Tutu and a Onesie

I love to make tutus. They're one of my favorite things to create. One of these days I will post pictures of some of them. 

One day as I was surfing Pinterest I found a tutu attached to a onesie. It was adorable so I thought I would give it a try.  It looked simple enough but it was a tiny bit more challenging than I expected. Not hard by any means; just not what I thought it would be. 

I started by sewing my elastic to the onesie on a few different spots. Then I added my tulle like I do with my regular tutus. That was it! It turned out cute and looked adorable on the Little Miss (my cousins daughter whom I call my niece, and often refer to as Little Miss). 

Some of my Baked Goods.

I LOVE to bake so I thought I would share some of my baked goods...

A snowman birthday cake (my first time using fondant). 

A penguin cake for a birthday. 

A princess birthday cake and cupcakes. 

Bridal shower cupcakes 

Cupcakes for tailgating before a University of Michigan game. 

My first time making sugar decorations (red velvet cupcakes too). 

Peach cupcakes with peach buttercream

Peppermint whoopie pies. 

Snowman cupcakes made with my favorite two year-old. 

Glue Plus Food Coloring.

Another P.-inspired project that I decided to tackle was painting glass with a mixture of white glue (I used Elmer's) and food coloring. This is supposed to give it a seaglass type of effect when it's dry. The keyword in that last sentence "suposed." 

Mine did not look anything like the picture. I was expecting, pretty frosted looking pieces. I ended up with streaky pieces that the paint didn't want to stay on. In fact, I could try and start over and over because, even after it was dry, the glue mixture washed off of them. 

Did I mention I originally used this idea to make a cake stand? Um. I don't want glue coming off on my cake, that's for sure!! I also don't want to have to paint pieces again and again to get the look. I ended up using this method to make some vases and a bowl, which turned out a little better. They do have more of a frosty appearance, but still do not look as pretty as the picture I found on Pinterest. 

I have the vases displayed in my house and I use the bowl to hold my remotes,  but the cake stand idea didn't work.

There was not an exact set of directions with this pin. I believe it just said to mix the glue and food coloring for that seglass effect. There were no guidelines on how much glue to use. I'm wondering if maybe I didn't use enough glue on the cake stand. I used more on the bowl and vases and they did seem to turn out a little better. Perhaps it was my color choices, but they do not look quite as sophisticated as I was hoping they would. Or maybe it's that the project isn't supposed to be sophisticated so much as it is meant to be fun.

I might try this again sometime. I've since seen it used on the stems and bases of wine glasses, which would be cute for a theme party. I would paint them for an outdoor, summer party, if I were using a variety of colors to decorate. That could definitely be fun. They could even be a favor that guests could take home with them. I probably won't use this idea for decor around my home. For me, this idea seems best to be executed with a specific purpose. 

Has anyone else tried this and had similar luck? Better luck?

Crayon Art.

Crayons. Cavas. Glue. A hairdyer. What?! This creation was all the rage on the P. a while back. I decided it looked like a fun and easy project, so naturally I had to try it! 

As far as materials, I already had some various size painting canvases at home from other projects. These vary in price depending on the size canvas you want to use. I picked mine up at Hobby Lobby and have also bought them at Joann's (FYI, those are two of my favorite stores). I bought a couple boxes of Crayola crayons when I was out shopping one day. I already had my hot glue gun and glue sticks at home. This project was easy, but a little messy. 

To complete the project, all I did was affix the crayons to the canvas with my hot glue gun. Then I melted the crayons using my hairdyer. Let it dry for a while and it's ready to display! 

The reason that this messy is because even on low, the dyer can cause some paint to splatter. I'd recommed doing this in an area that's covered with a drop cloth, or that you don't mind getting messy. I did mine on my kitchen counter, not realizing that it would be so messy. I did cover the counter in waxed paper, but some of the melted crayon did fly around. It was easy to clean up though. I just scraped it off the areas that it hit. The second time I did a project like this, I used more waxed paper so that I didn't have such a mess of crayon to clean up.

