*Tutorial by Amber C @ The Craft Project for her win of the “Scrap”tastic Challenge of season 15*

To create my “Butterflies in the Wind” project you will need:

• A picture frame with a wide mat and the glass removed (mine was 16″ x 20″)
• A piece of good watercolour paper
• A selection of paint chips in a range of colours (grab them from the paint section of a hardware store)
• Black and white sharpie paint pens
• Thin wire
• A strong glue, like E-6000
• Three sizes of butterfly punches (2″ wide, 1″ wide, 1/4″ wide)
• A bone folder helps, but isn’t necessary

I started with punching out a wide range of butterflies from paint chips. I wanted the piece to be very 3D so I folded each of the largest size of butterflies in half with the bone folder. To add a bit more visual interest to the piece I added geometric patterns with alternating white and black paint pens to one half of each of the larger butterflies.

I put the watercolour paper and mat into the frame after I pulled the glass out of it. I wanted to extend the piece beyond the rigid boundary of the frame so I twisted a some wire into tight curls and glued them to the back of the frame, with the plan of using these as extra bases for the butterflies.

I then arranged the butterflies in a swirl across the entire piece – working through a range of colours. I set the butterflies in a swirl that started on the wires and went across the piece, touching the paper, mat, and frame throughout the piece. I used E-6000 glue to put secure them in place.

I hope you enjoy making your version as much as I did with this one.

*Tutorial by Autumn @ It’s Always Autumn for her win of the Stash Busting challenge of season 13*

Hi everyone! I’m Autumn, from It’s Always Autumn, here to share a tutorial for the pretty packaging boxes made from scrapbook paper. These boxes come together really quickly but look tidy and professional, making them the perfect way to dress up your tasty treats. Note: I recommend lining all of the boxes with wax paper or additional cupcake liners before adding your treats so you don’t end up with grease spots on your boxes. When using the cookie bag, I place cookies in a sandwich bag first, then inside the paper bag. (By the way – I actually created two crafts for this week because I wasn’t sure which one I wanted to use in the competition – if you’d like to see the other way I used up some of my paper stash, click here!)

First, you’ll need to download or print the PDF template for any of the boxes you’d like to make. Click on each link below to be taken to the PDF, then you can right click the file to save to your computer or print directly from your browser. Please note that all templates can be made using 8.5×11 paper, EXCEPT the brownie box which needs to be 8.5×12 (so cut down a piece of 12×12 scrapbook paper for this box). All boxes will look nicer and be a bit sturdier if you use a heavier weight scrapbook paper (cardstock weight works great).

Cupcake Box

Cupcake Lid

Cookie Bag

Brownie Box

Truffle Box

Tags

Instructions for cupcake box and lid

The box and lid are both constructed the same way. Read more

Hey everybody! I hope your weekends were all fantastic. I spent the weekend at the Casual Bloggers Conference in Sandy UT. It was awesome! I have so many new ideas and stuff now that I can’t wait to get started on, so don’t be surprised if things start changing Don’t worry…it won’t be too drastic, and it probably wont really happen until the break between seasons. I went all by my lonesome and a few amazing ladies adopted me for a few of the classes. I’ve been following some of their blogs for a long time and some are new friends. Thanks to Darci (Londy Lou Boutique), Amy (The Quilting Diaries), Ashlee (Topsy Turvy Cakes), Michelle (A Little Tipsy), Kara (Creations by Kara), Michelle (Someday Crafts) and Char (Crap I’ve Made) for making me feel like I had friends and pretending I’m not a loser

These animal puppets are a great addition to any bedtime story. You and your child can make up stories for hours and these puppets can be the stars!

They are made using punches and dies. If you don’t want to use them as puppets, you can put them inside shadow boxes and hang them on your child’s bedroom wall.

I used tiny lunch bags so the puppets are the perfect size for tiny hands. The three-dimensional eyes can really help a child’s imagination run wild!

Did you ever make a diorama in elementary school? Why not take that idea of giving a picture dimension, and apply it to making a keepsake for your home or as a housewarming gift for someone you love?

I found a shadow box frame I liked, and then using cardstock paper and craft foam, made a diorama of this house. In the tutorial, I’ll show you the steps I took, so you can create your own. I printed out an 8×10 photo of the house, and then used it as a guide. I divided the house into layers, and then traced and transferred the layers to the paper. This was created using common scrapbooking tools and supplies, and an exacto knife.

Here in the cross-section view, you can get an idea of how the diorama is put together.

Pictures only tell part of the story. It’s hard to get a feel for it in the photo, but the details literally pop out, and create a striking art piece.

Consider creating a diorama and you will make a keepsake that will be cherished.

Craft #4 – Ruffle Notecards

These ruffled note cards would be the perfect addition to any gift for a flea market lovin’ girl. Perfectly imperfect, they’re made from a combination of new and vintage fabrics sewn to white note cards for a simple and lovely style.

*Project by Bessie @ Besserina for the season 9 Kids Can Do challenge*

          Using mama’s sewing machine was their favorite part!

Children love to please others, and who doesn’t love to get a special Thank You in the mail, especially if it’s handmade by two sweet little hands and one big heart.

Happy Holidays!

Turn your home into a winter wonderland with Super-sized snowflakes.

Each flake is made from a full-size poster board sheet and painted with glitter. Just watch them sparkle as they dance from the roof.

A child’s dream come true. Snow Day!

*Project by Kailyn @  Kailyn’s Bit of Sunshine*

I decided to go about the yarn challenge with a twist. Literally. I decided to try my hand at felting. I figured I could do small testers and see what worked. They all turned out so fun and funky, I decided I needed to use them all.

What better way than to make some funky original cards.

I started with dyed wools and book on felting. I also incorporated wool yarn into the mix. When they were finished felting. I did some beading on a few of them.

For the red card, I used red wool and layered it in two directions. On top of that I used small pieces of orange wool that I laid vertical and horizontal in a criss cross pattern. Next I used the wool yarn and made a spiral in the middle on top of that. To finish it I took lime green wool and laid it in a star pattern. Then felted them all together. Then I did some embroidery and beading on it. Lastly, I glued it on the card.

For the blu card I used a multi colored wool for the base. I used yarn to create the flower and the spiral , and wool for the stems and the leaves. After felting it I had to cut some of the pattern to fit the card. I did a little beading to finish it off.

For the orange and blue woven card, I did just that. I hand wove together the wool yarns. I then added two spirals of the wool yarn. After felting it I added two beads in the middle of the spirals.
The fish card I made was the last card. I decided to try needle felting and used scraps from the blue cards felt for the bottom of the card. I think these will be very fun to send. Because I went small they were not difficult to make.