A John Deere and a Two Year Old

My sweet granddaughter, Pais’lee Mae, turned two and we decided to have a John Deere party because she loves to ride with her papa on his.  We kept the traditional green and yellow colors and added the pink which really looked good together (just in case you were wondering).  My favorite part was making her sweet little party outfit complete with a hat headband that she wore for about 3 seconds.  I should have taken the pictures before she played her heart out, gotten dirty and beyond exhausted but….

The skirt was made with strips of John Deere and coordinating fabric.  I cut the tractor out of the leftover fabric and cut the “2” and the bottom layer of the flowers freehand from pink fabric, then fused them to the shirt.  I added glitter fabric paint to the tractor and found some flowers to go over the fabric ones to give it dimension. 

For the hat, i purchased the pink headband, found this cute little straw hat at a thrift store and added ribbons and a flower.

For the little girl favors, i had a friend make these adorable headbands and we purchased a green and yellow nail polish for each set.  We then put it all in a mason jar and decorated the jar.

For the boys, we got creative lazy and decided that a farm set would be enjoyed the most.

Won this cute John Deere truck at an auction and used for color coordinated mints….cute, huh!

Our veggie garden!

Fresh picked berries…not really…ha…fresh purchased!

And the adorable cake!!

Backdrop was made this time just using colored duct tape with a color block pattern.

We even had a  tractor balloon sculpture made but i don’t think anyone got a picture of it in its entirety but here are some adorable shots of some of the guests playing with and in it….

The Pumpkin King in December

I know it is December and we should be thinking lights, tree and presents but I wanted to share a costume I made my grown daughter for Halloween to wear to work….a costume based on the character Jack Skellington from A Nightmare Before Christmas (see how I tied that all together…hehe).  This was another one of those “Mom I need….and did I tell you I need it tomorrow” kind of projects!  But I am one of those people that work well under pressure so I got to work…..

The shirt was first…just cut out a face from felt and put on a black tank top…the felt had an adhesive backing so it was really easy. 

The bat bow tie was a little challenging as I did not have a white marker so I used yarn to accent and added eyes and some hanging beadwork.

Next was a set of gloves….I bought these for $1 and just chopped the fingers off (for effect and also because she had to be able to mix drinks) and decorated. 

The hat was just a little top hat I created with paper, ribbons, feathers and beads.  I attached the mini to a headband. 

The skirt was made like a tutu….I used tulle and coordinating fabric on an elastic waistband.  We purchased the tights and voila!!!!…costume all done!!

Project…Shadowbox

Last year, I got a really good deal on these burlap backed shadowboxes, knowing that sooner or later, I wanted to make kits with them.  Creating something to display in the house is very rewarding for me.  And I really liked that they were hinged and had a magnetic closure so I could change the whole design if I chose to do so at another time. 

I used paper and materials from Michaels Craft store keeping it in the orange and teal colors with the natural feel of the burlap, jute, and wooden elements.  A little bit of bling and doily add the finishing touches. 

Prima Wedding Mini Album

Wanted to share something I did a while back…..I created this mini album initially for a class I was going to teach at the Creating Keepsakes and Scrapbook Expo using Prima…the album, flowers and paper (Lyric Collection) and of course, Mon Ami Gabby products.   After putting it together, we found that we could not get the album in the numbers we needed so I gifted it to a couple for a wedding gift for some of their most treasured photos.

A Noni’s Labor of Love

For my granddaughter’s third birthday (the princess one in the post below), I wanted to create something that she would love and use all year.  She is a sassy one and really thinks she was born into royalty so after buying her several princess dresses and shoes, I decided that she needed her own wardrobe for all her pretty things.

Once word got out that I was looking for a dresser to convert, this showed up at the right time and the right price…free. 

I spent several days just looking at it and trying to transform it in my head….I knew I wanted the colors pink and gold to match her party and I knew the plastic pieces were coming out and I considered taking the pull-out keyboard rest completely out but at this point, I  had an epiphany….so i turned it on its side and went from there….sanding and priming and painting first.

I had bought, about a year before,  two “castle pieces” at a thrift store that I figured I could paint and add to the design. I accented the castle pieces with gold glitter duct tape along with a couple strips on the wardrobe itself….

I bought a beautiful hot pink quilted fabric that i used to line the “closet” part of the project and one of the smaller cubby holes…I simply put some padding on a piece of plyboard and pulled the fabric over it and stapled it from the back….

