I wish I could find the "before" photo of this little coat rack. I bought it in the clearance section after Christmas for $.75- it was white with 4 large plastic snowmen on it (one over each hook). I pried them off, filled and sanded the holes they left behind and then added a little mosaic of sea glass, sand dollars and starfish. It now lives in my (very green) bathroom helping to make the green a bit more bearable until I can get around to toning it down some!
Took me a Sunday afternoon football game to go from before to after. :)
Showing posts with label crafting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crafting. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Finally back to being crafty!
I can't believe it's taken me this long to recouperate from the holidays but indeed, this is the first week I've been able to get back to work and start making things again. At first there was the chaos of kids home on vacation, then it was cleaning up and putting away all the decorations, then it was sheer exhaustion from all the previous weeks' hullabaloo.
Thenagging reminder gentle nudge of a waning bank account forced me back into action this week and I've managed to start producing again. So far I've added two new colors of my sea glass wine charms
Blue Set
Green Set
and a sea glass bottle stopper (custom order).
I am trying to decide if I have time to produce enough stuff to do a small local craft fair in a little over a month's time... hemming and hawing over this one...
Also have a sea glass window on my agenda due mid March to the customer and likely a fundraiser coming up in April. Spring is looking to be busy!
The
Blue Set
Green Set
and a sea glass bottle stopper (custom order).
I am trying to decide if I have time to produce enough stuff to do a small local craft fair in a little over a month's time... hemming and hawing over this one...
Also have a sea glass window on my agenda due mid March to the customer and likely a fundraiser coming up in April. Spring is looking to be busy!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Where Have I Been?
The other day I posted this picture on FLICKR:
It shows some sachets I made to sell at The Shops at Fabian House. Tara commented over there, "Take a moment and blog all your new crafty goings on will you? :)" Even the smiley face emoticon could not sooth the harsh reality that I have been a horrible bloggy partner! I popped over here today to post, and it took me three clicks on "older posts" to come to my last entry, posted exactly 2 months ago.
Holy Cow! I had no idea I was THAT bad! I knew I was living a little bit of a whirlwind life, but 2 months???? I feel as if I have been spiraling out of control, and I need to regroup and try to get back to normal! So I will post here a little summary of what has been going on and what I have worked on, and hopefully turn over a new leaf and get back to posting!
My younger son started high school this fall at a school which is a bit of a commute for us. (Translation: On the worst traffic days I have spent 4 hours in the car!) We have spent a ton of time together in the car. He is playing Freshman Football, which has really changed our family's routines since we got back from vacation in August. I should probably work on a feature about meals that fit into our crazy schedule. I'll have to get some pointers from Tara on food photography- her photos are so great when she blogs recipes. (Notice me kissing up to Tara in hopes she will forgive my blog neglect!)
Since last spring I have been selling my items from I corner I rent within The Shops at Fabian House. I also sell some of Tara's sea glass jewelry and some quilts and fiber art items from a partnership with my friend Karen, which we call Chickadee Friends Studio. I work at least one day a week in the shop, which works out well since it is near my son's school. The shop has a really cool mix of antiques, handcrafted items, and even a vegetarian cafe in the back! They serve a fabulous cup of coffee, and I am definitely addicted.
I am still most definitely making stuff nearly daily. I do not always take photos, especially if it is something that will go into the shop, and not online. Often I take quick photos on my keyboard or on the work table, just to post some photos to show Tara on FLICKR or others on Facebook. I will try to do better, maybe my next post needs to be about time management for football moms who taxi kids.
It shows some sachets I made to sell at The Shops at Fabian House. Tara commented over there, "Take a moment and blog all your new crafty goings on will you? :)" Even the smiley face emoticon could not sooth the harsh reality that I have been a horrible bloggy partner! I popped over here today to post, and it took me three clicks on "older posts" to come to my last entry, posted exactly 2 months ago.Holy Cow! I had no idea I was THAT bad! I knew I was living a little bit of a whirlwind life, but 2 months???? I feel as if I have been spiraling out of control, and I need to regroup and try to get back to normal! So I will post here a little summary of what has been going on and what I have worked on, and hopefully turn over a new leaf and get back to posting!
My younger son started high school this fall at a school which is a bit of a commute for us. (Translation: On the worst traffic days I have spent 4 hours in the car!) We have spent a ton of time together in the car. He is playing Freshman Football, which has really changed our family's routines since we got back from vacation in August. I should probably work on a feature about meals that fit into our crazy schedule. I'll have to get some pointers from Tara on food photography- her photos are so great when she blogs recipes. (Notice me kissing up to Tara in hopes she will forgive my blog neglect!)
