Cartwheels In My Mind

hellO, baBy!

 Is it just me or is EVERYONE AND THEIR MOMMA getting preggers?!? Just this past year alone I know SIX people who have been bitten by the baby BUMP bug. I hope this isn't a sign of things to come for me. Don't get me wrong I want little Mudgies running all over the place someday just not NOWday. 

Recently, I helped host a baby shower... which was WAY fun. Baby showers are a good way to satisfy a little baby craving without diving in if you're not ready {like me}. Decorating for baby showers=AWESOMELY FUN TIMES PLANNING FOR& CREATING BABY gOoDs.  

There are soooo many amazing ideas out there for baby decor... I was beginning to have an overload of ideas so in the end I just decided to keep it simple:

Tissue paper flowers. Rubber duckie candies. Baby bottle banner. 

 


Did you know that adding a doily to your gift is a great way to show everyone that you can make a gift look pretty and save a couple bucks on those expensive gift bags? YEs, it's true. Plus, it spices it up your gift-wrapping life!!! In the words of Charlie Sheen:WINNING. Haha. {that was for all you out there that keep up with entertainment news} ps- I can't remember what wrapping paper brand that is... perhaps Martha Stewart?

This upcoming weekend I will be a part of another shower... You know what that means for Cartwheels, right? More {fun} DIY projects& ideas. Check out this SUPER cute idea that I have in mind. Elephant theme anyone? If you live in the deep south and have a love for {college} Alabama football then your answer will most definitely be YES. I just couldn't wait until next week to share my idea {and by MY i mean the-idea-that-is-being-borrowed} long though to show you this cuteness! Once it's a brewin' it's hard to keep it stewin'.

If you fancy this idea as much as I do you can print out the elephant bunting&cupcake toppers. See the link at the very bottom.

 

Happy Monday to everyone!  Go out&get crafty today!

::SHOUT OUTS& DIY's::

 hello, baby elephant image, elephant bunting&cupcake topper :  here

    Tissue paper flower: HERE.

 Duckie candy mold: HERE. How to melt candy: HERE. If you're wondering if it tastes as pretty as it looks the answer is YES.

  Here's a bottle similar to the one i traced and cut out: HERE. 

{1}. I used cardboard {cereal} boxes to trace the bottle on. {2}. Painted BOTH sides blue {2-3 coats of acrylic paint}. {3}. tied a ribbon around each bottle {double knotted on the backside}. You can cut out as many bottles as you want!!! 


 

Guest Artist Tutorial :: Stacie Taylor.

Although I have a few different hobbies up my sleeve (primarily crocheting and
photography), I am a scrapbooker through and through.  It makes me giddy to get
my hands on some pretty products and capture some memories.  Although I love
experimenting with new techniques, there are a few techniques that I find myself
turning to time and time again on my layouts.


Framing.  

One thing I like to do on my layouts a
lot is frame my photographs or the outside of my page.  All the die-cut papers
on the market these days make it easy - I love cutting the outside edges and
using that as a frame.  On this layout, I enclosed my photographs and my
embellishments all within the frame, leaving the white space outside of the
frame.


Layering and dimension.  

Layering papers is another thing I
love to do.  On this layout, I layered papers, journaling spots, and some
elements that I handcut from the patterned paper.  To make my clouds truly look
like they were floating above, I used some pop dots to give them some dimension
- pop dots are some of my favorite adhesive!

Clustering, borders, and sewing.

 
 
I think clustering is a 

great way to direct a viewers eye exactly where you want it to go.  On this
layout, I created a little embellishment cluster to the side of my photographs
to draw the eyes to them.  Border strips are my best friend.  I used them time
and time again when I feel my layouts still need a little something.  Lots of
companies make them already cut for you, but with all the fun border punches on
the market these days, there are so many ways to make your own.  And sewing!   I
find it's such a fun way to add some finishing details to a page.  Of course, I
wish I knew how to use my sewing machine for something other than paper.  Oh
well, it certainly still gets a lot of use ;-)

Handcutting and masking.  
 I am always on the lookout
for patterned papers that have beautiful patterns that can be cut out and used
as embellishments.  On this layout, the black flowers that I cut out did double
duty.  I placed them down on my background cardstock to use as a mask with some
mists, and then I attached them to my layout to use as an embellishment.

You can find more of my art on my blog: creatingmyeveryday.blogspot.com.

A big thank you to Cartwheels for having me as a Guest Designer.  I'm constantly
finding inspiration and new ideas here, and i'm thrilled to be a part of the
fun!

Staci :)

P.S. Here's my random just-for-fun fact about myself: When I was about 8 or 9, I was in a
bowling league with some friends on Saturday mornings.  I ended up dropping out
of the league because it was getting in the way of my Saturday morning cartoons
- primarily the Smurfs! :-)

Guest Artist Tutorial :: Christina Schergen, Olive Tree Boutique.

Happy Friday everyone! I'm excited to share our first guest tutorial artist...Christina Schergen of Olive Tree Boutique. You can find Christina's super amazing designs by clicking the following links, and I promise you won't regret it:

www.theolivetreeboutique.etsy.com
www.treeofolive.blogspot.com

 
Christina: I decide to show a tutorial of what we here at The Olive Tree call a "lollipop spoon". These are a huge request and always sell out at shows. I figured all you have to do is a Google search to find out how to make fabric flowers and these are not so easy to come by. The best part is if you buy 1 pack of spoons and 1 pack of washcloths you have a total of 6 baby gifts for about 7.00 total. 

you will need :
* 1 pack of washcloths
* 1 pack of baby spoons,
* 1  scrap piece of tulle per spoon
* 3 scrap pieces of ribbon per spoon

Step one: fold washcloth into a rectangle shape

Step two: roll washcloth into a circle

Step three : with out letting go place rolled fabric against the spoon, secure the tulle around the washcloth and tie off with ribbon really tight and then double knot the ribbon.

