Friday, February 25

Crafty Chica's oilcloth covered sneakers!

 I'm a sucker for cheap shoes. These canvas sneakers were $5 and served as the perfect base for a little oilcloth magic! Here are the steps to make your own!

What you need:
Blank canvas sneakers
Oilcloth
scissors
tracing paper, chalk
Trim, buttons


Stuff the shoe with fabric or tissue to make the top firm. Place the tracing paper over the top of the shoe and rub the chalk over it to create an impression of the seam.

 Do this for each shoe, and then cut out the oilcloth to fit the pattern.


 You'll need to stuff the shoe again to make it firm.

 Apply the glue and apply the oilcloth to the top of the shoe. Hold down all the edges until it is sealed. Add trim around the edges, buttons and Tulip® 3D Fashion Paint on the back part of the shoe.


 Aren't they cute? You can use any kind of fabric to cover your shoes! I also painted the inside of the shoes too, they needed it...




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Thursday, February 24

Handmade Nursery Touches

The final count down to baby time is upon us. Heck, I'm writing this in advance and putting it on a timer - he/she could be here by now! Will it be a boy or a girl? Will they like their new nursery? So many questions! Today for I Love to Create, I thought I would show you a few of the handmade touches I have added to the room.



Oddly enough hanging in the nursery, back when it was still a spare bedroom, was a block print of a zebra that fit the decor perfectly! Only problem was the frame was dark green and all the frames in this room are fuchsia. Well as luck would have it I happen to have some Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in the perfect shade. Yup, fabric paint can go on wood too!




Next up there was the whole sheet conundrum. First of all let me reiterate that finding solid colored sheets not in a pastel shade is the bane of my nursery decorating existence. I already have a set of fuchsia sheets that I found on a whim, but what if I have a little boy? I felt like I need a back-up option in aqua. I just happened to have a white crib sheet and a Tulip Custom Dye Color Kit. I could have whipped up sheets in any color my little heart desired.



The whole theme of this nursery revolves around the fabric in the curtains. My lovely mom Fredda Perkins was kind enough to sew them for me. When she asked me if I wanted ball fringe I promptly replied something about wild bears and the woods. How did she tack that ball fringe to the curtains before stitching it in place you ask? By using Fabric Fusion Glue that's how.



Tallulah got a photo album that matched her room, it seemed only fair that the new baby get one too. Some fabric, felt, a photo album and some Fabric Fusion Glue and I'm ready to get camera happy!


The only handmade touch that the room needs now is le' bebe. What kind of handmade touches do you have in your nursery/kids room? Did you whip up a mobile, sew your own crib sheets or do some fancy stencil work on the walls. This might not be my last baby, it's never too early to start gathering ideas for nursery #3.


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Wednesday, February 23

ILoveToCreate Teen Crafts: Kiss the Cook Apron

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(Mom says, "Avalon does it again with this super cute apron! Am I a proud mom, you bet I am!")

ILovetoCreate Teen Crafts

Kiss the Cook Apron
Avalon Potter
"Teen crafted, mom approved."

Sticking with the baking theme, this weeks project is a “Kiss the Cook" apron! I love to bake and I was in need of an apron so what better way then to make my stylish chef couture into something everyone can wear. So stick that soufflé in the oven and get to work!

Materials

Iron on transfer paper
Tulip Glam it Up Iron-on Studs
Apron (Preferably white)

Tools
Tulip Cordless Heat Setting Tool
Iron
Computer/Inkjet printer
Scissors

Instructions

1. Gather all of your materials.

2. Go onto your computer and chose the size and font of your letters in Microsoft Publisher or your program of choice.

3. Print it out onto the transfer paper. Make sure to follow the directions for printing and click on “mirror image” in the settings. I found the lips in clip art.

4. Heat up your iron to high and set your lips and words in a position you prefer.

5. Iron your words and lips to the apron. You might want a little help with ironing. On the first try the transfer burned. Actually my Dad did the ironing on the first one and burned Mom’s new kitchen table! (Mom here, "ARGH...can't I ever have ANYTHING nice? Wah, wah.") To protect the surface underneath put a pillow case or a cardboard t-shirt form under your apron while ironing.

6. Place the colored studs around the lips and words; bright pink around the lips, black around the words, and if you have a pocket or other major detail use red around it. Set the studs with the Tulip heat tool or your iron.


