Teddy Bear Baby Gift

I've still been enjoying the Bears Parts and Pieces from My Scrap Chick. I made this cute frame for a good friend's new baby. I designed the whole thing using Make the Cut...even the positioning of the bears. That really helped with scaling them to the size I liked. I'm lovin' the ease of use of the My Scrap Chick patterns as well as Make the Cut!

Shabby, Funky, Eclectic Hutch

For the past two weeks I've been revamping this hutch. It all started as we were re-purposing our office/ guest room/ homeschool room to a Mac Room. My husband collects vintage Macintosh computers. He really needed a place to be able to set the machines up and work on them. The hutch was used to store all the school supplies. Since we moved the school books to a closet upstairs, we didn't need it in that room anymore. I was ready to Craig's List it when my hubby said..."You could paint it and use it in the craft room." The thought of a project was irresistible. So I set out to transform it to something fun and funky. Here is what I started with...

DISCLAIMER!-Just to let you know, I had no idea what I was doing. I checked a few blogs and just went for it. Definitely learned some things in the process!

I found a really cute hutch online that inspired me here. I didn't have the same cute designs to work with, but liked the black and white. Many of the blogs mention that a furniture piece has great "bones." My hutch is a 1970's pressboard cabinet. Does that mean it has osteoporosis?

 Since the inside was paper covered pressboard on fixed shelves, I decided to spray paint it.

 I ripped out the ratan. Woohoo! The hardest part was deciding how to fill it in. Read on to see my solution.

  I painted a darker brown first, hoping it would show up when I sanded/distressed it. (It didn't work so well....) I tried using a foam roller. Didn't work so well either. Paint went on really thin and when I went to put another coat on, it seemed to pick up paint instead of spreading it evenly. I started using a roller with some nap and that helped a great deal!

And here's the finished product...

 

I filled the gap from the rattan caning with black beads.

 I used a tablecloth I found at a garage sale for a dollar, to make the valance.

 The Eiffel Tower was cut using Make the Cut. It took three sheets of Vinyl. I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

Teddy Bear

I have thoroughly been enjoying the "Bears Parts and Pieces" from My Scrap Chick! I've had some velvet paper sitting around waiting for the right project. It cut without any problem in the die cutter, yea! Here is a card I made for all the baby girls that are showing up right now. I sponged the edges to make them "pop" a bit. The hardest part for me is to glue the pieces together, since there are so many different options. The bottom pieces are the most difficult to get it the right spot. I'm getting better at eyeballing it though.

Wish you could feel the fuzziness through the screen. It's a subtle, but fun, extra on the bear :) I'll have to try fun flock next.

By the way...I updated my Make the Cut. The latest version (3.3.3) is awesome! I'm most excited about the single line cuts and puzzle making add on. It still works on my machine...woohoo and phew! I am looking to upgrade to the new "Zing" so I can quit worrying about it. Will wait to see how everyone likes it once it's out.

Lil' Tomina

I made this collage for a friend from church. Her little one arrived this past week. She is named after her very special Aunt. I wanted it to coordinate with the one I made for her brother, Kaelen, but wanted to girlify it a bit. I used the same Monkey (Cricut, New Arrival) and foliage (Cricut, Paper Doll Dress Up) as I used for Kaelen's but ventured out with My Scrap Chick's "Jungle Zoo Safari Too" to make the little girl explorer and hippo.

Lucy

This baby collage was for my second cousin's little one. (I think that makes Lucy my second-cousin-once-removed :) ) She was born in early June, but I was finally able to get it to her this past weekend. (On which, by the way, my nephew Ari made his official appearance into the world!) My daughter Melissa made the crocheted flowers. If you love crochet or other yarn crafts she has a blog, Joy 2 Crochet, dedicated to it.

I finally broke down and ordered from My Scrap Chick. I am so glad I did! I absolutely love the look as well as the ease of use with Make the Cut. Both the bird and birdhouse are from their website. There should be lots more projects to come, because I went back and ordered a second time once I found out how easy the svg files were to size and break apart for colors.

Student Driver Warning

My second born is taking Driver's Ed right now. I was given some vinyl and a chunk of magnet sheet last week and was inspired to make a sign to warn others of her student driver status. (As well as the panicked Mom riding along :) ) So far, this has helped other drivers to give much more space and hopefully they are more tolerant to boot. (In case you're wondering, the font is Cheri.)

A Really Special Baby Gift

I am so excited to finally be able to post this baby collage. It's for my little nephew due in just a few weeks. The first baby (other than my own) for my side of the family. I really like how this turned out!

Verse reads: "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." Deuteronomy 31:6

The name Ari means "Lion"

I used the lion from the cartridge, Everyday Paper Dolls. It's cut three times (2 in beige and one in brown.) trimmed and chalked around the edges. I then layered using mounting tape. The bushes and grass are from the same cartridge.