Use a hot glue gun to create this charming glue gun sign Continue reading

Here is a fun Green craft for you to try using materials you already have at home plus some fun cool embellishments. These are recycled treat cups created fom cardboard tubes and corrugated cardboard from shipping boxes. Materials for Recycled Treat Cups Recycled cardboard tubes (I used tube from the center of a scot towel roll cut into smaller lengths) Shipping box or other corrugated cardboard Adtech hot glue gun and sticks, hot glue gun pad Adtech Permanant Glue Runner Crafter's Tape DecoArt Americana Acrylic Paint- Sour Apple Assorted embellishments of choice, light green rick rack Rubber stamps of choice... Continue reading

In my never ending quest to deplete my fabric stash, I was inspired to create these Fabric Scrap Bookmarks. I guess one of the best things about using your fabric scraps is that you don't feel quite as guilty about buying even more fabric! Materials for Fabric Scrap Bookmarks Assorted coordinating fabric scraps Smooth Fusible Fabric Foundation Stick Fusible Fabric Foundation (fusible webbing) Crafter's Choice Poly-fil Polyester Fiberfill Beacon Adhesives Fabri-Tac White wool felt Cotton muslin scraps Tiny alphabet rubber stamps and black pigment ink Black cording Embellishments of choice Sewing machine and thread Rotary cutter and self healing cutting... Continue reading

Use cardboard and mint tins to create fun recycled tin ornaments Continue reading

Use fat quarters and polyfil to make stuffed tree decorations Continue reading

A plain brown paper bag can be the perfect packaging for smaller gifts. When giving a handmade gift, consider dressing one up with paints and embellishments to coordinate with your gift. Continue reading

For awhile now I have been looking for a small side table for my office space. I have been searching for something small but slightly functional (i.e. you can set a cup of tea or coffee on top) yet interesting with detailed lines. I have had no luck. Then, some really cool French Provencial Signboards arrived from one of my favorite wood products manufactuers, Walnut Hollow. I grabbed my glue gun, some flat marbles and spray paint and got immediately to work on this DIY Side Table. Materials for DIY Side Table Walnut Hollow French Provencial Signboards-12" x 20", 8"... Continue reading

I love the vintage jewelry look. I have used my grandmothers broken bits and pieces she passed on to me in several projects. I have scoured flea markets and thrift stores in hopes of finding charming jewelry pieces I can deconstruct and use to embellish my projects, many of which are fabric pieces I love to add hard embellishments to. I was recently inspired to grab my glue gun and try to recreate the look of vintage jewelry. I used some easy to find materials to create these handmade vintage brooch embellishments. Materials for Handmade Vintage Brooch Embellishments Plastic pearls... Continue reading

Clever, humorous DIY mounted fish using small plastic sea life toys Continue reading

Although my taste has evolved a bit, I am still a fan of the shabby chic look and I always will be probably. I have a couple of co-worker/friends with upcoming wedding and baby showers so I decided to create them a custom shabby door hanger. Materials for Shabby Door Hangers Woodsies Wood Slats Hemptique Hemp Adtech Lo Temp Glue Gun and Cool Temp Glue Sticks DecoArt Americana Acrylic Paints- Snow White, Khaki Tan, Bubblegum, Indian Turquoise Embellisments of choice Wool felt Alphabet stamps and ink Sanding block, scissors, paintbrushes, drill and drill bit, sewing machine and thread Lightly sand... Continue reading

Use glitter glue sticks and a glue gun to whip up these super easy Decoden Napkin Rings Continue reading

Make patchwork pumpkin decor to celebrate Fall. Easy to make from your fabric scraps Continue reading

Create a fun patchwork advent calendar with fabric scraps you patchwork together Continue reading

Use a 12" x 16" pillow form to create a fun scrappy snowman pillow. Continue reading

Use fabric selvages and fabric scraps to create these cheerful gift tags for lots of occassions Continue reading

