mad in crafts

Pantry Progress

2012-01-27T07:46:00.001-05:00

Warning: This is not a glamorous post. If you are looking for glamour, maybe go check out some of the past weeks’ awards show dresses.

My word for 2012 is PROGRESS, and this week I made some progress on the mind-numbingly chaotic closets in my home. While my 4-year-old was at preschool, I tackled the pantry.

Our pantry isn’t in our kitchen, it is in our downstairs hallway. It provides good storage space, but, since it is so centrally-located in the main living area of our home, it also became a dumping ground for anything that was left lying around.

Whenever my son had a toy taken away from him for misuse (moms of boys, you know how often that happens), it went in the toy graveyard at the top of the pantry. And then I would forget about them.

Our non-perishable foods were jammed onto the shelves in whatever way would allow the door to close. The paper products that I bought for birthday parties and other get-togethers were literally spilling out onto the floor when I opened the pantry door.

And, then there were the plastic grocery bags.

Why? Why are there so many?

Something had to be done. I pulled out my IKEA step stool and began unloading.

Even if your closets aren’t as dire as mine was, there is still a good reason to reorganize. You might discover that you are a battery and/or light bulb hoarder! I didn’t know that I was until this morning. I am pretty sure we have batteries in every letter of the alphabet.

Since these items were randomly chucked into this pantry, I had no idea how many we actually had, so I just kept buying more. Shameful. Well, in five years when my current florescent bulbs finally die, I have plenty of backups.

A few trips back and forth to the kitchen, and the pantry was empty. Isn’t it lovely?

I pulled ALL of these non-food items from the pantry. Is it any wonder things kept falling on my head in there?

Here is the rest of the haul, minus several pieces of junk/toys/garbage that I threw in the trash where they belonged.

And here it is, reorganized and happy.

The food is all on eye-level now, so it is easier to take a quick survey of what we have and what we need.

I bought the green bins from the Dollar Spot at Target, but Dollar Tree also has bins to choose from. They will keep the non-perishables corralled into like groups, and I can slide one out at a time to look for a specific item.

I weeded out the excess battery packaging and separated the batteries into food storage bags according to size. All the bags then got combined into a larger zipper bag left from a set of twin sheets or something. I always save those bags because they are useful all over the house.

I dug up an empty baby wipes container and shoved in a good amount of plastic grocery bags. The container keeps them from falling all over the pantry, and I can easily pull one out at a time. Plus, Pooh and Piglet are cute.

Now each shelf has a specific function. Plastic bags shall not mix with glassware; food will not fraternize with paper plates.

Now, this is not one of the glamorous pantries that you see in home design magazines with decanted pasta and vintage chalkboard labels. But it is progress.

Baby steps towards perfection.

DIY Faux Bois Mirrors

2012-01-25T09:16:00.000-05:00

The old becomes new: Refreshing a traditional décor piece, a hung mirror, by adding a trendy faux bois pattern using a modern technique.

I created these mirrors for the Hardware Challenge for Season 9 of So You Think You’re Crafty. They didn’t quite gather enough votes to push me into the finale, but I think they are a lovely addition to our living room.

We have had an empty spot over our couch since we moved in. I didn’t want to hang anything too visually “heavy” there because our curtained windows already take up a lot of visual space. I thought a quartet of mirrors would be cool in that spot since they would mimic the shape of the windows.

I wanted to add a pattern to the mirrors so that they weren’t so stark and cold-looking. I decided to apply a faux bois (fake wood) pattern for a few reasons: 1) I love it SO much, 2) it matches nicely with the other botanical elements in my living room, and 3) it is very simple to do!

To make faux mirrors, you will need:

mirror (s)

painter’s tape or contact paper

exacto knife

permanent marker

Martha Stewart Glass Etch medium

foam brush

3M frame strips

Please forgive my weird/yucky pictures in this tutorial. Taking picture of mirrors is hard!

If you are using multiple mirrors like I did, set them up in the configuration you will use when you mount them on the wall. Even if you plan to leave space between them when they are hung, do not leave any gaps now.

You can tell this is an old project by the autumn leaves on my kitchen chandelier!

You can see in this picture that I had completely done one mirror tile from start to finish as a test tile to make sure this project worked!

To make a single-use stencil for your mirrors, first tape off the mirrors with painter’s tape or cover them with contact paper. Then draw a simple wood grain pattern on them using a thick-tipped permanent marker. I used an online image of a faux bois pattern as a visual guide and then freehanded it.