I added scrapbook paper to the other cubby holes, attached the castle pieces and added a rod to hang all her princess dresses…

As a final touch, I added a different handle to the pull-out keyboard rest and put small hooks on the inside….I then went through my jewelry and gave her plenty of pieces to play with…

In all, what I ended up with was something very different than what I started with and I couldn’t have been more pleased with the final results…

Last step was to add all the things a princess will need….and then you have one happy little birthday girl!!

Princess Party for Kaylee

My Kaylee bug turned three this year and she is such a little princess, there was no other option for a birthday theme.  Gold and pink was the obvious choice of colors so i came out with the Midas Touch and went to work…first the invitations were made in scroll form…..

Then on to the favors–swords were made and shields were purchased for the boys.

I then bought every crown and wand around these parts and spray painted everything gold and then decorated.

The favor boxes were next….i bought wooden boxes, spray painted them, you guessed it, gold, and decorated…inside the boxes, i added a candy necklace and candy ring with a note reading “Thank you for joining us to celebrate Princess Kaylee’s 3 years of reign…please accept these ROYAL JEWELS as a token of our appreciation.”

Next on the list was creating the ambiance by making a backdrop, a castle wall was the obvious choice, and the banner.  For the backdrop, I used cardboard that i painted black and used a sponge dipped in silver paint to create the blocks….by adding flowers and butterflies and a dragon, I made it appealing to both girls and boys.

The banner was pictures of kaylee from birth to 3 years old….representing her three years of reign….

I wanted to make a tray to hold the fruits and veggies and rolled meat and cheeses so me and my “assistant” created a “ball gown” style one for the event…

The food was simple finger foods with a twist….with the idea of each dish coming from each fairytale princess’ kitchen….

And this is my precious grandbaby, loving and enjoying her party…

Stay tuned in the next couple of days for the best birthday present this Noni could have made for this princess..

until then, I hope all your dreams are fairytales and you are treated like a princess everyday!!

Harley Davidson Birthday Party

Orange and black……Harley Davidson’s signature colors…. I got lucky because it was easy to find accessories and such just coming out of Halloween for this November outside 40th birthday party.  I knew right off that I wanted to make cupcakes and to build a stand out of motorcycle tires.

Since everywhere I checked online was out of the Harley cupcake picks, I decided to make them myself.  I printed the Harley logo for the black cupcakes and the eagle for the orange cupcakes….that was a lot of fussy cutting going on because of course, they had to be doubled sided.

The food was the usual….meatballs, ham biscuits, tomato and mozzarella bites, spicy chicken bites, bacon wrapped wieners, fruit and vegetables, and three different dips…a spinach artichoke one, a bacon cheeseburger one and a 7 layer bean dip that was in individual containers.

A picture of the fruit and vegetable tray before it was loaded…

I made a lighted birthday sign, to use as decoration but also something the birthday girl could keep to remember her party, with the Harley logo as the basic design…

Of course, i made a backdrop with props and decided to just use black felt and top with giant orange and black paper flowers…

And then…my favorite, the Smores Bar featuring six different flavors to choose from.  The smores menu itself was written on old windows and the sternos were fit into a long drilled out log.  The bar was finished off with huge tissue paper balls and a chalk paper banner.

Another successful party (check), a happy birthday girl (check) and that great sense of accomplishment achieved through hard work and playing with paper (check)!!

Making a Splash….a Mermaid Backdrop

I was asked to do a backdrop for a teen girl’s mermaid birthday party.  I knew I didn’t want it to be too cartoonish since it was for teenagers so I just went with different shades of teals and created something they could all take selfies (because we know teens LOVE selfies) in front of and  I also included lots of props they could use for picture taking.  I wanted to create something special for the birthday girl so I decided to make a matching mermaid head piece that they could use with the backdrop.

I used standard pvc pipe to build the base and then used thousands (or so it seemed) pieces of fabric ribbon and curling ribbon to create the base.  I then finished it with paper flowers and fans, white lights, starfish and a net.

