Thursday, April 25, 2019

BFF Open House Link Party


Happy Friday Eve once again and can you believe that this one marks eight months until Christmas? Laugh all you want but how many of us think oh we have all this time to make all the handmade gifts we have in our heads and then BAM where did the time go? 

Taking a little vacation break this week so no features. Will  resume next week. Happy Weekend all!




You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Thursday, April 18, 2019

BFF Open House Link Party


Happy Friday Eve all. Whether you're celebrating Easter, Passover, or nothing this weekend, wishing everyone a wonderful weekend! 

Let's take a look at some ideas from last week's party OK? 


I love a good pun and living in the desert, I couldn't resist these Succulent Printables from The Organized Dream


I can't wait to make these for next year. Love love love these Paper Eggs from Paper Seedlings. These are so much fun as shown or as a garland. 



What's better than a chocolate bunny? One that doesn't melt and you can put in your garden. Check out these cute plant stakes from Fluster Buster


Finally, if you still need a festive dessert for Easter check out this Chocolate Pistachio Cake from Masterpieces of My Life.  So elegant ! 

OK then, let's see what everyone's been up to this week!


You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Tuesday, April 16, 2019

Paint Poured Pendant. Say That Three Times Fast


So, my Chocoholic reading peeps, you know I'm recently obsessed with Acrylic Paint Pouring. I love that no two pieces are alike and it's therapeutic for me to watch the pieces evolve as the paints mix and dry. 



It's messy and there will be excess though. Being a waste not want not kind of Maker, I was ECSTATIC to discover that you can do things with the leftovers called "skins", which, if you pour on a non-porous surface like the plastic drop cloth I use, is what the paint forms after it dries and you can peel it off like, well, a skin! Some artists do pours specifically to create the skins for jewelry and mixed media pieces. Once I read about this, of course I had to play. 



Supplies: 




The hard work is done once you have a skin to work with so this is a super quick project. I punched a few circles from the skin, and chose the one I liked best. 



Put a dab of the Diamond Glaze on the bevel blank ( don't flood it just a small dab) and lay in your punched circle. Smooth out to make sure there are no bubbles. I just used a dry Q-Tip. Use a little more Diamond Glaze and then place your glass circle on top. Let dry. You're DONE!

If you don't have a glass blank, you can also flood your bevel with the Diamond Glaze and it will dry to a hard finish. You just won't have the "domed" effect you get with the glass. 

Tips: 
I cleaned both my bevel blank and glass round with alcohol just because it seemed like a good idea. I also think I'll be using my phone camera more because it takes amazing pictures. Used it for the pendant pic and my camera for the rest and like the phone pic best. 



Thursday, April 11, 2019

BFF Open House Link Party

Happy Friday eve all! Week's flown by, almost literally, for me. It was super windy here yesterday and hoping that's done with. Hope you all have had a great week! Who's preparing to watch the last season of Game of Thrones starting on Sunday? Huge fan here. 

OK let's have a look at some great ideas from last week's party!


With Easter and Passover approaching, eggs are a big decor item. LOVE these Botanical Eggs from Artsy VaVa! 


Look how cute this table setting is from Kippi At Home! You really have to check out all of the ideas for a lovely table and this is the KIDS table! 


Thrift store makeovers are one of my faves, and this Farmhouse Sign from The Organized Dream is no exception. 

Finally, this would make quite the impression as an Easter dessert don't you think? Espresso  Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce from Marilyn's Treats




You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Monday, April 8, 2019

Paint Poured Reverse Canvas : Makers Gonna Make



Color! I know what you're thinking. Most of my projects are neutrals but I decided to play with some brighter colors on a paint pour. True confession. This was a "happy accident" that didn't start out as what turned into this project. 

I was doing a paint pour canvas to try and pick up some colors in a lamp in our living room. The periwinkle and magenta dominated WAAAAY more than I thought they were going to and I did not like it for that space AT ALL ( neither did Mr. Chocolate). So I did what every maker does when they have a craft fail. Re-purpose until you get something you like. 

I've also wanted to do a  reverse canvas project which I've been seeing a lot on Pinterest and in the blogosphere so I decided to use a canvas I wasn't happy with to try and make one. Worst case scenario, I'm out one canvas with which I was unhappy anyway. 

Supplies: 
  • 16x20 Canvas ( Mine was from a pack from Michaels when they had them 5 for $10)
  • Paints (I used Artist Loft White, Gold, Turquoise and Martha Stewart Poppy, Folk Art Periwinkle and Magenta)
  • Zinsser Paint Addititive
  • Silicone Oil
  • Black Glossy Vinyl ( I used Cricut)


Other tools
  • Utility Knife
  • Staple Gun


First step was mixing my paints which I continue to experiment with. This time I added a few drops of Silicone Oil (HW section, Lowes) along with the paint additive. 


I re-use paint cups so if you see a color I didn't mention, that's why.


I did the puddle pour method again so you can see the rings of the colors as each new one is poured into the last. 


This is the canvas after tilting around to move the paint. Not my favorite. What to do? Enter reverse canvas idea. My brain. It's how it works. 

