Do you remember that “Scrapbook Kit In A Stack Friends Family” value pack (Item SBK8Friend) I received from Consumer Crafts? Well, I’ve dug back into that kit and challenged myself to create five layered cut-out cards in one hour.

To make things more challenging, I had to create the greeting cards without any planning, without any real purpose or intention, and without a particular person in mind. And the only supplies I could use, outside of the “Scrapbook Kit In A Stack Friends Family” value pack, were glue and/or double-sided tape, scissors, one decorative punch, and a thin-tipped black marker.

Of course that presented a little bit of a challenge since I had used materials from the pack for other projects, but I think I did a pretty good job, don’t you?

Invite Your Friends To A Tweet Up #1

Hope Blooms With Friends #2

Home Sweet Home #3

Hi Friend #4

House Party #5

The value of a challenge like this is that you learn to use your supplies in an entirely different way, you save money by using what you already have on hand, and you exercise your creative muscles. Plus you have the added benefit of a stress reliever.

I’d love to see you take up the challenge.

If you purchase the kit and get the chance to challenge yourself, stop by here and share your link, will ya?

Disclosure

Several years ago my husband thought it would be fun to take up cross-stitching. He liked it so much that he went out and bought a bunch of cross-stitch kits that were on clearance for pennies on the dollar. Of course, being the man that he is, he quickly got frustrated with how time consuming cross-stitching was and packed the kits away.

Last year, I found those kits, disassembled them and chose to use the thread for my own artsy stuff. However, I was soon frustrated with the quality of those threads. No wonder the kits were not selling. The threads were horrible! They frayed and knotted constantly.

100 Assorted 8 meter Skeins

So when I heard that Consumer Crafts had a kit of 100 assorted skeins (Item 1170-93) for just $9.97 I was really skeptical about the quality of those threads. I thought for sure I’d experience the same problem but I was mistaken.

Some fun ideas

I tested the thread by embroidering t-shirt material, then canvas, then painted canvas paper, then cardstock, and the threads held up beautifully. I was impressed, not only with the price but the quality of the cotton.

Stitched outline of close-captioned flower

The only drawback is that the kit has 100 skeins and only comes with 12 paper bobbins. If you’re an organization freak like me, that will drive you nuts. Luckily Consumer Crafts sells a set of 25 plastic bobbins (Item 10803) for just 65 cents!

Here’s the thing about thread skeins. If you don’t place them on a bobbin as soon as you remove the little paper tube holding the skein together you will end up with one huge tangled mess! So take my advice and order the extra bobbins.

Almost tangled

To properly use a bobbin, wrap the start of your skein through the two slits at the top of the skein, like this:

Secure The Ends

Then wrap the skein around the bobbin, going in one direction, until you reach the end. Then go back the other way. Repeat until the skein is completely wrapped around the bobbin like this:

Wrap The Thread Around The Bobbin

Now, when you need a color, you simply unwrap the skein, separate the threads, then wrap up the unused thread. It’s that simple.

I have to admit that I tend to stick to using the thread as embellishments on paper and canvas projects but the more I thought about it, the more I thought, “What else can I do with the thread?”

So I browsed Consumer Crafts’ online catalog and did a little brainstorming to come up with these seven simple—yet fun—ideas for using craft thread:

1. Friendship Bracelets: This is actually a craft my daughter does every couple of months. Usually, she wraps the finished bracelet around her arm, then comes to me to complete the final knot as she can’t get it herself.

2. Wrapped Ornaments – Take an already shaped wire object like Consumer Crafts’ wired heart (Item 1726) and turn it into an ornament by wrapping various colored thread around the wire. (Editior’s note: you can also wrap Styrofoam balls, too.)

3. Friendship Ring – Make a smaller version of a friendship bracelet- but instead of measuring your wrist, measure your finger.

4. Fancy Headbands – Use a headband blank like (Item V35565-01), and then wrap the threads around for some decorative texture! Secure ends on the underside with Fabri-Tac.

5. Embroidered Canvas Shoes – Draw an outlined image or scene onto the tops of canvas shoes. Use a hand quilter’s needle to stitch the thread around the outline, then seal the shoes with a spray-on waterproof fabric protector.

6. Embroidered Hand Towels –  Look for hand towels with simple designs—preferably light colored towels with outlined images. Then hand stitch the outline of the images with craft thread.  You can usually find the best hand towels around the holidays, like Thanksgiving and Christmas. (My sister usually likes to use gold or yellow colored thread so that the stitching stands out more.)

