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18 August 2012

Paint Chip Calendar: A Tutorial

Like many of the past projects that I've been doing, this one is inspirered by a post that I saw on Pinterest.  This one comes to you from Welcome to Cheltenham Road.  I decided to do my own take on it and use colors that I liked.  Here's my tutorial

Tutorial

What you need: 
  • A poster frame (mine is 18" by 24" from the Christmas Tree Shoppe for $6)
  • A poster board ($0.64 from Michaels)
  • Paint chips (free from the Home Depot)
  • White erase markers ($1.50 from Five Below)
  • Print-outs of the days of the week
  • Scissors
  • Tape

Step 1: Trim the poster board so that it is the same size as your frame.


Step 2: Cut the paint chips so that they will fit on the poster board.  You will need 5 rows of 7 squares, or 35 squares all together.  Arrange the paint chips and make sure you like how the colors are placed.  Try not to put two squares of the same color next to each other.


Step 3: Turn the squares over and tape them together on the back.  You will end up with 5 rows.  Next, tape these rows together to form a full 5x7 grid all taped together.


Step 4: Tape the entire grid to the poster board.  Make loops with the tape if you do not have double-sided tape.  Make sure that you leave room at the top for the days of the week and the name of the month.


Step 5: Cut out the typed days of the week.  I decided to tape them to the back of some extra paint chips, and then cut out the whole thing to make a boarder.  This gave it a more finished and professional look.


Step 6: Tape the days of the week over the grid.  


Step 7: Put the entire poster board into the frame.  Write on the glass with dry erase markers.  At the end of the month you can erase the whole thing and reuse it!  I hope that this calendar will help me stay organized this coming school year.




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02 August 2012

Shapie Decorated Mug: A Tutorial

This craft was also inspired by this post that I saw on Pinterest by A Beautiful Mess. I wanted to make a customized mug with which to drink my tea this September. I really liked the simplicity of the Sharpie on the white mug and the drawn-on teabag.  Here's my version.

Tutorial

What You Need: a white mug (I got mine from the Christmas Tree Shop for $1), and a Sharpie marker


Step 1: Draw your design on the mug.  This is where you can be creative.  I'm a fan of quotes, so I chose to write a quote by C. S. Lewis that reads: "You can't get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me."  I also drew the tag of the tea bag like on the inspiration mug.


Step 2: Bake the mug in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes.  After it is finished, let it cool in the oven, because it will be very hot.


That's all there is to it! I would recommend hand-washing the mug just to ensure that the design stays on.  Sharpie markers are not actually meant to write on glossy surfaces like mugs.  If you want the design to stay on better, invest in an actual ceramics marker. However, for a $1 investment, I'd say that this is pretty good.
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