Happy Halloween!

 
Happy Halloween everyone! This is a picture of my mantle, some of the decorations were Pinterest inspired, others I thought of myself (I'm sure other's have thought of them, but I'm taking credit for my own creativity since I never saw them on Pinterest myself. *wink, wink*).

The ghost in the mirror is just a piece of frosted vinyl I got from JoAnn's, cut into a ghosty shape and adhered to the mirror with a little scrapbooking tape. This I found on Pinterest, and some have used Ziploc Press N' Seal to make their ghost, others used window vinyl to stick to the mirror. I like the look of the frosted vinyl, and while you can sort of see the scrapbooking tape through the vinyl, it isn't so noticeable that it looks bad. The Bats are just window clings that I got at JoAnn's, but of course those you can get anywhere.

The pumpkins are just those craft funkin pumpkins that you can get at any craft store (I think the black one came from Target). Same goes for the candle sticks. I think you could probably find something suitable at a second hand store, but I didn't have time to search through all the thrift stores for suitable candlesticks, so I got these at Hobby Lobby while they were on sale for 50% off.

The crows came from the Dollar Tree, and the skull was $5 at Target. The mantle runner is from JoAnn's that was also on sale for 50% off (plus my discount) which made that pretty cheap.

Now, what I made were the spell books and the potion bottles. They were both super easy to do, just so long as you've got a little time and effort to put into it.

 

For the witchcraft books you'll need:
* Black spray paint
* Antique White acrylic paint
* White Sharpie paint pen
* Craft books (can be found at any craft store)

Basically, all you need to do is spray paint your books black (or whichever color you prefer).  Once the paint is dry, I used a sponge brush to paint my antique white acrylic paint onto the part of the book that would be the pages.  I thought the sponge brush did a nice job of creating lines as if they were actually pages.  I only used one coat, to keep the page-like feel, more coats and the black lines wouldn't be there.  Then I used my paint pen to write the titles onto my books.  I wish I had better handwritting, I don't think the titles look to "witchy" but they'll do.  And that's it!

The potion bottles were essentially the same thing as the books.  This is what you'll need:
* Glass bottles (I found mine at JoAnn's and Michael's for $1 apiece)
* Acrylic paint
* Glass writer pen

First off, I squeezed some paint inside the bottle, then swirled it around to cover the entire inside of the bottle.  Next, I took my glass pen and wrote on the outside of the bottle various witchcraft ingredients (eye of newt, aconite, gall of goat, hemlock, etc.)  Once the glass paint was dry I put the cork back on top and there you go, easy as pie!

I really liked how my mantle turned out, and I got a lot of compliments during our Halloween party as well.  So not only did I like my decorations, but others did as well and that's all I can really ask for.  I hope you all had a happy and safe Halloween!

Halloween Crafts: Googly-eyed Picture Frame

I found this quick and easy Halloween craft on Pinterest, so much fun stuff on that site!  This one was super easy to do and it took me probably a little less than two hours to finish.


Here's what you'll need:

* Wood craft frame (or any type of frame with a flat front)
* Craft paint in Halloween-ish colors
* Wood or chipboard letters
* Googly Eyes in various sizes
* Spray Adhesive or any type of craft glue
* Paint brush and/or sponge brush






Ok, the first step is to paint your picture frame.  I used a wood craft frame I got at JoAnn's.  The googly eyes won't cover the whole thing, so you'll need a bit of background color to hide the wood.  I painted mine black with a sponge brush, but you could do any color you wish (orange, purple, green, etc.). 

Next, paint your letters whatever color you wish.  I painted mine orange, but any other Halloween type colors would work just as well.  I used wood letters (Also from JoAnn's) to spell out the word "EEK" but I think "BOO" would be real cute, too.

Now it's time to start adding the googly eyes.  I bought several different sizes (from JoAnn's, where else?) and with my 40% coupons they weren't too expensive.  I used a spray adhesive I already had at the house, but any type of craft glue would work, I think.  The only negative about the spray adhesive is that it sort of leaves a film (it doesn't dry completely clear) so it kind of takes away from the black background of the frame.  But I'm nitpicking because it doesn't look that bad, and it was way easier than trying to individually glue on each googly-eye.  Get lots of different sizes to fill in some of the gaps with some of the smaller sized googly-eyes.


















