Whatcha Doing?

Sheet Music Paper Trees I have been making these trees for years.  As I remember it, the first time I made these was with 3rd and 4th grade Sunday School students and later with an elementary school student I mentored and later as gifts for school teachers and friends.  They are easy to make and require very few supplies and can be adapted and adorned as much or as little as you would like.  Below you are that materials and steps that I follow when making the trees, along with a few tips and tricks learned along the way. Materials I Gathered Before Starting: Bamboo Skewer OR Stick & Wire:  The first couple of times I made these I used Bamboo Skewers which are easy to cut down and also easy for kids to work with.  The downside was that depending on the age--kids will poke themselves and I had to sand them down so the kids wouldn't get wooden slivers from the skewers.  Lately, I have been using sticks that are large enough to insert a hole for a wire (I use wire from

Fleece Holiday Trees I saw this project in a magazine at the library last year in January after I had all of my Christmas Decorations packed away.  It was a November edition of the magazine (wish I could remember the specific magazine, but it referenced a web site called Home Talk   for an idea trying to recreate fleece and felt holiday trees from Pottery Barn.  I scanned the article and jotted down a few notes on the materials and how to make the trees and forgot about the project until a few weeks ago when I was cleaning out space on my iPad. When I was at Walmart I ran across buffalo plaid fleece and decided to see if I could make a few trees for gifts and decorations this year.  Here is my first attempt, and the lessons I learned along the way Materials I Gathered Before Starting: Fabric from  Walmart    (red & black buffalo plaid fleece, white & black buffalo plaid fleece, and black felt--1/2 yard each for under $5) Wooden sticks --gather sticks the will wo

Another Wood Project  After completing my first wooden slat wall art project last week, I was ready to tackle Jenna's wall art project.  The size she wanted was 2 foot by 4 foot and here is what I learned from working with a larger size project: 1.  Much more wood is required--if you keep a project under 36 inches, you can use a lot of your scrap wood because, let's face it, if the wood size was larger than 3 foot it would not have been placed in the scrap pile.  I ended up having to buy a few boards for the border. (cedar 1/2" x 8'  boards at Lowe's were under $5) 2.  To add texture, I double up slats putting one board on top of another to add some depth but my cuts had to be accurate. 3.  After finishing up the project, I think I should have had more stained boards and less white/turquoise--the ends look a little like a beach awning.  I think Jenna is displaying the project horizontally so that may help. Cricut Lettering I love my Cricut Expres

"Hey mom, I have a project idea for you."   How can you resist a craft idea from one of your grown children?  My kids always seem to know that I'm up for a project and retirement has afforded me the time to dig in and take on a variety of project ideas.  The idea my daughter shared was a wall art project made from scraps of wood painted various colors that are cut, glued and nailed to a backing.  After looking at her ideas, I went to YouTube and Pinterest to gather ideas and get a few tips and tricks on how to get started. YouTube Videos I found helpful: DIY Video Another DIY Video (wish I had some of the saws & power tools in this video) Time Lapse Video of project creation Pinterest Boards with ideas: Pin Search on Pinterest My Pinterest Board of Ideas Materials I Gathered Before Starting: Bundle of wooden laths from Menards   (just under $15 for a bundle of 50+  or $.39 each--I used less than 10) Scrap backing wood --one of the tips I lear

" Whatcha doing Pam? What have you been making lately Pam? What have you been baking lately Pam? Been doing any crafts lately....Pam?"  So goes the conversation of a retired teacher with friends and relatives when they know you well enough to know that you like to fill your days keeping busy. Along with going to movies on Tuesdays ($5 movies all day and free popcorn at Marcus Theatres), catching the latest exhibit at the Joslyn Art Museum (our daughter and son-in-law have gifted us a membership the last couple of years for Christmas), and exploring the Lauritzen Gardens in Omaha I like to craft and try new projects that I see on web sites, in stores, magazines and displays. Anyone who knows me has probably heard me say, "let me see.....I bet I could make that!"  This blog is my attempt to share what I have been doing: craft projects from dumpster diving adventures to repurpose a discarded cabinet door or pet fence, cookie baking and decorating, stained