WALL ORGANIZER

This is a wall dec/desk organizer I made for my daughter about two years ago and I realized (as it still sits in my craft room because we never got around to hanging it)  that I never posted it here. 

 I made it just before I started blogging so of course I didn't document how it was made so I will describe as best I can. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.  The back is a flat art canvas that was painted hot pink and the orange strip is a metallic something or other that I bought at a garage sale.  I covered it with scrapbook paper.

I used sb paper to decorate inexpensive metal, clear topped tins and glued extra strong magnets on the back.

The tops of the tins are decorated with scalloped circles made with Spellbinders dies and the letters (obviously spelling her name) were made using my cricut. They can be filled with paper clips, hair clips or whatever office supplies she might need.  I left the center open so she could see what was inside.

 

I added a little pen and post it holder so she could write me a thank you note  for making this for her he he. 

And to personalize it a bit more a pic of her sweet little face.  She will be going off to college in a year and a half so maybe we will just save it for her dorm room! And if you are wondering about the bright colors, she chose to decorate her room in hot pink, bright orange and lime green.  I don't go in there often as it gives me a headache but she loves it.

Linky parties

REFURBISH IT FRIDAY!

Well, it has been another busy week at the Nath house so I haven't progressed on my next RIF project that I gave you a sneak peek of last week but I did make another thing to put inside my shadow box.

I knew before I even started that I wanted a little bird cage for one of the cubbies.  I figured I would have to look far and wide for one small enough to fit but I came across this SVG file from My Time Made Easy.  You use svg files with a cutting machine like a cricut and a special program like Sure cuts alot or Make the cut.  The cage was a new release and I bought it the minute it was available.  It took some tweaking to get it just the right size but I finally got it worked out so that it just fits in one of the long cubbies.

I absolutely love it and I can't wait to make more in a larger size as a table decoration and as tea lite holders!
If you are interested let me know and I can post the exact measurements I used with SCAL to get it this size which is about 3.75 inches high.

Looks like this weekend is booked with drumline, piano lessons, and now my daughter has joined the ultimate frisbee team which has practice on Sunday.  I think I am going to be spending a lot of time in the car. Hopefully I will be able to squeeze in some crafting time....

Linky parties

PAPER TOLE PLAQUE

When I was young my mom discovered Mod Podge.  She pretty much MP'd everything in sight except my dad and us kids.  I don't use it often but I do think it is some pretty cool stuff.  Especially when it is combined with digital papers and elements as in the project I created below.

 I have a tutorial on how it was made posted today at THE HYBRID CHICK BLOG. If you don't mind cutting it is a pretty simple, though time consuming project.  I do think it is worth the effort though cause I really like how it turned out.

I'm linkin' this baby up to.......

REFURBISH IT FRIDAY!

Happy Friday! We have finally thawed out a bit and have a really warm day ahead, yippee! I don't have a lot today because I was thinkin my son's Pinewood Derby was next Saturday when in reality it is tomorrow. So guess what we have been frantically trying to complete? I will give you a sneak peak of my next refurbish project.....

And I did do a couple simple things for the inside of my shadow box. This is a glass lab vial that I got at work.  Didn't steal it, it is something that isn't used in modern bio labs.  When a research prof retires the contents of his or her lab is distributed to whomever wants it.  If it is usable in the lab, great, otherwise it goes whereever it is wanted.  I do wish I had the stopper for it though.

It was filled with little glass beads  which were tinted with SU's ink Bermuda Bay. All you have to do is put the clear beads into a small zip bag, add a couple drops of ink and smoosh it around.  Dump out the beads and let them dry.

This is a clock from Tim Holz and a couple fabric covered buttons. Not a lot but at least I have two cubbies filled and I do have one more project half finished that I hope I will have posted this weekend.If you like shabby I think you are going to love it.

Have a great weekend and thanks for checking things out!

JUST ONE STAR Can Comfort a Soldier!

Of all the crafts that I have tried (some successfully, some, not so much) sewing is my absolute favorite. As i've said before, I don't have much time for sewing clothes the way I used to but lately I have been bitten by the quilting bug.  I have only made two quilting projects in my life.  A set of placemats which were made during a class and a wall hanging for my nephew.  I still use the placemats, in fact, they are sitting on my kitchen table right now. 