Since last spring I have been selling my items from I corner I rent within The Shops at Fabian House. I also sell some of Tara's sea glass jewelry and some quilts and fiber art items from a partnership with my friend Karen, which we call Chickadee Friends Studio. I work at least one day a week in the shop, which works out well since it is near my son's school. The shop has a really cool mix of antiques, handcrafted items, and even a vegetarian cafe in the back! They serve a fabulous cup of coffee, and I am definitely addicted.I am still most definitely making stuff nearly daily. I do not always take photos, especially if it is something that will go into the shop, and not online. Often I take quick photos on my keyboard or on the work table, just to post some photos to show Tara on FLICKR or others on Facebook. I will try to do better, maybe my next post needs to be about time management for football moms who taxi kids.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Celebrating our 100th Blog Post with a Swap!
It's official, we've been around a while! With the publishing of this post, Maggie and I have blogged 100 entries and we thought to celebrate we would host a swap! The theme of the swap will be "Things That Inspire". The idea is to come up with a variety of items that are inspirational to you, which you think might also be inspirational to others.
In the spirit of our crafty mamas blog, we encourage handmade items but are also cool with purchased things if that is your preference. To keep it reasonable for everyone who wants to participate, we have set a $15 maximum limit for supplies and other purchases.
Some suggestions for possible swap items are: music mix CD, inspirational quotes, crafty goodies that you love to make, photos or drawings, materials for people to make their own goodies, etc.
The deadline for signing up to participate is October 10th. We are aiming to have all our swap partners paired up by the middle of the month so everyone can ship their inspiration packages to their partners by October 30th.
If you want to participate in the swap, please leave us a comment. Sign up, get creative with your ideas and be inspired!
In the spirit of our crafty mamas blog, we encourage handmade items but are also cool with purchased things if that is your preference. To keep it reasonable for everyone who wants to participate, we have set a $15 maximum limit for supplies and other purchases.
Some suggestions for possible swap items are: music mix CD, inspirational quotes, crafty goodies that you love to make, photos or drawings, materials for people to make their own goodies, etc.
The deadline for signing up to participate is October 10th. We are aiming to have all our swap partners paired up by the middle of the month so everyone can ship their inspiration packages to their partners by October 30th.
If you want to participate in the swap, please leave us a comment. Sign up, get creative with your ideas and be inspired!
Friday, March 27, 2009
A few more things I've been working on...
Just thought I'd post some photos of a few new things I've been working on for the fundraiser I'm doing next Friday night...
Forest Green Sea Glass Necklace:
Huckleberry Seashell Wreath:
Sterling Silver Stamped Sea Glass Necklaces:
"Stained Glass" Sea Glass Window:
Hand Painted Wine Glasses:
Nautilus Shell
Koi Fish
Forest Green Sea Glass Necklace:
Huckleberry Seashell Wreath:
Sterling Silver Stamped Sea Glass Necklaces:
"Stained Glass" Sea Glass Window:
Hand Painted Wine Glasses:
Nautilus Shell
Koi Fish
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Valentine's Craft for Kids
Aidan and I decided to make little valentines for his classmates as opposed to buying the boring (and pricey for what they are!) little cards you can buy at the store. We made a dozen of them (with leftovers to make several dozen more) for $4.50.
Materials:
Pink & Red Construction Paper
3" round paper doilies
glue stick
individually wrapped heart candies
Magic marker or crayon in color of your choice
*optional- low tack glue dots
For our purposes, we used 2 sheets of red and 2 sheets of pink. First, I measured 4 1/2" squares and cut them out (6 red, 6 pink). Then Aidan took out his trusty glue stick and adhered the paper doilies to the center of each square.
Next, I measured the size of the chocolate hearts we were using and with the scraps of construction paper leftover, cut out 12 heart shapes (again 6 red, 6 pink) -1/2" larger on all sides than the candy piece.
Aidan then wrote one classmate's name in the center of each heart.
Finally, Aidan glued the bottom 2/3 of the heart (along the edge) and with my assistance, attached it to the doily like a pocket. We let them dry overnight and this morning, slipped a chocolate heart into each one. I think they came out really cute!
*I had some of those gummy glue dots left over from another project and decided that to survive the trip to school without candy falling out all over the place, it would be wise to adhere a dot to the backside of each candy to secure it in place inside the heart pocket.
