my crafty adventures

inspired by design – marc jacobs for louis vuitton

Posted on 05/12/2013 by shamen

I am so excited to start a new adventure with the absolutely amazing Margot Potter!

We have decided to partner together to create fun and easy projects inspired by amazing design.

Our first endeavor is an homage to Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton. The collection was bright, bold, and modern. I fell in love with the yellow and knew that I was going to have to incorporate it in some way in my project.

Here is what you will need:

White Sticky Back Canvas from Claudine Hellmuth Studios for Ranger
Gloss Gel Medium from Claudine Hellmuth for Ranger
Fiskars 1″ Square Squeeze Punch (Block Party) — FYI – I work for Fiskars
Fiskars non-stick 5″ Microtip Scissors
Patterned Paper from Echo Park
White cardstock
Brayer
Water
Fabric Fuse from ThermOWeb
Vintage Ribbons
Maya Road Ribbon
Vintage Buttons
Glue

Here are the steps to completing this project.

Take your sticky back canvas and trim it to 2″ x 5″

Punch 10 1″ squares – five white and five yellow. Peel the backing off of the canvas and put your image that you want to transfer down – so I put the yellow of my paper to the sticky side of the canvas. Rub over it and seal it on good. This is an image transfer technique that Claudine taught at RangerU and I have been dying to do this at home!

Spray the paper with water and rub off all of the paper. The image will transfer to the canvas. It will not be perfect, but that is ok – I wanted a rustic version which is why I did it this way.

Once done, paint with a coat of the gloss gel medium and dry.

Finally, use the peel ‘n stick fabric fuse to adhere your layers together. I ended up cutting my canvas down to 4″ x 2″ so that it fit my wrist better. Then I cut the ribbon layers as well.

The overlay piece of ribbon is the longest and is what is used as the tie when you are all complete.

Once all of the layers were on, I glued on some fun white vintage buttons to complete the look.

The final bracelet just ties on – it is a bit whimsical, vintage, and definitely inspired by the amazing collection done this spring by Marc Jacobs.

Now that you have seen my project, be sure to head over to Margot’s post to see her gorgeous black and white mules!

violet terrarium

Posted on 04/19/2013 by shamen

I have been exercising my very dormant green thumb recently, planting little plants in the house since we still can’t garden outside. It was actually snowing again this morning!

That said, I have been totally drawn into the whole terrarium movement. I love how they look and since I adore glass jars and often buy them without a real plan, I was able to put one to good use!

Now, before embarking on the terrarium path I made sure to do my research. Several sites now have a lot of great information. I printed some of this out and took it with me to the nursery to get my plants, dirt, etc… Here are a couple of links. (I used the BHG one)

Here is how mine went together:

First was a layer of small pea gravel.

Next I added in a layer of dirt.

Next I added in my violet that I purchased.

To help finish it off, I added in some moss around the base of the violets.

Once it was all in place, I added a bit of water.

I did, quickly realize, that the lid was not a good idea for the violets, like it is for other plants, and removed it.

Now it is resting happily in my living room, and for a few brief bits of time I was able to enjoy a slice of spring.

Wishing you good weather and a very happy spring!

music and art

Posted on 04/17/2013 by shamen

There is something truly magical about great music.

It inspires.

It uplifts.

It motivates.

It soothes.

It revs.

It fills your brain and your soul.

For me, music can be what calms me after a rough day, what motivates me during a workout, or what helps me deal with sadness. There is a voice, a melody, a rhyme, a beat, or a sound that impacts us that we turn to.

As a lover of music, I often listen to it – usually most of the day. I love apps like Spotify that allow me to try out the latest and greatest and try every genre out there. I find it freeing and inspiring on so many levels.

That said, yesterday a new song entered my playlist – “Ten Thousand Hours” by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. One line amidst all of it jumped out and grabbed me and I was completely inspired to write it down, listen to it again, and to capture how it made me feel in art.

After a really long week (yes, I know it was only Tuesday) I needed a creative break and found myself in my own version of therapy well after bed time on a school night, elbow deep in gesso, paint, and collage pauge. All the stress melted away, the art flowed, and I just felt like a massive weight had been lifted.

