Recycled Crayons

Do your kids have TONS of broken crayons in their craft box?????  Mine is only 2 and it's amazing how many crayons were already broken.  So I decided to consolidate!!! I was nervous about how this would turn out because we were using the oven and let's face it that is NOT my area of expertise......but they turned out pretty good! (dont tell my husband).

So ready to make your VERY OWN recycled crayons??? 

You will need

broken crayons

Crayon mold (I used an old cupcake pan)

paper cupcake liners

So here is how I made mine.....

I started with the old broken crayons.

Then I peeled ALL the paper off every crayon.

and I had a little help... :o)

He was concentrating so hard! :o)

Then we placed our cupcake liners into the pan and put the pieces of crayons in each one sorting them by color. 

we even added some together for a little bit of craziness!!!!

I put them in a preheated oven at 250 degrees and baked them for about 25-30 minutes.  If you have the thinner crayons it would take a lot less time but we were using the thicker ones.  AND of course we turned on the oven light to watch our masterpiece...

once they were completely melted I carefully took them out of the oven (trying not to mix up our "crazy" crayons).

I let them completely cool and then removed the paper cupcake liner.  Voila, they are ready for hours of coloring by your little one (and you too).

Aren't these so fun????  And your kids will love making them also.  It is a great project for a rainy day or just a day spent at home.  If I can do it you can too.....

Now go get rid of all those broken crayons cluttering up your craft box and create some crazy fun recycled crayons.

Memory Blocks

I am such a sucker for sentimental lovey things and have an upcoming wedding so I thought I would try out these fun memory blocks I have seen around. (plus I have a resolution to keep with new tutorials for you) 

So I decided to create their last name on the block and this is what I came up with.....

(no their last name is not JUNE but I thought I would keep it annonymous :) ) 

The ideas are endless for these blocks.  Weddings, kids' names, holiday decorations and much, much more!  Just chose the style of paper to coordinate and voila'! 

So ready to make your VERY OWN memory blocks??? 

You will need

2in wooden blocks (found in the unfinished wood @ your local craft store)

 paint if you choose to paint the blocks (I chose charcoal)

scrapbook paper (the thin paper works better)

scrapbooking glue

Ink

Modge podge

stickers or lettering (I used my cricut cutter)

So here is how I made mine.....

I started with the plain ol blocks and painted them charcoal.

Then I punched out squares with a square punch that would fit the blocks and then rounded the corners (you can cut these with a scrapbook trimmer also) .

Next, I put a THIN layer of glue on the paper and covered 5 sides of the block (I did not cover the bottom of my blocks).  If you don't cover all the sides you must make sure that the style of paper you want is in the front.  Since I was making this for a wedding present I used the couple's picture off the invite for the front side of the end block.

Next, I used my cricut cutter and the "making the grade" cartridge to cut out the letters I needed.  I made my letters 1 1/4in and then ran it through my xyron create a sticker.

I inked the edges of the paper on all sides for an antique kind of look.

Lastly, I painted a moderate layer of modge podge on all 5 sides of the block and placed them on styrofoam plates to dry (newspaper will stick).

Now bundle them up for a cute gift or go put them on that empty shelf!

I'd love to hear what kind of blocks you made in the comments section!

New Years Resolution

Seriously MUST stop blogging about where I've been and get to posting regularly for you readers.  That is my New Year's Resolution!!!! (you can keep me to it)

I have been crafting in my time off and doing several Holiday shows which went well. 

This is what you can expect in the upcoming months.....

Several posts weekly on what I am working on and other things that will be OH so interesting ;o)

Tutorials and other fun patterns for all your crafting needs.

Regular Facebook posts (are you a fan??? if not go here and 'like' us)

AND lots of other fun things and giveaways!!!!

2011 is going to bring many new and exciting things to this blog so STAY TUNED!!!!!  It is going to be quite the ride!

New banner

Wahoo I finally did it.  I had a banner and all kinds of fun things designed from a very talented Erin Bradley on Etsy.  She has amazing stuff, I love it all!!! 

It was hard for me to decide but this is what I went for.  It is also in my Etsy shop so you can check it out there too. 

I would highly recommend her, I ordered it today about 1pm and got it at 3pm.

That's what I am talking about. 

Well gotta work on a few orders and of course those fast approaching shows so gotta go.....just wanted to share my really cool banner!

Whew....

Wow!  What a weekend!  I have been cutting fabric, tying tutus, making key fobs and working hard on several other things for the upcoming shows. 

A big shout out to my sweet little hubby who designed and constructed my key fob rack and some heads to put my hair pieces on!  Oh and I almost forgot.....really took care of the kiddos a lot this weekend so I could knock out a lot of design pieces for the shows.  And I definitely cant forget about my momma who came over and slaved over the cutting mat for well over 5 hours today!!!!  And the best part about, I sent her and my dad home with "homework!!!"  Ha Ha!  Looking forward to Friday night when her and my gracious big sister are going to come over (kid free) and do some more 'helping' me (my sister just doesn't know it yet....oops) 

I am starting to feel like I MAY be able to go to bed on November 19th (the night before the show.)  Nah, probably not!  I am sure something will keep me awake at the last minute.  Sometimes I am pretty good at procrastinating although as I have said before.....I DO NOT like working under a few hours deadline.  I always feel like I make more mistakes then and have to redo things which I dont like to do.

I will try to post pictures later once everything is finished.  Things I definitely still need to get.....

another "head" for the stands

a black tablecloth (if you know where a nice one can be found let me know!)

ummmmmm oh and A LOT of other things that I cant think of right now!  :/ 

I really need to consolidate my "NEEDS" list because I have several running around and I'm really not sure what I need!!!!  I know sounds cRaZy right???

Oh well, it will all get done and I am super excited about it!  Hope everyone loves it as much as I do. 

After all this I am going to make my etsy store look ROCKIN cool so stick around.  One thing at a time! ;)

Where I've been

I am so sorry it has been awhile for me to post.  I have been....well trying to manage everything I need to do and want to do.  Sometimes I think it is hard to find a good balance.


But I have also been doing a lot of really cool things.  For instance, every October my mom takes my sister and I to a weekend long shopping trip.  So Fun!  It is designed to be "Kid Free, Stress Free but each year I seem to tag along one of my kiddos one way or the other.  This is Max's 2nd year going (last year as a little growing peanut) and this year he cant really get too far away from his momma if you know what I mean! ;)

I have also been spending some 'family time' doing fun fall things.  I love fall festivals and the parades.  So we have had fun doing that.

And of course a fall fave in my family.....picking apples and going to the pumpkin patch.  Brody did an awesome job picking the "perfect" apples.  Really he was absolutely fine taking the ones that had already fallen on the ground.

I have also been working on a few of my first "etsy" orders!  I was so excited to get those first couple of orders and am praying that I will continue to create things that people want to put on their cute little ones or even themselves because I am having way too much fun to stop!  :o)

I have also been working on getting my stock built up for a couple of craft shows and holiday shop nights I am going to be doing. 

So my last few weeks in a nut shell....but mostly just been loving on these 2 Q-T's!!



Some Halloween fun!

Ok so I just finished this super fun BOO shirt for my friend Keri's daughter Katie!  I love it and I hope she does too.  I thought the fabric was fun but wasn't sure how to make it "girly!"  Well here ya go!!

I bet she will look adorable in it!  Although she may need to push up those sleeves for Halloween in Florida!!!  :)