The Great Handmade Heist and Later This Week

I'm back for another creative-filled week after spending a several days crafting with one of my very best friends. I see a trend here, and I'm okay with that! 

I will show you what we were up to later this week as well as some more goodies that I need to catch up on:

Last week for Makers Gonna Make Monday I told you about CLICKforbabies.org.

And I've found another great cause created by crafters to share with you this week!

There are SO many different crafting auctions on Instagram that raise money for adoptions... both international and local. 

But this is something different... and I am just loving the creativity put into it.

Have you ever been to a Murder Mystery Dinner Party? 

(If you haven't you totally should!!)

Well, The Great Handmade Heist is the cousin to those dinner parties... in a totally amazing way! 

Once registered, clues will be given out to figure out where all of the missing crafts have gone! And if you figure out who the craft stealer was you win over $500 in amazing products from some of my favorite Instagram crafters. 

The cost of registration goes to the adoption of a sweet little boy AND you get a FREE t-shirt that is totally adorable. 

To find out more details about The Great Handmade Heist, click here. 

Creatively Yours, 

Audra

DIY Mixed Media Wall Art

Tonight's DIY is a Mixed Media Wall Art that you can make totally your own! 

Let me show you what I mean...

To start off with, I was actually inspired by a tutorial my mom found on Pinterest. 

She took that tutorial to guide her to make a great piece for their bedroom. 

I'm so proud of her!

I, on the other hand, took it and made it totally my own... Wild and crazy. 

The whole reason I went down a different road with this project was because I fell in love with the scrapbook paper! Which surprisingly wouldn't be a normal choice for me, so I went with it before I changed my mind!

Here's how I did it! Feel free to use it as a guide to make it your own.

All the materials were purchased from Michael's: 

Canvas

Wood plaque

Scrapbook paper

Modge Podge

Wood scroll

Felt

Hot glue gun

Paint & Spray paint

The first step was to trace the scrapbook paper to match the size of the wood plaque.

You simply turn the wood and scrapbook paper over and use a pencil to trace the very inside of the plaque groove. 

It may not end up perfect due to the tracing, but that's okay!

Before gluing on the paper, the rest of the wooden plaque that will still be showing needs to be spray painted. Remember: thin coats!

While the spray paint is try, you can work on getting the background canvas painted with acrylic paint!

You will notice that I didn't paint the middle of the canvas... no need to waste paint on something that will be completely cover! 

Also, I loved using the black paint! There was only need for ONE coat, which is a miracle.

Once you have the wooden scroll spray painted you are set to start attaching the pieces.

Handy Dandy Modge Podge! My favorite is the one made for paper... I haven't had much success with the others. 

Once again, it's all in the thin coats! 

I put it on the paper first and the laid it on the wood. Then I went back to add more to the corners to really adhere it. 

May be hard to see, but it's not perfectly even... and that's okay!

The perfectionist is learning!!! (or relaxing)

Now, in the tutorial and my mom's project they used a monogram letter.

It turns out super cute, but I'm just not a fan of monograms. 

Instead, I wanted to do something different. At first I wanted to use the word "create," but then I figured out it really wouldn't fit on the board right. 

So instead, I decided to recreate one of the flowers on the scrapbook paper out of felt!

This is where some people call me crazy, I'm more of a free hander than an exact science kind of girl... so I just started cutting things out and laying the colors down. 

I used the flower in the top left corner above to be my guide for recreating the flower. 

I got the whole flower done in the basic shape using half circles...

And then I went back and rounded them off more to better match the paper. 

(See the petal directly under the center)

Ta-Done! Well, maybe not. I decided it wasn't 3D enough and I wanted to add more of a border to the flower...

So I added the white felt underneath each petal. 

Just glue the pink piece down on the white felt using a hot glue gun and then cut it out with a little extra white for the border. 

All laid out and ready to go!

Use the hot glue gun to glue it all together one layer at a time. 

When the flower was done it was time to attach it all together using a hot glue gun! YAY!

First was the wooden scroll attached to the scrapbooked wooden plaque... 

Then the flower was added...

And then it was all glued onto the canvas! 

Here you can see the complete project on my parent's wall for some quick pictures. 

A side picture to show you the little 3D-ness this project has!

I believe I will be putting it on a crisp, white wall in the craft room!

Hopefully you enjoyed this wild and crazy rendition of a subtle monogram wall art. 

Remember, you can always find an amazing project and still MAKE IT YOUR OWN!!

Creatively Yours, 

Audra

CLICK for Babies and Later This Week

Sorry about being AWOL last Thursday and Friday! 

Sometimes you just have to make the time for friends who are basically family when you don't get to see them very often.

Don't worry though, I have some great stuff for you this week:

I would love it if you could make it back for everyday, but hopefully you see at least one day you will be coming back for!

Today I want to tell you about a cause I JUST found out about. 

It's called CLICK for Babies. 

They help to educate parents about the Period of PURPLE crying with newborns: 

It's pretty simple. Volunteers knit or crochet hats (with at least 50% purple yarn) and turn them into their local drop off. The hats will then be taken to hospitals where new parents can pick out a hat for their newborn... after learning about 

Shaken Baby Syndrome. 

I've seen the ramifications of SBS first hand and I will do anything to help prevent it from ever happening... that's why I plan on picking up some soft, purple yarn tomorrow!

Not only are they cute, but it's for a very important cause. 

If you know how to knit or crochet, go for it! 

If you don't, it really is simple to learn and caps would be a great start. 

