The Creative Spark {No. 28}

Hi guys! Hope you are all having a great week! I have had a busy day of appointments today and am just getting ready to start stenciling my bathroom. Hopefully I will be able to wrap it all up tonight. 

 Wishful thinking???

{We shall soon find out!}

Anyways... it is time to see what all of you guys have been up to!  Feel free to link up anything that you have created - crafts, DIY, scrapbook projects, organization ideas, decorating, recipes - anything goes!  I can't wait to see what you have come up with!

Want to link up? 

• Link directly to your specific post {not the homepage}. 
• Please add The Creative Spark button to your post or blog {the code is in my sidebar}OR place a text link at the end of your post. I would love for you to help me spread the word! 
• Check out some of the other fabulous links. A few nice comments always inspires us to create more! 
• Follow along with Facebook to see if you have been featured throughout the week. I will also be posting My Sunday Sparks every week to showcase your work so don't forget to check back!

So I am off to stencil!  If you haven't had a chance to check out my Cutting Edge Stencil Giveaway, you can enter here.

{The stencil on the right is the one I am using!}

Now on to the PARTY!

Owl Always Love You Tree

For those of you that were here in October, you might remember the little owl that I made with my Halloween Toilet Paper Treat Boxes.  Unfortunately, he was all by himself and was becoming quite lonely. Since I have a soft spot for owls, I figured that Valentine's Day was the perfect time to find him some new friends.

Now he has a whole flock full of friends!  {Sorry about the picture quality but if I waited to have natural light to shoot in I would never get anything posted!}

MATERIALS

• Toilet Paper Rolls
• Scrapbook Paper {mine is from the Echo Park and My Mind's Eye Valentine's lines}
• Bakers twine or thin ribbon
• Black ink
• Glue
• Black Pen
• Glitter {optional}

HOW TO

To create the pillow box, flatten one end of the tube and pinch to create the corners.  Fold in the ends of the roll to create a semi circle and pinch to define the fold.

Now it's time to make some owls!

1. Wrap baker's twine around the roll and tie at the top.  This serves to hang the owl and also adds some extra support on the bottom so you don't lose any chocolates!
2. Cut a strip of scrapbook paper to fit around the roll.  Ink the edges and glue on.
3. Cut out some wings and a triangle for the nose from some coordinating scrapbook paper.  Ink the edges and glue on.  
4. Cut out two eyes {mine are approximately 3/4 inches in diameter cut from my Coluzzle}, ink the edges and draw in some google eyes.  You can't really tell from the picture but I also added glitter to the black parts of the eye.

The owls could make cute treat boxes on their own or you can make a tree for them to hang out on.  I just brought in some branches from the backyard, found a pot, and added some vinyl to the front of it.  The branches were a little bear so I added some paper hearts and a few felt hearts as well.

The owls hold a few chocolates and a little note for the boys.  Hopefully the chocolate monster doesn't get to them before the boys do!

I hope to see you all back tonight for another Creative Spark.  Have a great day!

I linked up with Delightful Order, Oopsey Daisy, Home Stories A to Z, A Bowl Full of Lemons, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Thrifty Decor Chick, Craft-O-Maniac, Alderberry Hill, CRAFT, The DIY Showoff, Positively Splendid, I Heart Naptime, Be Different Act Normal, Funky Junk Interiors, Tatertots and Jello, Design Dazzle, Whipperberry, The Shabby Creek Cottage, The 36th Avenue, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Lil Luna, Uncommon, Blue Cricket Design and Not Just a Housewife.

My Sunday Sparks {No. 27}

Good morning!  I am back with some of my favorite posts from last week's Creative Spark.  I have to say that it was one of my favorite weeks of link ups yet!  SO many amazing ideas!  I had to pick a couple of extras this week! :)

This beautiful little kitchen from Life as a Thrifter is absolutely AMAZING!!! So fun!

Still looking for a cute Valentine printable?  I love this one from It's a Crafty Life.

Bonnie from Uncommon created this fabulous Pottery Barn knockoff.

