A Geek In Glasses: Art

Sparkle Handmade Putz House

My daughter loves Putz or Glitter Houses. They are those tiny Christmas paper houses from the 40's and 50's. She has many different styles, but this year she wanted to try her hand at making her own.

I thought I would use the Dazzling Diamond sticker sheets from the Buckle Boutique to make mine sparkle, which means less glue = less mess.

I used a paper house design I found on the web here.

I cut it out of cardstock, then I cut pieces of the sticker sheet to fit each panel of the house and roof. I stuck the sticker sheets on and glued the house together.

I used a piece of the Rowlux Illusion Film for the door.

Then I used Beacon 527 glue and baking soda to make the snow.

I'm in love with how easy it was to make and no mess of the glitter and the baking soda didn't make as big of a mess as I thought.

These make cute gifts for the holiday season.

I'm part of The Buckle Boutique's Design Team

The Buckle Boutique's Website // Blog // Facebook Page // Twitter // Pinterest

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Nov 21, 2014 4:24:20 PM | Art, Crafts, Product Reviews

Bottle Cap Bling

I am in love with making these cute bottle cap necklaces. I put all kinds of images inside.

This week I used the Dazzling Diamond Sticker Sheet from the Buckle Boutique. It was simple to punch out the 1" circle using my Martha Stewart Paper Punch. YES, you read that correctly, I am able to use the Dazzling Diamond Sticker Sheets with a regular paper punch. It cuts a nice clean edge and the 1" circle fits perfectly into the cap.

I peeled the paper off the adhesive back and stuck in right on the bottle cap. Right there is a cool cap, but I thought I would take it to the next level by adding adornments to the sticker sheet. I added a heart sticker and the word love, dotted some glittler paint and filled the whole cap with the Jewelry Pendant Gel. I let the bottle cap sit for 24 hours for the gel to set.

I added a cool string necklace and BAM - totally sparkly necklace in no time!

Stop by the Buckle Boutique to pick up your Dazzling Diamond Sticker Sheets and see where your creativity takes you!!!

I'm part of The Buckle Boutique's Design Team

The Buckle Boutique's Website // Blog // Facebook Page // Twitter // Pinterest

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Oct 7, 2014 10:21:17 AM | Art, Crafts, Product Reviews

Sparkly Office Supplies for Back to School!

It’s time to start the new school year and what better way to do it than to add bling to all your office supplies.

It’s a simple project using the Dazzling Diamond Sticker sheets from The Buckle Boutique.

I purchased a box of boring yellow #2 pencils, they looked sad just being plain so a quick wrap of sparkle vinyl makes them pretty.

Binder clips in a box are not very exciting but add some glitz and clip them around the pencil can – now they are a desk accessory!

Then use the scraps to add pizazz to thumbtacks!

These would make great back to school gift for teachers or an addition to a college care package.

Visit The Buckle Boutique to see their full line of colors.

I'm part of The Buckle Boutique's Design Team

The Buckle Boutique's Website // Blog // Facebook Page // Twitter // Pinterest

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Sep 8, 2014 10:27:23 AM | Art, Crafts, Product Reviews

DIY Doctor Who TARDIS Lamp Headband

Today is the day! The moment all us Whovanians have been waiting for for months! The NEW DOCTOR premieres tonight! I'm so excited. A couple of weekends ago my daughter and Hubs decided that they wanted to go to the PA Renaissance Fair during the Time Travelers Weekend. Wonderful - Sounds like fun. Then my daughter announces that she will be going as the Tardis (for those not in the know - The Time Machine) and we will be going as Amy and the Doctor from "the Curse of the Black Spot." Ren Fair - Pirates - The Doctor, these are a few of my favorite things.

Well isn't that just peachy. That's my costume and I never finished the head lamp from Comic Con...so now I must figure out a solution, here's how I made it:

The key to the lamp is that we wanted to be able to have a batter operated tea light inside to light up. I have many preliminary ideas but the one that worked the best is an upside down gum container. They are the little "cup of gum" by the check out counter at the grocery store.

I used Dazzling Diamond Sticker Sheets, from the Buckle Boutique, to cover the plastic and make it blue. (plus it's for a little girl so every tiny Tardis needs a little sparkle.) The sticker sheet is flexable and wraped around and stuck in place without any problems. I cut thinner strips to create the look of the protective metal cage while the frosted plastic served as the glass light.

