Before And After: Desktop Organizer {Tutorial} Antes y Después: Organizador de Escritorio {Tutorial}
August 31, 2012 at 23:21 | Posted in Before and After, Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | Leave a commentTags: antes y después, before and after, desktop organizer, lunares, organizador de escritorio, organizador pintado, painted organizer, polka dots
On one of my trips to Thrift Town I found this desk organizer, and I thought it would help to organize the mail or patterns or random papers (that last thing: we have a lot in this house). I hated the design but I bought it anyway. I wanted it to make it more colorful and modern. It was very tempting to paint it in a chevron pattern, but I am tired of seeing it EVERYWHERE (still) these days. So I painted it in three diferent colors and added some polka dots to it. Here it is before and after.
Encontré este organizador de escritorio de madera en una de mis visitas a Thrift Town, y pensé en usarlo para organizar el correo o los patrones o los papelitos que andan alrededor de la casa (que en ésta, nuestra casa, abundan). No me gustó el diseño pero lo compré de todos modos, pensando que lo podría pintar más colorido y hacerlo más moderno. Casi lo pinto con un diseño zig-zag, pero estoy un poco cansada de verlo EN TODAS PARTES (aún) por estos días. Así que lo pinté de tres colores diferentes y a lunares. Aquí está el antes y el después.
I got the paint for free with Benjamin Moore coupons that came in the Sunset Magazine. When I went to the store to redeem them, I was pleasantly surprised with the size of the cans! Lots of paint for free. That makes me happy 
The total cost of this project was… $1,49!!! Whoopee!
Conseguí la pintura gratis con unos cupones de Benjamin Moore que vienen en la revista Sunset. Ccuando fuí a la tienda a canjearlos, el tamaño de las latas me sorprendió gratamente. ¡Un montón de pintura gratis! Eso me hizo muy feliz 
El total de este projecto fué: ¡¡de $1,49!! ¡Yuuuupiiiiiii!
If you want to make one, you will need:
- A desktop organizer (preferably wood).
- Dot stickers.
- Paint.
- Brushes.
First, paint the whole thing white.
Esto es lo que necesitas si quieres hacer uno:
- Un organizador de escritorio (preferiblemente de madera).
- Calcolmanías circulares.
- Pintura.
- Pinceles.
Primero, pinta todo el organizador de blanco.
Then cover the front and sides with the dot stickers. I did mine in a polka dot pattern (I eye-balled it) putting one line diagonally and then adding another one next to it and so forth.
Una vez seco, cubre el frente y los lados con las calcomanías circulares. Yo hice el mío en un esquema a lunares (a ojo) ubicando una línea en diagonal, otra al lado y así sucesivamente.
Paint over the stickers. Be careful when doing this, the stickers are a little tricky and paint can bleed through or the brush can peel them off.
Pinta sobre las calcomanías. Ten cuidado cuando lo hagas ya que las calcos son un poco difíciles pues la pintura se puede pasar o el pincel las puede despegar.
Wait until the paint is dry and remove the stickers. Be patient and leave the paint to dry completely before attempting to remove them. If you are like me, it is really hard to wait but trust me, it makes it so much easier and less messy (talking from experience here!) If you find any mistakes after peeling the dots, they are easy to fix with a little touch-up of white paint. Now, paint the rest of the organizer as you wish (be creative!) After this, you are done! Easy easy, no?
Espera a que se seque la pintura y empieza a despegar los redondeles. Ten paciencia y deja que se seque completamente la pintura antes de intentar despegarlos. Si tú eres como yo, es dificil esperar pero confia en lo que te digo, es mucho mas fácil (te habla la voz de la experiencia aquí). Ahora pinta el resto del organizador. Después de seco, ¡ya está! Fácil, fácil, ¿no?
I hope you all have a wonderful Labor Day weekend! We are going to LA to celebrate Michael’s parents 35th wedding anniversary. They are throwing a 70′s party! I will share photos next week.
