my first hemp necklace

I gave my little man Hudson a hemp necklace that used to be mine. He's been wearing it to daycare and Ms. Laura's daughter (who he adores) said she liked it. So, he decided we needed to make her one. Never one to back down to a crafty challenge I said sure, bought some hemp and checked out some tutorials online. I found these two videos; How to Start Hemp Necklaces and Making a Spiral Knot Hemp Bracelet, the most helpful to me.

Being someone who has a fondness for all things hemp it's strange that I never made a hemp necklace before. After I got the hang of it I let Hudson get some good knots in. I ran out of hemp about half way through and needed to tie on extra but in the end it wasn't noticeable.Once done, Hudson picked out a lampwork flower pendant and I picked out a bead for the clasp and my first hemp necklace was born.

 

I have to say the process was truly meditative. I carried it around in my purse for the weekend and knotted when I had free time. I enjoyed the repetitiveness and portability of the project. I think making one for myself is the logical next step, right?

diy earring display

With the help of my fantastic husband we whipped up this earring display for my show booth last month.  I needed something to display my canvas earrings and I needed it to be free. So, I wandered around my house and found a canvas frame (from the painting I cut up into earrings, perfect!), simple white string (string can be used for so many things!) and a fabric storage bin top from the kid's playroom (the top is never on so, I figured it wouldn't be missed).

First, we measured where the string should go, making sure we left enough room for the earrings to hang with a little space below them. Next, we stapled the string to the back of the canvas frame with a staple gun. I then traced the outline of the frame onto the fabric, cut it out and stapled it to the back of the canvas frame.  This part is ideal with two people, one person stretches the fabric while the other staples it, this ensures the fabric is stapled tightly to the back of the frame.

Now that the frame was complete, I needed to figure out how to stand the frame up on the table ... I tried a few things then aha!  I thought of my folding easel which worked perfectly!  It seems so obvious now ... canvas earrings displayed on a canvas frame propped up onto an easel but, honestly it all came together by accident and it took awhile for me to realize the whole thing connected.  I'm not too quick, am I?!  haha. It's a good thing I can rely on my subconscious to connect the dots. :)

To make something similar you would need:

• canvas frame (could substitute a picture frame)
• white string (use any string, ribbon or cord - make sure whatever you use will hold your items)
• fabric for background
• staple gun
• easel or something to prop frame against (not needed if you use a picture frame)  

Do you have any booth display ideas that work really well for you? I'd love to hear about them!

kids art: decoupage fun take 2

Playroom Table Makeover

About a year ago I took a simple IKEA table and decoupaged some of the my kids school artwork to the top of it, I blogged about it here.  It turned out great but, over time the paper had water damage and was torn in places so, the time has come for a makeover. Decoupage to the rescue ... again!  

 Playroom Table - Before (after removing old artwork)

If you have never decoupaged before check out how to decoupage at about.com. I thought about using my kids school work again and begun the hunt and then it occurred to me that the paintings they create on their easel is just the right paper size to cover the table.  Score!  I had one that they both did together sitting in the garage so, I thought that one was perfect.

Playroom Table - After

 
The boys have a fun new playroom table created with their artwork! Isn't it cool? I love taking something a bit ratty and worn and breathing new life into it.  Do you have something you had on the fritz that you made new again?  If so, I'd love to hear about it!

ced: wedding bliss + tutorial

This month's creative every day theme is bliss. I made this picture frame gift for my sister's 1 year wedding anniversary - ahhh wedding bliss! My sister and her husband were married on the beach in Jamacia.  I wanted to incorporate that somehow so, I decided to take a photo of Jamaica's beach and made a clipping mask in photoshop with their initials along with their wedding photo inside of a heart and their wedding date. To see what others have been working on this week for the bliss theme, click here. 

Want to know how I created the initials with a clipping mask in Photoshop?  It's really easy!

Photoshop Clipping Mask Tutorial

Step 1: Create your new file.  File > New.  I sized mine to fit my picture frame size (3.5 in x 5 in). If you will be printing the image set your resolution to 300 pixels/inch and color mode CMYK. Choose a color for the Background layer and fill it in using the Paint Bucket tool.

Step 2: Select the Type Tool and type the letter and size it to your needs. This should appear above your Background layer. I choose a lowercase j in the font Elephant and sized it to 275 pt.

Step 3: File > Place > Browse your computer for the file you want to appear within the letter and click Place. You can size the photo if desired.  Then click the Move Tool, you will asked if you want to place the file.  Click yes.  This image should appear above the letter layer.  Click on the photo layer to highlight it as shown in the picture above.

