Friday, December 30, 2011

Coffee filter wreath

It's good to be back! I have missed crafting and posting but, I have redeemed myself by coming up with something really awesome for y'all tonight!

What you'll need:
* 200 8-12 oz. white coffee filters
* Styrofoam wreath (I used the medium sized from from Hobby Lobby)
* A big highlighter
*Hot glue gun and glue
*Spray glitter (optional)

I thought I was going to need at least 400 coffee filters, because according to my source, she used an estimated 375 coffee filters. Maybe we used different sized filters and wreaths, or maybe she packed hers in tighter than I did mine. I probably used around 170 because I glued on several that fell off, or I ripped off because I didn't like the location. But just to be safe I would buy two packages of the 200 count, you can always use the extras or return them! :)

Now this is a project that could be spread out over several days, or could be done on a day where you have nothing to do, which was what I had today... nothing to do. It took me from about 3pm till 10pm. Of course I watched movies and ate lunch/dinner in that time.

I did the middle part of my wreath first. To get the shape of your filters you are going to want to wrap one of the filters around your sharpie, then glue the top flat part of the highlighter tip.

Next, push the highlighter and your filter onto the wreath. Here are several pictures through the process of me applying the highlighter and coffee filter.  

If you look closely I have the wreath between my legs, this was the most helpful way to apply the coffee filters on the inside of the wreath. The section I am working on is almost facing straight down. Trust me, this method is tried and true!

For the inside... at FIRST I was putting 3 to 4 coffee filters in a row, this quickly became a problem and this was the point where I had to rip out several filters because it was getting too jammed packed. See how mine was just overflowing and spilling out?

This is how it should look from the side. Poofy on one side, and flat on the other.

Back view.


Doing the top part was EASY. It started coming along much faster when I got to the top!

Ouch! This might happen to you if you don't hold onto your coffee filter while it's on the highlighter! Make sure you keep a firm grip!

 This looks like a cake!

So far I am loving it! But wait.. theres more...

That's right! SPRAY GLITTER!!!

Before...

Meet after...


This one is DEFINITELY a pin!


Here is the original.. I found on Pinterest

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

A little busy

Hello all! Just wanted to let y'all know I haven't abandoned y'all! I have been staying in a hotel all week in Houston with Meme while my uncle recovers from a double bypass surgery. I should be back this week with a quick post of a Pinterest craft! I can't wait to show y'all my latest project and let y'all know if its a Pin or a cringe!

Here's a picture of the beautiful tree at Memorial City Mall! Sorry I can't get it right side up!

Also a picture from the roof top!



Saturday, December 24, 2011

Bow hanger frame

I just want to let y'all know from the beginning how much I LOVED how this project turned out. It was time consuming, you aren't going to finish this in an hour but, it was worth 100% of the time I put into it.

You'll need:
  • A wooden frame with no glass. They are usually at Hobby Lobby. Mine was a 11x14.
  • Ribbon. My ribbon was an inch and a half.
  • Cup hooks. You will get a better deal at a Home Depot/Lowes. Mine were a pack of 50 and were one inch.
  • Ruler
  • Hot glue gun and glue
  • Sharpie
  • Spray Paint. I used Ballet Shoes. It dried in 10 minutes or less.
  • Embellishments
First you have to screw all those cup hooks into the bottom of your frame. I used my ruler and sharpie to make a one inch mark between each hook. You can do more or less,  I ended up with a total of 17 on the bottom of mine.

 I'm just letting you know this was a TOUGH job. To help screw them in I layed the frame on the ground and secured it between my legs. Then using both hands I pushed down and twisted each screw into the wood. When I only had 6 more left my dad helped me by drilling small holes into the wood where I had marked with my sharpie and ruler. This helped TREMENDOUSLY! 

Once you have all your hooks in, it's time to spray paint!
Before:  
After:


Once your frame is completely dry, it's time to cut the ribbon and place them where you want. I didn't measure the space between them, I just eye balled it. I also cut the ribbon a little long because I was going to glue the ribbon into that inside crevasse.


When securing the ribbon to the frame I wanted to push down hard so the ribbon would adhere to the hot glue, so I used the edge of my scissors to push down hard, instead of burning my fingers.

When it's time to attach the other side of the ribbon, make sure you pull it tight so it's taunt.

I'm basically done with the frame... I just need to add a few embellishments to make it complete!


All finished!!!

This one is DEFINITELY a pin!

Here is the original I found on Pinterest:


Thursday, December 22, 2011

Applesauce Cinnamon Ornaments

I saw this while browsing Pinterest last night and I remembered a first grade class doing it once and how DELICIOUS it smelled! I could even smell it down the hallway! The best part is that this is NO BAKE! I mean you really can't mess this up!

You'll need:
  • 3/4 cup Applesauce
  • 4 oz. Ground Cinnamon
  • Wooden rolling pin and cutting board
  • Mixing bowl
  • Cookie cutters
  • Straw
  • Knifes/Thin spatula
  • Cooling rack
Measure out 3/4 cup of applesauce and put into a mixing bowl.  Then dump in your ground cinnamon.
^^ It's a mountain! ^^

Now it's time to mix it all up! Except I came upon a problem, it wasn't mixing well! Oh no.. who knows what to do!? (If you have read 'King Bidgood's in the Bathtub by Audrey & Don Wood you'll understand!)
I knew what to do....
^ See now the texture was just right. Everything was mixed in perfectly! ^


So then I rolled it out. This is how I rolled it out...
And this is how Meme rolled it out...

Now it's time to get to cuttin'!
^ Meme making sure the ornaments are smooth on top. ^

Oh... how'd I get those little holes at the top of my ornaments? Like this...
^^ Just poke your straw through and twist.. the circle might not come out but that's ok because when you lift them off the cutting board you can push the straw through again or it might just fall out!

Let's talk about lifting these babies off the board... I read off the original posting that she used a spatula. WELL that just wasn't working for us...
The spatula was misshapping our ornaments!

 
Then... Meme had an idea...
And it worked perfectly!!

Now lay them on your cooling rack...

 This was a ball we made of the leftovers, we punched a hole all the way through.

So now... it's time to wait and see if they harden! I broke this project up into two postings. So you'll have to wait and see what they turn out to be tomorrow! That is if they are dry, I finished them at 10:15pm central time. I will be checking them through the day tomorrow. It is recommended at least a day before adding the ribbons and date on the back. But so far...

This one is DEFINITELY a pin!