BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve all! It's hard to believe that two weeks from now is the annual stretching of the pants day known as American Thanksgiving wherein we cook for two days to consume a meal in 20 minutes! It's tradition, and wouldn't have it any other way. I know it will be different for many this year, being unable to gather with all of the extended family so hopefully by next year that can return. 

In the meantime, let's take a look at some ideas from last week's party! 

Whether as an addition to your own decor or to make as a gift, Lisa, from Fresh Vintage by Lisa S has the cutest idea for a repurposed alarm clock. 

I think nothing makes a tablescape stand out better than having some depth. Stillettos and Shiplap shared how to make this fabulous table riser to take your festive tablescapes up a notch. 

If you're a jewelry maker and looking for a great gift idea ( or for yourself!) check out this beautiful Rope Necklace from Michelle at My Bijou Life.  She's got a step by step tutorial. 

Finally, from The House on Silverado, check out these decadent and delicious looking Milk Chocolate Toffee Shortbread Bars! I can't stop staring at them.  

Now let's see what everyone's been up to this week! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Holiday 2020: Peppermint Crackle Framed Printable (Plus Hanukkah Printables)

 

Happy Hump Day Makers! Excited to show you how I used one of the Christmas Printables I shared yesterday and below, you'll find some Hanukkah themed ones I also made. 

Supplies: 

• Frame. New, Thrifted, or Stash. Mine was one I had on hand
• Acrylic Paints. I used Apple Barrel Bright Red and Craftsmart White
• White Glue. I used Elmer's
• Painter's Tape
• Printable

The frame I used has a beveled inner edge and I decided that I would leave the outer edge black so I taped this off using painters tape. Painted the remaining exposed frame with the Bright Red. This took a couple of coats. You can make this completely opaque with additional coats but since I was going for a crackle finish, I was fine with some of the black streaks showing through. 

Next you'll apply a medium coat of white glue. This is the same process I used for some Halloween Girlfriend Gifts so you can click here for the detailed instructions.  

The key here is to have your brush strokes go in the same direction. When your glue is not fully dry, brush on the white paint in the same brush stroke direction as your glue. 

You will see the crackles start to form as the paint dries or you can speed it up with a warm ( not hot ) blow dryer. DO NOT USE A HEAT / EMBOSSING GUN. Your paint will bubble.  Once your top coat is dry, remove the painter's tape. 

Here you can see the remaining black outer edge of the frame. 

I imported my printable into my graphics program, sized accordingly and printed on a transparency. You can also print on paper. I chose a sheet of cardstock from the White Satin paper pad by Recollections (Michaels) that wouldn't be too busy behind my transparency but still give it a little more depth if that makes sense! Trim transparency and cardstock to fit inside your frame. 

Et voila!

As I mentioned above, I also made some similar Printables for Hanukkah!

Hanukkah

Dreidel

Menorah

Holiday 2020: Free Typewriter Font Printables

 

It's Holiday Maker Season!!! To start things off, I am sharing some quick printables I made. Printables are still for me the easiest way to change  up your decor for only the cost of a frame and most of us already have tons of those on hand right? 

Please feel free to use. I didn't watermark the images and while not a requirement, would appreciate a link back if you use! I also would LOVE to see how you use them! They're sized 8x10. To download, click on image then right click to save as. Enjoy!

Happy Merry Christmas

Happy Merry Joy

Happy Merry Peace

Fall Decor: Rustic Silk Leaves and Feathers Wreath

 

Happy Monday all! We in America move full speed ahead to our national day of thanks and gluttony and I've finished the last of the things I'll make ( I think ) for this short season between Halloween and Christmas. Anxious to get started on some Christmas goodies so be on the lookout! 

Also humbled and excited to have been again featured in the Hometalk weekly newsletter last week! They included my Plastic Egg Acorns and Pinecones and I couldn't be more tickled. If you aren't on Hometalk, you should check it out both as a place to share your creations and to find even more inspiring ideas! 

