Card-Making on the Cheap - Glittered Brads

Hi Guys,
As I'm sure you know if you're a card-maker, sewer or crafter, it can be quite an expensive hobby! ;)

es·pe·cial·ly... 

Card-making! Patterned and plain Papers, Card Blanks, Envelopes, Stamps, Inks, Glitter, Glues and other Adhesives, Extras such as Divine twine or yarn, ribbons, buttttons, and the wide, varied, oh-so-expensive range of sticker embellishments! And that's not even including tools such as craft knifes, bone folders, eyelets and eyelet setters,  Alphabet and outline stickers... We could be here quite some time! ;)

 

It really adds up, doesn't it? Which is why I am going to share with you as many tips as I can for making those beautiful handmade cards on the cheap! I can't promise how regular it will be, but I'll do my best!

My first little tip is one you may know, but for those of you who don't, I'll fill you in. It's a great little trick for making your own brad embellishments for next to nothing, instead of buying those super-expensive ones in a craft shop! I mean, just look at these "American Crafts" Glittered brads on Amazon. $5.81 plus shipping for only 4 different colours! No Thank You! Here's how to make your OWN:

      You will need:

• 

  A Pack of Plain Brads or Paper Fasteners.You can buy these in any office supplies store for really cheap, but chances are you already have a pack!  

  Some PVA Glue

  Glitter (whatever colour you like, you probably have a few packs!)

  Scrap piece of card (not pictured, whoops!)

  

  (Tissue is optional, I created a mess a glitter and glue explosion while doing this)

  1. Squirt a dollop of Glue onto your scrap of card. 

  2. Take a Brad. Dunk your poor, helpless brad headfirst into the sticky sea. This will apply an even covering of Glue onto the top of the brad. Not too much, or it'll all slide off and die, not too little or the glitter won't stick. (It really is simple, I'm just making it seem really complicated so this sounds like an actual tutorial and not something you can do with your eyes shut.)

  

  3. Next, dunk your gluey brad in a pot of glitter. You can sprinkle glitter over it instead, but this is wayyy more satisfying! 

  4. Stick your brad into a ball of Blue-Tack to keep it upright during the drying process.

  And that's it! Homemade glitter brads you can use for Cards, Scrapbooking, Gift-Tags.. whatever you want! Told you it was easy! 

  

  *WARNING* You will soon become addicted, make hundreds of them in every single colour of glitter you own, go to the shops, buy a cardmaking magazine that has free glitters with it, and make more. Or is that just me?! ;) 

  Here thay are all lined up! Aren't they pretty?! I took a ridiculous amount of photos of these, but they take so long to upload to my computer I'll just finish with this >> cute card I made using the glittered brads. See, they're the owl's eyes! :) This was a project in a Papercraft Inspirations mag that I modified and added glittered brads too!

  Have you made these before or do you have any other "Cardmaking on the Cheap" tips? Leave a comment below and I'll get back to you! S xx

   

    

   

   

  
  

Winnie's Wool Wagon and Woolly Projects!

Hello!

I was out and about yesterday, and we drove past a cute little shop, calling itself a "craft café." Of course I simply had to go in! :) The "cute little shop" turned out to be "Winnie's", an adorable wool shop with a little cafe at the back. If you're a knitter living in or near Dublin, I highly recommend you check it out. I've never seen so many different types of yarn and wool in my life! They specialise in materials for Knitting, Crocheting and Beading, and also run classes, knitting groups and courses, so if you don't know how to knit, you can learn how to! And even if you have no interest in craft whatsoever (What are you doing reading my blog then?! :D ) the café is well worth a visit! I recommend the Bakewell Tart ;) but they serve breakfast, lunch and a variety of sticky buns and cakes!
Of course I couldn't leave without buying a little something, and I noticed they sold  little "Dollymix" balls of wool for a euro each. My Mum had bought me a couple of them while ago, so I decided to add to my collection, and bought a pretty lavender colour!

There are actually so many things you can use wool or yarn for, even if you don't knit!

• Pom-poms (which you can then transform into Pom-pom flowers), 
• Yarn-wrapped frames (I make these out of cardboard!)  
• Yarn-wrapped letters, 
• Garlands (String felt or fabric shapes on or make this!) 
• "Clotheslines" for hanging cards and drawings (Just add Blue-tack and mini clothespins!) 
• Finger-weaving (!)  
• Word decorations (There must be a better name for these but my brain is not working today! ;) 
• Yarn-wrapped sticks and twigs, 
• Mini yarn balls that you can then turn into Yarn Ball Lights 
• BIG Yarn Balls you can use as chandeliers/lights or as decorations for a wedding or big party! I think these would look best with white or neutral-coloured yarn. You can use hemp or string for these as well, if you don't have any yarn! Pretty inspiration here.
• Cute cardboard snowflakes!
• Yarn wreathes!. There are SO many tutorials for this one, and so many gorgeous variations. I like this tutorial and this cute variation! They were a bit of a craze in the craft world for a while, and are absolutely fab! They look great, are really easy to make and are completely personalize-able (Is that a word?! Spellcheck seems to think so!) You can add buttons, bows, fabric and felt rosettes and flowers, your initials, or make holiday versions with fabric shamrocks, hearts, bats or Christmas trees! Haha! If you need MORE inspiration, have a look at these! (I couldn't remember where I'd seen the braided one, This link reminded me it was at Homework! Isn't it just beautiful?!)  
• If you really need MORE ideas ;) check out this link!        
• If you can find any more yarn/wool projects I haven't featured or have any comments at all, leave a message below! I do read all of them and they make my day! S xx 

  

   Proving that purple and orange CAN work together!

