This weekend was sunny and beautiful. To my surprise, my fiance decided to clear out the side yard for my dad. This lead to a day of digging, weeding, and gardening. I’ve always been against gardening - I had to do it with/for my mom when I was a teenager & I never understood the concept of planting annuals. ((“Why are we spending all this energy just to plant something that will die in 6 months & we’ll have to dig up again?”))

So, I’ve never really given gardening a second chance until this weekend. My dad wanted to plant some veggies & I’m really excited about them! I’ve been trying to eat less processed & altered foods so, an organic garden? Yes please!! 

Mmmm Oregano…

Just the beginning of filling our cart…

 The first courageous one….

{DIY: Wooden Garden Markers}

1. Get small planks of wood. {these are mini wedges, they came in a 12 pack - I got these at the hardware store}

2. With a permanent marker, I used a Sharpie, LABEL! I wanted to draw little images of what would be…. :) {and my asst. means assorted, I couldn’t remember the actual abbreviation for it}

3. Grab your Deco` Podge. {found at any craft store in the glue aisle}. There are different kinds to get. If you’re buying a new jar, they have an outdoor kind. Deco’ Podge is a glue & sealant. It is waterproof when dry, so I used this paste as a means to seal the wood chips & keep the marker ink from bleeding when I water the plants. 

4. Using a foam brush {also at a craft store} smear the deco’ podge all over. You really cant put too much on, but you want it even. It will look & smell like Elmer’s white glue. If you are sensitive, do this outside. They will look cloudy when wet, but all will dry clear. I did both sides. They’ll take about 10-15 minutes to dry, if you’re outside.  {DIY tip: Make sure you wash out your foam brush immediately after you’re done so you can reuse your brush later :) }

5. Shove the markers near the planted seeds/sprouts!! 

{Here are some photos of the garden with the markers}

xo,

Kristina-Nicole

SWEET! I’m going to use this on my outgoing packages for etsy sales!

Every year, for the past 10 years, my best friend S.B. & I trade Christmas presents. This year, we decided on a DIY Christmas. She had been talking lately about organizing her favorite photos of her and her boyfriend…. so I really wanted to make her a mini book. 

I had been thinking for awhile on the shape of the book I wanted to use. S.B. loves owls. Did I say loves? I mean LOVES owls. And when I saw this Maya Road owl chipboard book I just knew it was for her. Here are some of the photos from the owl book “Whooo loves you?”. 

Click HERE to view pictures of the entire “Whooo loves you?” mini book in our Love & Romance Scrapbooks, Mini Books, & Altered Projects Portfolio!

xo,

  Kristina-Nicole

This week has been crazy wonderful with projects for Kristina-Nicole. In the midst of my “break-taking”, I was perusing through an idea book I have in my arsenal, Step By Step Projects Fabric Scrapbooking, by Donna Downey.

During Thanksgiving I was a busy bee in the kitchen, along with the rest of America, and really wanted a home made apron. Here it is!!

My Oma was a seamstress. I remember playing with her fabrics and buttons when I would visit her during my childhood. The buttons on my apron all belonged to her. I assumed that she could bless my first sewing project & I could kept a part of her with me.

xo,

  Kristina-Nicole

A project that I have been working on for the past week has been making ribbon roses. A client requested yellow and red roses. Did you know that ribbon to create such beautiful flowers does not exist?! Lo and behold, I made them using dye, paint, white ribbon, and a handful of stitches.

Here you can see the ribbon drying off… with a photo of what they should soon be made into…

And here we go:

[[How To Tips:]]

I never follow instructions [which is the reason I do not bake…] when it comes to ratios. I used the Rit Dye as a paint rather than a diluted solution. From its concentrate, I “painted” the white ribbon yellow & then hung them up to dry [this is so the dye doesn’t leave a weird drying pattern]. Then I stitched the ribbon together into a rose.

Next, I put my gloves back on, and “painted” the edges of the petals with red and orange dye, following the fading variations of the photo above.

To see where these ribbons ended up, click HERE.

xo,

Kristina-Nicole