Try It Tuesday... DIY Lip Glop... um, GLOSS.

Dear Daughter has entered the world of junior high and the multitude of girl friends that comes with those crazy tween years... and of course, she being the most giving heart in our family, wanted to gift each and every one of said girl friends this Christmas.  Seeing that her gift budget was not quite as large as her heart, we needed to come up with an idea that would be both tween approved and somewhat economical... hence, homemade Lip Glop! 

After perusing a few different "recipes" on Pinterest, 

we decided on this version... 

You will need:

Petroleum Jelly

Kool-Aid (any flavor you like, we even mixed a couple)

Small Plastic Bead Containers (after multiple stores with no luck, these were finally located at Joann's)

Avery Mailing Seals

Start with about 1 cup of petroleum jelly in a microwave-safe bowl.  Melt for 30 seconds at a time, then stir, until it is completely liquified... this will take several minutes and the bowl will be VERY hot, so good to have an adult do this part.  

As soon as it is liquid and still hot, mix in the Kool-Aid.  We started with Cherry, then Grape, then finally mixed Cherry with Pink Lemonade to make Cherry Pink Lemonade.  It takes about 1 package of Kool-Aid to one cup of petroleum jelly.  Immediately pour the mixture into the opened bead cups... let sit until it solidifies.  The Cherry tinted it a light pink, the grape turned out a little too gray for my liking but DD was happy with it.  The Kool-Aid gives it a lovely scent and a little bit of flavor as well...

The Avery labels are the perfect size to make your own, personalized labels.  The Avery website has a free online program for creating and printing them in the correct size.

These cute little pocket size lip glosses would be perfect for birthday party treat bags, class gifts, stocking stuffers, or girl scout craft projects.  And let me say, they were quite a hit with the tweeny-boppers.

As for the name, LIP GLOP?  Well, those moms out there will understand... you know how your adorable little toddler calls something the wrong name and you don't have the heart to correct them because it makes you LAUGH OUT LOUD every time they say it?   Dear Daughter asked to use my Lip Glop one day, and it's been Lip Glop ever since...

Wall Plaque by Mountaine Meadows Pottery

Thursday This and That...

Hi friends!  Lots going on the past few weeks, just going to catch you up with a little "this and that"... 

Here's a fun fall project I finished last week... I know, I'm pumpkin possessed!  Got my inspiration from Pinterest and will not even insult your intelligence by giving you the play by play in pictures... all you need are some pumpkins (I used foam from Hobby Lobby, you could use the real thing, too) and some kind of container... then it's PUMPKIN, E6000 (glue), GRAPEVINE WREATH, PUMPKIN, REPEAT... 

set it on top of your container 

(thanks to Mimi for the cool iron urns) and VOILA!

I made two of them to adorn my front porch and they will be there until 

Thanksgiving... I "heart" them very much!

Then last weekend we attended a friend's 50th birthday party... I won't go into how much it DISTURBS me that my friends are turning 50, except to say that I'm pretty sure my parents JUST hit that milestone... right?  UGH.  Anyhoo... of course it was a "no gifts" occasion but felt weird walking in empty handed, so another Pinterest inspired idea (and I wonder where all my time goes, DUH!)...

Hysterical, right?  Cute candy jar was from TJ Maxx, used some of my scrapbook paper and ribbon stash for the sign, and filled it with 50 Tootsie Pops... BIG hit and so fast and easy!  You could really do it for any age... 30, 40, 50... not even going to mention the next decade yet.  That's called DENIAL.

Oh, and I did finish my Couch 2 5K program... YEA ME!  I am now supposed to have started the Bridge to 10K with my friend, Jules but I have been a slacker and SHE has not... think she's a week and a half ahead of me so I need to get off this dang computer and put my new running shoes on... until next time, my friends!  Make the best of your day...

The Look For Less... Pretty Pricey Pumpkins

I don't know what my deal is, I have been possessed by Halloween decorating. Perhaps it's my inner witch trying to get out, but in my defense we have had the same decorations for YEARS, they are looking a little tired, and I think they need a little EEK factor.  There are gazillions of adorable decorations to buy... but why would you when you can make your own for so much LESS moola?  I mean really, I would prefer to save my money for something I can't make
(hello, new fall boots!)...

These are from two very popular home decor stores... 

So what's a girl who doesn't have a couple of hundred bucks to spend on pumpkins (and wouldn't even if I did)  to do?  Start with this... 

                                                            I picked up these two plastic pumpkins at Michaels for about $5 each, but they are EVERYWHERE this time of year. I already had the black tulip paint, mod podge and scrap fabric in my stash, but if you have to buy them all three could be had for under $10 total.  Now for the FUN part...

