Oz-Inspired Birthday - Putting It All Together

"Follow the yellow brick road..." to a birthday surprise to even the big girls.


Gathering the Goodies:
* The Yellow Brick Road cake box.
* Yellow tissue paper (I cut in triangles to better fit in my box).
* Ruby Slipper Earrings.
* Oz Bottle Necklace - full of bits of the Emerald City's magic.
* A triangle that fits into the top of the cake box from the card stock (where I wrote my birthday message).
* The Lolly Pop Guild Cake Pop.

Together at Last:
I wrapped the bits of treasures in pieces of yellow tissue paper and placed them carefully inside the tissue paper lined yellow brick road box. Then placed the card on the top then topped it off with the lid.

I left the box with it's goodies at my friend's house before she was out of bed (I was on my way to work). It wasn't too long before I got a text to what she had woken up to.

It doesn't take much to make a person feel special once in awhile - too often we forget that. Do something special for someone - you'll be glad you took the time.

Oz-Inspired Birthday - Yellow Brick Road Cake

What better way to present a birthday surprise or two than in the form of a cake AND what better way to present a Oz themed birthday present than in the form of the yellow brick road? "Follow the yellow brick road..." - you never know where it might lead. Plus, I like to make a statement (sometimes with glitter, glitter, and more glitter). (Yes, if you have noticed a glittery theme - you're right. I pretty much glittered everything within inches of being nothing but glitter for this collection.)

Supplies Used:
* Yellow/Gold card stock. (Two sheets - one for the base and one for the lid.)
* Craft glue
* Loose glitter - I used green.
* Spray glitter - I used gold.
* Tissue paper (red). (Just enough to make a small carnation flower.)
* Twisty Tie.
* Wide ribbon.
* Scissors.
* Printer. (Optional)

Putting It Together:
I printed a brick pattern on one side of my yellow gold card stock. I did an internet search looking for brick patterns until I found the one I liked (took a bit, but I found it). Here is the link to the one I liked and used: Click here. (You can find pretty much anything on the internet if you look hard enough and long enough.)

On the backside of each piece of  card stock - I printed a template for a cake shaped box I found on Martha Stewart's website. (Found here.) I printed one slightly smaller than the other so they would fit together top and bottom. (100% and 95% to be more precise.)

I cut out the two side, folding and assembling the top and bottom with the brick side facing out. Then I secured the ends with thin layer of craft glue and trimming lid down as preferred. I glued a medium thickness of decorated red ribbon around the bottom edge of the lid. (I didn't want it to look like a hunk of cheese - a careful task.)

Let dry.

Using the craft glue and the thin end of a a paint brush I painted the words "Follow the Yellow Brick Road..." along the top of the box, then liberally covered with green glitter, shaking off the excess. I let dry.

I took small squares of red tissue paper (of course something I already had on hand in my supply) and a twisty tie to create a little tissue paper flower, trimming off the extra bit off twisty tie wire and curling it up along the bottom to attach easier. (I wanted a flat bottom to the flower.)

I sprayed it with a touch of gold glitter to give it a mystical poppy appearance. I glued it securely to the top of the yellow brick box by the green glittered lettering. Then I let it dry. I let everything dry.

As everything is secured and let dry - it's ready to start putting everything together. Stand back and be careful - no houses are falling on this birthday creation or the birthday girl it was intended.

Oz-Inspired Birthday - Lollypop Guild Cake Pop

"We represent the lolly pop guild---" What's a birthday without a bit of birthday cake?

Using one of the Cake Pops I had made I secured it in plastic wrap then colorful tissue paper to give a festive appearance.

A Friend's Oz-Inspired Birthday --- Dorothy's Slippers

I have a long time friend who LOVES the movie "The Wizard of Oz" and so as she turns a fairly important number this year I wanted to do something special for her. It started with a pair of ruby slipper earrings.

There are few things that can make a girl smile faster than glitter or a a favorite childhood memory - so the best birthday is something that combines the two. (Glitter is the theme with pretty much every aspect of this "Wizard of Oz" themed present.)



Part I: The Ruby Slipper Earrings

I gathered my supplies:
* A pair of plastic Barbie doll size shoes (the color didn't matter because I knew they would be covered - if you can't tell in the picture, mine where pink). (I had a heck of a time finding an inexpensive pair and ended up buying a plastic fashion doll [off brand Barbie] at a dollar store that had a dress and shoes with her. I set the doll aside for a project to be determined later.)
* A set of silver earring hooks.(Or whatever color you prefer - gold, silver, black...)
* Two silver eye pins.
* Silver open jump rings.
* Red seed beads. (Exactly the ones used in many projects before.)
* Red Glitter - loose fine glitter (I bought mine in a package of assorted colors.)
* Spray Adhesive (I used Elmer's spray adhesive - Craft Bond - and I got carded for buying it.)
* A sharp needle - thick enough to create a hole to put the jump rings through.
* Jewelry making pliers. (Mine has wire cutters as a part of them.) (And any other jewelry making supplies that you might need or have on hand.)
* (Optional) straight pins with a round head
* (Optional) Craft glue - the use as touch ups for glitter as needed.
* Paper or anything else needed to protect work area and catch glitter when shaking. 



