Are y’all looking forward to SPRING! Mom and I sure are. Here is a cute little Bunny with FEET. Mom did get her inspiration from Pinterest. I searched to give that person credit, but could not find the inspiration picture again.
Mom stained the wood with acrylic paint mixed with water. Regular stain has such an odor and takes so long to dry that we frequently use this type “stain”.
The ears and whiskers are made from fairly heavy duty wire. The eyes are tacks and the nose and teeth are wood.
At first the bunny had only one wire whisker, but it look more like a mustache, so Mom put three on each side and Voila’ WHISKERS. He is so stinking cute. I love his teeth and feet.
He looks good sitting on my fireplace mantel.
Spring is in the air…..It was 70 degrees yesterday! Yippee!
Scrap wood really comes in handy when making DIY woodcraft home decor. Making these projects makes my Mom so, so happy! It defeats her depression and is great therapy!
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I had made three different angel like creatures for my Garden Fairy. I only needed one so this was an extra and she looked best with doily wings. So she became a GARDEN ANGEL! Keep reading if you are interested in knowing how she came to land in my garage.
I wasn’t brave enough to draw the body of my garden fairy right onto my canvas. So I practiced in my mixed media pad first. That is the great thing about practicing in a sketch/paint pad first. If you like what you create, you can always cut it out and decoupage it onto a canvas and use it as a mixed media project.
Here I was laying out all the flowers and butterflies that I had in my stash that blended well with the Angel and her wings. I do not put faces on my angels or fairies.
I had painted three angel/fairy girls trying to match their dresses with the wings I had on hand. This particular angel girl looked best with this heart shaped doily that I coffee stained. I cut the doily in half so her wings would look bigger.
Here I had everything glued down. But It still needed some pizazz. You can tell by this picture that I had used some metallic sheen paint.
The quote I decided to use is a partial quote I have heard from many people. I had just used it that week when my husband was commenting about someone on TV and how they had robbed a bank. Yes, they got away with it and that money would help them in THIS LIFE, but what about their eternal life?
—Chaim Potokwas known for a similar quote.
There is a key in the bottom right hand corner that is kind of hidden in the flower. I love mixed media, because it can have so many hidden messages and meanings.
Here is the quote before I added glitter.
Here it is AFTER glitter.
Below are some closeup pictures so you can see the glitter better. The overall affect of the glitter is not overwhelming. But it does add so much depth and fairy like qualities.
Flowers and butterflies and glitter and shimmer. These are a few of my favorite things.
I outlined her with gold glitter. The rest of the canvas has twilight glitter.
Don’t put your projects away when you are finished. Display them in with seasonal decor or everyday decor.
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means THE WORLD to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
My Mom has to keep busy. She is from the old school of believing that staying busy is the best therapy to ward off depression and anxiety. The winter season is hard on her because being outside is another way for her to beat depression. Thank goodness spring is coming soon.
Here is a project she worked on during a bad weather spell that kept her inside. I didn’t get many pictures because she finished them before I knew she was even working on them.
She had put button eyes and noses on them. But the buttons made the bunnies look mean and beady eyed. So we decided they would be faceless and flowers would go next to their bows.
I have a collection of flowers but I needed quite a few so I went with the pastel ones because I had a whole full package of them.
These flowers looked the best with the ribbon I had on hand too!
They look so spring time!
Black, white and aqua with a little pink and yellow thrown in!
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I am trying to stay warm in these winter blasts we are having. They are reaching all the way down here to South Louisiana. I made a mixed media project that was inspired by Artist, Amanda Hilburn. I purchased a tutorial from her website. Please go and visit her site and her Facebook Page. You will learn a lot! Her Facebook Page is “The Little Bluebird Gallery”.
My fairy does not look like hers. I love hers! But I learned a lot. Everyone’s mixed media looks different because we all have different supplies and ephemera. The first thing I did was find some butterfly wings. I loved this pair because of all the pastel spring time colors.
I bought these three dimensional flowers at Michael’s. I had to use them on this project because they looked so good with the butterfly wings. This picture was before I outlined everything with my graphite pencil.
I knew I wanted a quote of some kind on my project. This one seems to fit perfectly.
Please don’t make projects and put them in a closet. Display them throughout your home! Change them out with the seasons.
She looks good on my springtime fireplace mantel.
I used several mixed media techniques.
I painted the body of the fairy and some of the flowers and greenery.
I love using scrapbook paper on my mixed media projects!!
When my garage thaws out, I will be adding some glitter or twinkle paint.
I hope you enjoyed reading about my Garden Fairy. I hope I have inspired you to start collecting scrapbook paper, 3-d flowers, butterfly wings and inspirational quotes. You can make so many different mixed media projects. Make your own gift cards, gift bags and yes…..home decor.
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
Mom cut out this cute little bunny from some leftover wood we had. Please keep reading about how this little bunny gave Lexi and I a run for our money.
We tried to use one of our Chalk Couture transfers but it was the large buffalo print and we had trouble with it.
