Monday, July 7, 2014

Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2014 - July

Finally, I'm sitting down to take on one of Tim Holtz's crafting challenges. Over on his blog at www.timholtz.com, he posts a new tag with some cool techniques and then challenges the readers to try their hand at using the techniques. This month, he made one with tools that I actually had on hand so I didn't have to buy too much extra stuff to get started! So to start, here is the finished product:


Sunday, July 6, 2014

Cool coffee cup design

My coffee mug wasnt cleaned after my last tea so it has cool rings in it. I like the colors and the tree-like feel.

























Make your own enamel dots

This is not an original idea, but the experience I had was original and definitely worth sharing. It was a lesson in "quality" shopping and life with a gas stove that I figured was worth sharing. And if you have never seen this process, then maybe it's something new for you.

So to start, you're going to need a glass pan, parchment paper, and Perler beads. The kind that you iron into weird floppy shapes when you're a kid and then lose or maybe use as a coaster or something. BUY THE BRAND NAME BEADS. I will show you at the end what I ended up with when I used beads from Oriental Trading (it's bad).

Preheat your oven to 450. You're melting plastic.

While that is happening, sob softly while you try and get your Perler beads nice and spread out and stood on their ends in the glass dish on some parchment paper. It will take a while, so turn the oven on and by the time you hate handling these beads it should be ready! (Side note: I had to buy Wilton's parchment paper because it was all the grocery store had, but are there other brands? Cheaper brands? I could totally use some money saving tips, that stuff was expensive)

Thursday, July 3, 2014

#TBT - Drinkable Art (21+)


If there is one thing I really like about a holiday, it's that my friends want to get together and have some drinks. I like to offer an array of options for people by infusing my own liquors. This "craft" (going loosely defined today, sorry) is super simple. You need alcohol (I prefer vodka and bourbon), mason jars, and stuff you think is tasty.