Once you've got all your googly-eyes glued to the fame, it's time to glue the letters on.  I used some sort of craft cement glue that I had on hand.  I can't remember the name, but I think that any type of craft glue or cement would be just fine to adhere the letters.  The original frame from Pinterest added a ribbon before the letters, so you could do that too, but I just went the simple route with letters only.

And that's really all there is to it!  Add in your own picture or whatever you please and your frame is done!  I put in a Halloween picture of my little guy from a few years ago.  He was a darn cute Yoda!  Overall I think I spent around $10 or maybe less for this project.  The frame was about $4, the letters were $2 all together, and the googly-eyes probably came to about $4 or so.  The paint and glue I already had.  I think I might make a few more of these and add in more Halloween pictures of my guy to make a little googly-eyed display...but probably not this year, maybe next year!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween Crafts: Raven Wreath

Since it's almost Halloween, I'm going to skip the book reports for a bit and instead post a few of the Halloween crafts I've been working on for this year.  I never used to be all into Halloween, but my husband likes the holiday and my little boy sure does love to dress up for it.  Plus, we are having a Halloween party this year and I decided I needed to spiff up the house with some ghoulish decorations!  This first craft was super easy to do, and I think it looks both creepy and cool at the same time.  It reminds me of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven", don't you think?  Nevermore!

Anyway, here is what you'll need to make your own Raven wreath...

* Grapevine Wreath (mine is 18")
* Black Spray Paint
* Black Glitter (optional)
* Black Feathers (optional)
* One small Black Bird (got mine at Dollar Tree)
* One large Black Bird  (got mine at Joann's)
* Hot Glue and Gun (or any strong adhesive)

Alrighty, the first step is to spray paint the entire wreath black, make sure you get in all the nooks and crannies and get both sides of the wreath.

 

Next, while the paint is still wet, sprinkle the glitter.  The glitter is optional, I just like how it made my wreath a little more sparkly.  But, you don't have to glitterize your wreath if you don't want to.  After painting and glittering (or not) you'll have to wait a little while for the paint to dry.  I think mine was dry after about an hour or so.

 

Now that the paint is dry, it's time to apply the feathers and birds.  I used hot glue to adhere a little nest of feathers for my birds to sit on.  The feathers are optional as well and definitely aren't needed to create this wreath.  I just liked that my birds were kind of chilling in their nest.  After I glued in the feathers I attached my two birds.  I got the smaller one at the Dollar Tree (great place for neat Halloween decor), the larger bird I bought from Joann's at half price.

 

 

 

So, there's my Raven Grapevine Wreath.  Looks a little bit like the original, don't you think?  I really like it and I think it's a bit different from some of the other Halloween wreaths out there.  If you want the original instructions on how to make this, go here.  In fact, Joann's has a lot of fun little projects for Halloween, not just this one.  Anywho, there's one halloween craft done, I've got a few more I want to do and hopefully I can get them posted up here soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Very Pinterest Independence Day!

I hope everyone had a very safe and fun 4th of July, I know we did.  We had a bunch of friends over for food and fireworks and it went off with a bang, if I do say so myself.  Since I've started following Pinterest I always see neat and cool things to make/do/try for Holiday decorations/food and I thought I'd put some of that Pinterest time to good use and try a few things out for our party.  Now, they all turned out pretty well, some better than others, but I did get a lot of compliments for my red, white, and blue treats, and that's all I can really ask for.

These red, white, and blue strawberries were definitely a popular pin heading into the fourth and they were really very easy to make.  My friend Hilary requested these for the party, and I'm glad because they really were a hit with a lot of folks.  Of course, the pictures look better on Pinterest (everything looks better on Pinterest) but they still tasted very yummy.  These were very simple, melt some white chocolate (I put in a dash of vegetable oil to keep the chocolate liquid-y), dunk your strawberry in the chocolate and then dip the tips of your strawberry into blue sprinkles.  This took less than 20 minutes to complete.  I think perhaps they might have turned out better if I waited for the chocolate to cool a bit before dipping into the sprinkles, but I was running out of time and had to hurry.

This red, white, and blue drink was another popular pin, and while it looked pretty cute, no one really drank any of it.  I think I needed more red juice, and my cute little star shaped ice cubes didn't last long at all, which was a bummer because they really looked neat in the drink.  First off put in your ice cubes then pour cranberry juice in, let the cranberry juice settle to the bottom and then slowly (very slowly!) pour in blue gatorade.  You want to try to pour the gatorade on the ice cubes so it won't mix in with the cranberry juice.  Lastly, you pour in Diet 7up on the whole thing and something about the sugar content of the three different beverages makes them separate.  Anyway, it was real cute and a lot of partygoers commented on it, but it wasn't very functional since no one drank any of it.  I probably wouldn't do this one again, but it was fun to try once.
























