's just put here to add consistency and strength. The top of it will be sewn closed when you sew around the edges.)

Take the next pocket square and lined it up with the first. Place this one 3/4" down from the top of the first square and sewed it into place by sewing a seam at the bottom. This seam keeps your cards from falling down into the wallet and keeps the pocket in place with out sewing it closed.

For the next two pockets line them up same way but placed them 1-1/8 " down from the top of the previous pocket.

The bottom of the last pocket will be sewn when you sew around entire wallet.

Now sew a 1/4 " seam down both sides of the pockets.

If you aren't comfortable just holding the bottom pocket in place you can use a little glue. Remember to glue it at the bottom, you don't want to glue it closed.

The last part of the inside is a pocket for cash or your check book. Cut a 3 " x 7-1/2" strip of paper and sew a 1/4 " seam down the top. One more tag can be sewn onto the pocket for a little whimsy.

Step 4: Constructing the Middle

Cut three strips of poster board two of them are 3" x 7-1/2" and the other is 2-1/2" x 7-1/2".

Glue these onto the blue paper. The first of the larger pieces was glued at the bottom and the second 4" from the bottom. The last piece was glued to the top and then trimmed to match the curve.

Step 5: Add the snaps.

First I lined up the three parts the front, middle and inside of the wallet

Next mark where to put the female snap. For this wallet a mark was made in the inside in the middle and up 1-3/4 "

Then going through all three layers attached the female snap using the Dritz instructions. The inside will be covered by the larger pocket.

Now add the male snap to the top curve. Place it in between the top layer and middle layer. So it only goes trough the middle and inside layers. Find the middle and measured down 3/4" and attached it using the dritz instructions.

Step 6: sew on the button

A button onto the front directly over the snap to cover the bump created by the snap.

Step 7: Sew around the edges.

Sew around the edges with a 1/4" seam. Start at the bottom and held the larger pocket in place as you sew.

Step 8: Fold it into thirds and snap it closed.

[ps-imadethis]

Halloween is that magical season where imaginations and creative fantasies run wild, and it’s the ultimate opportunity to scare up that limitless array of crafty tricks & treats you’ve been dreaming up. While whipping up a costume may be the first project on your list, we suggest taking dress-up to the next level with a boo-tiful take on string art. With some colorful string, nails and a geometric pattern in mind, create this unique holiday décor that’s unexpectedly chic and one-of-a-kind. 

To create: Push thin nails around the top and bottom of the pumpkin in a circle formation, leave approximately half an inch between each nail. P.S.- Don’t push the nail heads in yet. Knot the pink string to a nail and wrap it in an up-and-down pattern across the pumpkin. Create contrast with a different colored string and repeat the knot and wrapping step. To finish it off, push the nail heads into the pumpkin to secure.

P.S.- Enter Polyvore’s All Hallows collage contest, for a chance to be featured on Polyvore!

[thecakebar]

[loveartandcrafts]

thecakebar:

PUMPKIN CAKE RECIPE!

Holy Moses! What a great Halloween cake. The link includes great pictures on how they spray painted the cake! (yes, spayed it like gRafFiTi aRt!) YUM!!! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

4 large eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups pumpkin puree

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups granulated sugar

3 1/4 cups cake flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 350°F and brush bundt cake with oil.

Mix the eggs, oil, pumpkin puree and vanilla together.

Add in the sugar until well blended.

Add the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and mix it for about 2 minutes.

Pour batter in prepared bundt cake pan and bake for approx. 45 minutes to an hour. The cake is ready when an inserted wooden skewer or cake tester comes out clean or when cake springs back when lightly pressed with a finger.

Let the cake cool in pan for about 10 minutes. Loosen the sides with a knife or metal spatula and invert to a metal rack. (via Pumpkin Cake)

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Help section:

Airbrush technique video help!

Need more help? contact me @thecakebar I love to help!

[thecakebar]

DIY Goldfish Marshmallow Pops! (Tutorial/Recipe)

[oooeygooeygoodness]

Baked Apple Ice Cream Bowls

Ingredients: 4 apples (hollowed out) 1 tbsp sugar 1 tbsp cinnamon vanilla ice cream caramel topping

Directions: Hollow out apples. Mix together sugar and cinnamon and add to inside of apples.  Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. When apples are baked, fill with vanilla ice cream and top with caramel.

