Mouse House Pumpkin

Pumpkin (styrofoam) - $5.00 Walmart

Mice - pack of 8 $2.00 Walmart

Black Paint

Glue

Hollow out a hole in the pumpkin.

Paint the inside of the hole black.

Glue several mice on the pumpkin.

I chose to only make one hole in the pumpkin and use 3 mice,

but I'm sure it would be creepier with more mice scattered about.

I bet the pumpkin would look spooky painted white or black, too.

(you could use gray mice to put on your black pumpkin)

If you have any questions, feel free to email me!

I would LOVE to see your Mouse House Pumpkin!

Feel free to leave a link to yours in a comment.

Halloween Wreath 2010

Black Wreath - $3.99 Michael's

Purple Boa - $1.00 Dollar Tree

Skull - $1.00 Dollar Tree

Boo Chipboard Album - $1.00 Target

Narrow Ribbon

Plastic spider

Weave the feather boa into the inside of the wreath.

Attach the skull to the wreath with wire or hot glue.

Glue the pages of the album together then glue the spider on.

Pull ribbon through the holes of the album & tie a bow.

Attach the "Boo" to the wreath with hot glue.

You could use separate wooden or chipboard letters for the "Boo"

and a ghost, jackolantern, or goblin instead of the skull.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me!

I would LOVE to see your Halloween Wreath!

Feel free to leave a link to yours in a comment.

kid's art display tutorial

I wanted to find a simple yet decorative way to display Mason's artwork.  I knew

I would want to be able to change the art & didn't want to use tape or push pins.  

While in the office supply section of my local big box store the other day I saw

some cute mini clothes pins.  2 boxes of those little guys went home with me!

I knew exactly what I was going to do after looking at the various

wooden cutouts that are hanging up on his bedroom walls.

Here's what I used -

2 wooden cutouts

2 wooden knobs

Mini clothes pins

Ball of twine

Paint

E6000 glue

Command photo hangers

Paint the knobs to match your wooden cutouts.

After the paint is dry, glue the knobs to the cutouts.

Cut the twine about 3 feet long.  Make a loop &  knot on each end.

(make sure the loop is large enough to slip over the knob)

Place the photo hangers on the back of each cutout & on the wall.

Use the mini clothes pins to hang your baby's art on the wall!

Change as often as you like without ruining the wall!

Mod Podge Canvas Art

This year I absolutely loved the picture on the giftbag my hubby received for father's
day.  I couldn't bear to throw it away, so I decided I would mount it on canvas.

Supplies -

11 x 14 canvas

Mod Podge

Paint

Picture

I painted the whole canvas a color that complimented the picture.  I wasn't completely
happy with the results, so I pulled out my floating medium & mixed it with a darker
shade of the blue I had used.  I applied that mixture with a dry brush from left to right,
right to left, top to bottom, then finally bottom to top until I achieved a faux denim pattern.
(the canvas now looks like a comfy pair of worn out blue jeans - yay!)

After the paint was dry, I applied a liberal layer of mod podge onto the canvas.
I centered the picture on the canvas and made sure I pressed it down firmly.
I then applied another liberal layer of mod podge over the picture & canvas.
(be sure to let your mod podge dry completely before displaying)

(you can click on the picture to enlarge it & see the faux denim)

I saved a super cute picture from the trash and have a new
piece of wall art that I'm totally loving right now!

Do you have a giftbag or greeting card that you just can't throw away?

3D Flower Art

I've been adding accents in red around my home lately.

I wanted something a little bit different to place on the

table (that I'm refinishing) by the front door with red in it.

On one of my visits to the Dollar Tree, I bought some

deep red flowers that I knew I would use sooner or later.

I also picked up a frame & 1/2 yard burlap while cruising 

the (so called) craft section in our local big box store.

This is what I came up with...

Supplies -

1 16 x 7 frame - $5 (paint it if you don't like the color)

Flowers - $1 (I had 4 flower heads left over)

Burlap - $1.24 per 1/2 yard (I had plenty left over)

Glue

Glue Gun

Thin Cardboard (I used an old priority mail envelope)

Scissors or Rotary Cutter

Marker or Pen

Remove the glass from your frame because you won't need it.

Cut a piece of cardboard & burlap to fit the frame.

Glue the burlap to the cardboard.

Find the center of your burlap & mark it,

then find the center from the mark to the end

of your burlap (on both sides) & mark.

Take your flower heads off of the bush & also

remove the plastic piece from the back of the flower.

Hot glue the flower heads to the burlap on your 3 marks.

Put your creation in the frame, then stand back & admire!  =)

p.s. I can't wait to show you my new (old) cabinet!

Tackle It Tuesday - Sunflower Wreath

Today I decided I wanted to make another new wreath for my front door.

The weather is starting to feel like summer & my current wreath didn't feel summer-y!  

This one qualifies as "Dollar Tree Decor" even though the

flower and ribbon did not come from the Dollar Tree!

Supplies -

18" wreath $1.00

9" Sunflower $2.50

3 yards ribbon $1.55

Take the flower & leaves off the stem

Wrap the ribbon evenly around the wreath and glue in place

Then take your hot glue gun & glue the flower head to the wreath

Now glue the leaves behind the flower

This wreath SCREAMS summertime to me!

Motivation Monday - Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle

When the shirt I ordered to wear Easter morning came,

I was a bit surprised at how long it was.  Not sure if they

sent the tall size or if the shirt was just made long.  I

ended up cutting off 3 inches.  Of course, I set aside the

fabric instead of tossing it!  It only took a few minutes for

me to decide what I was going to do with it.

I grabbed a dollar tree wreath, 2 flowers off of a 6 foot

floral garland that cost $2.50, and my hot glue gun.

I wrapped the fabric around the wreath & glued it to the back.

I glued the flowers in place and hung the wreath on the wall!

Probably the easiest (and cheapest) wreath I have ever made!

So stop & think how you can use that piece of

scrap fabric before you toss it in the trash can.

Motivation Monday - Moss Topiary

I'm ready to start making some fresh, new decor

for my home.  I have been scanning blogs for weeks

now and have found the inspiration that I needed!

Item List -

Ceramic Pot - $1.00

4" Foam Ball - $1.25

Bag of Moss - $1.00

(I only used about 1/4 of the bagged moss)

Ceramic Bird - $1.00

Paint (on hand)

Ribbon (on hand)

Stick (from the yard)

Sand & Gravel (from the yard)

Glue gun & Glue sticks

First thing I did was paint my little ceramic bird off white.

(forgot to take his before picture)

While the paint dried on my birdie, I filled my ceramic pot

with gravel, sand.  Take your stick and center it your

ceramic pot.  Cover your sand with the bagged moss.
(You can also use foam in the pot instead of gravel & sand.)

Next time I will paint the white foam ball a

dark green or will buy a green foam ball!

Start gluing your moss to the foam ball.

Take your foam ball and push it down onto the stick, then remove it.

Shoot a little dab of hot glue into the hole and place the ball back on the stick.

Tie a ribbon around the stick and place your little birdie next to your pot.

I found all my supplies except the foam ball at the Dollar Tree.

Any question?  Feel free to send me an email!  =)

Quick Easter Wreath

Did you forget to dress up your front door for Easter?

Well, make a quick trip to your local Dollar Tree

and pick up a $1 straw wreath.  Then, raid your
little one's Easter Basket & grab some fake

green grass and 5 or 6 plastic eggs.

Hot glue the grass & eggs to your wreath form,

then glue some more grass in between your eggs...

Tada...Quick Easter Wreath!