Sew a 10 minute Skirt {and accessories!) Crafty Video!

Howdy folks! I was going to wait until tomorrow to post this but I thought you just might feel the need to sew after watching me make a skirt in 10 minutes, actually it takes less time if you get right to it! You need 1 yard of fabric for this project. I got the idea from the Grosgrain Fabulous blog, and it is, well, fabulous! I was so excited that I wore my new skirt to a baseball game Thursday night (and practically  froze my behiney off!) but darn it I looked cute! I’m going to pick up a couple more yards of fabric and elastic when I am in town today because I see many more 10 minutes skirts in my future!

The important thing to remember when you buy your material is to make sure the salvage (finished) edges look good and the pattern extended all the way to the edge, that way you won’t have to hem this puppy! Here is the video to show you how to make this easy and I daresay cute skirt!

And because I know you want to be extra fabulous here is how to make some cool hair goodies:

Fun huh? So now you see why I didn’t make you wait, you will want to sew something new to wear today right? Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Embossed Acetate How-to Video & a Stamp Giveaway!

Howdy there!  I’m so happy today because I get to give away the beautiful Camellia Background stamp from About Art Accents I used on this card (a brand new one though) and all you need to do is leave a comment on this post to have a chance at winning. I’ll draw a name next Tuesday so be sure to sign up before then. Have you ever tried to heat emboss transparencies or vellum and ended up with a warped mess? Well, no more! I’ll show you how to do it right today even with the thinnest materials!

I used ink-jet transparencies on my project because one side has a coating that will allow ink or watercolors to dry on it, just like it does with printer ink. If you are using regular overhead transparencies or un-coated acetate you can still do this but instead of painting the backside with watercolors use acrylic paint and let it dry naturally. Watch the video to learn this technique and complete the card!

My favorite part about this card is how it shines, shimmers and changes depending on how it catches the light, photos do not do it justice.

I hope you enjoyed this technique and give it a try! Thanks for stopping by and till next time happy crafting!

WOYWW: Tree of Life Beading Tutorial

Happy Wednesday folks! It is that time again to check in on the crafty workdesks of the world over at the Stamping Ground and here is mine…actually it is my coffee table because I have had some beads and wire upstairs since the weekend.  I have been slightly obsessed with wire this week after getting the coiling gizmo and now I can’t use up my wire fast enough!

I didn’t use the gizmo on this though, these are all hand wrapped. I just love the look of these organic pendents and I finally have a use for all of the semi precious chip beads I have been hoarding! These have rose quarts and some green mineral, tourmaline maybe…I should have written down what I bought from the rock shop, doh!

To keep this post from being super long I made a free printable PDF file of the tutorial complete with 13 step-by-step photos. You can print it now and create it when you have the time, warning it is addicting! This project will take about an hour.

lss_tree_of_life_beading_tutorial

I used macrame cord with an adjustable knot (video tutorial here) to make the manly-er version…huh, do you think a guy would wear this?

In other news I signed up for a spring fair to sell my crafts! I plan to put these pendents in the show, what do you think would be a fair price, be honest, I won’t be offended

That’s all for today. Be sure to hop over the Julia’s blog for more What’s on Your Workdesk Wednesday fun. Until next time happy crafting!

A Fun & Interactive Centerpiece! {Video Tutorial}

Want some party decor that doubles as an icebreaker? Try crafting this photo prop centerpiece:

There are no flowers in it so it can be made months in advance (or 2 days in advance in my case LOL!) and it will keep if you want to use the elements over again! I made 6 of these for a friends 40th birthday party and the materials totaled $25 and the supplies came from Papermart! Best of all he spools of Tulle are so long and the bags of feathers so generous that I have loads leftover for future crafty fun! I also used black marbles for table scatter. Watch to see how I made this in real-time and high definition! {gosh, I’m getting fancy!}

I did a few things before hand such as cut out the masks/crown and score the rosettes. I recommend if you are doing a project like this to go assembly line style: Do all of the die cutting at once, then assemble all the vases, glitter all the tags, etc. It keeps the mess under control and is quicker than having to switch gears all the time. If you need templates for the masks, photo props and crown you can find them in printable templates as well as SVG cutting files in my shop:

Click here to download the “40 is Fabulous” printable labels I promised for free!

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Free Crochet Cowl Pattern & Perfect Button Video!

Today’s project combines two of my favorite mediums: Yarn and clay!

The buttons on this cowl (neck warmer) and the donut beads are made with polymer clay. I learned a trick to making buttons, donuts and cabochons so they turn out perfect every time and you have what you need right in your kitchen cupboard, watch the video to see how:

Here is a closer look at the buttons:

Not bad for a humble piece of plastic wrap eh? As I promised in the video here is the pattern (instructions) for the neckwarmer or cowl. A beginner knitting student of mine wanted to make one on her first class. She did not know how to knit or crochet so I gave the the option of either. I told her that crochet is faster and a but bulkier which would be good things for this project so we went with crochet. I used a size J hook and worsted weight yarn. You could also knit this, if you do work a 4″x4″ swatch and see what you need for stitches and rows to equal the size of the crochet peice and use a non rolling stitch pattern.