[loveartandcrafts]

Lucky Rainbow Jello

Celebrate St. Patrick's day with these colorful jello desserts!

~ How to Make Rainbow Jello ~

You'll need 1 small box of jello in each color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple).

1 large container of cool whip (you may use sour cream or yogurt in place of the cool whip). 

he glasses shown are 5 oz. juice glasses, you'll have to make adjustments as needed depending on the size of glasses you use.

Follow these directions for each layer...

Chose the color you want on the bottom (in this case purple).  Dissolve jello as directed on the box using the "quick chill" method (which includes some ice).  Once dissolved, pour the liquid into your glasses, reserving about 1/3 of the jello liquid.  Put all of the glasses in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes, until jello is slightly set.  Mix about 1/3 cup cool whip (sour cream or yogurt) into the remaining jello liquid.  Pour cool whip/jello mixture on top of partially set first layer.  Place all cups in the refrigerator and allow to set (at least 15-30 minutes) while you mix the next color.   

Repeat process with each color, allowing each layer to set 15-30 minutes before adding another layer.  The total process will take several hours. 

Top the finished rainbow jello with a dollop of cool whip, or whipped cream and add a chocolate gold coin.   

[loveartandcrafts]

Sparkle Headbands DIY

  "Who doesn't love the idea of diamonds glittering in your hair?" Enjoy some added bling!

Really you can do this technique with most trimmed beads.  You can find tons of options for this in the trim section (by the ribbons) of your craft store. 

For a quick look check out some more jewelry tutorials, check out this page.

Material: Plastic headband DMC Pearl Cotton Embroidery Thread Approx. 18" of beaded trim with attachments in between each stone or bead (rhinestones, crystal beads, etc) Craft glue or hot glue gun Time: 1 hour

Attach beginning of floss to inside of headband with craft glue or hot glue gun.

Wrap floss around headband beginning at one end.

You can wrap a number of times (5-7) quickly and then push strands together snugly, careful not to overlap the strands.  This is really easier than it sounds.

When you get to the teeth, decide the maximum number of times you can wrap between each tooth and do that consistently through the toothed portion.  More of the headband will show here because you can't push the embroidery floss as tightly, but that will disappear when you add the trim.  Alternatively, you could pick a headband with no teeth.

Wrap embroidery floss around the entire headband securing the floss on the inside of the headband with glue at the other end.

Let it dry.  You are almost ready for the last part - trust me this part goes fast!

Decide where you want the trim to start on your headband and begin attaching the trim to the headband by wrapping it on to the headband.  The rhinestones are more expensive, so you may want to start further up on the headband.  Decide the number of wraps you like between each bead/stone and keep it consistent.

Here is the sample with crystal beads (this is two wraps between each bead).

Here is the sample with rhinestones (this is four wraps between each stone). The original blue sample above is two wraps between each stone

Continue wrapping the trim until the end of the headband or the equivalent place where you started the trim on the other side so that it is equal.

  Cut off excess trim. Secure the floss to the back of the headband with with glue and let dry.

Finis! Don't the crystal beads look beautiful on the gray.

[loveartandcrafts]

Recycle Milk Jugs to make cute lunchboxes

Next time you empty a gallon milk jug, wash it out, draw the lines on like in the photo.

Use a pin to poke rows of holes, which will become the crease.

Fold it into a little box and add a piece of hook and loop closure (brand name is Velcro) and you’ve got yourself a clever lunchbox or storage container!

[loveartandcrafts]

DIY Lollipops

A few words about working with really hot sugar: Working with sugar is super fun, but can also be a bit dangerous. This recipe is best attempted when you can give it your full attention. When you get about 10° below the desired temperature, do not take your eyes of the thermometer, because it will go rather fast. Take care not to get touch the very hot sugar – there’s nothing worse than a sugar burn!

  Handmade Swirl lollipops – yield 12-18 lollipops depending on size. Recipe adapted from here 2 cups of granulated sugar 1/2 cup of light corn syrup 1/2 cup of water 1/4 tsp. of cream of tartar ½ tsp. of natural flavored oil (or ¾ tsp extract) ¼ tsp of citric acid 2 drops of gel food coloring 1 pinch of Disco Dust (if desired) White lollipop sticks

1. Add the sugar, corn syrup, water and cream of tartar into a large saucepan. Stir the mixture together until it is well combined, and the sugar is dissolved completely. 

