Handmade Sketch Book and More Elf Mischief

Today I'm giving you a peek inside my handmade sketch book.

Several years back I took a bookbinding class, and have been making my own sketch books since.  For the cover of this one, I used an old leather purse, and added the embellishments.

Inside is where the real fun is.

I enjoy trying out many sketching styles.  Here I'm going through my "lettering and doodling" phase.  Always changing, always evolving.

I really like the creatures with the nests on their heads.  Not sure why, they just make me happy.

And now, a picture of Katie and Lily (just because it's too cute not to share).  Katie is sharing one of her 8 spare fingers with Lily.  I know Katie is WAY too old to still be sucking her fingers, but this is adorable none the less.

And here are some more Elf on the Shelf ideas

The quick and easy ones are my favorite.  He doesn't have to be reeking havoc all the time.

Jingle bells jingle bells jingle all the way!

Merry Christmas
From: Elf

Chalkboard Lettering Cheat

I promised and here it is, the full tutorial on how I "cheat" to do perfect lettering on chalkboards.  Remember the other day when I told you about all those great fonts I found?  Well, I've put them to use again.

To make the chalkboards, I used chalkboard paint, and applied 3 layers, letting it dry between coats.  Easy enough.  The hardest thing was waiting for these to dry.  No "popping them in the oven" on this one (although, now that I think about it, that may not be a horrible idea).  I tell Brigham, that if I had one super power, it would be the ability to dry things at my command.

I used frames that I found at yard sales, and painted right onto the glass.

After they dried, I put them back into the frames.  I also painted the frames a uniform white.  I love the black and white look with the chalkboards.

First step for lettering: lightly cover the entire surface with chalk, and rub it with a rag (I like to rub in small circles), until there is a nice even layer of chalk dust left behind.

Now, onto the fun part!  I printed out the words I wanted to use, having fun finding the prefect font and the perfect size.  It took a few tries, but I finally got just what I wanted.

Next, place the printed out word exactly where you want it, making sure it is nice and horizontal.  You can use a ruler to help with this, but I just eyeballed it.  Use a pencil (or pen) to trace around the outline of the printed word. 

No, I'm not left handed, my right hand is taking the picture, and my left hand is posing for the scene. :)

Now for the magic! Remove the paper, and everywhere you pressed with the pencil will have removed the chalk dust, leaving you with a beautiful outline.  All that's left is to simply fill it in.

Fill in the lines.  It's like coloring in a coloring book, only the "grown up" version.  But still just as fun.

Don't you just love the end result!  I do, I'm not going to want to erase these for a while.  Too bad Christmas comes and goes so fast.

DIY Christmas Chalkboards

Over the weekend, I turned cheap yard sale frames into these chalkboards.  Total cost for all 3, $2.50.  I even got the chalkboard paint from a yard sale!

I had fun turning them into a Christmas themed chalkboard quote, and a deer head silhouette.  Stay tuned for the full tutorial on how I used an easy method to "cheat" to get perfect lettering every time!

DIY Book Page Banner

Yesterday I came across this fantastic website, where you can get hundred of fonts to use in Word for free.  It was surprisingly simple to download, and they automatically save under the fonts tab in Word, ready to use.  I went to http://www.fontstock.net.  You simply click on the font you want, select "download", open the downloaded file and click "install".  Like I said, it only takes seconds, and the new font will be ready and waiting for you to use.

I've already downloaded several, and am having fun playing around with them :

I decided to make a banner, using book pages.  The font I used for this project is called "JFFERRULE".  I used masking tape, to adhere the book page onto a standard piece of paper.  My printer didn't even know the difference, and printed it off without any problems.

Next, I cut, taped and strung the banner.  Super simple.

Now to decide where to hang it, there are so many possibilities.

These would make cute banners with children's names on them, for a birthday party, or any other celebration.  You could also use them as tags on gifts, or for place settings at the dinner table.

Chalkboard Ornaments

Today was a snow day for me.  What better thing to do on a snow day, than make Christmas ornaments, all from things I already have at home?

I started by slicing some pieces of wood from these logs, using my chop saw.  I love the beauty of natural wood.

I found a circle to trace that was just the right size.  I'll use bowls, cups, jars or whatever works for the size.  In this case it was a can of baking powder.

I painted on chalkboard paint.

Rolling on some sea salt and glitter (yes, I use my baking supplies for crafts more than I do for baking (baking is my weakness)).

 After all, it's Christmas time.  Add the extra sparkle while you can!

Too impatient to wait for them to dry.  I popped them into the oven at a low temp to speed up the drying.  After they were dry enough to handle, I cleaned them off, strung them with jute and added a bead.  Now they are ready to become chalkefied .  Katie and Jenna had fun drawing on them with me, what a great project to do with kids.  What's better, when you want something new, just erase and re-draw.  These little ornaments add a lot of charm and are a lot of fun.

No kids, these aren't cookies.  They are crafts.

Here are some more shots, for your viewing pleasure:

Close up of the sparkle.  It will be even more
sparkly as the glue dries overnight.

These aren't just for the tree, I added one to the birdcage.

The Stockings Were Hung

No mantel? No worries, I've got you covered.  I love a nice mantel, but I just don't have one.  A simple but elegant solution is this:  Use a branch to display those stockings.  I used two, and added extra twigs and greenery on either side. Simple and effective, just my style.

 And remember those fantastic monogram ornaments?  They make great tags for these stockings.

Happy Holidays!

A Day for Clark

I'm a little obsessed with this guy right now.  Yesterday marked one year since his passing.  What used to be day to day moments, are now my most cherished memories.  Grief is the price paid for loving someone so much.  I'm so glad I got to love this little boy so much, it's worth any amount of grief.  I'm one year closer to when I get to see you again.

Clark, if you could be here every time I think of you, you would have never left my side.  It's been one long year without you, we love you so much!