personalized bucket
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DIY Spray Painted Flower Pail (she: Carmella)

ByCarmella

Before I share my very first craft with you {gulp} I wanted to let you know a little about me. I am a southern girl, born and raised in Alabama. I spent some time traveling this great country of ours but finally settled again just outside of Nashville. I met the man I would later call my husband just two weeks after I moved here and the rest, as they say, is history. Fast forward many years later and I am now a momma to three beautiful kiddos that keep me very, very busy. Two and a half years ago… somewhere between the diaper changes and play-dates… I began to feel like I was starting to lose myself a little. What I needed was a creative outlet… and from that thought, the Creative Carmella Blog was born. Also known as my “happy place”, the Creative Carmella blog is my little corner of this blogging world where I share stories about our life, DIY crafts, and all things creative. Finding my creativity again also opened the door to jewelry design too, you can see the designs that I have for sale now HERE in my online shop.

Now, on with the craft!

Today I am sharing with you how to pretty up a tired metal bucket.. with my favorite paint, spray paint!

handprint apple tree
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Handprint Apple Tree ~ Fun Fall Art Project For Kids (she: Brooke)

ByBrooke

Hey, it’s Brook from Blissful Roots again. I’m going to have to jump on the fall bandwagon and say, “I LOVE FALL!” It’s my favorite time of the year. My mom always loved fall, all three of my boys’ birthdays are in the fall, there’s Halloween, pumpkins, apples, leaves, fall baking- what’s not to love? So, today in honor of fall I have a fun autumn art project for you to do with your kids.

I’m not quite sure where I came across this idea, but I’ve been doing it for several years with my boys. Even though they’re getting a bit older, I think they still get a little excited about making this art project every September. Actually what they really love is the squishy, gooey feeling of the paint on their arm, hands, and fingers. We’re usually trying to avoid paint on body parts, but not for this activity. This is a perfect fall art project for kids!

D.I.Y. Rake Necklace Hanger by The Thinking Closet
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Easy DIY Rake Necklace Hanger (she: Lauren)

ByLauren

I’m on the living room couch, half-sitting on some slippers. To my right is a bowl of grapes, a random hanger, a pair of shorts, and half of a throw. The other half is on the ground. In front of me, the coffee table is covered in mail (which has been there for days), a kitchen timer, a hair clip, a bottle cap, and oh yeah – – a bag of mozzarella cheese that really should be in the fridge. And that’s just the surrounding area. And I don’t even have kids yet.

Have I painted a vivid enough picture? Does it sound like your home, too? Oh, good.

As messy as I am, I’m a person who craves having organizational systems…

lego party
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Lego Party Favor Bags (she: Jessica)

ByJessica

Hi, my name is Jessica. I’m so excited to be here as the newest craft contributor! I blog over at Cutesy Crafts where I show off all of the fun things that I make for my kids and my home.

Recently, my son had his 6th birthday party. I always like to make some sort of handmade party favor. Last year, the theme was superheroes. His theme of choice this year? Legos! Seriously, that boy would sit and build Legos all day if I let him! I thought it would be fun for each of the boys at the party to draw a face on their own Lego party favor bag. They turned out so cute!

I bought some cute little 5 1/2 inch tote bags at the craft store and stenciled each bag with a Lego head. I made these stencils using vinyl, but you can also use the freezer paper method. Download the Lego head template here and just cut it out with scissors. Center the stencils on the bags and paint with a matte fabric paint. For the best results, start on the stencil and paint in toward the center. This prevents paint from being pushed under the stencils.

Ruler Frame Chalkboard Sign Tutorial by The Thinking Closet
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Vintage Ruler Frame Chalkboard Sign Tutorial (she: Lauren)

ByLauren

So, when Mariel told me that the blog hop theme for this month was chalkboard and asked if I wanted to tackle it, I jumped at the chance! I mean, chalkboard and I go together like Jackson Pollock and splatter paint, like Martha Stewart and apple pie, like Marilyn Monroe and subway grates. I’m sort of a chalkboard fanatic. And I had just the idea of what to create!

Here’s the tutorial, so you can play along at home! And I’m going to be sure to tell you what not to do…because this project definitely almost became a craft fail! *Click ‘Full Article’ to read more, discover 9 other fabulous chalkboard craft ideas, and enter this week’s ‘Your Great Idea’ link party!

Faux Sea Glass Vase Tutorial (she: Allison)
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Faux Sea Glass Vase Tutorial (she: Allison)

ByAllison

I’d never heard of sea glass until I was an adult (perhaps that is due to living in landlocked Oklahoma?) We went to beaches very rarely when I was a kid, and even now I’ve never found sea glass when scanning the beaches in the Gulf of Mexico. But I did buy some at a craft store once and it was so much prettier in real life than it was in the pictures I’d seen online. Once I’d actually handled the stuff I kind of became obsessed. It’s so pretty and such an amazing little thing that the sea kicks out.

