Shutting Down and Starting New

For those of you that read what little of a blog that I have, I’m here to tell you that I am shutting it down. I’ve made a lot of changes in my life in order to make it better and what it should have been. I’ll be moving to blogger as well, so if you want to follow here’s the new site: mycreativelifeaccordingtome.blogspot.com

Thx

A Little Late But Posted

Yes I know it is a little late for a Valentine’s Day post, but I still wanted to share and it is the thought that counts, right?

First up is a Valentine’s Hair Bow I made for my niece. Just a cute, stacked boutique bow. Hair hair does better with alligator clips, so that’s what is used to attach it to her hair, although I do sometimes use French barrettes and headbands for others who have ordered.

Valentine’s Day Hair Bow

Next up is the Valentine’s wreath at the Mace household:

I’m quite proud of it 🙂 I knew there had to be words, so I came up with a way to get those on there….Scrabble tiles…..such a genius trend!

And here’s a little close up in case you need it!

Be Mine Scrabble Tiles

And trust me, it’s better if you heat seal the ends before tying them! Otherwise you’ll have to go through every single one of them to make sure all are sealed.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine’s Day!

Welcome to 2013!

Happy New Year, everyone! Hopefully, this year will go much better than the last!

At the Mace household, we are taking down the few Christmas decorations that we had up and attempting to find a place to put them in our now even more crowded garage. Never have been able to park a car in there (craft projects, lawn mower, weed eater, trash cans, etc)! Over the holidays, I was at my parents’ house where I learned my niece will soon be taking over my old room, which meant that EVERYTHING had to come out. 25 years worth of stuff is A LOT of stuff. Some of the things I did donate to our local help center and the rest is currently sitting in my garage, in my car, or still at my parents’ house. Some stuff I hadn’t seen in years, but it brought back some wonderful memories. Hopefully she’ll enjoy the room as much as I did.

Ok, on to the tip I have for you today! I may have said this before, but I cannot stay in one single craft area. Just can’t do it. I make candles. Sometime pouring the candle wax causes air bubbles, which leave your candle looking like this:

Air bubbles result

Not how I want a candle looking. I had to get rid of the ugly surface, but I didn’t know how, so I thought a little bit and came up with an option.

Here is what you’ll need to fix this problem: Heat gun.

Turn on the heat gun and let it warm up a little before you direct it towards the wax. I recommend leaving the candle sitting on a flat surface instead of picking it up to blast it with the heat gun because tilting it causes the wax to go up on the sides….which can also be fixed with the heat gun, but it’s a step you don’t have to do. Just direct the heat gun towards the wax, which will melt, and liquefy the top. Let the wax harden and here’s what you get:

After the heat gun

You may have to do it more than once depending on how many air bubbles were there and how many you may have put in during the melting.

Hope this helps some of you candle makers out there!

Merry Christmas Eve…and a Few Ways to Disguise Those Hard-to-Wrap Gifts

Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! It’s just a few short hours until Christmas morning! Are you ready? All gifts wrapped? How about those hard-to-wrap gifts?

You know, I try to avoid those lovely gifts that are a pain to wrap, but I always somehow end up with one to wrap! Things like house shoes; hammers, shovels, hiking equipment…..etc. So I thought I’d share how I have wrapped some of these gifts this year!

1) Since starting my business, I had the idea to make Christmas stockings (which didn’t sell….at all). I originally had three sizes, but the small one was too small, so I repurposed it. It is currently holding a hammer for my husband….he’s still asleep at the moment and doesn’t read my blog, so its safe for me to tell 🙂 I inserted the hammer with the claw down, so it would hang right. The stocking perfectly hides the hammer.

Hammer and Stocking

Hammer hidden…mission accomplished!

2) Also in the making of stockings, I had a lot of scrap material left over. So, I drew out a pattern the size I needed for the next formidable hard-to-wrap gift and cut out fabric and a white lining. I wanted these to be little cinch bags so I made a ‘tunnel’ for the ribbon and voila!