Espero que todos tengan un lindo fin de semana largo por el Dia del Trabajor. Nosotros nos vamos a LA a celebrar los 35 años de casados de los papás de Michael. ¡Hacen una fiesta de los años 70! La semana que viene compartiré las fotos.
I would love to see your organizer makeover if you make one. Please share it at the Mother Crafter Project Pool!
Si transformas un organizador, me encantaría verlo. Por favor súbelo al Mother Crafter Project Pool!
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties. Check them out and party with us!
Hago manualidades toda la noche y festejo todos los días en estas Craft Parties. Vení a festejar con nosotros!
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Jewelry Holder – Colgador de Aretes {Tutorial}
July 21, 2012 at 16:51 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 9 CommentsTags: bijou, carpetas al crochet, colgador de aros, diy, Doily, Earring, Embroidery hoop, Jewellery, jewelry, nylon mesh
Now that Paloma is old enough to understand that pulling jewelry hurts, and that my awesome aunt Melissa (my biggest fan and the one who encourages me the most with my crafts) sent me several earrings she is not using anymore, I have the urge to start wearing my necklaces and earrings again. I used to have them in pretty boxes and bags, but I was thinking it would be nice to actually see them daily and have them easily accessible. So after a little research and stimulus in the web, I came up with these jewelry holders, using doilies, a nylon mesh bag (the ones that oranges come in) and embroidery hoops.
Ahora que Paloma tiene la edad suficiente para entender que tirar de los aretes o collares duele, y que mi tía Melissa (mi fan número uno y la que siempre me alienta con mis manualidades) me envió un monton de aros que ya no usa más, me han dado ganas de empezar a usar mis aretes y collares nuevamente. Los tengo guardados en bolsas y cajas bonitas, pero he estado pensando que sería bueno tenerlos a la vista y fácilmente accesibles. Así que después de una inspiradora búsqueda en el internet, hice estos colgadores de aretes utilizando carpetas tejidas al crochet, una bolsa de malla de nylon (de las que vienen con las naranjas en el supermercado) y aros de bordado.
I decided to use the nylon mesh because I wanted something to contrast with the delicacy of the doily and make it more modern. And also because we are eating a lot of oranges and have a lot of these around (hehe).
Decidí usar la malla de nylon porque quería algo que contrastara con la delicadeza del crochet y también para hacerlo más moderno. Y porque estamos comiendo un montón de naranjas y tengo un montón de bolsas dando vueltas en la casa (jajaja!)
Here is what you need to make your own:
- A doily
- An embroidery hoop (with a smaller diameter than the doily)
- Nylon mesh
- Silver spray paint (optional).
Esto es lo que necesitas para hacer tu propio colgador:
- Una carpeta tejida al crochet
- Un aro para bordar (con un diámetro menor al de la carpeta)
- Una bolsa de malla de nylon
- Pintura en aerosol plateada (opcional).
Spray paint the mesh in a well ventilated room or better yet, outside. Let it dry. (This step is optional. I only painted the one I used for the big hoop, and let the other one in its original color for the smaller hoop. I like them both.)
Pinta la bolsa con la pintura en aerosol en un lugar muy bien ventilado o, mejor aún, afuera. Dejar secar. (Este paso es opcional. Yo pinté una sola bolsa para el aro mas grande, y dejé la otra en su color original para el aro más pequeño. Me gustan los dos.)
While you are waiting, center your doily on top of the smallest embroidery hoop. You can use some glue on the sides if you need to keep it in place. Once the mesh is dry, put in on top of the doily. Put the bigger loop and close the opening as tight as you can. Trim the extra mesh all around the hoop.
Mientras esperas que se seque la pintura, centra la carpeta encima del aro más pequeño. Puedes utilizar un poco de pegamento en los lados para mantenerla en su lugar si es necesario. Cuando la bolsa se halla secado por completo, ubícala encima de la carpeta. Pon el lazo más grande y ciérralo lo más ajustado que puedas.
Now get your earrings and start hanging!
¡Busca tus aretes y empieza a colgarlos!
I really like how they came out. You can use doilies from your grandma or other relatives and that way you will surround yourself with special objects that are meaningful and filled with memories. On top of that, hang the earrings you inherited and double the energy and love!
