Wool felt Valentine Fortune Cookies-

 

 

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

 

 

 

These wool felt fortune cookies are such a simple project to do with your kids.

 

What I find especially wonderful about these little cuties,

 (the cookies not my kids-though they are a bunch of cuties too),

is that they can be created for any special occasion!

 

Left 2 the imagination- Anything is possible!

 

Here let me show you-

 

I am a wool felt artist, so I went with what I have in my studio

grabbing red, raspberry and white wool felt for

these valentine fortune cookies.

 

 

 

 

I  decided on a 5" circle template(I traced a DVD).

This will make approximately a 3" cookie.

 

I traced and cut out the number of circles I would need.

 

You will also need for this project,

pipe cleaners

glue stick 

 fortunes of your choice. 

 

 

 

 

After the circles are cut and the fortunes

are printed and cut to size,

you'll want to take your pipe cleaners and trim

them to approximately 4 1/2" long.

 

Take a pipe cleaner and glue it

to the middle of the circle.

 

The pipe cleaner is what holds

the fortune cookies shape.

 

 

 

 

Good so far? Pretty simple and straightforward!

 

Take a paper fortune and lay it down

on the top half of your circle.

 

 Fold the circle in half

 over the pipe cleaner that you glued

to the middle of the circle.

 

 

 

 

With two hands, and your thumbs in the center of the circle,

 bend the ends of the circle down.

 

Bring the ends of the circle towards each other

while pinching the center.

 

 

 

 

You will be amazed how easily the shape

of the fortune cookie is made and how

well the pipe cleaner holds the shape!

 

(Feel free to give your self a round of applause, I did!)

 

 

 

 

 

That's absolutely all there is to this project!

 

Make as many as you need!

 

 

 

 

I will say that it can become addictive to make these cuties.

 

 

 

 

I don't think it's possible to have too many!

 

 

 

 

I would love for you to let me know

if you try this at home!

 

See you again soon!

 

 

-Pam

Cupboard Makeover- Postcards, Paper, and Pottery

I purchased this vintage built-in cupboard at one of my favorite second hand shops for the thrifty price of only...$40.00!

I had big eyes and big ideas for this cupboard! 

It's only taken me 5 years to do something with it!

 

 

Uninspiring to say the least-

 Take a closer look, I don't mind.

I think I was going for a tone on tone, shabby chic look.

 I'm certain we can all agree I hit it out of the park on shabby, but missed completely in the chic department.

 

 

 

Here is the AFTER!

 What a difference!





 

 I found an amazing postcard wrapping paper that I didn't even know I owned.

The postcard wrapping paper was my inspiration for the vintage look

 I would create in my cupboard.

 

 

I took the original paper to Staples and made lots of color copies

(any good crafter will tell you to never use the original, save it for future projects!)

 

 

I  glued the color copies to poster board and adhered them to the walls of the cupboard with Command strip removable tape.

 I liked the idea of being able to remove the postcard paper

should I ever want to change the look of the cupboard in the future!

 

 

 

  I wanted to create a book page wreath, to add to the vintage look of my cupboard.

 I've always wanted to make one and now seemed like the perfect time.

 

There is no end to the creative people on Pinterest that offer amazing tutorials.

My thanks goes out to the wreath tutorial on Janinascasa.blogspot.com!

I love how this piece turned out!

 

 

Now came time to learn a little origami!

 

Back to Pinterest where I saw these amazing 8-pointed stars.

For great directions on how to make these origami stars try homebylinn.blogspot.com.

Her photo tutorial needed no further explanation! Thank you Linn!

 

 

Next came a chance to make this cute little origami flower I saw on Pinterest!

I loved the easy to follow tutorial that I found on fancypantswedding.com.

 

I have to say that origami isn't as hard as I once thought!

 

 

 

The star, tissue paper flowers and origami flower were supposed to make up a bouquet  providing another vintage layer to the cupboard makeover.

It seemed appropriate considering the cupboard was filled with vases.

 

The origami star and flowers however decided they preferred to stand each on their own.

Who am I to argue?

Things happen for a reason!

 

 

I would be remiss if I didn't thank my Mom, my best friend.

 

 Several of the treasures in the cupboard, the rolled paper "P"

as well as the scrabble tile names were made with love by her as gifts to me

and my 3 sons! 

 

 

 

After all these pieces were made

and other treasures were gathered from around my home it was time to pull it all together!

 

Take a look-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There you have it!

My cupboard makeover.

I think it very nicely tells the story...of Postcards, Paper and Pottery!

 

 

Come back soon!

 

Pam

My Obsession with shoes...

...Ok, so not exactly the shoe obsession you think! 

I love shoe forms! I know! I don't know why I'm obsessed with them, but I am!  It's rather funny in a way because I'm a woman with maybe 3 pairs of shoes in her closet! Honestly!

There is something about them...They have stories to tell. They have lived a life. 10, 100, maybe 1000's of people have walked a mile in the shoes made on these forms. 

When I first found the forms dirty and laying among a bunch of rusty tools on the ground at a yard sale I knew I had to have them! And for a mere $1.00 a shoe they would be mine!

                                        

I love the patina on them. The writing that is stamped in to and on the forms indicating shoe size, date they were constructed and even the name of the shoemaker and style of shoe is an amazing look in to the history of these shoe forms.

 

I feel so lucky to have discovered them! This was the beginning of my shoe addiction!



That was of course until I came across an ad in the antique section of craigslist and my heart started racing! Someone was selling a box of what they referred to as a bunch of old wooden shoes they had uncovered when emptying their basement!

They had included a photo of a few of them and what caught my eye, what I HAD to have, was the ladies high-heel shoe form!  That would certainly make my obsession, my addiction more unique and original!  Ahem...sorry, my collection more unique.



 

This is what I received in the mail...

It was a beat up box that looked as if it had lived as hard and long a life as the shoe forms it contained inside its cardboard walls.

What I hadn't expected to find in opening such a mangled and dirty box were a plethora of children's shoe forms! Yup- that's what I found!

 I had never even given a thought to there being children's shoe forms in the world! But they existed and I had them!  I sat in awe of the amount of  little feet that were tossed one on top of the other all dusty and grimy and at the same time beautiful! It was a sight to behold!

I haven't cleaned them!  I can't imagine wiping off anything on these shoe forms!  I can't bring myself to polish, fix or erase one thing that has found its way on to the forms over the many, many years that these forms have roamed the earth. 

I feel as if I am their caretaker. 

I would never change a thing about them!

I love them for just what they were made to do and the means by which they were constructed.  I believe they're art, able to stand on their own and be appreciated!



I purchased this vintage pie crust table at a second-hand store a year or so ago! It's a special piece that has just been waiting as my mother would say about my decorating style, to be "merchandised" in my home!  Perhaps it's true! 

I say it often about my work and my home that my things have to "speak" to me for me to know it is right!  Well to say the least, the shoe forms and the table both "spoke" to me loud and clear! Together they work and form a beautiful vintage and original marriage! 

Look at the difference in size! It was this particular photo that I took that seemed to really tell the story! The size of the adult form next to that of the children's form leaves me speechless!  

                                                          

                 

I feel nothing less than blessed and fortunate when I find the unexpected when I least expect it!  There are times when I have found what I would consider a treasure that I wonder...Perhaps it's these treasures of the past that found me...!