Favorites of 2014

Thank you for all your support over the years. 2014 was a lot of fun, and I hope that you had a great year. I wanted to share with you my favorite posts from 2014, and what a fun and varied year it was.

Let's start with a project that was featured on the Inspire Us Thursday Link Party

Here is a free printable that is perfect for remembering as we move into 2015. Only associate with great people, because life is too short to waste it on anyone of lesser value. The original post is here, but you can also find more of my printables here.

"Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is better to be alone than in bad company"  Booker T. Washington

I love my quilling, and no yearly review would be complete without a quilling project. This card features reverse roses, and a really cute butterfly.

This is a fun printable for your next Birthday Card, look for a few more variations of this printable in 2015.

I love, love, love this snowman, is there really anything more to say about it? One of my all-time favorites, had to add it again!

Another fun printable, be yourself because there isn't anyone who can be you better! 

Finally, wrapping up the year with lots of Christmas projects as shared in the 12 Days of Christmas series! Lots of gift tags, ornaments, and gift cards.

Here is wishing you a wonderful 2015!

12 Days of Christmas All Posts

12 Days of Christmas Project List

For your enjoyment, the 2014 Twelve Days of Christmas Collection

Enjoy this quick and easy way for you to find all the 12 Days of Christmas posts for easy reference...

Day 1 - Free Merry and Bright Printable

Day 2 - Nativity Ornament DIY

Day 2.5 - Quilled Nativity Ornament DIY

Day 3 - Nativity in Glass Ornament DIY

Day 3.5 - Free Merry and Bright Gift Tag Printable

Day 4 - Free Keep Calm Be Merry Printable

Day 5 - Quilled Christmas Tree Ornament

Day 6 Free Keep Calm Be Merry Gift Tags

Day 7 Free Christmas Gift Tags

Day 8 - Silhouette Cameo Cross Ornament

Day 9 - Snow Girl Gift Card Holder

Day 10 - Snowman Gift Card Holder

Day 10.5 - Santa Gift Card Holder

Day 11 - Monogram Ornament

Day 12 - Super Simple Scrap Paper Christmas Tree Gift Tag Ornament

Merry Christmas!

May your days be Merry and Bright!

Free Printable and Quilled Hat and Broom

Are you enjoying this walk down memory lane and this fun printable? This is definitely one that you print with a tongue in cheek chuckle.  This year, I placed this near the front door so that you see it when you enter our home. It causes quite a few chuckles and comments, so it is definitely doing what I intended. 

Click here to download this free pdf printable

For the quilled pieces, I have the instructions for quilling those too, just click on the pictures to be taken to the instructions.

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Freebie Quilled Autumn Flowers

I love all the fall colors that are spreading across the North East, don't you? I thought I'd share an Autumn Basket with you. This pattern creates a basket to carry your beautiful autumnal fringed flowers.

Basket

10 Brown C-scrolls (3 inch, 7.6 cm)
6 Tan Tight rolls (1.5 inch, 3.8 cm)

Using the picture as a guide, start at the bottom and work upward
Base is 1 Brown C-scroll
Then 2 Brown C-scrolls with 1 Tan Tight roll between
Then 3 Brown C-scrolls with 2 Tan Tight rolls
Finally, 4 Brown C-scrolls with 3 Tan Tight rolls

Fringed Flowers (grab your autumn colors and make 7 - 10 multi-fringed flowers to place in your basket)
Click here for fringed flower instructions

1 Fringed Yellow strip (1.5 inch, 3.8 cm) long
1 Fringed Orange strip (1.5 inch, 3.8 cm) long
1 Brown (1.5 inch, 3.8 cm) long cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
Glue and roll Brown, Orange, then Yellow tightly and glue. Then gently push out the fringes to make the flower

Make all 8 Fringed Flowers the same way, simply alternate colors

Add several Green Shaped Marquise (1.5 inch, 1.8 cm) cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
Use the photo for placement

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Free Quilled Orange and Black Witches Hat and Broom

If the Broom Fits Ride It free printable project

I promised I would post the instructions for the 

Quilled Witches Hat and Broom 

I made in this fun project (please click here for the printable) where you can grab the funny quote I used in this project!

