sari ribbon place marker

If you are participating in The Documented Life Project and are anything like me, you may be having a hard time leaving your planner or journal alone!

As I was creating challenges over the past few weeks, it occurred to me that I needed a longer place marker. Because my book is so chunky I knew my sewing options were limited. Here is what I came up with ----->

I grabbed some beautiful recycled sari ribbon a pal gifted to me, and some colorful thread.

Next I moved the detachable arm piece of my sewing machine out far enough that I could rest my planner on it. I opened my planner to the center and rested it on the arm, stretching the original place marker out as far as I could.

I opened the sari ribbon up and wrapped it around the end of the original place marker, getting as close to the book as possible. I secured it with a straight pin until I had it under the foot of the machine. Once under the foot (it will move a little) I lowered the foot and removed the pin. I stitched back and forth a few times to secure the two markers together. Moving downward from my stitching,  I opened the sari ribbon and wrapped it around the original marker.

Once secured, I stitched the sari ribbon, rotating from horizontal to vertical stitching every few inches.

Lastly, I trimmed the ribbon and threads. I added a pretty bead,  knotting the ribbon just below it a few times until secured. If I need more length as the year goes on, I can undo one or two of the knots and easily make my marker longer.

Now my planner has a pretty place marker that can handle the bulk of my book! I love it!

Want to make your place marker longer or prettier? This was an easy and FREE project. Just dig through your stash and grab a piece of ribbon or colorful twine and stitch away. Don't sew? Use a tacky fabric glue and set aside to dry overnight!

READ HERE -----> to see how I added a removable zipper pouch (in about five minutes) to my planner here!

READ HERE TO LEARN MORE AND JOIN ME IN DOCUMENTING YOUR DAILY LIFE! Enjoy!

i wanted to carve a feather stamp

Sometimes we don't always get what we want, but we might get lucky and like what we end up with.

So I wanted to carve a feather stamp. Feathers are my favorite thing right now, but...but it turns out that if you don't use your stamp carving tools for months you lose your touch. What I ended up with looks more like a leaf or branch of some kind, but I like it. I like the imperfections in each feather/leaf - not unlike in nature. If you want to have your own little imperfect feather leaf here is what I did ----->

1. Grab an eraser. I like the cheap ones from The Dollar Tree if you are just starting out. They aren't the best quality, but they come in a 3 or 4 pack for a dollar and are great for beginners.  I also like how they stay rigid when you go to stamp with them. You will also need a stamp carving tool. I use this SPEEDBALL set and love it. And you will need a pencil to draw your word or design on the eraser.

2. Draw your design. Don't forget to use tracing paper if you are writing a word or special design that will need to be drawn in reverse.

3. Start carving. Slow is key for me. This particular tool came with several cutting heads in the base of the handle. I used the smallest one for outlining my design first, then went back and carved out more with a larger, deeper cutting tool.

4. Finish off with the flat blade to smooth things out. My homemade stamps don't always look pretty when I am finished, but they stamp great!

Obviously I need to brush up on my stamp carving skills some more, but I think I will keep it. I like it's quirky shape and style. Here is what it looks like on a tag card project I did. Enjoy!

TAG CARD: gelli printed tag. painted deli paper scraps. book paper scraps. oil pastels. paint pens. machine stitching. thank you stamp from dollar bin at Target. my hand carved feather leaf stamp. recycled seam binding.

recycled tip in pages

Have you read about the crazy fun DOCUMENTED LIFE PROJECT ? Chances are, if you are joining in, you have a planner or journal from last year. This is a great way to upcycle part of that agenda or book and incorporate it into this years project. Here is the planner I used in 2013.

I love the painted covers and did not want to just throw this away. I decided to remove the covers and use them as tip in pages in my planner this year for the THE DOCUMENTED LIFE PROJECT. Just remove the front and back covers and trim to fit your new planne or journal.

I plan on adding these as a tip in page, meaning they will fold out. I use washi tape to attach them to an existing page in my planner.

Because these will fold out, I can use the opposite side for list making, journaling, doodling, painting and more. Yea!

See more ideas and read all the details on this FREE  year long project here and here! Enjoy!

papered paint cup

When my daughter wanted to have some friends over to paint, I ran to my local Dollar Tree and grabbed a few disposable plastic tubs to use for paint cups. That was supposed to be the end of it. Well, if you know me, you know I just couldn't leave those cups plain. Time was a factor, so I kept it really simple. Plus this way, no one's heart will be broken if you throw them away at the end of the day.

You only need a few supplies: *a disposable plastic cup or tupperware *deli paper *craft paint *paint pens *decorative tape *gel medium or adhesive OPTIONAL: *gelliplate *brayer

STEP 1. Choose your container and grab some deli paper. I chose to use the gelliplate to paint my deli paper, but you could paint your own design on it instead.

STEP 2. Once your paper is painted and completely dry, cut it in to strips. I measured the height of my cup then cut two strips just wide enough so they would overlap. I cut several more to fill in where my strips didn't meet and to use for shapes and monograms.

STEP 3. Adhere your strips to your container. Smooth out wrinkles as you go. Set aside to let dry completely.

STEP 4. Once your cup is covered and dry, begin adding your layers. I started by adding some washi tape to the top and bottom borders. Then I cut a monogram from painted deli paper and glued that to the center of the cup. Once dry I added borders and pops of color with black and white paint pens.