For the white pumpkin just grab your tulip paint and start dotting... I didn't use a pattern, just went to town swirling them freehand.  This entire pumpkin took all of about 5 minutes to finish.  My kind of crafting, baby! 

For the monogram I first printed a large font letter on my computer and then traced onto the fabric.  You could use scrapbook paper, but the fabric molds to the curves of the pumpkin so much easier.  If you do decide to use paper, LIGHTLY dampen the paper before applying to the pumpkin... it will smooth out nicer and help avoid bubbles.  One coat of Mod Podge to the pumpkin, place the letter and then let dry for a few minutes.  Slap another coat of Mod Podge on top and you are on your way to the store to buy those new boots...  I hit mine with a spray of clear acrylic sealer since it will be residing on my front porch.

Spidey is from the Dollar Store... I'm good, but even I don't think I could have made HIM any cheaper.

Make It Monday: Glitter Candles

Really, what's not to love about glitter?  And this is one quick and E.A.S.Y. glitter project.  Seriously, the most craft challenged of you could do this in between surfing Pinterest loading your dishwasher and facebooking folding laundry.  Here's what I started with...

Taper candles that were 79 cents at Hobby Lobby, glitter in coordinating colors, and Elmer's Spray Adhesive.  ANY kind of candles would work, pillars, taper, votive... you probably have some laying in a drawer.  I wanted these particular colors, so I bought them new, but I do have PLENTY barely burned I could have used in other colors.

Pour a nice line of glitter in the bottom edge of a cake pan.  Lay the candles out and spray with the glue (one a time so the adhesive doesn't dry too fast)... best to do on wax or parchment paper, but I was out so I just used foil.  Once you have them covered with a light coating of the adhesive, just roll the candle in the glitter.  Press it down a bit so the glitter gets good and stuck, and then lay out to dry overnight.

I suppose you can guess I was doing some Halloween decorating... these add some great spooky sparkle to my living room and dining room!  I plan to try to some different colors for Thanksgiving and Christmas, because they really do look so freaking pretty!

DIY: Trick or TULLE? Haunted Halloween Wreath...

It is still Africa hot here but I am willing fall to grace us with her cool presence by gettin' my Halloween crafting on.  I lucked upon two of those straw wreath forms at our local thrift store... brand new and only $1 each so I went hunting for some inspiration.  After finding a couple of cute ideas on my new obsession, Pinterest, I set to work making my own version of a Haunted Halloween Wreath... 

Here's what I started with...

As I mentioned, the wreath was a buck, but  they are not much more than that at your local craft store.  The tulle rolls and ribbon were half off at Hobby Lobby, making them $2.00.  The dark orange is glitter tulle, so there were fewer yards on the roll.  The pair of packaged pre-made wood words were 99 cents.

Leave the plastic wrap on the wreath and you won't be picking straw out of your carpet until the trick-or-treaters show up... 

After a bit of trial and error, I determined I needed to cut the tulle in lengths about 18 inches long.  You don't need to get too technical, varying lengths just make it look more  full and festive.  Double your cut piece of tulle, loop it around the wreath and pull tight (as you see demonstrated here by Vanna Dear Daughter)...

Work your way around... I decided to intersperse the orange in no particular pattern.  It did take an entire roll of the black tulle PLUS the end of a leftover roll I had stashed in the craft closet.  Once you finish the tulle, add some chachkes to give it some pizazz... I chose these pre-made wooden words, and just attached them with my VERY FAVORITE Gel Super Glue...

Finally, I tied a bow to the top to hang it... and since I know my faithful readers are an observant bunch, I'm sure you will notice it is NOT the ribbon in the BEFORE photo... I LOVE that beautiful ribbon, but it just looked too fancy schmancy on this wreath so I scrounged a scrap piece of polka dot ribbon from the closet and will be saving the pretty stuff for a future project.  

Here's the final result...

Are you scared??? 

DIY: Junky to JAZZY!

Working on goodies for our booth yesterday and got a creative wild hair... I needed something seasonal and eye catching but didn't want to spend any money (trying to MAKE money here, people!).  Remember those Redneck Wineglasses I spied on vacay?  Well, that got me thinking... here's what I started with:

I'm sure you have a couple of old mason jars in the back of your cabinets... if not, they are uber cheap at the grocery store or Wallyworld.   

I have about a million lone candleholders, and again, if you don't you can find them for next to nothing at a thrift store or Dollar Store.  

The curtain finial is a castoff from a rod that now has new decor to match Dear Daughter's room.  I shoved them in a drawer hoping I would find something to do with them someday, and here is SOMEDAY!

Next I dug out a couple of varieties of clear but ever so powerful glue, my trusty Mod Podge and some coordinating scrapbook paper...

I hammered a little hole in the mason jar lids and then screwed the finials right into the lid with the screw that was already attached. I applied a little Super Glue to the screw to keep it securely in place.  

