doodle easter eggs

I've got lots of Easter projects to share and to start with is a SUPER simple way to create pretty eggs. Forget about color and keep things simple with black and white doodles!

I started by poking a hole and blowing out the yolk.

and then I went to town with my favorite supply ever- a black sharpie!

I doodled my way across the surface of the eggs with flowers, paisleys and all kinds of simple designs.

The outcome is a very simple and pretty Easter egg.

butcher paper spring wreath

As you may know I love to celebrate the seasons with a unique hand crafted wreath and for spring I decided to create a fresh, all white wreath made completely from butcher paper.

I always keep rolls of butcher paper on hand- it is one of the cheapest and most versatile supplies!

I started by cutting large strips of butcher paper and scrunched it up.

I then wrapped and glued it around a styrofoam wreath form.

Next, I created paper flowers by cutting out circles

that I crumbled up

to add texture.

Using hot glue (this makes it quick and easy) I layered the different circles on top of each other.

I created the center detail of the flowers by crumbling up tiny pieces of paper.

I glued the crumbled piece to the center of the flowers.

I created all sorts of flowers in different sizes- enough to fill the wreath.

I decided to create some little leaves for the wreath. By scrunching leaf shaped pieces of paper to add a little dimension.

Last, I glued all of the flowers and leaves to the surface of the wreath.

And there you have it- a simple, cheap and pretty wreath perfect for spring!

Looking for more spring tutorials and creative inspiration? A whole bunch of my fabulous and creative friends are posting tutorials on their blogs this week!

Incised Fun Foam Stamping: Melanie Testa

Recycled Slip cover for a small book : Gwen Diehn

Small media case with stitch paper: Kelli Nina Perkins

Freezer paper stencils and Paintstiks: Jane LaFazio

Bunny Power: Quick Tombo Rabbits: Carla Sondheim

Painting A Bird's Egg: Tracie Lyn Huskamp

Sketchbook Slipcover: Lyric Kinard

Making a Faced Binding: Judy Coates Perez

Journal mapping: Jill Berry

embellished shoulders tutorial

I am loving the current fashion of trend of embellished shoulders. I am seeing it everywhere and I think it is a fun way to wear a little bling. And of course I had to come up with an easy way to create my own!

I started with a black jersey tunic

and used my new favorite Tulip product- Beads in a Bottle. A little like puff paint but once the paint dries is hardens up and feels and looks like beads on the surface. It is machine washable and permanent.

Beads in a Bottle is brand new and will hit stores next month!

I used lots of dots and shapes to embellish the surface of the shoulders.

I let it dry over night and just like that I have a new fun embellished tee!

i love puff paint

It is no secret that I love dimensional paint (AKA puff paint or 3-D paint) and I use it in many of my craft projects. Gone are the days when puff paint can only be used to create tacky sweatshirts!! There are SO many ways to put this supply to use and lately I have been getting lots of questions about how to use it. So I thought I would put together a simple post dedicated to how diverse and fabulous this supply can be in art and craft projects.

My favorite dimensional paints are all made by iLoveToCreate and there are a variety to choose from but my favorites are Scribbles Dimensional Fabric Paint and Tulip Fashion 3D Paint. They are easy to use, really affordable and can be incorporated into all kinds of projects.

The best part about dimensional paint is that the applicator tips are tiny and the paint is nice and thick- which makes it really easy to create small dots, details and embellishments on different surfaces.

You can use all those tiny dots and details to create a pattern- time consuming but SO worth it!

You can draw and doodle with it- the tip is so small that it makes fine lines and details easy.

You can combine colors to create a surface filled with visual interest.

If you don't like the dimension (or puffy quality)

you can lay another material (paper, fabric, paper towel) over the top of the wet dimensional paint

and lightly press down.

Pull apart and not only have you flattened "the puff" but you also have two surfaces to use in your projects. This is a great technique to use in fabric projects.

You can use dimensional paint to add embellishments or dimensional elements to a drawing.

You can even write with it!

Since dimensional paint is typically made for fabric (even though I use it for EVERYTHING) you can easily add permanent embellishments to fiber surfaces.

and even layer on top of painted or dyed patterns on fabric.

One of my favorite techniques that I often teach in classes, is using it to create a splatter or scribbled look. (much cleaner that actually splattering paint!)

Often I will press another surface on top of this technique- its like a 2 for 1 deal!

Here are a handful of some of my favorite projects that I have created with dimensional paint- just to give you an idea of how versatile it can be!

my recent valentine card tutorial combined paper drawings and puff paint embellishments

I used it to embellish some canvas sneakers for my Graffiti Chic part 2 online class.

This embellished tank top project is one of my all time faves!

Back in the fall I used dimensional paint on pumpkins- while this was not a "permanent" project with a long shelf life, they still were so BEAUTIFUL for a few weeks!

Last spring I embellished pinwheels.

and for Easter I decorated little eggs.

Recently I created an ENTIRE OUTFIT with puff paint for the iLovetoCreate booth at CHA- probably one of the most challenging things I have even created :)

Hopefully I've peaked your interest in using puff paint!