Here is how I created this piece on the off-chance you want to try it yourself sometime…

Supplies:

Flat canvas
Old book pages, sewing patterns, etc…
Collage Pauge
Paint
Heat Gun
Hot Marks Heat Tool
Crayons
Paint brushes
Fine point Sharpie pen
Gesso
Prima stencil mask
Scissors
Printed quote

To get started I decopauged the papers onto the canvas.

I next added paint to the edges.

Once that was all dry (I cheated and used my heat gun to move it along), I used the stencil to add gesso in a bold pattern.

Once the gesso dried, I added paint to the top of it as well.

Once that was done, I printed my quote out and cut out each word with scissors. I placed it and used the collage pauge to adhere and seal it. I then added paint to the pieces, and outlined them all with Sharpie. To finish it off I used the heat tool to melt crayons to add drops of texture and color to the piece.

To finish it up I sealed it all with one more layer of collage pauge. (You might have to touch up the Sharpie if is smears in spots.)

Once it was all done, I let it finish drying. Now I just have to figure out where to put it!

jewelry frame

Posted on 04/15/2013 by shamen

I have had this blank frame just lying around for more than a year. You know the type – the multiple image frames and it feels like you are always missing one photo the right size to use it…

Well, I had a brainstorm one day while looking at the pile of jewelry on my dresser – take that frame and make it into a jewelry holder using all of the different knobs, pulls, and hooks that I have collected over the years for the “perfect project” that never came – until yesterday.

Here’s what you will need:

A frame
Paint – if you want to paint and distress the frame like I did. I used acrylics and then clear Crackle Paint from Tim Holtz
Heat gun
Book pages and/or patterned paper (I used both – Melissa Frances paper and vintage book pages)
Collage Pauge
Strong glue and/or screw driver to attach your knobs and hooks
Knobs, pulls, and hooks
Pretty flowers (if you want)
Ribbon (if you want)

So here was how I put it together.

First I pulled the frame apart removing the glass, mats, and papers.

I then painted the frame with two coats of an off-white to start, drying with the heat gun between coats.

Next I added two coats of white paint, again using the heat gun between coats. Then I put on a coat of the crackle paint.

Using the heat gun a bit more aggressively I dried the crackle paint and added distress to various parts of the frame making it look and feel much older than it is. Carefully holding it close to the paint, it bubbles and browns a bit and brings through the base coat of off-white to add to the look of it being distressed along with the crackles running throughout.

Once that was done, I put the frame over the backer and traced where the various openings were. I then set the frame aside to finish drying all the way.

I grabbed my collage pauge and got to work adding different papers to each opening marked for a different, but coordinated look between each section.

Once this was dry, I put the frame back together and began laying out where the different hooks, knobs, and pulls would go.

Some I was able to glue, while others were a bit too heavy so I added a screw through the back of the frame for additional stability.

Once all the paint and glue was dry I tied a ribbon to the hanging hooks on the back and hung it on the wall.

All that was left was to add in the various pieces of jewelry that I wanted to get off the dresser and more organized! It added a cute vintage bit of decor to our bedroom (which is in dire need of a remodel) and I am really happy with how it turned out.

Overall, with drying time, this probably took 3 hours, but there was some downtime in the middle.

a month in review

Posted on 04/14/2013 by shamen

That’s what it has been since my last confession – I mean blog post. A month.

A Major Project:

A jumbo blank canvas covered my table all month long.
I finally finished it…
And actually hung it in the living room – kinda in love with it.

A Visit home and St. Patrick’s Day:

A visit to mom and dad’s to see my sister, brother in law, and niece
Which turned into a baby photo shoot
and celebrating my dad’s birthday.
Drove home to make sure we got to Jacob’s favorite event of the year – St. Patrick’s Day at Erin’s Snug in Madison.

Spring Break:

2 kids home for a week
Me with Bronchitis and a sinus infection
Hours of plans spent instead on the couch watching movies and playing video games in pajamas all day
According to the boys – best Spring Break – EVER! (Who knew…)
Easter ended up being at home instead of Chicago – I barely made it through church!

Atlanta:

Amazing food
Laughing with friends
5:00 am on set call for our satellite media tour
Arrived home at 11:00 pm
Back to work the next morning

Bowling, bowling, and more bowling:

2 tournaments with the boys
Friday night couples league
Fundraising event for the kids’ scholarship program
Boys’ final weeks – including the banquet

Overall it has been a fun, crazy, wonderful month – but now it is time to get back to work and back to crafting!

one of those weekends

Posted on 03/11/2013 by shamen

Do you ever have those weekends – the kind where nothing gets done at all, but that was the goal?