Now these star-shaped rice krispies treats were a hit.  Very simple to make, a little frustrating at times but well worth the effor I think.  The hardest part was getting the cookie cutter to go through the rice krispies treat and then getting the dang cookie cutter unstuck.  They are very sticky, and my cookie cutter oftentimes didn't want to be separated from the rice krispies.  Obviously, you need to make some rice krispies treats, let them set for about 30 minutes, and then use a star shaped cookie cutter to make your stars.  Add a strawberry, some blueberries and one star rice krispie onto a skewer, tie a ribbon on the bottom by the strawberry and, viola!  Easy peasy.  Sort of.  I used a llittle basket with a cube of styrofoam inside to hold my skewers.  I lined the basket with some cute 4th of July fabric I got at work to make it a little more festive and to try and hide the styrofoam.  I think these turned out pretty darn cute.  The only problem was that I had them setting out on the table as a sort of centerpiece so everyone could see, and after a while I think the heat and humidity started to make the marshmallows melt and the stars began to fall apart.  No worries though, my friends just clustered around the table and picked off the falling pieces for me...such good friends!  I would definitely make these again, but perhaps leave them in the fridge until it was time for the treats to be brought out.


All in all we had a really good fourth, and it was fun to try out some new and fun treats that I saw on Pinterest.  I totally had more treats planned to make, but ran out of time, there are only so many hours in a day.  Regardless, we had plenty of food and no one left hungry, everyone still had all their fingers at the end of the night and we didn't burn anything down.  All in all a success if I do say so myself.  As for other 4th of July pins I wanted to try...well, maybe next year!

Fizzy Fun

If you're looking for a cheap and fun little experiment for the kiddos to do, you should try this one out.  I saw this on Pinterest and thought we'd give it a whirl.  Most of the items you probably already have in your home and what you don't have won't cost you much more than a dollar to get.  My son loved this little project, and it kept him busy for at least an hour (which is remarkable, considering he usually moves on to some other hairbrained idea after 20 minutes!). 

What you'll need:

Baking Soda
Vinegar
Food coloring
Squeeze bottles or droppers
A pan or dish


Add vinegar and your choice of food coloring to your squeeze bottles (I had the Wilton candy melting squeeze bottles, $1.99 for a two pack at Joann's) or eye droppers.  Pour out a decent amount of baking soda into your pan and let your kid have fun!  It's so simple, and the kids will really love watching the colored vinegar fizz when it hits the baking soda. 

This is definitely a fun project that we will do again.  My son really got a kick out of it, and he was surprisingly neat and not messy all.  Cleanup was a breeze, and the cost of this project is definitely doable.  I probably spent less than $6 for the whole thing (not including the dish since I already had that), and if you already have the stuff on hand you won't spend anything!  My kind of fun kid craft!

Multistrand Cord Necklace

Lately, I've gotten into the hobby of jewelry making.  Costume jewelry is all the rage these days, and after my first few attempts I've found that I quite enjoy the methodical configuration of various jewelry pieces.  It's an easy hobby to get into, you don't need a huge workspace and I'm able to keep my supplies in a medium sized basket which I can whip out whenever the desire to create something new strikes my fancy.  The best part about it is that it's relatively cheap.  Once you buy your tools and components, you don't need to buy anything else for a while in order to make the jewelry.  All you need to purchase are new and colorful beads which come in all price ranges, and if you shop around you can find really good deals at either your local craft store or online.  It's a fun hobby, and easy to clean up and put away when you're done for the day.  Unlike scrapbooking, which takes up so much time and space, with jewelry making you can stop in the middle of a project and clean up without worrying about messing up your current project. 

Having said all that, here is one piece that I've finished recently that I'm really pleased with.  I found this idea in the book The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Stringing Beaded Jewelry.  This is a great book for anyone that is thinking of beginning to make jewelry.  It has all sorts of ideas for different beaded projects and helpful hints and techniques for beginners.  This is a multistrand cord necklace that is pretty easy to do, the hardest part for beginners is going to be finishing the ends for the clasp, but other than that it's relatively simple.