I used blue leather to create the top and glued a wooden bead on the top.

Once decorated I unscrewed the top (which is now our bottom) I glued it using a hot glue gun to a sturdy headband covered in satin. I held it in place until it was cool - watch the fingers!

Then, I placed a battery operated tea light in the cap and screwed the decorated bottom back in place.

Done! A working light!

Here it is in action!

I'm part of The Buckle Boutique's Design Team

The Buckle Boutique's Website // Blog // Facebook Page // Twitter // Pinterest

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Aug 23, 2014 11:42:05 AM | Art, Crafts, Product Reviews

Sparkle Frozen Crown at the Disney Craft Hop

Welcome to the Disney Pixar Blog Hop!

If you love Disney Pixar and crafting, you came to the right place! We have an entire month of fun planned for you, with a new group of crafting bloggers every Saturday in June.

If you came here from Kathy's blog, then you are in the right place. If you just happened upon this Blog Hop, make sure to head over to Shawn's blog so that you see the full hop from the very beginning. If you missed the first two weekends, you can still go back and see all of those projects too. Just click HERE to see the projects from the first weekend, and click HERE to see the projects from the second weekend.

Here is my Awesome Disney Craft: The Sparkle Frozen Crown

The Frozen items are super hard to find, so it has come down to making some of our own for dress up. I made this crown by finding one of the many templates on the net, a quick search will yeild you with many printable options. I found one that was the closest to Elsa's in the movie. I printed it out and traced it onto the back of the Dazzling Diamond Sticker sheet from The Buckle Boutique. I hand cut it out using a craft knife. For the gemstone I cut a piece of Rowlux Illustion Film. Next, peel the paper off the back of the sticker sheet crown, place the gemstone cutout in place and stick it to a piece of craft foam. Trim the crown out with the craft knife again. Then I hot glued the crown to a hair comb and let the glue cool.

Then comes the fashion show:

Before you go, make sure to sign up to win some AMAZING PRIZES from our sponsors! Our sponsors for this hop include

a Rafflecopter giveaway

(winners must live in the Continental United States due to shipping)

Make sure to mark your calendar for MORE projects next Saturday! You can join the Facebook Event page by clicking HERE. Now it's time for you to head over toKatherine
blog.

Here is the full line up in case you get lost along the way

Shawn
Kathy
Stephanie
Katherine
Ellen

Sharing at

My Turn For Us, Craft Frenzy Friday at Busy Being Jennifer, Practically Functional

Jun 21, 2014 12:01:00 AM | Art, Crafts, Giveaways, Product Reviews

Rock N' Roll Record Vase

I have been dying to make something out of old records and I finally figured out how to! I made this fun vase that now holds a wicked cool plant from Ikea.

I shared my tutorial over at Create for Less' Blog - Think Crafts, follow the link to get the full instructions.

Record Vase

Jun 3, 2014 12:17:24 PM | Art, Crafts

Sparkle Clipboard

I'm over the moon with the Rhinestone Trim avalible from The Buckle Boutique. It is easy to cut and can be ironed on fabric but a hot glue gun works great on all other surfaces. I used it along with other Buckle Boutique products and Paper goods from DCWV to make this fun clipboard that can hang in my office and be used to tack or clip items to.

So, how did I make it?

I started with a base of silver Dazzling Diamond Sticker Sheet to cover the entire clip. That way the whole clip sparkled even in the spaces between the trim.

Next I went mad with the hot glue gun. I glued a large piece of trim across the widest part of the clip and used a different trim for the middle of the clip.

I ended with attaching a slide to the clip by threading ribbon through the hole and slide, then tying it into a bow. I glued on some of the mesh flowers and the clip was totally blinged out!

For the board, I used a sheet of cork paper from DCWV.

It has a peel and stick back, which went on quick and easy. Now the clipboard has a cork surface to tack things to as well as clip.

I used washi tape to fill the gap between the edge of the cork paper to the top of the clipboard.

I clipped a saying cut from the DCWV chalkboard collection.

Pretty and simple, the way I like all my crafts! Hope you love it and add some bling to your life.