Me encanta como quedaron. Puedes usar carpetas o tapetes tejidos por tu abuela o por otro familiar, y de ese modo te rodearás de objetos especiales que tienen un significado para tí y llenos de memorias. Además de eso, cuelga los pendientes que heredaste y ¡duplicarás la energía y el amor!
Where do you store your jewelry?
Y tú, ¿dónde guardas tu bijou?
Did you make one? Show me by uploading it at the Mother Crafter Flickr Project Pool!
Si hiciste uno, me encantaría verlo! Lo puedes compatir subiendolo al grupo de Mother Crafter en Flickr.
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties. Check them out and party with us!
Hago manualidades toda la noche y festejo todos los días en estas Craft Parties. Vení a festejar con nosotros!
Tea Towel Spring Dress {Tutorial}
March 20, 2012 at 20:57 | Posted in Before and After, Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 5 CommentsTags: before and after, craft, dish towel, diy, dress tutorial, recycled clothes, spring dress, tea towel, Vera Neumann
My aunt Melissa sent me several boxes full of goodies at the beginning of the year. Boxes filled with old linens, amazing clothes, bags, and sewing notions, even the coolest aprons you have ever seen. Not only these boxes are a great source of inspiration and motivation, but most of the items are handcrafted and vintage, so they are all very special.
In one of the boxes there was this gorgeous Vera by Vera Neumann vintage linen tea towel. If you do not know who Vera Neumann was, she was an iconic artist that created the first signature scarf in history around WWII, by kepping her signature on art transferred to the scarves. She was the innovator of cross-licensing and one of the most successful female entrepreneurs of her time. Her philosophy: fine art should be accessible to everyone, not just a select few. She believed that artwork should not be relegated to walls. Rather, people should surround themselves with art–wear it, dine off it, and dream under it. Pretty cool lady, don’t you think? Her art is bright and colorful.
As my aunt told me, it stayed pristine because it was “too pretty to use”. Linen dishtowels were a popular gift item in the 1970s. They were very handsome graphically but had to be ironed when used. I also thinks that it is too pretty to use, so I made it into a dress for Paloma. For the top, I used an old romper that I got at one of the baby clothing swaps at the Library, but it was too small. The colors were very close and the material very similar too; they were made for each other! So now they live together happily ever after Here is the tutorial. Enjoy!
You will need:
- A tea towel
- A romper or shirt or onesie.
- Sewing supplies (scissors, sewing machine, thread)
- Trim, ribbon or fringe for decoration (optional).
First, measure the garment that you will use for the top of the dress and cut it at the desired length. You can go to the waist or to the chest. If there is a pocket on it like in mine, remove it with a seam ripper. (I cannot resist! I have to show off my cool vintage hem clips too!)
Then fold your tea towel in half (width-wise) and cut it. Pin the sides and sew them together.
Iron the seams flat.
Matching the side seams of both pieces, pin them in place and after doing this, start pinning the rest, making a couple of pleats every 1 1/2″ or 2″. Sew them together.
Finito! You can add a trim or ribbon or fringe as decoration. I used an orange pom pom fringe I got in Argentina. CUUUUUUTE!!!!!!
And on her, super cuuuute!!
Perfect spring dress that cost me absolutely nothing, ZERO money, just friends and love.
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties. Check them out and party with us!
Last Minute DIY Valentines!
February 13, 2012 at 14:04 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Stimulus, Tutorials | Leave a commentTags: anti-valentine, Cookies, Crafts, diy valentines, happy valentine, last minute gifts, Valentine Day, valentine s day
Leaving everything until the last minute? Don’t panic. Here are some ideas for you to whip out the day before Valentine’s Day. Or if you really like to live dangerously, tomorrow.
Here are some cute free printables. My Elephant Love Postcards are one of my most popular post, and they were featured on the Stylelist section of The Huffington Post last week (I am so happy about it!)
Grab some tea bags you have around and make this cute idea.
Make a bookmark for your book lovers.
I love these heartbreakers.
