Artsy Chaos

Finishing your Artsy Chaos unfinished wood project is much easier than you think! If you can trace a shape onto paper and cut it out, you can decorate our wood with fun scrapbook paper! If you can glue, you can embellish too! The first thing you need to do is trace your wood shape onto your choice of paper. Place the wood, front side down, onto the wrong side of the paper and then trace around it. Next, cut out the traced paper shape just barely inside the line. Don't worry if the paper isn't cut exactly right. Set the paper you have just cut out aside. Next you will paint the wood. I use a very watered down acrylic craft paint. You only need to paint the sides and back of the piece. Again, it doesn't need to be perfect! Let the paint dry thoroughly. The next step is to glue the paper you have cut out onto the wood. I like to use a craft glue like Aleene's Tacky Glue. Using my fingers or an inexpensive sponge brush, I spread the glue onto the wood in a thin laye...

Today I have a really easy project to create. It would be a great last-minute Christmas gift. Wood heart ! To begin, simply trace your heart onto a sheet of patterned paper. You could also use another shape or even a plain wood block. Cut the heart out of paper and set aside. Next, you will want to paint your wood heart in a neutral color or coordinating color to your patterned paper. Once the paint is dry, glue the paper to the wood using Mod Podge or craft glue spread very thin. If your glue is too thick, bubbles in the paper will occur. Let dry, pushing out any buckles that the paper gets. Cover the project with a thin layer of Mod Podge if desired. Now it's time for the fun part! Use your imagination to add ribbons, die cuts, brads, flowers, charms, any embellishment. I have even used the bling from an old broken necklace. The sky is the limit! Depending on the project I am creating, sometimes I decoupage (Mod Podge) the painted and papered wood and don't decoup...

So I have yet to start Christmas shopping. Oh, I have a few things I have gotten here and there but overall, zip zilch nada. No shopping yet! I know, terrible, right? And do you know what's worse? I still want to make some handmade gifts. There's still time... I am optimistic. There must be others out there like me. You know, the I-feel-like-I-can-be-super-woman-but-realistically-I-know-I-can't-be-but-I-really-want-to-try type? With this in mind, I have been scouring the internet, blogs, Pinterest, for easy but fabulous ideas for handmade gifts. (Click on the pics for the source.) Have you seen all the dollar store mugs/plates projects floating around? You use sharpies to write/draw clever, sentimental, cute things on them and bake for 30 minutes at 150 degrees. I am a little worried about this one, however, since there are many failed project posts floating around also.  I just love these sweet decorated pebbles! Plus, I have a whole box full of rub-ons that ar...

So I hope everyone is busy making Christmas presents for those on their lists! Handmade gifts are so thoughtful and full of love. Here at Artsy Chaos, we've been working on some projects including this monogram wood frame. This is a great project because you can customize with whatever papers and paints suit your fancy! Let's get started! First off, I painted the front and sides of the frame with black acrylic paint. Spray paint would work as well. There is a reasoning behind the madness of painting the frame black first! When we arrive at the distressing stage, the black peeks through the top layer of paint. After the black base coat dries well, paint the front and sides the color of your choice. I chose grey because it seems to be all the rage these days! Next is the distressing part. I don't mean distressing as in pain-causing, gosh! Ha! Grab some sand paper or a sturdy nail fine and sand the sides and edges of the frame so that the black paint is expos...

Here at Artsy Chaos, we are always up for a challenge. Mix crafting in that challenge and you have yourself a party! Karina over at Karina's Challenge recently asked several craft bloggers to participate in a bit of a game to see what everyone would come up with.  Everyone participating was given a bag of similar supplies to use and were allowed to add items from their own stash as well. I decided on a banner for my daughter's room! From the bag Karina supplied, I used the paper, brads and ribbon. The photo letters are from Artistic Letters and are copyright   by Jodi Gerber. (We have an article on Artistic Letters which you can read here .) This was a lot of fun, thanks Karina!  There will be voting on the projects over at Karina's Challenge October 1st-8th if you'd like to head over and participate.

The DIY crafty bug has hit hard.  Maybe because of the promise of autumn right ahead of us.  I'm not sure.  I've made a list of ideas that I probably won't ever create, but there is always the hope!  Plus, I can share my creations with you! There are so many fun ideas out in the blogosphere too.  You should check them out with me and these crafty linky parties are a G.R.E.A.T place to start.  Maybe you'll catch the bug too!

Are you a member of FaveCrafts?  It's a great resource for all sorts of crafting projects with tons of free patterns and tutorials.  Right now you can download a free "31 Cupcake Inspired Creations eBook" .  Did I mention free!?     Ideas include Cupcake Bath Bombs, Delicious Cupcake Apron, Cupcake Bracelets and more.  Cute projects for more advanced crafting and ideas for kids too.  Have fun crafting!!

Lately I've been seeing a lot of really cute wreaths made with fabric.  No, not just your typical fabric rag wreath either but adorable fun flower wreaths!  It's been starting to warm up here and I've been feeling a little Spring-like even though it's been Spring for awhile now.  And as such, I feel a little crafty!  What do you think?  Yay, nay?  Cute?  Any further ideas for a fun fabric wreath? Clicking any of the images will take you to the original creator/designer's site.  Are you inspired yet? :)