Hot Snot on a Silver Platter or Cold Boogers on a Paper Plate?

Gross remember saying that to people when you were a kid? I'm sure my poor younger sister had her big sister the "spirit breaker" as she lovingly refers to me say it more than once. Ask her the story about the library and the locust, she loves to tell that one. Speaking of plates, my sister is getting married soon, did I tell you that? Along with nuptials come showers and registries. All the gifts and goodies are half the fun. I opted for Home Depot gift cards when I got married so I never got a set of China. Recently I have seen so many cute plates about I have debated rectifying that situation. Wouldn't a complete set of china from The Storybook Rabbit be dreamy?


Actually do I really need a complete set? Wouldn't a mix matched place setting be cuter? Each plate a little different. I wonder if the pom poms on this plate by Lisa Grue are dishwasher safe?


Beat Up Creations you genius, who can resist the combination of traditional formal wear and kitsch. Not me I tell you.


Thanks SF Girl by Bay for bringing these plate portraits by Leslie Oschmann to my attention. I bet these look better on display than they do on the table I must admit.


When my array of new and exciting mix matched arty plates are not in use perhaps I could display them like Kristin and Sonny. Somehow this helps me rationalize the price tag on some of these plates.

For now my chipped up lime green plates will have to do. I also have a small set of Franciscan Starburst plates that I bust out on special occasions. However, Christmas is right around the corner and a girl can dream of new plates can't she?

Punk Rock Garage Sale

If you are out and about on Sunday and feel like you need some new music to listen to stop by Red 7 and check out the Punk Rock Garage Sale. My hubby Chris is going to have a table there. We are unloading a ton of our CDs and records these days to make space for other things. Plus all my music is on iTunes, our CD player broke and really when do I have time to sit and play Huggy Bear 7"s. Anywhoo stop by and say hello. If you don't live in Austin but wanna get your shop on anyway check out the hubbs Discogs store.

I Love to Create - Thrifting with a Crafty First Aid Kit

I can't tell you how many times I have seen something at a thrift store or flea market, fell in love and then realized it was damaged. Stained clothing, chipped paint or in my case peeling eye lashes *insert sound of needle scratching off a record here* yup I said peeling eyelashes. A stash of handy craft supplies is all that stands between you and perfect thrift store scores. Today for I Love to Create, I'll give you a few of my recent examples.


Hello Mr. Turtle Planter, when our eyes met it was kitsch love at first site. It was one of those moments where I could not grab him off the shelf quick enough for fear someone lurking nearby would swoop in and steal him from me. Needless to say there was no one around, but if there had been they would have surely wanted Terry I know it.


ANYWAY - Terry looks like he has had a bit of a rough night and is losing some of his eyelash glue. My first instinct was that he was damaged and I should not buy him since the lashes were one of the selling points (as if the bow time and hat were not enough). Then I thought to myself with a quick touch up using Tacky Glue Terry could be restored to his once glamourous self.


I recently started to notice that at the thrift store there is a distinct lack of clothing in 2T and 3T. Anyone who has a toddler knows why, clothing rarely makes it through toddler-hood unscathed. I can't tell you how many pieces of clothing Tallulah has ripped, stained and torn.


That being the case my theory is that there is hardly ever any toddler clothing worth donating to be much more than a rag. When I found this little black, white and teal top I was so excited at it's cuteness. I was not so excited about the small stains.


A few squirts of Tulip Spray Paint and I not only continued the ombre dye effect I also covered the stain and made the shirt even cuter. With Baxter venturing into the world of solid foods I expect I will be covering lot's of stained onesies with a quick dye job fix.


I love vintage glass art deco picture frames, the problem is finding them in pristine condition is not always an easy task. The frames often time are chipped and missing paint.


Never again should you snub a frame of any kind for a little chipped paint. All you need is a little Crafty Chica Paint and chips be gone.