Step 4: Now you can right click on the photo layer and select Clipping Mask or you can go to Layer > Create Clipping Mask.  That's it!

earth love: recycled organizer

I had yet to reuse cardboard grocery containers into something new ... until now :) To kick off the weekend I showed the earth a little love by recycling magazine pages and a cardboard container into a recycled organizer for my desk.

I have had this issue of Deliver magazine sitting around in my "save for a project" bin for years. This issue is all about thinking green, the ideas and graphics inside were worth holding onto. The cover is such fun I knew I would want to use it for something one day. My kids are kinda hooked on peanut butter crackers right now and I just realized that it is the perfect size and shape to organize all the little tidbits around the house, office and studio ... ahh organizing, one of my other favorite pastimes ... this project was a match made in heaven!

Simply cut out the magazine pages you would like to use. Wrap the cardboard container in the paper and use a glue stick or double sided tape to adhere. Viola! A neat little organizing basket.

google reader tips

Google Reader Tricks for Craft Bloggers from Diane Gilleland on Vimeo.

I love Google Reader and use it for all my blog reading. Diane Gilleland put together this awesome video of tricks for all the cool things that Google Reader can do to help you organize your blog reading. There were of couple of things I never realized. So glad I took a few minutes to watch.

design: vector ribbon

While working on a logo design this weekend for a local charity event, I managed to get in a quick tutorial for drawing a ribbon.

This video showed me how to create a smooth silver ribbon with multiple folds in Illustrator. Ribbons are used all over the place but, really they are challenging to make. I applaud tutvid.com for such a great tutorial, it is really easy to follow. They made a complicated image very easy for me to recreate.

Check this video out at Hi-Res here: http://www.tutvid.com/tutorials/illustrator/tutorials/vectorRibbons.php

ship's ahoy! father's day card

Ethan and Hudson made this sea worthy card for Bert for father's day. I stumbled onto the ships ahoy! father's day tutorial over at Nini Makes blog and thought it was a perfect card to make with the boys. Hudson painted the ship and flag while Ethan painted the 2 sails and helped glue it all together. I used a scrap piece of cardboard as the card and heavy paper for the ship parts. I'm trying to think up a clever note for the inside in pirate talk ... how's this? Shiver me timbers! We mateys think you be the best captain there ever be!

Happy Father's Day!

rosary beads

With the passing of Easter Sunday, I wanted to share with you the delicate glass and crystal Rosary I created for Bert when his grandmother passed away. May her soul rest in peace. Great care and kind thoughts were put into the making of his rosary beads.

Visit Soft Flex Company for a beautiful Pearl Rosary free project idea to create a Rosary for yourself or a loved one. You may also want to pickup the book, A String & A Prayer by Eleanor Wiley and Maggie Oman Shannon. This book recounts the history and symbolism of prayer beads, teaches basic techniques for stringing beads and found objects, offers prayers and rituals to use these sacred objects every day.

In the Roman Catholic faith, the Rosary is one of the most beautiful, powerful, and sacred prayers. The Rosary offers hope when life can be unbearable. How to Pray the Rosary.

kids art: decoupage fun!

I have been thinking about what to do to spruce up the kids playroom table for awhile. It's a great little table we got at IKEA but the top of the table has seen better days. It needed a little pick me up. Decoupage to the rescue! I'm not sure if I ever decoupaged before. I feel like I must have but, cannot recall. So, I looked online for some guidance and found out how to decoupage at about.com. I also stumbled upon the awesome Etsy shop Bombus, who is saving the planet through decoupage! Really neat stuff. I thought a map, atlas or music sheets were all neat ideas to put in the kid's room. I was getting ready to print some pages out and then it hit me. If I print pages I will lose a perfect opportunity to do my part and help reduce waste. So, the hunt began - what did I have in the house that would look nice and utilize paper we already have.

Ah-ha! I have a stack of wonderful preschool projects Ethan has done all sitting in a draw. I can display his work proudly, recycle paper and make a beautiful piece of art - it's a trifecta!

Ethan & Hudson chose some artwork, I cut and glued down the papers. Ethan was out for his day with Nannie by this time so, Hudson happily helped me apply the glue medium.

Just a few more coats of glue!

TaDa!

The boys have a fun new playroom table created with Ethan's school work and Hudson's help!

design: reflection

While working on some freelance design this weekend for Ultimate Online Backup, I managed to get in a quick tutorial for making a logo reflection in Illustrator.

I can also do a reflection in Photoshop, but I wanted to learn how to do it in Illustrator (vector). The advantage? I can scale it up for billboard if I wanted. That’s the power of vector graphics. All you have to do is make it once and you can change the size as many times as you like, without losing quality. And typically, logos are best created in Illustrator for this very reason.

This is a new skill I'm sure I'll use time and time again. It creates a very clean and shiny end result that has become ever so popular!