NOTE: If you have a cutting machine, you may be able to cut a faux bois pattern out of vinyl or contact paper, instead of using painter’s tape. In that case, skip down a few pictures to learn how to achieve the frosted glass effect.

Next, use an exacto knife to trace both sides of each line. You don’t need to be perfectly precise with your tracing, so it doesn’t take all that much time. Then peel each line of faux bois pattern off.

After all the lines are removed it will look something like this.

I prefer to use Martha Stewart’s Frost Etching Effect medium to traditional etching solution. This is not caustic at all, and if you make a mistake, you have a bit of time where you can wash it off with water and try again. For the same final look as etching solution, this is much more forgiving!

Apply a liberal layer of the frost etching medium over the entire mirror.

When you peel all off the tape, your etched faux bois pattern will be revealed.

Here is the whole set after the etching medium had dried. You can just barely see my right hand and part of my camera at the bottom there. Mirrors are so hard to photograph!!!

Instead of the headache of positioning a million mirror brackets, I hung these mirror tiles with heavy-duty 3M strips. I followed the directions carefully and the mirrors are still hanging after several months; no mirrors crashing to the floor yet -- knock on faux wood!

I love the contrast of the sleek, frameless mirrors and the nature-inspired faux bois pattern. With this technique, you can easily replace the faux bois for animal print, stripes, chevron, whatever design you like best!

The mirrors have a lovely custom-made look to them. Plus, they are useful for checking to see if I have any food in my teeth on my way out the door!

Mad Skills Party #87

2012-01-22T21:50:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 87th Mad Skills Link Party!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

For the Mad Skills party, as usual you can link up a post, old or new, to share with other readers. The only rule for the party is that the post MUST BE A TUTORIAL. The tutorial can be written, pictorial, or a combination of the two, but it should be a project or a process that another crafter would be able to replicate. Any Mad Skill level, from novice to advanced, is welcome!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

Rustic Winter Wreath

2012-01-19T07:31:00.001-05:00

The old becomes new: Elements from two past projects are combined to make a new front door wreath.

I am really liking my new rustic winter wreath, tongue twister that it is. Using only items from my stash, I made and hung it in less than 10 minutes!

First, I removed the yo-yo flowers from my Easy Summer Wreath which left me with a rustic-looking, twine-wrapped dollar store wreath form.

Then I dug out the Glittery Resin Snowflakes I made last summer using Envirotex Lite resin. The snowflakes already had hanging ribbon built-in, so attaching them to the wreath was a breeze.

I found some lace trim in my stash and used straight pins to attach it to the foam wreath in a sort of diagonal swag. Then I used more straight pins to pin the snowflakes in place. I hung it from the door hanger and that was all it took!

It is amazing how a bright summer wreath and some modern-looking resin ornaments can combine to make this feminine, textural wreath. Don’t be afraid to look at décor items you already have and reinvent them into something new!

Uncensored

2012-01-18T09:04:00.001-05:00

Some of you may be wondering why there is a big black censored bar over the MiC header this morning. Today many websites are blacking out or otherwise participating in a protest against the SOPA and PIPA bills that have been introduced to Congress.

If you are unfamiliar with these bills, this video gives an accessible overview of the bills and their consequences.

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

Mad in Crafts would likely be affected if these bills become law. If I am even suspected of having links that infringe on copyrighted material OR if I am found not to be “doing enough” to prevent copyright infringement, the blog could be shut down, or worse.

Do I think the internet will come crashing down if these bills go through? Probably not. But I am generally not a fan of giving the government more intrusive power, especially when it comes to my First Amendment rights. Online piracy is a problem that needs to be dealt with, but these bills are not the answer.

If you would like to contact your representative in regards to the SOPA/PIPA bills, American Censorship has a simple form to send a message urging him or her to vote against the bills.

MiC’s Word of 2012

2012-01-17T07:40:00.001-05:00

For those of you who know me in real life, this revelation might not come as much of a shock. If I can’t do something completely and well right away, I get frustrated and stop trying. Sometimes I am so determined to get a project done just how I want it that I set limitations on myself to motivate me: no dinner till it’s right or no sleep till it’s done.

I have a feeling these quirks account for my failed attempts at several crafting mediums (crochet, needlepoint, stamping, scrapbooking, etc.) and the fact that several complicated projects I have wanted to try have never even been started.