Crafty Cinema: Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2

Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 Treat Box

Designed by Kathy Cano-Murillo
Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 picks up where the original film left off – the pampered Chloe and homedoggie, Papi find true love – and wind up with puppies! As expected, their expected life of fluffy pillows and never ending snacks doesn’t happen, but plenty of drama does. Who can blame them? Imagine trying to train two Chihuahuas, much less a litter. That’s the inspiration behind this project. It’s a treat holder for your pampered pets. In my case, five Chihuahuas!

Materials List



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Tuesday, February 22

Crafty Eye Candy

As I walked through the iLoveToCreate Studio this week, it occurred to me that the room is filled with crafty eye candy.  I grabbed my iPhone and captured some images to share with you on my blog.  At any given time, there are dozens of dyed, painted, glued and decoupaged pieces of art in progress.  Here's a snippet at what you'll find in this amazing flurry of activity that I love so much!















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Project we Love: Funny Nickname Shirts

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We came upon these really cool shirts from the Flower and Weeds blog created using our Tulip® 3D Fashion Paint. Don't these shirts just make you smile? Her daughter made them for her friends each using their nicknames that they call each other. Cute huh? What a great gift to give friends and unique to each person's personality!

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Monday, February 21

Super Cool Sequined Basketball Art by Aaron Rayburn

sequined basketball
We are totally blown away by this basketball by Twitter user ohpleasefelix a.k.a. Aaron Rayburn. Aaron is a talented designer whose work has been featured in Esquire and Good Magazines. Using 7,000+ sequins and the good help of a product of ours called Aleene's® Original Tacky Glue®, this basketball is ready for prime time! Isn't this a great idea for your favorite sports star in your life? We can also see this idea being translated to other balls like soccer, football, and baseballs. Such a simple idea with a lot of glitz! Love it! Oh, and if we're not mistaken, this basketball will be featured at Land PDX's Boomshakala! group show in Portland, Oregon.

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Friday, February 18

Project we Love: Pottery Barn Knock-off Pillow

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We came across this pillow from How Does She and instantly fell in love! We almost didn't realize it, but it's by iLoveToCreate blogger Cheri Heaton! Now we know why it's so cool!! Don't you just love the mustard color with the black and white accents on this bed? This pillow was created using our very own Aleene's® Fabric Fusion® Permanent Dry Cleanable Fabric Adhesive. It just goes to show that you don't have to pay the big bucks to make high end accents for your space.

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Thursday, February 17

Danielle Thompson Interview



I have a big fat craft/design/home decor crush on Danielle Thompson. She makes me want to paint my walls white, learn how to use a decent camera and take a digital scrap booking class. Every time I pop over to her blog, Flickr page, Etsy shop or Kitschy Digitals I come away inspired and with a sudden urge to thrift.

If there was ever a gal who loved to create, and create well it is Danielle Thompson. That is why she is this month's I Love to Create interview.


Is the Tiny Bazaar your full time job? What is your top seller?

No, Tiny Bazaar isn't my full time job. I do enjoy it though as a little "side" project. : ) My favorite thing to make for my Etsy shop are accessories for Blythe, and I hope to make more of those soon. You can see my recent designs here. I have true admiration for artists that have a handmade business as their main source of income. It's A LOT of work! My top sellers in my shop would probably be my Vintage Camera Embroidery Patterns and also my Happy Mail Polymer Stamp Collection.


Help a Blythe illiterate girl out. Where does one get Blythe Doll? They are adorable and I can see how there is a whole sub-culture around them. How bad is your Blythe addiction?

I've bought most of my Blythes on Ebay and have had no problems. I have also purchased used Blythes at Blythe Kingdom. I could see you owning lots of Blythes, Jennifer! She's definitely an addiction. The first one you buy will have you hooked and before you know it, you're already buying another. She's not a cheap hobby, but she's super fun. My addiction is pretty bad! I have 5 dolls and one on the way! But my collection pales in comparison to some. I've seen people with 20, 30 or more. It's insane. : ) There are three things I love about Blythe: 1. She's a very still photo subject (unlike humans), 2. I can dress her the way I'd want to dress, but could never pull off (60's mod, hello!) and 3. She makes up for the fact that I'm surrounded by boys at home (I have two sons and a husband). I can live out my girly-ness through them.


What has been the most popular how-to project on your blog? Anything that you made and people just went nuts over?

I would say my fabric pumpkin tutorial. I still get hits on my blog for that post! People posted about that tutorial all over the web, so it's received lots of traffic. It's a fun one and I'm so glad people were/are excited about them!


