New Favorites!

We found a couple more favorite on our fall trip.

Loved getting off the interstate and getting a taste of the rural New England; looking forward to returning and exploring the beautiful back roads.

Stenciled using contact paper on Silhouette Cameo

Handy Randy and I love craft beer which led us to Ashville, N.C. where we found a new favorite. (We stopped in again on a recent trip to Wilingham; definitely a favorite!)

I was pleased with my attempt to recreate the Burial logo

Logo on a sticker

using 651 Vinyl cut with the Silhouette Cameo. The sickle was freehanded. South Slope was a contact paper reversed stencil.

In a few days we will be leaving on our winter trip to explore again in the southwest. Yep, I will be packing project supplies!

You can keep up with our travel adventures over on our retirement blog, Living Richly in Retirement.

Which way do we want to go?

Quite often we are asked about our favorite places in our travels. So, on a post here they are.

The signs are made from recycled fence pickets, stencils cut from contact paper using a Silhouette Cameo and painted with all-purpose craft paint.

Latest Prayer Flag

Having become involved with the Sew Powerful Purse Project, it seemed only fitting that I hang a prayer flag in the garden to remind me to offer prayer for the young girls in Zambia and for the team that works tirelessly to keep them in school.

I like using the prayer flags as a way to try out new techniques and products. Hanging out in the elements where they will eventually decompose and where no one will see all my little boo-boos makes for pretty much a stress free effort. Having read about using Terial Magic as a fabric stabilizer before cutting with the Silhouette Cameo, I gave it a try. I like it!  The fabric was very much like paper and didn’t fray with the cutting. According to the bottle it also works to stiffen fabric before printing fabric with the computer; I haven’t tried that yet but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. According to the instructions, the stabilizer washes out leaving a soft fabric. (Since this will be hanging in the garden, I saw no need to wash it.) 

Following the directions from the Silhouette School Blog, I ironed Heat ‘N Bond to the fabric before cutting the letters with the Cameo. There was one little glitch, the letters did not adhere to the black fabric. Hmm….I bet that is because I didn’t prewash the fabric as instructed. So fabric glue to the rescue. This stuff works really well; again it gets tested in the elements quite often.

I will post more about the Sew Powerful Purse project after I have more purses to show. In the meantime, I have found what I think will be an excellent resource for improving my sewing skills; and it is free! More about that later.

If you would like to see more of the prayer flags that are currently in my garden as well as those that have been retired, there is a link at the top of this page. More information about the Prayer Flag Project and directions for making prayer flags can be found here.

And my 2019 One Word is

I know, it is about six months late, but there is a reason for that.

In case you don’t know, One Word or Word of the Year is a concept where one chooses a word on which to focus or inspire throughout the year. It kind of replaces the New Year’s resolution. I put my word on a sign and hang it on the steps that lead to the studio where I will see it every day (at least on the days I am home.)

I actually chose my word earlier in the year, but am just now getting my sign made. If you have been following our retirement blog, you know we were on the road the first three months of the year, home in April to host for Quilt Week and on the road again for three weeks in May. Handy Randy (aka Captain) says there is not enough room in our little RV for the craft supplies I might need, (actually there could be enough room if we removed the wine cellar, but we won’t go there) so the sign had to wait.

I chose “fearless” as my word for 2019 because, well I am going to die. Yep, no way out of it. I don’t know when or how, but I am certain this body will die. While it is a non-negotiable fact, I do have some control as how to live until that appointed time.

I can make myself comfortable in our little bungalow, waiting for a cancer diagnosis or heart attack. With Google, I can research what could be a devastating symptom. I could put my doctor’s phone number on quick dial just in case Google isn’t conclusive. I could insist we move into a one level house to avoid the risk of falling down the stairs (or more likely, have a heart attack climbing up the stairs.) I could avoid making left turns when driving. Regardless of all the precautions I could take, it doesn’t change the fact; I am going to die.

So, do I want to spend so much of my allotted time obsessing over dying that I forget to live? Nah, I don’t think so. I want this “fearless” sign to remind me to go on an adventure, hike a mountain trail, push Handy Randy around on the tandem, dig in the garden and be free from fear and worry.