This year I am going to try to embrace the baby step, which is why I chose the word PROGRESS as my 2012 Word of the Year. Isn’t it just like an English teacher to chose a word that serves as both a noun and a verb to do an end run around the one-word rule?

This year I will strive to progress in my skills sets and make progress on my to-do list. Here are some of the places I want to make progress this year:

I want to turn “I don’t know how to sew” into “I can sew straight lines.”

“My closets are unholy messes” will become “I can find what I really need without serious head injury.”

I want to replace “I have done NO decorating in the master bedroom” with “I hung something on the wall in master bedroom today.”

“I have never had my work published” can change to “I will research publishing contacts.”

“The manual settings on my camera terrify me” should become “Now I know what that P stands for.”

Some of this progress might lead to more progress and some of it might stall out immediately. Sometimes making progress will mean settling for not-quite-right or only halfway finished. And that will be hard for me.

But I don’t want to let not being able to get it exactly right keep me from not being able to get it started.

Linking to The Lettered Cottage.

Mad Skills Party #86

2012-01-16T08:14:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 86th Mad Skills Link Party!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

A Picture Perfect Mantle

2012-01-12T07:31:00.000-05:00

The old becomes new: An old Polaroid camera and carrying case get a new life as sentimental living room décor.

After packing away my Christmas decorations, I enjoyed the tidiness of empty table tops and shelves for one whole day before I got back to decorating. I left a few snowflakes hanging around the house as a nod to the season, but I stepped away from the winter theme everywhere else.

My mom let me take my grandfather’s 1960s Polaroid camera when we found it as we sorted through items for her last garage sale.

For all I know, the camera may still work. The case held extra flash bulbs and unused film. Yes, kiddos, cameras used to require FILM. Look it up.

I decided to set up my “mantle” using the camera and the case as the main focus.

I could get all poetic on you and tell you that the clock symbolizes both the dawn of a new year and the relentless passage of time, whilst the vintage camera serves as a stark reminder to capture and preserve memories before they pass. And also there were some pears.

But, the truth is that I just think my grandpa’s old camera is really cool and the case is super stylish. And I needed something to put on top of the case, and the pears are just what I grabbed from my stash.

I added a few more decorative items around the room that have a sort of shabby, vintage feel to them. And this makes me feel very conflicted.

Normally “shabby” and “vintage” are decorating buzz words like make my nose wrinkle. But I am actually kind of liking the way things look.

Before you know it, I will be covering the back of my couch with doilies and painting everything Heirloom White.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. :)

Quick $1 Snowflake Table Runner

2012-01-08T23:03:00.001-05:00

Christmas is over, and the tree is down. One of the ways I make sure that I can enjoy some of my decorations for a while after Christmas (and not have to stress about taking them down right away) is to incorporate several generic Winter-themed decorations in with my full-on Christmas décor.

This year’s abundance of snowflakes and candy canes made for decorations that I will be able to leave up for a few months yet. If you are looking for quick, easy, and inexpensive transitional decorations, this table runner fits the bill!

To make a dollar store snowflake table runner, you will need:

a package of 6 foam snowflakes from Dollar Tree

stapler

staples

All I did to make this small runner was to lay the snowflakes out in a design I liked and that fit my small side table. Then, I stapled the snowflakes together wherever they touched. 1-2-3, and I had a wintery table runner.

If you were making a runner for a dining room table, you could either use two packages of snowflakes (for a whopping cost of $2) or make a single line of flakes running the length of the table.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and that you are richly blessed in the new year!

Mad Skills Party #85

2012-01-08T22:16:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 85th Mad Skills Link Party!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

On Break

2012-01-02T18:48:00.001-05:00

You have probably noticed that there is no Mad Skills party this week. Don’t fear! I am taking a little blogging break to relax and recover from the holidays (and clean my house – ugh).

Regular posts, including the Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party, will return next week Monday. Have a great week!

Painted Mug Gifts

2011-12-29T08:27:00.001-05:00

I did a lot more handmade gifts this year than I have in the past. Since my son is four now, he is a great helper with little projects which made for some special, sentimental gifts.

With some inexpensive mugs and Martha Stewart’s new craft paints we made a few varieties of mug gifts for family and friends. These are the same paints Plaid sent me to try and that I used for my Baker’s Rack Revamp and my Snarky Christmas Canisters (disclosure HERE). I use these paints all the time!