This "Magnetic Me" set from Creative Juice is brilliant and SO much fun!

I love this cute, simple Valentine's Centerpiece from Little Lucy Lu.  You gotta love quick projects that turn out this sweet!

Sandy's Space shared how to make this fabulous mini album from 1 sheet of paper!  This would make a great little Valentine's gift!

Well, I'm sure you know by now how much I love pretty packaging!  These Valentine's pouches from Ode to Inspiration are just "sew" adorable!

Thanks again to EVERYONE who linked up to this week's party and spent a little time taking a peek at some of the other projects that were shared.  You really are amazing! If you were featured here or on my Facebook page, feel free to grab a button from the sidebar.

If you haven't had a chance to enter my Cutting Edge Stencil Giveaway, you can check it out here.

I will be trying one of these out on in my bathroom today.  I'll let you know how it goes!  

Happy Sunday!

Google Plus???

Hey guys! I hope you are all having a great weekend! One of the many things on my "To Do" list today, was to spend a little bit of time trying to figure out Google Plus. 

{If you are not quite sure what Google + is all about, Mural Maker and More has a fabulous {non-technical!} introduction series that can be found here. I have read it a few times!}

So... this "little" project has taken up most of the afternoon and I am still not really sure how the whole thing works.  Is anyone else as confused as I am?  I can be resistant to change and am definitely not tech savvy so maybe it is just me {I think I had a Facebook account for a year before I actually posted anything!} 

Me + technical stuff = confusion

So why am I bothering?  I guess I have two main reasons for this:

1. As most of you know, Google Friend Connect will no longer be available for those non-blogger blogs after March 1, 2012.  I know I shouldn't spend too much time focusing on how many followers I have, but it was always encouraging to see that little number go up and, to me, it represented all of the hard work I have put into this blog.   
2. Google is closing my favorite {well, only!} photo editing site, Picnik, as of April 19, 2012 and moving some of the features over to Google +.  Seriously???  I just figured out what Picnik is all about...

Anyways, I have managed to figure a few things out and so far I have been able to get answers for most of my questions on the Google + Blog. Unfortunately for me, I still have a lot more questions to go!  I now have a little Google+ widget over on my side bar {under Follow Along}, if anyone would like to join me on Google+.  I think it will be a little while before I have everything figured out so please bear with me if you see some strange things posted!  If any of you are on Google +, I would love to hear your tips. And if anyone has any questions for me, I will try my best to help.  

I am now off to get some Tylenol for this crazy Google+ headache I have!  We are off to a friend's house for a games night. I'll see you tomorrow for my Sunday Sparks!

Cutting Edge Stencil Giveaway

***FEBRUARY 6, 2012 - THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.  THE WINNER IS LIZZY FROM MY MIND MY LIFE.  THANKS TO ALL THAT ENTERED!***

Hey guys! I don't do a whole lot of giveaways around here but I am super excited for this one from

 Cutting Edge Stencils!

I first came across Cutting Edge Stencils last year when I was trying to come up with something fun for my craft room wall.  I literally spent days trying to figure out which stencil I was going to pick - there are so many fabulous designs!

Gorgeous, right?  Well, I finally decided on this one - The Casablanca Allover Stencil.

I must admit that this was a big project for me but it was TOTALLY worth it!  It really is amazing how much that one wall transformed the whole space.  My one piece of advice before stenciling is to do a little research and read the instructions.  Sounds simple I know but I am SO bad at just jumping right into things without knowing what I am doing! 

You can read all about my stenciling experience {as well as some tips on what to do and what NOT to do!} here.  Cutting Edge Stencils also offers some great stenciling tricks in this video series.  {I really wish I had watched this before attempting my project last year!}

If doing a whole wall is a little intimidating, there are a lot more uses for these nifty little stencils!  I also used my stencil for the top of a chest that I repainted.  After stenciling the wall, this was a piece of cake and literally took about 30 minutes.

You can also create cool wall art,

fun pillows,

or whatever else your heart desires! Curtains, lamp shades, doors, picture frames, canvas - the possibilities are endless!

