Come Say Hi at CHA!

Come see why we are stuck on Mod Podge!

Make it Take Schedule:

Sunday, January 25
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. - Queen Bee Party Hats and Tiaras
1:00 – 5:30 p.m. - Altered Party Candles

Monday, January 26
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. - Mini Art Collage
1:00 – 5:30 p.m. - Scrabble Tile Rings

Tuesday, January 27
9:00 – 11:30 a.m. - Altered Poker Chip Pins
1:00 – 5:30 p.m. - Collaged Heart Magnets

CHA - Chalkboard Paint Rocks

We have been working with Plaid's Chalkboard paint for over 6 month now and it is official...I LOVE IT! For this project we wanted to use the chalkboard paint on a recycled surface so we choose old CD's and record albums. We used the black chalkboard paint on thrift store albums to make chalkboard clocks and we used it on CD's to make door hangers. The paint will be available first at AC Moore (August) and then at Jo-Anns - not sure when it will hit Michaels/Hobby Lobby and Independent craft stores.

Steve and I will be selling a kit that contains all 10 colors this Friday (July 25th) on QVC at 6:00 am Eastern it will be in the Santa's Toy Shop Hour. If you miss the QVC show you can always order it online from QVC. Here is a link to the QVC schedule.

(Sorry for the bad picture)

The door hangers are great for school fund raisers, girl scouts, slumber parties, school teams, and camp crafts.

To make the Door Hangers you will need:
Plaid's Chalkboard Paint (10 different colors available)
Old CD
Foam Paint Brush
Scrap Ribbons
Fun Charms
Light Sandpaper or Primer

Steps:
Begin by giving the CD's a light sand or prime them.


Paint 3 layers of the chalkboard paint onto the CD. Allow for dry time in between coats. The first coat should go in one direction, the second coat the opposite direction the third coat should be the same as the first coat.



Condition the chalkboard paint by rubbing a piece of chalk all over the CD. Wipe clean and you have a chalkboard!!



Thread 24" ribbons through the center to create a hanger. Tie a knot at the top of the CD and again at the top of the ribbons. Thread a charm onto a ribbon and tie around the ribbons.

The purple paint was a hit!

Connie is checking out all the colors.

Everyone loved making this easy craft.

Special Effects Artist, Michelle McCue, stopped by to make one and brought us some art work she made using our technique from the Mod Modern episode of Creative Juice.

SO COOL! - Love the google eyes!

CHA: Mommy/Daddy and Me Halloween Bags

Mommy & Me or Daddy & Me
Halloween Treat Bags

This CHA was all about kids crafts so we wanted to come up with a way to incorporate the a kids hand print with one of our favorite holidays...Halloween. So we developed the idea to make a hand print spider using a child's hand.

One of the best selling items Plaid has is Stencils. They are super easy to use on wood, fabric, canvas, etc and you can get them in a variety of sizes and fonts. The font in the above bag is 2" tall. I used Folk Art Fabric Paint in White and Silver to stencil and outlined the letters in Folk Art Dimensional Glitter Paint (fuchsia color).

To make your own here is what you will need:

Black Canvas Tote Bag (Any Craft Store)
White and Silver Folk Art Fabric Paint
Fuchsia Folk Art Dimensional Paint
Stencils
Stencil Brush
2 Rhinestones for Eyes
Funky Trim or Ribbon

Steps:

Sew or use fabric glue to attach funky trim to the top of the bag.

Lightley dip your stencil brush into the silver paint and tap off any excess paint. Swirl the brush around the corners and along the sides to add depth and color to the bag


Making the spider: Paint your child's hand with the fabric paint. Don't worry... it is non-toxic and made in the USA. Be sure you paint just the palm and 4 fingers to create an 8 legged spider.


Press the hand onto the bag in the desired position to create a hand stamp. Apply more paint to the hand and working in the opposite direction (overlapping the palm section) press the onto the bag again. Fill in the palm section with a few swirls of paint.

Using the stencils and a dry stencil brush, stencil the name or a Halloween message across the bag using fabric paint. For the Lilly bag, I blended the white and silver paint together. Once the paint is dry to the touch (15 min) outline the letters with the dimensional paint.

Add rhinestones for eyes using a drop of the dimensional paint for glue. Add spiderwebs or more rhinestones until you are happy with the design.

Here are a few more design ideas:

Free Form Spiderweb

T-Shirt designer and Crafty Amy Tangerine popped by and made a "Katie Rose" design with the stencils and turquoise glitter paint. So cute!

