Allison: Hidden Potential

Hello, again!  I'm just going to come right out with it: this post is going to be lame.  I know!  I'm not supposed to admit that, but it's almost noon and I haven't even started it yet.  That's not a good sign for me.  I usually try to have mine mostly done the night before I post.  But this has been a very pregnant week.  I'm SO SICK of the heat, and I'm feeling HUGE and my motivation has been a little low to be overly creative.  I've also been rushing to finish Norah's quilt, so there hasn't been a lot of free time for other crafting.  With that intro, I don't really expect you to stick with me for the rest of this post, but I'll assume a few of you will.  :)

One reason I really like Pinterest, is because it gives me "access" to countless creative people.  Through all their projects and pins, my perspective has begun to change a little when I look at ordinary objects.  I've started to be able to see their "hidden potential".  I've already shared a couple of projects that illustrate this point, like my revamping of an ordinary Wal Mart frame in this post.  The project I'm going to share today has been years in the making.  I originally bought this little shelf from Big Lots at least ten years ago when I was living in Utah.  Since then, it has moved many times with me, and spent a lot of time in storage or in the garage.  I never took it out of the box, but just knew that I'd use it someday.  This is a problem of mine; just ask my husband.  I always think I'll be able to use something eventually.  But in this case, it actually turned out to be true!

I kind of forgot to take a picture of the shelf before I painted it.  :)

When I decided that Isla's room needed a little sprucing up, I instantly thought of this little shelf.  Mostly because I could hang it out of reach of her curious hands.  But her room doesn't have much black in it, so I knew the color needed to change.  I'm a big fan of spray paint because it's relatively easy to use and gets the job done quickly.  So I sprayed it white, and added a little scrapbook paper as backing for the pictures, and presto... a completely different looking frame that matched my little one's room.  I love it now!  Isla also loves to look up at the pictures and I've enjoyed having a little shelf to display decor that Isla can't get to.  Did you miss my tutorial on the flowers?  Find it here.  I wish I could take credit for the adorable wooden blocks, but my friend, Lindsay, made those.  I love them!

So here's your creative challenge of the week:  Look around your house for things that you love, but aren't currently using.  Is there something you could do to tweak it enough to make it functional or more appealing as a decoration you'd display?  I know we all have stuff like this in our houses, we just need to see the hidden potential.  Thanks for letting me share this week, and taking a break from a more detailed post.  :)  Until next week, keep on crafting!

Allison

Allison: Frame Revamp Tutorial

Hello, and welcome to another week!  I'm not sure where last week went.  I cannot believe how this summer is flying!  That being said, we know that summer is a busy time, and our lives are no exception.  With vacations and kids and babies coming, we're going to try to keep our weekly themes a little more general to just "Summer" for a few weeks.  This may mean less consistency between the sisters' posts, but it also means more variety.  Hopefully we'll get some guest bloggers to contribute along the way.  I can't wait to see what my sisters come up with!

I think my posts will follow the theme of "Summer Projects".  My crafting energy has been greatly consumed lately with getting my house ready for this little girl to arrive next month and nesting is in full force! I have been working on her room, and trying to make Isla's a little more girly in the process.

A couple of months ago, I cross-stitched some cute little bears and added Isla and Norah's names underneath.  I wanted to find the perfect frame for them, but could not find what I was looking for.  So, I decided to take matters into my own hands.  Here's what I did:

I found this black frame at Wal-Mart for $7.  I liked the mat, and I liked the frame, but not their colors.  Isla has more brown in her room than black, so I wanted her frame to be a neutral white.  Also, the mat needed more personality.  Here's what you'll need to revamp your frame:

*Obviously, you will need a frame to revamp.  :)  I wish I could have found a frame at a second-hand store, but I couldn't.  So, I bought this lovely frame, and spray painted it white.

*Mod Podge
*Foam brush for applying Mod Podge
*Scissors
*Tissue paper of choice

Here are the steps:

Step One: Remove the mat from the frame and apply a good amount of Mod Podge to the foam brush to cover the front surface of the mat.  I applied mine in stages.  Make sure to apply enough Mod Podge around the edges.

Step Two: Smooth the paper down, and then wrap the paper around the back of the mat.

Step Three: Puncture the center of the tissue, and cut to the four edges.  You'll need to cut paper in the center down before folding it over the edges of the mat.  Apply Mod Podge to the folded-over paper and glue to the back of the mat.

Step Four: Turn your mat over and smile, because it's SO CUTE!

I love how my frame turned out, and think it PERFECTLY showcases my little ballerina bear.  I can't wait to hang it on Isla's bedroom wall.

If you want your own little bear cross stitch, check out our Etsy Shop.  I'll be providing them made-to-order, with lots of themes to choose from.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/fivecraftysisters

I hope you've enjoyed this frame revamp!  I love being able to make something generic into something that's as special as my little Isla Girl.  Have a great week, and keep on creating!!


