Upcoming projects

Main Street in Grapevine, Texas (where I was raised from age 2- 11)

I don't have any completed crafts for you this week. My summer job is in full swing, and 20 hours of my week are now taken up with part-time employment. My photography class starts on Tuesday, which will take up about 25 more hours of every week in July, and unfortunately craft time is getting cut down dramatically in order to cope.

Now, having said that:

1. I cut the pieces for a swishy, fun bohemian skirt. All I need to do is sew them together!

2. All of the fabric is purchased for my next quilt, so once I finalize my design I can get started on that.

3. More jewelry! I purchased a bunch of Scrabble tiles at a junk store and more Dimensional Magic at Joann's awhile back, as well as some beads recently. Added bonus: I now have one of those jewelry display boards so that future photos of the finished craft won't be so bad.

3D Collage Frame

I have some 5" x 7" prints that I purchased on sale that have just sat around in the corner of my room for years. I've never hung them up despite how much I love Audrey Hepburn because generally I find frames boring and don't like shopping for them. The idea of a fabric backing around and behind the photo and adding 3-D elements to a photo was appealing, and that is what I am attempting today.

I picked up a suitably deep photo frame (I keep referring to it mentally as a 'deep-dish pizza' frame) at Joann's and a pretty fabric in the remnants bin. I cut the fabric to fit the back cardboard side of the frame and then left a few inches along all sides.

Lay the fabric out and glue the back of the frame to it so that the side that faces the frame glass is against the back side of the fabric. Make sure the fabric isn't bunched up or bubbled anywhere and let it dry for awhile.Next, cut the edges off the fabric so that there are four panels of fabric that go past the edge, then turn and glue those down. Again, let it dry.

Above: Helpful hint- use spray glue. I used Tacky Glue, which, though very effective, showed through the fabric. If you do this it isn't really an issue since the fabric will be covered with stuff later.

Below: If the frame has a little hanger on it already, just cut the fabric around it.

Now for the super fun part- decorate! I found ribbon and lace and random little things in my craft drawer to make my print photos interesting, and glued them all to the fabric. Let it dry as well, and then hang up the frame and enjoy a completely unique piece of homemade art!

New quilt project

Sorry it's sideways, my computer is a little glitchy lately.

Working on my quilt when I can. My summer is at that crazy stage when you try to get everything done in advance, and then after this comes a small lull, and then true chaos breaks lose as you get ready for fall. Or at least this is how it happens to me. Haven't even started my friend's quilt, sadly, even though I should technically be finishing it about now. It's been at least 100 out for well over three weeks now, and Step 1 of her quilt involves spray dye that I need it to cool down outside for. I'm a summer person, but this is still a little excessive.

Stay cool out!

Antiquing Swag

My brother wanted a buddy for his antique store run today so I went along. The antique store he wanted to go to was inside a redesigned house about half an hour's drive away, but it was worth it because the store was nice and the drive was lovely.

Part of the drive out there. Look at all the trees! Flooding pays off a few weeks later.

Inside the antique store from the second floor looking down. It's blurry because I was sifting through old McCall's patterns while I took the photo.

My swag: Approximately 6 total yards of assorted fabrics at Helping Hands, $2. Baggie of Scrabble pieces and interestingly shaped keys, $8. Hooray for cheap stuff!

More Mod Podge

I used the whole bottle of Mod Podge Dimensional Magic in under 24 hours, and a new, larger bottle is on my list for my next Joann's run. I remembered that my plastic mini-organizer is ugly. Ten years ago when I bought it at WalMart, my idea of home decoration was coloring things with Sharpies and putting those 50-cent stickers from Taco Bell on everything. Since it hasn't broken I never replaced it, and it could use a new exterior since its sadly Sharpie'd presence is in plain sight all the time. See? Ugly:

First, I found a large picture I liked in a magazine- in this case, an ad for herbs in an old copy of Food Network Magazine. I cut it out and then trimmed it to fit in the top groove of the storage unit, gluing it down with craft glue. Try to squeeze out all the air bubbles with a flat edge, but don't tear the image or you'll have to scrape it out and start over!

Next, pour Mod Podge Dimensional Magic on it until there is a smooth, even layer of it on top of the image. Leave it alone to dry for a few hours on a flat surface.

To which I say: Moooood Pooooodge....

I left it overnight (about 12 hours) just to be safe, and then viola! A new (old) desk storage box!

Mod Podge Jewelry Part 1

I sew a lot, so I have plenty of clothes. What I lack is fun jewelry to go with the cothes I make, and today I went to Joann's to remedy this. Today's conquest involves Mod Podge, specifically the Dimensional Magic kind that you see on many Etsy items. I'm trying two different ideas, one involving sprucing up an old pair of earrings and the other repurposing some unused bobbins. This is the first:

For this, I repurposed some empty wrappers and old Scrabble earrings I bought and accidentally ruined in the shower a few years ago. I traced the scrabble squares onto the backside of the candy wrappers, cut them out, and then applied them to the Scrabble squares with strong craft glue.

Once they dried I Mod Podged them with a thin, light layer to seal and protect, and then a thicker layer to add a sheen. I left them to dry for awhile.

And just like that, new earrings!

Say Cheese

So it is official- before I dive face-first into my masters degree, I'm going to (finally) take a photography class at the community college. I've been passionate about photography for years and never officially learned how to do it- what I know came from the internet. Plus it would be cool to develop film, even though few film cameras are even sold anymore.

A few years ago I took an art class (left-handed, to make it interesting) because I had never officially learned to draw- again, the Internet and trial and error taught me- and it was pretty eye-opening as well.

It's a five-week course starting in July, so I have until then to get my dad's old 35mm camera from the 1980s completely working again!