7. Embellished Ties – Tired of buying the men in your life ties that don’t reflect your heart’s intent? Purchase a light, solid colored tie, write your message or draw your design in white ink, then hand stitch the design with craft thread.

What other ideas can you come up with to use the craft thread as the main focus of your arts and crafts project?

When I became interested in becoming a full-time artist, I researched several paints to determine the difference between archival quality and “hobby” paints. Though Golden acrylic paints stood out as the best “archival” quality paint, Liquitex came in as a close second—and the price was right up my alley!

Liquitex paints can be used on any porous surface (canvas, paper, cloth, and wood) and are perfect for artists on a budget. In fact, I found that whether I am creating art for the pure fun of the project, to master new skills, or to create art for sale, Liquitex basics is the perfect choice; especially since the paint is UV resistant and doesn’t yellow over time.

When I first received my Liquitex Paint Set of 48 tubes, I felt like a kid in a candy store!

48 piece set

The set came in rectangular box with layered trays. I loved this packaging idea because it provided an instant space-saving option. Simply remove the lid, then remove the trays to get to the right color for your project, then when you’re done painting, stack the trays, put the lid back on, and store.

Great space saver

The paints have great pigmentation, blend together nicely, wash off with soap and water, are practically odorless, and provide great coverage.

But what I really love about Liquitex acrylic paints is the ability to use them as watercolors.

I paint a lot with water/acrylic mixtures, often working in layers. When I use cheaper brands, rubbing  in a second layer can strip away the color on the first layer. But I find that I don’t have that problem with Liquitex. When I allow the first layer of paint to dry, then apply a second layer, I can rub away some of the second layer without affecting the first layer.

Liquitex Basics are great for layering colors

I can also use Liquitex acrylic paints straight out of the tube to create images with rich color and “touchable” texture.

Straight Out Of Tubes

I’ve been using Liquitex Basics paints for the past two years and I can tell you that ConsumerCrafts.com has the best price on the 48 piece set. (Under $27.00) In the past, I’ve always purchased specific colors, sticking to several basic colors and never varying from those colors. But now that I’ve given this set a try, I can tell you that I’ve found a few new favorites.

So if you’re new to painting with acrylic paints and aren’t sure which colors to choose or which colors will become your primary colors, I highly recommend picking up this set.

Disclosure

I admit it. I am a “create your own greeting card” kind of  gal. Usually, however, I create something on a large 8.5″ by 11″ watercolor paper, scan it, then digitally alter it, resize it to 5″ by 7″, then print it on cardstock.

This month, however, I was given a “Scrapbook Kit In A Stack Friends Family” value pack (Item SBK8Friend) by ConsumerCrafts.com to review and I have to tell you that I had a blast with this kit.

It comes with:

• 532 stickers – most of which are alphabets and numbers in six colors: orange, pink, brown, green, grey, and blue;
• 24 printed papers – there are two different colors schemes for each design: text about family is repeated over and over again, the word “friends” is repetitive, stripes cover an entire paper, and finally, my favorite… a chocolate paper covered in delicious looking polka dots;
• 24 sheets of cardstock – green, pink, baby blue, and white.
• 20 friends and family quotes on vellum paper.

Every page coordinates well with each other so you can literally create hundreds of greeting card ideas without ever having to use another embellishment. Which of course means that you can create a last minute greeting card in under ten minutes!

And to test that theory, I challenged myself to create six cards in under an hour. I didn’t give myself any time to plan out a design, either. I just laid the kit out on my craft table and went with whatever came to mind.

To my surprise, I came up with some rather cute, yet simple cards and all I used to create them was the scrapbook kit in a stack pack (Item SBK8Friend), a pair of scissors (Item 1149-17), a glue stick or double-sided tape (Item 2445-67), a paintbrush (Item SB9561), acrylic paints (Item 97848), 5×7 blank greeting cards with envelopes (Item 1103-66), and a black pen.

We Are Family #1

Friends #2

Best Friends #3

Family Is Great #4

Family Is... #5

2 But 1 #6

One thing I did have trouble with was the vellum quotes. Vellum is very delicate and too much “wetness” causes the paper to warp and crumble. So while I am not quite sure how to seamlessly use the vellum quotes, I did discover that you can cut out a hole in a piece of cardstock, cut out a quote, then adhere the quote to the back of the cardstock, so that when flipped right-side up, you get a window effect with the quote nicely showcased and readable.

