Arts & Crafts

How to Stretch Your Own Canvas

Hi, y'all! I'm enjoying an absolutely gorgeous weekend at the beach. We are staying on Topsail Island in NC. Not to gloat, but it is wonderful living only a few short hours from the beach. But, I wish you were here too. The weather is cool,…
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Hot Glue Gun Safety and Making Moss Balls

  According to my facebook and twitter friends, I am not the only one who gets burned EVERYTIME I use a hot glue gun. For this reason, I typically will hand sew, nail, or E-6000 something before I will use a hot glue gun. But, every…
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Fall Makeover for a Thrift Store Purse

Most people would have probably walked past this plain jane wool purse. I almost did, but then the price tag caught my eye. THREE DOLLARS! Immediately I pictured dressing it up with a few fabric rosettes. With fall on the horizon,…
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Make Your Own Fall Wreath from a Goodwill Sweater

Today I am going to show you how to Make Your Own Fall Wreath. If you've been following me for long, you were witness to my one wreath with many different looks for one year. Well, I'm ready for a change. So, I decided to create something…
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Paint Chip Lamp Shade

Are you as nutso about paint chip projects as I am? I'm semi-worried that I might get arrested next time I'm pulling samples at my local paint department. Is there a law against taking too many?* Okay, so let's just say that I have collected…
creative-gift-wrapping
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Paint Chip Wrapped Present

I've officially caught the paint chip bug! How about you? Have you seen all that can be done with those FREE* paint chips?! The possibilities are almost endless. (*Please use consideration when taking paint chips. Try not to take more than…
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Creating a Faux Ceiling Medallion with Cutting Edge Stencils

  When heard the word stencil, I used to involuntarily cringe slightly. I pictured those cutesy country stencils my mom used to use with geese, apples, and hearts on them. (Sorry Mom.) But, that all changed last week when Cutting…
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Sharpie Stained Markers – Making a Keepsake Baby Shirt

Sharpie just sent me a new line of markers they just released. They are called Stained by Sharpie. The markers are permanent fabric markers and let you get creative on anything fabric, canvas or cloth. They couldn't have arrived at a…
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Guest Posting at Frugal Flourish – Making Glass Citrus Plates

  I've been fighting a losing battle this week. I seem to have come home from California with some airplane cooties. Last night I got knocked down by a raging ear infection. This evening I came down with pink eye. My sympathies go…
Artist Inspiration Board
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An Artist’s Inspiration Board from an Old Window

Hey guys, today I'm dishing up a triple dose of posts for you. I've been busy, really busy, super busy! And you don't know the half of it. As you are reading this, I'm on my way home from California. I flew out to surprise my little sister…
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Making Printed Drop Cloth Bulletin Boards

I'm so excited to share this tutorial with you. I knew it could be done, but honestly I didn't believe it until I tried it. When I saw THIS cute project over at Home Frosting, it got my creative wheels turning. I asked Lesa for a…
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Dollar Store Flower Pot Makeover

Another project I completed before the birthday party was a quick makeover for a pair of ho-hum dollar store flower pots. My friend Heather helped me add some jute rope and fake flowers then set them out with utensils in them. Perfect for…
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Magnetic Art Display Frame

I don't know about you, but I've been fighting a losing battle lately. I have begged, yelled, and threatened my boys to stop putting stickers and tape on the walls. I think my youngest one upped me, he put tape and stickers on his door!…
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Dream Big Butterfly Window – Resin Craft

Phew, what a week. I've been working on about 5 different projects simultaneously. The biggest accomplishment this week was my screened porch makeover. I have been itching to make it an outdoor living and relaxing room for about 4 years now.…
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School’s Out! Summer Crafts for the Kids

The end of the school year has come and now it is time to load up on craft supplies to keep the kids entertained. My elementary school friend Megan asked me if I had any summer craft ideas to share. So, Megan, this post is for you! Planning…
Spraypainted Bottle Vases
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Spray Painted Glass Jars and Bottles

I have a real problem throwing away perfectly good glass jars and bottles. To me they are little craft gems waiting for me to transform them. With Mother's Day and Teacher Appreciation coming up, I decided to turn some of our recycled bottles…
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Making a Citrus Striped Cake Stand

As promised, I have a tutorial for making a cake stand using a plate and a candlestick. This is nothing new, and if you've hopped around the blogosphere, you have probably seen some variations of this project. These are a few of the projects…
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Knife Topped Birdhouse

Okay, so I know you all think I've gone off my rocker. I bought a bunch of silverware (err, excuse me flatware) from Goodwill recently. I made some Fork Photo Holders (which I absolutely adore!) And had been thinking of some cool projects…
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Fork Photo Holder Base

I want to share with you how to make an alternate base for that Fork Photo Holder you see above. If you will give me a few minutes, I'll show you how to do that. Materials: Fork (.25 each from Goodwill) Wooden base from craft store (cost…
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No Solicitors Sign

No Solicitors Sign We live on a quiet street in a peaceful neighborhood in Raleigh. Unfortunately, every so often, my son's peaceful naps were interrupted by: DING DONG! And when I answered the door, this is who greeted me. ARRGGGHHH! I…
Mousetrap-MemoTrapFinal
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Mousetrap Memo Pad