Felt Flower Pillow!

Hi guys!
So I've wanted to do a Felt Flower Pillow for AGES! I'd seen them everywhere, in all kinds of different colours and styles, in shops and on crafty blogs, but had never attempted one. My main excuse reason? I didn't have a Glue Gun or Fabric Glue. But now.... I do! <Remember that post? ;) > So... I decided to attempt one! It came down to these two tutorials which I loved. This one from H for Handmade and this one from The Crafting Chicks. In the end I made the H for Handmade one, but I'll probably make the other one sometime in the future! :)  I kind of winged when I actually made it, to be honest! I changed some measurements and things like that, but I'm SUPER pleased with how it turned out! I do recommend that you go over to H for Handmade and check out Amy's tutorial! Unfortunately, when I uploaded the photos from my camera to my computer, I didn't include one of the finished pillow. The one below is just pinned down. :/ (Tip: Remove pins before doing your next layer of petals so you don't hot glue a pin into your cushion. I know, it happened to me!) The finished pillow looks like this (minus the pins) on a purple gingham background. Hopefully I'll get around to uploading that pic soon! Oh, and apologies for the terrible picture quality. My photography skills are non-existent leave something to be desired!

I leave you with this >> awesomeness I found via Pinterest. It's a seat made from magazines and a cushion! Cool or what?! S xx

Summer Fun for Kids! :)

Hey guys! So, it's (finally) Summer, the sun is occasionally making an appearance, which is good enough for me, and over here in Ireland kids will soon be out of school! (My younger brothers get their holidays in just over a week.) So if you have kids, (or are a kid :D) here are some ideas and crafts to keep you busy for the next 2 months! Parents, no need to thank me! ;)

1. Go for a walk on the beach and collect some stones, pebbles  Then... 

• Paint them like these and have a game of dominoes!

• Paint little faces, spots and stripes on them, glue on some pipecleaners, and create ladybugs, bees, whatever you want! How cute are these pandas?!

•  Make yourself some sock rocks! Follow this easy tutorial to make a whole pile of 'em using old socks!

• Make pig magnets! So cute and fun!

• No flat stones? Use oblong ones to create these circus seals! 

• Find a nice big rock? Use it to make an adorable Bunny Bookend or paperweight!

• And if you really want to go all out, have a look at these painted rocks for inspiration!

     2. If you're one of those "educational fun" parents ;)

• Try these Pasta Skeletons! The kids will have loads of fun raiding the kitchen, picking out the pasta, making a mess, and glueing them down - But hey! they'll be learning the bones! ;)
• Encourage them to read some books by making them this Bookworm Game from Martha Stewart!
• Storing, collecting and learning about stamps and the countries they came from will keep your kids fascinated for hours!
• Have a bit of fun playing aroung with these bouys and teach your child how they stand up in rocky seas! You can make boats and ships out of nearly anything! Newspaper, walnut shells filled with wax, or even coffee can lids!

     3. Make some fun toys and games that you can then play with for the rest of the summer!

• Puppets are always a favourite - make origami ones, paper bag ones, or the original, sock puppets! :) And don't stop there! Make a paper or felt puppet theatre to perform shows in! Hours of entertainment!
• This Sponge Ball is a great toy! Make a few, and then on a hot summer day (if there are any this Summer! *sigh*) let lose, and have a big water fight, with balloons, guns and these!
• For the budding astranaut! Cardboard Space ships!
• If you're willing to put a bit of time and effort into your/ your kid's summer, make them one of these Play Ovens! They will love you forever! ;)

      4. Encourage your kids to save their pocket money over the       Summer by helping them to make one of these sweet Piggy Bottle Banks!  

For more ideas, check out these two slideshows:

• Kid's Summer Crafts & 60 Summer Activities for Kids!

What's that?! You want even MORE? Well, OK then...

• Make this awesome beanbag toss game. Do it on its own, or entertain your kids for HOURS by setting up an obstacle course/mini olympics in your back garden!
• Boys (and monster/robot-loving girls!) will adore this papercraft project!
• Make some DIY Moon Sand! MUCH cheaper than the real thing, and a whole lot funner, as the kids get to help mix in the "gloop" stage! ;)
• Kids love comic books, right?! <Bear with me here. If your kid doesn't, go make the moon sand! :) > Get them to write their own using these FREE (the catchphrase had to appear somewhere!) printables!
• If you and your kid/s want to do a LARGE scale project, this is for you! You use a hula hoop as a giant loom to make a rug. This is possibly the coolest thing I have seen. Ever. there are a number of reasons why. A) You are re-cycling old T-shirts, which is good for the enviroment. Yay! B) The hula hoop and T-shirts are so colourful and this just looks like it would be so much fun! C) At the end, your kid has a fab, handmade rug to put in their room! D) You'll probably have the supplies, so it's FREE!! :D Go check it out (if you haven't already!) here!
  