Since the new Martha paints from Plaid are top-rack dishwasher safe, these are actually usable mugs. The directions say to first wipe the surface of the dishware with rubbing alcohol and then to let the paint cure for a few weeks before using. No baking or heat-setting necessary!

We used the same technique that we used for the Finger Painted Lyric Art on the mugs we made for my parents. My son calls my parents “Guy” and “Gi,” so I applied those names on the mugs with dollar store wall decal letters. Then I let my son go to town on the mugs with the paints. The MS paints are also non-toxic, so they are safe for little ones to use.

After he was finished I peeled the wall decals off to reveal the names in the negative space! I should have peeled the stickers off a bit sooner. The paint had already begun to dry, so some of the paint peeled off around the edges. Live and learn.

He also painted a mug for his preschool teacher. Her whole name wouldn’t fit on the mug, so he just painted freestyle. We packaged the mug up with some chocolates and instant Starbucks coffee (which is the best instant I have ever had – and nobody’s paying me to say that!).

While he was busy painting those mugs, I made up a special mug for my cousin’s husband Mathew (yes, only one “t”). He is a mustache-enthusiast, so I painted him a “Matstache” mug. Silly, and fairly simple.

I made versions of these Christmas ornaments for the ladies in family and packaged them up with some easy t-shirt circle scarves. I completely forgot to take pictures of any of them though. Oops.

Are you a handmade gift maker or a store-bought gift giver?

Top 10 Projects of 2011

2011-12-28T07:09:00.002-05:00

“Everything old can be new again.”

The new tagline for Mad in Crafts certainly applied to all of my favorite posts of 2011. By either combining classic styles with modern trends or upcycling old pieces to give them new life, all of the projects embody the new focus of Mad in Crafts.

Here, in ascending order, are my favorite posts of the year. Click on the photo or the link to be taken to the original post. Enjoy!

#10 - Upcycled Hanging Lanterns

Made from broken solar stake lights and battery-powered dollar store tea lights, these hanging lanterns provided pretty ambiance to our backyard campfires this summer.

COST: $1 for 3 lanterns

#9 - Snarky Christmas Canisters

I was inspired by a sold-out set of Jonathon Adler canisters and used Martha Stewart’s new line of craft paints to create these silly Christmas canisters which hold the three food groups of the holidays: carbs, candy, and calories!

COST: $1 per canister

#8 - Chevron Stage Floor Wall Art

The salvaged floor slats from my high school’s old stage floor became an architectural piece of wall art in this project. Sentimental and beautiful.

COST: Under $10

#7 - Finger Painted Song Lyric Art

My son and I collaborated on these keepsake poster boards. We used dollar store materials and our creativity to make art based on a favorite song.

COST: Under $10 (with lots of leftover materials)

#6 - Fall Color-Inspired IKEA Lamp

My first trip to IKEA resulted in this table lamp/modern vase that I then painted in ombre colors inspired by the fall leaves in my hometown.

COST: $8

#5 - Typographical Globe with Upcycled Pedestal

My first ode to typography, my thrift store globe and ugly brass lamp were transformed into a quirky art piece for the living room.

COST: Under $15

#4 - Upcycled House Number Art

I scored some great deals at my local ReStore and turned them into some modern art for my hallway.

COST: $7

#3 - Vintage Camera Tripod Floor Lamp

My grandfather’s camera tripod got a new life as a stylish floor lamp with some bits and bobs from the hardware store. It is now my favorite piece in our living room!

COST: Under $10

#2 - $6 Cabrillo Nailhead Chest Knockoff

The tutorial for my knockoff of a pricy Bernhardt table was published on Décor Hacks and featured on The TODAY Show as one of their Top 10 DIY Style projects!

COST: $6

#1 - Faux Bronze Animal Bookends

Easily my most popular tutorial ever, these dollar store toys turned bookends were featured on numerous design blogs, including Apartment Therapy and Ohdeedoh.

COST: $4 per pair

MAD IN CRAFTS TOP POSTS – via Google Analytics:
10. PB-Inspired Goodwill Lamp
9. Baker’s Rack Revamp
8. Envirotex Glittery Snowflake Ornaments
7. Typographical Globe with Upcycled Pedestal
6. Dollar Store Gold-Leafed Pumpkin
5. Free Kitchen Décor
4. Dollar Store Solar Lights Turned Lamppost
3. Melted Crayon Art Display
2. Upcycled House Number Art
1. Faux Bronze Animal Bookends

I had a spectacular year and hope you did as well. Thank you so much for being a part of the success of Mad in Crafts. God’s blessings as we start 2012!

