A Year of Boxes

(First off- all hail Pinterest! You inspire me to craft more & more!) For this post I will be sharing the box I jazzed up inside for my hubs for the month of Feb and what I have planned for coming months.

A Year of Boxes
:
What is a year of boxes? Where did this idea come from & what inspired me. Well Pinterest of course. Some time last year I pinned a box idea- the inside of the box was decorated with paper, love notes, and packed with goodies inside.

It was listed under deployment ideas and I pinned it to my "Army Wife" board for future reference. I really liked this idea but took it further. Each month I plan on sending a box whether it is big or small. Each month will have a "theme" to fit the box which I will share after the hubs has gotten his box. Since he can read this blog- I don't want to give away the surprise!

Anyway! Shout out to all military wives! Feel free to steal my idea! I took it further than the pin. For this month I sent a Valentine Box. I had my grandma in law & mother in law chip in too! They bought things for the box. I packed everything- wrapped gifts, etc.

The box decorating is fairly simple- I bought stickers, cool paper, glue, and keep my exacto rotary cutter handy if I need to trim paper. I glue fancy pieces of paper to the inside of the box- I do the "top" part of box where it is opened- but you can do all of the box if you want. This is where you can get creative. Love notes, valentine sayings, etc.

When sending foodie goodies and toiletry items I suggest using a food saver for toiletries in bottles- I seal all the bottles up and place the food in bags as well. You never know when something might "explode" or leak when sending a box overseas.  No food saver- just use bags! I'm just weird and chose the food saver. It does work wonders for any baked goods you send though! Think "fresh" oh and  it's a very good investment in the long run!

Anyway! Here is my first box of the "year" along with a cute kitteh to boot! (Never fails- if you have a box around the cat is surely to get "trapped" for hours in said box).

~Lexxy~

Keepsake Craft

Now I had an idea like this one some time ago... keeping all the cards my husband has given me  and creating some type of book. Then I saw a pin on Pinterest. I didn't read the entire link but it brought up that idea again. Not sure if mine is exact/ similar but here is what I did:

First I grabbed my hole puncher, a sharpie, and metal rings (two of them) I had stashed for my index cards for when I take notes.

Second I grabbed all the cards I had stashed in my room & began punching holes in them. Make sure you line up cards to create the "right" look.

I used sharpie to mark other cards from my starter card. Keeps things looking nice and neat.

Open metal rings and put freshly punched cards on rings and viola! You have just started the beginning of a "book" of sorts made with cards ( from whomever) that you wanted to keep.

I say get more creative if you like with ribbon, etc. Right now I'm keeping it simple as the cards keep coming and I need to go digging for the rest.

I like the way this turned out. Can't wait to see it grow. I really like this keepsake. While the husband is away( gotta love Army life) it really helps to have these cards where I can see them and read them when I am feeling down or worried about our marriage. Being apart definitely puts a relationship to the test! This is just one way I can make the coming months bearable.

~Lexxy~

Recycled Magazine Paper Flowers

This is a craft I love to do often- You can make bouquets of flowers for gifts to friends and family members- it is easy -relatively quick and unique. You will need old magazines in all sizes. The flowers I made are from my old Avon brochures. The stems are from my regular sized mags. You will need double sided sticky tape, a skewer, and a glue stick. I also like to use a paper cutter for cleaner edges.

Take a magazine page

fold it to create part of a triangle- you will have a rectangular piece that will be folded

fold rectangular piece to create a perfect triangle

fold all pieces- tuck small triangular piece into center

You should have a perfect triangle

Now fold it in half

You will place the two bottom ends of the triangle together like so

grab your tape

I use about this much 

I like to stick a small amount between pages to hold together

Tape it 

You should create a cone of sorts

the cones or petals look like this

You will need to fold five petals for a flower

Stick glue in between petals and stick together to form the shape of the flower

this is what it should start to look like

A finished flower

The flower and stem: when you finish making a stem place so double sided tape around the top and the place into the middle of the flowers you just made press the petals onto the stem and viola! You have made a flower.

=^.^=

For stems take a skewer and roll a large magazine page onto it- put glue or tape on the page as you roll so it stays

....

You can make small, medium, or large flowers- the ones pictured here are small and medium.
For small flowers I use the avon pages but I cut they in half and then fold into triangles- repeat process

And that is a craft you can do anytime of the day- great to do while watching television! Or on a rainy day! It is so easy! Hope this tutorial was great! Let me know if it helped you and post comments and links to your own creations!