I should say Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday.

Saturday morning was the typical: go to bowling league with the kids, do some cleaning up and laundry, and then run errands.

By 3:00, however, I was done. Seriously done.

We went home after picking Owen up from a birthday party and that was it. I didn’t open the front door again until this morning.

We watched movies, ate popcorn, and just hung out on the couch.

I didn’t even get to my craft room – which is a huge deal as it is my one goal for the weekend normally. We just sat like vegetables all weekend long.

It has been ages since we did that.

I think we needed it.

It was wonderful.

Now back to work, back to crafting, and back to reality.

Nothing quite smacks you out of it like Monday.

37…

Posted on 03/06/2013 by shamen

In February I turned 37.

Do you remember when that seemed old? There was a point in time when that age meant life was over and everything would all be downhill – anything over 35 seemed that way.

Now that I am here, I look back and forward and realize I still have a long way to go. I feel like I am just really figuring out who I am, what is important to me, and what I want to do with my life – what I REALLY want to do. Not what they told me I should do or what I thought was expected of me when I was in college. Not what I assumed when I was in my 20′s.

Maybe by 40 I will have a better idea… Until then, I keep searching and learning and growing. I continue to become more comfortable in my own skin and I continue to find out who I am, to be “me.”

I think this is the normal progression of life and growing up, right?

Anyway, to mark the occasion, Matt and the boys took me out to a very nice dinner at Francesca’s al Lago here in Madison. If you ever get here, I highly recommend it. They also have several locations in Chicago. They then surprised me with a red velvet birthday cake – which is my absolute favorite guilty pleasure cake. It was a great night with my three favorite boys and I felt absolutely blessed.

Here a quick and bright little layout I did using the Dear Lizzy line from American Crafts. The colors and the patterns were so bright and fun that I just had to use them.

To start, I cut my base cardstock to 10.5×10.5. Then I trimmed my photos and a few patterned papers into squares to use on the layout.

Next I took my Tim Holtz Distress Paints and my Radiant Rain sprays and added some drops and dots to the corners of the cardstock pieces.

I used my micro-tip Fiskars Scissors (FTC – I work there) and fussy cut out the little tree branch from the paper to add to the layout with some pop dots for additional depth.

Finally I layered it all together on the cardstock, adding in stickers and a little “smile” banner from the collection. Once it was all done, I mounted it onto some cute pink chevron 12×12 paper from Jillibean Soup.

In the end I think the bright colors really set off the contentment and happiness I felt that day…

I really enjoyed putting together this quick and simple layout.

Take time to craft, even something small, every day!

5 minute easter project

Posted on 03/05/2013 by shamen

Easter is early this year and I am realizing that I need to get myself in gear and start decorating this week. So this is a 5 minute project to start the decorating process.

I am all about quick and simple – and this project definitely is that!

For this project, I used a Melissa Frances nest, some moss, a fake Robin egg, a small cloche, a vintage plate, some fun spring garland, and some ribbon.

I quickly layered the nest with some moss and the egg. I added a dab of hot glue to the middle of the plate.

I then secured the nest on the glue and then put the cloche on over it.

I cut the garland and the wound it together to create a ring to put around the cloche.

To finish it up, I tied some ribbon and some string to the top of the cloche.

5 minutes and there you go!

Happy Easter and Happy Crafting!

kids crafty adventures – video

Posted on 03/04/2013 by shamen

I admit that my love of crafting has not gone unnoticed by my children. Both of them like to craft and they love to just hang out in the craft lounge with me while I work. That said, Jacob has definitely become very interested in art and has been known to make some pretty awesome projects in the past.

Owen enjoys it and it is a great way for us to spend time together, but it’s not his “thing.” I think he’s sweet and understanding enough to know it is my thing and that I love it when they play along – he would much rather have me play Skylanders with him. I was thrilled, however, when he wanted to make more of the melted crayon canvases. He was laughing out loud about how cool it was to melt them – he honestly enjoyed that activity and that warmed my heart to no end.

………………………………………………….

Jacob’s complete love of all things crafty also lead to this exchange yesterday… I was talking to my hubsters about National Craft Month stuff I was working on.

“Mom – what do you mean it is National Craft Month?”

“Well, every year March is NCM.”

“Like just today or ALL month?”