Linking to:

It’s Overflowing

Delightfully Noted

StyleMint T Shirts

2011-12-27T10:00:00.002-05:00

This post brought to you by StyleMint. All opinions are 100% mine.

Have you heard of StyleMint? It is another of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s fashion endeavors, designed to offer stylish and affordable T Shirts to members.

Membership is free, and once you join you take a fun quiz to help the site narrow down determine your style. Then they will suggest certain tees based on your answers. The computer pumped out this look as my Top Pick.

While I probably wouldn’t be brave enough to pair these two pieces together, I do like the way the cool wash updates the classic fit of the tee.

You know I had to pick this style, didn’t you?

Each shirt’s page has a short video explaining the design of the piece as well as a brief Editor’s Note where Mary-Kate and Ashley suggest ways to style the shirt.

For instance, for the Michigan tee they suggest:

Pair the cabernet T with high waist silk shorts and a chunky heel. Accessorize with a large colored pendant.
Wear the charcoal grey T with a Navajo inspired harem pant and pair with a nude peep toe bootie. Add color with turquoise jewelry.

The cool thing about the site is that there are new designs every month, but there is a limited quantity of each style so they might sell out before you get to them. At $29.99 per shirt, the pricing is slightly higher than what I would normally pay for an “everyday” shirt, but I like that there is free shipping on your order.

If you are a first time StyleMint shopper, use the code SMSS15 and receive 15% off your order.

Mad Skills #84

2011-12-26T07:57:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 84thMad Skills Link Party!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

God Bless Your Christmas!

2011-12-24T15:34:00.001-05:00

God’s richest blessings to you and your families as we celebrate the birth of God’s Son, the Savior!

Temporary “Frosted” Window

2011-12-22T09:09:00.001-05:00

I haven’t given up on my Bathroom Project, even though you have not heard any updates recently. My Christmas projects have been occupying most of my time, but I am still frequently pondering what to do with that mess of a bathroom.

Your pins on the Bathroom HELP! Pinterest board have been a great source of inspiration. Keep those ideas coming! I hope to do some actual work on the bathroom in the new year.

In the meanwhile, I devised a temporary solution to the ugly window treatment issue. If you remember, the bathroom has a window that lets in wonderful natural light, but because it is on the ground floor we can’t open the mini blinds without losing our privacy.

A frosted window would be ideal in the bathroom, but since we are renting we can’t make permanent changes like that. Fortunately the dollar store helped me with a temporary solution… snow in a can! I found the pressurized cans of faux snow in the aisle with Dollar Tree’s other seasonal decorations and snatched up two cans right away.

I wanted to add a snowflake element to my “frosted” windows to tie them in with the rest of my Christmas décor. I used masking tape to hold a foam snowflake in place in the corner of the window.

I sprayed the bottom half of the window liberally with the snow in a can and removed the foam snowflake. The fake snow spray took a while to dry, so in the meantime I wiped the window frame down to remove the rogue snow.

I really like the “frosted” results. Not only does it allow the natural light into the room, but it adds a bit of design into that horrendous room. After winter is over, the can says I can wash the faux snow off with soap and water, so no permanent harm done!

Do you have any great tips for redoing a room in a rental? Share them on my Bathroom HELP! Pinterest board!

Homemade Painted Cinnamon-Applesauce Ornaments

2011-12-20T07:27:00.001-05:00

My mom had the good idea to make cinnamon-applesauce ornaments with my 4 year old this year. The process is fun and messy and smells delicious, just as all good Christmas kitchen traditions should!

If you are looking for a fun and memorable activity now that your kids are off for Christmas break, give these easy ornaments a try!

All you need to make the ornaments are cinnamon and applesauce. Some recipes call for glue as well, but I am not sure it is really necessary. For every 4.25 ounce bottle of cinnamon, you will need to add 3/4 cup of applesauce. Be sure to have extra cinnamon on hand to “flour” the dough to make it less sticky.

TIP: I bought my cinnamon at Dollar Tree which saved a bunch of money.

Dump out all the lovely cinnamon. Give it a second to settle before you inhale the lovely scent; coating your lungs with airborne cinnamon might ruin your ornament-making experience.

