Etched Root Beer Mug {Gift Idea!}

I wrote this post as part of a sponsored campaign with Plaid and The Blueprint Social. All opinions and love of Martha Stewart Crafts are my own.

Father’s Day is coming up next month and I have been thinking about handmade ideas for my dad and my husband. Sometimes it is hard to come up with a handmade items for the boys since usually men aren’t “crafty!” I was in the store the other day and saw some bottles of Dad’s Root Beer and the gift just came together in my head – How about a personalized root beer float!?! I knew the Martha Stewart Crafts would be perfect for this project!

I used the Martha Stewart glass etching cream to make etch “Dad’s” onto the ginormous mug I found! The etching part was so easy and worked liked a charm.

In 6 easy steps you can etch your own glass as well:

1. Pick your lettering Stencil – and peel off a little bit of the border for a straight line.
2. Apply your straight line – using a tape measure to make sure it’s straight.
3. Apply your stencil letters.
4. Spread your Martha Stewart Etching cream EVENLY into your stencil – using your glass paint brushes.
5. Wait 15 minutes and peel off the stencil.
6. Wash off the extra cream and ENJOY!

Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy!

 

Martha Stewart Crafts has a whole line of glass paint, etching cream, stencils and brushes at Michaels to pick from. One of my concerns was that I would only be able to uses the stencil one time… but nope! They are adhesive backed and are sort of plastic-y so they cleaned up perfect and applied back onto the sheet as if I hadn’t even used them. I love that!!

For more totally awesome Mother’s Day and Father’s Day ideas follow along with PLAID on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

For even more projects - click on these fun projects as well!

Love for Lilies

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of iBulb for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

There is always an occasion for a girl to recieve a bouquet of amazing flowers - whether it be Mother's Day (coming up!), birthdays, anniversaries, or just because you're loved!  I love getting flowers of all kinds - but I admit, getting an arrangement where I know my husband was thinking "outside" the box is even better! Which is why I love the idea of lilies, gladiolus and irises instead of picking up some plain jane roses. 

Lilies, gladiolus and irises make beautiful arrangements for your home and add much needed color so easily and with minimal effort! They brighten up any space and can make anyone happy! Why wait for your significant other to purchase some flowers?? Head out right now and pick up some fun arrangements for each room in your home! I love the many different colors and styles each one comes in. I also adore how many different looks you can create simply by adding a few fun colors to a simple clear vase with some ribbon! 

These fun flowers come in potted bulbs as well. Buying potted bulbs is a great gift idea for women who want the beauty of flowers but don't want to take care of them. Not sure what potted bulbs are? They are lilies, gladiolus and irises (and others) that you can plant in darling little pots inside your home and will bloom for a period of time. The best part is... when they have died back inside, you can replant them in another pot for next year or take them out to your garden to enjoy every Spring. I think it is such a great idea to watch them pop up every spring and have that bright little reminder of the reason you received them in the first place. And when they bloom... why not cut off a few and bring them inside? You can find potted bulbs at grocery stores, garden centers and flower shops. 

Visit this Pinterest page for more bulb inspiration and ideas!

Wooden Happy Birthday Banner and Party Sign + Giveaway

Hey friends! I have a fun little tutorial for a wooden Happy Birthday banner and sign for you guys today! . I was invited by The Wood Connection to browse their store and pick out a few items for this project. The Wood Connection has these fun little wooden pennants in a few different shapes and I totally fell in love with them and the possibilities! I am a huge birthday party girl so what better than a Happy Birthday Banner with a sign pointing the way to the party!

Head on over to The Wood Connection (they ship!) and pick up your favorite pennants and other wooden items and lets get started making your own super cute and totally darling banner! Oh! and don’t forget to grab all your paper, paint, ribbon and anything else you might need – they have it all!

First things first: Sand all your items and then paint the backs and sides in your coordinating colors – I did mine all white.

When my paint was dry, I used my Xacto knife and the pennants to cut out my paper. I didn’t take a picture, but I simply used the wood pieces as templates and cut them out. When you do this make sure the paper and wood piece is forward facing (and don’t slice your fingers!) If you do the trace and cut method – make sure everything is backward.

When everything is cut out and dry, use spray adhesive to adhere your paper to the wooden surface. I bought my can at Home Depot a couple years ago and have used it for numerous projects. It is so simple to use: just spray it on the wood and apply your paper… and your done!

Then you will have a nice little pile of pretty pennants and sign pieces.

After I had my paper glued on, I used the Xacto knife again and cut off any pieces that overhung the wood so it won’t rip or tear off. Using a brad poker (you could use a large yarn needle) I poked the paper out of the holes (so I can thread them) and applied my vinyl letters.

Last but not least – I used red yarn and double threaded the banner together and then simply added all sorts of fun ribbon to the banner.

I am totally and completely in love with it! It turned out perfect and I love that I can use it for anyone’s birthday!

I made the party sign the same way: painted. traced. sprayed. applied. touched up. applied vinyl. BUT…. for the balloon party, I wrapped ribbon around the balloon and hot glued on a cute yellow button – then using wood glue I glued on the balloon and glued the whole sign onto the stake (which I painted yellow!!)

I am so excited about these fun birthday decorations and wish someone would have a birthday so I can use them!!

If you want to make a banner too…. You are in luck! It just so happens that I have a $25 gift card for one lucky winner!
The giveaway starts now and ends on Sunday, April 28th at Midnight.I will pick the winner on Monday. US residents only!
Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

Hanging Framed Monogram {Home Décor}

Last summer I shared with you how I was ready to be done trying to be something I am not and go back to my roots when it comes to the colors in  my home. You can find that little nugget here! So this past weekend I was cleaning stuff up and organizing a few things and I happened upon a monogram door hanger I made a couple years ago. When I made it I totally loved it but as my taste reverted back to my “go-to” colors it went into storage… until this weekend when it got a fun little face lift!

I found this fun paper in my stash and love that it features some of my favorite colors for decorating! Navy, Red, Yellow, Orange and even has some Green mixed in there a little bit! I simply traced and cut the letter out, used spray adhesive to apply the paper to the wooden letter and used orange and yellow ribbon to tie it onto the navy blue frame! You can find a full tutorial here.

I am loving this new version and added flare it brings to my front door! Just in time for Spring (if it would ever stop snowing and the sunshine would appear!)

Embroidered Bath Towels {Kids}

As you all know, we added a new little one to our family last fall – so babies and baby projects have been on my mind a lot lately. One of my favorite times of the day is when I pull my happy and clean baby from the tub and snuggle his wet little body up in a big white fluffy towel. I love soft white towels – there is something so clean and refreshing about white – and a fun way to make it your own is to personalize it with your baby’s name!

A friend of mine gave me a hooded towel with my kids name on them for a baby shower and I thought it was such a great idea that when my third baby was born, I had towels with each kids name made – all in different colors. I love to snuggle my babies in these big fluffy personalized embroidered towels as much as my older kids love to wrap up in their own towels. It is so fun for me to see how happy they are to have their own little towel and to get excited to have it. I bought some big nice towels and had a local company embroider their names onto them. I picked the color and the font and asked that the letters be about 3 inched tall. I love the way they turned out and love seeing how much my children enjoy them.

A fun idea for any new mommy-to-be would be to make a fun little Bubbly Bath Bucket featuring the embroidered towel and then adding in your favorite baby baths and bath toys and any other fun “bath” items. Put them all into a fun little bucket and add a big ole’ bow and watch how happy the new mommy-to-be will be with a cute towel featuring her baby’s name!

These would also be fun birthday gifts or would be perfect for a baptism gift!