A Bouquet of Freshly Cut Hearts!

Here's a fun, easy craft idea you can do with your kids for Valentine's day... Make a bouquet of freshly cut hearts! Simply cut hearts out of differently colored and patterned papers, then make 2 slices in the centers.

Slide the hearts onto a skewering stick. Repeat until you have enough hearts and sticks to make a full bouquet. You can also tape together some of the skewers to make some hearts taller than others. We made several of each. You could also use popsicle sticks, or make a miniature bouquet with toothpicks.

Place them in a vase (if you stab the skewers into styrofoam and put it at the bottom of the vase, the hearts stay put, but it isn't necessary) and put them out on display! Add a little note from little hands, and you're done. :)

They could be used for your child's class valentine party, a teacher's gift - or in our case, a fun surprise for Daddy or Grandma. These are also a great little idea for simple home decorating.

Happy Valentine's Day y'all!

Mix up some Laundry soap!

Help with laundry is GREAT... but sometimes the "helpers" use too much soap or laundry booster.  Yes I have to use the laundry booster to get the clean smell. 

So, I mix the two!

It is a two to one ratio.  Two parts soap, one part laundry booster.

In the end, I only have to scoop from one bucket and I get just the right amound of everything.

Happy nose.... the laundry smells springtime fresh.  I have made my own laundry soap in the past.  Stay tuned for a post on that one.

Tara

Pot Rack from Art?

YES!! 

Go to your favorite home decor store 

and buy 1-2 metal wall-art pieces.

If you buy two, bolt them together.  

Hang from "s" hooks and chain segments.

Make sure you use ceiling anchors for your eyebolts 

to secure them. 

Use more "s" hooks to hang the pots.

And Voila! 

POT RACK!!

I'd been wanting a pot rack since I moved in, but I couldn't find exactly the right one. I wanted a HUGE pot rack, but it seemed that all the the ones I could find were tiny. As you can see, I have a substantial island in my kitchen, and I needed a pot rack to match.

 So, the idea came to me that I needed to look beyond the kitchen to find my solution. And there it was... staring me in the face.

Wall Art = Pot Rack

I absolutely love it, and use it every day!

Leather Peter Pan Collar -

I have been so inspired by the fun little accessory that has become very popular.  The Peter Pan Collar necklace.  Looking at all of the styles that are out there, finding exactly what I wanted escaped me.  Well, this caused the little voice in my head to say...you can do that!

That is exactly what happened.  I drew up a pattern, used some scrap leather and some jewelry embellishments.  Viola.  New statement piece.  Love how lightweight it turned out and  the simplicity of it. 

If you want to do this project, instructions and the pattern for this Peter Pan Collar of Leather are at www.whimsyfunk.com.  Or click here for the link to the pattern. 

-Tara
Bring a bit of whimsy to your funky world.

Easy Altered Belt Tutorial

This belt came too long for me. So I decided to try my luck at shortening it. 

After all, how hard could it be? The buckle part is made of vinyl, not leather.

So this is how I did it... First I carefully picked out the stitching holding the  

buckle to the belting (which by the way is stretchy elastic). 

One thing that might make that easier is once you get it started, try to pick it out 

between the vinyl and the belting instead of on the outside. 

 So this is what mine looked like once I had taken it apart.

Then measure carefully and cut off the belting. 

 Stuff the belting back into the buckle end.

Make sure the edges are neatly tucked in...nothing hanging outside.

 Topstitch, following the exact seam line that you picked out.

 And there you have it.

A few simple steps and your belt fits! Yeah!

And no one will be the wiser that you shortened your belt yourself.

Cheap & Easy Card Making Idea - Turn Boring Foil Cards Into Fabulous Foil Cards

Want a beautiful, thrifty and easy card making idea? Here are a few simple techniques you can use to turn foil cards with a matte background into fabulous works of art. 

These cards are so easy to make and they don't take long either!

I found these simple beauties for $1 with 20 cards in it - a dollar! My sisters were throwing me a baby shower so couldn't pass them up. They even had the little feet!! Ah, but I digress. 

I had the perfect plan for them.

Step 1: I started by "grunging" the edges, giving them a modern, worn look. All you need is to scrape your card against your ink pad for this technique. 

For a swiped look, drag the edges of your card across the ink pad. For the spotted/denim/vintage type look, simply press your card into the ink pad without swiping it.

 I like to use 2 different colors to give it depth. Although a monochromatic color scheme can look fabulous too! 

(Tip: always start with your lightest colored ink)

 

Step 2: You can see that the words don't quite pop. So I grabbed my sponge, patted it in the ink, and pressed using a swirling motion just around the words. 

Step 3: Cool as that was, I wasn't done. I wanted to have more of a watercolor look to it. So I lightly sprayed the sponge (that still had ink in it by the way)...

 ...and made short swiping strokes across the center foil words. 

Continue to swipe across the rest of the card until the color runs out. Repeat as often as you like - but remember, not too much water or your card will warp!

 

And this is what you get - unique, artistic cards that only took a minute to make!

 And of course, I couldn't leave it alone! After making a few of one color, I had to make a few in another color! After all, there were 20 in the box.

If you try out this little card making idea, come back and tell us about it. We'd love to see what you did!

Remember to play with it. Have fun! That's part of the joy of making cards. :)

Enjoy!

Pressed Penny!

 Have you ever pressed a penny.  You know, from one of those machines that smash an image into a penny and makes it into an oval.  

I have a bunch from years of making the cheep little souvenirs.  Now, I was left with a big bunch of penny's that had been stretched.  I took those little mementos and made a bracelet.  I really like the way it turned out!

To see more about this little project, go to www.whimsyfunk.com. 

 So, what do you think?

     -Tara