I've been dying to show you this project, but didn't want to give away any secrets. You see, I made them for a few bloggers out there in the home décor blogland. And as luck would have it, most of these special women are here at Blissdom!…
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Wool Roses on a Stem

Hello my sweets! I'm definitely getting down with the sugar lingo just in time for Valentine's Day. And in honor of that day devoted to love, don't you think these felted wool roses would make a nice gift for that someone special in your…
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Felted Wool Roses Tutorial

Y'all are so sweet to welcome Buddy onto my blog. I appreciate your kind comments and encouragement to include some of my personal life. There was not a single comment asking me to "stick to business." But, getting back to business, I…
Faux Chippy Painted Metal Pail with Liner
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Aged Painted Pail Tutorial

I was strolling through our local Goodwill last week looking for goodies donated by people trying to claim a last-minute tax write-off. I came across a bucket with a $1 price on it and knew I could transform it into a beautiful aged painted…
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Creating Silhouetted Gifts

Now that the Christmas hype has died down and my cold has lost its grip on my sinuses, I'm back with a quick little tutorial on creating a special silhouetted gift for your child. Thank you to my dear Pretty Handsome Guy for his guest post.…
creative gift wrapping
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #6

This is it, the last day of my Creative Gift Wrapping Tutorials. I saved these adorable silhouetted animals for last. Snowy Polar Bear Materials:   Wrapping paper White card stock paper Snowflake hole puncher Key tag Satin ribbon Jingle…
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #5

Welcome back. If you are up for some more creative gift wrappings, let's get going. Hanging Ornaments Materials:  Wrapping paper Curling ribbon Buttons Snowflake Embellishments Hot glue gun Elmer's glue Circle template: jar, glass,…
Chalkboard Tags for Gift Wrap
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #4

What happens when you have more gift wrapping ideas than presents? I guess I could go buy more presents, but I think Pretty Handsome Guy might not be too happy about that. So, I'll have to stick with just six days of Creative Gift Wrapping.…
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #3

Today I have two creative gift wrapping ideas that have a more natural feel. Perfect for the eco-conscious recipient in your life! Rosemary Gift with Bells Materials: Brown paper bag or wrapping paper Fresh cut rosemary Red ribbon (fat) Smaller…
Clustered Butterfly Gift Wrap
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #2

Welcome back! I have some more creative gift wrapping for you today. Next up at the wrapping station: Clustered Butterfly Gift   Materials: Wrapping Paper Wire Ribbon Butterfly hole puncher Colored scrapbook paper or other colored…
Snowman Gift Wrap
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Creative Gift Wrapping Day #1

The last few years I found myself up late on December 24th frantically wrapping presents, not exactly the way to get into the spirit! This year I knew I wanted to do it differently. These are the three things I wanted to happen: I wanted…
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Glass Jar Votive Holders

Glass Jar Votive Holders This has to be one of my favorite activities to do with the kids! Start by saving jars for a month or more! Salsa, jelly, vegetable, and baby jars all work well. Soak the jars to remove the labels and scrub any…
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Presto Chango Christmas Wreath

Sneak Peek at my Christmas Wreath I am getting a lot of mileage out of my white base wreath I bought at Target several months ago. With it I've been able to make a Magnolia Leaf Wreath for the fall. I made a Feather Wreath for Thanksgiving. Now…
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Adding Roof and Perch to a Birdhouse

I hope you didn't think I'd leave you hanging. Here is the tutorial for the decorative birdhouse I auctioned off for our preschool's silent auction (just in case you want to make your own birdhouse for Christmas!) By the way, the…
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Birdhouses with Style

Our preschool silent auction is today. Every year I donate a one-of-a-kind birdhouse to be auctioned off. I never spend more than $3 on the birdhouse and usually buy the unpainted versions at Michael's or ACMoore. Then I get creative by hand-painting…
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Feathers in my Wreath

I bought this basic white base wreath at Target a few months ago. I knew it would take me through several seasons.Case in point, my magnolia-fied wreath from September.Well, I stripped out all the dried magnolia leaves and was determined to…
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Create Your Own Decorative Bin

Do you remember that cute little blue striped bin in Renee's storage unit? The one that she uses for junk mail and recycling. How much do you think she paid for that? Would you believe nothing?! I made it for her out of a cardboard box…
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Toilet Paper Pumpkins

I thought I'd sneak one more fun craft in before Halloween. Don't fret, this craft takes about 5-10 minutes. You'll spend more time gathering the supplies than you will creating it. My sitter came over to make these pumpkins with my boys.…
creative-gift-wrapping
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Metal Gift Luggage Tags

I have so much to tell and show you, I can hardly contain myself! If you follow me on Twitter (PrettyHandyGirl), you may have seen this photo of the light fixtures I scored from our Habitat ReStore last week! (Yes, I also have a Facebook…
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Mag-nolia-fying a Fall Wreath

I promised you that I'm embracing Autumn now that the weather is cooling off. In fact, I've been switching out the summer decor for some more seasonally appropriate reds, oranges, brown and greens. I even spent time Mag-nolia-fying a Fall…