Spring nest

Hi everyone,

The last days have been wonderful here in Milan, with lots of sunshine and warm afternoons bringing happiness and anticipation for spring’s official start in a couple of days. I therefore decided to I start decorating the house in order to welcome the new season.

I had been looking for a cute, shabby bird cage for a very long time and finally found one last weekend, while walking around the center of the city. The piece was already very nice (you can see how it originally looked like in picture 2), but I still decided to personalize it with little adornments I found at a craft fair, which was also happening this weekend (and here you understand how very joyful the last couple of days must have been ;-) ).

First of all, I weaved an artificial peach flowers branch among the bars of the cage, adding little berry bunches here and there. I then used wire to attach a cute bird and a couple of tiny eggs to a pretty little nest. Last but not least, I created a clay rose to be added between the front bars.

I liked how the piece turned out, but something was still missing. I therefore decoupaged two wooden eggs using Calambour’s wonderful mulberry papers. I chose a sheet of music (PAU 48) and some roses (PAU 75 and PAU 34), which reminded me of the wonderful sound of spring birds’ songs.

I am very pleased with my little creation, which perfectly matches my spring wreath I made yesterday (pictures coming soon) and lightly brings some spring in my room. I hope you will like it too… and wish you a  wonderful, almost-spring day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - Chic by Tab - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Spring’s perfume

Hi everyone!

The warm sun has finally arrived to brighten up the last days, reminding me that spring will soon be here. I cannot wait to enjoy its colors and perfumes, the buzz of bees, the fragrance of hyacinths and colors of tulips. Being quite of an impatient person, I decided to start bringing the upcoming season in the home, by decorating a jam jar with decoupage, burlap and tiny flowers, creating a potpourri holder in which I placed fragrant lavender seeds.

This creation is quite simple and extremely enjoyable to make. If you want to bring spring in your home too, here are some little instructions for crafting your own.

Materials:

• Jam jar
• Glass Primer
• A background image (optional) (I used Calambour’s mulberry paper PAU36)
• A lavender graphic (I got mine from Calambour paper EASY292)
• Decoupage glue (Mod Podge should be ok)
• Clear sealer
• Burlap
• Tulle (optional)
• Decorations (flowers, ribbons, lace…)
• Lavender seeds

First of all, you need to apply a coat of glass primer on the entire surface. Once it dried, I tore small pieces of background mulberry paper and glued them sparsely using decoupage glue (picture 2). I let the piece dry, and then added the lavender graphic, before applying 4 coats of clear sealer in order to protect the creation (you can apply less, but I figured out that the inside will get dirty with the seeds, so I might want to clean it sometimes and I should make sure water would not damage the decoration).

I then filled the jar with lavender seeds, and, instead covering with the cap, which would prevent the perfume from spreading around the house, I cut a burlap circle (you should leave about 1 inch of margin on each side) and a tulle one of the same size.

I brushed decoupage glue on the perimeter of the burlap to prevent the fabric from faying and I layered it on the top of tulle. I then fixed it with ribbons and lace around the top of the jar. The little trick is to do this before the glue dries. In this way, you will be able to shape the fabric with your fingers, creating even waves all around the top and the burlap’s perimeter will harden in the right position, so that when you will have to remove it in order to change the seeds inside, it will keep its shape.

Lastly, you can decorate the front as you wish: I added ribbons, al small clay rose and a fake purple flower, matching the shade of the design on the decoupage paper.

And here is my final piece! It really brought a bit of color and perfume in my life and I hope it will do the same for you! I hope you enjoyed this little tutorial :-)

Have a wonderful day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Vintage flowers clock

Hi everyone! 

Today I want to show you one of my first creations embellished with decorative painting. I approached this technique totally by chance: I was going around a Joann store with a 40% off coupon and sparkling eyes (the two things usually happen together!) looking for something worth spending such a fantastic gift, when I was attracted by the beautiful cover page of Donna Dewberry’s Complete book of One-Stroke Painting (full review coming soon).

I automatically took the book in my hands and started browsing through it. Having never painted before, I was extremely intimidated by the complex designs, but the text promised that even people who never held a brush in their hands before, would be able to make gorgeous blooms with only a little practice. Furthermore, glancing through the instructions I realized they just looked incredibly easy, so I decided to give it a chance. 

Once I got home, I started practicing. It took a bit of trial and error, but I was soon able to paint my first flowers…but let’s now (finally) talk about the creation! It’s an MDF clock I found at a hobby fair, brutally thrown in the sale section with other old and broken merchandize. Even if it didn’t look that nice at first, I saw a lot of potential in this 3€ piece, so I decided to buy it.

Once I got home (ok, I confess…about a year later) I started to work. I first used some acrylic gesso (a white thick acrylic  primer)  to coat the raw surface. When it dried, I sanded and painted the clock with a light cream acrylic color, before using a sponge to apply a very thin layer of liquid bitumen (bee careful, as this is very smelly, so make sure you open your windows when using it). 2 hours later (drying time), I decorated the sides, front and back of the piece with blooms and leaves before applying 2 hands of sealer to protect my creation… 

And here it is, my favourite vintage timekeeping piece!

