Follow Your Arrow – DIY Arrow Ornaments

 

I’m a firm believer in handmade gifts. There’s something so special about receiving something that was made just for you by the hands of someone you love. Likewise, it feels really rewarding to make something for someone that they will not only love but that will also have a special meaning to them.

That was the idea behind the gift I made for my sister Cecily this past Christmas. In all honesty, I had been planning this gift for months…. but being the world class procrastinator that I am (le sigh) I didn’t finish it till after Christmas. I know, major Christmas gift fail. But I swear Christmas comes faster every year and we all know just how very slyly it sneaks up on us. But I did finally finish it (yay me!) … and thanks to me, my sister got to open one more Christmas gift in January lol.

These cute little arrow ornaments were actually a last minute addition to her gift. I came across this tutorial by the lovely Jess Gatlyn of Boho Baby Bump and knew I had to make one for my sister. One of her favorite songs lately is “Follow Your Arrow” by country singer, Kacey Musgraves. I hadn’t heard the song until she put it on a mix cd for me some months ago. I’m not a huge fan (and that might an understatement lol) of country music but this one isn’t too bad, I guess (in other words, it’s listenable). Because of the message of the song she had mentioned that an arrow had kind of become a special symbol to her. So naturally I thought of her when I saw this craft.

I was going to use it as an accent on top of the wrapped gift in place of a bow but that didn’t end up working out. So instead I just tucked it into the case of the mix cd I made for her (we recently started sending each other mix cds in the mail).

They were so easy and fun to make that I made about 5 of them for myself. I posted the video of Jess making them below and I’ll also link to her blog. But basically all you do is paint wooden skewers, cut the arrowheads out of scrapbook paper & hot glue them on, glue on feathers and a string to hang it and cover that with a strip of washi tape, and voilà! There was something really relaxing about painting the skewers in different colors and patterns. Just a really fun & cute craft!

Now this baby, this butterfly dream catcher/wall hang was the real gift… the one that took me a while to start and to finish lol. 

She and I had found this cute & hippy looking butterfly doily when we took a day trip to Austin last summer. We went shopping on South Congress for the first time ever and saw it lying on a shelf in what became one of our favorite shops, New Bohemia. I believe she said “If I buy this will you make it into a dream catcher for me?”. That was in July… so needless to say, she wasn’t expecting it lol. I had been making myself dream catchers out of doilies for a while just as a fun and decorative diy to hang in my bedroom.  This one was a lot of fun to make and I was really happy that she loved it!

This was how I used my arrow ornaments, to decorate a Valentines tree! I’ve been seeing cute little Valentines trees all over Pinterest and wanted to try it! Loved the way it looked with the arrows! It made for some cute and quirky Valentines décor, I think!

Some more Valentines décor in the kitchen, just because I believe in being festive! :)

Hope you guys spend an afternoon making a few of these lovelies for yourself or someone you love!

For Jess’s written tutorial , click here.

Glitter Pumpkins (An Easy Fall DIY)

Fall crafts have become one of my (many) favorite things about this time of year! There are just so many fun DIY’s on Pinterest to get your house all ready and decked out for the season. This is the second year I’ve made these cute glitter pumpkins and I’m sure I will keep making them every year. They are so fun, festive, and super easy peasy.

 

I made these lovelies with my sister over Skype yesterday. Skype crafting, baking, and cooking sessions are kinda like a new tradition we started. It’s become our thing since she now lives in the peach state so we can keep doing all our favorite hobbies together. I think we both loved how our pumpkins turned out! And it was the perfect day for some fall crafting since we Texans finally got some cool, breezy weather! Hallelujah!

If you want to do this project all you need is: Pumpkins – we used real ones but you could probably use fake ones if you want. Modpodge, fall colored glitter, and sponge brushes.

 

Just cover the pumpkins with a layer of Modpodge and coat with your choice of glitter. Let dry, shake off any excess, and give them a place in your home!