Mix the two ingredients together until it forms a ball. It takes a little while, so be patient. Sing a carol or something.

If your dough seems too dry or crumbly, mist it with a little bit of water. We also found that the dough is easier to work with if you let it sit for a few minutes before you roll it out.

Roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness. If the dough sticks to the rolling pin, dust the dough with more cinnamon.

I am so bummed this picture ended up being blurry! Cut the ornaments out using cookie cutters, and use a spatula to transfer them onto a cookie sheet. Use a drinking straw to punch a hole near the top so the ornaments can be hung from ribbon or wire later.

You can either let the ornaments air dry overnight, or do like we did and bake them in a 200 degree oven for 2 hours.

Once the ornaments are dried, you can use regular craft paint to decorate them. The ornaments will absorb a little of the paint since they are so dry. You may need more than one coat to get a really bold color.

We also used glitter glue from Dollar Tree to decorate the ornaments. I hope my son used enough on this tree ornament….

My son really liked painting with the glitter. :P

My mom decorated this ornament with craft paint and glitter glue.

Side note: See those rough edges on the bottom? According to some sources, you can take a nail file and lightly sand that excess off. I don’t think we even bothered.

I put a coat of Martha Stewart Glitter Finish medium over this whole ornament which gave it a glittery shine.

I gave this star a thick coat of Martha Stewart Glitter Texture. I love the snowy look it has!

Here’s a sampling of some of our colorful ornaments. The best part is that, even though we painted them, they still smell like cinnamon. So yummy!

I wired some of the ornaments to a wreath of greenery and then wrapped it in the pompom yarn I used on my Christmas tree this year.

My son informed me that this was an Angry Birds bird.

There is the Glitter Texture ornament all dried. It really sparkles in the light.

The Glitter Finish medium coated ornament has more of a multi-colored sparkle, which is perfect for a decorated tree ornament.

In case you were wondering, that bell does ring every time we open and close the door. It’s like we are living in some little shop.

I threaded a few more of the glitter glue ornaments onto the same pompom yarn and draped it on my baker’s rack near my Screen Printed Bow and my Snarky Christmas Canisters.

I like the idea that every Christmas we can unpack these ornaments and remember all the fun we had making them together!

Do you have a favorite family Christmas tradition?

Mad Skills Party #83

2011-12-18T22:18:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 83rd Mad Skills Link Party!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

Bling-y Christmas Throw Pillow on Décor Hacks

2011-12-16T08:15:00.001-05:00

Pop over to Décor Hacks this morning to see how I used Tulip’s Shimmer Sheets to make this bling-y throw pillow to add to my Christmas decorations!

Winter Birthday Food

2011-12-15T07:46:00.001-05:00

I am a dork when it comes to… well, most things… but especially planning theme parties. When I decided on a Winter/Snowman theme for my son’s party, I started scouring the web for meal ideas. There were more than enough dessert ideas, but not a lot in the way of actual dinner food.

I wanted the meal to be easy to prepare but still carry out the Winter theme, so I created a “Build Your Own Snowman” meal. I took the easy way out and bought frozen meatballs and mashed potatoes from Gordon Food Service. I was shocked at how good the potatoes were! The small ears of corn were the frozen, steam-in-the-bag kind and the carrots were the pre-washed, bagged baby carrots. Modern conveniences are great.

I set up an easy beverage bar with 2-liters of pop decorated in dollar store Christmas socks. I heated up a pot of hot water in the coffee maker so that guests could stir up a cup of hot chocolate, with caramel flavor and whipped cream if they liked!

I made some marshmallow straws by stabbing Dollar Tree hard plastic straws into large marshmallows and dipping them in Wilton candy melts and crushed candy canes. They were very tasty, but kind of messy since the marshmallows kept trying to float to the top of the cups!

Each bowl of food got a cute sign made from dollar store cards and gift tags. For more on the table decorations, you can read my Winter Party Decorations post.

I made my notorious Christmas crack for the party, but substituted crushed pretzels for the club crackers. So. Good.

I totally Sandra Dee’d the cookies for the party. Both types of cookies were made from Pillsbury refrigerated cookie dough, Peppermint Sugar and Gingerbread.

I dipped the peppermint cookies in Wilton candy melts and crushed candy canes. I cut the gingerbread cookies out using cutters from DT and then used red and white striped Wilton frosting in a tube to decorate them.

