Book of Love: A Personalized Scrapbook

    I'm finally getting around to posting this (it took me long enough..), but this was part of my honey's Christmas present! I saw an idea similar to this one somewhere online, but it wasn't as detailed as I was hoping, so I wanted to put mine up ☺ 

    Some of you will be stepping out of your comfort zone on this one. It requires gutting an old book.. *GASP* The horror! I know, I know. I felt bad doing it, but honestly, no one in my household is going to read that Reader's Digest from the fifties. Now, if you make it past this stage, it's clean sailing.

   

    Here is what you'll need:

• An old book- think thrift shop find 
• Glue (and maybe tape)
• Photos 
• Scrapbook pages
• Stickers to decorate (I also used wooden shapes)
• A binder center or rings (I used rings)
• White 4X6 notecards

Ok, gut that book! Just make sure you only take out the pages, but leave the entire cover intact! It won't work if the cover gets ruined.

Next, cover the inside with pretty scrapbook paper.

 Poke the rings through the book's spine. If you decide to use a binder center instead, you will not be able to glue the ribbon down, ok? And you will need to used really strong glue to put it in place ☺ These will hold your pages inside. I used wooden shapes to decorate my inner covers and some of the pages I added. To cover the inside spine, I took a strip of thick ribbon and glued it down.

The pages were also made from scrapbook paper and I placed a white notecard on the pages I wanted to add text to.

Some pages were decorated with ribbon and stickers.

I used some of my favorite mushy quotes and special messages on some pages and glued pictures to the white backsides of other pages. Instead of typing anything, I hand wrote all of it so that it would be even more special.

Make your book as unique as you can ☺ The person who receives it will love all the work you put into it!

                                           Happy crafting!

Monogram Mania!

Everything!

Etsy.com

I don't know about you guys, but monogram is a staple here in the South. We monogram everything, and I do mean everything. So here is my first freebie post! It's for, you guessed it- monogrammed wallpapers! Is that too far? Eh, who cares! I'm also posting links to some of the most adorable monogrammed accessories I've seen floating about the web.

Also on Etsy.com

Monogram not your thing?

Try finding a fab background and adding a block of color with your favorite quote or song lyrics over it!

My current desktop!

Polka dots

Latest obsession? Lilly  Pulitzer!

Stripes

Not sure how to do it yourself? Open up "Paint" in your computers start menu under accessories and add text over this picture. Don't wanna d it yourself? I hear ya! Tell me what you want in the comments and I'd be happy to do it for you! Free, of course ☺ Leave me your email, too!

Movie Night Gift Box

A few months ago I made a post regarding a Movie Night Gift bowl (found here) and needless to say, it was a huge hit! Anyone who has received one of these gifts loved it- which makes the giver feel really good.

The best part of this gift for you as the giver? It's fairly inexpensive. The most expensive thing going into the gift is the movie. 

This is just a slightly different way to do the same gift.

Want You Will Need:

- Large bowl or popcorn box (found at Dollar Tree)

- Movie of your choice

- Popcorn

- Various candy

 - Soda

Get as many different types of candy as you want! And of course soda!

Simple, yet very effective at bringing a smile to someone's face!

Clothespin Crosses

Today I thought I'd share with you a simple, yet oh so pretty craft made of clothespins. If your laundry is like mine, you probably have more than a few extra clothespin laying around. This craft is the perfect way to put them to use! (Click on any of the images to enlarge.)

Figure 1- All the supplies you'll need!

What You'll Need:

-8 clothespins
-2 large Popsicle sticks
-Elmer's glue, wood glue, or a hot glue gun
-Artificial flowers
-Scrap ribbon

(1) Lay the Popsicle sticks in a cross position and glue one on top of the other.

Figure 2

(2) Take two clothespins separate the parts (as seen) and they will be laid out in a fan shape.

(3) Step two will be done to both left and right sides, and the top of the cross.

(4) The bottom of the cross is a little different. Take a clothespin and separate the pieces and put them together like the middle of step 2. The large part will be near the center of the cross with the pointed tip going down.

(5) Take another clothespin that has been separated and put them against the pointed tip as show in the center of figure 2. The bottom of your cross should touch as seen.

Figure 3- Fan shape

(6) Take the artificial flower and/or greenery and glue it into the center of the cross.

(7) The scrap ribbon will be used as a hanger on the back. (See figure 2). Glue the ribbon in an X fashion onto the back on the top of the cross.

Figure 4- Finished!

(8) Hang on the wall and enjoy your new cross!

And believe it or not, this craft was done at a youth VBS and even the teenagers enjoyed it!

(Can be found for purchase here.)