Crafting and Exchanging

A while back I got invited to my friend Lisa's craft exchange, which I thought it was a BRILLIANT idea, and I started planning what I would make. I already had a few lavender sachets started, so I decided that would be my craft. The event was last night, so of course I waited until the week of to finish up the sachets. Luckily it didn't take long to finish the ones I had started and make a few more. For the party everyone brought 5 of the same or similar crafts, and we went through one by one and picked something out. We did 5 rounds of picking, so we each left with the same amount that we brought. It was so much fun!

I was actually pretty fond of my craft, which is saying a lot since I'm not a very crafty person. I thought the messy sewing kind of added some quirkiness (this is my way of making myself feel better about not being able to sew, so just roll with it). I included 2-3 sachets with each bundle and also included a jar of extra lavender. They are so easy to make with fabric scraps, so I thought people might enjoy making their own! I tied the two together with some scrap chiffon from my wedding dress. So basically I just used a bunch of stuff left over from the wedding. Resourcefulness, people! I hope the folks who got them enjoy them.

Delicious goodies, made by the incredibly talented Lisa, plus some yummy coffee were served. Of course I had already eaten a big dinner, but that didn't stop me from trying one of everything. The lemon shortbread sandwich things were OUT OF THIS WORLD. I am a sucker for anything lemony for dessert.

That's Lisa telling us how it's all going to go down. Things things have to be organized! I thought it was so cute that she was wearing her husband's shirt. He's a musician (check him out) and on tour right now.

The crafts and the decor on the tables were all set up so adorably. I loved seeing what everyone made! I was pretty darn excited about my haul. I got lucky and was number 7 through the line, so I snatched up one of Lisa's embroidered fox pillows. She obviously went above and beyond on her craft! Did I mention how talented she is?! I also picked up some homemade aioli from Beth, who is a master baker, some adorable button earrings from Heather, some Polaroid note cards from Keely, and some watercolor greeting cards from someone. I can't remember the crafter of those, but they're too cute! I'm really excited to try the aioli soon, since I've never had any.

It was so nice to go mingle with friends and chat about life and whatnot. I hadn't seen several of those ladies in a while, so it was great to catch up. Lisa is on a mission to have one event each month, which I think is pretty stinking awesome. I hope I'm able to make the next one too! If you think Lisa sounds amazing, which I'm sure you do, you should check out her website. She makes baked goods for events and weddings. She did the pies at my wedding!

I hope you all have a fabulous Memorial Day weekend planned. I don't know for sure what we're going to do, but I'm hoping it involves sleeping in, finishing up some picture editing and catching up on cleaning. I dream big, you guys.

Wedding Talk: Asking my Bridesmaids

Well hello! Sorry for the lull in posts this last week. I got back from Florida a couple of days ago, and I'm just now getting back in the swing 'o things. It was pretty nice not being connected during my trip. I'm one of those losers that still doesn't have a smart phone, and I didn't feel like lugging my laptop around on the plane, so I just read a lot! Anyway, I'm glad to be back, and I have something fun for you today.

I came across a tutorial on a blog that showed how to make your own scratch-off card, and I'd been looking for a way to use it. I came up with a design and used the scratch-off tutorial to make cards for my bridesmaids. It was fun to do, and I think they enjoyed them! I documented my process in case any of you would like to try something similar.

What you need:

• print out of your design
• metallic acrylic paint
• paint brush
• cardboard sheet
• glue (stick works well)
• dishwashing liquid
• contact paper (I couldn't find a small roll, so I used clear sticker paper instead)

Since I was doing four, I printed the design 4-up on an 8.5x11 sheet and cut them. Don't forget to make one of them say maid of honor if you have one! I almost forgot :) Also, mark the MOH card on the back so you know which one it is when you give them out...unless you want it to be a surprise or something. ha! Cut your cardboard to the same size for each card.

Use your glue stick to carefully glue the paper to the cardboard piece. I was afraid I'd screw up and make it uneven, because I'm the messiest crafter alive, but I did alright with it!

Cut out your clear sticker to a size that covers your design and place it.

Mix about 1 part soap with 2 parts paint and start painting! I tried really hard to keep it on the sticker part and make it look tidy. I think a more haphazard, messy look could be cute too, especially for a grade school game or something. I had to do SO MANY LAYERS. I was probably not using enough paint or something, but I eventually got it all covered up. The soap makes it kind of sticky when it dries, so I let it dry over night just to be sure. As long as it doesn't come off on your finger, it should be fine.

And there you have it! The original tutorial used this as a sort of promotional game for the blogger's Etsy shop, and I can also see this being a fun way to do prizes for a Kindergarten classroom or something. Scratch off to see what your prize is for not biting the other students, or whatever it is that kids get prizes for. I've also seen these used as save-the-date cards! You scratch off to reveal the date...so cute. That kind of thing would be printed on though...it would take an eternity to DIY a large number of these. As you can see, there are lots of ways you can use this. I might even try to find a way to use it again soon!

Embroidery Gifts

I feel like it's been forever since I blogged! I guess it's only been about a week, but that's kind of a long break. I've been busy working on some product photos and such, and now I'm on Spring break. We ended up getting TWO days off this year! It's awesome. I love having extra days off to catch up on things and relax a little. I've been re-watching Dexter while editing. I had almost forgotten how good that show is!

Today my coworker is celebrating the first birthday of his little twin babies (pictures here and here). I can't believe it's been a whole year! This time last year, I had just started trying some hand-embroidery, and decided to make some pieces for the twins. Of course I kept setting it aside and wasn't even remotely close to finishing when they were born. I finally picked it back up a few months ago and finished them.

I really enjoyed making them! I used patterns from Sublime Stitching, who has some AMAZING patterns. Scott and Kelly met and got engaged at camp, so I thought it would be fun to use outdoors themed patterns. I really liked Leila's when I finished, but once i finished Allie Kate's I liked her's better. I definitely want to do some more pieces since it's really fun, I just need to find more people to make them for.

Do any of you embroider? Isn't it so much fun?! I hope you all are having a great (almost) weekend. I'm going to Nashville tomorrow to hang out with my friend, Alanna, and see Lights again. It's going to be so much fun!

Sublime Stitching

A long (long, long, long, long, long, long) time ago, I won another blog giveaway. It's been so long now that I honestly can't remember which blog the giveaway was on. This fact doesn't come as a surprise to people who know me outside of blogging...I have a terrible memory. Anyway, this other giveaway I won was some fun embroidery patterns from Sublime Stitching. I had done some embroidery on paper before, but I'd never tried patterns. I was really excited to try it out! I did a couple of designs before I got too busy, but I actually bought several more patterns after I tried out the ones that I won.

The patterns in the first picture are the ones I bought, and the ones already embroidered are some I did with the patterns I won. It was a collection of fun crafty patterns. I love it! I'm planning on displaying these somewhere eventually. I cut the excess fabric and covered the back, now I just have to decide where to hang them. I also need to do some more with my other patterns! I think they'll be fun to use for gifts and cards and such whenever I get the time to sit down and do it again.

Speaking of time, I'll be out of town until next week, and I'm not sure if I'll have internet or not. If I'm not about to post, I'm truly sorry...but I'll be back soon!