Here is some crafty inspiration for vintage handmade paper Valentine’s Day cards. These beauties were made by my handmade paper partner and use some sweet techniques you can use in your own crafty ideas: Handmade paper with flower petal bits Vintage ephemera and stamps Stitching on paper Layering with lace and fabrics Embellishing with ribbon, beads, and small golden pins Gather some Valentine crafty bits and have some fun creating a few for a sweet treat for friends and family…
I inherited a batch of dried gourds from a lovely woman who was a fantastic gourd artist, crafting her gourds into beautiful works of art and whimsical characters. She inspired me to host a painted gourd workshop at our church for crafting some to sell at our Christmas bazaar. Some ladies in our group were a little leery about painting the gourds by hand, so I came up with this easy version to make beautiful works of art. Supplies: Dried gourd (Can be purchased online, at farmer’s markets or craft fairs.) Acrylic paint in white, khaki and Inca gold…
Our family loves celebrating the Christmas season with this crafty Advent calendar my friend made for us years ago. Decorate the matchboxes with scrapbook paper and other Christmas-y papers, then added little embellishments and numbers 1 to 24. Use a small cork board as a base and tack on grosgrain ribbon in four rows. To attach the matchboxes, cut two small slits in the bottom of each outside wrap of the boxes, and slide six on each ribbon. They can be in number order, or mixed up for fun. For the gifts inside, I add M&Ms to…
In addition to machine sewing on my handmade cards, I love adding vintage items as a focal point. We have some excellent flea markets in Ohio, and one I especially like is the Springfield Antique Show & Flea Market. The market holds outdoor Extravaganzas in May and September, with hundreds of vendors selling a little of everything. And thanks to the Midwest location, prices are great too. I love spending the afternoon meandering around the rows of antiques. Between the furniture and dishware, there are bins and bins of little antique buttons, bottle caps, metal trinkets, and my favorite – paper…