Supplies you'll need:                                                  

* 3 10mm silver-lined glass beads
* 20-25 6mm round beads, silver
* 15-20 6-8mm round beads, glass (2 or 3 different colors)
* 4yds 1mm cord, color A (you can get bty at any fabric store)
* 3yds 1mm cord, color B
* 12" 20-gauge wire
* 2 1" cones
* Toggle clasp (or any clasp you prefer)
* Chainnose pliers
* Roundnose pliers
* Diagonal wire cutters
* Awl or large needle (I didn't use one, but it can be helpful)
* Drinking straw (also not necessary, but I used one)
* Scissors
*Tip:  You need to make sure your beads have a large enough hole for your cord to fit through, one of the bead colors I picked had teeny-tiny holes, and therefore couldn't use them (bummer).  Also, the silver-lined glass beads are your focal point, so whatever style and color you select, pick your bead and cord colors to go with those three silver-lined beads.  Also, you need your silver-lined beads to have large holes because all the cords will be threaded through those three beads.

These are the silver-lined beads I choose, and once I had them
picked out I picked my other bead and cord colors accordingly.

As you can see, I choose purple and silver as my two focal colors.  I can't help it, I am magically drawn to anything purple.  One of these days I will try this with a totally different color scheme, but for now you will have to endure my purple passion once again. 

Step 1:
Determine how long you want your necklace to be, and cut five pieces of cord twice that length (if you want your necklace to be 20 inches long, cut your cord 40 inches).  I used two strands of grey and three strands of purple.  If you use a straw, cut it into lengths of 2 inches, 1.5 inches and 1 inch, then cut a slit lengthwise into each straw piece.

Step 2:
Center one of your silver-lined beads through all five cords.  Tie an overhand knot of all five cords on each side of your bead (which of course will keep it in place, knots are the theme of this necklace).  You can use an awl or needle to guide the knot, it's not necessary and I didn't use one but they can be handy at times.

Step 3:
Using the 2 inch straw as a guide, make another knot and string another silver-lined bead next to the knot and then make another knot to hold your bead in place.  Do the same on the opposite side so that you have all three of your silver-lined beads threaded through all five cords.

Step 4:
Separate your cords and now you can start knotting beads on each cord at different lengths.  You can use your straw pieces as a guide to space your beads or you can forgo the straw and just knot your beads at random.  Work from the center out, alternating from both ends to keep your lengths even.  If you work from both ends, you can test the length of your necklace as you go and decide how long you want the finished product to be.  I used the straw, it's not necessary but it's helpful to keep your beads separated.  It also helps when tying your first knot if you aren't using an awl. 





















Step 5:
Once you have your desired length, gather all the cords together.  Use about half of your 20-gauge wire (around 6 inches or so) to wrap around your cord end.  Wrap it about half an inch or so and leave the rest of your wire.  Trim your cord ends close to the wire you have wrapped around the cord.

Step 6:
String your cone onto the wire tail and one 6mm silver bead after the cone.

Step 7:
Make a wrapped loop with the rest of your wire above the bead.  Trim any excess wire that wasn't used.  Use a jump ring to connect your clasp with the loop.  I used a toggle clasp, but a lobster clasp or a magnetic clasp would also work well with this necklace. 

Step 8:
Repeat steps 5-7 on the other end to finish off your necklace.

Ta-Da!  Your finished multistrand cord necklace!  And just so you can see what it looks like on, I've enlisted the help of my little helper/model to try it on for size!  Next time I'll have to let him know that the red shirt doesn't quite go with the purple, but we're still learning about fashion sense.

This is a pretty basic necklace to make, like I said earlier the hardest part will be working with the wire at the ends.  If you aren't sure how to make a wire-wrapped loop, there are dozens of youtube videos such as this one that can help you.  There are also instructional videos on youtube for opening and closing jump rings that can be helpful as well. 

I was very pleased with the outcome of this necklace and I will definitely have to try this again with some different colors.  It's hard to say how much this piece cost me to make since I had some of the pieces and tools already on hand.  I had to buy the cord and the beads and cones, but I already had the wire, jump rings, clasp and the tools at my disposal.  Overall I probably spent around $10-15 dollars for this necklace.  If you don't have any of the tools, it can get expensive but if you're planning on making more jewelry pieces, those tools (chainnose pliers, roundnose pliers, wire cutters) are an absolute must-have. 

Good luck, and happy creating!