I refuse to pay money for something I can make for cheaper!

I remember being at a craft fair with my mom & sister once, a long time ago (like late 1980s, early 1990s) and seeing a sign at someone's booth... "yes, you can make it yourself, but WILL you?"

I think of myself as somewhat crafty and handy.  Where I shine, though, is recreating stuff. It's not that I am unable to come up with new ideas, I do sometimes, but I think my talents lie in making things better than they were, or at least making my own version of something. That's probably why I like organizing - I can take a jumble of stuff and make it better.

Pretty much any time I see a cool decoration, craft, etc. that I think I'd like to buy, I wonder if I could make it myself cheaper.  Then I think about that sign, and wonder if it would a) be worth the time to actually make it vs. buy it, b) end up looking as good as the thing I'm considering making and c) be doable.

Pretty often the answers to the above questions are maybe, no, and possibly if I had all the right tools but I don't.  So I buy it.

But sometimes I pull it off.

Today I am sharing 3 things that I saw and then made myself.  The first is a wreath I saw on Pinterest.  I looked around to see how much a wreath like this would cost, and was amazed at how expensive they can be!  This wreath took me about 4 hours, cost about $10, and was very easy to do.  I apologize for all photos - I tend to only take photos at night (because, you know, that's when I'm home) and so they're either too dark or washed out, but use your imagination to fill in the rich, elegant colors).

I started with a white styrofoam wreath form (use your 40% Hobby Lobby coupon!). I guess you could paint it first, but I didn't and I am fine with the results.  I took natural colored coffee filters, about 200 of them, and sqwunched them one at a time in to the wreath form using a finishing nail setter.  You could probably use a pencil or something too, but that worked for me.  I then finished it up by gluing on some floral stick/bead thing I got at Hobby Lobby.  One of the beads fell off, but I used it to my advantage by turning one of the coffee filters into an accent flower!  Finally I hung it with some ribbon. I didn't glue the coffee filters in - they just kind of stay in there on their own, and I do hang it on the outside of my door and so far they haven't blown away or anything.

All in all, I'm very happy with this festive autumn accent and kind of had fun making it!  You could probably use white coffee filters and dye them if you wanted, and use this idea for just about any season.

The next project I saw in a movie theater.  One of the ads they were showing before the main feature had a photo of a restaurant, and on the wall of the restaurant there was this decoration.  It had sticks on it, and you know I love decorating with sticks, so I scoured the internet to see if anything like that existed for me to purchase.  I could not find anything - so I went to... Hobby Lobby!

My dining room walls are really fairly burgundy - "October Red" specifically - and the photos make them look a little pink.  I do not have a pink dining room.  Not that I'd judge if you did... cough cough.

Anyway, the materials for this random wall hanging include a wooden shelf, some river stones, and some sticks.  I think I got the sticks at Garden Ridge, but you could find similar sticks at Hobby Lobby, Ikea, the ditch behind your house...

First I painted the shelves black.  Then I drilled holes in them about the same diameter of the sticks - one per stick about an inch apart.  I then put some hot glue in the hole and stuck the stick (heh) in there.  I thought I'd be done - but I could still see some of the hot glue and it wasn't all that.  Thus -the river rocks.  At first the rocks were just loose, but the cats were knocking them off, and it sucked taking each rock off when I did my annual dusting.  So, I glued the rocks into one long strip so they a) stay in place and b) can be easily lifted off when I want to clean the black shelf (which is usually just when a bratty kid makes a line in the dust... sigh).

Close up of the rocks

I made two because that's what filled my wall.  Also I'm pretty sure my living room is haunted, because of all the orbs.  That, or I watch Ghost Adventures too often. Ignore the builder's special overhead light and 1985 table please.  One project at a time.

The final project is another Pinterest inspiration. I'd give credit, but the original pin links back to a blog that kind of looks like a virus site now, so if it was your original idea and you ever find my blog, please let me know.

