Valentines Tutorial – Part 2 The Gift

I’d like to say that this gift idea was mine, but i was actually inspired by another blog and I’ve now made my version to hopefully inspire you. Like the part 1 Valentines tutorial this isn’t just for valentines it can be used for any occasion and you can customise it in any way.

Equipment

Second-hand picture (the bigger the better)

Spray paint – for the frame

Scissors

Paint colour charts

Glue – ideally spray mount and pric stick

Letters

Masking tape

This was a really fun project to do, the best part was picking what colours and shades I was going to use – Tip: you may need to visit a couple of shops to steal the colour charts and fill up your boots, I used a lots and often changed my mind about which shade to use!

Start by selecting your shades and cutting up the colours

After cutting up the colours needed, arrange them on to  the image you are replacing or the backboard of the frame, you could mix up the colours, select them to go from light to dark (like mine) or just have lots of shades of the same colour.

When you are happy with the layout start to stick the shades with spray mount: Tip - This stray needs lots of ventilation and is ultra sticky. I've suggest removing the colours as you had placed them, cover the board with spray mount and then quickly stick onto the board.

Whilst the colours are drying on the board, spray your  frame. When I brought mine (From a charity shop at the top of Brixton Hill) it had an ugly black and gold frame, so I sprayed it white.

Picking the words to go on there should be easy, keep it short and sweet and will look really effective. I stuck the letters with pric stick (Spray mount is far too sticky).

When the frame, letters and colours have dried, put the frame back together and use the masking tape to hold the back of the frame in place.

Finished - An original piece of art work, hopefully for a happy recipient. 

Pin It

Valentine's Tutorial - Post 1/2

Valentines day is less than 2 weeks away and as I’m not fond of the commercial stance the day of Lurve has taken, I’ve spent the last few weeks making the gift, card and a special little table decoration for a romantic meal for two.

This week’s tutorial is a quick, easy and will look good on any table, not just for valentines, but any occasion.

I’ve been dying to try frosted glass spray and Romantic centre pieces seemed to be the way to go, it’s very easy to use and I think I may have been a little too experimental with my attempt, but below is another example to give you a clearer image.

Equipment

Frosted glass spray

Glass – I used old jars, which I washed the labels off. But the spay can also be used on drinking glasses, mirrors and windows etc.

Scissors & paper

Pric stick 

Start by designing and cutting out an image to go onto the glass. In my experience the more basic the better, I chose True Love and a heart but the words didn’t come out as clear as I would have liked.

Pric stick is the best glue to temporarily stick the paper to glass. Pric stick doesn’t stick to glass but it will hold your image there long enough to spray the glass frosting over.

Source: gardenersworld.com via SWCraftClubLondon on Pinterest

As not to gas myself whilst spraying the jars, I sprayed mine outside and they needed 3 or 4 coats of frosting to get a really good frosting effect.

Here are mine, a heart and the word Love - sorry not as clear as I would have liked as I was trying to set the scene on my table but it’s a dark, below is another example.

Source: gardenersworld.com via SWCraftClubLondon on Pinterest

DIY Upcycled Picture Frame

I’ve been inspired, last year I pulled together a pictorial post on chalk boards for our sister site Craft Candy. The post had some great images of modern things people are producing with chalkboards in mind, using slate, blackboard paint, blackboard adhesive or by just recycling an old chalkboard, here’s the link: Craft Candy Chalk post

Before you chuck out your old belongings in January to make way for all of the new Christmas presents, Don't! read my modern interpretation on the very boring chalkboard (how to upcycle something old into something new).

Equipment list

Old picture or mirror with an interesting ornate frame (Warning: do not use a  plain frame, you’ll be disappointed)

Spray paint

Hot glue gun

Blackboard adhesive and of course chalk.

I didn’t have an old picture with a great frame at home and I really struggled to find one in a charity shop which didn’t have an antique price tag attached to it! But and after months of looking, I  eventually  found 3 frames at Columbia road market and with a little haggling I got them for a price which meant I didn’t feel guilty when spray painting them.

Start by taking apart the picture and the frame and washing them both, if like mine, yours are old and dusty, they’ll be filled with lots of dirt and grease which your paint and adhesive won’t stick to.

Spray the frames, they’ll need 2/3 layers of spray paint. But with each layer, spray it lightly and wait for it to dry before applying the next layer. Tip: if you spray too much paint at once it will obviously take longer to dry but also the paint will be too thick and runny!

Whilst you are waiting for the frames to dry stick the adhesive to the picture. The easiest way to do this to draw around the picture onto the reverse of the adhesive and cut it out.  Tip: pay special attention when sticking I ended up with a few bubbles in mine because I stuck it too quickly.

                                             

Finally, it’s now time to glue your frame back together. I mainly used a hot glue gun, but one of the frames I had to unscrew and screw it back together again.

                           
                                   

old picture upcycled and transformed into a modern chalk board

Pin It

Upcycle Shoes: Twinkle Toes Tutorial no.2

Guest Blogger Natasha De Vil of the The Crafty Ms De Vil Blog shoe you how to upcycle your shoes for the festive season.