Allison

Friday Favorites: Pinterest Projects and Ideas

Hello, hello!  This is Allison.  "Wait a second," you're probably thinking, "your day is Tuesday, silly!"  True.  But we're doing a little rearranging here on Five Crafty Sisters.  Life has gotten a little crazy for Katrina, so she's decided to be more of a guest blogger than a regular, here on the blog.  With two little ones at home and a third on the way, who can blame her?  So we'll be playing around with Fridays for a bit, while Shauna moves her posts to Thursdays.

As our Etsy shop has now opened (http://www.etsy.com/shop/fivecraftysisters, in case you were wondering), we may occasionally do a "Friday's Market" to introduce new items in the shop.  Other Fridays may be posts from Katrina, or maybe our other sister-in-law or sister will want to add their craftiness.  We'll see if we can recruit them.  :)  But for today, we're going to play around with "Friday Favorites".  Today we will each share our favorite Pinterest/Internet finds.  They may be projects we've completed, or maybe a project inspired by something we saw online.  We may also decide to share a project that we're currently working on.  It's up to each crafty sister to decide.

I'll go first.  This is kind of cheating, right off the bat.  I guess I'm the rebel in the family.  :)  This is actually a project my husband, Brent, completed.  But I found a pin on Pinterest that will hopefully solve a problem I've been worried about.  My husband started wood working this year and has really enjoyed working with his hands.  He made this amazing bench for our kitchen table and started working on a toddler bed after we found out I was pregnant with baby #2.  I love this little bed!  He has really enjoyed Ana White's website found here which provides the plans and the supply lists for countless projects.  I've seen a ton of her stuff on Pinterest, and think she's my new hero.  Anyway...  I love this bed, and Isla does too.  Way to go, Brent!  Isn't my husband the best??  :)  (Did you notice the adorable quilt my mother-in-law, Linda, made?  Love it!)

So one of my fears with this bed, was that we wouldn't be able to easily add a guard rail for Isla to use until she got used to sleeping in a real bed.  I could just imagine all the drama of her falling out of bed in the middle of the night.  But then, I found this amazing idea on Pinterest: put a swimming noodle under the fitted sheet on the edge of the mattress.  It will serve as a bumper if your toddler gets too close to falling off.  SO SMART!  It was a total aha moment when I saw this pin.  I haven't tried it yet (as we're leaving Isla in her crib as long as she'll let us), but I definitely plan on seeing if it works.  Pinterest hasn't failed me yet, so I'm sure it will solve all of my worries.  :)  Okay... which of my amazing sisters is next?

Allison
http://pinterest.com/allisonlacey/

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 Hello there! This is Shauna.  I know you all have missed me since yesterday.  Today I want to get serious, and talk about something personal.  I have a problem.  My friends and family all know about it, and now I think it's time I share with you...I really like cats.  A lot.  I'm about five cat calenders away from being a crazy cat lady.  It's pretty scary.  Lisa's youngest, after forgetting my name, once referred to me as "the aunt who likes cat".  Well now that you know, I can be open about my cat crafting. Get ready for this. 

A few months ago I realized we really needed new pot holders.  We were barely surviving off our old tattered wedding gift pot holders, and I wanted a cheap way to vamp up the look of our kitchen.  Then I saw these pot holders off of  www.purlbee.com  and I fell in love. 

I loved how modern and unique looking they were.  So I decided to pull out some fabric my friend Bethany gave me and put my own twist on it.  I am kind of obsessed with them. 

I used the cat fabric on one side and gray neutral on the back.  I like to mix it up sometimes when I get sick of the cats.  One of these I really messed up on...I added the hoop onto the bottom instead of the top of the pot holder so the cats are upside down when I hang them up. 

I decided instead of sewing only a couple lines to hold together the batting on the pot holders, I decided to sew random lines all over the pot holders to give it some style. I hope you enjoy cat pot holders.

Shauna

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Hello there!  Lisa here.  Just for the record, Shauna is a cute kind of cat lady not a crazy kind of cat lady!!  And Allie, that is a fantastic idea for a bed.  I was always worried about my babies falling in that crack between the mattress and the wall!  Smart!

For my project idea, I thought I would show you something I made awhile ago to hold my calendar and little notes and pictures for and from my sweet children. 

Calendar and little heart man is courtesy of my baby.  He's such a little sweetheart!

I thought I came up with this idea but once I joined Pinterest, I realized that there are very few original ideas, including mine!!  I had a large picture frame that I took the glass out of and painted to match the trim in my house.  I then took some cork tiles I found at Hobby Lobby and glued them to the back of the picture frame.  Super easy and a nice way to not feel bad about throwing out something perfectly useable!  And, bonus, it keeps the front of my fidge a little cleaner!!  Winner!

Lisa

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(Sara posted what I'm sure was a great post, but for some reason, it didn't save.  Look for it next week!)