CHA - Glow in the Dark Mod Podge Monsters

The theme of this summers CHA is Kids Crafts - so Steve and I have developed some ideas that are kid friendly, parent approved and just plain fun.

We spent 3 hours teaching how to transform salad dressing bottles into fun glow in the dark monsters with a cousin it vibe. The monsters are designed to help kids that might be afraid of the dark. They can create their own glowing monster that will scare away any monsters that might be under the bed.

Each one turns out different and both boys and girls age 3-8 loved this project. This is a great classroom, camp, birthday party craft.

I see you!

Punky Pink!

Off center...

Not so blue!

Glow in the dark Mod Podge

Supplies:
Glow in the Dark Mod Podge
Salad Dressing, BBQ Sauce or Drink Bottle (plastic)
Black Spray Paint
1 yard Cheese Cloth (Jo-Ann fabrics)
Foam Brush
Google Eyes
Tacky Glue
Yarn Scrap (bright colors and textures are best)
Scrap cardboard
Scissors

Steps:
Clean out the bottles and paint the outside with black spray paint.


Attach the cheese cloth to the bottle with glow in the dark Mod Podge by wrapping the cheese cloth around the bottle in a "mummy" fashion. Saturate the cheese cloth with the Mod Podge. Allow to dry.

Create the hair: Wrap yarn around a 10" piece of scrap cardboard about 30 times. Tie off all the layers with a scrap piece of yarn. Working opposite of the tie, cut through the layers. Grab the hair at the tie and place into the opening on the bottle. the hair should fall to each side of the bottle. You can braid the hair, add layers, cut bangs, etc.

Attach google eyes with tacky glue. You can do one big eye in the center or two eyes off center, etc. The eyes really give the gritters personality so have fun here.

Here are some of our crafty friends that stopped by make a monster!

CHA Set Up DAY!

We landed in Chicago for CHA and everything was smooth sailing! The hotel is just across the street and all my fed ex boxes arrived with no problems.

When we got into the convention center the Plaid booth was almost all set up and it looks so pretty. I can't wait to show you all the cool new products that Plaid has - including really pretty jewelry making supplies and pendants, of course the chalkboard paint and some really fun iron-ons. Lots of orders were placed so many of the items will be a craft store near you very soon. :)

Steve gets busy setting up our displays.

John, Chris and Shauna almost finished!

Our Booth - almost all set!

Countdown to CHA - Chicago

2 different "Make and Takes" each day!!

Come get crafty with us at CHA in Chicago! We will be in the Plaid booth each morning and afternoon! We will be demoing the hottest crafts that families can make together and kids can do on their own. Don't worry if you can't make it - I'll post all the pics and instructions here.

Friday, July 18

Morning: Saucy Monsters made with recycled sauce bottles and glow in the dark Mod Podge.

Afternoon: Trick or Treat Bags made with hand print spiders and Mailbox Stencils.

Saturday, July 19

Morning: Rock and Roll Chalk Paint. Record albums and cd's get a makeover with chalk paint.

Afternoon: Snow Families made with Texture paint and recycled goodies.

CHA - Day 3 - Necklaces & Pins - How 2

I am almost fully recovered from the "gremlin" like flu that took over Steve and myself. Steve is back at the doctor today :( and I am back to blogging. I have so many things to report about!!!!

First - Day 3 of CHA - Mod Podge Necklaces
Second - Day 3 Of CHA - Cork Stamps

So kick back and enjoy!

Day 3 CHA - Mod Podge Necklaces

These little necklaces are so easy to make and are a great way to use up left over scrap paper!

Supplies:
Mod Podge
Wood Disk
Drill or Paddle Pendant Back
Chain
Decorative Paper
Foam Paintbrush
Circle Punch - Marvey Brand
Jumpring

How To:
Cut or punch a circle of decorative paper slightly smaller than your disk. Apply Mod Podge to the front and back of the paper and attach to the disk. (press out any air bubble with your finger) Add 2 top coats of Mod Podge for durability. Once dry drill a small hole towards the top or glue a paddle pendant back to the back of the disk. Add a jumpring to the hole and thread onto a chain.

Here are a few more designs for inspiration:

I love big eyed art!

The rings are made with scrabble tiles.

Day 3 CHA - Cork Stamp Pins

This project features the new cork stamps by Plaid (they should be shipping to stores soon). The coolest part of the stamps is that they create an aged/vintage look without sanding!