These are easy, affordable and completely disposable. The girls were thrilled that their paint cups were pretty. I was thrilled that they were happy! Enjoy!

tutorial: 1 mini project, 4 mini gifts & big happy new year

I have been a little behind since the second half of this year started. Not my fault. Seriously. I never let art or meetings or appointments or shopping take precedence over family life. Never. So I am a teeny tiny bit behind in making and delivering a few of my gifts. Nothing huge. Just a few little THANK YOU's I wanted to make sure to deliver to people that matter in my life, but might not know it, like the postman, the kids teachers, and even my bank teller. I thought since I was behind anyway it might be nice to change things up a bit and surprise them with a NEW YEAR gift instead...it works for me. And the best part is you just need some scraps and a few supplies!

I made all four of these in just under an hour. Grab this stuff to make your own: * scrap of canvas or duck cloth. Mine was only 2 inches high by 12 inches long. * some paint *paint pens *hole punch *eyelets *scissors *sewing machine *cotton balls *bakers twine *bead ball necklace chain *bead ball key chain *aircraft cable key ring *felt or fabric scraps *glue gun *silicone finger caps

Step 1. Paint circles on your canvas scrap. **If you want both sides of your canvas pouf to be the same, you will need TWO of each color circle**I took mine all the way to the edges to allow cutting and stitching later.  Add little designs using paint and pain pens. Let dry completely.

Step 2. Stitch around the edges of each circle a few times.

Step 3. Cut each circle out. You can trim your threads or leave them dangle. Cut tiny pieces of felt or fabric and stitch on for a little 3-D embellishment. Using a coordinating thread makes it pop!

Step 4. Place one of each color circle RIGHT SIDE DOWN on protected surface. Place a small dot of glue on cotton ball and lay on WRONG SIDE of circle. Run a small line of glue along outer edge of circle and place MATCHING circle on top of cotton ball RIGHT SIDE UP. Using silicone finger tip protectors, quickly press edges of circle together.

Step 5. Punch a hole near the top edge of each of your canvas poufs using a heavy duty hole punch.

Step 6. Add eyelet to hole you have punched.

Step 7. Add twine, chain or rings to complete your canvas poufs.

Enjoy what my little girl likes to call "those jelly fish things!" Hey I see an UNDER SEA party theme somewhere in there!

last years christmas projects revisited

Time was not on my side this year when it came to creating ten tons of christmas crafts. Luckily for me I had whipped up a few quick and easy ones last year that I could revisit. If you need a few last minute homemade holiday gifts just click on the images to find quick and easy tutorials!

 

Enjoy and happy holidays to you all!

art stuff: recycled sweater ornaments

one beautiful vintage sweater + one super duty front loader dryer = wooly heart ornaments

Please tell me someone else has done this - accidentally dried their favorite sweater! Well, I did it this week, and after I cried for three days I chalked it up to some yummy felted wool and a handful of awesome vintage buttons.

With Christmas just around the corner I decided to use some of the salvaged wool for pretty little ornaments. Let me tell you- I LOVE them! And they were so super easy that I thought I would share. (Just don't go shrink a sweater to make 'em! )

1. Grab some wool or felt or whatever else you have on hand that is nice and chunky and cut it into the shape of a heart.

2. Stamp or print a word or two on fabric and cut out.

3. Stitch all around the edges of your heart. Doodle style stitching is my favorite, so no need to be perfect here.

4. Lay your tag out on heart and stitch around that too. A contrasting color is always my favorite.

5. Using a needle with a large eye, thread some bakers twine or ribbon through the top of the heart and tie a knot.

You could be done here, but I decided to add a tiny ring of faux greenery on the twine. I love them!

Super sweet. Super easy. AND I can share my favorite sweater with my besties!

the process: simple painted berry basket

I picked up these berry baskets at my local feed store this past spring and have been using them in the pantry every since. Thought I would dress a few of them up for fun!

 

It was a simple process. First I painted the base of the basket with craft paint. I used a lighter wash of the same color for the inside of the basket.

 Next I doodled on my basket. I used a variety of different sized paint pens.

I added a few little pops of color along the way, using craft paint, followed by more doodles.

 Super quick. Super easy. And a pretty way to display your favorite trinkets or present a holiday basket of goodies to your neighbor!

Blessings to you and yours at Holidays and always! Enjoy!

the process: recycled binder turned art journal

Let's recycle something else this week!

I took this old clear binder and turned it into a pretty art journal cover. It was super easy and took just under an hour to create, including drying time, which I sped up by using my heat embosser.

Next, grab one of these re-purposed scrapers and scratch off a little gesso- letting your favorite words shine through. Ink the gesso using a dry brush or sponge.

Mix a little gesso with some ink or paint and rub it over your favorite stencil. Chunky goodness happens here.

Add a stamp or two along the edges.

Use a black paint pen to add more journaling.

Stitch some fabric to the front cover to add some texture.

Punch holes along the edges of your solitary pages or add in those you have removed from a spiral bound journal.

My favorite part is seeing my journaling, in reverse, on the inside of the cover.

the process: sometimes mini canvas

...because lately I love anything new and tiny. (If you follow my instagram you will know why) --->

Tiny and Pretty. Enjoy the process!