2. Insert the candy thermometer into the mixture and cook the mixture until the temperature on the candy thermometer reads 265 degrees F. Do not stir the mixture while it is cooking. 3. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the food color, flavoring, citric acid and disco dust (if using), stir to incorporate. 4. Pour the hot candy mixture onto a sheet pan covered with a Silpat (preferably) or sprayed parchment paper. As the candy cools, gently fold it on itself with a heat proof spatula. 5. When the candy is cool enough to touch, lightly spray your hands with pan spray and pull off a small portion of the candy mixture. Kneed the candy until it is opaque and roll it into a rope. 6. Create the circle swirl shape by coiling the candy rope around itself until you've achieved the desired size. 7. Place the candy swirl onto another Silpat covered sheet pan and press a lollipop stick firmly into the candy. Repeat with remaining candy. If it becomes to hard to work with, microwave a bit at a time for 5 seconds or until pliable. 8. Allow the candy to cool completely, until it is hard and set, then enjoy!

[loveartandcrafts]

DIY GIANT Paper Rose

Materials (to make one giant rose): • 1 Roll of floral tape • 6 18-gauge floral stem wire (can find it here) • 4 sheets of Doublette crepe paper for petals (can find it here – the doublette crepe is $2.50 per sheet and each sheet measures 10 x 49 inches) • 1 sheet of Doublette crepe paper in green for leaves, calyx, stem • 1 round pencil • Craft Glue (we used this kind) • Crepe paper templates (download from Martha Stewart) • 3 copies of teardrop template • 8 copies of the heart-shaped template • 2 copies of the leaf template • 1 copy of the calyx template

Step 1: Cut the petals

Cut 5-6 teardrop petals and 15-6 heart-shaped petals from the petal colored crepe paper.

VERY IMPORTANT: Crepe paper is directional so it matters which way you’re cutting the paper. Make sure the grain is vertical when you’re cutting the flower pieces.

Stack 2 pieces of crepe paper on top of each other then place 1 copy of template over the crepe paper and staple. I don’t recommend cutting more than 2 layers of crepe paper at a time since the edges won’t be cut as cleanly.

Repeat until all of your petals are cut

Step 2: Cut the leaves + calyx

Cut 3 leaves and 1 calyx from the green crepe paper.

Step 3: Make the rose stem

Take 3 pieces of stem wire and wrap in floral tape.

Step 4: Shape the petals

With both hands, pull from the center of the petal outward. This will create a cupping of the paper (which is what gives it the petal-like quality)

Turn petal over and use the round pencil to curl the top of the petal.

Step 5: Create the rose bud – the inner part of the rose

Take one teardrop shaped petal and wrap around the taped floral wire from Step 3. Use more floral tape to secure. Repeat working your way around the floral wire until all of the teardrop shaped petals are use.

Step 6: Make the rose bloom –the outer part of the rose

Take one heart-shaped petal and wrap around the rose bud, secure with floral tape. Repeat until all petals have been used.

Step 7: Make the leaf-stems

Take 3 loose pieces of floral wire and using craft glue, wrap each one with green crepe paper. Take one leaf and 1 crepe paper wrapped floral wire from step 10 and glue together. Repeat 2 more times.

Step 8: Add calyx to rose

Wrap the calyx around the base of the rose bloom and secure with floral tape.

Cover the floral tape area with more crepe paper.

Step 9: Add leaf-stems to rose

Using craft glue, secure each of the 3 leaf-stems to the rose stem. I found it helpful to use binder clips to hold the stems together while the glue was drying.

And there you go! It might take a little time, but a great (and pretty awesome) alternative to real flowers for your bouquet – plus you can keep these forever!

 Studio Castillero for the photos + Nata for the DIY created for GWS

[pupsandtea]

Free decal printables and tutorial

[wattlebirdblog]

[loveartandcrafts]

Felt fortune cookie valentines from Martha Stewart

[ohglitter]

[loveartandcrafts]

Coffee Filter Rose Tutorial

The supply list is simple. You will need: floral wire  22–24 gauge white cone shaped coffee filters floral tape scissors pen Petal template (Martha Stewart and Cassie Mae Chappell have a great one, click here to download it)

Trace the petal patterns onto the coffee filters and cut them out. I like to stack more than one filter together so I can cut multiple petals at a time. With the right scissors I was able to cut out five neatly. Be careful not to leave any pen marks on the filter as they will show up in the final product.