So pretty and could not be simpler! :)

Pumpkin obsessed?… Just a little.

Think it’s safe to say that fall is upon our home lol. ;) Hope you’re enjoying this lovely season!

Smash Booking!

I have talked about my mad love for art journaling quite a bit on this blog and now I think it's time for me to talk about my new obsession: Smash Booking.

It's official, I have fallen in love with Smash Booking! I knew it was only a matter of time before it happened. I have been drooling over these lovely books full of their pretty paper (I'm a total sucker for pretty paper) in the Wal-Mart craft section for months now. So finally I caved... I bought one for me and one for my sister, (who I just turned on to the craze, she has now been bitten by the Smash Book bug too).

Smash Books are a lot like art journals except the backgrounds are already done for you and you can just freely "smash" in whatever you like. Pictures (I have been using it as a scrapbook of sorts), ticket stubs, notes, quotes, anything at all really. It's basically art journaling's little sister, in my opinion. And it's so much fun, I'm seriously addicted!

They have different color Smash Books you can choose from and each have different paper that coordinates with the theme, such as: Pretty Pink (which is the one my sister & I have), Retro Blue, Doodle Red, Mod Black, Eco Green, Simple Orange, etc.

They also come with a really convenient pen that has a glue stick on the other side, it's pretty awesome, I love it! The Smash Book company (K&Company) also have tons of products and embellishments that make the experience even more fun, so definitely check those out as well. I love collecting them!

Below is a little flip through my Smash Book. Hope you enjoy taking a peak at the pages I’ve done so far! They were so fun to make! :)

My “Pretty Pink” Smash Book. I have yet to decorate the cover but definitely plan on doing so soon!

The inside of the front cover and first page of my Smash Book. My introduction pages, if you will. I used a picture of a dream catcher I recently made for my room and a quote that I love from Madeleine L'Engle.

A summer themed page. I added a list of summer goals, an old post card with a picture of the bay in my town, and a picture of the sun that my cousin drew a few years ago.

Pictures of my visit to Walton's Fancy & Staple in Austin!

A totally random, fun page! Some things I used were a magazine clipping, paint sample, Starbucks Via package lol, an envelope, an old ticket to an Imax movie, and another drawing by my cousin that I had lying around (Yes, I’m that girl, I keep everything…but I refuse to be called a pack rat! lol).

A page dedicated to my visit to Le Cordon Bleu in Austin last month!

A 4th of July themed page I made using a picture of the fireworks my sister (who came to visit from GA that week)  took at the bay in our town. As well as a picture of the Key Lime Pie we made for dessert!

This is another random page, I used an old birthday card (loved the bird embroidered on it), a page from an old book, stamps, washi tape, as well as other embellishments. This page turned out to be one of my favorites!

So that's my Smash Book so far! I hope you guys are now inspired to pick one up and start smashing for yourself! It really is a fun creative outlet! :)

From This Valley – An Art Journal Page

“Oh the caged bird dreams of a strong wind that will flow ‘neath her wings. Like a voice longs for a melody, oh Jesus carry me.”

So I think I’ve been on a kick lately of creating art journal pages around the lyrics of some of my favorite songs. This is a page I made a couple weeks ago inspired by one of my all time favorite songs, “From This Valley” by The Civil Wars. Oh this song… I just can’t even. It honestly makes my heart feel like it’s just about to explode with happiness! And part of it may be in the way they perform it with the most overwhelming sense joy, it’s contagious. You can’t help but smile… this is my happy song.

“From This Valley” is actually an unreleased song that became a live show staple for the duo. All of the lyrics to this song have my heart but the lyrics in the bridge stand out to me the most. The expressive words just paint the most beautiful picture. So those were the ones I chose to use as inspiration for this page.

I used pretty scrapbook paper, lace, ribbon, doilies, sheet music, washi tape, stamps, as well as other embellishments. This was a really fun page to make, the song was just going through my head the entire time. I love the way it represents this very beautiful lyric and I’m really happy with how it turned out!