My family has a thing about Little Debbie’s Christmas Tree Cakes… in that we LOVE them! Two of my cousins and I have a standing contest that whoever is the first to find them in the grocery store, and sends a photo message to the other two, wins. My cousin Mollie ALWAYS finds them first. I think she found them in October this year!

My husband’s family has a tradition of buying ice cream cakes for birthdays, so I tried my hand at making one for the party. Now I know why they cost so much to buy at the store. They are messy and time-consuming!

I used this DQ knock-off recipe using peppermint and chocolate ice cream. It tasted fantastic, but I won’t be rushing to make another one soon. Oh, and since I can’t get through a birthday party without a cake frosting incident, the first layer of whipped cream frosting was so wonky I had to re-cover the whole thing in spray whipped cream. It ended up looking kind of ruffled and pretty, but again… messy.

A few weeks back, I found a box on my doorstep from the good folks at Martha Stewart Crafts. Martha must have been reading my mind because in with the other fun goodies were these red and white, snowflake-themed treat boxes. The package included 6 matchbox-style boxes, snowflake tissue paper, ribbon, and tag stickers. All in impeccable Martha quality, of course.

The boxes were the perfect favor to send home with guests (and to get rid of some of the mountain of sugar treats we had leftover!).

To learn more about the party decor, read my Winter Party Decorations post!

Winter Party Decorations

2011-12-13T07:17:00.002-05:00

I had fun playing with the Holiday effects on Picnik for these birthday party posts. I hope it doesn’t bother you!

Last year, we waited until after my son’s December birthday to put up our Christmas goodies, but it was a bummer to have to wait so long to put up all our favorite decorations. This year we decided on a birthday party theme that was a win-win for everyone.

My son LOVES Christmas and snow and Christmas lights and Christmas music and Christmas treats and…. So, I decided to embrace his close-to-Christmas birthday with a Winter Birthday Party! I pulled together a party with a traditional red, white and green color scheme and candy canes and snowmen galore!

I sent this invitation from Punchbowl to all the guests. Punchbowl, like Evite, is a fun online way to send out invitations, but the Punchbowl invites are animated and come with their own virtual envelope! Punchbowl also offers more in terms of customization: fonts, envelope liners, etc.

I was glad to be able to put the Christmas tree up early again this year, since technically we could count it as part of the party decorations.

I wrapped up some of the pictures around the house in peppermint-themed wrapping paper from Dollar Tree. The sparkly ornament on the middle present is also from DT.

I spruced up (Get it?) our ugly kitchen light fixture with some greenery and more wrapping paper. I just removed the glass shades, traced them onto wrapper paper, taped the paper on, and hung them back up. I like the change the paper made so much, I may swap out the Christmas paper for something else after the season is done.

When my mom offered me some of my grandmother’s old Christmas decorations, I was stoked to find these adorable mugs in a box. They aren’t safe to drink out of, but they are super cute, and the right colors, to display on my baker’s rack.

The baker’s rack held decorations and spare sweet treats for the birthday party. My Snarky Christmas Canisters fit right in with the party décor too!

To make the pop bottles a little more festive, I cut the feet off of a pair of Christmas socks I bought at Dollar Tree and slipped them over the bottles. I think this would be a cute way to gift a bottle of wine this Christmas too.

My son and I had fun cutting snowflakes out of coffee filters to hang on the windows in the kitchen and his toy room. He is still working on his scissor skills, but I was impressed at how well he did on his (these aren’t his ).

And, yes, we did get dumped on with snow right before his party, but it is all melted now.

For the food table, I bought a cheap plastic tablecloth from GFS and then made a “table runner” of candy-striped wrapping paper. I scattered some tiny glittery snowman from DT around the bowls and the centerpiece.

I made the snowman centerpiece from two foam balls and a white mixing bowl. There are tons of tutorials on how to make something similar floating around Pinterest right now, so I won’t bother with the details.

The plates were also from Dollar Tree and the napkins I picked up at IKEA a month or two ago.

The Easy Food Signs I made tied in both the red and green colors and the snowman theme.

Finally, I decorated my little elves in snowman turtlenecks made with freezer paper stencils. The shirts were so quick and easy to make and very cute!

Come back later this week to hear all about the delicious, themed party food!

Mad Skills Party #82

2011-12-11T21:53:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the 82nd Mad Skills Link Party!

