That's Pinteresting!: Tie-Dye Coffee Filter Art

After my mother and I tried out bubble painting the other day, I started working my way through my Art Projects for Kids board on Pinterest, trying out some of the different techniques I have pinned over the past months.

I found a homeschooling mom at The Kitchen Table Classroom who uses markers and water on coffee filters to teach her children about color mixing.  You can't beat the project for simplicity, and the coffee filters that are created make interesting background papers for other projects.

I stopped using paper filters in a coffee maker about a year ago, so the filters have worked their way into my craft stash. I was happy to find a fun, easy, and pretty way to make use of them. I also borrowed the girls' craft drawer full of markers, and pulled out a little mini-mister I have, though you can use any sort of squirt bottle filled with water.

First, you just fold the coffee filter into quarters. My daughter Katy demonstrates this step:

Then you make colorful marks all over one quarter of the filter.  The color goes through the paper to the other side, but I like to flip the filter over and reinforce with more marks on the other side for an even richer effect.  Here are Bayla and Katy adding their marks to their filters:

Here is an example of the filters filled with marker color:

For the next step, just squirt the water from your mister or bottle onto the marks and watch the colors "melt" and blend:

This is a fun step, because you never know exactly how the marker and the water are going to react.

You can set the filters aside onto wax paper to dry; they don't take too long to dry, which is another plus with kids' crafts!

No two filters look alike, so it is fun to admire all the different results!  Because they look so much like tie-dye, I thought it would be fun to use them in the background of a journal page or ATC along with vintage images of women from the 1960s era.  We will see where that project takes me!

This is one of those projects that I firmly believe you can do even if there isn't a kid in sight!  Most of the projects on my Art Projects for Kids Pinterest board are fun- and artful-enough for kids or adults to enjoy!

A Pinteresting Crafternoon

 

The remains of the day

My mom's in town, so you know what that means:  time for a crafternoon! 

Cords and beads

This time we played around with ideas from pins on my Miscellaneous Craft Projects board on Pinterest, using wine corks for key chains and Christmas ornaments. We came away pretty happy with our projects. 

 

We used eye hooks in both ends of the cork to hold a keychain on one end and charms on jump rings on the other end.  Here is one of my mother's creations, using beads, charms, and milagros :

Here are three Christmas-themed ornaments I made, using charm sets from Jo-Ann:

My mother saw these lightweight metal frames in my stash, and had the idea of pairing them with some vintage photos she brought for me. 

Then she used a jump ring to connect a bead at the bottom, and made it into a necklace using a crocheted-bead necklace I had already made.  Pretty, isn't it?

 

I used my framed photo to create a keychain, adding a jump ring filled with seed beads at the top, and a milagro charm hanging from the bottom. 

My final two key chains continued our theme of dangling beads, charms, and Milagros:

Here is a closer look at each one:

Handling such tiny elements got a little rough on our eyes and our fingers, but overall we had a fun crafternoon.  And I was happy to use up some more of my stash.  I knew that set of jewelry pliers was going to come in handy some day!

 

For other cork key chain projects, check out these links that I have pinned to my Pinterest board:

• Artsy VaVa
• Rustic Crafts Chic Décor
• Simple Crafter
• Lavender Clouds

Just what you needed:  another excuse to drink wine!

That's Pinteresting!: Paper Crafting Edition

I've been browsing my Paper Crafting board on Pinterest, looking for some simple projects to complete.  As I've mentioned in the past, I justify all the time I spend "pinning" by making sure I go through my boards periodically and actually USE some of my pins!

For my first project, I used the business card design created by Ellie Snow of Mint to create some cards for my Living Stones Women's Ministry.  When I tell people about the group, I find myself scribbling down my email and blog address on a scrap of paper.  It makes much more sense to have cards with me that I can share with people who are interested.

I had to determine the information to include, as well as the font and the spacing.  After printing them out (eight to a page) on white cardstock, I cut them to size, then adhered different styles of tape to the middle.  Then I used a regular hole punch to punch the semi-circles on the sides, and tied baker's twine around the middle, tying it right at the center.

Here are some of my favorite decorative tapes for this project:

Another paper crafting project from my Pinterest pins involved making magnetic bookmarks.  I've made a zillion bookmarks in a zillion different styles, but I never grow tired of trying something new.

The design for these comes from Lisa at A Cuppa Tea With Me.  I cut pretty pieces of double-sided scrapbooking paper to 8 inches by 3 inches.  I stitched all around the edges (an optional step--I just love the look of stitched paper), and folded the paper in two.

On the inside, I used two squares of Dymo self-adhesive magnetic tape.  When the bookmark is closed around a page, the two pieces of magnet catch and hold in place!

Having double-sided paper isn't strictly necessary, but it makes the bookmark look that much nicer no matter how you look at it.

For my third paper crafting project, I created yet another little notebook--something else I can't get enough of!

I used a design from Carolyn of Homework.  She used business envelope liners for all of her inside scratch pages, but I thought my handwritten notes might not show up well on them.  I included a business envelope liner page at the front and the back only, and used scrap computer paper from my husband's home office for the rest of the  pages.     