These pins are adorable too.
You can also bake some Chocolate Orange cookies. I made these last week, they are so yummy!
And lastly, a funny one for the anti-Valentine.
Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Lots of love to you.
DIY Valentines:Woven Heart Racquet
January 8, 2012 at 23:26 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 11 CommentsTags: awesome valentine, craft, DIY Valentine, Heart, Tennis Racquet, Valentine, valentine s day, Valentines Day, Weaving, Woven Heart
Valentine’s day is almost a month away! From now until then, I will post projects and ideas for you to make your own Valentines.
The first project is this pretty cool woven heart racquet.
This was actually a birthday gift for my friend Jennifer, who loves to play tennis and is really pretty good at it (she kicks ass). But it can also be a nice Valentine for anybody.
To make it, you just need to go to your favorite thrift store and look for a (preferably vintage) tennis racquet. I found mine at Goodwill, and it cost me only $2,99 (bargain!). I am a visual person, so I needed to print a diagram at real scale to use as a guide. You can download the one I made here.
Then grab some left over yarn or ribbon you might have laying around, attach a safety pin to one end, and start weaving the heart through the strings of the racquet following the diagram (I taped mine to it).
I started to do so horizontally, but that wasn’t right. So I had to unweave it and start again, this time weaving it vertically. DO NOT do it like this (see below) because the humps of the heart are not continuous.
Instead start on one of the sides of the heart (sorry, no pictures). My yarn was chunky so I only needed it to weave the same line of squares two times (up and down), But if whatever you are using is thinner, you will need to weave up and down as necessarily to fill the squares.
And ta-da! You now have an awesome Valentine for your love one! Easy and very, very inexpensive.
Did you make one? Show me by uploading it at the Mother Crafter Flickr Project Pool!
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties.
New Year’s Eve Earrings {Quick and Easy Tutorial}
December 30, 2011 at 18:29 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 2 CommentsTags: 2012 earrings, fabric earrings, New Year, new year accessory, new years earrings, sequins, sparkly earrings
2012 is almost here! You can welcome the New Year with these quick and very easy earrings that will add spark to your outfit. The best part: you can make them in, like, 20 minutes. Seriously!
You will need:
- A small fabric scrap (sequined or sparkly)
- 2 feathers
- 2 Earring hooks
- 2 Jump rings or ring connectors
- Scissors and a hot glue gun
(See my new pair of scissors? My friend Julieta gave me these along with a matching measure tape and a cutting knife. They are from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. So cute!!!)
Cut 8 strips out of your fabric (approx .25″ by 2.25″). Open one of the jump ring or ring connector and insert 4 strips through it. If your fabric is thick and does not want to cooperate (certain fabrics have attitude ) you might want to use an embroidery needle to make a hole at the top of the strips. It should look like this:
Close your ring. Now put a tiny dot of hot glue at the top tip of your feather and glue it to the wrong side of one of the strips. Put the hook on and… you are done!! See? I told you it was a fast and furious tutorial!
..
Repeat all the steps to make the second earring. Or just use it solo. You can also play with the length of the strips to make it longer or shorther.
Happy 2012! I look forward to continue creating and sharing with you a lot more awesomeness through the New Year. Here is to a year full of happiness, love, health, inspiration and craftiness! Thank you for reading my blog. Salud y chin chin! (that is Cheers! in Spanish).
Psst!.. If you make them, show them off at the Mother Crafter Project Pool!
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties.
Vacation Month: Guest Blogger Kelly from Living Craftily Ever After!
November 9, 2011 at 13:30 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | Leave a commentTags: baby shower gift, Clothing, fabric flowers, fabric paint, faux necklace tee, necklace shirt
Vacation Month: Guest Blogger Adrianne from Happy Hour Projects!
November 4, 2011 at 06:43 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | Leave a commentTags: baby hairband, hairclip, Ribbon, thanksgiving, turkey headband
- Alligator clip – you can find these at either craft or beauty supply stores. You may think it’s wasteful to buy a whole pack… but trust me, once you start making hair clips, you will use an entire pack.