I decided that I wanted to make a faux sea glass vase to hold daisies and other pretty things. At the craft store I spied these gigantic mason jars. I’m talking bigger than my hand and as tall as a can of potato chips – to say I was a weensy bit obsessed by the large-ness of my new mason jar is a bit of an understatement! I decided to try and make the mason jar my faux sea glass vase.

Cheap and Easy Rainbow Yarn Flip Flops Tutorial (she: Allison)
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Cheap and Easy Rainbow Yarn Flip Flops Tutorial (she: Allison)

ByAllison

In the summer time I wear flip flops until my heels crack. Which isn’t a good thing but I just have a hard time allowing my feet to be bound up in shoes and maybe even socks when it is almost 100 degrees outside.

Now let’s throw in the fact that I am cheap. I mean super cheap. The few pairs of flip flops I have that are beaded or have heels or whatever were gifts. I’ve never spent good money on a pair of flip flops that cost of $2. Because for one, I’m going to lose one or both or, as in one insanely odd instance, somehow lose one to only run over it with the riding lawn mower. That was fun.

colorful tulle circle banner_createandbabble
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Circle Tulle Banner Tutorial (she: Jeanie)

Byjeanie

Hi again! It’s Jeanie from Create & Babble, back today to share a tutorial on how I made this pretty banner using tulle circles. There are so many occasions where this banner could be used: baby showers, wedding showers, birthday parties or in my case: no occasion at all! Besides this banner being incredibly easy to make, it costs next to nothing to make!

All you need to make this banner are tulle circles in the color(s) of your choice, sewing machine or needle and thread. I had some tulle circles on hand. Why would I have tulle circles on hand?

Gnome Finger Puppets (she: Amy)
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Gnome Finger Puppets (she: Amy)

ByAmy of while wearing heels

Hi there! It’s Amy from While Wearing Heels and I’m back to share another fun DIY project….for the kids! (Remember my Butterfly Finger Puppets from last month??)

To make these Gnome Finger Puppets, gather the following supplies: needle and thread (red, brown, blue), scissors, glue, felt (red, blue, yellow, white) and some small white rick rack (not pictured). Ladies gnomes first.
To make the lady gnome, print out the pattern below. Prep by cutting out all your pieces out of the appropriate color felt. Take the other gnome body piece and place it behind the front piece, tucking the sides of the rick rack in between. Hand sew the sides closed, doing a simple running stitch, leaving the bottom open.

Stripes & Dots Birthday Banner Free Printable!
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Stripes & Dots Birthday Banner Free Printable!

ByMariel

It’s the 10th of the month and you know what that means… time for a new theme! This month, my blogger buds and I are sharing 10 ideas that all have to do with STRIPES. And, there’s some fun stuff! Food, crafts, printables, art, home decor, gifts…these gals are so clever! Come check out the ideas we have for you, and see what ‘Or so she says…’ contributed to the bunch, as well. I think you’ll love it. It’s super cute, easy, created by a rock-star graphic designer, and it’s FREE. Hello.

‘A Person’s A Person…’ ~ Dr. Seuss Printable Quote (she: Brooke)
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‘A Person’s A Person…’ ~ Dr. Seuss Printable Quote (she: Brooke)

ByBrooke

Hopefully, you’re all rested and recovered from the busy 4th of July weekend. My birthday is the day after the 4th, so we’ve been extra busy. Good, but busy!

A few weeks ago my boys and I went to Seussical the Musical with my mom and sister. Have any of you seen it? If not, you really should. You can often find it at local theater companies, and I know our high school did it one year as well. My three boys (ages 3 and 6) were so entertained! The characters, the outfits, and the music are infectious!

Horton from Horton Hatches the Egg and Horton Hears a Who is the main character in the musical. There’s a line in one of the songs that comes from Horton Hears a Who. It says, “a person’s a person, no matter how small.” I used that quote all of the time when I was teaching first grade, and now that I’m a mom I use it even more.

Gold Animal Place-Card Holders by The Thinking Closet
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Animal Place-Card Holders (she: Lauren)

ByLauren

Growing up, when my parents hosted company, it was always my job to create place-cards for the dinner table. My favorite set were made using soft clam shells that we spray-painted gold and wrote on with paint-markers. However, in the four years since I’ve gotten hitched and moved out of my parents’ home, I’ve grown lazy on the job. Our household has been painfully lacking in the place-card department…until now, that is!

My inspiration came from the variety of projects I’ve seen out there in blogland involving plastic animals from the Dollar Store covered in spray paint. Do you know the ones? I’ve seen these animals become bookends, wall art, jar tops, even magnets. One day, it just struck me that some gold spray painted plastic animals would be the perfect bearers of place-cards.