Tuesday To-Do

Last minute card idea

if you’re like me and scrambling to get a card made for Valentine’s Day here’s a quick and simple idea!

Stamped Valentine Card

Supplies:

White cardstock
Black dotted cardstock
Red dotted patterned paper
Border punch
String/twine
Various heart stamps
Sentiment stamp
Red stamping ink
3D Glue dots or adhesive foam
Sharp scissors

Instructions

Step 1

Cut a piece of white cardstock 8&1/2” x 5&1/2”

Cut a piece of red dotted paper 4&1/2” x 2”. Use the border punch along the long sides

Cut a piece of black dotted paper 4&1/2” x 1”

 

Step 2

Use red ink to stamp hearts in white cardstock and cut out with sharp scissors

Step 3

Cut two pieces of string or twine and stick to back of black strip of cardstock as shown

 

Step 4

Fold white cardstock into a card, and layer red and black paper as shown. Tie the two pieces of string together at the right side

 

Step 5

Use 3D pop dots or foam to layer stamped hearts over string

Step 6

Finally stamp sentiment towards lower right of card

 

Other ideas:

(1) You can change the colours, stamps and sentiment and adapt this card to any occasion

(2) Try using ribbon or trim instead of string

 

Technorati Tags: stamping,valentine's day,card

My new garland

I spent a few hours yesterday and this morning making a simple garland for the tree. I used this idea from Kayte Terry (via Creature Comforts) as a starting point, then added my own twist along the way.

Supplies:

Twine
Felt
Fabric
Felt stars or other embellishments

Using the templates (which I downloaded from Creature Comforts) I cut out around 70 flower shapes from different colours of felt and punched holes in the middle

Then I strung them on the string, about 6" apart, tying knots to keep them from moving

I ripped fabric into 1" strips about 5"-6" long and tied these onto the string between the flowers.

I also added some felt stars in between. I only had 7, so I spaced them out along the length.

In total my garland is about 10 or 11 yards long, which is about right for my approximately 5' tall tree.

This is a great project to do in front of the TV!

Vintage-y Wreath

I made this on a whim a couple days, so I don't have step by step photos, but it's really very easy to make!

 
Supplies
Wreath form - the one I used is styrofoam
Fabric and lace scraps
Trim
Felt
Embroidery thread
Buttons
Needle
Batting
Old music sheets
Leaf stamp, punch or die
Ink

Instructions

Cut or tear a long strip of fabric about 3" wide and wrap around wreath. Secure ends at the back with hand stitching

Wrap a length of trim over fabric, securing at back

Use a smaller piece of lace to wrap a small portion of wreath

Make a stuffed star from felt. Instructions are here

Punch/cut out eight leaf shapes from music sheet paper. I used a leaf stamp, stamped the leaves on the back and the cut them out with scissors.
Ink edges of leaves, and fold in center of each to give dimension
Punch a circle piece of scrap cardstock.
Using a strong glue arrange leaves to form flower shape on cardstock circle
Add button to center of flower

Cut two leaf shapes from fabric, fray edges and hand stitch to lace covered portion of wreath
Stick music sheet flower over leaves

Loop star embellishment on a length of trim and use to hang wreath.

Holiday Workshop PDF

For your convenience I have created a pdf file of the holiday workshop and it is available for purchase for a mere $3.99.

Click here to purchase

The pdf contains all 10 tutorials from the workshop as well as a new bonus never before posted tutorial! Here is a sneak peek

 

All the tutorials will remain posted on the blog and available free of charge, but I thought some people might like the convenience of a pdf file for saving to their computers and printing out.

Click here to purchase

In addition, leave me a comment letting me know what you think about the tutorials, if you plan to make any, or just say hi, and I will select one person to receive the pdf free of charge!

Thanks to everyone for stopping by Tuesday To-Do. I will post this week's (late) tutorial tomorrow.

Hanging Doo-dad

I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do with this, I might make a few for the tree, or just hang them from doorknobs around the apartment.

The idea was inspired by some store displays I saw at Ikea. They used much larger ones to display the holiday ornaments throughout the store. So another idea would be to hang small ornaments from them and suspend them over open doorways.

Supplies

Thin chipboard - e.g. from a cereal box or other packaging (great way to reuse recyclables!)
Ribbon in two widths
Buttons
Embroidery floss and needle

Instructions

Cut a strip of chipboard about 1" wide. I used a length about 14" long. You can vary the length depending on the size circle you want. Form into circle by stapling ends together

Stick end of wider ribbon to inside of circle over the staples

Wrap ribbon diagonally around circle until covered

Cut three pieces of ribbon about 6"-7" and staple to circle at regular intervals

Wrap second ribbon around ring

Bring ends of three ribbon strips together and stitch on a button to hold them together. I folded the ends together into a point.

To cover up the stitching at the back, stick on another button using a strong adhesive such as KI Gloo, Glossy Accents or a hot glue gun

Add floss and glitter (if desired) to three medium to large buttons

Stick on buttons to cover up where ribbon is stapled to circle

Voila!

I'd love to see your version of this, and how you use it! Once I get my decorating done I'll post a pic of what I used mine for.

