New Project: Vinyl Record NOTEBOOKS!

Here are some pics at my first attempts at Vinyl Record Notebooks. I forgot to take pictures for these ones. But basically you measure and take an exacto knife and score the record 6-8 times. Then put it on a flat table and put the part your trying to snap off, off the table. Then you press evenly and firmly and snap off that part. You can drill holes if you like to keep your paper inside, ( which is what I did withthe big one), or you can fold the paper in half and staple it, then glue those together and then glue them to a small piece of record you cut for the spine. I used black duct tape to smooth out the edges and keep it all together. On the large one I used some black duct tape and hot glue to make a clasp and then put a snap on it. Take a look!

New project Tutorial!! VINYL RECORD BOWLS!!!

Ok. I am having WAY to much fun with these vinyl records!! First I found out that these can EASILY be made into some really neat bowls and plates! FIRST: Turn your oven on to 350 degree's. Get a cookie sheet out and put an oven safe bowl UPSIDE DOWN on the sheet. Now put your record on top of the bowl and place it in the oven until the sides start to ripple. Almost there!!

Ok, now it's ready! See the edges are kinda wavy!

Now you can form this with your GLOVED hands or you can use a larger bowl and CAREFULLY press down on the record like this. And that is IT!!!

Here it is (now this one I did crack cause I pushed down to fast and hard on the bigger bowl to shape the record... BEEEeeee gentle!)

Here are some others I did a few weeks ago:
Bowl

Plate (used a tart type correl plate thingy)

Tiny bowl:) How cute!

Now these are Laser Disks!! Remember those...before DVD's:) These are SO COOL! This one doubles as a pirate hat!!

If you leave them in a little longer so there nice and pliable, you can make super pretty bowls!!


Now, these all have holes in the bottom, (especially the laser disks), so you can take a piece of plastic...from almost anything...milk carton, soda bottle etc.. cut out a slightly bigger circle and hot glue it on! I would NOT use liquid in these eather way though. You can put chips, nuts, cookies...the list goes on and on. AND, these are one of the first teenager type craft gifts I have been able to think of!!
More to come!

Fusing Plastic! My new favorite thing!!!

When I saw this I think I literally got a bit giddy!! I had no idea that you could fuse plastic sheets together and basically make a thick plastic that you can do almost anything you can do with fabric!! The possibilities with this one are endless!! Now I didn't make a tutorial for this one, but HERE is a great tutorial to get you started. When I did this purse, I used thick paper to put the sheet in between and that worked great. I trimmed the edges aft that to make it a clean rectangle. I put the wrappers on after I fused the grocery bags and then put a clear layer of plastic over that and fused it all to the bag. Even decorated the inside for what reason I don't know. Guess I got alittle over the top!! LOL But it is so fun!! PLUS, I put a pocket on the inside but cutting one of the wrappers to the size I wanted and fusing it to the inside with a small sized piece of paper between the pocket and the purse. I left the sides and bottom of the pocket touching the purse so that they would fuse but not the part where the paper was in between the plastics:) Anyways, with my version I sew all around the edges after putting in a zipper at the top, ( YES, I actually put in a zipper that worked!! KAZAAA!!!) It was dilusionaly late when I did this and so I had to find a handle fast. I grabbed a braided yard rope my daughter had made me and there ya have. The most YUMMIEST purse EVER!! What do you think???





OH YA, P.S. I just learned that you can also fuse plastic to fabric!!! SO, save up all those cool little characters you find on Disney plastic party bags etc.... and put some umph in a outfit for your kiddo!! Check out how to do it HERE! Enjoy!!!

Quick Red White and Blue Barrettes!

Picked up a bag of barrettes at a thrift store the other day, so I thought I would make some to match the purses for the girls. Here's a quick tutorial:

So, first I drew and cut out a good size star from a stencil. Then I copied that on all the felt and cut those out. I also glued some ... squigilley ribbon on the front of the barrette. Found out later it didn't really need it though.

Now take your exacto knife or something pokey :) and put a hole in the middle of the star. Then poke a brad through and secure it to the back.


