New Products: Jar Embellishments.

I shared a little sneak peek of these new items over on Instagram last week - but in case you missed that wanted to share them here as well - and show a little more of the new items we now have available to dress up all your jar projects!

The first line is from Hampton Arts and is called Jar Jewelry - the pieces in the line range greatly - from metal jar lids, to pin cushions, to labels and other embellishments. The decorated lids are really great - and have a wide variety of designs with just this item!

We also have some new pieces from the Transform Mason line - the photo showing just a few - but include stencils, paint, etching cream, wood labels, and jar toppers for yarn and flower arranging.

You can find all of these pieces, along with the other components of the lines - in aisle 21.

Project Ideas: Mason Jars

I know we've shared a lot of project ideas in the past using Mason Jars - but today I have a couple new ideas you are going to LOVE.

First up are these Mason Jar Tumblers we created by adding chalkboard vinyl to the front of the jars, pattern paper to the lids and punching holes (and adding grommets) for a perfect fit for a fun paper straw. You can find a project sheet for these jars HERE.

We also now have jars available with pumps (in white, black, and cream) which can be used for soap, lotion, or even ketchup or mustard for your next get together - (or summer bbq if summer ever arrives here in Minnesota :) For these jars we painted them to show you how they would look if filled but the best part is how much a little key tag and gingham ribbon add to the piece. I think these jars are awesome!

Pebbles: Party line.

Today I have a second blog post to share with you - to show you some of the project ideas we have created using the new Pebbles Party line!

The line comes with four different themes: Mermaid, Super Hero, Rainbow, and Pool - all of which we have in store!! Each line comes with fun coordinating embellishments, stickers, paper bags, etc. We matched a few of these products with pieces we have available in store to create these fun party decorations and supplies!!

Goodie bags: we used the polka dot paper bags and stickers from the Super Hero line.

Cupcake toppers: we punched a scallop circle from a piece of pattern paper, added a layered sticker, attached them to a paper straw and added a piece of twine. This same idea would work with any four of the lines to decorate your cupcakes.

Glass Bottle: For this piece we just wrapped a few coordinating pieces of pattern paper around the bottle and embellished with some layered stickers.

Treat Bags: We filled a treat bag with Sixlets in a coordinating color for our tags. To create the tags we punched a circle from a piece of pattern paper and then added a sticker from the Super Hero line. We then added the tag (and closed the bag) using some blue twine.

Decorated Jars: For these pieces we wrapped twine around the jars and then embellished with a small clothespin and a sticker (you could also add a sticker with a name written in). For the straw decoration we just punched two holes in the stickers and placed the straw through them. We filled them with Sixlets for the display but obviously they would be great filled with a special birthday beverage.

Back to School.

We are down to only one week before the start of school! Are you ready?

I have the school clothes pretty much taken care of and the supplies all set to bring to open house - but I still have a few more projects I need to get done this week. Specifically, I need to put together a bulletin or magnetic board to keep us all on track as we get back into the swing of a new schedule. And I also plan on making a little something for each of my kids teachers for them to bring on the first day. If you are looking for ideas for either of these types of projects, today I have some fun project ideas to share with you!

First up, a few organizer board ideas. We created this bulletin board by painting one of our 12x12 frames and swapping out the glass with a 12x12 piece of cork board. Then we embellished with pattern paper from the We R Memory Keepers Hall Pass line and even made our own pins by gluing thumb tacks to the back of metal tag embellishments that coordinated with the paper line.

If you would prefer a magnetic board, Kristine created this adorable magnet board by placing a 12x12 metal sheet into a frame. She covered the metal with pattern paper and then embellished using paper from the My Mind's Eye 6x6 School themed paper pad. She created matching magnets by using glossy accents to adhere pattern paper (from the same line) to the backside of glass tiles and then adhering magnets to the back of the paper.

Here is another take on an organizer board. This board was created on a canvas and was altered by using vinyl, chalkboard paint and pattern paper. I love the addition of the decorated clips at the bottom of the canvas!

As I mentioned it is really easy to create your own magnets by adhering pattern paper to the backside of a glass tile using glossy accents and then gluing a magnet to the back of the pattern paper. Here are a few more magnet ideas that you could use for your own magnet board, or could be given as a teacher gift as well.