You can arrange crayons anyway or in any shape that you'd like. You can also control how the crayons melt. You might want thinner lines, a more splattered look, or a large area covered. The style is up to you! On the first one, I put my caryons in a straight line, grouped by color. That piece is displayed on my mantle. The second one was a Valentine for my then-boyfriend. I used a color scheme based on his favorite colors, red and black with a couple orange and pink hues added for a little more flair. I also painted a red heart on that canvas and wrote on the back, using it instead of a card or paper Valentine. It was a fun and unique alternative to a regular card! 

This is a project that I think is fun for kids or adults! I definitely wouldn't let a child do it solo, but it would be a fun activity to do together. I think that it would be fun to make one based on the color scheme of the child's bedroom, and it could be hung on one of the bedroom walls. While I do not have children, I think it's important to involve them in a variety of activities and allow them to "help" with things as much as possible. A child should be taught to take pride in his or her work, and a great way to do so would be by displaying it! 

This is a project that I will be doing again sometime!

Gumball Machine Style Candy Dishes.

These are freaking adorable! I knew as soon as I saw them that I HAD to make them. I also knew that they'd make great gifts for Valentine's Day. I made one for my Mom and one for my Grandma, and filled them with Valentine's Day Peanut M&Ms. 

Like most of my projects, these were pretty simple and didn't take a long time. They made an adorabe little gift. In fact, my Mom keeps her's out throughout the year! 

The materials for these were picked-up at a local store (Meijer). I got some mini Terra Cotta pots and saucers, and a four pack of small glasses to use for the base, top, and bowl. I already had the paint and brushes at home. I picked up some some wooden balls to glue to the top.

First I painted my pots, saucers, and wooden balls in a plain color (one red, one pink) with acrylic craft paint. After they were dry I tipped the pots upside down and painted designs on them (hearts and dots). After they dried again, I glued the glass to the pot (bottom of the glass to the bottom of the pot). I then glued the painted wooden ball to the center of the bottom of the saucer. When the glue dried, I put candy into the glasses and topped them with the saucer. Voila!

Fabric Scrap Bracelets: Not What I Expected.

I saw a cute idea to make fabric scrap bracelets on the P. one day and thought they would be cute and easy. They were both. But they were cute for.... Someone younger. They definitely didn't turn out to be "classy" looking. I could see a younger girl; maybe a 'tween enjoying bracelets like this. I originally made them for myself, but they are far too young for me. Cute, but not appropriate. 

These bracelets only included a few materials: rubber bracelets (like the cancer awareness type), scraps of fabric, and hot glue. I picked up my bracelets at either the Dollar Spot at Target or a dollar store. They're kinda flimsy; definitely more-so than the five dollar awareness bracelets are. All I had to do was put glue on the bracelet and wrap the fabric around it. Simple. Easy. Cute. Not for me. I decided to add a little extra flair to mine but adding some buttons in different colors and sizes. This only added to the young look of the bracelets. Colorful plastic buttons are certainly not adult-like. But a younger girl? Just might love them. 

I only made two since I decided I wasn't exactly a fan. They're still sitting in my craft room. I should just give them to my younger cousin. I have more plastic bracelets so I guess I'll use her as a tester. If she likes them, I'll make some more to sell at a craft fair or on etsy or something, I think that the bracelets are pretty cute. 

What do you think? Is this something a 'tween would wear?

A Picture Frame Fail

I saw this cute idea to Mod Podge scrapbook paper to a picture frame and thought I'd give it a try. I have lots of scrapbook paper and had several dollar store frames laying around so I thought, "why not!?" The instructions were clear and seemed as though they'd be easy to follow. 

All I had to do was cut the paper to fit the front side and edges of the frame. Then? Brush Mod Podge on top to affix the paper to the frame. I did so. My finished product did not look nearly as adorable as what I'd seen online. I may have chosen the wrong frame. Or cut the paper to an incorrect size. Or maybe I didn't use enough Mod Podge. 

Whatever it was, it didn't look right. The paper didn't want to stick appropriately and when I tried to fix it, I think I just messed it up even more. 

Mod Podge and scrapbook paper frames - 1. Me - 0. I may eventually try again....