Now I found some super perfect fabric type ribbon in my stash and cut three 3-4 inch strips. I took one end and folded it under after applying some super glue. Then I attached the top of the ribbon to the top of the barrette like so.

And there you have it!! I really like how these came out, they should be a fun addition to the purses and soon to the shirts!! That's next!

Recycle those jeans into two 4th of July Purses!!

I have been wanting to play with Freezer paper since I found out how super cool it is. Finally I got to yesterday with a fun idea for some cute festive purses. Check this out!

So, Freezer paper has one side that is waxy and one that isn't. SO, you can trace anything on it, cut it out, and iron it on to fabric!! How cool is that!?! So, fourth of July stars coming up!

This is the waxy side I was talkin about.

Cut out your shapes after you trace them. You can of course use the cut outs and the sheet with the shapes cut out of it. We will use the sheet for some family shirts later. We're gonna use the cut outs for the purses.

I had two of these cut off from last year. Just cut off a couple inch or some wide rounds from the top (after you cut off the hole part).The cut those rounds so they lay out flat. I cut off the seam on one side to do this. Then for quick straps, just fold one side to the middle then the other overlapping and sew. I turned the rest of the jeans inside out and folded them down and sewed to make a smooth top edge. Then sew your straps on and sew up the bottom of the "leg". I added some trim on one.

Now just place your cut outs where you want them and iron. I used paper over the cut outs so they wouldn't move. Then if any of them didn't stick enough I directly ironed on that piece.

Now get your paints and paint on the edges of each cut out. When finished peal and see the coolness!!






This last one included a purse I made last year out of vintage rectangles a friend gave me. Thought it was the perfect time to bring it out again! Enjoy.... now on to cute hair clips!!

Recycled wood to furniture craft tutorial PART 2

Alrighty then...8 boxes later I have finally finished...mostly:) Here's how I did it:

First I picked out a main color and a accent color for all the boxes. The main color got painted on the inside and the accent is on the front outside trim and the back. Here's a pic of one of them finished with painting... (oh ya, and I want to give a shout out to my friend Jeni who helped me and showed me how to do all this!! YOU ROCK!)

Now you need to pic your paper. I had alot of scrapbook paper that I haven't had time to use in years so I pulled that out. I tried to match the paper mostly to the colors I painted. You can use one pattern or two, three...whatever you like. You can also use magazines newspapers etc...decoupage is one of my new favorit things!! SO much fun!

Now you need a paint brush, some water and some decoupage glue. Now being the thrifty lady I am, after I ran out of this rather expensive tiny tub of true decoupage glue, I searched the internet for homemade stuff. I found one recipe that calls for equal parts elmers glue and water. I made it and used it for the rest of the boxes and worked out just fine!! YEAH!!!

Now I tore the paper up in pieces. I saved the corners and strait pieces and put them in seperate piles to use on the strait sides of the boxes.

Next you need to put glue down on the surface where you want to place your paper. Don't be to stingy here or you will get bubbley paper later!

Then place your piece. I like to put one finger inthe middle and then use the brush and paint the glue from the middle out all the way around and finish in the middle.

Then just keep going around your piece in a patter ( or not, up to you) until you finish. I like the overlap look here. I finished the middle with the pieces that were neither corners nore strait edged.

Here is one finished side that needs to dry. Isn't this so coooool and easy!!!

After waiting overnight, I finished the other two sides.

Now here are some quick pictures of all the others. I will set them up properly and take better pictures later.



Now here is the HUGE pile of stuff, the majority of which must fit in this adorable boxes!! This pile has been haunting me for weeks so I am SO happy to get started organizing the curriculum into each box!

Now there is one thing I must mention. The RIGHT way to do this decoupage stuff is to do a bunch more layers of glue or spray clear spray paint sealer on them..... Ummm.....I'm incredibley inpatient and want to get everything cleaned up and organized now!!...um, so the correct way is to seal these bad boys... I may or may not this time around. Might seal them next time I move them around. But that's just me, I would recommend finishing them now so they are sealed and nice and don't rip etc.... Hope you enjoyed the tutorial!! Now time for some Forth of July crafts!