Round 1: Paint Projects {and VOTE}!

Ok, friends!  It's time to see what our Top 20 Contestants did this week with PAINT!  I am so excited to show you these projects!  For each entry, you'll find a photo or collage along with a little description of the contestant's inspiration and creative process.  After you've checked them all out, it's time to vote for your favorites!  Only 15 contestants will move on to Round 2, and it's up to you to choose which ones!  Your votes will determine 14 of the contestants who continue, and the judges will get to "save" one contestant from the bottom six.

One Crafty Contest: Round 1's Material

Ok, friends, the moment you've been waiting for!  The material for Round 1 is...

PAINT!

Acrylic Paint, Spray Paint, Fabric Paint, Glass Paint, Wall Paint, Chalkboard Paint, Watercolors...you name it, you can use it! 

You can use your paint on any surface you like.  Some ideas to get you started: canvas, wood, glass, furniture, apparel, curtains or pillows, jars, vases, plates, walls; the sky's the limit!  You can paint intricate scenes, abstract art, all-one-color, or anything else you can imagine.  And, of course, feel free to use stencils to help you with your designs.  Speaking of which, let me introduce you to our sponsor for this round!  It's one of your favorite companies and mine...

Cutting Edge Stencils offers a huge variety of stencils, available in "craft size" for smaller projects and "wall size" for home decor and larger projects.  Here are a few things I've personally made using some of their stencils:

A few of my all-time favorite stencils from Cutting Edge are:

Chevron Allover Stencil Pattern

Cassablanca Craft Stencil

Zinnia Grande 3 pc Stencil Kit {also available individually}

Cutting Edge Stencils also sells everything you need to complete your project successfully, like stencil brushes, rollers, and more.  I found the roller to be particularly helpful when I used it on my canvases!

As the official sponsor of Round 1, Cutting Edge Stencils will provide this round's winner {the project receiving the highest number of reader votes} with the stencil of her choice, up to $50 in value!

So, to recap, for this round, the Top 20 contestants may create any type of project they like, provided that it somehow incorporates PAINT!  Contestants must submit projects to me by 11:59 PM Sunday evening!

Good luck!

Hugs, Glitter, & Lots of Paint,

Fingerprint Frame

So, you know we've been Valentine-a-haulics around here lately.  Little Crafter and I are equally excited about a holiday that's all about showing how much we love our family and friends, so we've turned into crafting machines making all kinds of decor and gifts.  As usual, I've been scouring Pinterest for more inspiration, and as soon as I saw these Fingerprint Photo Frames from Mom on Timeout, I knew we had to make some.

All you need for this project is:

- acrylic paints {various shades of red, white, and pink}

- unfinished wooden frame

- your finger

- Mod Podge to seal 

We already had all the paints, and of course, the fingers, so all we needed was a blank frame!  We picked one up at Michaels on a recent trip...I have to warn you, sometimes photo frames can be kind of pricey, so be prepared to shell out one whole dollar for this part.  Hehe.  I love cheap stuff!

All you do to create this fun work of art is dip your finger in each color of paint and dot it onto the frame.  We started with red.  At this point, I confess I was a little nervous that it wouldn't turn out like the one we'd seen.

Adding pink into the mix...still not looking like much.

We added red three shades of pink, and white, then Little Crafter started getting fascinated by the idea of mixing the colors.  He made me keep squirting a little of each one onto the plate and then mixing them up different ways to see what shades he could make.  He also liked swirling the colors and making prints that looked like peppermints.  It was actually a lot of fun to watch him do it.  Messy, but fun.

Gradually, the spaces started getting filled in and at this point, I started to think we might really end up with something cool after all.  I started helping out and putting a few prints on here and there in strategic locations to help with coverage.  He didn't seem to mind.  We often like to work together as "Team Latta."

 When all the wood was covered, this is what we ended up with...we both love it!  We were good and patient and let it get nice and dry.  At this point, it's a good idea to add a coat of Mod Podge to seal it.

Then, the final step was to add Little Crafter's photo.  I black and white-d one of the pics we took for his photo Valentine cards...aaahhh!  So. adorable.  I think it kind of looks like it was the stock photo in the frame, don't you?  Maybe I should call the company and see if they want to use him as their model cutie...hehe.

I do have one confession to make...prepare to be shocked.  Our original plan was to add glitter after it dried.  But we didn't.  {gasp!}  When it was all said and done, it just looked so cute and so fun and colorful that I was actually afraid the glitter might take away from it and make it too 'busy.'  I know, I know.  Don't tell anyone.

I think it's so adorable, and it goes so nicely with some of the other festive decor projects we've been making, like our vase and coasters!

 What do you think?  I'd love to see your latest Valentine's projects, or anything you've been making lately.  Be sure to stop by our Shine on Fridays party to get and share some inspiration this weekend!