 

Headpiece for Birthday Girl

Completed backdrop

Completed backdrop with lights

A Lil Country Wedding

When my daughter came to me and told me she wanted me to plan and decorate her wedding, I was like “sure”….it was a given….I knew I was going to be doing her wedding since she was a child and I had planned every birthday party and baby shower for her and her children.  What I had not anticipated was that she wanted to have it in two months….WHAT????….but not one to ever back down from a challenge,  I headed into it with a fever to please.  Next curve she tossed my way was that she wanted it to be a country wedding with camo and orange….oh my!!!  Again, I shook it off and proceeded to conquer the design with a lot of orange, burlap and some deer antlers thrown in here and there for the groom.  The design seemed to all come together with tree stumps…..hay bales used for the seating and tables…. wheelbarrow, handmade gate, and big spools used for beverage station…back of a borrowed truck used for the buffet/food area….doors and handmade arch were used as an alter and finished off with miles of orange fabric and banner…..shepherd hooks with mason jars filled with white flowers were lined up on every “aisle”….. I did manage to sneak in lots of orange and white flowers to satisfy the girly part of me.  In the end, a beautiful wedding occurred and it did not look too much like a hunting club celebration.  Mission accomplished!!

beverage station

 

butterfly cage

 

 

guest/advice book

 

EAT sign for back of truck

 

 

 

Banner

overall view of backyard set up for wedding

“alter” with banner (with their last name)

 

Let em eat cake!

Kaylee bug hiding in the hay.

On right side of “alter”….bride’s granny and papa in heaven.

On the left side of “alter”…butterfly cage and Mr and Mrs window sign with some deer atlers!

Back of truck used for food!

another view of food truck

“table”

frames hanging around for selfies or group pics

on the wagon that had babies in it….niece and nephew of bride and groom

3 of my grandbabies getting ready to walk down the aisle

another pic of wagon…decorated and carrying precious cargo

me, my daughter and her daughter…three generations

me and bride and groom

part of the beverage station…painted the mason jar mugs with chalkpaint…used as favors!

close up of left side of “alter”

at the “alter” with preacher

a prayer

sign on wagon

Hello Old Friend

Seems I have been a little neglectful to this blog but no more….I have taken a new vow to keep it updated and fresh….

….with that being said, so much has come to pass since my last post and I will try to cover everything….I now have 6 grandbabies (3 of them within the last year) and just to refresh that is Caleb, Riley, Kaylee, Paislee, Trinity and Everlee….so that makes one busy Noni for sure but I can’t lie….I love every minute of it.

I have come off the road doing the scrapbook shows like Creating Keepsakes and Scrapbook Expo because I had custody of one of my grandchildren for a while and well, it made sense to stay home with a newborn.  While that definitely did not diminish my love of scrapbooking or creating beautiful things with paper…, I did have to take some time to concentrate on family but baby…I’M BACK!!!!! …and I have gotten to do it all in the comfort of my home surrounded by beautiful babies!!

My last post tells a story of one of my grandbabies turning one….wow…two years…..so many parties/projects/crafty love since then which I would love to share with you…..birthdays, baby showers, a wedding and more.  I love creating banners and backdrops for the parties most of all.  And I promise….I will post ALL in the next couple days but lets start with baby showers!!!  I have done three in the past year….a nautical themed one, a Mommy To Bee one, and a Baby Is Brewing theme which was actually held at a local brewery.

Nauitical Boy Baby Shower…..Food Table….jello sailboats my fave!!!

Nautical Boy Baby Shower….Favors….Crab boxes with sea salt caramel chocolates and pails with bath salts made with, of course, sea salt!

Nautical Boy Baby Shower….Invite….a 3D box type that was folded to fit in envelope.

 

Mommy To Be Baby Shower….peanut butter ball with baby bee

Mommy To Bee Baby Shower….peanut butter ball in packaging

Mommy To Bee Baby Shower….miniature parfaits with banana pudding and crumbled oreo…yum!!

Mommy To Bee Baby Shower…..chocolate dipped oreo with baby bee

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….vegetable/food

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….chocolate cupcakes with edible butterfly, individually boxed

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….Favors….Beer mugs that I etched with logo of local brewery (with permission from them of course…thanks Center Of The Universe) using my Cricut, vinyl and etching cream, wrapped Hershey bar and COTU keychain.

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….the expecting couple

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….banner with baby Trinity’s name featured at food table.

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower…another view of baby Trinity’s banner at food table

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower…..photo backdrop…oh how I love doing these!!!

Baby Is Brewing Baby Shower….decorated basket