Today is Memorial Day- I take a moment of silence in remembrance of those who have fought, died, and served. I take a moment of silence for those who still serve. I thank my husband for his service... thank you to all military personnel. You are remembered...

~Lexxy~

How to Do the Tunisian Simple Stitch

Today I will be showing you the Tunisian simple stitch or Afghan stitch. This stitch is so versatile. You can make dish cloths or wash cloths for the bathroom, baby blankets, and even reusable mop covers for your swifter!!! ( if you have one that is) You will need to purchase appropriate yarn for your project- for the dish cloths and swifter mop cover I use 100% cotton yarn and often buy Peaches & Cream. You will need a special hook for this type of crochet- You will see it in the video :)

Fits perfectly!

Tucks in nicely!

Hope the video helps! Let me know in the comments below. Have a good Monday and crochet away!!!!

~LexxyV~

Bathroom Makeover!

Hello everyone and happy Sunday!!! Today is filled with some mild crafting since I have been sick. The guest bathroom has been in "makeover" mode for some time.. I was looking for the right spray paint to give some bathroom pieces a new look.. 

So here is the before decor- quick little side not- the candles are actually a robin egg blue and  are in clear  candle holders- I had placed scrap paper- some ribbon and a bead to create a different and unique look- easy to do and changes up your candles ( if you don't burn them) I often have candles for two purposes ( well okay three) for decor- unlighted or for smell- lighted and if you want to count the spiritual into this I also use candles for healing and prosperity ( that sort of thing)  We also have the two baskets hangy thing- they were pink and white-

The new shower curtain- it was the only one left of its kind!!! I felt lucky  to have found it at all! I also bought some acrylic paint and a bag of craft brushes

I used acrylic paint and the round sponge brush to dab paint on the candle holders- to give them a more matte look- I also painted them a darker blue green to bring out that color in the shower curtain- really gives it a pop

If you go back through my posts you will find the post on the inexpensive soap dispenser- well it got a revamp!! AGAIN! Lol! What I used was the same paint for the candles and the same round sponge brush and dabbed paint onto the bottle- after I was finished with this and the paint was dried I applied mod podge as a sealant- it is nice and shiny! 

The soap area of the sink

On the toilet I have a few things sitting a glass bowl- you may laugh at this but I used an old pillow case for inside the bowl and placed some toiletries in it - I think it looks pretty dang good!!!

This is the current project! I just got the spray paint  the other day and I am now working on spraying the stand and baskets- they are outside drying as we speak on the balcony - I will need to do an update picture of these in the next blog post!!!

A quick picture of me blotting on the paint on the candle- you can also see my first attempt at painting the baskets- by hand!!! NOT such a good idea- very time consuming- so spray paint it was ( originally I feared getting spray paint since we live on the second floor of the apartments but I decided an older towel would be the perfect thing to use to make sure I didn't ruin anything outside

A before pic if you will- the red just really made the bathroom closed and dark! I didn't like it!!

What the new curtain looks like- I think it does a good job of brightening and opening up the bathroom- not so dark and dank!!!!!!!

A close up of the shower curtain

So there ya have it folks a bathroom makeover without too much fuss- just get a new shower curtain, some candles, and spray paint- have at it- and Ta Da! I guess this wasn't much of a tutorial or anything but everything is pretty easy to do.... so yeah.. hope ya'll enjoyed seeing my makeover - minus the basket hangy thing after photo ( which will come I swear!!) What are you doing for Spring decor and crafts?

Do you give your living space a Spring makeover each year?

over and out

~Lexxy~

Lexxy's Awesome Box Tutorial!

Now I know this type of tutorial is all over the internet

 but who says I can't post what I have created, mew =^.^=

So here are the supplies you need. I had some pieces of cardboard sitting in the closet just waiting to be  turned into a box I originally use them as abstract artworks- I had then hanging in the bedroom when I was single ( that was 5 years ago!  lol! So there is another quick idea for you.
Supplies:
glue,
double sided tape,
box cutter ( if needed)
laminating sheets if you want to completely cover the box
packing tape
Scrapbook paper ( I love scrapbook paper !)

Trim off excess edges of the box to fit the scrapbook paper size - go slowly or use a sheet you don;t care about snipping into

Apply glue or double sided tape to the cardboard

Place paper on the cardboard and press until secure- cover both sides of the cardboard  and then tape together

 When you tape the pieces all together  it should look like this ( outside of the box)

Inside of the box

Tape the sides together- do this a few times 

A view from the top

All done =^.^=

All my latest sewing projects are now sitting in their own little box