I find it so amazing that a bunch of simple squares can be turned into.......

 

 this!

Obviously, this isn't an entire quilt but it will be made into one eventually, but not by me.  In my web travels I came across the JUST ONE STAR can comfort a soldier project sponsored by Moda fabrics.  They want to piece, quilt and bind 100 quilts in 100 days and need 1800 people to make "just one star" block so that they can accomplish their goal.    The finished quilts will be given to the brave men and women serving in the US military. Detailed instructions on how its made can be found HERE.  My sewing skills are a bit rusty but this took less than an hour to cut out and sew.  I think this is such a great cause and when I stopped at my local quilt shop to buy the fabric I found that they meet twice a month to make quilts for the QUILTS OF VALOR PROGRAM.  Hopefully I will be able to participate.


The block was so easy to make, nothing but squares and straight lines, so if you quilt or sew please consider making just one! The deadline is May 1, 2011 so you have plenty of time. And even if you don't sew and know someone who does let them know about this wonderful project. Oh yeah, and buy quality fabric, don't you think they deserve the best?

Have a good one!

NEW OBSESSION

I don't know about you all but I have a personality whereby I will become obsessed with a particular thing for a while then become completely uninterested. Sometimes I will return to an obsession and other times not so much.  Extreme couponing is my current one, sparked by the lovely KELLEIGH RATZLAFF.  I have been dazzled by the deals that she gets for some time and I finally got around to trying it myself.  As I told my husband last night as I showed off my bargains, I promise I won't do this often, but I was so thrilled about my score that I just had to let you all in on it.

Guess what I paid for all this, go ahead guess.....ok I will tell you $2.66.  Yup, two dollars and sixty six cents.  I used both coupons from the walgreens ad and manufacturer coupons ( you are allowed to double up in most stores) combined and then I had a $5 register reward that I earned on my last trip to the store.
 I was giddy when I left walgreens. In fact, I felt like I had done something naughty.  I admit that it takes a while to get the hang of EC'ing (about a month) but it is so worth it! If you want to see a coupon queen in action check out Kelleigh's blog and if you are interested in trying it yourself she tells you how to get started HERE.
Ok, I'm off to clip some more coupons.....

REFURBISH IT FRIDAY!

Happy Friday!  My shadow box is slowly coming together and I can't wait to start filling in the cubbies.

I finished off the frame with a couple coats of water based varnish and then began assembling the background.

 I used a re-positionable glue pen to place the paper  on the background.  This was necessary as I had to place the paper on the background then place the wood over the top to make sure everything was covered.

I marked the edge with a pencil.

Then attached the paper with Mod Podge.

Once all the paper was adhered, I covered the entire thing with two more layers of Mod Podge.

I am really lovin' how this is turning out.  I wasn't so sure I could do it at first but I am glad I jumped in! I realized I forgot to paint the bottom - oops! So, I will have to do that next and maybe some PP on the sides.

Have a super weekend!

REFURBISH IT FRIDAY!

Hi there, hope you had a great week!

This week I finished painting the cream overlay.  It is still a bit streaky in places but since I am going to distress by sanding it is ok.

 I started out with fine grit sand paper and soon found out that I needed a bit heavier grit to get the results I wanted.  I sanded on the edges, the creases and a bit on the surface, just so the brown showed through the cream. I tried not to go all the way to the wood.  I thinks it looks pretty cool.

I have to seal it with some varnish which I didn't have time to purchase (don't get me started on the busy week I have had) so I went on and sorted out the background I am going to use.

 I measured the sizes of the openings so that I could make a layout of the papers that I am going to use for the background.

I chose some digital papers called GARDENOLOGIE from THE DIGI CHICK.  They are beautiful, vintage papers and I like the fact that with digital I can lay them out in photo shop to get the look I want before making a single cut into paper.  

I then placed each section on a new ps doc and am ready to print. I wanted to print the sections out separately so that I could ink up the edges a bit before placing them on the background. 

See ya next time, have a goodun!