Since I only had two finials and wanted to make three jars (groupings always look better in odd numbers, don't they?), I Mod Podged (that is a verb at my house) the matching scrapbook paper to the top of one of the jars. 

For all of them I glued the inner lid piece to the outer lid so that it became one solid top.  

I found the actual Super Glue worked best to attach the jars to the bases (and I suppose you could then hang yourself from the ceiling from them).  I got a little crazy and for one used an upside down soda glass as the base, and for another a $1 thrift store pewter candle holder that had no partner.  I filled them with some bright colored Halloween candy (but any seasonal candy would be cute), and VOILA!

Friday Finds...

Of course we had to spend a day antiquing on our recent vacation, here is our crazy crew on the way out the door...

My Aunt Dorine, My Mom, me, and their BFF since high school, Jane Ann

I didn't do much actual BUYING (no room in the Clampett truck to take anything home, unless I left one of the kids at the beach)... but I did get some interesting ideas I thought I would bring back for you all.  I'm really am going to attempt my own version of these once school gets back in session and I have time to putter (did I really just SAY that?  WHEN do I ever have time to PUTTER???).  ANYWHO... 

Mimi (my mother) saw this adorable table... the top is covered in burlap, with large upholstery tacks (I think that's what they are) around the sides and glass on top.  Totally chic and what a great way to jazz up an old scratched up side table... Really any kind of fabric would look great, but I just love, love, love the texture of the burlap with the glass.

I spied these stunning candle lamps on the way out of a shop... 

can you figure out what they are?

Yep, if you look closely you can see these are just bunch of inexpensive random glass vases, cups, bowls and decanters all fused together and hanging by a chain.  I have about 10 of those cheap florist vases under my kitchen sink. Wouldn't these be lovely on a covered patio?  So pretty, easy and CHEAP!!!  Oh, and I think they were selling them for about $75!

Finally, and I have no idea WHY these grabbed my attention, but I just think they're FUN...

Redneck Wine Glasses

These are just old Mason jars with inexpensive candle holders attached to the bottom... wouldn't these make a fun gift filled with some Skinny-Girl Margarita mix or candy and tied with a big bow?   Now, if I could just find some time to PUTTER.   Heavy sigh...

Birds of a Feather...

School is almost out, and we are getting ready here for the BIG 5th Grade Graduation Party... In preparation for this much anticipated pool party extravaganza, Dear Daughter has jumped on the latest trend with the addition of some fabulous feather hair extensions.  How cute are these?  They can be washed, brushed, curled, pony-tailed, you name it... all just like your own hair.  What a fun accessory for summer!  We have a friend who is making this her business, but with the right supplies, 

you can certainly to do it yourself.  

Go score yourself some  FAB FEATHERS!

Bliss Collection Feather Hair Extensions

DIY Feather Hair Extensions

Bird of Paradise Feather Hair Extensions

DIY: Chic and Easy Chalkboard

Chalkboards seem to be all the rage these days... here's a quick, inexpensive, and easy DIY to get you in on the trend!  Start with an inexpensive silverplate, aluminum or pewter tray.  This is not the same tray from the finished product in this DIY, but same idea. You may have few of these stashed in your cupboards, if not, thrift stores have them ALL the time.  I have scored them for as little as 10 cents...

The tray I used in the finished product was quite dirty, but a good cleaning with Goof Off left it with a lovely patina.  Next you need a bottle of nifty chalkboard paint... I like this version by Americana.  This particular paint requires you to paint 2 coats in opposite directions with an hour of drying time between each coat then let the whole thing dry for 24 hours before writing on it.

I wanted to use mine on the fridge, so I popped three heavy duty magnets onto the back.  Depending on what type of metal your tray is made of, they may stick right on (mine did) or you may need to glue them on. To hang on a wall, simply glue a claw toothed picture hanger to the back, or even easier prop it up in a beautiful easel on your counter.

Here is my finished chalkboard... we are currently using it to count down the days until SUMMER (we LOVE summer around here).  Here is another version I made from an old pizza pan, which is for sale in my Etsy store in case you are not feeling too crafty, but would like to get in on the chalkboard craze...

Chic Chalkboard

Check out more GREAT chalkboard projects here:

Makeover Monday: DIY Fabric Embellished Vintage Shelf

I mentioned a a few posts ago that I have an issue with keeping things my mother (a.k.a. Mimi) gives me to sell.  Some things just never seem to find their way out of my house...  Recently she sent two boxes of goodies over with the intention that they be sold. I really do have intentions of selling MOST of it... but this little vintage shelf/paper towel holder caught my eye and I just decided it was entirely TOO heavy to ship (that's my story, anyway) and it needed to find a new purpose in Dear Daughter's bathroom.

