Spring and Easter: Straw Carrot Raised Bed Boxes

 

Whenever Mr. Chocolate asks me "How did you think of THAT?" the answer is always the same: No clue. 

Just what my brain does. I found these straw carrots at Walmart the day after Valentine's when they were doing their switchout from Valentine's to Easter. I sometimes wish I was a pushier person because they were unboxing some cute bunny cloches but I didn't want to be that person so I figured "Oh I'll come back". WRONG. Anyhoo...

Back to the carrots. 

Supplies:

• Straw Carrots (Walmart)
• Wood Boxes (Dollar Tree)
• Floral Foam (Dollar Tree)
• Acrylic Paint (White)
• Ribbon and Paper Roses
• Moss Bunnies (Dollar Tree)
• Bamboo Skewers

To the stash closet Batgirl! I knew I had some paper roses and ribbon that would go perfectly with the idea that came from nowhere. Likewise, the wood boxes I knew I'd use for something that I'd picked up from the Dollar Tree. 

I have a bunch of those wood cubes from DT so I glued them to the bottom of each box. I then painted each box with one coat of white acrylic paint. I was going for a subtle contrast with the wood and left the cube "legs" bare. 

Once the boxes were painted I grabbed my ribbon and used hot glue and tacky glue to attach.

Then I trimmed the stems from the roses and attached with hot glue. 

Next, I cut the floral foam to fit and placed inside the boxes. I didn't glue these in so I can deconstruct or re-use if needed. 

I grabbed some bamboo skewers from the kitchen because why are they even there?! and inserted them into the bottom of the carrots, cracking myself up mimicking Arya from "Game of Thrones" saying "Stick 'em with the pointy end" but I digress. I then trimmed the skewers to size and stuck them into the foam. 

I had some moss left over from something which I used to cover the foam. 

To finish, I added a couple of moss bunnies from my stash. 

They're being guarded by the Greek Wrestler Chicks. 

Sharing At:

Creatively Crafty Linky Party #242

Spring and Easter: More Candy Holder Bunnies

 

Yes, I had more fun playing with candy holders from Dollar Tree! I almost called these "Velveteen Ribbon Rabbits" but then I thought about trying to say that three times fast without sounding like Elmer Fudd. 

Supplies:

• Bunny Shaped Candy Holders (Dollar Tree)
• Waverly No Prep Paint (Ballet Slipper)
• Ceramcoat Glitter Paint (Charm Pink)
• Sponge Applicator
• Velveteen Ribbon 
• Self Adhesive Rhinestones and Pearls
• Gold Foil (Non-heat reactive)

Used these candy holder containers from Dollar Tree and the Waverly and Ceramcoat paints. Apply the Waverly paint with a sponge applicator.

Once the containers are covered with the matte paint and it's dry, apply the glitter coat. 

I grabbed some gold foil from my stash (this is the kind that's not heat reactive, nor is it gold leaf...this just requires a tacky adhesive). I went over the raised portions of the bunny faces...ears, nose, whiskers. 

I lightly dry brushed white paint across the faces, and had some self-adhesive pink pearls and antique gold rhinestones in my embellishments so I used those for the eyes, nose and tongue as shown. 

To finish, I grabbed some white velveteen ribbon I picked up at Walmart after Christmas at 75% off and made bows, attached with hot glue as shown, and made hangers from black and gold baker's twine. 

I usually wait until something's finished before sharing but I'm showing my Bunny Tree as it evolves. I haven't decided if I'm adding eggs or not, and need a topper, but here it is as it stands now. 

Sharing At:

Creatively Crafty Link Party 

Spring and Easter: Black White and Gold Chickies

 

I mentioned in my Bunny Candy Holder to Ornament post that I also bought some Chick Candy Holders at Dollar Tree. I thought I was going to make these into ornaments too but I decided they were cuter free standing or placed in a basket. Mr. Chocolate thinks they look like ancient Greek Olympic wrestlers! 

Supplies

• Chick Egg Candy Holders (Dollar Tree)
• White No Prep Paint (Waverly)
• Gold Acrylic Paint (Craft Smart)
• Gold and Black Baker's Twine

Like the bunny version, they're cute as is. But we're Makers right? Does anything remain as is?!

Same process as the bunnies, I used a sponge spouncer to apply white Waverly no prep paint all over. 

