Wrap it Up

I'm all over these stitched packaging ideas from Shimtokk for gifts this year. I've made a secret pledge to buy most gifts from thrift stores, estate sales or vintage shops for family and friends. Bonus challenge: Fancy up wrapping paper using recycled materials. I think sewing newspaper would look great, too. Shimtokk is participating in The Craft's Dept. Gift Wrap Challenge - head over there for tons of great ideas.

[photography: Kimi Kolba]

Wrap it up

I was thinking of making some old-school gift bows as little brooches out of some crazy sparkly ribbon to sell in my hand made shop and came across this DIY from Whole Living [via 100 Layer Cake]. Super cute (and easy)!

riding high

happy tuesday, folks! i'm riding high after a great long weekend in los angeles. my best friend's brother flew me out as a surprise for her birthday! we had awesome food and a party at a fancy malibu beach house. i had so much fun, it's hard to get back to reality. how was your weekend?

cute paper mobiles and wall art from gosh & golly.

say cheese

smilebooth has been the shit for the past few years and rightly so. a fantastic concept that's customizable and gives an event an extra wow factor. the honeycomb collective is doing a wedding at the end of the month (it's going to be awesome!) so i'm gathering ideas for something similar there. love these installations by smilebooth, especially the grey crepe paper backdrop above.

all photographs © smilebooth

friendship

it's so funny what trends come back around, but maybe friendship bracelets never really left. considerably tween turned young at heart, friendship bracelets are so fun for summer. we found a few in mexico that i want to get the pattern for (they're round and really cool). check out  honestly wtf's tutorial on these diy friendship bracelets in the mean time.

me and my arrow

check out these amazing arrows by quivver,  the cutest shop i've seen in awhile. our friends just found out they're having a boy and the name arrow is in the top running. a few of these might be at the baby shower!

amanda of red jet whistle hand makes pretty arrows because she couldn't find what she was looking for out on the market. so, she decided to make them herself (atta-girl!)  quivver also has a table at poppytalkhandmade.

homemade butter

i'm feeling like all signs are pointing to homemade butter lately. was browsing through kiss my spatula (new to me) and found a homemade butter recipe, then remembered d*s just posted a small measures column on making your own butter, and i just listed a vintage book in my shop that has a chapter on natural dairy products. steve will think i've gone off the deep end, but making organic butter seems pretty straightforward. has anyone tried it?

[top two photos by kiss my spatula / recipe]

[photo by ashley english for d*s / recipe]

[photo by the hungry mouse / recipe]

[photo by pinkshirtsandcarwrecks / vintage craft book]

good morning, saturday!

love this d.i.y jewelry idea using hex nuts, almost a modern take on the friendship bracelet. might have to bust this out for our next at home happy hour/ladies night.

[via pinterest - if you know the original source, let me know! via honestlywtf (thanks kelly!)]


what are you up to this weekend? we're having an old school sleepover, complete with blanket forts and maybe some nintendo wars, plus zach galifinakis on snl.

little comforts

sorta went awol this week, my apologies! laying low after traveling to/from a funeral and eating too many girl scout cookies + church basement cake.

been thinking about keeping it simple this weekend with some of these homemade goodies from around the web: lemon balm by 3191; vanilla lemon curd and apple butter via design crush; house of brinson does tatertot hotdish in individual ramekins; homemade doughnuts by forty-sixth at grace (one photo as last month's desktop calendar by shanna murray).

for schlepping

i'm loving these totes with adjustable leather straps by fabric & handle. versatility is a must for me when it comes to these types of bags. i hate it when i can't sling totes over my shoulder (especially in mpls, where we wear jackets and coats two-thirds of the year). perfect for the farmer's market or trips to the post office (in my case). looks like a cool d.i.y idea to try, but they are just $29-$39 for this tote shopping bag style.

[via simplesong]

idea to bookmark

woah! super cool diy woven chain bracelet how-to over at honestlywtf. that's gorgeous! now another thing to keep my eyes peeled for at the thrifts: giant gold curb link bracelets and bags of embroidery floss.

[via where the lovely things are]

yukon territory

as a former art professor used to say: fab-o! the how-two is over at design*sponge.

that's the spirit

i had to stop playing two-player super mario bros. for the wii lest i pull my hair out. so i'm looking at blogs instead while sm plays on without me. sometimes i can ace that game and sometimes we just get in each other's way. anyhow, i'm slightly obsessed with old brand new and i haven't gotten past the first page yet. just look at this sputnik holiday mobile - he clipped ball ornaments onto it. i'd leave it up all year round. check out the rest/sources here.

[via where the lovely things are]

wonderland

what a winter weekend here in the upper midwest! made it out to set up for the craft show saturday and the snow kept coming and kept coming. the show is thankfully rescheduled for tuesday evening. by the time i made it back to my little south mpls house we were snowed in all weekend, alternating shoveling and long john lounging, with some hot cocoa and 30 rock marathon thrown in. it felt like we were in a snow globe!

a few d.i.y. snow globe ideas were in order this morning. i especially love the blue mason jar with lid.

[image links at the bottom of the post.]

one / 

two / three / four / five

candy striper

love this d.i.y. twisted felt garland, especially the hot pink and red combo. if i have extra time this week, maybe i'll make some from felt scraps for my upcoming craft show debut. you can find the tutorial (it looks super easy!) over at the purl bee.

jealous

pretty much drooling over everything going on at the brick house. most recently this d.i.y. bench they made with old fence posts they had to dig up and oh, just some eames ltr bases they had laying around. full fence bench post here. when can i move in?