While I admit I like the Pinterest version a little more, I don't dislike mine.  I think what I need is more colorful hats & scarves - something with red in them. Also I stuffed the hats on mine with paper to make them stand up more, and now looking at it I think it's a bit weird, so I may revamp that too.

Anyway, cost of this project was again around $10 - $15.  I bought a landscape timber ($3) at Home Depot and had them cut it into 3 different lengths for me, a short, medium and then whatever was left for the longest one.  I painted them white and then painted on a face. I like the glued on wooden carrot noses in the original, but I didn't have any on hand, so I just painted mine. The original also didn't have mouths, and ever since the Matrix that creeps me out, so I added some to my snow family.

You could paint on buttons, but I found some cute giant black ones at (where else) Hobby Lobby in the kids craft section.  I cut up some fleece I had on hand to make scarves, and got 3 child-sized hats from the dollar bin at Target.   That's it!

The back is still plain white, and I am contemplating painting a bunny face on them so I can turn them around and use them in the spring.  I'd add bunny ears and set a basket of eggs next to them.  Awwww.

Ok so there are three of my really cheap, very easy crafts that I've made. Thanks for reading this far!!

Scrapbooking 101

Today's post is one I wrote awhile ago for a friend who's daughters wanted to start scrapbooking.  I know this is VERY basic but it's a good starting point for someone who doesn't know where to begin.  

SCRAPBOOKING 101

Welcome to scrapbooking!  This will give you a few ideas of how to begin – but eventually as you do more and more scrapbooking you’ll discover which albums & products you like best.

Remember – there is no wrong way to scrapbook!  As long as your photos are protected and you like the way your scrapbook looks, it is right!  These books are for you and your family.

ALBUMS:  Albums consist of the album itself, pages, and page protectors.  There are many types and sizes to choose from. 

Drop in albums are easiest and offer the most flexibility.  These are albums with “sleeves” that you drop your finished pages in to.  The sleeves act as page protectors and also allow you to switch pages around if needed.  This is the type I use. 

With traditional albums, you place your photos and embellishments directly on the page, and then slide on a separate “page protector” sleeve if desired.

If you choose traditional, you will probably have “strap hinge” albums.  If you choose drop in, you can pick from strap hinge, post bound, or 3-ring binder style.

Strap hinge albums hold the pages together with a plastic strap and a staple like hinge.  Post bound use screw in posts to hold the pages together.  3-ring binder style is just like school notebooks.  They are all good and refill pages are widely available for each style – you just have to choose the one you like best.

As far as album sizes, there are several.  Most scrapbookers go with 12x12 albums, because it allows a lot of photos, journaling, and embellishments on each page.  Also many decorative papers come in 12x12 sizes, so there is no need to cut them to size.  I use 12x12 albums.

8 x 11 albums are also popular for their smaller size, and 8x11 paper is cheaper, but you can’t fit as much on a page, obviously.

Then there are 8x8 and smaller scrapbooks, and other less common sizes, but those are more for special event albums (new baby, a special vacation, etc.) rather than a general scrapbook.

PAPER:  If you use traditional albums, you don’t really NEED paper.  You can put your photos directly on the album page and add journaling and embellishments as desired.  You may want to get some paper to mat your photos or create journal boxes – in this case, any size paper will do.

If you use drop in albums, you will need paper the size of the album (12x12 or 8x11, etc.).  This paper will serve as the “scrapbook page” that you put all your photos on to.  You can still mat the photos in different colors, and add journaling and embellishments.

Paper (cardstock) comes in all sorts of colors and patterns and can be purchased by the pack or individually.  Make sure the paper is acid free – all scrapbooking paper should be.  The paper that comes with drop-in album refills is fine to use as your background page – however, it’s usually not as good quality as the cardstock you buy separately and is usually just plain white.

ADHESIVES:  Besides photos and paper, adhesives are the most important thing.  They are what keeps everything stuck together!  There are many kinds – glue stick types, dots, tabs, glue pens, etc.  You can buy permanent or repositionable.  I recommend repositionable adhesives since you can fix mistakes and move things, but things stay in place until you remove them.  Whatever type of adhesive you choose, use one specifically for photos/scrapbooks.  Do NOT use regular glue, tape, or glue sticks, as these can warp and yellow.