Step four: add the scrap ribbon for decoration

*note: you can pin the washcloth, I don't because I worry about people poking their fingers :) 

Fun Fact about Christina: I live in the good 'ol mid west. I married my high school sweetheart and I am so blessed to be able to stay home with my daughter and son. :)

Don't forget to check out Christina's work on her websites:

www.theolivetreeboutique.etsy.com
www.treeofolive.blogspot.com

Anatomy Of A Room :: A Vintage Nursery 02, Wall Art.

Happy Monday everyone!

I hope you all had a great weekend...we went to a local farm that is currently making a killing off of all the parents selling into the whole fall/pumpkin patch craze (raising my hand in the air...waving it wildly from my perch on the old wagon holding 2 bales of hay and there-by qualifying it as a full fledged, ticketed hay ride.). But from all the photos I took on our trip, it was the ones that I snapped by the side of the road by the wildflowers on our way back to the car that I loved the most...

And just like that I knew what the main artwork on Gracie's nursery walls is going to be.

Once I decided which photos I liked the best, I used the vol25 eyecandy overlays to make them into quirky pieces of art that I can have printed on canvases (I like mpix for canvas printing!) to create the right mood for the rest of the room.

I'm thinking a big print of the one where London is kissing her and then smaller ones of the others. I don't feel like they are the best photos ever, but I do feel like they fit the feel I'm going for...what do you think? 

Prepping these photos for printing has gotten me in serious make-over mode. I can't wait to decorate an entire room at once (not going to lie...it's my first time...usually I get bored and start in on another and then come back to it!)

Speaking of fun things for her nursery, I wanted to share the quilt I found at a local flea market. It is the biggest yo-yo quilt I've ever seen (big enough to steal from the edges to make projects throughout the room!) and it made completely out of the inside of old feed sacks. So yeah, that was pretty much one of the happier days of my entire existance...and what I'm basing the feel of the entire room on (I feel like the photos went with it). I love that there are enough colors that I can really use a wide variety if I want.

And with that, I'm going to close for now..but later I've got a my first handmade project for the nursery...a feed-sack pillow. So be sure to check back! And if you have inspiration that you think might fit into this whole plan, please share them either in the comments or on our flickr group. I'd love to hear your opinions!

Anatomy Of A Room :: A Vintage Nursery 01.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Remember this post I did sharing Gracie's little space in the corner of our bedroom? Well, it turns out that allowing an 8 month old that already has a tendency to wake up and want to rock at all hours of the night to sleep in a room with a mother that works nights is not such a fabulous idea after all. And I've got the dark eye circles to prove it.

So back into the spare bedroom she went, and it is now Londerpants that sleeps next to me at night...all night, which I'm so very thankful for. :) And for London, making the space a little more boyish wasn't bad at all...a little tricky folding to hide the pink on the blanket, a couple vintage advertisements for trains above his head and he was good to go. Gracie, on the other hand is about to get the nursery make-over of a lifetime.

But before I can dig fully into her room aside from cleaning it, I am on a major hunt for amazing inspiration. I know that I want it to be girly and handmade and vintage, but aside from that I'm keeping an open mind and trying to pull ideas from all kinds of different places in hopes of making hers the coolest nursery ever.

So today i got my Etsy on to begin my search, and I thought it would be fun to take you all on the ride with me. So here's what's inspiring me right now in the land of handmade and fabulous for sale:

1. Holy Mobile Cuteness!! I wasn't even thinking of her having a mobile until I saw these sweet little goodies from Pink Perch.

2. I love this photo print so so much...I feel like the artist has captured the look, the feel and the very scent of childhood in one photograph.

Source: Decorative Photography

3.Crib Bumpers...something SO important to a crazy baby that shows no fear...and one that looks this good makes me drool. No really. Her stuff makes me want to buy everything she has to offer. You should check it out for yourself! (Source: Aunt Bucky)

4. I pretty much love this tree decal from WowWall if i could get it in another color so that it would stand out against the white walls in Gracie's room:

4. And i feel like she needs lots of great pillows with cool prints:

From HawtHome...

and From Zillows:

And finally, I love love love these pillows by Plonka Home:

And that, my friends...is why this girl doesn't want to sleep until the decorating is done. There are so many amazing, diverse things out there that sometimes it makes me think that the whole decorating proecess would go faster without me ever looking online for inspiration...because once I start I can't stop! But I'm not going to lie, I have no regrets. None at all. Because I can't wait to try out some of my Etsy picks!

Which ones are your favorites? Or better yet, do you have any to share that I DIDN'T post? Because I would really love that!

Jumpstart On A Wednesday:: Pretty Little Hairbows.

Remember how I said that I'm mildly obsessed with designing my own jewelry? Well, I'm kind of the same way with Gracie's hairbows. I love LOVE it when she has a unique little handmade clip in her hair that I designed specifically with her outfit in mind.

For these little bow-tie hairclips, I actually picked up a bunch of plain plastic ones on clearance at Penny's thinking that I would make them into a project later. I really even liked them plain (and wore them a few times myself) but knew that at some point I'd think of a fun way to alter them.

To make them, I was basically just playing around with them one day and started wrapping a scrap piece of fabric around the plastic forms and happened upon the cutest little hair bows! It literally took just a small dab of craft glue to hold the fabric together and then 3 times of wrapping the fabric and they were finished!

And once I started I (obviously) didn't want to stop...I just kept making them until I ran out of plastic clips...I think I stopped at around 40. But it was so easy and fun...and best of all could be done while watching TV (because you know those projects are my favorites!:D).

What are YOU working on this week?