Next time you find a second hand treasure that looks like it was loved a little too hard don't turn it away. Think of your crafty first aid kit and how you can easily make it new and improved!

WIN IT!!! New Dimensions in Bead and Wire Jewelry: Unexpected Combinations, Unique Designs.

Margot Potter and the kind folks over at North Light Books recently sent me a couple of copies of New Dimensions in Bead and Wire Jewelry: Unexpected Combinations, Unique Designs. Margot makes me want to dust off my beads which is something I have not done in a long time. I was never much of a beader and never one to twist wire, but something about the colorful fun designs in New Dimensions makes me want to give it a whirl. There is an informative techniques and tools section to set even a novice wire twister like myself off on the right foot.


Carnavale is by far my favorite necklace in the book. An adorable wired necklace made with a combination of beads, buttons and keys. The bright fun colors and creative re-use of items really appeals to me. I also like that the necklace shows you that wire wrapping does not have to be perfect, free form looks just as good. I'd wear and make this necklace in a heartbeat.


A close second is the Kaleidoscope Necklace. One of the best things about this book is that sure there are plenty of beads as the title implies, but there are other goodies used like filigree discs and flower beads. If you can wire it, you can wear it. An objects weight is really the only thing standing in your way.


Not only necklaces Margot's new book includes bracelet, tiara, earring and headband ideas. No matter what your favorite jewelry style, you will walk away from this book with a very strong urge to create. Margot is no stranger to the world of jewelry making as this is her 7th jewelry book for North Light, each one of them unique and inspiring.

This week we are giving away 2 copies of New Dimensions in Bead and Wire Jewelry: Unexpected Combinations, Unique Designs. Leave me a jewelry related comment and in a week I will pick 2 lucky winners!

Ice Cube Crayons

No blog here today, but if you pop over to Craft Zine you can see my post on whipping up a batch of ice crayons.

I Love to Create - Big Game Hunting on a Thrift Store Safari

Ever wanted to go on a safari and hang your find proudly mounted on your wall? No, I don't mean the kind of safari where you wear khaki and shoot a poor animal in the Serengeti. I mean a thrift store safari. They have quite the selection of wild (stuffed) animals there. With a few crafty moves you could have a mounted head collection of your very own without harming a single hair on anyone's head.


SUPPLIES
Tulip Fashion Paint
Black Ribbon or Trim
Aleene's Fast Grab Tacky Glue
Stuffed Animal
Wood Plaque
Jig Saw
Scissors
screws/nails
screwdriver/hammer


DECAPITATE
The first thing to do is decapitate your stuffed animal. It sounds morbid, but the end result is so cute you will feel better about the whole thing in a minute. I found my zebra at the thrift store, there is always a plethora of cast off creatures looking for a second chance at making someone happy.


PLAYING PLAQUES
Once you have your head you will have a better idea about what size plaque you need. You can buy square or oval pieces of wood that work at most craft stores. I of course was determined to have the traditional shield shaped plaque to give my zebra a more majestic feel. Well as majestic as a mounted stuffed animal could be anyway.


I drew my design on the wood and using a saw I cut out the shape I needed. You may need to sand down any rough edges.


PRETTY IN PINK
Next up I used fabric paint on wood. Yup, I have done it before and know that it works. Interestingly I did it with a zebra themed craft project previously. This mounted zebra is going in the same nursery, so it only makes sense.


MOUNT UP
Once my paint dried completely it was time to mount Mr. Zebra. Using a combination of screws and Tacky Glue I attached the zebra to the plaque. You will just have to eyeball this part. You want to pull the fabric on the back of the zebra's neck taunt so that their head is up and not sticking straight out. It is best to nail or screw the fabric in place for this. Once your stuffed animal is positioned how you want them use Tacky Glue to attach all the stuffed animal edges to the wooden plaque.


TRIM IT
A little black trim was added around the rough edges to give the zebra a more finished look.