PENS:  You may want some pens for journaling.  Journaling is just a fancy way of saying “write down what happened!”  Make sure you note people’s names, the date, the place, and how you felt or what you did.  It may be fresh in your mind now, but later when you’re looking at your album you’ll be glad those details are all there.  You can use any type of “acid free” pen – so just don’t use a normal ballpoint and you should be good.  Pens are sold in all sorts of colors and price ranges at hobby and scrapbook stores.  Start out with a black one and add colors as you progress.

TOOLS:  You don’t really need much besides scissors, for trimming and cropping photos and paper.  However, a mini trimmer (to crop photos) and a paper trimmer (to cut large pieces of paper) are nice to have for clean, straight lines.

There are several other tools you can get if you want – including fancy scissors (with wave, deckle, and other neat cuts), corner rounders, circle cutters, eyelet setters, punches, tweezers, Xyron machines (which turns anything into a sticker – good for when you’ve cut out a small letter or shape), etc.  Save these for as you progress and want to make fancier albums.  Borrow them from a fellow scrapbooker to see if you’d really use them enough to purchase them.

EMBELLISHMENTS:  Many scrapbookers simply have photos and journaling on their pages.  Others add stickers.  Still others go all out and add buttons, ribbon, jewels, die-cuts, brads, eyelets, etc.  Add these fancy embellishments as you like, but go easy – too many embellishments and the album will be too big and heavy!  Remember the focus is on your PHOTOS not on that great embellishment you bought!

Brads are easy to use – just poke them through the paper (punch a small hole in the paper with a pin first, if easier) and spread the tines on the other side.  Eyelets require an eyelet setter, which punches the appropriate size hole and then flattens the eyelet on the back to keep it in place.  Brads, like stickers, don’t require tools, so they’re the best for beginning embellishments.

ELEMENTS OF A PAGE:  Each page (or layout, if multi-pages) usually has a title, the date (unless in a dated album), photos, journaling, and perhaps embellishments.  Of course, if you prefer to do it another way, that’s fine too!

When you “lay out” your page, remember that all photos do NOT have to be the same size, and they do NOT have to be even.  You can put them in angled.  You don’t have to mat them.  You can cut them in fun shapes (circles, ovals, etc.).  As long as YOU like the way it looks, it’s right!  Feel free to trim them – cut off people you don’t know or unwanted scenery.  But don’t trim all of them all the time – sometimes having the background in a photo is great for triggering memories.

Your journaling can be hand written or printed from a computer.  Computers are great for fun fonts and even some clipart (when you can’t find that perfect sticker!).  Remember to print on to acid-free scrapbook paper though (cardstock, etc.).

Scrapbook pages can be as simple or as intricate as you want.  As long as you have photos and some journaling, and you like it, it’s good!  You can overlap photos, add strips of paper for backgrounds, etc.  Play with it and you will come up with layouts that you like and are proud of.

ORGANIZING YOUR SCRAPBOOKS:  Many scrapbookers have several albums, one for holidays, one for birthdays, one for vacations, one for everyday life, one for each child, a wedding one, etc.  Others go chronologically and have family albums that have everything, from vacations to daily life, in date order.  Still others combine methods.  I have chronological 12x12 family albums which include daily events, holidays, and birthdays.  I then have separate 12x12 vacation albums, and separate 8x11 school and baby albums for each child.  I have also done a special cruise vacation album in 8x8.

Ultimately you can organize them however you like, and if you use the drop in style you can always rearrange them.  One point of advice – only scrapbook on ONE side of the paper when using drop in albums… this makes it easier to rearrange!

HAPPY SCRAPPING!

Halloween wraith, er, wreath

I try to add one "crafty" decoration to my collection each holiday, and a couple days ago I realized I had not yet done anything for Halloween!  So I ran to Hobby Lobby and found a grapevine wreath, three flowers, and a ribbon.