Now to start:

Pierce a hole in the top back of each show with the needle. Make sure the hole is big enough for the jump ring to go through. (Better to find this out BEFORE you have it covered with glue and glitter.)

Using the straight pins - I held the shoes up and sprayed them well with the the adhesive then covered them liberally with red glitter, shaking off the excess glitter as I went. Let dry completely (the spray adhesive I used was really tacky as it started to dry and I had glitter attached to my finger nails for a few days after no matter how I washed my hands - good thing the red glitter went with my black nail polish). After they dry you might want to touch up a few spots with the craft glue and more red glue.

Using the eye pins and the red seed beads, I created the dangles that would will attach the the earring hooks to the shoes. (I could have used another color for the beads, but I liked the red with the red.) I made the dangles the same length.

Once the shoes were dry, I attached the jump rings through the holes made before they were glittered and then carefully attached the shoes to the red beaded dangles. I hung them up to make sure everything was set before packing them.

Sometimes there really is no place like home.

Decoupaged Elvis Picture Frame

I LOVE Elvis! For those who know me well, this is not a big surprise. I have a nice collection of Elvis memorabilia, but as with any collector they always have room for more. My love of Elvis reaches far before I can remember into early elementary school. No is one really sure how it started, it just did and it stuck. All these years later and it's still stuck... which led me to decoupage this pressed cardboard/paper picture frame with Elvis images.

Doing a project a project like this an be done with a thinned out white glue (the kind that dries clear) or a Mod Podge and an old paint brush. I have both on hand.

1) I started with one picture frame. (This holds a 3 1/2  5 inch picture.) I have a small stash of the that I picked up in a craft section. They have different shaped openings but for this project I liked the star. I then removed the plastic photo cover from the inside. (This keeps the paint off of it.)

2) I then gently seperated the front from the back. This is totally optional. They were glued together to start, but I figured it would be easier for what I was doing.

3) I collected my Elvis images cut from a magazine and laid them out to work.

4) I then went to work on decoupaging my images in a collage on the front of the picture frame, layering it securely between layers of thinned glue and Mod Podge. (My Mod Podge is running low so I stretched it with some thin white glue, but I made sure the top layers were all Mod Podge.) You want to make sure the keep everything nice and smooth, the edges sealed nicely under the glue or Mod Podge (or whatever else you have on hand.) Don;t be afraid to use enough layers that it is nice and thick and white. It will dry clear and you want to sealed in.

5) Let dry completely.

6) I then re-glued the front to the back, making sure to leave the opening at the top to insert the picture. (I have a few ideas for what might go inside it.)

Yes, I am an unapologetic Elvis-loving freak and I love every minute of it. And I really do not care that some people might not find it "cool" or whatever else. I say, embrace who you are and love what you love. Life is more fun that way.

Gifts Recieved - Gifts Treasured

 Over the years I find some of the greatest treasures to be those that were created or embellished by hand, not machine. Creation and art is life and means more than you can find at any superstore. We need to celebrate the hand made arts more, the people that create them, and the people who give them. They are truly beautiful.

The first is a hand made cross, I think it was crocheted. To be honest, crochet, knitting, and the like are things I know little about. (I'm just learning to knit on my own.) Someone made these cross bookmarks for me and my siblings but I can't remember who. An older family friend perhaps. (I feel bad for this, but I can't help it.) Some of them were of only one color, but I favored the one with the rainbow of colors. For years it hung on the bulletin board in my bedroom.

The little girl figurine was a gift from a my grandmother years ago for Christmas, crafted  by a friend of hers from church. The tiny book in the doll's in hand is "Christy." It is a movie and mini series that we shared. It doesn't sit more than 2 inches high.

The small chest was a gift fro a friend in high school. She found a small chest and stained it in a cedar to match the cedar chest I had made years before. I use it now to hold coins I've collected from different around the world as well as my small collection of pressed pennies. It sits on a shelf in my room amongst old family photos.

Embrace the gifts that mean the most because they were chosen just for you, made with someone's own hand.