Hugs & Glitter,

Christmas Handprint Plaque

Hey friends, I have a really special treat for you today!  You've heard me mention one of my best friends, Erin, about a million times...well, she's here today to share one of her own projects with you and in her own words too, which makes it super-awesome because she's absolutely hilarious.  I know you're going to love her...and this project too!  Here she is...

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Hello to all those in “One Artsy Mama” land! My name is Erin, and you may know me from such craft projects as the “Joy Votives”, “Shamrock Bags”, and most recently, our famous “Star Bowls”. I not only have the privilege of calling Amy one of my bestest buds and fellow crafters, but I am also a mother to two precious “Irish Twin” boys, ages 2 ½ and 1 ½!

The wonderful Amy has allowed me a chance to share one of the Christmas projects I’ve been working on this holiday season. In order to begin, we need to go back in time a bit, to about October. Amy blogged about the loss of my amazing mother, and needless to say it’s been a rough couple of months. During the week that Mom passed, my mother-in-law flew out from Texas, and stayed at our house. As I dealt with family matters, my mother-in-law took over my house (in a good way!). She and my husband made sure my boys were kept alive and well, that everyone was fed, and my house had never looked cleaner. Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, when dear MIL posted a link to Santa-shaped salt dough ornaments, with a child’s hand print as the body with the caption “I might like these with the boys' prints!”. I “pretended” not to notice. Ha. Little did she know.

The project came together in my head, and I did a few sketches then headed out on a solo run to Michaels. I’m pretty sure at this point, Amy and I had this conversation:  {Amy says - um, yes, we definitely did.  You were doing this while I was running errands and pouting that you didn't invite me.  See how she is?}



 My Michaels trip was successful, and I came home with some new craft supplies (and apparently Toy Story Christmas wrapping paper. Darn you, Michaels.) Here was the haul:

(In other news, I’m sorry for crappy Iphone Pictures. I didn’t feel like stopping to take a lot of pictures because I was uber excited.)

 So, what you need for the Christmas Handprint Plaque:

-Mod Podge (both regular and fabric)

-Felt (I did brown, red, and sparkle red. I only used the brown and sparkle)
-Letter Stencil (optional)
-Wooden Plaque (or any flat surface)
-Spray Paint (I did blue, to cover the plaque)
-Pom Poms
-Tiny Jingle Bells
-Various Paint (I had white, flesh tone, brown, and black)
-Snow-Tex
-Picture Hanging Kit (Optional)
-Various Paint Brushes
-White Card Stock

First step was spray painting the wooden plaque, giving it plenty of time to dry. I did several coats (as I kept finding pet hair, and had to redo another layer. Sheesh.)

 Next up was the scariest part. Handprints. Ok. I have two little boy toddlers, one of which is a CONSTANT mover, the other (the eldest) who’s funny about things on his hands. I had no idea how this was going to go, as I have never been successful with handprinting them before. My husband was on standby with paper towels and extra card stock paper, and a clear path to the bathroom sink. First up, the youngest. He was to have “reindeer hands” so I took a sponge paint brush, and painted his little hand brown. I was shocked as he held still long enough for me to paint him, and then place his hand on the cardstock. Seriously, this was too good to be true! He allowed me to do about 7 prints, giving me plenty to choose from! My eldest was up next, and I placed the paint on his hand (white on the fingers, flesh tone on the palm for Santa) and held my breath. He LOVED it! Success! I got about 8 good prints from him and I only needed one! The prints were done and needed to dry. I have 4 animals and two toddlers. Finding safe drying places is tricky.

After the prints dried, it was time to decorate them. For Santa, I used the sparkly red felt for his hat (and fabric mod podge on the back to glue it down), and cut white pom poms in half for his hat border. An added jingle bell completed his look! Ho, ho, ho! The reindeers got decked out in sparkly red felt and jingle bells, brown felted antlers, and of course Rudolf got a red pom pom nose! All facial features were painted on.

 The next day, the plaque was dry, and so I pulled out the Snow-Tex to add a snowy landscape. I’ve never worked with the stuff before, but I fell in love with it. Seriously. Love at first brush stroke.

Once you do your first layer of Snow-Tex, you can put more on to add bigger snow peaks.

Next up, was stenciling letters on the plaque. I began with practicing on a piece of cardstock, so I knew where it would go, how big it should be, letter spacing, etc. I HATE stenciling. There, I said it. I feel better.

See, I don’t mind the stenciling when it’s on a piece of paper, but knowing that I might have to stencil on the actual project? I always mess it up. Always. So I usually use the stencil as a guide and free hand it.

Not too bad. I also added Sno-Tex on the top of the letters because I’m obsessed because it looked really cute.

Once everything was dry, it was time to add Santa and his reindeer. I mod podged the back of the handprints, stuck on the prints, then mod podged over them. I also ended up hot gluing the reindeer feet and Santa’s beard down on the snowy peaks, to keep them flat. I added a border of snow-tex around the whole thing, as well as a few snowflakes.