Chain 28 stitches. We are going to work this in double crochet (dc) so at the end of each row you need to chain 3 stitches to turn and insert your hook in the 4th chain from hook and dc (wrap yarn around hook, place hook through your work and draw up one loop. Wrap yarn around hook and draw through 2 loops. Wrap yarn again and draw through remaining two loops) in each chain to the end. Be sure to chain 3 to turn each time. Work in dc until you have made a rectangle that is 32″ long, cut the yarn leaving a 6″ tail and pull the tail through the loop on your hook to secure.

Oh no! What about the button holes!?! Relax, young grasshopper. I did not know where I wanted button holes when I made this so that is one of the reasons I picked dc as a stitch. The holes in the crochet will be ample to push a button through. Fold your crochet rectangle like this and sew your buttons on with yarn:

Put the buttons through the nearest hole and remove it. Use a yarn needle to overcast stitch all around the hole you made. Viola, perfect unplanned button hole! Do this for each button.

Use the yarn needle to weave in any loose ends (I know you know better than to cut them.) and you are done! Look how proud I am in my snazzy new cowl:

Note to self, orange is not my color, it looks way cuter on my daughter:

If you have any questions on the buttons or crochet pattern just leave a comment and I will get back you you! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

WOYWW! A Valentine Freebie!

Is it Wednesday already? It sneaks up on you, same with valentine’s day, one minute it’s Christmas and the next minute I have 3 kids in need of valentines for their classmates. I designed a free printable sheet that will make 4 valentines that are easy enough for the kids to make, I even have a quick video to show you how at the end of this post.

You can download the freebie here. You could also print the design on plain paper and wrap 4 candy bars with it or just fold it in half if you did not want to use candy (no candy on Valentines day? The horror!) After you print the sheet you just need some adhesive and a bit of ribbon, the  camouflage ribbon I used is from Papermart. OK here is what you have come here to see today on What’s On Your Workdesk Wednesday, my lovely desk:

As you can see I have remnants of the freebie valentines, some knitting themed stamps for a hybrid crochet paper project I have planned for my kids knitting class tonight and some old brittle friendly plastic that I think I have found a use for. The coffee cup warmer does a really nice job of melting it, I cut up an old silicone mat to use as a liner and the silicone muffin cups are also great to malt stuff like UTEE in and non stick. As you can see I am not the type of girl to spend $40 on a melting pot LOL! I am also going to try to melt wax for candle making in it too. If an appliance is going to earn it’s keep on my overcrowded craft table it needs to do more than warm my cuppa joe!

OK now on to the video:

See, that was easy now wasn’t it? What I love is that you can do the same technique with any paper you like!

Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Calling all procrastinators! A freebie for you!

Let’s see a show of hands…who intended to, but has not made their Christmas cards yet? That many? Wow! Well don’t fear because I have 2 easy card designs that you can copy. Make them today and mail them tomorrow..well, tomorrow is Sunday, OK mail ‘um Monday.  The first card features the likeness of our favorite holiday Grinch:

I made an SVG die cut and printable sheet for the Grinch eyes, you can download it for free here. All you do is cut a sheet of green cardstock in half and fold (you get 2 cards this way) then glue on the eyes in the center of the card base. Draw on a smile, nose and angry eyebrows and glue a green feather on the forehead if you have one.  Your recipient is sure to get a chuckle when they open this card!

This next design is more traditional. Again, cut a sheet of red cardstock in half and fold in half to get 2 card bases. Then I used a rotary wavy cutter to cut 1.5″ strips of felt (I used a wave rather than a scallop blade so both sides of the cut would look the same and I would not waste felt…yeah, I know it is only .25 cents a sheet but still, why waste?) If you don’t have felt you can use paper, or cotton balls, whatever! Use a hot glue gun to attach it down the center of your card. Add a strip of black cardstock for a belt and a gold buckle. I used a large square punch to punch my gold paper then cut around it with scissors to make a buckle. I dressed it up with holly die cuts and a red sequin.

These cards are quick and inexpensive and fun to make with the kids. I hope you give them a try this year! BTW, use thick and tacky glue and not hot glue if the kids are helping! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Santa S’mores, a Freebie & 50% off!

Well, now that was a fun attention getting title! I wanted to share the “Santa S’mores” I made (and sold out of) at the craft fair last weekend. They are cute, fun and very easy to make because you can download the sheet of 12 s’more labels I made for this project for free here!