If you find the cost of purchasing a single greeting card too much, enjoy creating with your hands, and like the ease of not having to “design” your own papers, then you are going to love this kit. Seriously, I didn’t think I’d have as much fun with it as I did and I had to make myself stop creating just so I could get this review in on time.

Disclosure

Do you remember that Father’s Day Canvas I created? (See tutorial here.)

Mod Podged Father's Day

Here are a few more ideas for using the “dad” stencil we created with that tutorial:

No Thrills Hand Stitched Design

First I used a wood embroidery hoop and a piece of cloth from an old t-shirt to create a basic hand-stitched design. (Think back to the days when folks would create folk art without fancy gadgets and just their handwriting.)

Retro Meets Folk Art

Then I got to thinking how much I like those retro advertisements from the early 50s and thought, “Why not combine the two?” And this is what I came up with.

Cloth Covered, Hand Painted Planter or Holder

As I completed that project, I eyed an unused paper mache flower pot and thought, “What if I used another piece of t-shirt, did another hand-stitched image and adhered it to the flower pot?” When done, I thought it was missing something so I grabbed some acrylic paint and went to town.

A Simple Greeting Card

Finally, I decided I wanted a clean “thank you” card so I used the stencil to hand paint dad onto a blank greeting card. Then I used alphabet stickers to write out the word, “Thanks”. I scanned the image into my computer and then digitally altered it, resized it to 5×7 and had several printed up.

As for the materials used in the above projects, you can get a basic idea of what I used in the supplies and tools list below…

Supplies:
1 – 5×7 Greeting Card with envelope (Item 1103-66)
1 – Liquitex Basics 48 Piece Tube Acrylic Paint Set (Item BS101048) or Studio 71 24 Piece Acrylic Paint Set (Item 97848)
1 – Matte Mod Podge (Item PLCS11302)
1 – 5.5×9 Oval Wood Embroidery Hoop (Item 39106)
1 – 100 Pk. 8 Meters Cotton Craft Thread (Item 1170-93)
1 – Paper Mache Flower Pot (Item 2839-04)
1 – “Scrapbook Kit In A Stack Friends Family” value pack (Item SBK8Friend)
1 – 9×12 Sheet of Canvas Paper (Item 97490-2)
1 – Package circle stickers
1 – hand cut star, from yellow paper
1 – 8×10 frame
1 – Used, white t-shirt

Tools:
1 – Medium tipped paintbrush (Multi-purpose Value Pack Item SB9561)
1 – Thin tipped paintbrush (Multi-purpose Value Pack Item SB9561)
1 – Comfort Grip Scissors (Item 1149-17)
1 – Soft-Grip Craft Knife (Item F1S12-6705)
1- Hand quilting needle

Have you ever gone shopping for a Father’s Day gift and found yourself bewildered? Ties are too impersonal, tools are too common, and custom designed items are often too expensive. Right?

Now you can create a fun, mixed media collage using a silhouette of your very own father! And you won’t believe how simple, or how fast, it is to create.

Supplies:
1 – 8×10 Stretched Canvas (Item 97603)
1 – 9×12 Sheet of Canvas Paper (Item 97490-2)
3 – Torn tissue paper (Item 1192-27): red, green, white
1 – Liquitex Basics 48 Piece Tube Acrylic Paint Set (Item BS101048): Unbleached Titanium, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Deep Yellow Hue, Blue Permanent, Brilliant Yellow-Green, Cadmium Red Deep Hue, Mars Black, Copper
1 – Krylon Bright White Gesso Spray (Item7015)
1 – Aleene’s Tacky Glue (Item AR8-10)
1 – Matte Mod Podge (Item PLCS11302)
1 – Krylon UV-Resistant Clear Acrylic Spray (PLCS11302)
2 – 5×7 Black and White Photocopies (Choose a front facing headshot of father)
1 – Torn papers with text
1 – Napkin
1 – Old cloth
1 – Black pen

Tools:
1 – Wide tipped paintbrush (Multi-purpose Value Pack Item SB9561)
1 – Thin tipped paintbrush (Multi-purpose Value Pack Item SB9561)
1 – Comfort Grip Scissors (Item 1149-17)
1 – Soft-Grip Craft Knife (Item F1S12-6705)

Instructions:

Spray canvas paper and the stretched canvas with Gesso. Let dry.

Use Mod Podge to glue torn pieces of tissue paper to canvas paper. Let dry.

Brush Burnt Sienna paint over the canvas, then using a dry napkin, gently remove some of the paint. Let dry.

Dry brush Unbleached Titanium paint over the brown paint. Let dry.