House shoes…and cat #1’s (Coco) tail

3) And last but not least and my favorite way to wrap a hard-to-wrap gift when there is no alternative….drum roll please……..ta da! It’s the black garbage bag!!!! Now, I realize this is probably tacky to many of you, but I had nothing else…not even one of those BIG plastic Christmas sacks, so I made do with what I had. This is hiding hiking gear for my husband….I realized when we went to Standing Stone State Park the other day that we needed improvements to our ‘let’s go hike in the woods with nothing but a camera and cell phones’ attitude. It got really cold, and we underestimated the time this hike was going to take. I got to the point that I couldn’t feel my hands and when my husband tried to warm them with his, they burned. The feeling didn’t return fully until about 4 hours later. So…the improvements I have invested in are a hiking backpack, a first aid kit, anti-itch daubers (for when those blood suckers come out), and the hiking rods (I guess that’s what you call them). And now you see why the trash bag was a good idea!

Easiest way ever to wrap a gift!

I hope these three things have given you some ideas for either this Christmas or next…or even events between. Have a very Merry Christmas Eve, everyone!!!!

Christmas Decor at My House

Ok, since I did Christmas cards yesterday, I’ll share how I have the house decorated. Now, don’t freak out, but I don’t have a tree, because there is nowhere to put it! I would have one if there was a place and my cats didn’t think it was something to scale!

Here’s the wreath I made this year. We had a storm door installed to let in more light and allow our dog to bask in the sun, and now the wreath we had last year won’t fit between it and the regular door.

I really wanted to make it where I could change out the outer decoration to match the season, but I ended up giving up on that one!

I also decorated our hutch with all of the Christmas stuff..including the tiny spiral tree from before we got married. You can see where I had to end up putting it. As soon as I plugged it in out came the cats to check it out and proceeded to try to tear it down, so up top it went.

And the final decoration I added (with the exception of the mailbox decor, which got blown off in a storm) was to the curtain rod in our front window…..also out of reach and jumping range of the cats. I just got some cheap Wal-Mart ornaments and painted them in Folk Art’s new glitter paint (except for the green, because I couldn’t find that paint…..probably got hauled off by the cats).

Now you see how the Mace house is decorated this year! Not much, but just enough for us.

Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas!

Yes, I know, I’ve gone a long time without a post…..again. Everything has been so hectic around here especially with starting a new business. So, let me fill you in a little bit. I did my first craft show in November. I don’t feel like I did very well, but I was told that if you make back what you paid for the booth, that you did really well, so I’m looking at the show from that standpoint. The only critique that the ones sponsoring the show gave was that I needed to have more items made up, ready to sell right there instead of ordering. I’ll know next time 🙂

Anyway, I finally got around to making my Christmas cards! Yay! And for once I’m actually pleased with them. Sent them out yesterday!

Since I never have enough of the same paper, all of my cards are a little different in one way or another, but I guess you can say that it makes them unique. Here they are:

1) This is all of them together.

2) Now, the rest are just single pictures and details.

Hopefully, the recipients of these cards will enjoy them! And I hope you have enjoyed them, too! If I don’t post before Christmas, please have a wonderful day filled with memories!

Linked Up at:

Tip Junkie’s Tip Me Tuesday

Oh My Goodness! and the Highway 127 Yardsale

Oh.My.Goodness! I can’t believe how long it’s been since I have posted anything! I can’t say that I have a really good excuse, but there has been A LOT going on here lately. 1) I finished my first year of teaching. 2) My brother is getting married, and I am designing a lot of things for their wedding. 3) My house is a complete disaster area because of a small rough patch in my life (which is now fixed btw). 4) I’ve started my own business, The Prickly Pear. As you can see, lots and lots of things going on. BUT I’m going to try to get better about this posting stuff…hopefully.

Ok, next thing on my list. Every year during the first weekend in August, the world longest YARD SALE is set up along Highway 127. It runs from Michigan to Alabama, and it also conveniently is a short distance from my house. YAY!!! I love going to this yard sale even though it is extremely hot and we are gone all day. You never know what you’ll find or see for that matter.

Here are some of the things I found during this year’s trip:

I got this window for $5 because one of the panes was broken out. It benefits me because that one less pane I have to take out myself!