“All month.”

“Whoa. Let’s go downstairs and craft and make stuff and do art and I can make a video! Oooohhh!!!! I know EXACTLY what to do – just wait – I will show you! This is AWESOME!!!!!” (Insert giddy giggle here.)

Needless to say, he quickly followed me to the craft lounge and began working on his Alphabet Art project to share with the world. He insisted on a video being made and he even acted as director.

Literally.

“Mom. 3-2-1 action… Hi!”

I about died.

Anyway, per our agreement, I am sharing his video with you and his project. I think that he has plans to do more. He was already critiquing this one, making notes on what to do better next time. Can’t wait until my performance review on editing and filming – I have a feeling he’s a tough director.

So – without further ado…

Kids Crafty Adventures: Alphabet Art with Jacob Hamen

Happy National Craft Month!

mixed media fun for national craft month

Posted on 03/03/2013 by shamen

I was born a “dabbler.” I have always had an affinity for making things out of anything that I had lying around.

As a child I played with a bag of ribbons that my grandmother would save from unwrapped birthday and holiday gifts. It was in one of the bedroom closets at her house in an open-ended plastic bag, the kind that needed a twist tie, but never had one because it was always overflowing and full. I would grab my scissors (yes, even then), sit on the hardwood floor, and start curling. I would slice and divide wide strips, making the thinnest curls I could, challenging myself to make tiny tight little curls of shiny goodness. I would make strip after strip and then tape them all onto a piece of paper to create a piece of art.

Likewise, I would go through ream after ream of newsprint paper on my little easel, drawing, coloring, painting, and just loving life at my house. I could go for hours, creating and adding color here and there. I would also spend hours with my dad in his woodshop, cutting pieces of wood, nailing them together, and then coloring them with markers. It didn’t matter what the medium – I made stuff.

I have since done sketch work (high school), made handmade wreaths and ornaments for Christmas presents (college), and have since graduated to being a true and official dabbler. Not that it is a bad thing – I am proud of it. It makes me who I am. I have my passions – scrapbooking, party decorating, and simple home dec – but I am also pretty darn good at basic jewelry making, basic sewing, and now I am enamored with mixed media. It takes all of those mediums I have dabbled in my whole life and dropped them into one unified art form. My paper, my paints, canvas, and anything else I can imagine have all been gift wrapped into one amazing art form that has me playing until the wee hours of the morning.

With that in mind, I thought that the first big project for National Craft Month should reflect this love, so here is a small little canvas that I created using my One Little Word for 2013 – Happy.

It was messy and took a while, but it was so much fun. Here is how I did it…

To get started, I used my always-handy Collage Pauge and started applying pieces of an old dictionary to my canvas. I covered the top and went around the edges.

While it was drying, I began working on one of the elements I would be adding at the end – a bird.

To make the bird, I used three colors of Tim Holtz’s Distress Paints and clear Crackle Paint, as well as some Tim Holtz Grungeboard. I started by adding a layer of blue paint to the Grungeboard, followed by a layer of green, and then the crackle. I ran it through the Fiskars Fuse Creativity System (remember I work from them and please review FTC disclaimer on this site) using the bird dye and letterpress plates. Once it was done, I went back in and added some shading with brown paint.

Once the paper was dry, I added paint to the edges – a light cream color, followed by a darker brown, to add depth to the corners. I then used a stencil and some bright paint colors to add circles to one corner of the canvas.

Once the paint was dry, I grabbed a heat tool from Walnut Hollow and began melting and adding encaustic wax to that corner of the canvas. It provided another layer of texture and a unique look as well.

I printed out a quote that means a lot to me and really helps to define 2013 for me and cut it out. I inked the edges and collage pauged them onto the canvas.

Using hot glue and some burlap, I added my bird to the canvas.

Then I added all of the rest of the final touches…

I added some paint to the words, outlined then in black marker, and then highlighted the “-to be happy-” portion in a bright yellow. I also doodled around the edges.

I grabbed the paints I had been using and a small paint brush, adding droplets and tiny splatters of color to the canvas for a bit of final fun.

And then this was the final result.

Nothing fancy, but a great way to play with all of the art supplies that I love and to make something to remind me to be happy in life – not just by the phrase, but as a constant reminder of the process I used to make it.

I loved the process and I am very satisfied with the result.

Happy National Craft Month!

Add color to your life – make art.