Dry brush the following colors onto the canvas, allowing each color to dry between brushes (otherwise you’ll end up with a mud color): Cadmium Deep Yellow Hue, Blue Permanent, and Brilliant Yellow-Green. Let dry.

Dry brush Cadmium Red Deep Hue paint onto the canvas, but instead of dry brushing the entire paper, pick just 5 spots. While the paint is still wet, dip your brush into Mod Podge and go over the canvas. Spreading the Mod Podge while the paint is still wet will spread the color, giving the entire sheet a slight tint of pink. Let dry.

Grab a few sheets of paper out of an old book, from the sports page of the newspaper, or from father’s favorite magazine. Rip them into several large sheets of paper.

Use Mod Podge to adhere the papers to the stretched canvas. (You can choose to cover the entire surface, or as shown in the sample canvas leave some of the canvas untouched.) Let dry.

Mix the Burnt Sienna paint with water to create a wash. (Unlike a traditional wash, you want the mixture to be more paint and less water.)

Spread the Burnt Sienna wash over the stretched canvas, then using a dry napkin (or cloth towel) remove any excess paint. Let dry. (Think of this step in terms of staining a piece of wood, you put on a heavy coat, allow the paint to soak into the surface, then immediately remove the excess paint .)

Create a squiggly frame, 1/2 inch from the sides of the top of the stretched canvas, with Mars Black paint.

Paint the top of the canvas, from the squiggly lines to the sides of the canvas, with Mars Black paint. Let dry.

Use a thin tipped paint brush to paint a thin Copper squiggly line around the black framed area. Let dry. (This particular frame has the staples on the sides. Even with the sides painted black, I could still see the staples so I opted to paint the staples with the Copper paint to turn them into embellishments. You may want to do the same.)

While the stretched canvas is drying, grab one of the photocopies of father and cut around the face, hair, and/or body to create a solid silhouette. (This is template number one.)

Place “template one” on top of the collaged canvas paper. Trace the template to create an outline, then use scissors to cut out the outline. This will leave you with a solid silhouette of father. (In steps 17 and 18 we are going to call this a canvas paper cutout.)

Grab the second photocopy of father, then using a pen trace the dark areas of the image. Don’t worry about being too exact, or cutting out every little detail. Focus on the main features of the face: hair, eyes, side of the nose, lips, and if the ear shows, the ear. As for the clothes, stick to the folds or creases in the clothes. Carefully, and slowly, use a craft knife to cut out the traced (or dark) areas. (This is template number two.)

Place “template two” on top of the canvas paper cutout. Use a pen to trace the cutout areas onto the canvas paper cutout. Remove the template, dip a thin-tipped paintbrush into Mars Black paint, and trace the pen outlines with the paint. Let dry. (You could also use a sponge paintbrush, though I found that the lines weren’t as sharp as I liked. To use a sponge paintbrush, dip it into the Mars Black paint, place the second template on top of the cutout, then gently dab the sponge paintbrush on top of the template. Gently remove the template to see the finished design.)

Turn the canvas paper cutout over and slab on some tacky glue. Glue it, face side up, to the stretched canvas. Using your fingers, gently massage the canvas paper cutout to remove any air pockets, then firmly press it down into the stretched canvas. Let dry.

Hand paint a term of endearment on the top of the stretched canvas in Mars Black paint. Let dry. (you could also get creative with Cricut letters, alphabet stickers, or alphabet chipboard pieces.)

Spray with stretched canvas with clear acrylic sealer. Let dry.

Seal the stretched canvas with 2 to 3 coats of clear acrylic sealer, allowing each coating to dry before adding the next coat. Let dry.

Turn the canvas over, and sign the back. You’re masterpiece is complete!

Disclosure

We hope that you have enjoyed our week of Memory Frame gift ideas for Dads and Graduates…now you get to vote for your favorite!

Here’s the deal: just review the four submissions below, and leave a comment at the end of this post telling us your favorite. The “winner” of the showdown gets major bragging rights here at CraftsUnleashed.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANKS FOR VOTING! SEE THE WINNERS HERE.

(Thank you, ConsumerCrafts.com, who provided us with all of our materials & prizes!)

Let the voting begin!

Lisa's Father's Day Star Frame

Sarahs Golf Fathers Day Frame

Jenny's Graduation "Star" Frame

Alyice's Graduation Collage

A big “THANK YOU” to our designers who participated in our challenge!

