Showing posts with label crafts for girls. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

DIY: Subway Art Frame

My roommate's birthday was a few weeks back. I already had part of the gift planned - some really cool Stila eyeshadow and a few other make-up things, which I love and knew she would too. But I wanted to do something a bit more personal since she's so dear to me.

I came across this darling Subway art over at Kiki & Company. It was just the thing I was looking for!

Side note - so my friends and I always call patterns for projects "recipes" and I've had a hard time not doing that lately but I just can't help it! So...

Recipe:

You will need a blank wooden frame, acrylic paint (I used Apple Barrel by Plaid White and True Teal), scrapbook paper, white cardstock, Krylon Triple Thick Crystal Clear Glaze, sponge brush, and craft glue (I used Aleene's Quick Dry Tacky Glue).

Step 1:

Remove the glass (or in my case plastic) from the frame. Prime frame with 2 coats of white paint. Let dry thoroughly in between layers. Then paint 2 coats of your desired color (also drying well between layers) and let dry.

When it is completely dry, spray the entire frame with the Krylon Triple Thick Crystal Clear Glaze. Be sure to do this in a well ventilated area like outside (my roommates always gets mad when I do this in the house). Let the frame dry really well before handling again - ask how I know about that!

Step 2:

While that is drying, you can pick out your Subway Art for the frame. Like I mentioned, mine came from Kiki & Company. You can also do a search for "Free Subway Art" on Google for more ideas.

Funny thing was that I was trying to use the red and teal design on Kiki Creates. I didn't realize until it printed that my printer was out of magenta ink. Luckily, I love the way it turned out. To make it fit in my frame, I scaled it down to size in Photoshop and printed from there. I printed it on white cardstock to help the colors really stand out and make it sturdier.

Step 3:

This is my favorite part of any project - embellishing! I chose to make some 3D flowers and leaves with the colored cardstock. I love it because it is two-sided! I used my Silhouette to cut them and then glued them to the frame with the craft glue. You can find some ideas to make handmade flowers on my Favorite Flower Tutorials Round-up.

The best part of this project is that you can decide how you embellish the frame. You can use ribbons, buttons, stickers or vinyl cut outs. Personalize it and make it your own.

It turned out perfectly and she loved it! The best part of giving it to her was that I could finally take the sign off the craft room door warning her to stay out!

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Cupid Rhymes with Stupid

My younger sister-in-law is on her high school ASB or Student Body. They have to dress up for about every holiday and school function and when she came over to work on her Valentines to give to her friends, we decided to come up with something custom to wear for Valentine's Day.

This shirt was not our original plan however! We had planned on making the Rufflicious Top over at Polkadots on Parade. I made one the other day for my neighbor's daughter and it turned out beautifully.

We were joking around about Valentine's Day not being so much fun for her because her boyfriend had just broken up with her and so, the Cupid Valentine's Day Top was born:

Supplies needed:
1 t-shirt
freezer paper
iron
sponge brush or paint brush
cardboard or something to layer under the shirt
fabric paint (I used acrylic paint because that's all I had on hand)

To do this with the Silhouette: Tear off a piece of freezer paper the same size as the cutting mat and lay it shiny side down on the mat. I used the LD Hearts font and a cupid from the Silhouette store. Then cut the design with the "Print Paper" setting.

You can also trace a design on freezer paper by hand with an X-acto knife.

To get the stencil, peel the outside of the design off the mat. This is what you will be using. You will also need any of the small pieces such as the inside of the arrow and the hearts inside the letters. The design may curl some, but if you peel the mat away from the template rather than peeling the template off this should help it not curl so much.

Place this centered on the front of the shirt.

I always like to use a press cloth to avoid having things stick to the iron. You can also use a piece of muslin or cotton fabric if you don't have a press cloth.

Set the iron to the highest setting the fabric will allow without steam. Lay the cloth very carefully over your design and press the iron slowly over the whole design. Work carefully so you can adjust the small pieces if they happen to shift at all. I like to go over it several times to make sure that the freezer paper is adhered very well.

Your freezer paper should be stuck to the shirt like a sticker. Then place a piece of cardboard or something thick between the layers of the shirt to prevent the paint from bleeding through to the back.

Now you can use your fabric paint or acrylic paint (it might fade or be stiffer than fabric paint) and fill in your template.

Fill it in slowly to avoid big globs of paint. I did two thin layers and let them dry well in between.Then let it dry really well after the last layer of paint. I cheated and got out the heat gun since my sister-in-law was going to be taking it home soon.

When it is completely dry, peel off the stencil and you will have a totally custom Valentine's Day shirt!

I think I signed myself up to be the permanent shirt maker for all her school functions!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Easy Afternoon Project: Finger Knitting Tutorial

I have tried to learn how to crochet. Sometime I will post the picture of the sad little scarf I made when my sister made me sit down and learn. It is just not something I think I will ever grasp the concept of. In my many craft endeavors, I had amassed quite a collection of yarn, even without being crocheter/knitter. In her efforts to get me to do something fun with all the yarn, my sister decided that I would learn how to finger knit. Surprisingly, finger knitting is something that is totally easy and fun to do. I made all sorts of scarves for the women in my family this Christmas and they were a huge hit!

I found some great easy tutorials on how to make these scarves. They are so fast that you can make up a bunch in an afternoon or evening while watching your favorite show. Plus they are a great project for kids to do.

At Lines Across, they have an easy to follow Finger Knitting Tutorial and I love that they show you how to change yarn colors.

And over at Maggie Whitley, there is another great Finger Knitting Garland & Necklace Tutorial. My favorite part is that she gives really great instructions and photos on how to tie off when you are finished with your scarf.

For my scarves, I used 2 strands of yarn. One strand of regular yarn and one strand of Fun Fur. I found that this gave it a wonderful thickness and the Fun Fur gave it some extra flair.

Have fun "knitting!"

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Favorite Flower Tutorials Round-up

If you've ever looked for help on making any sort of crafty flower, you may have noticed that there are a million tutorials out there. It may be overwhelming to try and sort through and find the exact type of flower that you are looking for. Well, worry no more! I've sorted through dozens of tutorials and have compiled some of the best right here for you.