I asked my Chalk Couture Facebook Page which size buffalo print. My sister and I voted for the large one. So we went with it….but…..
I had to wash off my buffalo print even after Lexi helped me set it down straight. So I went with PLAN B.
I love Chalk Couture because it washes right off. I had waxed the surface too and that helped. I am an independent Chalk Couture Designer.
Long story short, I washed off the Chalk Couture and stenciled swirls on this bunny. I bought this stencil at Michael’s. I love swirls and polka dots.
When I work with stencils I love to blend my colors. I always use a sponge dauber. Dip into your paints and then blot off before applying it to your project. Dot it on lightly. Do not press down on the stencil or your paint will probably bleed through. I used to use brushes to stencil with. But no more. Sponge daubers work much better for me. I get mine in a three pack at Dollar Tree.
On the sides, I pounced on polka dots with the same pouncer/dauber that I used for the stencils. I was hoping this would make my white bunny stand out against my white garage door. It did help. Keep scrolling to see where I decided to give him a home.
The picture does not do this bow justice. The hot pink looks too red. But in real life it does match and look good.
Here is how I glued the ribbon to the bunny to make him a door hanger.
Here he is against my white garage door.
Here he is a against my front door. The swirls look pretty good with the wrought iron scroll work. But……
Here is where I like him best. He is made out of fairly thick wood so he does stand up on his own. So he can be a door hanger or a shelf sitter. Or you could prop him against the wall on a shelf. So many option. I love his little tail on the side. Mom hit this pattern out of the ballpark. He is so cute!
My favorite location. Here is where he will stay until Easter. He has found a home for the season.
Thank you all so much for reading my blog and looking at my pictures. I really appreciate it! Making crafts and creating art is a great past time.
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
Hope all of you are fairing well during this blast of cold weather. We are even feeling it here in South Louisiana. STAY SAFE!
Needless to say, I am looking forward to Spring weather. So Easter, flowers, green grass, butterflies, and birds are on my mind. I needed to spend time crafting and creating something for SPRING!
I got this inspiration from Brooke at Re-fabbed. She is one of my marketing coaches. I love all her crafts. With this project, everyone’s project will look different because we will all have different scrapbook paper, different letters and fonts, and different embellishments.
To begin, Mom cut some blocks out of a 2×4 we had leftover from building her “little house”. Then Lexi and I stained them. (Lexi is my sweet granddaughter who helps me especially with my Chalk Couture creations.)
This is the WAX/stain we used in DEEP BROWN. So easy to clean up and no smell like the oil stains have. It dries really quick too. In about 20 minutes we could have started the next step.
Here they are all finished. You can add more coats for a deeper, richer stain color.
Next we decided on which letters to use from a precut letter package I bought from Hobby Lobby.
Lexi and I selected the fonts we wanted to use for each block. Later we will decide on the backgrounds.
This is the alphabet stickers we used. I had got them on sale for 50 percent off at Hobby Lobby. There are quite a few in the package. It also has small and capital letters. Perfect for fall.
Next we chose which background scrapbook paper we wanted for each block. So many colors and patterns to choose from. I love spring time colors. (I love spring, but FALL is still my favorite season.)
I love all the spring colors. But we decided on just 3 different patterns.
I had a hard time selecting which embellishments to use. I used the ones on top. I got these 50 percent off too at Hobby Lobby.
I hot glued all the embellishments at the top of each letter block. I wanted part of it to stick up and look more three dimensional. I outlined each alphabet letter with my graphite pencil and brushed a tiny bit of water on the outline. It creates that smokey, hazy look. They really stood out from the background that way.
For the photos, I had to raise them up on more blocks. I intend to paint all those black.
This faux fireplace has added so much to my garage workstation. I am so glad I bought it and revamped it.
These letters are great on a fireplace mantel. I love the greenery in front of them. But you could put the letters in the front too.
I hope you stay warm! Take care, God Bless, Kathy
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
Look what can be made with two Dollar Tree items. Plus some spray paint and some candy.
Mom made this for Valentine’s Presents. But it could be done for any holiday or occasion. It looks almost like a gum ball machine. It is so cute!
She bought a glass candle holder and a glass screw top jar with a lid on it. She spray painted the candle holder and lid and glued them onto each other with E6000 glue. Put candy or gum inside and voila you are done!
Here it is before the candy. It doesn’t have to be just for candy either.
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.
We remodeled our Metal Office Building into my Mom’s Little House. I haven’t blogged specifically about the remodel yet, but I have mentioned this process in some of my other posts. We didn’t want to use precious floor space for a closet…..so Mom and I went out thrifting to find a chifforobe small enough to fit into her Little House but large enough to accommodate some of her coats, clothes and shoes. We found a really cute, small one at our local “antique shop/flea market”.
Unfortunately I cannot find a singe picture of the BEFORE status. I spent over an hour looking through my phone. But it was ugly white and beat up. What we liked about it was it’s size. We also liked the rounded shape. It fits in so well in her living room/hallway area. And the bookshelves on either side just fit perfectly. She can still have all her favorite knick knacks and pictures which makes her little house feel like home.