Oh and since we’re talking about The Civil Wars, if you’re a fan you know that they had been on an indefinite hiatus since November of last year, claiming irreconcilable differences & internal discord. Well now they have just recently announced a brand new self titled album to be released this summer! They still have been very hush hush on whether this is an actual reunion (the album was written & recorded before the split), I’m a bit skeptical but here’s hopin’!

Some new art journaling supplies I used for this page. Pretty Washi tape and some fun embellishments. -

My growing washi tape collection. You can never have to much… yeah, I’m obsessed. -

Brightly Wound – An Art Journal Page

“I shall never grow up/Make believe is much too fun/Can we go far away to the humming meadow” 

That’s the chorus to my favorite Eisley song called, “Brightly Wound”. It’s also the song that inspired this art journal page I worked on last night! This song is actually from their very first album entitled, “Room Noises”. I’ve been a huge Eisley fan since I saw them in concert in 2005 and even years later, this is still my favorite song by them. It’s so whimsical and magical! It never fails to make me feel happy and warm whenever I hear it.

I’ve been listening to it a lot more lately than usual and always find myself humming it throughout the day. The lyrics just evoke such a child like innocence. It’s the type of song I will probably sing as a lullaby to my future kids someday. So last night, as I was listening to this song, I got inspired to create an art journal page with this lyric in mind. I’m really happy with how it turned out! In fact, I think it’s the best one I’ve done so far.

I think my favorite elements are the floral fabric I used for the background and the letter stamps I used to add the lyrics onto the page. It was a really fun page to create! It was fun to go crazy and make it just as whimsical as the song. :)

P.S Eisley has a new album coming out on May 28th entitled, “Currents”. You can listen to a song from the new album here: “Drink The Water”.

Spring Crafts & Easter Photos!

Hey friends! Hope y’all had a lovely Easter! Can’t believe it’s already been over a week ago now! It’s always the holiday that feels like the official start of spring to me.

My Easter Sunday was spent with my family. My dad preached a really good Easter message at our church & after service we had an egg hunt for the kiddos. My mom & I cooked Easter lunch and my aunt and cousin joined us for the feast. And feast we did! We made what has become one of our favorite meals ever, Stuffed Chicken Marsala! Along with mashed potatoes, green beans, and French bread. I meant to take a picture but everyone was pretty starved and I didn’t have time lol. But I did however get a a couple photos of our desserts.

Banoffee Pie and Maple Nut Chocolate Eggs! Neither of which I think turned out especially pretty lol (The pie was supposed to look like this. Yeah, not so much.)…but both were so delish! And that’s what counts, right? :)

Okay, if you’ve never tried Banoffee Pie…do it. Do it now! It was my first time making it and now my family and I are hooked! Graham cracker crust, bananas, thick and rich toffee, whipped cream, & chocolate shavings (was supposed to be chocolate curls but whatever…I apparently can’t curl chocolate). What’s not to love?

The filling for these eggs is unbelievable! I bought a small bottle of maple flavoring from a cupcake place called Bliss while I was visiting my sister in GA and the taste that it gave these eggs was just out of this world. A creamy maple center with chopped walnuts covered in chocolate. Really sweet but amazing.

 

Colored eggs to use for decoration! I tried to be all fancy and give a couple the “ombre”effect… again, not so much. But I did have a little too much fun with a gold paint pen and while they’re not all fancy and “ombre”… I dig ‘em.

The “sun design” on the purple egg just kinda happened on its own after I used the paint pen. Yay for happy accidents!

Maybe it’s the spring air but I’ve been in an especially crafty mood lately. And have been enjoying days of crafting and listening to music. Not to mention pinning new crafts like cray (Yes, I just said “cray”… too much Family Force 5 & only ff5 fans will get that. Ok, anyways.) These are the projects I’ve been working on lately:

French Script Easter Eggs -

I found the tutorial for these French Script Easter Eggs on Pinterest. They were so easy to make! My mom and I made them with some wooden eggs she had in her closet. After we did a few of the French Script ones we got the idea to cover some in sheet music. I printed out free sheet music of Amazing Grace (that I also found on Pinterest) and covered the rest in that. I love they way they all turned out but I think sheet music eggs are my favorite!