Supplies:

• Square Wreath Form. I actually had some inserts from 12x12 shadow box frames that I used but you  could also use a square frame. 
• Silk Leaves (Michaels 80% off)
• Twig Vase Fillers (Dollar Tree)
• Feathers ( Michaels)
• Hot Glue Gun and Glue Sticks

From left to right: Shadow Box Frame Inserts, Silk Leaves, Dollar Tree Birch Stumps and Twigs

The frame inserts are not the sturdiest so I glued two of them together to stabilize them. The silk leaves I found for 80% off at Michaels. I used two packages of 30 with a few left over.

These came in two sizes, the larger having some gold veining and the smaller being plain. I alternated these around the wreath. Pretty straightforward. After I glued the leaves around the frame I placed a few of the birch "stumps" , offset, "because I did" which is a technical creative term!

I have a ton of these twigs left over so may save them for next year or throw them in a vase. 

I grouped three feathers (Michaels, Art Minds or Creatology) at the base of each "stump", then added some of the twigs. 

To finish, I had some of these Acrylic Gem Maple Leaves in my stash from a past project so glued a few of those on. Living in the West, this may be another thing I leave up year round. Haven't decided yet. We don't have specifically "Western" decor but I like some bits here and there. 

Et voila!

BFF Open House

 

Welp! Happy N O V E M B E R all! We are in full production mode from here through Christmas right? And while it seems like 2020 has been one long month, the next two actual months are busy busy busy even though the number of people we host may be reduced. So let's take a look at some great ideas shared at last week's party to get some additional inspiration. 

While I don't love pumpkin, I do love PUMPKINS! The kind you make, paint, decorate etc. And Fabric Pumpkins are both a great way to use up scraps and add to your festive decor. Hello Sewing has a fabulous pattern and tutorial to whip up a few new ones. 

If you're whipping up say, some Hot Cocoa neighbor gifts, why not throw in a few coasters for the mugs like these No Sew Buffalo Plaid Coasters from Satsuma Designs? 

When you're ready to wrap presents, you'll want this fabulous Paper Bow shared by Priyam from Simple Joys. 

Finally, knowing how many pumpkin lovers there are, these Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Muffins from The House on Silverado just HAD to be shared! 

Thank you as always to everyone who linked up and now let's see what you've all been up to this week! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Fall Decor: Leather and Feather Hoop Wreath

Happy November everyone! Or as I like to call it , the eighth month of "Marchvember" because...2020. I hope you all had a safe Halloween, and now we Americans gear up Thanksgiving, our annual gluttonous feast which for many will be a little different this year. 

I think I tell this story every year, but when my son was little he got VERY frustrated that things went from Halloween to Christmas while Thanksgiving seemed to be treated as an afterthought. So trying to be a good mom, I made sure to decorate sufficiently for Thanksgiving month! When he left for college and wasn't going to be able to come home for Thanksgiving, he made sure that I kept the tradition which went without saying! During undergrad and grad school we've been lucky to get him for a few weeks at Christmas so ironically, he's never even here for Thanksgiving decorating makes me feel like he's here. 

I found these Mum bushes at JoAnn for 80% off which were the inspiration for this wreath. 

Supplies: 

• Silk Mums 
• Embroidery Hoop (10 ")
• Feathers
• Leather Scraps
• Glue Gun and Glue Sticks

I had the feathers on hand from Michaels for a project I thought I was going to do last year. I decided to use the spotted ones. Pheasant, I think? 

The leather scraps were a happy accident. Before we moved from Seattle, my husband wanted to check out a store that made a lot of their own leather goods. I went with and they had these bags of scraps for sale. When he said "She makes things" they gave me one free! You can find bags of scraps at craft stores or check around if there are places that make leather goods. You never know! 

The first step was to cut the "mum head" from one of your bushes, and hot glue it to the bottom center of your wreath. I used the claspy thing at the top as a guideline. 

The next step is to add your feathers. I pulled ones from the pack that more or less went the same direction and laid them out on each side before gluing. Once I was good with the way they looked, I hot glued them to the hoop on either side of the center mum and then trimmed the stems. 

For the leaves, I just grabbed some similar sized scraps and freehand cut leaf shapes. Glued these atop the feathers, and then in the space between the leaves and the center mum, add the contrasting colored mums on either side. 

To finish, I made a "bow" of leather strips that were in my scraps. If you don't have these, you can cut your own from other straps, use leather cord, ribbon, yarn...

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