the transformation of the magnet and can lid

Okay, I know it's June - June 2 to be exact.  I know I'm supposed to reveal my seventh craft till Christmas.  (I'm pretty excited about it, and I can't wait to share it with you.)  I know I haven't even officially wrapped up my eighth craft till Christmas.  (I do have my mail bag tute almost ready to share.) And I blame all of these delays on Fawnda and Jeannine of Fireflies and Jellybeans and their addicting Iron Craft Challenge.  They've challenged readers to create a unique craft with a secret ingredient.  For this round of the challenge the secret ingredient . . . wait for it . . . cans. 

Every time I see a soda can, a can of black beans or mushrooms, a baking soda can, any can at all, the only thing I can think about is, "What can I turn that into?"  So I have two more can-related things to post about.  And then I'm promising myself (and you) to put cans behind me and move on to the goal at hand . . . after all, Christmas is only seven months away.  There are gifts to be made.   

But for now, back to cans.

Today, we're going to turn those ugly old magnets on your fridge (everyone has them . . . you know the magnets from the bank, the medical clinic, the take-out place down the street that you never go to) into unique, personal, cute and useful magnets. 

Beside those magnets, grab:
-scraps of scrapbook paper and card stock
-other random scrapbook embellishments you have left over
-glue, glue-dots and a glue gun
-and . . . can lids from the cans in your recycling bin*
*Thanks to Jill at Creating My Way to Success for pointing out that I use a safe-edge can opener that removes the entire lid (including the rim) to create safe edges on both the lid and can that are not sharp.  This would not be a good project for lids that are removed with a top-open can opener.  If you don't have one of these, I totally recommend getting one.  They are easier, safer and more hygienic than traditional can openers.  (Plus, you can use them for fun crafts like this :) . . . bonus!)  

Isn't that great?  Only four things and you probably have them all on hand.  This couldn't be easier!

1)  Trace your can lids onto the paper or picture you will use for the background.

2)  Cut out circles and trim a bit to fit into can lid.  Paper would probably stay because the rim holds it in a bit, but to secure it use a few glue dots to affix paper to can lid.

3)  Embellish with other items.

4)  If your magnets are larger than the can lid, cut them to fit the lid.  Hot glue magnets to back of lid.  (Make sure you are not hot gluing the magnetized side of the magnet.)

5)  Ta Da!  Ready for display on your fridge!

Craft on!

monday's buttons: week 2

Welcome to week 2 of Monday's Buttons.  I'm so excited to show off three very different buttons this week.  But first, I have to address a question about my own button that a few readers have asked me, "What in the world is that yellow thing on your button?"  Wow!  That question put a little chink in that initial feeling of success I first felt by actually figuring out how to make a button all by myself.  But I'm tough, and I can take a little helpful criticism. :)  So . . . for those who are wondering, that yellow thing on my blog button is supposed to be a star on top of a Christmas tree.  Keep in mind: I'm not a blog designer and I've never ever used GIMP before.  (Using GIMP, by the way, was more difficult than child-birth.  And I've endured 18 hours of labor, emergency surgery and a blood transfusion, so that's saying something.  Too much information?)

Okay, on to some buttons I've admired this past week.

I have to be honest, when I spotted this first button, I was just interested in the button.  I e-mailed Kristi, the blog's creator.  Then after I read her reply, I actually went back to her blog and read it.  I'm hooked.  Check out The Speckled Dog and you will be too.  Here's what Kristi had to say about her button:

"My husband made my blog buttons for me. I told him basically what I wanted and he created them. I wanted something simple that tied in to my blog name (the dots) and I wanted it to stand out. Most other buttons for this type of blog are pastels and sometimes seem to have a lot going on in such a small space. The black and white not only stands out among all of those pastel colors, but it also ties in to my blog name. I've never seen a pastel speckled dog! ha ha!"

This is what Kristi's husband, Charles, had to say about the details:

"We used Adobe Fireworks. The idea was to use something high contrast to make it 'pop' and instead of confining the content to the borders of the image, to allow the circles to play beyond the boundaries, giving a sense of depth. Most buttons seem 'flat and square' so we tried to break that up a bit.  The same idea was applied to the @ symbol but to emphasize 'AT the speckled dog' .. i.e. a web destination."