Spring Napkin Rings -

These spring napkin rings actually happened on accident as they originated from a totally different idea. I had seen a tutorial for Burlap Easter Bunny Napkin Rings on Pinterest and thought they were so cute! I had gotten a good amount of burlap from my sister who has tons of it left over from decorating her wedding, so this seemed like a fun way to use some of it.

I set out to make the bunny napkin rings but half way through was just not really feeling it. So my mom had the idea to use some left over fabric we had lying around to make some spring inspired napkins rings instead!

I think they turned out really cute! They were made out of paper towel rolls, hot glue, fabric, ribbon, and fake flowers. Below is a picture of them on our table as well as the one lone bunny napkin ring we made lol. 

Spring Bunting -

Using up more of the fabric and burlap, I made this Spring Bunting! It was super simple to make and didn’t require any sewing. I hung it up in my bedroom over my closet and I think it totally brightened up the room! Really loving it!

I think spring inspired crafts are the perfect way to start the season! Like I said, I’ve been in a crafty mood lately so I have a couple more DIY's on the list for this week! Happy spring, lovelies! :)

Art Journaling: New Pages!

Whenever I feel like being creative one of my favorite places to run to is my overly full, just about falling apart now art journal. I’ve been working in this particular one for a year now… and needless to say, I think it may be time for a new one. I posted about my adventures as an art journaling newbie here last summer, but seeing as how I’ve created quite a few new pages since then, I thought it was time for another little peak.

I feel like the more I art journal the more I fall in love with it. Getting all my supplies out, putting on some music or a movie and making a big mess for a couple of hours is sort of therapeutic. Even though my pages are no where near the amazing art that I’ve seen some girls fill their lovely journals with… but that doesn’t really matter to me. This is my “art”, if you will. The art that I’m capable of making… just for the sake of making it. This is my place to be creative. My place to play.

I don’t believe there are any rules to art journaling except to let your imagination run wild and just create. And to do it for yourself. It may be scattered or messy but it’s all the pieces of you that make it beautiful.

It still continues to be one of my favorite hobbies so I hope you enjoy this little look into what I’ve been filling my art journal up with lately! And I hope you give art journaling a try if you haven’t yet… you just may find yourself a little addicted.  :)

I made a page for one of my favorite pictures of my sister, Cecily and I at her wedding last October. This picture was taken after the festivities and is very special to me. I framed the picture in little leaf jewels and added a piece of burlap on the adjoining page for writing down memories from the day, which I have yet to fill in.

A page displaying a couple photos I took while visiting one of my favorite bakeries, The Sweet Boutique in Sugar Land, Tx. They have some of the best cupcakes & macarons I’ve ever tasted. I used a flower shaped cupcake liner to write down a little bit about the bakery.

This was just a totally random page I made. A page to just put together a bunch of different scraps lying around. I love using really random things to create pages that, while they may not make much sense, are just fun to make & are pleasing to my eye. I also added a little list of songs I’ve been listening to lately.

This is a page I did while following Elsie Larson’s art journaling course. The theme was “Night Dreams”. So I used a greeting card I had lying around that has stars and moons on it, stick on letters, and a torn book cover from an old children’s book and wrote down a couple weird recurring dreams I’ve had.

A page where I wrote down what is sort of my theme for the new year; to learn to better love & accept myself.

Another random page; as are the next two.

Randomness used: Lots of washi tape, stickers, a stamp, stencils, paint chips, ticket stubs, notebook paper, a receipt, a perfume sample, and a fortune from a fortune cookie.

For some great art journaling inspiration click here, here, or here.