Each page got two small holes punched at the top, and baker's twine threaded through the holes tie all the pages to one another and to the back cover.

Double-sided scrapbook paper makes for a prettier project with these, too, as well as color-coordinated baker's twine to tie all the pages together.

 

Stay tuned for more projects from my Paper Crafting Pinterest board. There are sure to be more!

 

Playing Catch Up

I have a number of smaller projects that have crossed my craft table over the past month or two that I've never shared here on the blog.  Today's post is a random collection of some of those projects to show you what I've been up to.

You may recall the cereal box books I made based on a pin from my Pinterest Book and Journal Making board.  Another pin led me to make tiny little pocket notebooks using everyone's favorite shipping tags. 

The project is quick and easy, but the books are probably just a bit small to be practical for everyday use.

I did another version of the project with a final result that looks even cuter, but is unfortunately just as small and impractical!

I've never met a little notebook I didn't like, though, so I'm sure these will be put to some use!

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Original on the left, photocopy on the right

Maybe I'm imagining things, but it seems like everyone is creating their own planner pages these days.  I love the "planner craze," though, and discovered an entire subculture of Filofax keepers once I started putting together my Daily/Weekly Plan Books board on Pinterest.

Original on the left, photocopy on the right

Just for fun, I created some 8-1/2"x11" weekly planning pages that could be used in a full-size binder (and I'm in the process of creating some smaller size pages for 6"x8" binder, which is my new favorite size).

Original on the left, photocopy on the right

I used watercolor paint and oil pastels on Bristol paper to create the originals.  Then I raided my collection of letter stickers from my scrapbooking days to identify the days of the week in different styles.

A closer look

The photocopied calendar pages are bright, smooth, and colorful.  I could definitely imagine having fun with them, though I have a smaller-sized planner that I'm committed to for the rest of this year.

I could imagine making these my daily planning pages!

It could be fun to create a kind "creative planner" to make sure that I am making time through each week for creative pursuits.  These colors would certainly be inspiring and eye-opening, don't you think?!

These fiery squares would wake me up to my To Dos in the morning!

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And, finally, I've made some postcards from a stash of metallic papers I purchased awhile back from a craft store.

The snows of winter moved quickly into the cold rains of spring, so there haven't been too many bright cheerful colors to inspire me.  About the brightest I could come up with was metallic, which isn't generally a preferred look for me.

I thought the metallic papers gave a lovely haunting look to the postcards, though, especially the two I've posted here.

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So, while I've been a little MIA around the blog, I haven't deserted my art room completely! I find myself spending more time on spring cleaning, church involvement, my Living Stones group, and the same old carting of the kids to school drop-off and pick-up.  I am hoping that if the warmer temperatures and longer days of sunshine DO finally arrive, they will bring with them some additional inspiration and motivation for art-making.  It has been a truly long, long winter!

That's Pinteresting!: Cereal Box Books

One of the ways I justify to myself all the time that I spend browsing on Pinterest is to make sure that I actually create some of the projects I pin.  One of my most recent efforts came from my Book and Journal Making board, where I pinned the DIY Cereal Box Notebooks and DIY Mini Pocket Notebooks from a Cereal Box created by Natalie at Crème de la Craft.

We go through cereal boxes like they're going out of style around here, so I have plenty of raw material to work with! 

The larger notebooks, which measure about 4 inches x 5-1/2 inches (though I made one that was slightly larger, too), require almost a whole side of a cereal box, while several of the smaller notebooks, which measure about 2-1/2 x 3-1/2 inches (adorable!), can be made from one box.  The size of the notebook is completely adjustable to your taste, though.

Natalie has all of the instructions you need for the project, so I won't reiterate the steps here; I'll just show you how cute all the little books came out so you will be motivated to dig out some cereal boxes from the recycling bin and have at it!

Instead of using scrapbook paper to cover the stitches in the spines, I used plastic-y electrical tape, and then prettied it up with decorative tapes from Cavallini.  (I thought the numbers and letters tapes looked appropriately school-like for my notebooks!)

Other than that, I think I followed Natalie's instructions exactly.  Using the corner-rounder punch, which she offered as an optional step, really did provide a much more finished professional look to each book.

And, of course, you could add any sort of rubber stamp, painted, drawn, or collaged decoration to the insides and/or outsides of the covers.  I left mine plain, for "cereal box chic."

The smaller notebooks are adorable, using a brad rather than a button for their closure. They are also super-simple, because you can use two staples to hold the paper in, rather than stitching with embroidery floss.  I didn't bother with electrical tape for these; I just used some decorative tape to cover up the staples on the spine. 

I collaged the covers with a piece of a vintage French coupon and a postage stamp.  I also made two Valentine-themed books for part of my daughters' Valentine's Day gifts.  The little ones have the round edges, too. 

These notebooks are seriously simple and fun to make, which make them a very satisfying project for someone like me, who enjoys pretty steady productivity!  Grab some empty cereal boxes and give it a try; I think you'll while away an evening before you know it.