Update: GIVEAWAY WINNERS!!!

Alright, this giveaway is closed, but I've got another lined up that will begin June 27th. Thanks a million to everyone who entered via comments and email. AND NOW FOR THE WINNERS!!

For the pink cake pedestal, Antonia B. who had trouble with the comment section and had to enter via email.

For the green cake pedestal, Annabelle G. who sneaked her entry in at the end.

Congratulations, ladies! I'll be emailing you for your mailing info.

Monday, May 30
Cake Pedestal Giveaway!

Okay, I've never done  giveaway before, so bear with me. It's actually a dual giveaway, so that's pretty boss. What I'm giving away are two brand spankin' new ceramic cake/dessert pedestals, one in pink and one in green:

This is going to be an easy giveaway with very simple terms, so click through to find out the details.

Project Twofer!

I have a teeny weeny itsy bit of an issue with kids' crafts. You see, there's only so much room on the fridge for all the macaroni mosaics and fingerpaintings. I love these things, but I also love projects for kids that are actually functional in some way.

Well. Today we have two projects you can do with the kids that--GASP--won't end up in the garbage next week!! One is just for funsies and the other would make a great end-of-the-year teacher gift.

First, some cutie-pie felt hairclips:

And then a fun silk flower pen bouquet:

Both projects after the jump!

Craft Hack: Ballard-Inspired Newsprint Dress and Accessories

It's time again for a knock-off tutorial! This week, I'm hacking Ballard's Newspaper Dress ($299-ouch) and the Newspaper Shoe, Glove and Handbag Prints ($89 each). I've since seen a few tutorials for the dress (one used old dress patterns instead of newspaper and it's CUTE) but I've not seen an for the shoes, gloves and purse. WELL. I felt they were even more interesting than the dress, and I originally intended to omit the dress entirely.

Long story short, I hacked them all! And for the first time ever, I've made a printable PDF template. Wheee!

Tutorial after the jump.

Just a thing I made

So I got an enormous amount of traffic on this post back in December, along with a ton of emails about where I got the wooden panels I used. As I said then, probably the best (and easiest) bet would be to get some cheapo MDF and cut it to the desired shape and size. I lucked out and had three panels like this and only used two on the December project. SO. I had one more panel, and I finally used it.

This particular Roman numeral has special meaning to me. It means 1997, which was the year Spence and I got married. Totally romantic, right? I KNOW.

Forgive the crooked photography. The dog likes to lean against me anytime I'm standing still and he weighs a ton...

crate night stand

So my husband needs a nightstand. Like REALLY REALLY bad. I have been looking at Craigslist and checking yardsales, but all to no avail. And before anyone thinks to herself, "Surely one could find a reasonably priced nightstand at a thrift store," let me assure you, the thriftstores here are not thrifty. It's depressing. I haven't given up, but in the interim I decided to make one.

Tutorial after the jump!

what to do with empty pickle jars?

I don't like to throw away jars. I can't do it. They're so useful and reusable and dishwasher safe! Jars. Love them.

So what do I do with my jars? Mostly I just use them for leftovers, and I've seen some really cute jars used for giving homemade hot chocolate, but I do have a few jar projects around the house. Some, like the one below, are hardly projects at all. "Spray paint lid and fill with assorted tchotchke" is hardly a tutorial:

 These wooden crates were a steal at Joann's Fabrics, by the way. I should have gotten more of them. If you need some, I'd get them now. And don't they stain beautifully??

These hanging jars were another Pottery Barn-inspired project. I don't remember how much PB's' were, but these were free to me, using what I had on hand. Floral wire, river rocks and some long burning emergency candles:

I don't know. Perhaps my jar love is excessive...

PB knock-off angel wings

What follows is my first ever tutorial. It is very image intensive and possibly difficult to decipher. I apologize in advance. Happy DIYing!!

Tutorial after the jump!