Have I ever mentioned how much I adore working with the folks at Stampington? On a whim, I decided to purchase my first stampington title about 5 years ago. It was Somerset Life. About 5 pages in I was seriously hooked. Eventually I began to consider sending in some of my own art work. It took me a while but I finally figured out how to work with Somerset Magazines. Here are a few tips. Tea Towel Apron published in Sew Somerset How to Work with Somerset Magazines If you have dreamed of having your original artwork published but don't... Continue reading

Need to get rid of some of those fabric scraps? Here is a super simple project that anyone can do. Use some decoupage medium, paint and recycled bottles to create these wine bottles inspired by quilt designs. Here is how I made these quilted wine bottles. First you will need to start with clean and dry bottles. There are lots of ways to remove the labels and I use a combination of methods. I use a heat gun to soften the adhesive which makes it possible to peel most of the label off. Usually, there is still some layer of... Continue reading

"Original" Frankendoor I love it when another artist or DIYer reaches out to me and says that I inspired them to create something new. For me, it is the best part of what I do. When I pinned the Halloween door I made for my sister's house a couple of years ago, little did I know that it would become such as successful pin. This led to other creative folks creating and sharing their own Halloween Door Inspiration on Pinterest and on their own blogs in some cases. This made me curious of course so I searched for "frankenstein door... Continue reading

I hope 2014 is proving to be a great year for you! I have just returned from an almost month long trip- including going to California for the CHA Mega Show (Craft and Hobby Association). Add the holidays and a long distance move to the mix and you have the formula for missing a whole lot of blogging. Anyway, today I am sharing my Wine Cork Earring Holder project hoping to inspire you. I used a really cool patchwork fabric technique in this project in an effort to return to my much missed sewing machine. Wine Cork Earring Holder Materials... Continue reading

My tree is up, adorned with lights and ornaments. After the Christmas table celebration, I often find myself more in the Christmas spirit than ever and itching to create something that captures that feeling with my hands. So this year I decided to make these beaded and sewn Christmas ornaments to give away as gifts for next year. Beaded and Sewn Christmas Ornaments I started out selecting fabrics and wool felt for my project. The fabric is from Fabric.com (see ad on sidebar) and the wool felt is from National Nonwovens. To create my beaded and sewn Christmas ornaments, I... Continue reading

Welcome to the May Arts and Buttons Galore and More Blog Hop. I'm Mel, part of the Button Bevy and I designed these stuffed snowman ornaments using my some of my favorite products from Buttons Galore and More and May Arts. Stuffed Snowman Ornament Materials and Supplies Inkjet Fabric Sheets Text book page of choice Buttons Galore and More Hand Dyed Buttons by Laura Kelly in Radically Red, Jazzy Brads Flowers May Arts Fabric Ribbon Fairfield Poly-fil stuffing 6/0 pebble beads in black 12mm flat backed rhinestones thin natural sticks Scraps of orange felt Beacon Adhesives Gem Tac Fusible webbing... Continue reading

A couple of months ago, I was asked to be featured on one of my favorite manufacturer's websites and design a project using their products. The result? This funky flower pillow. Funky Flower Pillow Made with Fairfield Products I love designing pillows, and Fairfield is my favorite manufacturer of pillow forms. They also carry quilt batting and poly-fil stuffing that I frequently use in my stuffed creations. Like the Funky Flower Pillow shown above, I love to create dimension on the pillow cover by stuffing appliques just a little to create a raised dimensional effect. Visit Fairfield World for project... Continue reading

Bird Ornaments from Wool Felt Last week I reached another milestone on Etsy. I got my first wholesale order! Many of you may not be interested in selling wholesale on Etsy or selling handmade items on Etsy at all. But if you are like me, you know the value of promoting yourself and Etsy is a great place to do it. Recently, I offered a few tips for selling on Etsy. Here are five more you may find helpful. Ten Tips for Selling on Etsy-Part Two 6. Use the power of Social Media to market your Etsy shop. By using... Continue reading

From providing great customer service to offering high quality photographs, read the top ten tips for selling in Etsy Continue reading

Create Halloween Drink Stirrers that become brooches your Halloween party guests can take home as favors Continue reading