So your Kitschy Digitals digital kits are enough to make me want to learn to scrap book. Any suggestions for those of us that love our paper and glue stick on how we can use your adorable designs in paper crafting?

I totally understand how it's hard to let go of our tangible paper and glue and embrace digital! I'm a lover of handmade, but when it comes to scrapbooking, I'm a full digital convert. I used to create scrapbook art for various publications and just got so burned out! It was crazy time consuming. I would often spend five hours or more on a page. And it was MESSY. I live in a small home and space is definitely an issue. My "studio" is in the corner of our living room, so it was always a mess, which made me insane. I couldn't "hide it away" in another room. SO, when I got into designing my own digital scrapbooking products (and they aren't just for scrapbooking!), I started creating some digital pages of my own with my kits and I realized how much I enjoyed it - yes, more than paper and glue. For me and my busy family life, digital was the way to go. It's not messy, it's a much faster process (I can get way more pages done in less time), it's less expensive (the nature of digital files is that you can use them over and over again, unlike tangible supplies like a piece of patterned paper that can only be used once) and it's earth friendly (no waste!). Another great thing about digital kits is that the files are high-resolution, so you can print them! Yes, if you can't bare to let go of your paper and glue, that is ok! If you have a photo-editing program (like Adobe Photoshop for example) you just open the files and print them out. Easy-peasy. My designs are not only great for scrapbooking, but for any paper-crafting projects.


If someone, like say me, wanted to get into Digital Scrapbooking where should we start? Any good books, online classes, computer programs you could suggest?

You would need a photo-editing program. This is a good place to start with good information on what you need (it's a free class!). Jessica Sprague, where I sell my kits, has other fantastic classes to get you started!


For your Kitschy Digitals kits like the Vintage Stacked Flowers are those items in your own personal collection? Do you photograph your collections and then make them into parts of your kits?

Yes! I usually create things using various supplies I have in my stash, photograph them, and then make them into digital elements. My background in photography and graphic design has made the process easier. I love it! Creating these digital kits is sort of a great combination of many things that I love: vintage, handmade, photography and design.


Your photography is part of what makes your Thompson Family Blog so amazing! Do you have a degree in photography? What kind of camera do you have? Any tips for aspiring photographers?

Thank-you! I do not have a degree, but before I got into designing my own products, my main focus was on improving my photography. I was especially into portrait photography. Everything I know has been self-taught. It took me a while to really "get it" and shooting in Manual has greatly improved the quality of my photos. I own a Canon 30d. There are some great photography classes at Jessica Sprague that you can find here. There are also lots of great photography forums out there so I suggest looking out for those. Flickr is also a great source of inspiration and often photographers are wonderful about sharing their knowledge.


I love your home decor. Do you have a particular philosophy about your home decorating style? Where are some of your fave places to shop for eclectic and kitschy home décor items (if you wanna share fave Etsy dealers, flea markets, thrift stores)?

Thank-you! My philosophy is that there aren't rules. And don't take it all too seriously. I pretty much throw everything together but the kitchen sink. Most of the time it works. I'm all about throwing a bit of humor in there as well with funny vintage kitsch that I find. I shop vintage in Etsy and Ebay, but I've also gotten better about shopping locally. Over the past year I've found MANY thrifts and antique malls around Atlanta, and the prices are usually much better and you don't have to pay shipping! You just have to take the time to look. Finding the time is always the issue when you have two small children! : )


You are an artsy/crafty Jill of all trades – embroidery, photography, graphic design, crochet and more. If you had to choose just one to do for the rest of forever which would it be? Which do you find yourself doing the most often?

Thanks! I would say I do graphic design most often since it's my "bread and butter". I use it when designing my digital kits and I use it every day for my blog. It's really fun and I'm lucky that I get to use my graphic design degree/experience on fun projects like these. But if I could do one for the rest of my life? Hmm... that's a hard one. Don't make me choose! I guess photography would be the one I could never live without. : )


What does the future have in store for you? Any new and exciting projects on the horizon we should be waiting for with baited breath?

I always have various things in the queue that I'm working on, but I have one BIG project that is quite paramount. I'm having to do a lot of it myself so it's very time consuming! I'm basically building and designing an entire website/shop that will be a one-stop shopping destination for.... well, I'll keep that to myself for now. ; ) But please stay tuned on my blog over the next few months to get all of the details! It will be full of wondrous eye candy.


Are you as smitten as I am? Ready to get your scrapbook on? Do you suddenly have the urge to play with dolls? See what I mean, she has that effect on people.

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