I hope you enjoy the pictures…and have a lovely day!

 

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Enchanted blooms

Hi everyone!

Today I want to show you one of my favourite necklaces. It is a piece I created for last march Beadaholique challenge, called Pantone Spring 2013, for which I had to use at least one of the shades in the season’s women fashion report. I have to admit it was very challenging to get started, because all the colors were incredibly inspiring and picking one was awfully complicated. After some thinking, however, I decided to apply one Chiara’s fundamental laws, upholding that “no matter what your problem is, browsing through your beads will give you a 90% probability of finding a solution”…

and it worked (I guess it always does)! I found a gorgeous grayed jade Lucite flower, which had been sitting in one of my drawers for a long time, just waiting to become the centerpiece of a blooming necklace. And what would have been a better starting point for a creation made at the beginning of spring, when all the colors and beauty of flowers fill our days of surprise and joy?

So I started working, combining the beauty of Lucite flowers with the elegance of pearls, the light of sparkling crystals, the cheerfulness of glass beads and the grace of gemstones and bronze tone findings to remind of all the beautiful facets this season presents us with. But not everything could be made with the components I had, so I decided to stitch some myself using delicas to create little bead caps and blooms…

and here is my wearable piece of spring. I hope you like it, and come back soon!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Flower triad necklace

Hi everyone!

 

Today I want to show you a necklace I made for a contest quite some time ago. I still remember that day in 2009…ok, this sounds like a movie whose next scene will be in black and white…let’s try again!...

 

Some time ago (better!) I found out about  the Colorworks contest organized by Step by Step Beads. I was so, so excited! Just a few days earlier I purchased my first color wheel, a fantastic tool helping beaders to combine different shades (you can see it here). The challenge (calling for a creation made using the orange-purple-green triad) just gave me the perfect chance to experiment with it.

 

The deadline was very close, so I rapidly went through my bead boxes (yes, that was the time of few beads packed in a couple of boxes!) and I found out I definitely needed more stash (nothing has changed here!), but I had no time to buy it. I just had to be creative with what was there!

 

…determined and full of energy from the challenge, I started right away! I picked out some purple glass flowers, a few orange fire-polished beads and…wait, I had no center piece (ouch!)… I was quite discouraged…but suddenly, (eureka!) I remembered about a beautiful pattern by Jamie Hogsett which I saw in the April/May 2009 issue of Beadwork Magazine (page 32) and I decided to use it in order to create a large flower to place right in the middle of the creation. I got out my needle, thread, teal Czech seeds and I started stitching. Once the focal was done, I attached some glass beads and blooms on the sides using craft wire and headpins. To make the piece lighter I created a strand of white seed beads running behind the neck to connect the two ends and close the creation through a toggle clasp on one side.

 

And here it is…my old, colorful necklace!

 

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Tiny blooms

Hi everyone!

Today I want to share with you a little pattern. It’s a very easy, fast (less than 5 minutes) to stitch crocheted flower I created while a was trying to find a tiny decoration to add to some of my pieces.

As you probably already know, my crochet skills are quite limited. I can only make very simple designs, provided I also have the help of excellent tutorials. You can therefore imagine how basic a pattern I created myself can be, so keep your expectations low.

Well, now, if you didn’t stop reading the post yet, I infer you are very motivated, so let’s go straight to the step by step instructions*:

1. Make a magic circle (wait, what? Seriously? Was this supposed to be an easy pattern? I can’t do this!  - This was my reaction when I first encountered this enchanted crochet creature, so, if you are a beginner like me,  you will find the super-easy video I used to learn how to make it right below the instructions)
2. Chain 3
3. Make 1 double crochet in the loop
4. Chain 3
5. Attach to the loop with a slip stitch
6. Repeat from step 2 (4 or 5 times depending on the number of petals you want. In the first picture below, you can see flowers made with 5 petals, while the ones in the second have 6)
7. Weave the leftover thread through the stitches or use it to attach the flower as decoration

* Since the design is truly trivial, probably many other people have already made it in the past, so please, if you know of some pattern/tutorial already published, leave them in the comments, and I will quote them (I really do not want to steal anybody’s work!)

For any further doubts about stitches, you can read my post on how to start crochet here (and, if you have more doubts, please leave a comment and I will do my best to help you ;-) ).

As for every crocheted creation, you can change size and texture by using different yarns (you can read this post to find out more on the topic). In the first picture below, for instance, the brown bloom was made with a thick cotton yarn and 3mm hook, for the purple one I used a thinner yarn and 2.5mm hook, while for the blue one I worked with a thin mercerized cotton thread and 2mm hook.

But now that you finished your tiny beauty, what can you do with it? I love to embellish my flowers by sewing a 4mm bead in the center and then attach them to any creation I can think of. In the last picture, for example,  I glued them to some Easter eggs decorations I crafted last spring (you can find out more about them reading the full  post here), but they can also be attached to Christmas decorations, gloves, wreaths, or anything you can think of, just let your imagination fly…

…and have a creative day!

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Magical Forest necklace

Hi everyone!

Today I want to show you a very special creation, the first one I ever made in order to participate in a contest! 

