Spoonflower Fabric of the Week Contest - Help Me Win! (or not get last!)

Oh my...who knew? I was messing around on Spoonflower when it first came out and I posted a pattern to be considered for voting on their "weekly fabric design contest." Then I forgot about it. Well, this week it's up for the vote! Wow. To be honest, it's not as cute as many other designs I've made, but hey...I'd still like to win. The voting only goes for one week, and I'm WAY behind already. So, if you feel kind, pop on over to Spoonflower's voting page and give me a vote for my "snowglobes." Thanks!

Voting Ends on March 2nd!

Oh my gosh. My project entry just got posted today over on Apartment Therapy and OhDeeDoh, and there's only ONE week LEFT TO VOTE! So please head on over there and give my project a thumbs up, ok? Even if it's not your favorite, ha ha. The prize is a $250 Etsy gift card. If you sell something on Etsy, send me a link and I'll visit your store. Thanks!

Now go forth and vote (for me, please).

A Photo Mural Project - Cheap 'n Easy!

Yay me, I finally finished a project. I've been wanting to do this one for awhile, but never had the motivation to actually do it. When I saw the contest at Apartment Therapy for homemade projects, I knew I had to get it done. I just finished my entry and I thought I'd include a bit of info here too. 

We had some snow here this winter, which doesn't always happen, and so I have many pictures of the kiddos enjoying it all. One picture actually turned out decent AND included all 3 kids. That's a rarity. Unfortunately, the day was a bit gray and so the background is a bit blah. 

AND...I was in the mood to cut something up. So, I created a wall mural of sorts, using 3 different pictures. I couldn't include them all because there's a photo limit, but trust me...there are 3 pictures cut and glued together as one. Once I had the pictures blown up, I cut them up into little pieces, ready to laminate and ring together. I included some photos of the end result.

Above is the original...         and here are some of the tools I used. 

An up-close shot of the loose leaf rings I used to hold it all together. I love the metal clunkiness of it all. Each piece is laminated too. 

The final project. Much cooler in real life. See how the background is from a sunny day's shot? And some of those tall trees were from a different photo as well. It's very layered. 

I don't think I'll keep it here. This is the kids' playroom, and that couch is very big and makes the mural look teeny, which it is not. I'm thinking about putting it all in the dining room, just to be different. Not sure how the blue will look in there, but I may try this with a spring photo too, and then I could swap it out with the seasons. hmmm....

So, if you bothered to read this, please check back and I'll let you know if my project is up for the vote or not at Apartment Therapy (and Ohdeedoh, who also hosted the contest). I'd love your vote! 

By the way, this entire thing only cost about $75, which is pretty good for a large wall hanging. You certainly couldn't frame something that large for that price. I love it! 

Totally Do-Able Photo Project

Here's the cutest darn photo project for that blank space on your wall. You can either carry your camera everywhere with you in search of numbers, numbers, and more numbers, OR...you can go to Flickr and search their photo group of numbers. Then, after you make prints in your desired size, hit Photojojo (their blog rocks and their helpful forum is terrific) and buy these Fotoclips. The clips hold everything together and also allow you to rearrange the calendar when the month is over. Super cute and totally cool. I think I'll print out little wallet sized photos and make a wee one for my only wall available in my kitchen. I LOVE it!

This is SO on my "to do" list. If you make one, send me a link. I'd love to see it. 

I Got Nothin' (or, Saran Wrap Doesn't Photograph Well)

Seriously. It's dark and gloomy and rainy here in the Pacific NW. As a result...I've run out of creativity or ideas or anything to write about. I got nothin! 

Well, I DID make a little crafty Valentine necklace for my daughter's kindergarten class. But it doesn't photograph well. I'll post the pictures anyway, just to jumpstart someone else's creativity. 

Basically, I was going for the hawaiian lei look, only with candy. You can see how to do it...lay out the candies on a piece of saran (I cut it down the middle, the long way, to make 2 out of each 3 foot strip), roll them up and twist them shut. Add curly ribbon, and connect like a necklace. Next to be added will be the little paper heart which will hang at the neck and include the "To:/From:" part. That's the part that takes forever, since it's done by little 6 year old hands. 

Well, at least it's something.