What is a reverse canvas? You basically take apart a pre-stretched canvas and reconstruct it using the frame as a traditional frame vs the frame around which the canvas is stretched. The first step is removing the canvas. I chose not to painstakingly remove each staple from the back of the canvas. Emphasis pain because 1.) it was a pain in the neck to do and 2.) it hurt.  I used my utility knife to cut the canvas close to the staples. The remaining strip pulls right off. 



This is the frame that the canvas was on. You can leave it plain or stain or paint it. 



I painted mine black since I knew I would be using black vinyl. I cut a quote I downloaded from the Silhouette Online Store and cut it using Cricut Glossy Black Vinyl on my Cameo. 


After the frame dried it was time to re-attach the canvas. I placed the frame painted side down then laid the canvas on top and attached with my staple gun. The biggest challenge here is getting your canvas pulled taught. The more staples the better seemed to be the lesson learned here! 

Flipped it back over and then trimmed using my utility knife. 




I immediately liked it better with the black frame! After I finished trimming I applied the vinyl and was ecstatic! The canvas I was prepared to toss became my favorite new piece of wall art for my office! 




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Thursday, April 4, 2019

BFF Open House Link Party


Happy Friday Eve all! Whew. Another week gone by  just like that. Hope it was a good one for you. Let's take a look at some wonderful ideas from last week's party shall we?


Whether for Easter specifically or Spring Decor in general, these decoupaged eggs from Craftify My Love are a great touch of Spring. 


Tassels are everywhere from jewelry to all kinds of accessories. Domestic Bliss Squared has a great DIY tutorial to make these Layered Tassels so you can make as many as you like in all the colors you love! 


When people tease me about all the stuff I make, I joke that I have a "Martha Stewart Personality Disorder" because I'd rather DIY. Martha and I part ways though when it comes to gardening. Just never took to it. So this post from Repurpose and Upcycle on how to incorporate Air Plants into decor is right up my alley because I don't think even I can kill these. I bought some old sugar molds at a Junk Show that are screaming for these! 


With Girl Scout Cookie season over, you don't have to wait until next year to get your Thin Mint fix. Family Cookie Recipes has got you covered with these Homemade Thin Mints. 

Now let's see what everyone's been up to this week! Hoping this works smoothly as INLINKZ has switched over to a new format so bear with me if you can't link up right away! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Monday, April 1, 2019

Mega Paint Pour 30 x 40 Canvas



Happy April everyone. If you love April Fool's Day good on you. Me, not so much! 

Sharing my biggest Acrylic Paint Pouring project today. I shall call her "Canvasouras".  I had so much fun with this one and have to say, it is my favorite one yet. 

Supplies: 
  • 30 x 40 canvas (Michaels had these 70% off so this one was $34 less 70% final cost $10.20 and of course I bought 2  and any video of me getting these out of the store while pushing a cart is for sure hilarious)
  • Artist Loft Acrylic Paints in White, Raw Umber, Black, Gold, Light Turquoise ( picked up a couple of large bottles that were 40% off at Michaels). The big bottles are $9.99 full price and the smaller 4 oz tubes are $3.99 full price. 
  • Zinsser Flow Control paint medium
  • Water
  • Hand Sanitizer (secret ingredient!)






My first challenge was figuring out how I was going to stabilize my canvas and keep it off the floor. Enter giant Target plastic storage bin, the kind that will hold wrapping paper etc. Inexpensive , had on hand, flipped it upside down and worked great!

Next came mixing the paints. For this, I used bigger cups ( 12-16 oz red Solo drink cups for the white, black, gold and brown) than I've been using and one thing I've learned along my paint pouring learning journey is to get the paints thin enough w/out making them too runny. This is trial and error but I did about 1/2 paint and 1/4 ea paint medium and water. Stir slowly until really well blended. The secret ingredient? Hand Sanitizer! I saw this in a video and wanted to try it. The ingredients really aid in the creation of cells which is something I've been struggling with. More on this below. 

For this one, I did what's called a "puddle pour" which, as the name suggests, you pour your paints to make a puddle on the canvas, layering them as you go. 




I made puddles at each end of the canvas. One was white dominant and the other was brown dominant and I layered the colors randomly, and then took the rest of the the white and black and poured around each puddle on the corresponding side. 


The consistency was PERFECT this time because as you tilt the canvas, the paints flowed and were able to cover the entire canvas and run down the sides. Now for the "secret ingredient" the hand sanitizer. 

People use different mediums to create cells. Everything from WD40 to treadmill lubricant to hair serum etc. I picked up some hand sanitizer for $1.79 at the grocery store. The alcohol content plus the viscosity interacts with the paint to give you the right effect. Since I wasn't sure, I didn't add it to every color and will next time. I also discovered that if you don't securely have the cap on your paint tube, shake it so you can squeeze out the remaining paint, get it on your wall because oops....hand sanitizer gets it right off! Who knew? 


These are the "cells" I'm talking about. It's just chemistry magic. Don't ask me to explain it! I just love looking at them, mesmerized, as they emerge. 


This piece was going in our living room and while I'm known for neutrals, I wanted to pick up the aqua from the globe and tie in the brown from the clock , the chair etc. 

I'm SUPER happy with the results. What do you think? 



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