So it Christmas the time of festivity and celebration but you have a problem you spent the last of your pennies buying fab gifts for all your friends and family and now you have no money left to get those awesome shoes for the office Christmas party. Never fear Ms De Vil is here to show you how to vamp a pair of old shoes that will cost you less than a fiver but make your feet look a million pounds!

First you need to select your shoes and choose a glitter that a matching colour.

You will also need a tray, a bowl and a small artists paint brush and some fabric or pva glue.

Evenly cover your shoes with glue using a paint brush

Then sprinkle with glitter covering the whole shoe and then leave to dry.

 When dry shake off the excess glitter in the tray and then mix this and the remainder glitter in a bowl with some more glue, I’d go for an even ratio of glitter and glue.

Give the shoes an even coat of the glitter glue mixture and leave to dry. This second coat will seal the glitter on the shoe to stop it shedding.

And voila once the glue is dry your new dancing shoes are ready to hit the dance floor.

And that is how you revamp a pair of old shoes into new.

Enjoy

Natasha De Vil x

To see the first Twinkle Toes tutorial, check out Ms De Vil's blog:  http://thecraftymsdevil.wordpress.com/2011/05/04/twinkle-toes/

Pin It

DIY: Gift Wrap

When I first decided to write an introduction to gift wrapping blog post, it was washi tape which inspired me, I’ve just fallen in love with it. washi tape has a similar texture and versatility to masking tape, but that’s where the similarities end. washi tape was founded in 2006 in Japan and its made from rice paper.  It comes in pretty different colours, patterns, designs and widths and is historically used for arts and crafts.

With Christmas just around the corner and some very uninspiring gift wrap on the high street, I started to research DIY gift wrap, with the aim to create something special, which hopefully the recipient will enjoy as much as their gift. It turns out there are a loads of bloggers our there with blogs dedicated to gift wrapping. My favourite gift wrapping blog is The Gifted Blog

Here’s my take on making your own gift wrap, using different techniques and paper ready for this Christmas.

Equipment List

Textured paper

Scissors

sellotape – for concealed wrapping

Plain gift tags

Twine/ string

Washi Tape – Thank you to the website papermash for donating the washi tape

When picking the gift wrap and tape remember to consider, colours, tone, the occasion you are making it for and the texture of the paper.

I’ve used different textured paper for each of these gift wrapping tutorials to help to inspire you!

Tissue Paper

Parcel Wrap

Plain Paper (or like me a reverse of a poster)

As you can see, each accompanying gift tag has been decorated in a different pattern
Visit the website papermash for more seasonal washi tapes and gift wrap ideas.

Pinterest examples

Source: blogs.babble.com via Birgit on Pinterest

Source: simplymodernmom.com via Charmaine on Pinterest

Source: papermash.co.uk via SWCraftClubLondon on Pinterest

Pin It

Cake Pop Crazy!

This weekend I went cake pops crazy! Thanks to Hobbycraft I was able to stock up on everything necessary needed to make pop cakes, it is was great fun.

Cake pops are a quickly growing trend in the UK and now I can see why. They are cute, great for kids, taste great and are easy to make. Actually they were really easy to make, I’m sure my family will be finding them in their stockings this Christmas.

Being my first attempt, I have no shame in telling you that I did make some mistakes along the way, but thankfully nothing that affected the taste or appearance and don’t worry I’ll be sharing them with you, so you don’t make the same faux pas.

Here are mine, follow my quick step by step cake pop tutorial to produce your own.

Equipment 

Sponge

Coloured chocolate drops

Pre-made icing - I used Betty Crocket Rich & Creamy Chocolate fudge icing

Lollipop sticks

Cellophane covers

Decorations – i.e. sprinkles,etc

Nice and simple bake a sponge, mine was a really simple chocolate sponge.

Don’t let the sponge cool too much as you have to break it down into crumbs and mix in the pre-made icing.

By mixing in the icing it binds the mixture, so you can mould the sponge into the shape you’d like. (there isn’t really a right or wrong amount to add. It depends on how much sponge you have made, but make sure it binds enough that the sponge doesn’t crumble or not too much that it is too sticky)

Once you’ve found the right consistency, start rolling the sponge into balls

Now it starts to get messy! Melt down the chocolate. This is a lot easier than it use to be as the melting can be achieved in the microwave.

 Tip: I divide all of my coloured chocolate into separate bowls and melted as needed so it doesn’t set again.

Setting the lollipop stick in the chocolate ball. Dip the stick into the melted chocolate and pushed into the ball. When the chocolate sets it will set into place.

My Biggest Faux pas was making my balls too big!! My eyes were obviously bigger than what the sticks could handle, so please don’t make the same mistake as me or you will also have trouble getting the ball to stay on the stick!!

Pop your cakes pops into the fridge for an hour to set.

Now for the Fun.. Decorating the Cake pops.
This part is entirely up to you, go as crazy or not as you like here are mine

Oh! it looks like someone is enjoying their food.

Thank you to Hobbycraft for Sponsoring this blog post, to get the ingredients to make your own cake pops, click on the cake pop link: Cake Pops

Sponsored by: 

Pin It