Some old records. Craftiness at work here!

This crate that Coco can’t stay out of…lol

Thread

Spools to wind my loose twine onto. These aren’t tiny ones like they seem in the picture–they’re about 3.5 inches tall.

Cake pop tray. I tried to make some before by rolling the mix into balls with my hands…..didn’t go to well. Maybe this will help me.

And the last item…..wait for it….a small 3-drawer chest….filled with all sorts of sewing supplies! And as you can see, my cat, Coco, approves.

Middle drawer contents.

Bottom drawer contents.

I think I did pretty good for the stuff I got for the amount of money I spent. One thing I always make sure I do before buying things like these is ask myself…Where are you going to put it? and What are you going to use it for? If there is not an answer, then I don’t get it…..unless it is something I ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO HAVE!! My house is small enough as it is without me adding more clutter to it.

Random Teacher Card

Hello, Hello!

Again, so sorry for not posting more often! I’m terrible at actually keeping something up to date…doesn’t matter what it is. It could be my checkbook register, filling out my planner, etc. I guess you could say I’m pretty disorgainized….no a better term would be an organized disorganization..HA! I know where everything is…..the area just isn’t neat and tidy!

Today, I have another card for you, and I have no idea where the inspiration for this one came from…..maybe from my disorganized organization?

Here’s how it came to be…

I had seen an advertisement on Amy Tan’s blog for Japanese washi tape and decided to order some. See, I had been avoiding using it because I really didn’t know what to do with it. Is that bad or what?! It’s not like a “you just stick it on there ” type of problem solver–I just didn’t have any idea as to what I could make with it. One day during the week, I’d been on Amy’s blog looking at the stuff she’d made, and the washi tape advertisement came up. I figured I’d give it a shot and went to an AWESOME website called Cute-Tape –pronounced que-te-ta-pei. I loved the grid tape so I popped it into my online shopping cart and purchased it. I’d come up with an idea when I saw the tape and couldn’t wait to get it. I got into the package when the weekend came and ta-da…a teacher card!

We got out of school today and tomorrow for sickness (I had a LOT of fluid in my ears last week, which has developed into a sinus infection…YUCK!), so that’s why you’re getting a post at this time of morning during the school year….summer’s different.

Green Buttons: Basic Grey, Stamps: Papertrey Ink, Stamp pads: Stampin’ Up!, Ribbon: Ribbon Couture; Washi Tape: Cute-Tape; Kraft Paper: The Paper Studio.

Valentine’s Day is on It’s Way

Life has been hectic around here lately! I don’t have a planning period at school, so I’m spending all of my precious scrapping time at school getting prepped for the next day. I did, however, manage to get some things done yesterday!

Since Valentine’s Day is coming up, I decided to go ahead and get some cards done instead of being rushed.

Here’s the one I’ll share with you today:

I found some paper doilies at the store the other day, and I knew they’d come in handy!!! All of the stamps are by Close to My Heart, and the kraft paper is by The Paper Studio.

I hope you all enjoyed this short but sweet Valentine’s Day card!

–M

Hello world!

Hello to all you who are reading this! Welcome to Lollipops & Tangerines! If you are coming from my now-dormant {ippity} blog, you’ve made it safe and sound!

Now that I am no longer an {ippity} chick, I will be able (*hopefully*) to post more projects since I’m not constrained to using only Unity or {ippity} stamps. I’ve actually already got one project ready to show you all! Bet you weren’t expecting a project on my first post…lol.

A friend at work asked me to make a banner and some advice cards for her sister’s baby shower last week, so I’m going to start off with those! She got her idea of what she wanted from Polkadots & Pirates. There were a few things that she wanted to change about the design: 1) the colors….dark yellow and gray instead of the bright pinks and greens,2) a different bird, and 3) Change ‘Advice and Wishes…’ to just ‘Advice.’ So, without further adieu, here’s the project!

Here’s a couple of the advice cards:

And now, here’s the banner:

I think it’s quite cute, but I guess I’m a little biased!

Ok…that’s all I’ve got for the moment, but stay tuned…there will be more to come!!

–M