I'm part of The Buckle Boutique's Design Team

The Buckle Boutique's Website // Blog // Facebook Page // Twitter // Pinterest

DCWV's Link Listing Website // Blog // Facebook // Twitter // Pinterest

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

May 21, 2014 8:15:14 AM | Art, Crafts, Product Reviews

Art Supplies on the Cheap - A Real Family, Saving Real Money

Part of my "A Real Family, Saving Real Money" series.

Recently I had someone ask me how I get all my bargains. Well, today I'm going to share a little secret to getting art supplies for cheap.

I love art, we have a wide range of interests, so saving money is always helpful, plus I'm much more willing to let me 5 year old experiment with my supplies since I only pay a fraction of the cost. For instance pad of water color paper can cost $15 for 12 sheets making each sheet of paper $1.25. I picked up a "Used" pad of watercolor paper for $2, one sheet was used so I got 11 pieces for $0.18 each. My child gets to experience how it feels to use watercolor paper and it doesn't break the bank.

Are you ready for my Secret?

Creative Reuse Stores. What is a Creative Reuse Store? It is a shop that sells discarded art supplies for a low cost. Some of the things we have found in the past are:

cases of bottles - which Hub's used for bottling Mead and Beer

Industrial Felt Cut Outs - All the scraps from a felt factory, in cool shapes

recycled canvases - stretched canvases used from recycled muslin and wood

movie film reels - who knows why I bought them - I'll find something to do with them

Beads, brushes, sketchbooks, paints, glitter, rubber stamps, and more.

I found my first store about 7 years ago in Detroit called Arts and Scraps. My husband was less than thrilled when I filled the car with re-purposed craft supplies on our Vacation but it was totally worth it.

Now living in PA, we have visited The Resource Exchange and Lancaster Creative Reuse.

This past weekend we hit the Lancaster Creative Reuse and we scored BIG!

We picked up a brand new watercolor set, retail is $24, I paid $6. Watercolors are a big part of the year long art class that I am taking so that was one of the items I focused on when I was shopping.

They had tons of brushes as well for only $0.50 each - those can range in price at the art store from $2 - $20, some brushes can be as expensive as $80!!! So, picking up a couple on the cheap is totally worth it!

I think I'm most excited about the Merino Top Wool Roving they had. It was only $1.50 an ounce!!! Most of the time it run anywhere from $2.50 - $4.00 an ounce, so this was a huge bargain and it's gorgeous. (Yes, I spin yarn so I didn't just buy it because it was a deal - I can't wait to spin up some beautiful yarn this week! )

We also picked up miniatures for my daughter's Fairy Garden, glitter (lots of glitter) and vintage 1950's dress patterns (that actually look like they will fit me!!!)

Here is a great directory of Creative Reuse Stores all over the country and world! Start saving money and saving the environment while you recycle, reuse and renew!

This week I'm going to share more of our money saving ideas, so check back all week and save:

4/7/14 Buying Glasses - Because I need to see, but don't want to spend $400.

4/8/14 Buying Art Supplies - Because I am a huge crafter / Artist and supplies are not cheap!

4/9/14 Buying Clothes - Just because I'm frugal doesn't mean I look it.

4/10/14 Buying Food - You gotta eat.

4/11/14 Saving on TV - Let's be real - The TV is on almost all day. I can't say I'm proud of it but I like white noise.

4/12/14 Earning Free Stuff - It's nice to get a treat every once in a while.

Apr 8, 2014 12:02:00 AM | Art, Crafts

2014 The Year of the Fairytale - Month 1

I am taking part in 2014 The Year of The Fairytale present by http://www.carlasonheim.com/ . She is a wonderful teacher! If you ant to broaden your illustration talents, think about taking one of her classes.

This on-line art study is the most fun I've had in a long time. I was always consumed with having my drawing look a certain way. This class is very freeing. I hope by the end of the year I have my style established. But what is even better is that my daughter is drawing with me.

We were told at the beginning of Kindergarten that she was kind of failing art. She was not very good at expressing herself by drawing. My husband thought that was a ridiculous statement because he's not into art and felt that if her drawing of a person had 1 head, 2 arms and 2 legs it was good in his book.

You can't force someone to create art.

Reading the fariy tale with me and creating a princess character was fun for her and she made great improvments in her art and her feelings towards drawing. That means more than all the techniques I can learn!

So, here are first month's assignments:

Character Development: The Frog Princess