If you have participated in a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party in the past, you have probably gotten one of my emails. I like to highlight a few of my favorite submissions each week, and email is a great way to do it!

Sign up for the email by clicking HERE or using the form in the pink rectangle on my sidebar.

If you are linking up today, you might be featured in this week’s newsletter!

There is a Mad Skills Tutorial Link Party button that can be found by clicking on the Buttons tab on the new menu bar. Please add to your blog post or update your party pages!

Also, make sure to tell your bloggy friends about this party so we can get as many great entries as possible! You have until midnight (EST) on Thursday to enter your projects!

By participating in this party, you are agreeing to allow me to feature your project in my weekly Mad Skills newsletter. Each feature will include a link back to your project, a photo from the tutorial, and a brief explanation of why I loved your project.

I do this because I want to make sure your hard work is rewarded. If you are not comfortable with this promotion, please do not link up your project.

Easy Birthday Party Food Signs with Aleene’s Dry Adhesives

2011-12-09T07:20:00.001-05:00

At first glance the food for my son’s winter-themed birthday party seemed like just typical, easy-to-prepare comfort food. BUT, with the addition of some clever signage, the theme of the meal was clear.

I wanted to have some easy signs for the food, and I was able to put them together quickly using a few great adhesive tools provided by Aleene’s. Aleene’s sent me some of their dry adhesives to try out, but you can buy yours at Michael’s or online at ILoveToCreate.com.

To make Easy Party Food Signs, you will need:

scrapbook paper

a package of dollar store cards

dollar store gift tags

decorative scissors

Aleene’s adhesive glue roller and glue dots

marker or gel pen

I layered a few pieces of Martha Stewart Christmas scrapbook paper using the adhesive tape runner. A couple of quick swipes of the runner and the glue was set.

Instead of trying to cut perfectly straight corners and folding paper to make standing signs, I just bought a package of Christmas cards at the dollar store.

I used the clear adhesive dots to make sure I placed the scrapbook paper in just the right spot.

As a final embellishment, I used more glue dots to place a glittery dollar store gift tag on each sign.

All I had to do was write the name of each item on the scrapbook paper and prop up the cards. Easiest food signage ever!

Check back next week for the whole Winter Birthday Party menu!

This post is part of a sponsored campaign on behalf of I Love to Create and Aleene’s. The supplies for this project were provided by I Love to Create. All opinions are 100% my own. Find my FTC disclosure here.

Holiday Dessert: Cherry-Strawberry Crumble

2011-12-08T08:04:00.001-05:00

Thanks to Duncan Hines for sponsoring my writing. There's no limit to the baking possibilities, so grab your favorite Duncan Hines mix and Comstock or Wilderness fruit fillings and Bake On!

I love having friends over, especially this time of year. We are not every night dessert people, but whenever I have guests over for dinner I like to round out the night with a pot of strong coffee and something sweet to eat.

But the truth is that I am not a good baker. Measuring and weighing ingredients come dangerously close to math, and math never ends well for me.

To reconcile these two issues, I have an arsenal of desserts that rely heavily on store-bought products like cake mix and pie filling. I have shared my Pumpkin Cobbler and Easy Fruit Cobbler recipes before.

If you are looking for an easy, delicious dessert to share with friends over some coffee and conversation, you can also try this Cherry-Strawberry Crumble recipe.

Although strawberry isn’t a flavor you necessarily associate with Christmas, the gorgeous red color of the cherry and strawberry pie fillings certainly is. And when something tastes this yummy, you won’t care whether it is seasonally-appropriate or not‘

CHERRY-STRAWBERRY CRUMBLE

One box of Duncan Hines butter –flavor cake mix

1 1/4 cups oats

1/2 cup butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces

1 egg

1/2 cup pecans (optional)

One 21 ounce can of Comstock cherry pie filling

One 21 ounce can of Comstock strawberry pie filling

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan.

Mix together cake mix, oats and 6 T. of butter until crumbly. Measure out 1 cup of the mixture and set aside.

Blend egg into the crumble mixture and press into the bottom of the 9x13. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

After the crust is done baking, pour the two cans of pie filling over the top of the crust.

Add remaining 2 T. of butter and nuts to the reserved cup of crumble mixture. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the pie filling.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Remember to check out Duncan Hines' website www.duncanhines.com to find some great recipes for your holiday get-together! I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions are 100% my own. Find my FTC disclosure here.