Today I have a great tutorial for you! It’s not yet Thanksgiving so I’m not “completely” in holiday mode yet.. but I AM thinking about hostess gifts and decorations that would work for Thanksgiving, Winter Solstice, Hanukkah OR Christmas. (That’s a tough order to fill, right?) Well, these acorn ornaments are that “shabby glamorous” look that’s big right now, and it can be used for ANY fall or winter celebration. Note: this is a sponsored tutorial and the links below […]
Instagram Book Segment LIVE on Scrapbook Soup TV!
Last season I appeared on Scrapbook Soup for four segments- and one of them was this little mini book for your Instagram photos! The secret? Using up old scrapbook by covering it with gesso and stenciling! If you missed it live on air, it’s on the home page all this week at ScrapbookMemoriesTV.com! Here is Julie Fei-Fan Balzer and I on set in 2013. They are always so nice and gracious when I’m visiting! Head on over and see ALL […]
Handbag Upcycle Featuring Scrapbooking Attitude by Avatrex
Yesterday I shared my review and video overview of Scrapbooking Attitude by Avatrex- that whole “printable film” thing is wicked cool! And if you remember, what I was most excited about was not its uses for paper, but for cool substrates like leather, wood, and craft foam. As I was doing my swatch tests, I kind of fell in love with the idea of upcycling one of my older handbags- a boring little brown bag- into something hip and high-end using […]
Recycle Crafting: Runway Re-View Challenge
If you’ve been to CraftTestDummies even a handful of times, you know that I love to craft with found/recycled objects. (Or make “outsider art”- we don’t get hung up on semantics here.) I was invited to participate in a challenge for the Original Sewing and Quilting Expo– a “Runway Re-View”! Here were the challenge guidelines: Dress form was provided. 80% of the materials must be recycled. No more than $20 could be spent on the “new” materials. ….and really, that […]
Craft Book Review: Upcycled Accessories-25 Projects Using Repurposed Plastic by Tracie Lampe
Let me start by stating the obvious: I love recycling and making crafts out of objects that are headed for the trash. So when I heard of Tracie Lampe’s book “Upcycled Accessories: 25 Projects Using Repurposed Plastic” published by North Light BooksI was half sold before I even opened the cover. Let’s start with a few facts about the book before we begin. From the publisher: Fused and Re-used Whether you’re a sewing enthusiast or an eco-superhero, Upcycled Accessories shows […]
Thrifting Finds!
Over the past two weeks I got to go to some great yard & estate sales– and looky at what I got! …and lastly I got some amazing resin urns…but they are already outside hosting my geraniums. Now, I have some ideas for the pins- I think they would make great hair fascinators….but those doll parts…hmm… should I actually make the dolls or just display the parts?? What would you do?
Cricut + Vinyl = Upcycled Bike Helmet
When you have a kid, there is a zone in which “cool” trumps “safe”- so when it was time to replace my son’s bike helmet, I KNEW it had better be cool, or else he just wouldn’t wear it. Sadly, the safest one was plain white. (Lame-O!) So we had to jazz it up, STAT. With my Cricut, 2 colors of vinyl, and my Indie Arts cart, we hooked that bad boy up and now it’s SAH-WEET! So, you can […]