Mom painted it the same black as the kitchen island and the trunk that holds her TV. Black and red are her colors!
Losing a loved one is so hard. It has been really hard on my Mom. She battles cancer (and wins), then her husband dies the very next month. Not only did she have to contend with missing him, but her whole life was turned upside down.
This turned out so perfect with the bookshelves next to it.
She could have stayed in her home she shared with him for four years here in Louisiana. They had lost their Texas home in hurricane Harvey’s flood aftermath of 2016. But she decided she didn’t need a home and yard that big. We came up with a plan to remodel her a Little House on our property. A mother-in-law suite. God will open a pathway even when you feel surrounded by briars.
It matches the little kitchen island we made out of a dresser.
Read about how we re-purposed a dresser into a kitchen island here:
I think the remodel and continuing to work on crafts has helped my Mom through these very rough times. She does believe in keeping busy that’s for sure. If you are going through a rough period of time, please try being creative and see if it helps. Take care, God Bless!
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I just finished this whimsical DIY Farmhouse Style painting. I had fun with it. Who doesn’t like Mason Jars? And Spring Flowers? This is not FINE Art….but it is FuN ArT!
If you would like the tracer, supply list and step-by-step instructions just comment below and I can send it to you.
This design was made by Heidi, one of my marketing coaches. She is so talented. I do have permission to use it and share it.
I did a Facebook Live explaining some of the details of how I painted it. The Facebook Live is linked below.
Below is a picture after I “washed in” my first coat of paint. It normally takes 2-3 coats depending on the brand of paint you use or the color of paint you use. Deco Art craft paint is one of the best pigmented paints out there. Of course you can use the thicker paints in the tube that you find in the artists aisles of the craft stores such as Liquidtex. I am trying to use up some of the paint I have had for years. So I have a crazy mixture of brands and types of paints.
All “washed in.”
It is best not to get anxious about what kind of paint, what brand of paint or what exact color of paint. Just go with the colors YOU like and the colors you may have on hand. And you can always mix colors to get the exact color you wish. That’s what is really fun. Mixing colors.
Here I had thought I had finished the background and table. But later I redo the table because when I stood back and breathed, the table looked like water. So you will see in the next pictures how I changed it.
I used a stippling brushstroke technique that I love since I love texture. But it enhanced the water look that I was NOT going for. lol….. I love paint because you can always change it.
I had the light coming in from the left so I shaded the right side. Even though this is FUN art, I still like to follow the rules as much as I can.
I put highlights on the left side.
Here is how I repainted the table. I added some pink so it wouldn’t look like water so much. But I do like to pick up the other colors I use throughout the painting. I think it pleases the eye as it moves and rests on different sections.
I blend many colors. I never want my paintings or crafts to look like simple coloring book pages.
Display for Spring. Hang it up, prop it up or even put a ribbon on it and hang as a door hanger. Seal it for a porch door or leave it for an inside garage door.
Happy upcoming Spring everyone!
If you would like the tracer, supply list and step-by-step instructions just comment below and I can send it to you.
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.
It may be a little early to be doing Easter Bunnies, but why not? Mom wanted to make a bunny porch leaner out of one of the many, many wood pieces we have salvaged from our old wood horse fence.
Keep scrolling to see the whole bunny.
Mom had a pattern in her head. Her main objective was to cut out some ears for it. I think it really turned out cute. I painted a face on it. I have trouble with faces. They are not as easy as they look. Not for me anyway. Either the eyes look too beady or the nose and mouth are crooked. But I finally made him look cute. Whiskers and all.
Here he is with just his face put on. Bow, sign and flowers yet to come.
At this time, I knew I wanted to put a bow around his neck and some flowers at the bottom, and a sign in the middle. I bought the flowers from Dollar Tree and I had the lace burlap was leftover from another project.
I was going to just make a pocket for him to hold his flowers. But when I rolled this laced burlap around, I liked it better this way.
I asked my Facebook Page, which sign they would choose and they chose the —FOLLOW THE BUNNY HE HAS CHOCOLATE.
The screen prints are from Chalk Couture. I am an independent designer with them. These two screen prints come from the transfer called Vintage Truck, Spring Add on.
I painted a sign I bought from Walmart. Actually it was white when I bought it so I waxed it with some brown wax. That helps the chalk transfer not stick as much and helps the chalk to not settle and bleed into the wood’s grooves.
The sign really turned out sharp.
Here were the ribbons I was choosing from. I LOVE spring colors.
I constructed the bunny on a Facebook Live, but I redid my bow afterwards to include tails. There was too much blank space between the bow and the sign. I also used a polka dot ribbon to tie the middle of the bow with. It added just the right touch.
He got a new bow after my Facebook Live.
Here he is in his full glory. Sorry the weather has been so unpleasant for pictures. Everything is so wet and nasty.
Thank you SO SO much for reading my blog. I really appreciate it.
Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!
Crafting, Painting and Creating is Great Therapy!!
I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.