Materials:
Pink & Red Construction Paper
3" round paper doilies
glue stick
individually wrapped heart candies
Magic marker or crayon in color of your choice
*optional- low tack glue dots
For our purposes, we used 2 sheets of red and 2 sheets of pink. First, I measured 4 1/2" squares and cut them out (6 red, 6 pink). Then Aidan took out his trusty glue stick and adhered the paper doilies to the center of each square.
Next, I measured the size of the chocolate hearts we were using and with the scraps of construction paper leftover, cut out 12 heart shapes (again 6 red, 6 pink) -1/2" larger on all sides than the candy piece.
Aidan then wrote one classmate's name in the center of each heart.
Finally, Aidan glued the bottom 2/3 of the heart (along the edge) and with my assistance, attached it to the doily like a pocket. We let them dry overnight and this morning, slipped a chocolate heart into each one. I think they came out really cute!
*I had some of those gummy glue dots left over from another project and decided that to survive the trip to school without candy falling out all over the place, it would be wise to adhere a dot to the backside of each candy to secure it in place inside the heart pocket.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
The holidays are coming! Part 3
As promised, another little glimpse into the crafts I am working on in preparation for the coming holiday season. I've created 9 new ornaments this year- using genuine seashells and sea life that are perfect for any coastal holiday decor!
The collection includes lavender, green and rare English Channel sea urchins, white pencil and white amored starfish, pearl abalone shells, sand dollars and two different kissing ball style ornaments. The ornaments are elegantly adorned with Swarovski crystals, sheer ribbons and pearl embellishments.
Available now at www.scarboroughseashells.com
The collection includes lavender, green and rare English Channel sea urchins, white pencil and white amored starfish, pearl abalone shells, sand dollars and two different kissing ball style ornaments. The ornaments are elegantly adorned with Swarovski crystals, sheer ribbons and pearl embellishments.
Available now at www.scarboroughseashells.com
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
The holidays are coming! Part 2
My poor, dear Maggie has been holding this blog together for us all month. As I struggle with eBay and website and got 2 of my 3 boys into school (jr high and preschool, a first for both!) I often found myself superbly overwhelmed this September. And so, on the final day of the month, I impress myself with the fact that I have actually gotten some of my holiday goals well underway.
I am about 65% finished with my first birdbath; not the 3 I had planned to be working on, but one successful birdbath is a good start to a 100% new project. I've also learned throughout this process some good and some not so good ways of working with stained glass, concrete and mosaics in general:
- mix concrete for small projects in small batches.
- Press hard with your glass cutting tool, it won't shatter your glass, but a weak score line will cause your glass to not break away cleanly.
- set your design on fiberglass mesh (either self stick or use a glue like Weldbond). Not doing this means you essentially have to lay your pattern twice. (Learned that one the hard way!)
- Start your project with plenty of time before your "due date". Unless you do this for a living and can easily carve out time in your day to work on it, be ready for life to get in the way!
- Don't be afraid to try! At the start of this project, I had never mixed so much as one cup of conrete before muchless used a mold to create a birdbath. I had never touched a sheet of stained glass nor used a glass cutter or tile nippers, both of which have proven to be very cool tools to play around with!
- Aim for fun and cool, not perfection and professional and you'll likely find that your project turns out to be much better than you ever thought you could do on your first attempt!
I'll post some photos of my other holiday crafts soon!
I am about 65% finished with my first birdbath; not the 3 I had planned to be working on, but one successful birdbath is a good start to a 100% new project. I've also learned throughout this process some good and some not so good ways of working with stained glass, concrete and mosaics in general:
- mix concrete for small projects in small batches.
- Press hard with your glass cutting tool, it won't shatter your glass, but a weak score line will cause your glass to not break away cleanly.
- set your design on fiberglass mesh (either self stick or use a glue like Weldbond). Not doing this means you essentially have to lay your pattern twice. (Learned that one the hard way!)
- Start your project with plenty of time before your "due date". Unless you do this for a living and can easily carve out time in your day to work on it, be ready for life to get in the way!
- Don't be afraid to try! At the start of this project, I had never mixed so much as one cup of conrete before muchless used a mold to create a birdbath. I had never touched a sheet of stained glass nor used a glass cutter or tile nippers, both of which have proven to be very cool tools to play around with!
- Aim for fun and cool, not perfection and professional and you'll likely find that your project turns out to be much better than you ever thought you could do on your first attempt!