It was a nice day in 2009 and (surprise, surprise!) I was browsing through beading websites and blogs, when I stumbled upon the announcement for a challenge by Stringing Magazine, called Magical Forest. I never considered participating in a competition before, but a theme based on nature just charmed me. I couldn’t stop my head from thinking about the hundreds of things I could do and I immediately found myself with needle and threads in my hands.  

I began stringing green glass seed beads, inserting some flowers, ladybugs and butterflies every now and then. But that wasn’t enough, so I knotted clusters of 8mm glass beads on a brown cord, to give the illusion of branches with leaves. Lastly, I created the central piece, by attaching glass blooms and foliage. I tried to use colors which would give a mysterious allure to the piece, making it look truly magical. 

And here it is…my little enchanted necklace!

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Painted Easter eggs

Hi everyone!

As spring was starting to move its first steps and Easter was quickly approaching, a couple of weeks ago I decided to prepare some decorations to adorn my room and remind me that winter was slowly ceding way to sunny and warmer days.

I therefore went into my inspiring creative cabinet and started going through my assortment of wooden trays, boxes, hearts, wreaths, glass dishes, pots….and there they were: three plexiglass eggs I purchased years ago (and I, of course, forgot I had).

They were just perfect for my little project, so I started decorating. First of all, I used some cream color rice paper and decoupage glue to cover the whole surface. After everything was dry, I decided to paint small flowers with acrylics. Easy you would say, right? Wrong! That proved to be incredibly difficult! Rice paper is permeable (much more than regular one) and, as soon as the brush touched it, all the color started to be drunk by the thirsty foundation, so no way to make long strokes. But that was not all! Rice paper also has a very irregular surface, so I was constantly challenged by bumps, hills and valleys. 

Basically, if you are a beginner with decorative painting (as I am) you either breathe, try to keep calm and dig out all of your patience, or you just give up! I chose the first approach, but once my perseverance was all gone, the results were still not close to be good enough.

After my little painting disaster, I therefore decided to try adding some nice details that would turn the attention away from my design flaws. I attached ribbon bows in matching colors, made a few tiny crocheted blooms (you can find the pattern to stitch them here) and embellished them with small beads. Of course, the law stating that beads just solve everything proved to be right even in this hopeless occasion...

…and here they are, my little (finally decent) Easter eggs!

Have a lovely day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Strawberry gnome

Hi everyone!

Today I want to introduce you to my new little friend: the strawberry gnome! 

I found this cute enchanted creature on a charmed booth, during the most magical fair that takes place in my town: the Hobby Show (…my brain is still recovering from the hypnosis caused by all those sparkling beads)! 

Once I got home, I realized that, as any fairy tale creature, also my new friend needed enchanted surroundings in which he could happily live.

So I started working: I took a glass dish and decorated it with rice paper (using a technique called decoupage). Then, I made little strawberries with polymer-clay and I attached them next to the gnome, together with some flowers and ribbon. Last, but not least, I gave him a small companion: the cheerful hedgehog! They became very good friends...

...and lived happily ever after.

Have a magic day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Purple flower fairy necklace

Hi everyone!

A couple of days ago, I was browsing through some old graphics on my computer when I found this beautiful image of a flower fairy. I was dazzled and I just couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I got out my Lucite flowers and I started working. 

I used some lovely bell-shaped beads I bought some time ago on Etsy as main elements and then I added sparkling crystals, shiny glass beads, lovely filigree bead caps and a couple romantic bronze leaves. To keep everything together, I created a frame with 18 gauge craft wire (using my round-nose pliers) and then I attached all the elements using jump rings and some 26 gauge bronze wire. 

And here is my creation…with big thanks to the flower fairy for being so inspirational :-) 

Have an enchanted day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)

Spring flower earrings

Hi everyone!

March is finally here and flowers will start to bloom soon. Even if we will have to wait a couple of weeks before the arrival of colors in gardens and parks, happiness was already delivered to my mailbox. It was contained in a small package, together with some amazing colorful lucite flowers which I ordered on Etsy some weeks ago.

My first experiments with them were very simple: I made some small earrings combining the joyful blooms with sparkling Swarovski crystals and antiqued brass findings. Despite their simplicity, these little jewelry pieces are bringing a lot of colors in my first days of March, and I hope they will bring a taste of spring to you too!

Enjoy the gallery and have a colorful day!

My favorite parties: Under the Table and Dreaming -  Between Naps on the Porch - Dwellings - Creatively living - The dedicated house - Rain on a tin Roof - Its So Very Cheri - DIY Showoff - The Stories of A2Z - Coastal Charm - A Stroll thru Life - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia - Stone Gable - Cozy little house  - Knick of time -Savvy Southern Style - Ivy and Elaphants - Green Willow Pond - No Minimalist Here - From my front porch to yours - Craftberry Bush  - The Brambleberry Cottage - French Country Cottage - Common Ground - The Charm of Home - The shabby nest - Romantic home - Sunny simple life - The cottage market

P.s. If you don’t want to miss any crafty project, remember to follow the blog by clicking on the “join this site” button in the right column ;-)