Monday, May 25, 2015

DIY Glass Photo Magnets


Okay, I have been wanting to do this for a long time. I found several tutorials on Pinterest and all of them used Mod Podge. I waited for a day for them to dry and they still didn't look right. I ended up peeling them off the pebbles and gluing it with E6000 since I was already going to use that to glue the magnets to pebbles. I'm so glad I decided to do this because it looks so much better!

What I used:

Gem Accents ($1 from the Dollar Tree)
E6000 
Magnets (I would choose a size that is slightly smaller than your pebble)
Photos (or Scrapbook paper for fun designs!)



What I did:

Okay, as I mentioned before, I mod podged the pebbles to the photos first. Then after a day, I cut around the photos and decided I didn't like the way it looks. I ripped it off and glued it back on with just a tiny little dab of E6000. You don't need much. Once you press down, it covers the whole photo. As you can see in the below photo, the Mod Podge wasn't smooth.



So, every time I print photos from Costco, they come with these 4x6 photos that has tiny little prints of the photos I ordered. I always kept them because I thought maybe I'd use them someday. I'm a bit of a hoarder. I hate to throw away things. 


When I was at Walmart, the smallest magnets they had were slightly bigger than my pebbles. These were self adhesive magnets. If you get regular magnets, use the E6000 to glue the magnet to the pebbles. 



I attached a few and really didn't like the way it looked. I had just one little magnet on my fridge that I used on one of the pebbles. It looks nicer because you can't see the magnet from the front. I debated whether or not I wanted to order them from eBay or Amazon but I have no patience to wait for that.... then I remembered we had a pair of scissors that can cut through the magnets! So that's what I did. Although it's not pretty, it will do! haha

From left to right:
  • A small magnet I found on my frig that was perfect!
  • I cut the magnet so that it's smaller than the pebble. It's ugly but you can't see it from the front!
  • The magnet (uncut) slightly bigger than the pebble.
  • If you look closely, you can see the magnet from the front on the last pebble.



Friday, May 22, 2015

DIY Gift Bag

It's my little sister's birthday (Okay, it was a couple of days ago) and I made her a Crochet Slouch Beanie. I have tons of gift bags that I've saved to reuse but I wanted to make one just for her. I found a video tutorial here that uses two 12x12 scrapbook papers. Years ago when I thought I'd have time to make scrapbooks, I went a little crazy and bought tons of scrapbook paper. I've actually found good use for them even though I'm not scrap booking. I've used them to make cards, bunting & other crafts. 

I used double sided paper like they did and decided that I would make the edges prettier. I didn't reinforce the bottom of the bag because I know that the hat is very lightweight and it's not necessary.



I used a purple sheer ribbon that I purchased at the Dollar Tree awhile ago and purple tissue paper. The hat fit perfectly in the bag. I printed these cute labels from here





Again, the tutorial can be found here.


Friday, May 8, 2015

Upcycled Newborn Hat & Headband (from a sweater)

I recently made a Newborn Pant from this same sweater. A few days later, I was able to make the knotted hat.. and with the scraps, I made a little flower tieback.

I used the front of the sweater for the pants. One sleeve was big enough for the hat. I can make TWO hats out of the sweater with both sleeves. How cool is that?!?!

First, I cut the sleeve into what looks like an upside down funnel.  
Then, I sewed the edges together with the sleeve inside out. I made sure to triple check this time since I failed to put the right sides together for the pants (still kicking myself on the behind for that!).
Now, flip it inside out so the RIGHT side is on the outside. Tie a knot and you're done!



For the tie back, I used a scrap pieces and cut out designs (if that's what you want to call it).


Using a needle and thread, stitch through the inside (opposite of where you just cut).


Glue 3 beads to the top and and elastic band to the bottom side. I used the same yarn I used for the drawstrings on the pants so it matches.





Wednesday, May 6, 2015

DIY Lego Pinata


My eldest son turns 5 in less than a week! I can't believe how much time has passed. We tried so hard to get pregnant and when it finally happened, we were so happy! Once he arrived, the next 2 arrived shortly after. With all the craziness that is raising 3 little boys under 5 years old, time seems to slip by without notice! It's bitter sweet.

I held him the other day and stared at him while he laughed. He had no idea why I was just staring at him but whatever he thought I was doing kept him laughing and giggling that infectious laugh. *sigh* my little baby boy who I haven't stopped to really stare at isn't looking so little anymore :(

Anyway, I can go on forever reminiscing about him being a little baby. In the end, he will always be my baby...

Back to the pinata. He asked for one for his birthday. We were at a birthday party where they had one and he asked "When it's my birthday, can we have a pinata too mommy?" This was November. He still remembers 5 months later :)

I probably should have just bought one because there's so much to do and so very little time but being crazy me, I decided to make one. I was thinking something easy and perhaps already a boxy shape because I plan to use a cardboard box. My husband grabbed one of his beer boxes. Perfect! A Lego pinata! lol

Supplies I used:

36 Pack Budweiser (King of beers!)
Paper Cups
Tissue Paper (tissue for gift bags)
Scissors
Ribbons
Glue Stick
Hot Glue

Directions:
 Before you start, cut an area for the opening (to put candy/treats inside). I just made the opening of the handles larger.




Cut the cups to the desired size. Cutting the bottom like this (see photo) helps me use the tabs to glue the cups to the box.

Cut strips of tissue paper. I used red because the box was mostly red. Mine were about 4 inches. These will be folded in half so they will be 2 inch strips.



Glue the cups to the box.


Use a ribbon or whatever you want to tie the top.



How fun is that?