BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve all! How are we already past the middle of January? Time is a trickster. One minute it seems like something that happened 10 years ago you think of as five. The next, the present flies by in a rush. I stay with the Dori mantra from "Finding Nemo": "Just keep swimming..."

Had fun making decorations for what has become my year round celebration tree which I shared in this post: Valentine's Decor: The Year Round Tree.  I was also excited to be featured in one of Hometalk's newsletters this week with this post: Valentine's Lanterns. If you're not a member of Hometalk (or their sister sites Upstyle Daily and Foodtalk) you should be! Lots of inspiration and even better, very informative and helpful support for bloggers! 

Lots of wonderful projects shared at last week's party as always, so let's take a look at a few!

Junk Journal shared this great Goodwill find and transformation into a wonderful sign! 

With Valentine's approaching, whip up a bunch of these GORGEOUS hearts shared by Crafts A La Mode. Did I mention they hold a little treat? 

Whether you're looking for an alternative to candy or just trying to be more organized, these Magnetic Sticky Note Holders from Keeping It Real are easy to make! 

Finally, if you need a decadent dessert idea for Valentine's Day (or anytime) you have to check out these Dark Chocolate Butterfinger Brownies with Butterfinger Frosting from Cindy's Online Recipe Box! 

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

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

>

Valentine's Decor: The Year Round Tree

 

Last year, I told Mr. Chocolate I'd ordered a "Halloween Tree" which prompted a sideways look. He figured I'd ordered a black Christmas tree (which I debated and still love for a Halloween tree) but some part of me must have known the future because I decided to go with a lighted cherry tree. At the time, it was intended to just be a Halloween tree and then once I had it up and decorated, guess who didn't want it to come down when Halloween was over? So it then became a Fall tree I decorated with layered paper leaves and silk Fall flowers. It went away for Christmas when the Christmas tree came out and when we were taking it down, guess who asked if the tree he'd given me a look about was coming back? I debated about doing generic Winter but then I knew I was going to want to do something for Valentine's day so I skipped ahead and made layered heart ornaments and decorated some clear acrylic ornaments for it. 

Supplies: 

• Cardstock
• Foam Tape and Foam Dots
• SVG file
• Digital Cutting Machine
• Acrylic Ornaments
• Adhesive Foil

The image I used was from Creative Fabrica (3d-layered-heart-21). 

I wanted to go with a non-traditional color palette and I decided on black white and gold so I grabbed those papers out of my stash. 

I imported the file into my Cricut Design Space software, sized and then cut each layer, repeating the color pattern: black white gold

You can see that each layer becomes more delicate bottom to top. I used foam tape on the less detailed layers, then switched to foam dots as they became more detailed. 

Black base layer then white layer.

Then gold layer and repeat with the remaining three layers. 

I'm so entranced by these layered cut files! I love how you can peek through them and the depth they create! Once I assembled all of the hearts ( I did 8 ) I added coordinating black and white ribbon with hot glue so I could hang them on my tree. 

I love the lights against the layers, especially at night. I also had some clear acrylic ornaments left over from Christmas projects and decided they'd be perfect with this version "the tree". 

I had some bright silver adhesive foil in my stash and used an image from Cricut Design Space for these. 

I did 9 of these and the foil is so easy to work with I didn't even bother with transfer tape and just removed the hearts from the carrier backing and placed on the ornaments. 

I saved the parts left behind because look at the cool pattern you can still play with! To finish these, I added some black and white twine. 

Sharing At:

BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve Creative Peeps! Hope your week has been a good, creative, and productive one. Finally got all the Christmas stuff dealt with and even stole a few minutes to make a new piece of Wall Art with a reminder that if not all, most things are "figureoutable". Next up will be unboxing my Cricut Maker 3 and playing with it. 

Lots of great ideas shared at last week's party as always so let's take a look at a few!

LOVE this repurposed and decoupaged travel case shared by Fresh Vintage by Lisa S. This is a great time of year for thrifting as people are cleaning things out for the New Year. 