For these apple magnets, we punched circles of red cardstock and glued them to the back of the glass tile. Then we hand cut the stems from brown cardstock and leaves from green pattern paper and glued them to the front.

For these magnets, it is even more simple - we just found images that fit the tiles on pattern paper and punched them out and glued them on. These would be great to use just on a refrigerator to hold school papers or special pieces that are brought home!

Next, I wanted to share a few project ideas that would be perfect to create for those special teachers on the first day of school!

We created this apple treat box, by painting one of our paper mache boxes red, and then simply gluing this wood apple onto the front (which is already cut and painted). To add a bit more decoration we cut this "Back to School" tag from a piece of pattern paper and then attached it with a piece of red and white bakers twine. This would be great to fill with some treats or a few small school supplies - or even with a batch of apple magnets I shared above!  

 

Another idea is to embellish and fill one of our clear tubes with something fun for the teacher. We created a few sample ideas below:

 Or you could always fill up a Mason Jar with something fun too:

And one final idea, a teacher supply box. For this project we painted this divided wood box that you can find in our Beads & Basics department and then embellished with pieces from the We R Memory Keepers Hall Pass line and some ruler ribbon. We filled it with some fun office/school supplies, but of course you could also fill it with some treats for the teacher too.

 *To see some of our school themed projects from the past and other fun ideas we found online be sure to check out our Back to School Board on Pinterest too!

Have you created any organizer boards or teacher gifts to get ready for school? I would love to share them if you have!

Altered Candlesticks.

Finally, today I wanted to share a few different ideas on how to embellish/use/alter our standard wood candlesticks. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes - and can be altered in so many ways.

First, how about using them as photo holders. To create them we just painted the candlesticks and glued corks into the center and added a paper clip to hold the photos. Very easy!

Another way to alter a candlestick to display a photo is to attach one of our painting panels to a painted candlestick. With the extra space of the panel, your options on how to embellishment and alter the space for the photo increases, as do the possibilities on what you can do! A project sheet with specific instructions for this project can be found HERE.

Along the same lines, why not attach a plate to a painted candlestick, embellish with stickers and ric-rac ribbon and use it as a cupcake/dessert plate. Of course you could use the plate for other types of foods or even decorate with a home decor theme to display smaller items on a table or mantel.

And finally, I love the look of simply adding Mason Jars to the candlesticks, embellishing them with some raffia and a flameless tea light. A perfect decor piece of inside or out on a deck or patio too! A project sheet for this project can be found HERE.

Mason Jar Projects.

Mason Jars are definitely a hot thing this year!

Of course you can start by making a set of our Redneck Stemware glasses with the jars - but today I wanted to share with you some of the other Mason Jar projects we have come up with recently.

First we made a few wood wall hangings and shelves utilizing mason jars. These would be perfect to use for flowers, as shown - but would also work great in a bathroom to hold toothbrushes or in an office to hold pens and pencils too.

We also created some projects using the Mason Jars and pattern paper and embellishments. These would be great to use to store items, as candle holders, as drink cups, to gift a gift card, or even to use as a ice cream fund piggy bank :)

Finally, I also wanted to share these painted jars. With the endless number of colors available there are many options for this idea too...solid color, distressed color, or different colors inside and out - I love the finished look of these jars!

Dragonfly & Firefly Jars.

Today I want to share a few new samples we have created of our Dragonfly & Firefly Jars. These are such quick and easy projects - and can add such a fun element to your summer decorations inside or out!

You can find these samples and all the supplies to make your own on the endcap of aisle 21. A project sheet for the project can be found HERE as well.

Here is a video showing them in action too (the lights are the best part!)

Paint Projects.

Recently one of our very talented crafters, Sarah, completed some fun projects using a few paint products from our Beads and Basics department.

To create these project she used Porcelaine 150 Paint and Paint Markers, or Vitrea 160 Paint. Each of the projects below have a link to a project sheet which will indicate which type of paint she used, as well as give you instructions on how to create the project yourself!

There are definitely a few I want to make myself too (I'm loving the Happiness Frame and the My Stache Jar cracks me up :). Which ones are your favorites?

Blossom Mug

Altered Redneck Stemware

Decorated Glass Bottles

Painted Redneck Stemware

Go Twins Stemware

Happiness Float Frame

My Stache Jar

Painted Jar

Painted Tumbler

Polka Dot Stemware