The following day, I added a picture hanger on the back, in case Nonie wanted to hang it up, as well as a quick inscription with dates, names, and ages.

And that’s it! I loooove how it turned out, and my mother-in-law has no idea that it’s coming. It’s the perfect memento to pull out Christmas after Christmas, and it was very inexpensive to make!

A huge “Thank you” to Amy for allowing me to hijack her blog for the day! I wish a lot of you knew Amy in real life, because you have no idea how amazing she is. She has a beautiful, generous spirit and her warmth and laughter is a blessing in my life. I love you One Artsy Mama!

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Sniffle...*little tear*
Oh, ahem, thanks so much, Erin, for sharing your project with us today!  Hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did!  Now I feel a sudden need to go buy some Snow-Tex, how about you?  Well, have a fabulous day, friends!  And I love you right back, Erin!  

Hugs and glitter,

Handmade Holidays: Personal Photo Frames

Still looking for cheap, easy DIY gift ideas?  Yeah, me too.  Here's one of the ideas I came up with for hubby's dad.  He absolutely loves photos of Little Crafter, and I got a really great one of the two of them together at an Orioles game this summer.  I wanted to make it a little extra-personal, so I came up with this idea.  LC calls him "Poppy," and of course you can never find gifts with that name on them...it's always "Grandpa," so I decided to do it myself!

 

 

Materials:

- photo frame, any size {you can get nice ones for just a few dollars at Walmart, Target, or the Dollar store}

- Martha Stewart glass or multi-surface paint

- sponge dauber

- Martha Stewart adhesive alphabet stencils

 



STEP 1: Clean your glass.

STEP 2: Position adhesive stencils.
I actually found it easier to do when I left the glass inside the frame.  That way I could use the edge of the frame to help me line them up, and I knew that none of the letters would get cut off by the frame when I put it together.

STEP 3: Use sponge dauber to fill in stencils with paint.  Remove while wet.

STEP 4: Once your paint dries, you can insert your photo, and voila!

I also used the same technique to make a special Christmas gift for my friend who has three gorgeous children.  I got a frame that holds three photos, "borrowed" some of her pics from Facebook, stenciled their names, and ended up with this.



What do you think?  Easy?

Love and glitter,

Handmade Holidays: DIY Tableware

 

 Are you all enjoying the Handmade Holidays series?  I wanted to share with you another budget-friendly idea I came up with, and this one can be used all winter long!  Here's how to make your own beautiful and totally cheap holiday dinnerware!

 

Materials:

 

- Martha Stewart glass paint in your desired color{s}  Make sure you get opaque paint rather than translucent if you want it to show up really well.  If you want an etched look, I recommend Frost Translucent.

 



- paintbrushes/squeegies

- Martha Stewart adhesive stencils and/or silkscreens

- glassware

 

Let me talk for just a second about the glassware...you can find all kinds of things really reasonably priced at Walmart, Target, or the Dollar Store.  I found glasses for 50 cents or a dollar a piece, depending on the style, and these square plates for $1 as well.  I got salt and pepper shakers for less than a dollar at Walmart, as well as a glass jar and a few other glass items.

 

I'm going to walk you through how I made the plates first, then show you a few other options.



 

 STEP 1: Clean your glass surface with rubbing alcohol.

 

STEP 2: Place your adhesive silkscreen in the center of the plate on the bottom side.

This glass paint is non-toxic, but not officially food safe, so make sure all of your stenciling goes on the bottom of your plates and the outside of your glasses with a 0.8" space from the rim of the glass to the design.

 

STEP 3: Use squeegie to apply glass paint to silkscreen.  Pull image off while the paint is still wet.

STEP 4: Use adhesive stencils and glass paint to stencil a snowflake in each corner and polkadot/snowball pattern along each edge. 

 

Finished pieces will air-cure in 21 days, or you can bake them in a 350 degree {F} oven for 30 minutes.  Don't preheat the oven, let the glassware heat gradually and then let it cool in the oven too so it doesn't crack.

 

Here's a look at a coordinating glass.  To make these, I used a smaller silkscreen from the same pack as the larger one and stenciled it four times around the glass.  You could also just do a single snowflake, or snowflakes all over! 

 

 And here are my bargain salt and pepper shakers!  I stenciled the S and P first, then used small snowflake stencils in translucent frost, metallic gold, and silver paint all over the rest of the surface.

They look so festive on the table, and I can keep them out until winter weather {finally} goes away in March!

All three of these projects were super-easy to make and didn't really take much time at all.  The glassware, since it was just plain and clear, was really affordable, so I found this to be a much cheaper way to get some new holiday tableware.  Plus, it's exactly what I want since I designed it myself!  I love things that are elegant and wintery looking this time of year!  What kind of holiday tableware do you like best?

Love and Glitter,

PS: Just four more days until my BIG BIRTHDAY BASH with THREE huge giveaway packages!