“Can any of you live a bit longer by worrying about it?” Matt.6:27

Now, what to do with all these signs from years past? 

Recycle? Maybe. Or perhaps I should hang them on the back fence to create a little curiosity conversation piece. 

This is what I use to make the signs:

Scrap wood

Silhouette Cameo

Dollar Store contact paper for stencil

Craft Paint

  

Tipsy Tuesday Flag

Another Tipsy Tuesday flag is in the mail! This one is en route to Buena Vista, Colorado. It will join flags in Montana, North Carolina and Kentucky in bringing friends and neighbors together, one glass at a time.

Stenciled with craft paint on burlap. Stencil  was made with Silhouette Portrait.

It's Cheap, Sturdy and Charming

Have we talked about using drop cloths for crafting? I like the Everbilt brand from Home Depot because it doesn't have a seam. It is study and cost $11-$12 for a 6 X 9 ft. cloth. I'd say that is a pretty good bargain. I have found it is best to wash before using, especially if you plan to stencil on it. This is my most recent drop cloth creation,

Stencil cut with Silhouette Portrait

Perfect for the popular farmhouse look. In addition to pillows I have used drop cloth to make banners, garden flags and tablecloths. My next dc project is curtains for The Wanderer which I need to do soon as she will be taking us to warmer places for the winter.

So, what does one do when they wait too long to register for the for the Barn Quilt Paint workshop at Ephemera Paducah during the Fall Quilt Show? (Yep, the workshop filled up :(

What could we do but coerce Handy Randy into constructing a square,  head to The Underground, download a template from the Silhouette store, get out the craft paint and go to work.

Good job, Carol! Great fun having you hang out with me in the studio. 

B+

When I was invited to participate in a Facebook prayer flag project, of course I said yes! The objective was to promote positive thoughts in today’s stressful environment; thus The Positive Prayer Flag Swap. The basic instructions were to make the traditional 8X5-inch prayer flags from the Prayer Flag Project. We were asked to be non-political and avoid religious statements. The rest was left to our imagination and creativity. So I got out fabric, buttons, burlap, paint and such. I fired up the Silhouette Portrait and printer. And did I ever have fun! I mailed these 12 flags which will be swapped with flags from other crafters/artists throughout the country.

I love using prayer flags as a way to try different techniques and products. (Culling my collection of fabric, buttons, ribbon and lace is a bonus.) Here are my favorites from the batch I mailed.

Applique using Silhouette Portrait

Painted fabric, stamping

Coloring book page scanned and printed, quote printed on fabric

Painted fabric, stamping

I have been making prayer flags for about five years. Sometimes they are for family or friends that are ill or bereaved, sometimes they are for celebrations of new homes, jobs, or babies, and sometimes they are for life changing events like graduations, marriage or retirement. I most often make a card with a photo of the flag which I send to the person for whom I am saying a prayer.

I love watching them sway in the breeze. 

As you can see, some have been hanging in the outdoors for quite a while and some are new additions.

Can’t wait to see the creativity in the flags I receive from the swap! 

Today I hung a prayer flag in my garden with hopes a gentle breeze will carry my wishes for peace throughout our country.

Yeah! You got a Silhouette for Christmas!

Looking at my Facebook feed it seems as though a lot of Silhouettes showed up under the Christmas tree this year. If you are one of the lucky recipients, I know just how excited you are (because that is how excited I was 3 years ago when I received my Portrait.) Two of my great nieces are a couple of the lucky ones, (they both got the Cameo 3, I am so jealous!) so I want to share with them a few tips and photos to help them get off to a great start. The rest of you can read along if you want and certainly share some of your tips in the comments below. So here we go.

The best advice I can give, if you have not already done so check out Silhouette School blog; my go to place for finding information quickly (Melissa and her crew know everything about Silhouette.) This is where I learned about using freezer paper for stencils on fabric

I was looking into the sun when photographing (I know, that is a no, no.) The colors are a lot more saturated than it looks. 

and contact paper for stencils on wood. (A tip from me, buy that ugly contact paper you often see at yard sales for about 50-cents a roll.)