The Speckled Dog caught my eye because it is a stand out graphic, but this next blog button for Running with Scissors caught my eye because of it's adorable background photo.  I wondered what the significance of the picture was, and my momma always told me that it never hurts to ask a question . . . so I did.  This is what Jessica had to say about her adorable blog button:

1) What do you like best about your button?
I probably like the photo, it's my son in his Halloween costume for his 2nd Halloween when he was 18months old. He's Max from Where the Wild Things Are. Out of all my photos I've posted on my blog, this one has always been a favorite. I wanted to use a photo from my projects, mainly because I don't have graphic design skills to make an original graphic, but I wanted the button to show something I've made and give you a taste of what you'd see if you chose to click on the button.

2) Did you craft it yourself or did you commission/inspire someone else to craft it for you? If you crafted it, what program/software did you use?
I edited the photo and added the text using the basic Adobe Photoshop Elements. A friend offered to make it a button and emailed me the code to make it available on my sidebar.

3) What do you think is the most important thing about a blog button?

I like blog buttons that give you an idea of what you would find on the blog, and keep things simple as far as adding a lot of text.

And finally, let's take a look at the button for Simple, Sweet Inspiration authored by AJ.  I can't put my finger on it, but something about this button caught my eye.  Words that come to mind are clean . . .organic . . . fresh.   

1) What is your blog about?

My blog is a mix of mommy blog meets crazy woman blog. I write on themes, memes, post pictures and crafts. I also randomly toss in creative writing in the mix too.

2) How do you think your button reflects your blog?

I chose the hemp in the basket because it reflects my obsession with hemp... and the earthy feeling of my life. I am down-to-earth, simple and peaceful... hemp feels that way to me.

3) Did you craft your own button or did you commission/inspire someone else to craft it? If you crafted it, what program/software did you use?I did make my own button, header, layout and all. I use two free programs. Primarily I use Paint.net, but also enjoy using GIMP. Both are free online.


Thanks to AJ, Kristi and Jessica for sharing a bit about your buttons.  Go take a look at the blogs behind the buttons to be even more inspired and . . .

craft on!

soda cans + scraps = unique jewelry

Did you know that you can sew through soda cans?  Of course YOU did.  I didn't.  That's no surprise to you if you are a regular reader . . . by now you know that I seem to know very little about crafty things. 

When Fawnda and Jeannine at Fireflies and Jellybeans announced that the very first secret ingredient for the very first Iron Crafter was going to be recycled cans, my brain was full of ideas - impractical and time-consuming ideas.  At the same time, my wandering eye for jewelry reared its ugly head.  You see, I go through these phases of jewelry lust - not diamond-precious stone-expensive jewelry lust . . . just cheap, mass-produced, poorly made jewelry lust.  There is no warning.  Nothing to prepare me against these urges.  I go to bed one night completely normal.  I wake up the next day desiring a bangle, a ring, an anklet - something fun to spice up an old wardrobe.

So . . . I decided to pair the Iron Crafter competition with my sudden jewelry lust.  And this pairing could not be cheaper, easier or cuter.  

Go to your recycle bin, your scrap pile and your button bin and grab:
-a soda can
-coordinating or contrasting scraps
-a button (for bangle and anklet)
-a 3 or 4 inch piece of thin elastic (use 3 inches for bangle and 4 inches for anklet)
-1/4 inch double bias tape (for bangle and anklet)

First, let's work on a bangle or anklet . . . oh . . . just do both.

1)  Cut a strip from the soda can to desired width.  (To cut a soda can, create a slit with a knife.  Then use wiggle scissors in and cut like paper.  This is fairly easy.)

2)  Cut strips of fabric scraps long enough to wrap around the soda can and overlap on the inside.  I used various widths of fabric scraps.

3)  Loop elastic strip and sew it (yes, with a sewing machine) to one end of the soda can.  I went back a forth three or four times to make the elastic loop very secure.  I know it looks super ugly, but we're going to cover that up so don't worry about it. 

