Love Bugs

Is anyone else scrambling to make Valentines to hand out at school? A couple of weeks ago I found this adorable paper at the craft store and knew that Valentine butterflies were in my future.

The paper is Paper Note by American Crafts. The whole paper line is really fun!

I wanted to attach them to a treat with the clothespins. I was able to put a few treats in a little snack size bag and clip the butterfly on. I've seen several butterfly ideas for snacks around on the Internet and knew these would work perfectly! I cut out several designs of butterflies that were patterned in the paper and glued them onto wooden clothespins. I painted the clothespins in different colors to match the papers and used really thin jewelry wire as antennas that were attached with a dab of hot glue.

The wings are glued to one side of the inside of the clothespin.

To create a bit of movement make sure to bend slightly the top wings up and the bottom wings down.

Aren't they so fun?  I love how these beautiful papers and designs can "come to life" so to speak
with just a little glue and love.  Yes, cheesy, but it is for Valentine's day....:)

The hardest part was making up the template. Here's a shot of the ones I used, yes, they were eyeballed and cut out of notebook paper that was in front of me. I would probably recommend using card stock or card board from a cereal box~it would ease the tracing.

Having all boys I can only get away with this with my youngest who is 3.

He didn't care as long as there were treats attached.

Now only 3 more ideas to come up with.....

Tomorrow Nicole has her daughter's duck themed Valentines to share, you won't want to miss out on them~they are hilarious. Good luck all you procrastinators~we're in the same boat, but at least we have Downton Abbey to watch while we work!

WYLTC? Crafty Sisters Chevron Heart Flower Garden Stakes

It's our turn today over at Wood You Like To Craft with this month's theme of Chevron and we are sharing a simple Valentine's Day wood craft you'll want to add to your "to do" list! ~ Come on over and take a peek!

Wood Witch Silhouettes

Feeling Witchy?

We couldn't pass up making some fun Wood Witch Silhouettes

after seeing the My Mind's Eye Halloween paper this year.

We had so much fun earlier this year making silhouettes for our kids- that
this project was a definite "to-do" on our Halloween craft list!
My Minds Eye's Haunted Paper Pad had all sorts of wicked silhouettes
and the witches were just calling out~cut me...cut me.....

(We found this MME 6x6 paper pack at Michael's Craft store.)  We had trouble finding it online.

After blowing the images up on the computer, they were traced and cut out of 3/4" MDF.

MDF is so great to cut detailed work out like this because it cuts like butter

and doesn't chip or splinter like pine wood does.  (Be sure to wear a good mask when cutting MDF!)

I found myself cackling out loud as each wart, each rotten tooth and crazy curves on the hats were cut.

These Witchy gals are creepy and fun!

The witches were then coated in a semi-gloss black spray paint,

making sure to sand lightly between coats for a smooth finish.

Then they were finished off with a quick alligator hook on the back for easy hanging.

I made a few of these up for the boutique secretly hoping they wouldn't sell so I could keep them all to myself...but it looks like I'll be out cutting some of these ladies again!

Aren't they so fun paired with these witch potion making ingredients? We found the bottles at Hobby Lobby, and the potion labels are from The Graphics Fairy.  She always has great Halloween graphics you can easily find and print!  

*If any of you don't want to give these witchy silhouettes a try on the scroll saw, I cut out extra.  

Just contact me here!

Our Goose Creek Candle giveaway is still going on!  Hurry and enter to win a yummy scented candle, perfect for the fall season! 

WYLTC? Growth Charts

Hello!

We are happy to be able to pick this month's Wood You Like To Craft? theme, Growth Charts!  We have wanted to make growth charts for our kids for a long time.  They grow up so fast!

We were inspired by growth charts made by Petite Lemon and Ferm Living.

Our kids are animal lovers and these are perfect.

First we had Home Depot slice up a piece of 1/2 inch mdf, 12 inches wide and 42 inches long.

To create the pennant, we cut with a jigsaw a notch about 2 1/2 inches up from the bottom.

We also glued in grommets into drilled holes to create the official pennant look.

Nicole and her daughter picked what they thought would be my boys' favorite animals and cut the shapes out on 1/8 inch mdf.  They are so cute and the boys love them! We had fun naming all the creatures as we mod podged the papers on.

The majority of the paper we used is from the "Sweet Day" line by Echo Park.

We added a "grow" paper pennant to the top.  This would also be cute with your child's name, but since I have multiple boys, this will do.  We drew the numbers and lines on with a paint pen.

Nicole's daughter is a serious animal lover and especially fond of owls.  (They have owl boxes in their back yard and regularly spot visiting owls. )

Nicole cut and papered an adorable owl along with her daughter's name to go on her growth chart.

She used a cricut to cut the numbers and lines for the ruler along the side.   A vinyl ruler would also be a great option.

We are so happy with how they turned out and we especially love the smaller size.

Come on over this week to Wood You Like To Craft? to see what the other girls build!

Papered Flag

Some of my best inspirations working with wood

come from looking at handmade cards.

I knew as soon as I saw this card/gift box

made by Tracy Harp of Inky Doodles

that it would be perfect made out of wood!

Isn't it so cute and clever!?!

I cut the basic shape and star out of 

1/4" MDF at approximately 11x14".

I painted it Americana Deep Midnight Blue.

I always water down my paint for a smoother finish.

It's better to do 2 light coats

than one thick globby coat.~is that even a word?

I then Mod Podged on some of the cutest paper 

from Authentique.

Have you guys seen their paper?

It's gorgeous and thick which makes it perfect for paper crafting!

When I was done I glued gunned on some cute ribbons to hang it with.

So easy, so fun and cute!

Did any of you watch Craft Wars last night?

Oh my goodness was it fun, exciting and totally intimidating!

What did you guys think?