- Felt Scraps – I used a few inches of brown, and just enough orange to make a beak
- Ribbon – 5 cuts of 4″ lengths in whatever you think is a turkey color, plus about 6-8″ of ribbon to wrap your clip
- Googly-eyes (optional – you could just use felt or foam)
- Hot-glue gun
I try not to buy much for small projects like this – my motto is, use what you have. Don’t have anything brown? Try a pink turkey, or a rainbow-colored one!
Before and After: Shoe Makeover {Tutorial}
October 12, 2011 at 23:55 | Posted in Before and After, Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 9 CommentsTags: Alpargatas Argentina, before and after, Footwear, how to, shoe makeover, TOMS Shoes
Did you know that the original TOMS shoe are called “alpargatas” and are the characteristic footwear of “gauchos“, the cowboys of Argentina? They are an Argentine trademark, and you can see them everywhere, worn by all kinds of people, from teenagers to the elderly, rich and poor .
I love alpargatas. The other day I realized one of my beloved pairs is ripping on one side. I knew I had another pair in the closet. The problem is, they are camouflage print. I bought them a couple of years ago when I was back home, even knowing I was not going to wear them often because I do not like camo print. But they are really comfortable and it was that or black ones in my size (I already had them in black) so I bought them anyway. And of course, I barely used them, until yesterday, when I decided to paint stripes on them. So for this new tutorial, I will show you how I did it.
You will need:
- A pair of shoes, preferably canvas.
- Metallic silver acrylic or fabric paint.
- Black acrylic or fabric paint.
- Brushes
- Newspapers and drafting tape.
Start by stuffing the shoes with newspaper so they are firmer and easier to paint.
Cut strips of drafting tape and cover the shoes placing them at an angle at about 1/2 inch apart or the width of the tape. I chose to go all the way to the mid-sole too.
Paint the stripes with the metallic silver color, trying to be as even in the paint distribution as possible. (If you are using different colors than mine, paint the lightest color first. That way you can paint over with the darker if your stripes are not perfect or you have run-over paint.) You might need more than one coat if the original color of your shoe is dark.
Let them dry for a couple of hours outside.
Peel the tape.
Paint the rest of the stripes with black and let it dry once more completely. Check if you have any chunks of paint and if you do, try to remove them with an X-Acto knife. Put them on and take them for a stroll!
I would love to see your shoe makeover. Please share it at the Mother Crafter Project Pool!
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties.
Zara inspired Hair Flower Tutorial
September 2, 2011 at 23:34 | Posted in Crafts - DIY, Tutorials | 8 CommentsTags: Crafts, flower, flower hair clip, flower hairband, free pattern, hair accesory tutorial, hair clip, how to, zara hair clip
A couple of weeks ago I went to Zara with my friend Julieta to help her shopping for some basics. Sorting through one bin of clearance stuff I found a nice fabric hair clip made of silk with raw edges. I though it was pretty cool and easy to make, and I didn’t want to pay $12 ($12!) for it. So here it is!
You will need:
- One 6″ x 12″ piece of silk (I use crepe Georgette Silk, but any kind of silk will do).
- One 4″ x 5″ piece of felt of the same color.
- Pattern
- Sewing machine or needles if hand sewing, scissors, thread
Download the free pattern and cut it out of the felt piece. Cut 12 1″ x 5″ strips out of silk.
Center and pin the strips into the piece of felt, overlapping them about 1/4 of an inch.
Once you pin all the strips, sew them straight down the middle across all the strips.
Now turn it 90 degrees and sew down the middle of each strip.
Now that you are done with the sewing, gather the whole thing with your fingers in the middle and secure it with a couple of stitches. You can hand sew this with double threaded needle or run it trough the sewing machine a couple of times.
Attach a hair rubber band to it and you are… finito!
Wear it!
Now kiss your baby and thank her/him for taking a nap so you were able to make it!
A big GRACIAS to Julieta once again for taking these gorgeous photos!
I would love to see if you make one. Please share it at the Mother Crafter Project Pool!
I craft all night and party everyday at these Craft Parties.
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