I forgot to snap a pic before Handsome Hubby sanded and wood puttied, but here it is just after he worked his magic...

It was a cute little oak colored shelf like it was (before the sanding, you get the idea)... but I have bigger plans.  Hubs gave it a light sanding to take the finish off and make it easier for the paint to stick, then filled any nail holes or obvious cracks with wood putty.  Now it was my turn to get busy. My vision is for it to match Dear Daughter's fabulous new shower curtain ...

I have quite a bit of the fabric left over, and that VISION in my head... out comes my trusty spray paint.  I painted a couple of coats of this pretty blue, and decided to paint the rod a contrasting green color, just for fun.  

Of course, you know this is likely to involve a little Mod Podge, which I used to apply the fabric.  I use the pastry roller (yeah, Handsome Hubby who is also the household chef was not so happy about that) to smooth down the fabric.  I have looked high and low for a craft brayer for this purpose, to no avail, but the pastry roller seems to do the trick just fine.

After I played around with some fabric combinations, I measured the inside of the shelves and cut the fabric to fit.  I also traced the top and cut a fabric embellishment.  Then I applied one fairly thick coat of Mod Podge, smoothed down the fabric and let dry for 15 minutes.  Finally I went back and applied a nice layer on top to secure the fabric.  

Here's the finished product... 

It makes me so happy when the end result turns out better than my VISION (not always that lucky, but this time VICTORY)... here it is hanging in her bathroom.   Isn't this more fun than a boring old wooden shelf?  It is so easy to make things for your home that are original and can't be found on the pages of the Big Box store catalog... find some ordinary and make it extraordinary.   In the wise words of the good Dr. Seuss, "Why fit in when you were born to stand out?"

More GREAT Mod Podge projects here:

DIY: Scrapbook Collage Pendant

It's Spring Break here so I've got more time than usual to work on some fun little projects... hence, another DIY!  I happened upon this miracle product at Hobby Lobby last week:

YIPPEE!!!  I have been looking for this stuff forever... no clue what I was planning to DO with it, but it just looks like fun.  The trick to the MAGIC is it creates a thick, completely clear layer over your project that gives it dimension (hence, the name)... great for jewelry, etc.  As a practice I tried making some bottle cap magnets... first lesson learned, I needed to glue the fabric down to the bottom of the cap.  It still worked, but some of the fabric "floated" up a bit...

Did some research and found a project to make Collage Charms with Family Photos... oh, this got me thinking... and headed straight to the craft store.

The pendant was on the clearance rack (don't you just LOVE the clearance rack!) for $2.50.  It is mirrored, but the plan is to cover that up with some of that cool scrapbook paper, a pic of my kids and one or two of those stickers.  The stickers are those nifty raised plastic bubble type.  The key to the pendant is that it has a slightly raised edge, so when I cover it with the Dimensional Magic there will be a lip to keep it from overflowing.

Searched around on my computer until I found a couple of digital pics of my kiddos from the beach and printed them off in various sizes on a piece of card stock.  After a few trial and error attempts at cutting a circle to fit inside the pendant, I created this little scrapbook style collage...

The pic is from one of our beach photo sessions in which I torture my children to get that perfect Christmas card photo... SMILE, DON'T SQUINT, PUT YOUR ARM AROUND YOUR SISTER! Anyway... the "Joy" and flower stickers are from K&Company and I will use the rest of them in other projects.  I did tack the paper and photo down this time with a glue stick to avoid the floating issue.

Now comes the MAGIC... I didn't get a pic of this part, but here is one of a bottle cap after I filled it... wanted you to see it because it might freak you out when you pour it in the first time... TOTALLY cloudy and looks like you just ruined your project, but I PROMISE this stuff dries completely clear.

Now the hard part... set it someplace that your dog or cat or toddler (or husband who gets tired of your crafty messes) won't pick it up or bump it and leave it COMPLETELY alone for at least 24 hours.  This is torture for me because not only am I a messy crafter, I am ridiculously impatient.  When I did the bottle caps I was checking them and Dear Daughter yelled at me... MOM, it's only been TWENTY MINUTES.  Sometimes we have a serious case of role reversal...

Waiting. Waiting. Waiting.

Ok... now, here is the thing about trying new craft projects.  TRIAL AND ERROR.  I didn't snap to the fact that the pendant had a crack between the frame and mirror for the Magic to seep through... so I didn't get quite the "bubble" I was hoping for over my collage, although it did end up with a nice coating.  Also, the pic smeared... which really bummed me out but Dear Daughter says she likes it that way, makes it look old and artsy.  Ok, I'll go with that... ha!   I'm going to try again now that I've learned a few lesssons.  Back to the craft store... I LOVE spring break!