Art, Crafts and Inspiration in the Art Chick Studio

Archive for the Category »Crafts «

Recycled Mitten Ornie

Dec
2011

This is a Seasonal Craft project you can do with old mittens that aren’t worn anymore. Just something really quick and simple, and a fun way to do some Recycling in a festive way for the holidays. This is my Recycled Mitten Ornie.

Here’s what you need for this project:

An old mitten
Spray Adhesive
Mica Flakes or Glitter of your choice
Craft Gems
Tacky Glue or Hot Glue

Instructions: Spray the mitten with the adhesive. Then pour Mica Flakes or Glitter over it so that it is completely covered. Pat down the flakes to make them stick well. Shake off the excess flakes. Glue on your choice of fabulous craft gems. And that’s it! Of course, there are lots of ways you could vary this and make something else equally fabulous. You’re really only limited by your imagination.

Witchie Hangtag

By ArtChick

Oct
2011

I have never done more Halloween-themed art projects as I have done in this past month or two. Very strange for me. LOL But I’ve been enjoying it! I have carried through with that same theme for the new Ravens challenge at the Gingersnap Creations blog. I’ve used it to create this Altered Hangtag I’m calling Witchie.

The vintage photo is my witchie inspiration, along with the 3 stamped ravens, of course. All of my ephemera and embellishments have been added to a hangtag, which I’ve grungy’d up to look aged. Seemed only appropriate when I’m doing something with a Halloween theme to make it have an aged look too. Seems like I should make a gift just to go with this hangtag and give it to someone for Halloween!

Category: Hang Tags, Paper Arts, Seasonal Crafts Tags: Altered Art, Altered Hangtag, Gingersnap Creations, Halloween, Ravens, Vintage Photo, Witch 4 Comments

Halloween Treat Bags

By ArtChick

Aug
2011

I always start thinking about Seasonal Crafts this time of year. Just about the time my grandson goes back to school, I’m itching to do some Fall crafting again. So with that in mind, I’ve created a couple of bags that would be perfect as little Halloween treat bags.

I made these with small, pre-made muslin bags. I wanted to keep these simple, so all I did was stamp them with various sayings and images using black ink. I wanted to do some in orange ink and maybe even purple. But guess what colors of ink I don’t have?! Tina needs to shop for ink! Anyhoots, these were so easy to make: just stamp and let dry and you’re done. You could put candy corn in them, or any other holiday candy, and use them as party favors. Mine are just stuffed with fiberfill to use as decor, so that’s another option! And of course you could use different color inks, you could dye the muslin bags orange or black and have all sorts of fun with them! I don’t do a whole lot of Halloween crafts…I’m much more into Fall than Trick or Treat night. But these were fun. And since I always have muslin bags around and I use them a lot for crafting, I thought I’d be different and go with Halloween for a change.

I do a lot of country primitive type seasonal crafts that I post on my Tattered Sisters Primitives blog. So if you have interest, you might want to check that blog too for some ideas.

Category: Fabric Crafts, Seasonal Crafts Tags: Halloween Bags, Muslin Bags, Seasonal Crafts, Trick or Treat One Comment

Fairy Topiary

By ArtChick

Aug
2011

I spent time in the studio again yesterday. I never get in there as often as I’d like, and then when I do it’s hard to get me out of there! Got some fun projects done, including this one, my little Fairy Topiary (click image to view full size), which I’ll add to my collection of Fairy Crafts.

I started with a small white, enamel bucket, about 2-1/2″ in diameter. In the bottom of that I add a piece of Styrofoam, which I cut to fit. Next I created the topiary, beginning with a reused end of a craft swab (waste not, want not, right?) that I painted green. I stuck on a small Styrofoam ball to the top of it, which I also painted green. Then I hot glued on some craft flowers until the ball was covered, and added a pink satin bow to it too. Then I stuck it into the Styrofoam in the bottom of the bucket.

