BFF Open House Link Party # 234 Happy December

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving. To those celebrating Hanukkah this weekend, Happy Hanukkah and have a latke for me! Crunch time is on us so here are some ideas from the week before last's party! 

Not only is this a cute project, but the story that  goes with it is hilarious and is something I can imagine a bunch of us crafty peeps hearing from our friends. You need to visit Artsy Va Va to find out the details of both. 

Charm Bracelet Diva shared a brilliant idea using Dollar Store Christmas bags to create fantastic wall art! Genius! 

These Pom Pom Pinecone ornaments from One Little Project are too cute and a great project to have little elves help with. 

Speaking of ornaments, how about this woodsy one from Much More Creative

She also made another version: 

Now onto this week's party! 

   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

BFF Open House Link Party # 189

Happy Friday Eve all. Happy Hanukkah to those of you who started celebrating this week and ONE WEEK TIL CHRISTMAS! I need another week.  Let's get right to some highlights from last week's party: 

Still need a gift for someone? Check out this arm-knit ( yes I said arm-knit) infinity scarf. I've seen these all over Pinterest and much to my complete and total shock, College Boy texted us a picture of one he made! Visit Andrea at Scrapality for the details. 

Kathleen from Charm Bracelet Diva At Home shared this wonderful Christmas card display, another of her amazing flea market transformations! 

Have a Keurig coffee maker? Save the capsules and make ornaments (or package toppers)  like Bethany did at Pitter and Glink! 

OK this week's chocolate feature? WOW is all I can say: 

Peppermint Hot Cocoa Crepes from Honey Lamb and I. Who wouldn't love a plate of these?! 

Now on to this week's party !

   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

BFF#16: Charm Bracelet Diva

This week’s BFF is Kathleen from the blog Charm Bracelet Diva.

Despite her blog name, she’s not a diva at all at least not in the celebutante / rockstar kind of way! No, she’s  a diva in the sense that she rocks her charm bracelet designs, finding and incorporating vintage pieces with new materials making each one unique and beautiful. Every single one is a work of art.

I have to include this bracelet called “Divatude” not only because I love the name and  it’s stunning, but it has a chocolate feel to it !

Or this gorgeous piece in which she included a vintage brooch:

Or her entire collection of Irish Dance Charm Bracelets :

But while her jewelry creations are brilliant, so are her non-jewelry creations. Check out this elegant  monogram pillow:

Humble materials, transformed into an elegant accent piece that goes so well with this upcycled chalkboard tray:

You have to see what this started out as! And of course, with my affinity for altering pillared prayer candles, I can’t help but love these:

Not only is Kathleen’s place a visual treat due to her talented creations, but her blog space is calming and inviting and she’s a wonderfully supportive blogger! Do go visit!

Dollar Tree Washer Charm Bracelet Tutorial

I thought I'd share a project I made for a guest post I did the other day at the blog

I was honored when Bella invited me over to guest post! One of the things I love most about blogging is how supportive and helpful bloggers are to each other.

Washer Charm Bracelet

Like so many of us creative bloggers, I’d be lost without The Dollar Tree! I go there at least once a week just to walk the aisles and see what I might find. Last time I was there I found this pack of washers.

I had some chain on hand in my jewelry making stash:

I got mine at JoAnn’s but you can get this or similar many places. I measured off two lengths bracelet size. I attached the two chains to either side of a toggle clasp using jump rings.

Then I went to work on my  washer charms.

I made sets of small, medium, and large based on the size of the washers, putting a jump ring on each:

On the small ones, I put one of the smallest washers on either side. Then I just started adding these to the chain, eyeballing the spacing but not being overly precise.

It doesn’t matter which of the chains you attach your washer charms to. It all kinda blends.

If you haven’t ever made jewelry, don’t be intimidated. Working with chain is very forgiving and there are tons of  instructions out there. Here’s a video on how to open / close a jump ring and once you do that, you can open / close the links of chain…same principle.

Linking Up At:

Copycat Crafts....Too Cool!

I was visiting my friend Kathleen's blog Charm Bracelet Diva  who has been featured on a site I hadn't heard of but am totally in love with now! It's called Copycat Crafts

You know how we all love to do knock off projects from Pottery Barn, Ballard Designs, West Elm, etc.? This is totally the place to check out because that's exactly what they specialize in.

Here's Kathleen's Ballard Designs knockoff:

Gilded Chalkboard Inspired By Ballard Designs

Wearables, Home Design, Recipes, Holidays! So cool! For example, I've already seen people working on Easter projects and there's a link to a tutorial on how to make this Pottery Barn egg wreath.

And...you can submit knock off projects you've done and you could be featured too!! I'm so excited because I have been feeling a little slumpy this week so this is just what I need!