• Here's a bunch of Bubble-wrap activities for younger kids. If you have recently moved house, and have piles of bubble wrap lying aroung the house, this is for you! Oh! And if you have big boxes as well, make the oven featured above! :)
• Why not print out this calendar, fill it with the projects and crafts mentioned here, and every time your kid comes near you saying "I'm boreddd!" just hand them the calendar! I guarantee your kid will never be bored again!*

*Well actually, they may be, but its not very likely! ;)

• OK, how insanely amazing is this 101 Bits of Summer printable? Very, I tell you! The ideas, the colours, the layout, everything about this screams Summer and makes me want to get started doing it all!
• For younger kids, this picture activity board is great. Print out the little pics here.
• Here's a very long list (100 things, in fact, which is a lot more than I managed!) of things to do with kids during the Summer. There's some fantastic ideas in there, and best of all - she's speakin' my language! ;) It's all FREE!! ;D
  
• And just when you thought I couldn't possibly find any more Summer to-do lists, I did! This DIY is really good, as you can wipe off your ideas when you're finished them, or if you want to re-use the board for next year!
• If you're still awake ;) (This was a very long post!) and you still want more things to do, here is a free printable with over 70 summer activities, with instructions, charts and calendars. AND it's colour-coded. Grab it here.
  

      Thought you weren't ready for summer with the kids? You are now! S xx    

Adore Home Magazine!

Hello!
How was your weekend (and your Father's Day)? Good, I hope. :) Here is the secret gift I mentioned! You can use it next year! (Hint hint!) It's a printable Coca Cola can sleeve! It's really funny, cute, and EASY! You just print it off, trim it, wrap round your can of Coke and secure with double-sided tape! My Dad really likes Coke, so I thought t would be a nice gift! Grab one here!

I've just been featuring "craft stuff" lately (Not very descriptive I know, but I can't really think of another word!) so I decided I'd take a break and tell you about Adore Home. It's an Austrailian online home magazine. If you're re-decorating your home, or love interior design. This is for you. The really great thing about it is that because it's online, there are direct links to the websites and blogs featured. You can click on them, and they'll open in a new tab, ready for you to explore once you're finished reading the magazine!  And ... oh yes, it's the catchphrase! - It's FREE! No more buying those expensive mags for me! :)  Go here and then click on "read!"

The bright, colourful, stylish interiors are really inspiring! :) Check out the blog for the magazine here! There are tonnes of online magazines out there. Any to recommend?! S xx

Comments and DIY Mirrors!

Wow! 100 hits! (Well, a hundred and three, but who's counting?!) I'd just like to say Thank You to you (yes, YOU!) for visiting my blog over the last month or so. I hope you've enjoyed reading it, although I don't know if you did or not, as there are no comments! ;) Don't worry, I won't bite, just leave a comment saying anything you want! You could:

• Tell me about your blog, and recommend that I visit it (I will!)
• Tell me about a cool craft or DIY project you found or created,
• Recommend a craft/design/home website you love and tell me why,
•  Show off! Attach pictures or link to a blog post where you created some amazing cards, crafts, redecorated your bedroom, anything! I'd love to see what you're up to!
• Ask for something particular on the blog! Maybe you'd like to have more "masterclasses" (like the cards one), more home projects, handmade gifts, cool websites, freebie downloads, or something entirely different! I'll take all suggestions and do my best to cover them!
• Ask for advice on a project. Maybe you have a card/lamp/knitting project/whatever that isn't working for you? Ask me for some advice and I'll do my best to help you out! (Although, I'm not a really experienced crafter, and may not will not! be able to turn your project into a complete masterpiece!
• Give me a compliment! ;) Something you love about the blog? Tell me and watch me faint me joy (Well, imagine it, as you're not actually able to see me!) Or if you have a complaint or something you feel is wrong with the blog, tell me too. I'll do my best to fix it!
• Just say hi! It's not that hard! ;)

On a side note, I found two fantastic projects to pretty up an old mirror via Pinterest today. I found this one (on the right!) at first, and then clicked on to what it looked like before and found this one! I've been trying to make the large mirror on my wardrobe door look better for ages, and now I can't decide which of these to do! Help? :) S xx

The Graphics Fairy

Well, I wanted to keep this a secret, but because practically every crafter out there already knows anyway I'm such a nice person, I decided to let yoou in on it! ;) "It" is a fantastic website, called The Graphics Fairy, full of FREE (have you noticed? That's like my catchphrase!) clip art images and vintage printables to use for craft projetcs, collage , DIY, scrapbooking... anything you like! I discovered it all of ten minutes ago, and I think I am going to break my printer with the amount of stuff I want to print out and use. I'll have to restrain myself! :) So what are you waiting for!?! Go now, Thank me later! ;)