Supplies:
Cork Stamp - 4 leaf
Folk Art Fabric Paint
Medium Weight Fabric
Fusible Webbing
Pinking Sheers
Tulle
Decorative Button
Pin Back

How To:
Fuse 2 small pieces of fabric together using a fusible webbing. (This adds stability to the pin) Coat the cork stamp with Folk Art fabric paint and stamp in the center of the fabric. Allow to dry and heat set with an iron. Trim around the stamp creating a flower shape. Add a few layers of tulle behind the flower shape, sew a button in the center and a pin back to the back. Trim the tulle to match the curves of the flower shape. Wear your pin with pride!

Here are a few more ideas for cork stamps:

Raw & reverse appliqué - sew easy!

CHA Day 2 - Crafty Peeps

CHA Day 2 - Chalk Board Paint

On day 2 we got crafty with Plaid's new chalkboard paint! This paint rocks - it works amazing on wood and paintable fabrics. Each coat is rich & thick and it dries beautiful. The colors are wonderful - not just green & black! Plaid has 2 shades of green, a deep red, a poppy pink, rich blue, purple, gray, black and of course the Creative Juice color of choice....orange. The paint should hit the shelves soon.

When working on wood, begin with a primer coat. The deep colors will need 4 coats of paints.

When working on a paintable fabric like fredrix sewpaintable or roc-lon's multi-purpose cloth you won't need a primer. You can sew it with ease and it cuts like a charm.

Here are a few projects we made with the paint.

Display at CHA

The inspiration fabric - Don't ya love it! From Jo-Ann fabrics.


Kids Table and Chair with Sewn Cushions

For the kids chalkboard table we used a simple set from IKEA (table set). We painted the top of the table and back support of the chairs with the orange chalk board paint. We added some alien figures with blue paint. For the cushions we used the blue alien fabric and made some small pillows with yellow ribbon ties.

Kids Lap Desk

For the lap desk, we painted the inside of an Ikea serving tray with the blue chalkboard paint. For the pillow I traced around the tray to create a pattern. I used 2 different fabrics, a dark blue and a blue alien flannel. I placed the fabrics right sides together and sewed around the outer edge, leaving a small opening for stuffing. I added stuffing and hand stitched the opening closed. i used hot glue to attach the pillow to the tray.

Chalkboard Pillow

The pillow was so easy to make! I used the fredrix sewpaintable fabric (12'x12") with 4 coats of the green paint to create the chalkboard square. Next, I used a pinking sheer on the edge of the painted square to create a decorative edge. I cut 2 squares (14"x14") from the blue alien fabric. I sewed the chalkboard square to the center of one of the fabric squares. I added a chalk pocket with a scrap of fabric to the side of the pillow. Next I sewed the pillow right sides together, turned it right side out, stuffed the pillow and hand-stitched the opening closed.

CHA Day 1 - Modern Art Project

The afternoon of day 1 was dedicated to Gallery Glass! This glass paint has been around for awhile and it is traditionally used to create faux stained glass. Steve and I decided to take an untraditional approach to gallery glass and we created some modern art. The cool thing about this art is that when you get tired of it, you can pull off the paint and create something new.

Gallery Glass Goes Modern!

Basic Supplies:
glass frame
black onyx gallery glass
image to paint
felt
fabric
tacky glue
duct tape
options: paper and recycled items like records, bubble wrap, magazine pages

How To:

1. Remove the glass from the frame and clean the glass with glass cleaner.

2. Place a graphic image or vintage album under the glass. You can create your own graphic image by photoshoping your own pictures or look for graphic images in mags and online. To photoshop your own pictures adjust the color to black and white and then adjust the threshold until you are happy with the design. If you find a small image that you love, just increase the size on a photocopier.

3. Don't shake the gallery glass! Apply the gallery glass over the areas where you want paint. For the Liz Taylor, chandelier and the bird pieces I painted every area that was black. For the record album I highlighted just the conductor. Allow the gallery glass to dry for up to 24 hours.

4. For a Fabric Backing: Attach a piece of felt to the backing board of the frame with tacky glue, attach a piece of fabric to the backing board by wrapping it like a present, use duct tape to secure to the back.

5. For a Recycled Backing: Layer up vintage records, papers, bubble wrap, junk mail, grocery bags, etc. to the backing board to create a design.

6. Once the gallery glass has completely dried, place the glass on top of the backing board and secure into the frame.