"Thankful" Wall Art

Soooo... yeah... again, I saw this saying on Pinterest, and knew I had to do something with it. I ended up settling on an oversized sheet of compressed wood stuff- what do you call that stuff? MDF? maybe? Anyhow, I had it, and I thought, I could make this work. I actually (because I don't usually) measured off even lines- just making slight hash marks, so I could have the lettering not off kilter. I usually eyeball it, and it takes a lot more time. I still had to work on centering, but if you at least don't have to factor in the up and down part of it, it makes it a lot easier.

I have been enjoying using the technique of the paint on the bottom, vinyl, then painting over the vinyl and pulling it off before the paint completely dries. It is really fun, yes, sigh... I'm a craft nerd! I just touched up a few of the letters a bit, and then distressed it. All it took was adding a wire hanger, and I was done. Surprisingly, for the size, it was a really quick project! I love this saying, because I really, strongly, believe in being thankful. It is something I hope to get through to my children.

Decorative plates with Vinyl

I'm on a kick again- this time, with my wall plates. Since I attached my plate hanger to the wall, I now have to fill it. I couldn't keep my "peace" and "joy" plates up from Christmas- since they were all red and Christmassy... bummer. I used plates found at the Dollar Store, and my handy dandy Cricut vinyl to cut out some new words. "Faith" and "Family" are 2 very important words to me, so it works well. I may find some more plates and change them out with the seasons with different words that work. For Valentine's Day, you could use red plates with white vinyl, or white plates with red vinyl with all those Valentiney words like love, kisses, hugs, be mine, etc. Lots of options, definitely. I'm happy with this- such an easy way to change things out inexpensively and creatively.

Holiday plates with vinyl lettering

I'm on a roll, woohoo! This is another project inspired by a pin on Pinterest. I found the original idea here : http://pinterest.com/pin/55591376619891512/ - from Better Homes and Gardens. They used 3 plate hooks/holders to spell out the word "JOY" with 3 white plates and red lettering. That is what I orignally wanted to do, and had planned on doing, until I realized that the plate holder that I had sitting waiting to be hung on the wall only had 2 spots, not 3.. I had to regroup. I hate to admit that it took me a lot longer than I would have liked.... I was trying to think of all the words that would go together for Christmas. Comfort and Joy would have been good too... I settled on Peace and Joy. At that point I cut them out with my Cricut in the last piece of my lovely red vinyl that I have rarely used. I'm so pleased with how they turned out. Okay... to be nitpicky, I should have recentered the JOY, it's a bit high on the plate, but oh well.... it was the perfect touch for my empty wall. I'm trying very hard to not just pin things on Pinterest, but actually attempt to make some of them. For right now, I'm doing alright I think. I do copy and save images to my computer so I can place them in a Word document in smaller pictures and print them out for my idea binder. I can't always get to a computer to look at something I've pinned, and it's easier to show someone else that way... I'm rambling... anyhow.. I found a set of 5 white plates at Goodwill for $4.99, I didn't think that was too bad of a deal, and I had the vinyl already. You can do this without a Cricut- and I plan on buying some Contact paper too- cheaper and cuts the same as vinyl too :) Try it out, it's easy and a lot of fun!

I think my picture is a little off kilter- didn't realize that until I posted it... sorry about that...

"Shh!! We're reading" sign

If you've checked out anything else on my blog, you'll at some point run across the mention of our MOPS group's spring auction and what I've made for it. I tend to make a variety of items- there are some things I've made several years in a row because they did really well, and then there are specific to the year and my whim and fancy. Anyhow, I digress..... :) Each year every table of ladies in the MOPS group comes up with a themed gift basket in which we put together items that go with that theme. Our table chose "Child's first library" in which all those classics are included that you'd typically buy for a new baby. I decided to contribute a little sign, the idea just came to me... thanks God!! I think God gives me the best ideas :) So, what popped into my mind was "Shh!! We're reading" Pretty basic, really. I painted a little plaque from Craft Warehouse a bottom coat of red, then painted over that with a light aqua color. I then sanded around the edges a bit and on the front to let the red show through slightly for contrast. I used a red ribbon hanger to complement the red and aqua, and then used my Cricut with the Alphalicious cartridge to cut out some vinyl lettering. I think it will be a fun addition to our First Library basket.

Wood signs, Crackling, and Vinyl

I got to playing with 2 x 4's after getting them cut, and then fiddled around with paint and crackling medium. In a previous post regarding my breadbox, I talked about my struggles with crackling medium. I think I've found a kind that I like- the Weathered Wood crackling medium. You allow it to dry completely before you put your top coat of paint on. I have discovered that the biggest trick to it not dragging when you brush the paint on, is to thin down your top color of paint with water so that you can get it on without dragging the brush- for once you don't want super thick coverage of paint. I also figured out that the other trick for me was to use a bigger brush, so the combination of the thinner paint with being able to brush it on fast, before it interacts with the crackling medium (and then drags.. and frustrates you quite a bit) and the bigger brush so that you are done faster, it seemed to work really, really well.. Yes, this makes me very happy, because it's very aggravating to work so hard on something, having it look like it's got great potential, and then have the last details snag up on you... So I painted and crackled the wood, then distressed it a bit more around the edges with sandpaper- which also reveals the base coat.. I'm really enjoying how this looks.. :) (yes, my inner craft geek comes out big time here...). All that was left was cutting out vinyl with my Cricut. The "Keep CALM and CARRY on" quote I found on a talented lady's blog (which I can't remember or find at the moment)- only she also added a crown on there, which totally adds more to the look, but alas, I have no crown- only the ones in my mouth, and those won't do me any good here.. Add a metal hanger on the back and some ribbon to finish it off.... The "Est." idea for the last name I also found in several places in blog land. I'm glad I finally got around to making it. Oh, and for the record- the Gratitude sign, I didn't crackle, I just distressed, but I'm lumping it in with all my signs for the day...

Votive holders with Cricut- cut vinyl words

These little votive holders were so much fun to decorate and so fast! A friend of mine who borrowed my Cricut to see if she'd like it well enough to get one for herself- (she did :) ) came over this morning to show me how to cut vinyl with it and I am hooked. We used the Home Decor/Design cartridge and cut out the "live love laugh" at 2 inches, and the little flourishy/vine feature too (in white)- I think that may have been at 1 1/4 inches. Then all I had to do was stick them to the glass votive holders. The votive holders were bought from Ikea- 4 to a package for under 2 dollars. I can't wait to play some more with it! These holders will go to our MOPS auction in March- nice to have something cute and inexpensive already done for that.