Also I made chocolate covered pretzels, basically dip pretzel rods in chocolate and drizzle on more in other colors. You can get crazy and add sprinkles too..whatever floats your boat:)

You will need: Graham crackers, chocolate bars, marshmallows (I tried to find Christmas marshmallow peeps when I was buying supplies but they were not out yet but ACmoore had Christmas trees and snowmen…that would have been cuter than the shaped marshmallows I used), zip-top sandwich bags, 6″x6″ squares of Christmas scrapbook paper and a stapler.

Here’s how:

1. Put ingredients in baggie and zip shut.
2. Fold the scrapbook paper in half, place over the zipper top and staple.
3. Tape label to SB paper topper.

Easy, peasy and a cute gift for classmates, teachers, scout leaders or the bus driver. Who doesn’t want a s’more?  That’s why they are called s’mores because you always want some-more!

Now that I have lured you here with candy I will shamelessly plug the 4 day sale in my shop, 50% off everything at Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff! Crafting templates, digital stamps, painting kits, SVGs, party kits, you name it, if I sell it it’s on sale!

Here are some kits that might strike your fancy:

The sale runt through Sunday so don’t wait! Finish up your Christmas crafting while you save 50% at Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

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Have Yourself a “Fairy” Little Christmas…{A Stamp Giveaway!!!}

Happy Monday Folks! I had fun stamping a card (it’s been a while, I know!) to enter into this weeks challenge at Oriental Stamp Art. They asked us to make a card that was “Holiday” and “Asian” in theme. Then I remembered that AAA/Art Neko had generously given me the Holly Fairy stamp to give away on my blog and my card was born. Fairy Christmas! BTW, anytime you shop at About Art Accents/Art Neko be sure to use the code Lindsay10% to save 10% on your order!

Wanna win it? Just leave me a comment (on this post) between now and next Sunday (the 9th) and  will randomly pick a winner on Monday. What a way to start the week! Here is a close up of the coloring. I treated myself to a set of  Spectrum Noir  markers (the Brights set) from Crafter’s Companion, they had all the 24 packs on sale for $24 and free shipping at Consumer Crafts (It was a bad time to be frugal because I wish I had bought them all!)

I was a bit hesitant because I purchased a set of the light flesh tones at ACmoore when they first came out and they were dried out. I added some denatured alcohol to them and got them working but I was not a fan. I notice, though, that the lighter colors of alcohol markers do seem to be a bit dry feeling but these seemed too dry. I thought that maybe ACmoore might have got a bad batch so for $24 I took a chance and they were all good and juicy and they played nice with my other markers. I had to use a dark brown Promarker, dark red Tria and a tan Copic. I know I need more markers like a hole in the head but I am sorry I passed up getting the other sets now

Something else I want to enable you to buy…er… I mean recommend are Pan Pastels, I picked up 3 a few months ago (magenta, turquoise and lime green) when they were on sale for $4 each because I wanted to try them. Well, they are expensive but I can see why, I tapped a sponge into the color and rubbed it on my background and WOW! the color blended in beautifully and a tap of color was all I needed to do the background! I think I might ask for some for Christmas…my Christmas list is getting longer by the moment (I also want Santa to bring me a Fire Works beadmaking torch kit!)

The final touch on the card was a game piece that I saved from Axis and Allies, hubby was tossing the game and there were cute mini airplanes and chips. I like the graphic punch the Japan chip gives and the repetition of the circle theme on the card.

Well, that’s it for me! I am in the final push getting ready for my craft fair on Saturday. Today is my sewing day. I am making juggling balls, hand-warmers and key fobs. Don’t forget to leave a comment to win the beautiful fairy stamp from About Art Accents/Art Neko! Til next time happy crafting!

Try something new: a gatefold easel card! {video tutorial}

Happy Monday folks! I saw a really pretty card on a blog the other day (I’m so sorry I cannot find the card I saw, I went hunting for it again, so if you recently posted a pretty gatefold easel card on your blog leave me a link so I can check it out!)  I couldn’t get the lovely card off my mind so I decided to try to make one and came up with this. I used Lily digistamp from my Pretty Posies Digital stamp set for the center panel. By the way, Everything at Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff is 36% off through Wednesday! It’s my birthday sale! Anywhoo…on to the card:

 

Here it is closed:

 

Remove the band and open the flaps:

 

And pop up the easel, fun huh?

 

Do you know what else? It is really easy to make too, check out my video:

Here is the cutting, scoring template:

 

I tried to find out who originally came up with this idea and saw many more lovely cards (not the one that first inspired me tho!) so if you know who came up with this idea please leave a comment so I can credit them:) Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

PS don’t forget to check out the Birthday sale at Lindsay’s Stamp Stuff, 36% off everything in the shop…can you guess how old I am turning LOL?!?