So are you all dying to get stenciling?  Well you are in luck!  Cutting Edge Stencils is going to be giving one lucky reader a stencil of their choice! {up to a $50 value}

If you would like to enter:
{1 entry each}

1. Head on over to the Cutting Edge Stencils website and leave a comment below to let me know what your favorite stencil is. {Mandatory}
2. "Like" Cutting Edge Stencils on Facebook and say hello!
3. Twitter this giveaway OR share on your Facebook page. 
4. Pin It! {We all know how much we like to do that!}
5. Follow Clean and Scentsible.

This giveaway will close on Sunday, February 5 at midnight Pacific time.  The winner will be notified by email so please make sure I have your contact information.  

I will be working on my own stenciling project this weekend and will let you know how it goes!  

Felt Valentine's Decor

Yay Friday!!! This has been a really long week so I am SO happy that the weekend is here!  This week has pretty much been a write off for creative or ambitious projects.  By the time the kids were in bed, I was definitely done.  While I was catching up on some favorite TV shows, I did manage to cut lots and lots of felt circles out{ like well over 500!} for a few Valentine's projects.  

I came across this heart wreath last year {from the Idea Room} right after Valentine's day and it has remained one of my favorite Valentine's ideas that I have come across.  So, of course, I needed to have my own.

This project is super simple but does require a few hours of mindless circle cutting.  For the circles, I cut out four layers of felt at a time and then tidied up the edges a bit.  The circles are folded up so they do not have to be perfect.  I didn't bother tracing a circle onto the felt and just used one circle as a template and cut around it. 

I picked up this glitter heart wreath at the dollar store.  I am thinking that I need to go back and get a couple more {they had 2 different sizes}.  Ribbon attached and all ready to go!

To pin on your circles, fold them in half and then fold them in half again.  Stick a straight pin through all four layers and then attach to your foam.  Keep folding and pinning your circles randomly around the foam.  Unfortunately for me, I liked the circles placed quite close together {which meant a lot more felt circles to cut!}  Since I wanted to hang my wreath on a wreath hanger and the back of it was visible, I also had to cover the back with the felt circles as well.  If you will be hanging it against a wall, leave the back and save yourself a whole lot of time!

Although the photo doesn't show it too well, I just love the ruffled look of it!  And, since I love cutting out circles so much, I also made some felt balls while I was at at {using 2 and 3 inch foam balls}.

I also added a couple to a bowl on the coffee table downstairs with my flower balls.

So, who else decorates for Valentine's day?  This tends to be one of those holidays that people love or hate!  For me, I just love decorating with the reds and pinks!

 {Subway Art from Eighteen 25 and my Valentine Countdown can be found here}

Have a fabulous weekend!


 I linked up with CRAFT, Design Dazzle, Whipperberry, The Shabby Creek Cottage, The 36th Avenue, Gluesticks, House of Hepworths, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Lil Luna, Uncommon, Blue Cricket Design, Tip Junkie, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Today's Creative Blog, Craft-O-Maniac, Under the Table and Dreaming, CRAFT, Positively Splendid, I Heart Naptime, Lolly Jane Boutique, Funky Junk Interiors and Tatertots and Jello.

The Creative Spark {No. 27}

Welcome back to another Creative Spark! I have been having a ton of fun working on Valentine's projects this week. I still have three half finished projects that I should hopefully get done by the weekend. {and then I have a little painting project that must get done!!}  

So what have YOU all been doing?  I can't wait to see what you have come up with!  Feel free to link up anything that you have created - crafts, DIY, scrapbook projects, organization ideas, decorating, recipes - anything goes!

Want to link up? 

• Link directly to your specific post {not the homepage}. 
• Please add The Creative Spark button to your post or blog {the code is in my sidebar}OR place a text link at the end of your post. I would love for you to help me spread the word! 
• Check out some of the other fabulous links. A few nice comments always inspires us to create more! 
• Follow along with Facebook to see if you have been featured throughout the week. I will also be posting My Sunday Sparks every week to showcase your work so don't forget to check back!