Again, I didn't glue the two halves together since I knew I'd be wrapping something around them that would hold them. Yes, the eyes disappear but we'll take care of that!

I grabbed some black self adhesive rhinestones from my stash and added a drop of glue for extra stick. I used a small detail paint brush to paint the wings and feet gold. This took a couple of coats to cover the orange. It's also odd to me that Waverly makes a silver but I've been unable to find that they make a gold. 

I had this black and gold baker's twine in my stash that I thought worked well with these, picking up the god accents and the black eyes. I dabbed one end with glue to keep the fraying to a minimum, then wrapped as shown and did the same with the second end. 

For now, they're sitting on my entryway table until I finish my decorating and they may just stay where they are. Or not! 

Sharing At:

Inspire Me Tuesday

Creatively Crafty Link Party 

Repurposing: From Thrift Store Drawer to Serving Tray

 

Mr. Chocolate laughed at me when we were talking about the need for a serving tray to bring things from the kitchen to the patio. We've been eating outside since the weather's been nice. The reason he laughed is I said "Oh I'll go to the Jimmy Carter store" (aka the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store store) and look for something I can use. He said "Well, I was thinking of Amazon, but OK". Pffffftttttt.

I was originally thinking I'd use a cabinet door but they were all beveled and I wanted something flat. Right next to those were other things salvaged from the cabinets and they had a couple of shallow drawers. I said to myself "Self, even better because it has sides so things won't slide off" and the lady nearby looked at me like "There there dear" since I said it to myself out loud. 

Supplies:

• Shallow Drawer
• Handles
• No Prep Acrylic Paint (Waverly) and Sealer
• Dollar Tree Wallpaper Sheets

This is the drawer I got for $5! And they threw in the handles for free when I said what I planned to make! I want to go back because I saw this very cool large ornate frame I hope is still there. 

It came with the slides on so I removed them and being a good Maker, set them aside until my brain comes up with something to do with them or I'll donate them back because you never know what people are looking for.

I painted the bottom black with Craft Smart multi surface paint. 

Then, I painted the rest with Waverly No-Prep Acrylic paint in Truffle. The drawer was already lined with contact paper which I left on until I was done painting.

The contact paper pulled up easily leaving clean lines for my own lining. 

You know those Dollar Tree Wallpaper sheets? Enter those. I tried to line up the patterns since I had to use more than one sheet and let's face it, stuff's going on top of it so yes, the little seam shows but who cares!

Here's the tray fully lined. 

I don't seal every project but this one I did. I used the corresponding Waverly sealer which goes on milky and dries clear. The recommendation is to let it dry for 24 hours which I did, then buffed with a soft lint free cloth.

I used E-6000  glue to attach the handles. I'm not intending to carry really heavy things on this so I think that'll suffice. 

And now, Mr. Chocolate is a believer! 

Valentine's Decor: Tiered Jeweled Hearts Tray

 

When you're on a roll, keep rolling! I am in a groove on Valentine's projects and made some more ornaments using fillable plastic hearts. You can see my first set here. This time, I applied paint straight to the surface.  

Supplies:

• Fillable Plastic Hearts (Dollar Tree)
• All Surface Paint ( I used Waverly No Prep Chalk Paint)
• Ribbon
• Hot Glue
• Heart Shaped and Other Self-Adhesive Rhinestones

I decided to apply the paint directly to the surface of the hearts. This paint really does go on anything! I used a sponge spouncer to apply which distributes the paint evenly and without any streaks.

Apply the paint until each heart is covered.

I don't recommend having medical procedures that get you sent home with things like surgical tweezers or hemostats but if you happen to have them...they make great crafting tools! I use my hemostats regularly to hold things in place!

Once your hearts are painted the fun begins! I pulled out some ribbon from my stash and used hot glue wrap it around the hearts, and used more ribbon to make bows which I also glued to the tops.

I picked up these heart-shaped self-adhesive rhinestones at Dollar Tree and decided to use the two tones of pink. 

I placed three of them in the middle of each heart, then placed small self-adhesive rhinestones on the hearts as shown.

I was making them to use on a thrifted tiered tray I switch out seasonally.

And then I added some other hearts I'll post about this week! 

Sharing At:

Sundays on Silverado #234

Creatively Crafty Linky Party #235