Speaking of thrifting, Thrifting Wonderland shared what incredible pieces she found by thrifting. It can take patience and dedication but you can get some amazing pieces. 

Sew Crafty Crochet has the CUTEST idea just in time for Valentine's Day with this Sugar Cookies and Milk scarf  . Look at those milk bottles! 

Finally, this is the time of year when so many of us are re-committing to eating healthier and Pots and Planes has us covered with this delicious Peanut Butter and Cocoa Smoothie. 

As always, thank you to everyone who linked up and can't wait to see what you've been up to this week. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Home Decor: Easy Wall Sign

 

Finally found a few minutes to make something, my first real project of 2022. I saw a sign with this sentiment in an office and knew immediately I needed to make something with the sentiment. It doesn't always feel like this is true, but if not "everything" I think almost everything is "figureoutable". 

Supplies: 

• Wood Art Board
• Acrylic Paint
• Vinyl, Transfer Paper
• Digital Cutting Machine

I bought a bunch of these art boards sometime last year when they were on clearance at Target. Art Stores and Craft Stores sell similar. This is a simple project that requires only a little paint and some vinyl. I used Oracal silver, Black CraftSmart acrylic paint, and Cricut Transfer Tape. 

The first thing I did was paint my board, sides and front. 

I only did one coat because I didn't mind if some of the natural wood bled through but you can do more than one if you want. Just remember to let your paint dry thoroughly between coats. As I was waiting for my paint to dry, I created the sentiment in Cricut Design Space, then cut and weeded the vinyl. 

I used a Design Space font called "Annie Leu" and sized to fit my board. 

Weed the vinyl and then cut a piece of transfer tape to match the size.

When I first started working with vinyl ( and I am still FAR from a pro at it ) I was afraid to play with placement fearing it was going to stick and when I placed it it had to be perfect the first time. If your surface is truly dry ( eg paint ) you can lightly lay it on top and still be able to re-position it. I got it to where I was satisfied and then used my scraper tool to apply the needed pressure for the vinyl to stick. 

And done! On dark surfaces, I wipe with a dry cloth when done just to remove any smudges from applying the transfer tape. The wall I have it on doesn't allow for room to take a head on pic but I'm very happy with it! 

Easy Peasy! 

Sharing At: 

BFF Open House Happy New Year Edition 2022

 

Hope everyone had a peaceful and quiet New Year. Wish I could say the same. I am going to be honest and tell you I will never understand the abundance of fireworks sold here in the desert. I mean incendiary devices and dry brush...what could happen? Not to mention that it was traumatizing to the pets including our big girl who's generally unfazed by much. Yeah, I have opinions. 

I'm easing into the New Year creatively because I'm not yet able to get back to a routine but hopefully soon. I'm not someone who can create when other things and to dos are hanging over me. BUT, health and other circumstances willing...I hope 2022 is one of my most creative years ever so stay tuned! 

Let's take a look at some of the wonderful ideas shared at last week's party and again, thanks for sharing your creations here throughout 2021!

I am in LOVE with these Gumball Ornaments from Crafts A La Mode! There are still post-holiday deals to be had and picking up some clear ornaments would be a wonderful idea to make some of these for Valentine's Day. 

The house looks so naked once you take down all the Christmas decor so I'm always looking for fun ways to decorate for Winter. This Snowballs in a Jar idea from Coastal Bohemian is a great one, especially for people who live places (like me) that don't see snow! 

Artsy VaVa has got a really wonderful way to create a new House Number Sign. 

Finally, and let me say that Niky from House on Silverado knows how to spoil her husband because these King Crab Cakes she made had me wanting to crawl through the screen! I'm a bit of a crab cake fiend but since my husband is decidely NOT a a fan, I've not made them at home. A girl can dream though, right? Y U M ! 

Thanks to everyone who linked up and now let's see what you've been up to this week! 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter