Jen Bowles Design

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 14, Love Monster

Hard to believe, but today is the final day of my '14 Days of Handmade Valentine Projects' series!  Thanks so much for checking in, hope you're enjoying the projects and gleaning some inspiration as well!

One of my kids' favorite sayings is 'Save the best for last'.  While I'm not sure this is my best project, it is the softest, cuddliest and maybe the cutest~a Valentine Love Monster ♥.

And yes, there was plenty of Pin-spiration for this project including these adorable softies:

Source: etsy.com via Jen on Pinterest

Source: emmallamb.blogspot.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

It took me about an hour to put together, using my usual hand-cut, no pattern, learn as you go method.  I had all the fabrics on hand including the pink chenille, the super soft dotted pink minky, and the assorted pink and red fabric scraps.

I meant to stuff the ears but when I turned things inside out I realized I had sewn a seam right along the opening.  Oh well, at least they are right side out and in the right place!  They stick up on their own anyway...

I also used several different attachment methods including fast grab glue, hot glue, straight and zig zag machine stiching along with hand stitching.

I must say, he's awfully endearing, sitting around on the hot pink pom-pom throw, looking all sweet.  He might just need some friends...

Thanks for stopping by and do let me know if you have any questions about any of the projects!

 

 

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 10, Valentine Fish Trio

When you think of Valentine's Day, of course you think of...fish, right??  Me too, that's why I created this trio of Valentine fish!

The thing is, I love whimsical fish--they are so much cuter than the actual fish remains we often find on the beach during the summer.  I also love the art of  the talented Catherine Thursby of Red Shoes.  Months ago, I pinned this fish created she created from scrap wood.

Source: redshoesllc.typepad.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

Hello inspiration!

Now, I could've used wood for my fish.  But I didn't. Instead, I used a different, easily cut with scissors material...

Yep, I just sort of went to town cutting out cardboard shapes, painting them and gluing them together.
  I love the dimension and all the little extras like glitter, wire and ball fringe that were so easy and fun to incorporate.      

I also love how lightweight these fish are.  Mine are adhered to the wall with poster putty.    

So fun, so easy, a great project to do with kids!  Maybe not my kids--can you believe my teenage daughter rolled her eyes at me when I suggested we make Valentine fish the other day when she had a friend over??  It would've been a different story if she was 7.  Or had even more teenage friends over.  Then I'd surely have them crafting up a whole school of these love-ly fish!

Wishing you a great weekend,

Linking up (still trying to get the hang of this!) to:

Friday Flair at WhipperBerry

Tip Me Tuesday at Tip Junkie

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 9: Upcycled Sweater Heart

Today's project is quick, easy and cute.

Here's my "pin-spiration" photo:

Source: bloomsburyloft.blogspot.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

Ingredients: thrifted sweater, stuffing, puff balls, wire, ribbon, and book text.

The sweater I used for this heart didn't have very much wool in it so it isn't particularly "felted" though it was washed and dried at least twice.  No matter, it was the right color so I used it.

After cutting out two heart shapes from the sweater material, I used the sewing machine to stitch them together, leaving a small opening.  Then I stuffed with polyfil and machine stitched the opening closed.  All done, time to embellish.

Wire works very easily as a hanger, just poke it through the sweater and twist a few times to secure.  Instead of the flowers used in the inspiration project, I used little puff balls from my favorite yarn to give a polka dot effect.  The finishing touch was a sheer ribbon bow, with a little message cut from book text.

This stuffed sweater heart is now hanging from a knob on one of my kitchen cabinets (no, those are not my kitchen cabinets in the photos, that is the apprently very dirty knob on our mudroom closet...), adding a touch of Valentine whimsy ☺.

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 7, Valentine Wreath

I think I'm still peeling the hot glue remnants off my fingers from today's project.  Those folks with the lo-temp glue guns might be onto something.  Just sayin'.

What do you get when you combine a Dollar Store wreath, coffee filters, glitter, cardboard, paint and a whole lot of hot glue?

A Valentine wreath!

I've been admiring coffee filter (and book page) wreaths for quite a while now, but these two projects I pinned yesterday finally spurred me into action.

Source: velvetstrawberries.typepad.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

Source: bubblewrappd.blogspot.com via Jen on Pinterest

Luckily I have a fully stocked art room and can pull pretty much any material from my stash.  See, there are virtues to borderline hoarding ☺.

I started with this plain, fairly large wreath.

I love the look of the darker coffee filters but all I had on hand was white and not a lot of patience to dye them.  I did a fold-glue-fold-glue-scrunch-glue thing with each coffee filter and covered the entire wreath including the inside rim.

For embellishments, I freehand cut a bunch of hearts out of a scrap of cardboard.  I painted them, stacked & glued a few and glittered a few others.  For the 'Be Mine' banner, I again cut a piece of cardboard for the base.  Instead of paint, I glued book pages, then trimmed and edged with an ink pad.  I used a Martha Stewart glitter glue pen to write the words 'Be Mine'.

Before gluing the embellishments on, I decided the white filters were just too white.  I took the wreath outside (loving this mild, mostly snow-less winter in MA), covered it generously with spray adhesive, and sprinkled it with glitter.

Back inside, I used the hot glue once again and attached the cardboard embellishments.  The final touch was a bow and a collection of ribbon tails.

And there you have it:  a Valentine wreath.

I enjoyed working with the coffee filters maybe a little more than I should've, especially given the amount of times I glued my fingers.  Now I totally want to try dying the coffee filters and making another wreath.  Maybe for St. Patrick's Day...

Handmade Valentine Project #3: Upcycled Sweater banner

I love to make banners.

Ok, sometimes I don't love making them, but I usually love how they end up looking when I'm done.

Typically, I use paper and chipboard (cereal boxes, scrap cardboard) as my base and embellish with glitter and trims.  After seeing and pinning several fabric banners, I thought Valentine's Day would be a great excuse to make a different kind of banner.

Source: notwithoutsalt.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

 

 

Day 3's Project is a Valentine banner made from upcycled, felted sweaters and fabric scraps!

I have a stash of thrifted sweaters that I've collected, most of them have been washed and dried and live in one of my many re-usable shopping bags.  For this project I used three different sweaters:  a red one, a mauve-pink one (was actually mine from Jr. High) and a lambswool blend light pink one.

Using a rotary cutter and cutting mat, I cut out 9 banner pennants, trying to vary the size but keeping the shape generally the same.

Next I scavenged through my collection of fat quarters and fabric scraps.  I cut out several hearts along with an X and and O.  I sewed each applique onto a corresponding pennant with my sewing machine.

Finally, I stitched the pennants onto a length of bias tape.  Um, that's it.  Done.

When I went to hang it up I decided it needed a little extra oomph.  The ivory trim is from my stash, purchased at a yard sale several years (and many yards) ago.  The pink poms are one of my new faves~purchased at AC Moore, a great, economical alternative to traditional ball fringe.

This banner is currently hanging in our breakfast nook area and I must say, makes me smile whenever I catch a glimpse of it :-).

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 2, Winged Door Heart

I'm kicking it up a notch for day 2, going big and going outside!

Today's project is a Valentine themed door decoration:  a Winged Door Heart. 
Just what every front door needs.

Please ignore the ugly brass lighting, needs to be painted or swapped out.

First, the inspiration.  Or should I say, Pin-spiration.

Source: callingallsleepyheads.blogspot.com via Jen on Pinterest

The original project features a painted burlap shape, stapled together, stuffed with plastic bags.  Cheap and cute.

Here's my version.

I used off white canvas/duck cloth.  I have a bolt from a thrift store that has come in handy for a number of these type of projects.  I primed the cloth with white gesso then painted with regular acrylic paint--but just one side.  The back side is plain, no need for extra effort since this is hanging on an exterior door.

I freehanded the heart and the wings in pencil directly onto the cloth.  Cut out your pieces (front and back).  Stitch with a sewing machine~I like the detail.  Then stuff. 

I love the idea of using plastic grocery bags for stuffing.  Who knew??  I did use regular polyfil for the wings, too small and fussy for grocery bags.

Hopefully you can get a sense of the dimension in this photo.  Pleasantly plump, I'd say.

To attach the wings to the heart I used a combination of hand stitching and hot glue.  Again, not pretty but also not visible.

There you have it, a fun, whimsical winged Valentine decoration for your front door.

Even if Ebby says it looks like a giant blood spot as you drive up the driveway ;-).

Handmade Valentine Projects: Day 1, Yarn 'Love'

Happy Monday!  I'm still trying to regain my composure after last night's emotional win for the Patriots--wow!  I seriously thought I was going to throw up for most of the 4th quarter.  People around here are saying Mrs. Kraft may have blown a bit of wind to steer that field goal wide left :-)...Whatever it was, we're SuperBowl bound and looking for redemption vs. the Giants!

Ok, glad I got that off my chest.

So, everyone loves Pinterest, right?  I know I do!  Sure, I spend a lot of time on there some days but I also love how I'm able to organize ideas and easily refer back to them--because I find I'm actually using the ideas and making things!  Such a novel idea ;-).  Whether it's dinner or a creative project, Pinterest is my new BFF. 

My latest Pin-spiration is my Be Mine, Valentine board.   Each year I try to create handmade Valentine cards to send to friends.  I don't know about you, but I still think there's something special about receiving a handmade card in the mail.  This year I decided to create not just cards, but several handmade Valentine projects.  Who knows, maybe I'll keep them to decorate my home or maybe I'll send them off to brighten someone else's day.  In the meantime I'd like to share them with you here on the blog!

My first project is a relatively simple one:  a yarn and pipe cleaner word.

Source: blog.giddygiddy.com via Jen on Pinterest

 

All you do is form a word out of pipe cleaners and wrap coordinating yarn around it.  Done!  The blogger who posted the project said her preschooler could even do it.

Um, yeah.

I may not have had the proper technique going because all I could do was make a tangled mess at first.  It would probably be better to cut off a reasonable length of yarn and then wrap it and tie it off.  Instead I was holding a giant ball of yarn trying to weave it through the loops of the letters.

Fail.

So I employed an alternate method.  I twisted 3 pipe cleaners together, wrapped them in yarn and then formed the word 'love'.  

Still not perfect (note the slightly exposed pink pipe cleaner ends), but charming nonetheless.

I think this project will be staying home with me. 

And I'm perfectly fine with that!

Pin-spiration: Lemon Loaf (Starbucks copycat)

I am not a coffee drinker, much to my husband's dismay.  He feels about Starbucks like I feel about art shops and the beach:  the more time he can spend there, the better.

I have been known to accompany him, laptop in tow, on one of his daily pilgrimages from time to time.  I don't ever drink coffee, usually it's tea or maybe a Banana Chocolate Vivanno smoothie (do they even still sell those?).  When I'm feeling especially indulgent, or especially hungry, I'll treat myself to a slice of Starbucks Lemon Loaf.

To borrow from my Pinterest board: Oh Yum.

Moist.  Dense. Lemony.  And that icing.  A little over the top but so, so tasty.

I haven't been to Starbucks in a while but recently I had a hankering for a slice of Lemon Loaf.  It wasn't convenient to get in my car and drive to Starbucks so I did the next best thing:  I googled and I pinned.

Source: buttercreambarbie.com via Jen on

Oh Pinterest, how I love you.

Yesterday, armed with a bag of lemons, I set to recreate the Starbucks Lemon Loaf using this recipe from Buttercream Barbie.  I must admit, I was a little skeptical when blending the wet ingredients didn't call for creaming the butter and sugar first.  My eggs weren't fully at room temperature and I ending up with sizeable chunks of butter in the wet batter.  I carried on and incorporated the dry ingredients, then the oil.  Then I put the filled loaf pan in the oven and hoped for the best.

Moist?  Yes, though I probably could've taken it out of the oven 2-3 minutes sooner.

Dense?  Yes.

Lemony?  Oh yes.

Over the top icing?  A little thinner than the Starbucks version, but I'll just add less milk next time ;-).

Overall, another tasty Pin-spiration success!

Pin-spiration {Leftovers}: A *Sweet* Turkey Cheese Ball

Sure, I ditched our remaining Thanksgiving leftovers last week, but I still wanted to post this adorable turkey cheese ball I made for our Turkey Day feast.

Inspired by this pin:

{original source: Tatertots and Jello}

I created this:

How I made it mine:  It's hard for me not to add book text to a paper project so I put Tom's  name right on his hat.  As for the cheese ball itself, I've never made one.  Most of the recipes on Pinterest were for savory cheeseballs.  Makes sense I suppose. I had something different in mind.  Adapted from a dip recipe I ripped out of a grocery store flyer, I created this {sort of} sweet cheese ball:

Cranberry-Orange Cheese Ball

2 bricks of cream cheese, softened (I used one regular, one reduced fat)

3-4T dried cranberries (Craisins), lightly chopped

2-3t grated orange peel

1/8t dried ginger

1T agave nectar or honey

1/4c. chopped pecans

1/4c. chopped walnuts

Combine all ingredients except nuts and blend until smooth.  If you have a food processor you could probably do this pretty quickly. I used a blender and it was rather cumbersome.  Once everything is combined and smooth, shape cream cheese mixture into a ball.  Mix together chopped nuts and roll cheeseball in nut mixture.  Wrap cheeseball and store in refrigerator at least one hour.  When ready to serve, soften slightly and decorate with an assortment of crackers and pretzels.  Finally, adorn with a (slightly crazed) paper or felt turkey head you've sandwiched over a skewer. 

Enjoy!

Pin-spiration: Beach Photos

Today's Pin-spiration comes from my Great Shots pinboard.  This board is where I pin ideas for photos I want to {attempt} to take or photos I just think are cool. Or adorable. Or both ☺.

This frame in the sand idea looked both interesting and do-able so I decided to try it out for some photos on Ebby's birthday.  I picked a chunky frame from my collection of discards in the garage and spray painted it Krylon's Watermelon pink.  Mmmm, juicy...

For her birthday dinner (back in July), Ebby had chosen to go to the beach for pizza, cupcakes and a campfire.  I packed a few props and my camera.  I must say, she was such a good sport to let me take a whole bunch of pictures on the far-from-deserted beach that evening.

Here's what we ended up with...

First I tried to set it up just like the Pin-spiration photo:

Excellent!  That is if I wanted 3 extra people, including Will, in the photo.

I tried again.  This time I focused on the frame, experimenting with depth of field.

Clearly, not all experiments succeed.

At that point Will had had enough.  Flee, young boy!

I decided the whole downward slope of the beach was working against me so we re-grouped and turned ourselves around.  Instead of the ocean in the background, the dunes.

I like dunes.

Just a bit more tweaking...

Finally, a keeper. 

I love how this photo evolved from the inspiration shot.  Ebby's position on the sand and the addition of the glittery Wish word helped make this our own.  Once again, thank you Pinterest!

{Pinterest source here, original source here for Pinspiration photo}

Now go ahead, pin something!