Upcycled Postcards

 My friend Laura came over the other day and gave me the greatest idea.  (Actually it was her kid, but shh, don't tell her)

She was making postcards out of old cardboard food boxes!

I thought it was brilliant!

So, of course, I had to make some too.

Think of all the old things you can make into these.

Record albums, toy packaging, game boxes! Endless!!

I'm going to send them to camp with my kid

(pre-addressed and stamped too)

that way she can easily send off letters to everyone she loves(and knows).

They are very easy as well.  As long as it is a minium of 3.5x5 and as think as an index card, it can be mailed as a postcard.

Mine are 4x6, just to make the measurement easier.

I used another postcard that I had on hand to trace.

 

 See the backs?  I was at Hobby Lobby and I found this!

It couldn't have been more perfect...and the best part??  It was 40% off this week!  Super!

 

I just love how they turned out!

So bright and colorful!

Make someone's day when they open the mailbox!!

 

Thanks for reading!!

DIY Gumball Party Invite

My darling daughter is about to turn 11.  Oh my where has the time gone??  She is still my sweet girl, but is growing up so fast I don't even know what to do.

Do you know what she wants for her birthday?

A pedicure...and a haircut.

Yikes!  I definitely have a tween on my hands.

She's getting a bike too, but it's a surprise, so shhhh...don't tell.

I did a whole lot of research on birthday invites and let me tell you, they are costly.  She is having a gumball party, complete with DIY gumball necklace favors.  So sweet!

I ended up figuring out how to make some really sweet invites myself.  So instead of paying $10 for someone else's work, then the cost of printing them...I only payed around $3.75 for everything!

It was so simple too!

I simply found a picture that I liked(online or whatever you want) and I edited it in Pic Monkey!

Voila!

Super simple, and I love love love the way they look!

I even made ones with different times for the family cook-out.

The very best part???

They can be mailed with no envelopes, just like a postcard.

Very cheap thrifty of me.

Now that I know what I'm doing, all invites are to be done this way!!

(PS- that is my real number, but if you call I probably won't answer)

 

:D

 



Chevron Bow Wristlet/Clutch

Don't you just love chevron?  Me too.

This bag was a cinch to make too.

It was a birthday gift for a dear old friend and I must say, it was the hit of the party.  :)

Go me!!

In hindsight I wish I'd have taken more pics of it because the inside is soooo cute(navy leaves with yellow roses).

I got the oh so simple tute here at Elm Street Life....she's amazing.

Now I just have to decide on what color I want.

Thanks for reading!

:D

Shabby Monogram Crossbody Bag

I made this super cute bag using my tutorial for the Little Girl Patchy Bag.  I wanted to make it personal for my sons little school friend, so I added a big "J" to the front.  It was super easy.

All I did was free hand cut out the letter and sew it on after I stitched the patches together.  I left the edges raw so it would fray and add character.

Max thinks it is super!  And he told me that she will really like it.  We hit up the good ole Dollar Tree and Dollar Spot at Target for some small goodies to put inside too.

The party is at Monkey Joe's and it's all good, because I really like that place.

Thanks for reading!

:D

Favorite City Charm Necklace

 

 

My best friend and her daughter used to live in Chicago.

Not a suburb, but really in Chicago.

In a really beautiful high-rise apartment, on the top floor, with a super great view of downtown.

I LOVED to visit them.

Alas...time moves on, and now they live back in our town.

Don't misunderstand, we love having them back, but her daughter really misses Chicago.

So I thought I'd make her this necklace as a way to remember that she could wear.

It was really easy too.

I got to use the drill(I love power tools too).

Luckily my hubs had just got himself some new drill bits and there was a teeny tiny one that was perfect for this project!!

First of all, I had saved a small map of Chicago that I got on our last trip up there.  (It was from our hotel and it was free!)

I got my Modge Podge and scissors, large jump rings and a pre-made red ball chain.

That is it!

Shh, I made the Loop Subway/El one for my daughter, she just doesn't know it yet.

Don't they look super great???

 

 

The heart one is special, because I put the heart right on the corner of where they lived the first time we visited.

Right on the corner of Clark and Fullerton.

(Lucky for me the free map had both of those streets on it)

Anyway, I used the Modge Podge to affix the maps to the hearts, and then I shellacked a layer over the top to make it really sturdy.

I really hope she likes it.

Oh yeah, we are going up there on Monday for Spring Break!!

It's going to be a ball.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading!!

:D

Easy Bunny Hoop Decor aka Frank

 

 

This is almost the easiest thing I have ever made, and soooo cheap.  Perfect for a lazy crafter like me.

(Not that you are too, but I can be sometimes.)

Anyway, I came up with this idea because the cost is so low.

About $3 total.

I had the fabric and the pompom for the tail.

All I really had to buy was the hoop, and for that I used a 50% off coupon from Joann's.  It came to about $0.75.

I made the bunny template myself on a copier at work(I don't suggest this if your employers keep track of that stuff, but luckily mine don't.)  I found an online pic that I liked and enlarged it until it was the size I wanted.

 

First thing I did, was decide on the fabric I wanted to use.  I actually just bought this a week or so ago, and it was on sale, so double score!

I knew this was the perfect spring colors to decorate with.

Next, I traced the bunny I cut out onto the wrong side of the fabric with some fabric ink(it disappears in 24 hours)

 

Then I cut him out(let's call him Francois, I like french bunnies)

Next I tried my best to center Francois(Frank for short) on the fabric square I cut out and pin him on.

 

 

I sewed him on, but the cool part is that you could glue him on too!

Modge Podge or fabric glue, or hot glue or even Elmer's glue(the dry time is longer for some of them though.

 

 

I left his edges loose so he can fray over time and look very "shabby chic".

After I centered him in the hoop and got it all tight all the way around, I trimmed the excess and tightened the hoop as tight as I could without breaking it.

Then I hot glued on a fluffy pompom tail.

He turned out so cute I just can't stand it.

And Voila!!!(see, french)

Bunny aka Frank.

 

Thanks for reading!

:D

Fabric Easter Eggs

 

 

I found this product inspiration on Pinterest.  If you don't follow me on Pinterest, you should.  I have been pinning stuff like crazy for a long time.  And it's good stuff, not just junk.  But I digress...

I went to the site for these and there was no tutorial, so I thought I'd wing it and if they ended up cute, I would share them with you.

 

Step 1

Cut out 2 egg shapes, one a tad bigger than the other.

I like to use recycled cereal and food boxes b/c it makes a sturdier pattern.  :)

 

Step 2

Cut out(using the smaller egg) lots of colorful fabric eggs.

Scraps work great for this!

 

Step 3

Cut out( using the bigger egg) enough white fabric eggs for the backs.

I used batting type fabric b/c it is what I had on hand.

Fleece or felt would work too.  I liked the crisp white too, it looks more egg-y(is that even a word?).

 

 Step 4

Layer the front and the back and sew almost all the way around the egg.  Leaving a space to insert the dowel rod.

Like so.

 

I think they turned out so very pretty.  I tossed some Easter grass in a hurricane and tied it up with a pretty bow!  All set for Easter.  This is the perfect centerpiece for my dining room table.

 

 

Hurricane glasses are good for all kinds of uses.  I use mine for almost every holiday.  Candy corn for Halloween, ornaments for Christmas.  I used beads here for St Patrick's Day, and you could also put eggs in it for Easter.  Just so versatile...Lemons and apples are good for summer, etc, etc, etc.  You get my drift.  :)

 

 

Thanks for reading!!

:)