So go ahead do a little poaching. Thrift store poaching of course. There are plenty of lions, tigers and bears just waiting to grace your walls. This would also be an adorable way to display your child's favorite stuffed animals once they outgrow them. There is a Cabbage Patch Kid and a stuffed pink gorilla in my house who may soon have something in common with the Headless Horsemen.

P.S. Thanks Mom for all your help!!!

I Love to Create - Recycled Retro-Style Jewelry Box

This is not my first time at the jewelry box re-vamping rodeo. Once upon a time I even sold them on my website. Lately, I have spotted several cute recycled jewelry boxes on Pintrest and Etsy that have my creative juices flowing. Flowing so much in fact I decided to revisit my stash of vintage jewelry boxes and see if I couldn't come up with something new and improved. My jewelry collection is always overflowing and I can never have too much cute storage for it.


SUPPLIES
Jewelry Box
Crafty Chica Paint
Scissors
Paint Brush
Aleene's Tacky Glue
Fabric
Collage Pauge
Rick Rack
Pliers



At least every other trip to the thrift store I spot an old jewelry box begging for a face lift. I happen to have a small stockpile in my studio of a few that have called my name through the years. I opted for a large dark brown dude from the 1960's to re-do.


The only priming I did was to remove the drawer pulls. I needed a pair of pliers for this.


The first thing I did was using Crafty Chica Paint and a sponge brush applied several coats of green paint. Allow your paint to dry completely between coats.


Once my paint was dry I used Collage Pauge to apply my fabric. I re-covered the drawer in my vintage fabric and added a large rectangle of fabric on the lid.


Paula Deen thinks everything is better with butter and I happen to think everything is better with rick rack. I applied the rick rick with a combo of Fabric Fusion and Quick Dry Tacky Glue depending on what surface the rick rack was touching.


My new and improved jewelry box houses my Bakelite collection perfectly. I like the idea of being able to color coordinate my jewelry with my jewelry box. Ya, I've been accused of being too matchy matchy in my day - so what.


Check out more I Love to Create posts here. Be sure to check out my series on jewelry displays and boxes - Journey Through a Jewelry Box Flickr Faves, How Ya Hanging - Jewelry Displays of Crafty Ladies, Jewelry Displays in Books and Making Your own Jewelry Display. ***This is a sponsored post. I was compensated and given free craft supplies***

Austin Adventures - McKenna Children's Museum

Sure Austin has a great children's museum, I have been many of times. However, a few weeks ago the fam and I decided to spice things up and head to New Braunfels and hit the McKenna Children's Museum.




There are many similarities between the two museums. They both have a pint sized grocery store, but the one in New Braunfels also has a pint-sized bank and newspaper office. They both have an aquarium but the McKenna has albino alligators and pint sized crocodiles. Both museums have train tables but 45 minutes south you get not only a train table but a water table with boats, rubber duck rides and magnetic fishing. In other words it was well worth the trip.




If you have an aspiring astronaut on your hands they are going to love the big exhibit on planets and the rocket you can get inside. Always dreamed of your child growing up to be a doctor? There is a pretend hospital to play in and an ambulance to drive (complete with flashing lights). Maybe you are grooming your youngster to be the next Picasso. They have an actual Volkswagon Beetle for the kids to paint.




I loved the light up 'Dance Dance Revolution' style floor for the kids to play on. There was also a really cute faux camping area set up with a teepee, taxidermy bear & pretend campfire.




After the children's museum we made a quick run over to my favorite thrift store. If your kids are not on a strict nap schedule stay awhile and explore the town. There are several antique and thrift shops on and around their old town square. Right down the road is Landa Park, perfect for a picnic lunch. We didn't eat while we were there, but I bet you could rustle up some pretty authentic German food if you tried.




Admission to the museum is about $7. We had a Groupon so the gas there cost us more than the admission. If you are burnt out on the Austin Children's Museum it is a nice change of pace and worth the drive. Plus don't forget those thrift stores to sweeten the deal.