4)  Take one strip of fabric.  Place it on the other end and sew on the button going through both the can and the fabric strip.  Put the button far enough away from the end of the can so that a piece of double piece tape will fit over the end.  (Make sure the needle is solid.  Flimsy needles may bend during this process.)

5)  Use Modge Podge and paint brush affix fabric to can.  With each strip added, paint the Modge Podge directly on the can first, wrap fabric strip around can so that fabric overlaps on the inside/underside the fabric first, and cover strip in Modge Podge.  Keep adding strips this way all the way to the other end of the can.  Try to line up the inside overlap seam.  Don't worry about the white, gluey Modge Podge look.  It will dry clear.

6)  The last strip added should cover up the elastic ends.  Make sure it's wide enough to line up almost exactly with the end of the can.

7)  Cut two pieces of double bias tape the same length as each can end.

8)  Line the inside of the double bias tape with fabric glue.  Place over each end.  Cover liberally with Modge Podge.

9)  Let dry.

Well, I was planning on showing off the ring tutorial as well, but I'm tired and there's always more blogging to be done tomorrow . . . so that will have to wait.  For now, enjoy your new, cheap inexpensive and unique anklet and bangle - a cure for any jewelry lust you've had lately.

It's not too late to join the Iron Crafter.  Look at the tins cans you have in your recycle bin, be inspired and . . .

craft on! 


*I also linked this to Make It Wear It.

fabric mail: put a stamp on it

A few years ago when I sent out birth announcements proclaiming to my 70 closest friends and family members that our second addition had arrived safely into the world, I forgot one very important thing on each super cute announcement . . . stamps.  Yeah, did you know that the post office kind of requires those?    

Have you ever done that?  To be honest, I'm surprised I've only done it once . . . well, 70 times I guess, but I only count it as once.  :)

As you may (or may not) know, I've been working hard on the mail - letters, envelopes, postcards (no-sew & sewing required) - for my eighth craft till Christmas, the pretend and play mail carrier kit.  I finished two fabric mailboxes and an assortment of mail. 

I have also begun work on two mail carrier bags - which I will have a tutorial on soon.  But I could not make any more progress on my two bags until this final detail was taken care of for the mail . . . stamps.

These are easy and hardly require a tutorial, but well, I'm a little obsessed with tutorials so here is a mini tute. 

Grab stuff:

-scraps that match or contrast with envelopes and postcards

-double-sided fusible interfacing
-Velcro - heat fusing or regular . . . either way, we're going to sew it on
-pinking shears (Did you know these are not all pink?  Did you know that there is a difference between shears and scissor?  Of course you did.  I didn't.  And yes, I am THAT new to sewing.)

1)  Take two scraps.  Sandwich the fusible interfacing in between scraps and fuse using package directions.  (As you can see, I didn't even take the time to square up scraps with interfacing.  Yes, I am THAT lazy!) 

2)  Use pinking shears to cut out little squares or rectangles about the same size as a postage stamp.  Don't do this until fabric is completely cool!  I learned this the hard way.

3)  Cut Velcro into little squares or rectangles that are smaller than the stamps and fuse one side of the pair onto each stamp.  Keep the other side for envelopes and postcards.

4)  After Velcro/stamp has completely cooled, sew around Velcro to secure in place.  This makes the stamp part super secure.  As I was playing around with the Velcro on the envelopes and stamps, I found that the Velcro seemed to pull away from the stamp as I took it on and off.  It didn't pull away from the envelope though, so I only added the extra security of sewing the Velcro on the stamp.  (Wow!  That was a super-long explanation for something you could have figured out on your own.)  I sewed them all in a row and then cut them apart.  A nice tip from a sewing friend that saves time and thread.

5)  Fuse other side of Velcro pair to envelopes and postcards.  After these cooled, I also went around the edges with super amazing fabric glue to give it a little more security.  I let it dry.  It dried clear and upheld against me slapping on and ripping off the stamps over and over again. 

6) Done and done!

Now I can move on to the mail carrier bags, but not right now . . . long weekend begins now.  Woo hoo!  I'll be back here on Sunday.  Have a great weekend and . . . 

craft on!