I know basic knitting, but have never made a cap before. So to start off, I think I will commit to one hat a month... and if I get really good at it, perhaps one a week. 

(And while I'm at it I will teach myself to crochet too!)

How many would you commit yourself to? 

For more information please visit, CLICKforbabies.org

They also have some great patterns there!

See you tomorrow.
Creatively Yours, 

Audra

WILW: Glue Gun Stand, Hair Products, and Say Goodbye to Survival Mode

It's the first ever What I Like Wednesday!

1) Crafting Supplies 

There's no denying I love me some hot glue gun! 

And there's nothing worse than melting the styrofoam plate you rest it on or getting it stuck to a paper plate. 

So here is the best invention ever!

A HOT GLUE GUN STAND!

If glue drips onto the tile it simply peels off, no mess!

Click HERE to go the the Esty listing where I got my stand customized... 

which is Emerald Green, of course!!

2) Everyday Living 

If you know me at all, you know I have oodles and gobs of hair! 

I've been using some new hair products the last couple months that have made a huge difference in this mess of hair I have and the best part is most of them are super cheap. 

Herbal Essences' Blow Dry Prep Mist not only smells amazing but it really makes your hair feel super soft after blow drying it. I think it also takes less time to blow dry my hair when I use this stuff... which is a huge deal for me since mine can take up to 30 minutes from start to finish. Ridiculous, right?! At least I get some good reading done. 

Their detangling spray is just as important otherwise I'm fighting a battle that can't be won. And it smells good too! Both of these products run $3 or less, I believe. 

I am in L-O-V-E with this shampoo and conditioner. The first reason for choosing this brand was the smell... coconut!! Can't get enough. I originally got the Coconut Milk set, but it was just too thick for my hair. Being that I have super thick, course hair already that clings on to everything it just didn't work for me. I was bummed but I went back to look for a different kind and I came across the Coconut Water with WEIGHTLESS HYDRATION. Let me say it again, WEIGHTLESS HYDRATION. Ahhhhh. It's perfect. And for the price of $5.50 each, it can't be beat. 

And the last one is from It's a 10. I only use this Miracle Hair Mask every Sunday. Yes, your hair needs a day of relaxation and revitalization too. It really gives my hair that fresh new feeling every time I use it. Soft, smooth, detangled, and pH balance... read the label for all the other fun stuff it does. It is pricer at about $25, but using it only once a week really pays off! Trust me. 

All hair care products can be found out your local Wally World.
Or Wal-Mart for those who aren't up with our family lingo. 

3) Reading or Blogging 

I am a reader, but just recently got into books that could be considered "Self-Help" or just Get-Your-Life-Together-Already-Audra. I just finished up this one last week, and I ate up every word she put down on the page. 

When I get overwhelmed with too much to do... I simply don't do a darn thing. (Ask my mom, it drives her crazy!) This book really helped me break down my problem areas of life like when you say yes to something you have to say no to something else. I have already implemented a morning routine and weekly goals, and let me tell you it works! 

I think this will be one that I reach for off my shelf for a long time coming... until I have it memorized. 

Definitely a must read that are a little overworked, frazzled, and want to restore passion in their life!

Hope you enjoyed this first installment of What I Like Wednesdays. Let me know what you think or if you have questions on any of the above! Better yet, let me know if you have something different that could help me and all of my other readers! 

Stay tuned tomorrow for a big announcement about where my heart is going with this journey! 

Creatively Yours, 

Audra 

DIY Monochromatic Dino Jars

Welcome back!

Today I will be showing you all how to make Monochromatic Dino Jars for our first DIY of Summer 2014. 

This is a great project to do to create storage for your kids using their old toys or...

for the fun loving adult that still loves them some Land Before Time. 

Okay, maybe that's just me. 

Either way, it's an easy way to create some cute storage for any room in the house! 

So here it goes...

You will need: 

- small plastic animals of your choice

- Mason Jars

- spray paint of your choice

- plastic storage caps (optional)

The first step is to spray paint the toys the color you have chosen! 

For full coverage COVER them well on all six sides. 

Yes, the left side, right side, front side, back side, top, and underneath. 

Also make sure you follow the directions on the can on how long to wait in between coats.

If you are impatient like me, you may end up with sticky Dinos if you don't let coats dry long enough between the next one. 

See super cute!

Next up is the lids. You have a couple choices here. 

I chose to buy the white plastic storage caps for $3.50. 

They just looked so much crisper and I didn't have to worry about spray painting them to match! Win, win.

If you go this route just make sure the width of the lid matches the jars you have.

Your other choice is to use the lids that come with the Mason Jars and spray paint them to match the color you chose for your Dinos, or other toys. 

We are almost done already! 

The last step is gluing the Dinos to the lids. 

I used this Super Glue because it said that it works best on plastic and would be completely clear when it dries. 

You just simply put TINY dots on their feet and let them settle. 

Now, I wasn't very impressed with how sturdy they are on the lids... but it still got the job done for me. If you are using this projects for kids, I would definitely suggest something like a hot glue gun or even Gorilla Glue to really make them stay in place. 

As always, be careful of the glue drips... unless you like peeling off your fingerprints.

TADA!

What I love about Mason Jars is that there are many different sizes, but most have the same size of mouth on the top. So you could get these plastic caps and use the bigger jars for even more storage!

I hope that you find this project as fun as I did! 

I plan on using these for storage for craft supplies on my pegboard organizer... which is another fun project I can't wait to share!

What would you put in your fun new Mason Jars? 

Please let me know! :)

And I leave you with the laughing T-Rex. 

Creatively Yours, 

Audra