Independence Day Plates using Vinyl {and a Silhouette America Promo Code!}

First I want to wish a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to TWO of my younger sisters!  They were born on the same day, 3 years apart, and consider each other their best b-day present ever!  Happy Birthday, Amanda and Jennifer! I love you!

I recently contacted Silhouette America about becoming an affiliate with them.  I have had my Silhouette SD craft cutter for several years now and absolutely love it! I have made so many different things with it, from home décor to party decorations to kids’ school projects.  It is incredibly handy to have on hand. 

Silhouette made me a product affiliate.  This month they sent me a roll of their Strawberry colored premium vinyl to play around with and use to promote their products on my blog.  I have been racking my brain for awhile as to what I wanted to do with red vinyl.  Well, today I realized that the promo code they gave me for my readers to get 25% off their premium vinyl as well as a substantial discount on their craft cutters starts tomorrow!! 

So, this afternoon I realized I had to put the red vinyl to good use in a fast project!  Here is what I came up with!

I have this hutch from Ballard Designs that I absolutely love.  It’s a great place to keep bowls and platters and pitchers.  I try to change it up a little with the seasons and holidays.  I bought those blue plates at

4TH of JULY STAR {Upcycle}

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This is a post from past year.  Since I am moving in less than 2 months, I don’t have a lot of time to be crafting so I thought it would be fun to re-visit some old posts.  Hope you think so, too!

Here is a super easy, super fast re-do of an orange tin star I had laying around.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I simply spray painted the star white and added blue vinyl stars and red vinyl stripes. I cut the stars with my Silhouette, but you could just use some cute stickers if you don’t have one. I hand cut the stripes from a piece of red vinyl, but you could also just use some red tape which would be easier.

Here is that hutch I was telling you about that my neighbor gave me. Isn’t it cute? I don’t have a lot of 4th of July decorations, but I am trying to get some things together to make it look cuter. But this is how it is for now:

I want to paint this thing white and give it an old chippy finish. Hopefully soon!!

TIN STAR RE-DO {Craft}

Are you sick of my recipe posts yet?  I am!  It was time for me to get a craft done.  Here is a super easy, super fast re-do of an orange tin star I had laying around.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I simply spray painted the star white and added blue vinyl stars and red vinyl stripes.  I cut the stars with my Silhouette, but you could just use some cute stickers if you don’t have one.  I hand cut the stripes from a piece of red vinyl, but you could also just use some red tape which would be easier. 

Here is that hutch I was telling you about that my neighbor gave me.  Isn’t it cute?  I don’t have a lot of 4th of July decorations, but I am trying to get some things together to make it look cuter.  But this is how it is for now:

I want to paint this thing white and give it an old chippy finish.  Hopefully soon!!

PATRIOTIC MAP {Craft}

I have an antique hutch on my front patio that my neighbor gave to me after it didn’t sell for $30 at a garage sale she had!  I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!  I have started trying to decorate it for seasons and holidays.  But, I am a cheapskate so I don’t like to go buy things for it!  Anyway, I am trying to decorate it for 4th of July.  I have very few Americana decorations.  So, I thought I should make some things to go on it.

Well, another thing about me is that I am a lazy and impatient crafter.  I love to create and craft, but only things that don’t take too long.  A couple hours is about my max for a project.  I prefer quick and easy projects.  I am also VERY impatient when I am making something.  I HATE having to wait for paint or glue to dry.  I don’t like to stop to clean up.  Once I start something I just want to go, go, go ‘til it is done!

Ok, onto the subject of this post:

Sorry there’s a bit of a glare so the FREE is a bit hard to see.  But, I found a printable for this map graphic on I Heart Naptime!  You can find it HERE.  I printed it out on my printer and then I took some little scissors and carefully cut out the map.  I happened to have the perfect size piece of birch plywood in the garage….a scrap from a bed my son built in woodshop.  I took that piece of wood and painted the edges red with acrylic craft paint.

Then, I took a piece of this navy star fabric and cut it a little bigger than the wood.  I wanted to make the fabric look a little old, so I took some sandpaper to the surface.  See how it changed it?  The left side is normal, the right is sanded.  It is a printed fabric (the color is on the top only).

Then I applied ModPodge to the surface of the wood and placed the sanded fabric on it, using a credit card type tool to rub it down and press it to the wood well.  I let that dry for a bit while I took some fine sandpaper to the map to make it look a little less perfect.  Then I used my finger to add some distress ink to the paper to make the edges brown and dull down the white of the areas I had sanded. 

Next, I turned over the wood onto a cutting mat and used a sharp Xacto knife to trim the excess fabric.  I then flipped it back over and applied a layer of ModPodge to the fabric face.  While it was still wet, I placed the map onto it and pressed it down with the credit card again.  If you don’t want a distressed look be careful pressing it down because I noticed it scratched it a couple times.

Now, a GOOD and PATIENT crafter would have let that dry completely.  But because I am NOT that good and patient crafter I let it dry for about 10 minutes and then applied my final coat of ModPodge to the map face.  Unfortunately, that cause it to bubble in 3 or 4 places.  I poked those places with a pin and pressed the air out.  I don’t think anyone can notice it now but it was just a hassle.

Once it was dry I sprayed it with a coat of clear spray paint to eliminate the tackiness of the ModPodge.

All in all, it was a fast and easy project and I am really happy with how it came out! 

 

PATRIOTIC BERRIES {Recipe}

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I am sure you have all seen these already, but just in case someone has had their head in the sand I thought I would post these cute strawberries I made last year.  I actually made them for my 3 year olds birthday party because he LOVES red, white, and blue.  He also loved dinosaurs at the time so we had a red, white, and blue dinosaur party.

To make these, just wash your strawberries and allow them to dry on a towel.  Once dry, dip them in melted white chocolate chips or candy melts, then directly into a bowl of blue sprinkles.  These are not only cute and festive but they are super yummy!  You can do it with any combo of colors, as long as red fits in with your decor!

Here are a couple other pics from that birthday party last year.  It was a super easy, simple one at the park.  The kids had a great time!