Tip: Make sure that you keep the different petals separated. It will be hard to tell which one is which when you have them all cut out.

So this is where the explanation gets tricky, so bear with me as I try to explain it the best I can. Hopefully the photos will help. Starting with petal #1, insert a wire into the center of one of the petals. Pull the wire down until it is halfway down the petal. Roll the pedal up and secure it to the wire with floral tape.

Tip: Make sure that you wrap each petal with enough tape to secure it tightly. If not the petals may separate when you are curling and painting them.

Rip open petal #2 at the seam, leaving one side still connected. You don’t want to rip them completely apart. Start at one end and wrap the petals around the wire and tape securely. Repeat the steps for petals #3 and #4.

Pedals #5 and #6 require two steps so that they stick securely to the stem. Take three #5 petals and tape them securely them to one side of the flower. Secure the other three petals to the other side. Repeat the process with the #6 petals.

When you are finished it will look nothing like a rose. More like a blossom. The next step does the magic. Slowly start to pull the petals apart. The easiest way is to put your fingers into the center of the flower and spread them apart.

The flower doesn’t have to look perfect at this time you just want the petals to be some what open.

With a wooden stick  (a pencil will work) curl the petals edges. It’s easier than it seems. The petals hold a curl really well.

Once the petals are curled you will need to color the roses. Water colors work really well to add lots of dimension to the flowers, but it also takes a bit more time. Since I had so many to color I used red wine and beet juice. Just pour into a bowl and dip the flowers in. The coffee filters absorb the color really easily.

The red wine give the roses a nice overall red tone. Add a bit of water to the wine if you would like them lighter and pinker.

The beat juice dries with an almost tie-dye affect, give the roses a lot of variation. It will also dry a bid deeper and a bit orange too.

Experimenting with the colors is the fun part. And since no two roses look alike you don’t have to worry about being perfect with them.

Once you have soaked them, hang them upside down to dry. You will need to re-work them and re-curl the petals a bid once they are dry. It sounds like a lot of work but it really isn’t too bad. Once you get it down it goes really fast. Like I said, I made hundreds of them for my wedding and it really wasn’t that bad. Get a few extra people to help and you’ll have them down in no time.

[loveartandcrafts]

"you color my WORLD" Crayon Heart Valentines

  You will need to gather all the old crayons in the house… if your house is anything like mine, that won't be a problem.  You can also purchase new crayons as well.  I will have to admit, the new crayons were easier to remove the labels from. I used an X-ACTO knife to make a slit down the length of the crayon to easily remove the labels.  The older crayons took a little more coaxing.

Once you've removed all of the labels, break the crayons into small pieces.  The smaller the better…

I also found that separating them into color families made for the best looking crayons, but that is completely up to you! 

You will need to use a heart shaped silicon baking mold to melt your crayons in.  I found mine at Michaels in the baking section and it worked like a dream.  The girls and I decided that we wanted our crayons to be a little glittery so we added about 1/2 a teaspoon of silver glitter to the bottom of the baking mold. Then we filled the baking mold with the crayons about 1/3 full. The mold I used was pretty deep so depending on what you use you will have to play around with this.

Place in your oven that has been pre-heated to 300 degrees and baked for 15 minutes.  The crayons will become completely liquefied so be careful when you pull them out of the oven.  Carefully place them on the counter to cool.  You want to make sure that you don't move them around too much and mix the colors more than you want.  Wait for about 20 minutes or until the crayon is solid again and then gently remove it from the mold and let cool completely.

I made 57 hearts with the Wilton Mini Heart Mold using approximately 200 crayons.

Now it's time to pull out your Epic Tool to make the heart shaped cards for you to place your new crayons on.  I used two different dies from the new Sweetheart line for this project.  The Nesting Heart and the Nesting Scallop Hearts work beautiful for this card.

I decided that since I wanted the focus to be on the crayons I used a basic white watercolor paper for the base of the card. 

Once I cut out the heart shapes, I used my rolling alphabet stamp to create the fun saying on the card. "Valentine… you color my WORLD"  I just LOVE that look!!

Of course I had to dress up the heart crayons with some Divine Twine from Whisker Graphics. I just wrapped the hearts randomly and tied with a bow or made little twine bundles for the decoration…

[myidealhome]

DIY: recycled cardboard organizer (full instructions on designsponge)