Love Shack

Another weekend has flown by and it is Monday once again.  I hope you all had a fabulous weekend and are ready to tackle the week!

The boys and I spent Saturday afternoon making these little graham cracker houses.

For some reason, I couldn't get the B-52's "Love Shack" out of my head the whole time we were making them.  "The Love Shack is a little old place where we can get together...."  I even sang it to the boys.  They were not impressed...

Anyways, I saw these little houses at Christmas time and figured it would be fun to do a Valentine version.  Oh, and a good excuse to go out and buy some of that Valentine's candy!

I just used some store bought icing, mixed in some cream of tartar to help it stick a bit better {add about 1/2 tsp cream of tartar to 1 cup of icing}, and about 8 drops of red food coloring for that Valentine's look!  If you really want to make your own icing you can find a recipe here. 

To form the house, you need 7 graham cracker squares.  Cut one of the squares diagonally with a serrogated knife for the front and back of the roof. {hint: place your Graham cracker in the microwave for about 20 seconds before cutting it so it doesn't crumble} After your have assembled your house, let it sit for about 20-30 minutes to allow time for the icing to set a bit.  Surprisingly, we had no troubles with our houses collapsing {Gingerbread house disasters of Christmas's past were floating around in my head!}.

I put some of the icing in a Ziploc baggie and cut off the corner to pipe the icing around the house.  Matthew added some sprinkes to his {and as many candies as possible that would fit onto the front of his house!}

"Love shack, baby!  Love shack, that's where it's at!"


I think the boys ate more candy than they actually put on their houses but apparently they had fun! {And yes, they are total goofs!}

So grab a few graham crackers, lots of candy and head on down to the
LOVE SHACK!

"Bang, bang, bang on the door baby!"

I linked up with Alderberry Hill, Be Different Act Normal, Gluesticks, Not Just a Housewife, Tip Junkie, Craft-O-Maniac, Under the Table and Dreaming, CRAFT, Positively Splendid, I Heart Naptime, Lolly Jane Boutique, Funky Junk Interiors, Tatertots and Jello, The Shabby Creek Cottage, The 36th Avenue, Tidy Mom, Whipperberry, Design Dazzle, House of Hepworths, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Delightful Order, Somewhat Simple, Blue Cricket Design, Oopsey Daisy, Uncommon, Lil Luna, Home Stories A to Z, A Bowl Full of Lemons, Today's Creative Blog and Skip to My Lou.

My Sunday Sparks {No. 26}

Hey Everyone!  I hope you have been having a fabulous weekend!  I have actually had a pretty productive weekend for a change.  Nothing too exciting but the house is cleaned and I am feeling hopeful that I might actually get caught up on things!  I can even see the bottom of my laundry hamper...

Okay now moving on to more interesting topics... here are some fabulous ideas from last week's Creative Spark!  If you haven't had a chance to check things out, head on over for a visit.  It will be well worth it!    

This simple, winter vignette from Space 46 is just beautiful!  I feel relaxed just looking at it.

Jamielyn from I Heart Naptime created these sweet Mason Jar Cups for her daughter's birthday.  They would be perfect for a Valentine's party too!

I am always a sucker for cute paper crafts.  Is this snowman wreath from Something from Cassie not the cutest thing?

Sandy's Space created some amazing projects for her British tea party.  I love these crowns!!

Lori from Thrifty Decor Mom showed off her gorgeous library.  I love the pops of turquoise and the bookcase is just fabulous.  Head on over to check out her other fun touches!

And since I like to end everything with a yummy treat, here are some pretty Chocolate Cherry Whoopie Pies from Gallamore West.  Just another reason why I love Valentine's Day!

Thank-you SO much to everyone who joined in the party this week!  I love the chance to get to see your projects and I am excited to see it continue to grow.  I really appreciate all of you that post a link or party button back to my blog to help me spread the word! For those of you that were featured here or on my Facebook page, feel free to grab a button from the sidebar.

ENJOY YOUR SUNDAY!!