Ok, now onto the quilling!

Free Quilled Orange and Black Witches Hat Instructions

The hat begins very similarly to another witches hat I shared, check out the picture and link below!

Quilled Witches Hat:

• 3 strips of black quilling paper - Rolled to create a teardrop shape
• Tip: I wanted the hat to be denser, that is why I used so many strips
• Tip: You can certainly use fewer strips if you'd like, that's the fun of making it yourself!

I wanted to incorporate orange, because I do love the way black and orange look, so I grabbed a few leftover orange strips from another project and, this is what I did:

• Pulled off a piece and wrapped it around the teardrop
• This was the fun part, I used these orange strips to create a more cone-like hat
• They worked perfectly to keep that slightly off center, angled hat that I wanted to create
• Tip: You can use accent colors and strips to create special shapes in your quilling as I've done here

Lastly,

• 1 strip of black quilling paper to create a crescent shape for the brim of the hat
• Glue this to the base of your hat

and there you have one quilled witches hat!

Free Quilled Witches Broom Instructions

The Broom was even easier! 

• Cut off a 3/4 inch wide, by 3 inches long strip from a brown paper bag
• Cut fringes into the strip along the 3 inch long side, making sure not to cut through the entire 3/4 inches
• Roll it to create the bristles of the broom.  
• The broom handle is a leftover piece of black paper
• I added the black to the top because I love the contrast
• Tip: Adding the black cover at the top is more than a decorative choice, it is also a great way to keep the broom together

Looking for another option for your witches hat? You can check out this project by clicking on the picture below or clicking this link.

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Freebie Friday Quilled Witches Hat

Free Quilled Witches Hat Pattern

I am having lots of fun with my Halloween crafting this year, I think I may actually be avoiding the Christmas ornaments I have to make, but I'd rather continue to delude myself into thinking I have time, lol.  I had a lot of fun when I first created this Witches Hat, and now that I look at it again I see so many opportunities.  You can incorporate this onto any Halloween project you have, all you have to do is adjust the length and width of the papers you use.... Stay tuned, I may have another project to post based on this simple design!

Here are the quick and easy steps for my Free Quilled Witches Hat Tutorial

Lovely Tall Black Hat

• 1 - 24 in (60.8 cm) Black Shaped Teardrop
• 1 - 12 inch (30.4 cm) Black Shaped Teardrop
• 4 - 1.5 inch (3.8 cm) Purple Spirals (arrange in flower shape and attach to hat)

Simply Divine Green Hair

• 8 Green (6 inch, 15.2 cm) Spiral, 
•  Cut your green paper to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide before starting your spiral

Arrange as shown in picture.

What have you been working on? Do you have a favorite Halloween icon? Is it the cute ghost, or crawly spiders, or the silly witches? I'd love to hear what you love to do...

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Freebie Friday Quilled School Bus Pattern

Free Quilled School Bus Pattern

This project is a throwback to a pattern I have posted in the past, but it is perfect for the beginning of the school year.  I love this sweet school bus because he really has a personality.  Can't you see the face within the coils?

Do you have children going to school, or do you have pictures from the first day of school that screaming at you to please put them in your scrapbook? Well, here is the perfect embellishment for you!

This is my Safety First School Bus pattern - as always, I try to keep these patterns simple. They use only the basic shapes so even beginners can create them.