I spray painted the wreath black (only one side, because you know, no one can see the back) and glued the three flowers to it.  Add the ribbon and there you go!  I really enjoy it because it's more "vampire gothy spooky elegant" and not so much "cutesy", and since the kids are older that's the look I'm trying to go for.  Not all the time, just around Halloween...

I think the oval wreath really makes this a bit better than normal, and the fact that there were still some leaves on the wreath helped too.

All told, it cost me about $18 and that's because nothing was on sale!  If you plan on making one for next year (or OOH Christmas - I could spray paint it red or green or silver NEAT) I recommend buying your wreath, flowers & ribbon when they're on sale.  Only suckers pay full price at Hobby Lobby... or those who really feel like making a wreath THAT NIGHT!

I enjoy that my kitty is totally checking out what I'm doing.

I could've made it more ornate - but I kind of like it simple.

If the kitchen is the heart of the home, is the pantry the left ventricle?

Today’s post concerns the pantry.  For many people, this is a small closet of shame and disorganization, but for others, such as myself, it’s a blank canvas upon which to paint your organization dreams. 

Ok seriously though – having an organized pantry is NOT hard and it’s actually really fun to do.  Here’s my pantry, and then steps on how you can organize your own if you need any advice.

First, go look at your pantry.  Most likely you have a TON of wasted real-estate you are not using.  Look up – do you have open space up there?  I did, and I added a simple shelf for holiday items and paper towels (holiday items because I rarely have to get to them, like the coffee carafe and the plate stand, and paper towels because I had no place else for them).  If putting up a shelf isn’t your style, you could hang a basket from the ceiling for packets, vegetables, etc., or put hooks on the walls for coolers, etc.

The other wasted spaces are the walls.  I’ve seen Pinterest posts where people hung dollar-store baskets (like for pencils) to hold spices & packets.  You can hang hooks for aprons, or put a cork board in there for coupons (so when you’re making your list, you can see what you have a coupon for!).

Finally, make the most of your shelves.  Not every shelf has to be the same size.  Put a shelf on your shelf to give you a 2^nd layer and keep shallow items there.  Use those “under the shelf” hanging baskets.  My favorite are the little sports bleachers for cans – every time I open my pantry I feel like they’re cheering me on!

Ok now that your space is maximized, group items together.  My system works for me, but depending on your cooking/baking style, you may find different groupings that work for you.  On the top shelf I have baking goods and mixes, because I don’t bake all that much.  I have cookie mixes, flour, sugar, etc.  I also keep extra K-cups up there and coffee filters.

Shelf two I have boxes – rice, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, etc., pasta & sauces, and cookies, crackers & oatmeal.

Shelf three is all cans – except for Ramen which isn’t a can but it’s a soup so it gets to hang out with the cans. On the home team is canned fruits, vegetables, and soups.  In the middle are ramen noodles & canned meats. Then the visiting team has beans, Manwich, rotel etc.  I figure the home team is stuff that needs no help – we can eat peaches or green beans or soup on their own – but the visiting team bleachers has “recipe ingredients” like beans or diced tomatoes.

Shelf four – bread, cereals, chips, and snacks such as popcorn & Ding Dongs.  Don’t judge.

Shelf five has cat food, dog & cat treats, “overstock” (because the back of the bottom shelf is the hardest to get to), and the kids’ personal boxes (because God forbid they don’t divide everything equally as soon as it comes in the house).

The floor has dog food, soda & water, and a step stool so I can actually get to the top shelf I added.

Also notice that when practical, I’ve grouped things into individual bins and labeled them.  I find this very helpful because I can take the entire bin out, if needed, and get stuff/restock/etc.  Also it just looks nice in the pantry and keeps things organized.  For example, all cake/cookie decorating stuff is in bin on the top shelf.  Pets have their own bin for the various treats, heartworm pills, etc.  Popcorn has its own bin because popcorn is the snack of the gods and must be respected.  And of course I used my Silhouette to make labels for the bins, but you could use masking/washi tape, or scrapbooking letters, or just print a label on your computer & attach it with tape.  Whatever works for you isn’t wrong!