Then I needed to create the fairy, which started with a vintage photo of a girl. Again I used a discarded craft swab to attach to the back of the photo, which I’d printed on cardstock. Then I used some craft picks to create her wings, which are made of pink tulle and beads. I simply taped those onto the back of the photo. Then I stuck that into the Styrofoam in the bucket as well.

To give weight to the bucket to hold everything in place, I put in glass flat marbles that you can get in any craft store. I have had these sitting around for years and had plenty of them. So I just poured in enough to go to the top of the bucket. They add a neat texture and some shimmer, which I like. They almost look like the tops of bubbles in there. Once those were in place I finished the bucket off by adding a pink satin bow to each side.

The whole thing has a sort of Shabby Chic feel to it, and a vintage touch too. I think something like this would look great as a table decoration at a bridal shower or baby shower or something. But my little fairy is going in my studio so I can see her everyday.

Category: Everyday Crafts, Fairy Crafts, Shabby Chic Tags: Fairy Crafts, Fairy Topiary, Shabby Chic, Topiary, Vintage Photo Leave a Comment

Twilight Pushpins

By ArtChick

Jul
2011

OK, this project was totally just for fun. I had an old Twilight calendar sitting in my studio for the last couple of years. I wanted to repurpose some little images that were on the back cover. So I decided to use some glass tiles and turn the photos into pushpins!

Now please excuse the quality of this photo. It is very difficult to get a good clear photo of these 1″ glass tiles. Between the texture of the glass and the small size, I can’t get a perfectly clear shot. But I think you get the idea.

I just took my pictures and cut them out with a 15/16″ square cutter. I used silver tape (for Memory Glass) to adhere the photos to the back side of the glass tiles. Then I stuck upholstery tacks to the back of the tiles with hot glue. Probably some E-5000 glue would have been a better choice, but I was in a hurry. LOL

They’re cute little Bella and Edward pushpins that are now on the bulletin board in my office.

Category: Everyday Crafts, Glass Art Tags: Glass Craft, Glass Pushpins, Glass Tiles, Twilight One Comment

Vintage Rose

By ArtChick

Jul
2011

In the summer issue of Somerset Life that I picked up over the weekend, there is a wonderful tutorial for making vintage roses out of coffee filters. I’ve done a Coffee Filter Roses Tutorial in the past, but that one was for a much quicker and simpler rose–one that is easier and less realistic. The one is Somerset is much more realistic.

Somerset Life

I am always on the lookout for new flower tutorials and I loved theirs so I had to try it out. It was time-consuming to make, but it turned out so pretty…even if it wasn’t as pretty as the ones in the magazine.

Click to Enlarge

Click to Enlarge

I wouldn’t want to make a bunch of these, just because they take so long to make. But they really are pretty and would look so nice just sitting in a vase–one all by itself, or two or three. And they would make really nice gifts too, which is what the designer in the magazine was using them for. They’re very affordable to make too since you’re just using coffee filters and things you probably already have one hand.

Check out the magazine next time you’re in the bookstore to see the full tutorial. Somerset Life is one of my favorite magazines…but of course I love almost all the Somerset publications. I only wish they were cheaper!

Category: Everyday Crafts, Flower Tutorials, Paper Arts Tags: Coffee Filter Roses, paper crafts, Paper Flowers, Somerset Life, Vintage Rose 5 Comments

Go Fish Altered Hangtag

By ArtChick

Jun
2011

Not sure really what inspired this Go Fish altered hangtag, but I had fun making it.

I started out with a large, plain white hangtag, which I stamped with a text design using black ink. Then I used some scrap wallpaper to add the wave element on the left side (top) of the tag. Next I drew a simple fish shape onto some textured blue scrapbook paper; into that, I drew the letters that spell out the word FISH, leaving a little space in between each letter so that I could cut them out. Then I cut out the letters and glued them onto the hangtag, spelling out the word FISH and also creating the shape of a fish. I added some smaller paper fish shapes that I drew and cut out, and also some punched paper holes. And I finished it off with a brad for the fish’s eye, and just a bit of blue ink on the edges for a distressed look.

