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

Source: littlemissmomma.com via Samantha on Pinterest

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:

Source: theparopost.com via Samantha on Pinterest

Crayons and a Hair Dryer

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Hot glue gun & glue
• Crayola Crayons (you'll see why in a little bit)
• Canvas
• Hair Dryer
• Towel/Paper towls

The reason why I am specifing crayola crayons is because I used a cheap off brand from a local grocery store and they didn't really melt so well. I have seen other people use the Crayola Crayons and they seem to melt better. PLUS, the off brand do not have the color names on them. I originally wanted to do a R.O.Y.G.B.I.V. pattern, but since I couldnt see the color names I didn't know which ones were red and which ones were orange and I didn't have the time (or patience) to test out every color on a piece of paper.

Once you decide on what colors you want to use, line them up on the canvas to make sure you know length wise how many will fit on your canvas.

Then whip out that hot glue gun and start gluing them down. I glued on the same spot each time so that it said "Crayons" on the outside. You don't have to it's just the OCD in me!

Once they are all glued on find a way to prop your canvas up, I used a heavy box. Lay a towel or paper towels under your canvas just in case some melted crayons come off the canvas.

Now it's time to get melting! I noticed that using the hair dryer on full blast made a mess and the crayons were melting unevenly, it's best to use it at it's lowest setting.

Here are some pictures taken in the process of the melting. Make sure as you are blow drying that you are moving the hair dryer back and forth and not just leaving it on a few crayons so they melt, this will also make it uneven. Just move your hair dryer back and forth and they'll all melt at a even pace!

Before:

After:    

This one is DEFINITELY a pin!

Gemstones on a bottle

Time to break out the hot glue gun and an (empty) bottle of wine!

Source: google.com via Samantha on Pinterest

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Hot glue gun & glue
• Gems in any color you want (make sure they have the flat side)
• Paper bowl
• String of lights
• Empty bottle (I used a wine bottle)
• Towel

The first thing you'll probably need to do is get the label off your wine bottle, I just soaked mine in hot water for 5 minutes and it peeled right off.

Next, I poured all my gems into a bowl for easier accessibility. Place a folded towel down on the surface area, you will need to lay the bottle on it's side as you are working around. If you place the bottle on marble, like I did at first, it'll roll around AND the gemstones will fall off when they hit between the two hard surfaces. It happened to me several times but once I was laying the bottle down on its side on the towel this didn't occur any longer.

I tried on my first gem to put the hot glue on the bottle first and then put the gem on the bottle, but I put it down too far and it was hanging off the bottom of the bottle.

Instead, you need to put the hot glue on the GEM first and then place the gem onto the bottle.

Then you just keep gluing around in circles! When you put your gemstone down, apply a little pressure with your finger to make sure it gets down nice and snug!

Look I found a conjoined gemstone!

To stuff the lights into the bottle I used the handle of a wooden stick:

Now time to turn it on!!

This one is DEFINITELY a pin!