Bus Body (this is the base of the project and the most work comes from this step)

• 30 Yellow (3 in, 7.6 cm) Loose Coil, cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
• 6 Yellow (6 in, 15.2 cm) Loose Coil, cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
• 1 Yellow (3 in, 7.6 cm) Teardrop (for Front Bumper), cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide

Free Quilled School Bus - Window Detail

Windows

• 2 White (6 in, 15.2 cm) Loose Coil, cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
• 2 White (6 in, 15.2 cm) Half Moon (place over windows), cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide

Free Quilled School Bus - Door Detail

Door

• 6 White (3 in, 7.6 cm) Loose Coil, cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
• 1 White (6 in, 15.2 cm) Half Moon (place over door), cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide

Free Quilled School Bus - Wheel Detail

Wheels

• 1 White (3 in, 7.6 cm) + 1 Black (12 in, 30.4 cm) Loose Coil (make 2),cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide
• 1 Yellow (3 in, 7.6 cm) Tight Coil (for Tail pipe), cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide - place by rear wheel
• 2 Yellow (6 in, 15.2 cm) Half Moon (place over wheel), cut to 1/16 inch, .15 cm wide

If you use this pattern, or it inspires you in some way to create a similar project, please send me a note! I love to hear what you are working on and am blessed when something I have done inspires you!

I hope you have a wonderful day!

I am sharing this at the following link parties:

The Answer is Chocolate - http://www.answerischoco.com/2013/08/bff-open-house-link-party-119.html

Craft Frenzy Friday - http://www.craftdictator.com/2013/08/craft-frenzy-friday-2.html

Made to be a Momma - Homemade by You - http://www.madetobeamomma.com/

Whipperberry - Friday Flair Link Party - http://whipperberry.com/2013/08/friday-flair-link-party-back-to-school-edition.html

Practically Functional Link Party - http://practicallyfunctional.com/fun-functional-link-party-61/

A Marvelous Mess Link Party - http://www.marvelouslymessy.com/

Alderberry Hill - Make the Scene Monday - http://www.alderberryhill.com/

Throwback Tuesday Quilled Wreath with Spiral Roses

Welcome to Throwback Tuesday! 

I  am truly enjoying "re-sharing" past projects with you.  I have a lot of wintery / Christmasy projects, so it is a perfect thing at this time of year!

I love wreaths, and I do think of them this time of year as the season of Advent kicks off.  This year we setup a wreath on our kitchen table with ribbons of purple and rose to ensure we had the correct colors (didn't plan correctly, so couldn't find candles with the proper colors)... No worries though :-)

Alas, I digress.... So this wreath was on a birthday card and is also an ornament.  I may have to pull up some other wreath themed projects I've made, but haven't yet shared... Let's plan on next week being "wreath focused" lol...

I created the wreath shape by taking 2 circle punches and punching one inside the other to create the general wreath shape (I used my 2 and 2-1/2 inch punches)

I then punched fern leaves from various green papers (I am one of the few people who purchased the Empunchler many many moons ago, and used their fern punch).  Some day I am actually going to remember to take out my punches and just punch the shapes over and over again so that I have a ready made stock pile, or I can do what I always do and make it at the last minute :-)

I made certain to punch a 1/16" hole at what would be the top of my wreath.  I do it after I add the greenery just in case it looks better with the hole positioned in a certain place... yes, I spend lots of time worrying and changing my mind.

I made 9 Spiral Roses (click here for a link to the spiral rose instructions)
you can make more or less, I actually created more than 9 and then played around until I found a grouping that I liked... that's what makes this so fun, you can change your arrangement and each wreath you make will be unique.

I then made about 20 - 3 inch (7.6 cm) green shaped teardrops for the leaves on my roses... again, I played with the arrangement until I liked what I saw.

Then I created a few spirals and sprinkled them around for good measure.

Finally, I added a jump ring, and later added ribbon for my hanger to complete the ornament.


I do enjoy creating pieces of my final project and each step along the way agonizing over how I am going to use it...  Truth be told, many times I will create the parts/pieces of my project, and lay the pieces down but won't glue it down right away, this gives me the opportunity to "sleep on it" - do you ever do that? I find that I sometimes get inspired to try something new or to try a specific layout... of course, sometimes the thoughts in my dreams work better than the actual end design - lol.

I'd love to hear from you!

Linking up here:
     Tuesday Talent Show #63 - Chef in Training - Share your Talent party
     Open House Link Party #82 - Answer is Chocolate

Enjoy!