A few weeks ago I was cruising the web and came across a great post on Natalme about wood burning. I have a soldering iron and wooden beads so I thought I'd give it a whirl. I busted out some fabric dye for a pop of color.
I whipped up a batch of Tulip Custom Color Dye in Wicked and popped in my wooden bits plus a few stained T-shirts and waited. I love all the color options you have with this dye kit.
I gotta tell you at first I was pretty sure the beads did not dye. They just looked dark in the water.
However, when the beads dried in the sun the green color started showing through.
Next, time to bust out the soldering iron. I tried polka dots, stars, mini dots and more.
I tried a few beads wrapped with Bon Bon yarn too!
I want to dye some other colors and make a big chunky Wilma Flinestone necklace. Whatcha think? Not too bad for a project I thought was going to be a total craft fail. Now I'm thinking of all the wood things I can dye and burn!
***I was compensated & given free supplies by I Love to Create. Mama has gotta pay the bills somehow and really who in their right mind would say no to free craft supplies***
I have been collecting black cats since college. It didn't start out with a Halloween theme, but 20 years later my kitties only see the light of day one season a year.
Some of my black cats are actual Halloween decorations but other's are 60's vinyl cigar smoking lions. You can also see a vintage black cat liquor decanter in the background. No matter what the black cat was made for when they are all displayed together they are look Halloweeny.
One of my most prized Halloween black cats is this small painting my husband did as a child. I put it out every year. Check out how to make your own black cat clothespin game right here.
Halloween throw pillows, you better bet I have some. I saw some made by Heidi Kenny of My Paper Crane using vintage Halloween masks and Spoonflower that I keep dreaming about.
Sure the obvious choice for a Halloween banner would be one that says boo or spooky, but for me I opted for HISS. Make your own hiss banner following this handy dandy tutorial.
The shadow box in my living room always displays some sort of rotating collection. Last Halloween it was home to a few black cats. I love the little vintage black cat ashtray with his mouth wide open. There is a place on his tongue for a cigarette.
We even carved a black cat pumpkin one year. This basket o' kitties and pumpkins sat in our front yard to greet trick-or-treaters.
Lastly I leave you with a Halloween craft I made with my mother that everyone thinks is creepy but us. We made Tallulah into a black cat bobble head!
Be sure to check back weekly for my stroll through Halloween memory lane. Each week is themed. If you missed witches check it out here.
And you thought copy machines were just for making copies. Tomorrow morning in the Craft Lab Stephen Horn will be showing us a way to use our copy machine with clay to make unique pieces of art. There will also be a little mono-printing action.
Is it too early for me to start talking about Halloween? All the decorations are out at the store and Pinterest seems to be getting into the spooky spirit so I thought I would join the party. I've held out as long as I could. I'm already pinning recipes, picking dates and thinking of costumes for our 4th annual Halloween party. A good party and 75 bazillion storage boxes of Halloween take time to get just right. Don't worry, I'm not setting anything out just yet - but soon my pretties. Very soon. I thought I would share some pictures with you leading up to Halloween in theme. Today we are working the witch angle!
I have made better cake pops in my time that is fer sure. Last year I tried my hand at witch pops inspired by Bakerella. I can hear them saying; "I'm melting, I'm melting". If you kinda stand far away and cross your eyes they are not too bad.
I adore my glittery green witch hands with their pointy red fingernails. I try to put them in a new spot each year, but they did look mighty spiffy in my shadow box.
I also made a smaller version of the witch legs to stick in a potted plant.
I blame HGTV for starting my Halloween obsession. In 2008 I filmed a series of Halloween how-to videos for them. I was pregnant with Tallulah during filming so maybe that is why she is equally Halloween obsessed. Here is a fun video about how to make a bubbling witches cauldron centerpiece.
My witch cake pops might have been an epic fail, but I was pretty pleased with how my witch finger cookies turned out.
Actually we have had witches finger cookies the last 2 years at the party. Guess I will need to make a batch this year to keep up with tradition.
I look forward to adding to my collection of Halloween crafts every year. One of my faves is the Wee Witch Shrine I made to showcase a picture of Tallulah in her first Halloween costume made by Vickie Howell.
Last year I had a witch set up above the kitchen sink complete with tiny pointy hats for all my figurines.
Also in my kitchen above my pantry was another witch-a-rific vignette. I'm getting excited looking at these pictures because it is reminding me of all the good loot I have up in my attic. Plus all the stuff I got on clearance on last year, squeal!
La la love the light up broom sticks I made in this video. One of these would be great next to the crashed witch in the grocery cart.
Last year in the living room I let one lone witch infiltrate my black cat collection display.
One year I made best costume trophies that I never actually had the heart to give out. I couldn't pick a favorite and break any wee little hearts. Now these witch trophies are just used decorations.
So am I crazy? Is anyone else thinking Halloween already in August? Seen any witch snacks, decor or fun I need to know about? Be sure to check back every week leading up to Halloween for some fun Halloween party inspiration.
Be sure to tune in to TLC tomorrow to watch the finale. As a special bonus Cathie's crafty partner in producing, hosting and crafty crime Steve Piacenza is hosting the show! Check out Cathie's blog and enter for a chance to win $950 in prizes!
My guest in the Craft Lab tomorrow is Steven James. Steven is going to show us how to manipulate metal, etch images and make cute personalized nameplates for pets.
If you have gone shopping anytime in the last year you might have noticed a trend towards ethnic prints. The trend is nothing new and something that seems to resurface every summer with a few tweaks. This summer I took the bait and decided to try my crafty hand at joining the trendy ethnic print party.
A few years ago my parents took a trip to Guatemala. My one request was for a shirt with a colorful brocade pattern. Sadly the shirt they brought me was a tad on the frumpy side and looked like something you would wear to a Phish concert. I loved the material and always knew that someway, somehow I would make that dumpy shirt wearable. Enter my new blue jean skirt from the thrift store begging for a pocket makeover.
SUPPLIES
Jean Skirt
Aleene's Fabric Fusion Glue
Pins
Sewing Machine
Scissors
Seam Ripper
Fabric to use on pockets
The first thing I did was using a seam ripper removed the pockets.
Using the old pockets as a guide I placed them on the dumpy shirt and cut out new pockets.
Just look at those fancy new pockets!
Instead of pinning the edge on the new pockets down we used Fabric Fusion glue. You might need to use clothespins to hold edges down until the glue dries.
Next I handed the skirt over to my mother to sew. I was visiting her house when i made this skirt. First she sewed all the way around the edges of the pockets. Next she pinned them to the skirt where the old pockets once lived. Lastly, she reattached the pockets to the skirt making sure not to sew the belt loops and part where you put your hands in shut.
It just so happened the night I finished my skirt I had a hot date with a few of my crafty friends. My skirt was a big hit!
Sadly after all that work I learned the hard way that the zipper is broken on my new skirt. Old skirt, new pockets and a broken zipper. Maybe I'll replace the zipper with something more exciting and colorful just like I did the pockets.
***I was compensated & given free supplies by both I Love to Create and Me on a Pumpkin. Mama has gotta pay the bills somehow and really who in their right mind would say no to free craft supplies***
Have a hot burning question, a book you think I would enjoy or a product you think I might like? Feel free to email me at info @ naughtysecretaryclub.com
Mail works too...
Jennifer Perkins
PO Box 150955
Austin, TX 78715