Marie Antoinette Beaded Guillotine Choker

I love costumes and dressing up whether for stage, holidays (like Halloween), for costume parties, or just for fun. Like with most things, a lot can be found in the details. A friend of mine had a Marie Antoinette costume, complete with a bloody line drawn on from Marie's visit with the guillotine. The costume was great, but make up and fake blood can be messy, smear, and fade, especially over an evening of wear. There has to be a better (and cleaner) option for the same (or better) effect. This inspired a blood red beaded choker.

I was able to use all things I had on hand to create this choker, including the tiny beads and wire that I have from the rings I made recently mixed with some jewelry making items I had on hand from other projects. This is what I used, but it doesn't mean it's the only way to make a choker like this. (Use your imagination!)


I started with cutting one piece of wire and a small piece of chain. The chain was for the closure to make it more flexible for sizing whether for me or for someone else. (With my collection of costumes and costume pieces that often happens.) I attached the chain to one end of the end, using pliers to secure it and to make sure the pointy end of the wire was tucked in so not to scratch flesh. (No need for jewelry to hurt.) This kept the beads from falling off the opposite end while I worked.

Starting on the other end, I started to bead the thin jewelry wire with the tiny blood red beads a few at a time, pushing them all the way to the end. (It took me longer to sort the red beads out of the mixture than it took to actually bead the choker.)

Making a 'blood drop'

After a few inches, I added a few beaded 'blood drops' I made by taking a small piece of wire with the seed beads and creating a blood drop shape, then securing each 'drop' to the main piece securely twisting with needle nose pliers. I made sure to wrap the end of the wire in and then tucking inside a bead to again keep the sharp edges away from delicate neck flesh. I then added a few beads between the 'blood drops,' making the drops different sizes.

HINT: The beads are tiny, so working on a tray with a small edge to keep the beads from rolling away from you is a great idea in creating your work space. The beads are tiny and I was able to press a number of them into the tip of my finger, then beading them onto the wire from my finger tip.

 I finished beading the length of the wire with the red beads, leaving enough on the end to attach the enclosure. Using the pliers, I secured the closure to the end of the wire, cutting off the access, then again tucking the sharp end safely from scrapping skin.

It's now ready to wear. I think I want to try some tear shaped red beads next time for the blood drops.

For more information, inspiration, and ideas on Marie Antoinette check out Marie Antoinette at Wikipedia or Marie-Antoinette.org. Enjoy, explore, create, and don't be afraid to play dress up!

And remember you are only limited by your imagination.

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

April 22, 2011 is Earth Day. It's time to celebrate Mother Earth, all she gives us, and remember that in giving us continual life she deserves our protection. It's also a day to remind ourselves to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.

If you are looking for some inspiration or Earth Day-friendly projects check out some of these:
Rag Rugs
Magazine Bowls
Bleach Bottle Pig Planters
T-Shirt Bag
Denim Purses

Or check out the Recycle Tag above for more ideas.

Also check out these sites for more about Earth Day and what you can do:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Day
http://www.earthday.org/
http://earthday.nature.org/
http://www.homefarming.com
Woman's Day Eco-Friendly Tips

T-shirt Bag

I had this great t-shirt that I loved and then one day I found that it was getting a couple holes along the bottom. I didn't want to just throw it away or cut it up, so I re-purposed it into a handy bag, lined with some coordinating green fabric I had one hand for the lining and the strap. I added a couple iron on patches I had picked up before.

I love having fabric bags on hand for everyday things or for those summer trips to the farmers' market (forget plastic bags, reusable bags are the way to go).

'Rocky Horror Picture Show' Collage Purse

For anyone who has ever gone to see a production of Rocky Horror Picture Show (RHPS) in a theater AND dressed up (or dressed down as the case may be), you know it can be hard to find a place to put essentials like money and ID and whatever else you need. As I result I found an idea posted on cutout + keep for a collage handbag. I ended up making two of them (one for me and an extra for 'just in case' or for a friend). (RHPS Collage Bag.)

I started with an interior sheet of my own doodles and movie references with a couple of my own lipstick prints. (Hey, it is Rocky Horror after all. I wanted it to stick to the theme all the way.) On the opposite side I made a collage of from old advertising and hand outs from shows I had attended from Rocky Horror with Mod Podge to give a nice glossy surface. I was able to create something fun and fitting to go along any of the things I've been known to wear to showings.

Using old page protectors (I had a couple with torn holes) to cover the collage decorated sheets, I sewed up the edges with black and red thread to form an envelope style purse. To add a little flash I added glitter inside the clear page protectors, secured inside after sewing. With bits of Velcro as closures, the clutches were completed and ready for any Rocky Horror outing. (Frankenfurter, where are you?)

I believe that sometimes if you can't find the perfect accessory, you might just have to make it yourself.