My niece-in-law just graduated from college with a degree in Computer & Information Science with a minor in Web Development. To show off some of her new skills, she created an elegant, yet simple announcement. She’s also big on scratch board art so I thought it would be fun to create a graduation frame using pieces from her announcement. And since I cannot “scratch” I opted to rip and tear instead.

Graduation Memory Frame

Supplies:

• 9X7 Memory Frame (Item 9705-5)
• Friends and Family Scrapbook Kit in a Stack, 8 X 8 (Item SBK8Friend)
• Liquitex Basics 48 Piece Tube Acrylic Paint Set (Item BS101048): Unbleached Titanium and Burnt Sienna
• Matte Mod Podge (Item PLCS11302)
• Dragonfly image or another embellishment that you may have
• Graduation Announcement or Invitation

Supplies

Tools:

• Paintbrush (Multi-purpose Value Pack Item SB9561)
• Comfort Grip Scissors (Item 1149-17)
• Soft-Grip Craft Knife (Item F1S12-6705)

Instructions:

Remove glass and stand from frame.

Turn frame upside down and place on top of first sheet of paper.

Trace and Cut

Hold paper in place while you use craft knife to trace and cut out the middle area of the paper.

Repeat process to cut off excess paper off the sides.

Repeat process to cut second sheet of paper, to cover the bottom half of the frame.

Use Mod Podge to adhere the papers to the frame. Gently rub your fingers across the paper to remove any air bubbles. Let dry.

Cover the papers with Mod Podge and let dry.

Use craft knife to cut into bottom paper, then gently rip sections of the paper and tear completely off.

Rip and Tear

Use Mod Podge to cover the top of the ripped area to prevent further ripping.

Use paintbrush to dry brush a coat of Titanium paint over ripped area. Let dry.

Place dragonfly in lower right corner of the frame. (You can cut out a dragonfly from scrap paper or use a rubber stamp with an image of a dragonfly.)

Remove letters from self-adhesive letter sheet (found in the scrapbook stack) and place on frame to write the word “Congratulations”.

Add embellishments

Use craft knife to cut out design elements from graduation announcement or invitation. (In my case, I cut out the flowers.)

Graduation Announcement

Use scissors to cut around the graduate’s name and school from the announcement.

Adhere design elements and words with Mod Podge.

Seal the entire frame with Mod Podge. Let dry.

Use burnt sienna to paint the sides of the frame for a more “complete” look.

What a great keepsake gift for the new grad!

Disclosure

Have you ever used an eyelet kit? For years, I had no idea what an eyelet kit was or how it worked, then last year, I created a bird ornament, used a hole punch to create a hole for the ribbon that would hang the ornament on the tree and thought, “Something’s missing.”

See what I mean?

Then I used an eyelet, and things just “popped”!

To my surprise, eyelets could be used for all sorts of projects: on scrapbook pages they become accents; on paper dolls they hold joints in various positions; and on collages they connect layered items.

Today, I’m going to walk you through the basics of using Consumer Crafts’  “Eyelet Starter Kit”.  You will need an Eyelet Starter Kit (Item 1027-95), a- 1/8″ Hole Punch (Item 2700-59), and a Mallet or Hammer.

Make a hole for the eyelet.

Flip your project over and insert eyelet shaft through the right side of your project and apply eyelet plate around the shaft.

Place the hammer post on top of the backside of the eyelet shaft, then gently hammer. The eyelet shaft will smash down to create a tiny lip that will secure the eyelet shaft, the eyelet plate, and your project together.

Flip your project over to view secured eyelet.

The key, I’ve discovered, is to make sure you place your project on a solid, firm structure before you hammer. If the structure is too cushiony or wobbly, you will end up disfiguring your eyelet, as seen below:

And if you aren’t too careful, the eyelet plate can shift and/or come loose, leaving you without a decorative backing, as shown below:

To see more projects using eyelets, check out the Fiesta Banner and Star Garland posts. Have fun!

ALSO NOTE- THERE IS A GIVEAWAY OPEN FOR A HOT-FIX CRYSTAL SETTER- CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK TO ENTER!

Disclosure:

It’s CInco de Mayo, and we’ve got some great crafts for you! We’ve got party crafts, tissue flowers, goodies that will put the “muy bueno” in your Fiesta! So just in case you missed them last week, here they are:

Fiesta Banner

Start off by making this cool Fiesta Banner.

Traditional Tissue Paper Flowers

Then whip up some Tissue Paper Flowers.

Make a festive pot for a table decoration.

..and them place them in this cute pot!

So even though TODAY is the 5th of May, you can still make some lovely decorations to liven up your day. Have fun!