Category: Everyday Crafts, Hang Tags, Paper Arts Tags: Altered Art, Altered Hangtag, Fish Leave a Comment

Doily Vase

By ArtChick

May
2011

OK, now I’ll be honest up front. When I started this little crafty project, I intended for it to become a glass luminary. But when I got finished, my tealight was too big to fit in the opening! URGH! So I took my lemons and made some crafty lemonade…and decided to turn this into a little vase instead.

I took one of the jars I had in my studio, one that looks like an old-fashioned “vintage” milk bottle and cleaned it well first. Then I took a craft doily that I purchased at Michael’s, sprayed the back of it with adhesive, and then adhered it to the bottle. After it had a chance to dry, I added some craft flowers and a pearlescent gem to the front of the doily. And that’s all there was to it!

Since this is a very short bottle, it will be perfect for flowers with very short stems, like the lilacs that are blooming in my back yard right now. It is difficult to find cute vases for flowers that are short, so this will be just right. And the next time I get wanting to make a luminary, I am going to be sure to measure the opening of my bottle first!

Category: Everyday Crafts, Glass Bottles and Jars Tags: Glass Bottle, glass luminary, Vintage Milk Bottles 2 Comments

Destiny’s Onesie Dress

By ArtChick

Apr
2011

OK, so sewing is really not something I am good at. I don’t do it very often, and when I do, it’s generally only things that are either very small or involve only straight lines. Let’s just be honest here: we can’t all be good at everything, right? But that doesn’t mean we can’t venture out of our comfort zones once in awhile and try to develop our lesser-honed skills. So that’s what I did when I created this Onesie Dress for my granddaughter, Destiny.

I found a Onesie Dress Tutorial at the Barefoot in the Kitchen blog, after doing some Googling to find one. Hers was the easiest I found to follow. And believe me when I say, I need EASY. I followed her directions, more and less, from start to finish. And I’m pretty proud of how the dress came out, flaws and all.

It’s definitely not perfect, but it’s for a perfect little girl, who makes my heart smile every single day. She is my treasure forever.

Category: Fabric Crafts Tags: Destiny, Onesie Dress, Sewing 2 Comments

Flower Jar

By ArtChick

Apr
2011

When my studio was robbed a couple of weeks ago, I didn’t realize at first that anything more than my stereo was missing. That was bad enough, since it was almost brand new. But when I was able to spend more time in there a couple of days later, I realized that a lot more was taken. It’s not like I have an inventory of everything that’s in there, so really only blatantly obvious things would come to my attention.

Well, when I sat down to try to do some crafting, I realized that several of my jars of buttons and flowers that I’d created to store these craft supplies were also missing (among other things). Several mason jars of flowers and old-fashioned jars of buttons too. They seem so insignificant, but it was really very upsetting to discover them missing, after spending so much time (not to mention the money to buy those supplies) separating the flowers and buttons by color and putting them in their own fun-looking jars.

So anyway, I’m short on buttons and flowers now, because in total they took a LOT of supplies that I use very often when I’m creating. And I’m also short on jars. So I decided to make one new one today from a jar I happened to have on hand.

None of my missing jars were decorated (which makes it even more puzzling why the thief would take them), but I thought I’d do at least one that is. So I cut out a strip of burlap and sprayed the back of it with adhesive. Then I wrapped it snug around the jar. Then I took three craft flowers and assembled them with a brad and added them on top of the burlap. And then I just dropped in the one lone tube of new flowers I’ve bought (so far) to start to replace what was stolen.

I like the way this looks. Just a fun little way to jazz up a plain glass jar. And the vintage-looking zinc lid is nice too. All of my missing flower jars had lids like these, but they were plain square mason jars. Not valuable really…to anyone but me. They’ll eventually get replaced…one jar at a time.