So that’s my pantry.  I really need to go to the store (the snack basket is sad). Hopefully it gives you some ideas on how to organize your own.  I’ve seen people use baskets or fabric bins, but I like plastic bins (the kind sold at Target for around $3 each) because they’re a uniform shape, cheap, washable, and clear.

Finally decorating for Halloween!

My first blog post!  It seems so incredibly self-indulgent, but whatever.  I’m sure there are cats with blogs that will have more readers than me, and I’m ok with that – mostly I just enjoy writing and sharing my random knowledge. And I do think I have a lot of random knowledge, primarily because if I don’t know something, I try to remedy that as soon as possible.

My blog doesn’t really have a theme – the only things tying my posts together will be that they all are things that interest me or that I think I have some sort of knowledge about.  And when I say knowledge, I don’t mean in any professional or expert sense.  Anything posted here will be my thoughts and opinions only, so keep that in mind.  If you decide that my way to do something works for you, enjoy.

I anticipate having posts about organizing and crafting – because I love to organize and I think I’m pretty good at it, and because every now and then I feel crafty (even if I’m not super good at it).  There may be other random topics too – who knows what the future will bring?  Can’t you just taste the anticipation?

SO for this first post – I think I’ll just ramble on about the decorations I put out for Halloween. In the past I would follow a fairly strict (self-imposed) decorating timeline:  Christmas gets 4 weeks (as the boss of all other holidays), Halloween gets 2 – 3 weeks, Easter 2 weeks max, and then all others (Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Valentine’s Day, etc.) get 1 week.  I still refuse to extend that timeline but now that I’m working, the holidays don’t always get their full time allowance.   Thus, today, 5 days before Halloween, I finally put out my crap.

I used to have SO much stuff – but as the kids get older (and I get lazier) I have purged.  Now I’m down to the table by the front door and the tv stand as the two areas that get decorated.  The only exception is, of course, Christmas, because of the tree and the Lego winter village... but basically if it doesn’t fit in those two spots, it’s not going out.  (Ooh, wreaths & wall-decorations excepted of course, but I’m really cutting down on wall-hangings).

So what do I have out this year?  Under the TV I have some pumpkins – gold ceramic ones, wooden ones, and some nice plastic ones.  I like the pumpkins under the TV because they can stay there until Thanksgiving... it’s more “autumn” than Halloween.

On the entryway table, I have a fairly cheesy tree with mini-ornaments (the first to go if I ever find something I like better), a wooden owl that used to be a wall-hanging (but I found an extra tall ornament stand for it), a wine glass full of spiders, a box full of eyeballs, and some bottles of potions. 

I really enjoy the glass-o-spiders.  I took a plastic wine glass that had gotten all “crackly” in the dishwasher and filled it with “table confetti” from the Target dollar spot.  It was cheap and I think it looks pretty neat.  

The potion bottles – one is an old tequila bottle, one’s from vodka, and one’s from spaghetti sauce.  I removed the labels with Goo-Gone (best product ever) and attached labels I had downloaded from the internet.  I’d love to give credit to whoever designed them, but I don’t remember (I made them last year before I even considered blogging).  I printed them on sticky-backed paper and cut them out with my Silhouette, so that was extremely easy.  The “elixir of arachnid” has little plastic spiders in there (I need to add more, but I didn't get a chance to run to Target yet), the eye of newt has plastic eyeballs, and the “Potions” is just water with a drop of black food coloring.

The box of eyeballs is a craft I’m super proud of.  I saw the saying on Pinterest, on just a block of wood or in a frame or something.  I found the box at Hobby Lobby, already painted black, and decided to use that as my “canvas.”  I cut the letters out with my Silhouette, but didn’t like the way the vinyl looked on the box.  Instead I used the stencil left behind by the letters, put it on the box, painted the letters with silver paint, and then removed the vinyl stencil.  I’m so pleased with the way it turned out!

Ok well there you go – my first ever blog post.   Happy (almost) Halloween!