I'd like to thank everyone who had joined me for the last two weeks of Holiday Crafts. I've had a blast putting these tutorials together. Plus it really helped me get my own crafting done. :)

I've started a group on here on flickr where everyone can share the creations made using the tutorials. Please do spread the word and let everyone know about the tutorials. Starting Tuesday December 2nd I will go back to my regular bi-monthly posting schedule.

Happy Crafting!

More Gift Tags

Here are two more gift tags you can make for those special gifts. I have attached a template of tag shapes that you can use if you don't have pre-made tags, or the right sized punch or die cut. Download Tag template

1. Star Tag

Supplies

Plain green tag - premade or cut from cardstock
Smaller patterned tag
Star sticker or die cut
Paper doily
Three red buttons
Red eyelet
Ribbon or twill with sentiment
Ribbon for hanging

Instructions

Fold paper doily in half and stick to tag

Add smaller tag on top

Then add star

Cut phrase from ribbon or twill and stick to bottom of tag (you can also use a phrase sticker, print out a phrase or use a Dymo label machine)

Add three buttons

Set eyelet and tie ribbon

2. Triangle Tag

Supplies

2 triangle tags and 1 small tag
Snowflake or star chipboard shape
Large green button
Patterned papers
red ink pad
Red paint
Red glitter
red embroidery floss
ribbon
small black letter stickers

Instructions

Step 1: Snowflake

Stick the chipboard shape to the back of a piece of red patterned paper

and use your craft knife to cut out the shape

back

front

Don't worry if it looks a bit rough, we'll be fixing that

Paint the front of the snowflake with red paint. At this point you can use the paint to cover up the bits of paper sticking out at the front and back. Sprinkle glitter on wet paint and set aside to dry.

Step 2: Tag base

Cut out two triangle tags from patterned paper.

Stick tags together patterned sides out. Ink edges with red ink

Cut out a smaller tag and use the letter stickers to write "For you"  Stick to front of large tag

Thread embroidery floss through button and stick on

Use patterned paper to cover up the blank piece of the tag sticking out at the back

Punch a piece of patterned paper and ink the edges. Use letter stickers to write "To" and "From" and stick to back of tag

Step 3 : Finish tag

Punch a hole in the center of the snowflake and stick to top of tag. Add ribbon for tying

Bird ornament

I was inspired by these ornaments from Ikea. Theirs are made of painted plywood, but when I saw them I thought "I can make these with chipboard and patterned paper!" And voila

Supplies

Template (attached to this post) Download Template
Chipboard
Patterned paper
Eyelet and setting tool
String or ribbon

Instructions

Print and cut out template and use to cut one (1) bird shape from chipboard, and two (2) bird shapes from patterned paper (one for each side of chipboard)

Stick paper to chipboard and use sandpaper or other method to sand and even edges (I use the BasicGrey Precision files which I LOVE)

Add eyelet and string to top

Cut another piece of patterned paper 5"x8"  and fold into an accordion, making each fold about 1" wide.

Insert into slit in bird's body and fan out to form wings

Here's another version I made using corrugated cardboard, paint, trim and sheet music

Trim and Button Ornament

This is an amalgamation of various ideas that have been steeping in my subconscious lately. It's easy and quick!

Supplies

Styrofoam egg shape
Cotton or other trim
Double sided tape
Buttons
Straight pin
Pearl headed pins
Ribbon

Instructions

Place some strips of double sided tape over egg

(my egg looks beaten up because a certain kitty cat got hold of it!)

Use a straight pin to pin end of trim to top of egg

Wrap trim around egg, sticking it to tape as you go

(Note: I only used the skewer to make it easier for me to take the photos one handed. When wrapping the trim I was holding the egg directly)

With pearl headed pins add buttons in a random fashion all over egg

Cut a piece of ribbon and add to top of egg. First overlap the ends

Then secure with a button and pins

And there you have a cute and simple ornament!

Easy Christmas/Winter Decor

Here's my holiday version of a framed collage

Supplies:

Picture frame - either raw or already painted
Gesso and acrylic paint if using a raw frame
Assorted patterned papers
Snowflake punch or die
Letter stickers
Textured cardstock or watercolour paper

Instructions

If using a raw wood frame prime with gesso and then paint in colour of your choice.

Punch or cut 9 to 12 snowflakes. The number you use will depend of the size of your frame and punch. Because of the size of my punch I used three rows of three, but you may want to do 3 rows of 4.

Cut a piece of cardstock or watercolour paper to fit your frame . Use letter stickers to write Noel. Add snowflakes in columns below word.

Assemble frame and collage

Voila!

Variations

You can easily change this to suit the seasons.For example, use the word "Spring" with flower shapes, or "Love" with heart shapes.

Please let me know if you made a holiday collage. I love to look at people's interpretations!

Fold-out Christmas Card

This is one of the designs I'll be using for my Christmas cards this year. Pretty simple and quick to make!

Supplies

Cardstock
Patterned papers
Die cuts and other embellishments
Journaling tag, sticker, stamp or rub on

Instructions

Cut a 4"x12" piece of cardstock for card base (you can get three bases from one 12x12 sheet)

Fold in half

Then fold the top part in half towards left fold of card

Cut a piece of patterned paper 4" x 6" and add to inside of card

Cut a coordinated piece of patterned paper 3"x 4" and add to front of fold

Decorate front with die cuts, sentiment and embellishment. Let a portion of them hang over the folded edge

On inside add journaling spot and additional embellishment hidden under front fold