After a frustrating experience with craft store vinyl tearing, curling and not sticking well, I discovered, via Silhouette School, Oracal Vinyl. Last summer I used the 651 on an outside door as well as a coffee mug that is washed every day; it looks as good as the day I did it.

(I have successfully used blue painters tape instead of transfer paper on small projects.)

Speaking of painter’s tape, when your mat needs to be replaced but you just haven’t gotten around to it, you can use the painter’s tape to hold vinyl, fabric, contact paper or whatever in place. (Painter tape is a must have in my studio.)

My nieces each have a daughter (yep, I have great-great nieces) so I know they will be putting cute little appliques on little girls clothing. I have had great success using Heat’n Bond (available at craft stores and Amazon) for appliques. Fuse cutouts with Lite for stitching, Ultrahold if not stitching.

I used Hean'n Bond Ultra Hold and did not stitch on this flag.

Oh there is so much more you will do with your new Silhouettes! Print and Cut, Heat Transfer Vinyl, Etch, Set Rhinestones, and the list goes on. I am looking forward to seeing the projects of my nieces. (Confession time; I am hoping my Portrait will soon die so I can justify upgrading to a Cameo 3!)

Don’t forget, freezer paper, contact paper, painter’s tape, Hean’n Bond, and Oracal Vinyl. 

Bonus tip, Silhouette School blog is celebrating their 3-year anniversary with chances to win some awesome Silhouette related gifts. Information on their blog, Facebook page and Instagram.

No, I have no affiliation with Melissa or Silhouette School blog; I just stumbled onto her site and became a groupie.  

Organization in The Wanderer

I am back in The Underground! The Wanderer has been unloaded and cleaned; I am ready for serious crafting! We had a wonderful Fall Adventure but I am happy to return to my studio. It didn't take me long to find a project.

Using my Silhouette Portrait, I cut vinyl letters to keep me organized when on the road. I had vinyl that I had purchased from a hobby store when I first attempted to play with this product. (Remember my frustrations with it tearing and not adhering?) It did okay on this project except where the text needed to curve, it really didn't want to curve.

My guess is I will be replacing the vinyl with my fav, Oracal 651. But for now, I'll see what happens.

I am happy to report the Oracal 651 bohemian design on the garden shop door looks as good as it did when applied 3 months ago. I am really loving this product!

The Wanderer is on her way to winter storage and I am hunkering down for winter in The Underground.

The other shop door

makes it clear as to whom the shop belongs.

Using pieces of the left over pickets from the plant deck Handy Randy built last summer, I created these signs for the side door of his shop.

I used the Paint and Peel method for this sign. I don’t have photos of the process but it is pretty simple.

Most often I use whatever paint I have on hand for making signs; it may be latex, craft paint, acrylic, chalk, indoor or outdoor. If I want to preserve it for a while, I will give it a couple coats of polyurethane. Since I have AADD, I don’t go for longevity in signs. They are easy to repaint or do-over when a whim hits.

First I sanded the wood; of course this wood doesn’t actually get smooth, but for this project that is okay.

I painted the base white and let it dry.

While it was drying I created the words in the Silhouette Portrait  program and cut them from the ugly contact paper I picked up at a yard sale.

I placed the letters on the base board and painted over the letters with the same white paint (this kind of seals the edges to prevent the paint from bleeding.)

After the white paint is totally dry, I painted the Handy Randy sign gray and the shop sign red, not bothering to cover it completely as I wanted a rustic look.

With the help of tweezers, I pulled the contact paper letters from the wood, revealing the words.

After the paint dried, I attached heavy duty magnets to the back and hung them on the shop door.

And that is all there was to it.

Justa Girl and her Blog has very detailed instructions for the paint and peel method on her blog which is very helpful if you are not experienced in using the Silhouette. Note, she used vinyl where I used the cheap contact paper. Of course you can Google “paint and peel using a Silhouette."