I'll post some photos of my other holiday crafts soon!
Monday, September 29, 2008
365 Project- More than 10% Done
I can't decide if it feels like we started this project of artful exploration eons ago or just yesterday. I was catching up on uploading pictures to our group, and as I typed day 37/365, I thought "Wow, 10% done." Part of me thinks I should put an "only" in there. Part of me thinks it is a good accomplishment.
It is most certainly a testimony to my crafting ADD. If you look at my pictures, I made books, embroidered on felt leaves, made thread buttons, glued buttons to bobby pin blanks, and sewed bags. I made more than a few earrings, but I also think I made much less than I would in an average month.
There were some reorganization days in there, where I sorted supplies and attempted to bring order to the mayhem. I need to do that some more- I need to sort my fabric stash and I need to reorganize the basement to try to set up an area for using a torch.
I also want to stretch my artistic wings more as time goes on, and try to strike that balance between making the items that will sustain my current business while trying to change it into what it needs to be in the future.
Keep your eyes on this space- you never know what we might be up to!
It is most certainly a testimony to my crafting ADD. If you look at my pictures, I made books, embroidered on felt leaves, made thread buttons, glued buttons to bobby pin blanks, and sewed bags. I made more than a few earrings, but I also think I made much less than I would in an average month.
There were some reorganization days in there, where I sorted supplies and attempted to bring order to the mayhem. I need to do that some more- I need to sort my fabric stash and I need to reorganize the basement to try to set up an area for using a torch.
I also want to stretch my artistic wings more as time goes on, and try to strike that balance between making the items that will sustain my current business while trying to change it into what it needs to be in the future.
Keep your eyes on this space- you never know what we might be up to!
Thursday, September 4, 2008
The holidays are coming! Part 1
Aack, it's truly just around the corner and my scattered brain is stressing out over the pledge I took to do all handmade (except for the little kids) this holiday season! I have snowmen ornaments to make (I make them from sea urchins), sea glass angels and countless numbers of pendants and earrings. My mother has put in a request for a giant seashell wreath for her birthday (exactly one week before Christmas) and a slew of other things.
I have a large plastic mold for making birdbaths, 80 lbs of quickcrete in the trunk of my car and sheet upon sheet of stained glass sitting and waiting to be cut up to mosaic the birdbaths (yes I said baths- plural- three planned for holiday gift giving). Then there's the wine lovers in my family- for them, hand painted wine glasses and sea glass wine bottle stoppers. Oh and did I mention the people in my family who are impossible to gift?
On top of all this, I lie awake in bed at night- my mind reeling avec idée fixe: hand painted glass ornaments, mosaic mirrors, occasional tables, time frames, supplies to buy... Something tells me that "craft night" with the girls is not going to be enough to get all this accomplished. Tomorrow's agenda includes a trip to the office supply store to buy some sort of giant calendar thing to hang on my wall so I can start mapping out a timeline for getting all this accomplished. I guess, also, I should write a list of every person I need to make a gift for and what that gift will be.
*Note to self: organizing a studio space does not automatically organize a head cluttered with ideas!
And so, this mini rant will become a mini series. As I make progress tackling this aggregate of craftiness, I will blog about it. Sharing pictures, ideas and thoughts as I go. Wish me luck!
-Tara
I have a large plastic mold for making birdbaths, 80 lbs of quickcrete in the trunk of my car and sheet upon sheet of stained glass sitting and waiting to be cut up to mosaic the birdbaths (yes I said baths- plural- three planned for holiday gift giving). Then there's the wine lovers in my family- for them, hand painted wine glasses and sea glass wine bottle stoppers. Oh and did I mention the people in my family who are impossible to gift?
On top of all this, I lie awake in bed at night- my mind reeling avec idée fixe: hand painted glass ornaments, mosaic mirrors, occasional tables, time frames, supplies to buy... Something tells me that "craft night" with the girls is not going to be enough to get all this accomplished. Tomorrow's agenda includes a trip to the office supply store to buy some sort of giant calendar thing to hang on my wall so I can start mapping out a timeline for getting all this accomplished. I guess, also, I should write a list of every person I need to make a gift for and what that gift will be.
*Note to self: organizing a studio space does not automatically organize a head cluttered with ideas!
And so, this mini rant will become a mini series. As I make progress tackling this aggregate of craftiness, I will blog about it. Sharing pictures, ideas and thoughts as I go. Wish me luck!
-Tara
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