{SPRING} from Under My Umbrella

You know that show from VH1 "Behind the Music"?   Well lately I feel like lately on this blog I've been telling stories behind the crafting!  It kind of cracks me up because when I go to a blog I look at the pictures first and sometimes don't even read what's been written.  I guess I've been missing out on some interesting stories!

It's a major understatement to say I'm excited for Spring.  It's really dark and rainy around these parts in January and February.  I start to watch and listen for signs of Spring early.  This year the first sign was the frogs.  My house is next to a wetland of sorts and in the middle of the night about two weeks ago I heard them.   It starts with one and then another billion or so join in.  At first I was bugged they woke me up and then it hit me.  Spring is coming!!

Monday, on my early morning walk, I started to notice all the tulips starting to come up and a family of bunnies hopped across the street in front of me (kinda like a Disney movie except if I started to sing they would all run away!).  My original idea was to craft something with bunnies because they make me happy.   That idea was created and then I totally changed my mind.  I based my idea on that last piece of evidence Spring is on the way...when the trees start to bloom.

Growing up my neighbor had a small tree that would start to bloom.  It had a perfect branch to hang from or sit on.  In the spring it would start to get white blossoms.  My siblings and I loved it.  The other good thing about it was later in the spring and you kind start to miss snow you could shake the branch and it would feel like it was snowing but with the warmer weather and sun.


I'm into having projects have dual purposes.   Flip my Spring sign over and you have one good for Valentines day.  Well I guess it's good all year round because we all need a little more love :)

Wendy posted about the project above last month.  Our friend Kjirsten from The Half Penny Post came up with this cute project.  Now when I'm ready to feel Spring like I simply flip it over and now I can keep it out longer!  It was already painted red.  I put a stain over the red and sanded the edges.  I sketched up a twisted tree branch and on my computer made it so I could cut the image out in vinyl.  Finally I added some lace blossoms.  It makes me happy!

Thanks so much for all the great projects to welcome Spring ladies!  Happy Spring!

Welcome Spring! - Sassy Sanctuary

Hello everyone!  Krystal from Sassy Sanctuary here today and its my turn to welcome in Spring!  I too am itching for some consistent Spring weather.  We've actually have had quite the mixed basket of weather here in Utah this last month.  One day it'll snow, the next will bring sunshine, the next day pouring rain, and then back to the sunshine.  But those nice days mixed in are so much fun and such a tease!

When I think of Spring the first thing that comes to mind is tulips and daffodils.  Those first bulb flowers that pop up are how I know its finally arrived! So I set off to create my own little Spring flower garden.

I just LOVE how it turned out and think it just screams Spring!  I'm itching to go through my house this next week and replace all the winter decor for Spring, and I know this little bundle will be so cute on my mantle display.

It was a pretty easy and fun project too.

This one started out with a vision in my head and a sketch. 

 

Once I had the basic pattern made out of paper, I transferred the pattern to wood and cut out the flowers.  The large flowers are 1/2" wood and the leaf, tulip petals, and daffodil center are 1/4" wood.  The block and dowels I picked up at Micheal's.

Once you have all your pieces you just paint, paper, and assemble.  Everything is just put together with hot glue.

Here are some close-ups of the different pieces.

 I couldn't decide which paper to use on the tulip so ended up using both!  I love the mix of pattern!

And the Daffodil is probably my favorite.  It's just so happy!

And to really seal in the theme, I embellished the block with the words "welcome spring,"  a little bakers twine, and some moss on top.

So there you have it!  I'm ready to welcome in Spring!

Come back tomorrow to see what Melinda has in store for Spring this year!  And if you missed it be sure to go back and see Wendy and the Crafty Sisters made for Spring.  Serious cuteness!!!

Thanks for reading!

Crafty Sisters Welcome Spring!

We don't get any more excited about crafting than Spring Time~Halloween is a close second...

We were more than happy to whip something up for Spring and here's our little grassy mound of flowers to celebrate sunshine, warmer weather and all the tulips ready to pop out!

First we cut out our flowers from 3/4" MDF.

1/4" dowels work perfect for the stem and they are thick enough that they won't break easily.

Our grassy mound is from a left over chunk of 2x6".

Look closely and you might be able to see some bevel action going on!

                        

If you don't have a table belt sander~get one.

They work perfect for sanding things quick but also give you beveled edges very easily too!

This Ryobi model is found at Home Depot for only $100.

                                     

Each year when my tax return comes I try to buy one decent tool for either my 

wood working or for the garden.  I kick myself that I didn't get this sooner than I did.

Not sure what I want to buy this year~suggestions for your favorite tools?

Do tell!

After cutting everything out we painted the wood with cute Irish Moss green paint,

Modge Podged on some cute scrap booking papers

and of course had to add some ribbon and lady bugs.

And yes, we did add some glitter!

Welcome Spring indeed! (Yes, watching a few too many English shows, can you tell?)

Thanks for the great idea Wendy!  Can't wait to see what Krystal and Melinda do!

Craft Goodies--Let's Go Fly a Kite!

So, who else is a little bit tired of winter? I say enough already-- We want SPRING!!!

Hi, everybody, it’s Wendy from Craft Goodies here today to start off a week that I am more than ready for. Picking a theme for this month wasn’t hard, between all the cold and rain and even snow here in the PNW (and everywhere else!) I’m craving a bit more color and heat, so our theme this month is:

Welcome Spring!

For my project I took to one of mine and my kids favorite spring time activities—kite flying!

 

It’s bright and fun and just what my gloomy spirit needed! I think I can now survive until the sun arrives.

I started by drawing out my patterns and then traced and cut them from ¾ inch MDF.

I have been tinkering around with my band saw more lately and thought I’d give it a go on this project as well. The band saw makes it super easy to add a bit more dimension to your wood cutouts—and it’s really fast!

After I cut out the basic kite and bows, I went back through and cut apart all the different sections of the kite and then beveled the base of the saw and re-cut all the edges.

 {You can also do this with a power sander, it just takes longer and is a lot messier.}

 

From there I painted all the pieces, sanded the edges a bit, and then using wood glue, put it all back together. Once it was dry, I used a thick gauge wire to wrap around the base of the kite and the bows. I used a bit of the wire on the back to create a hanger and then took it outside to hang on the door…

 

It was cute, but needed a little more. I walked back into the house trying to decide what that “more” was and my eye caught a grapevine wreath form and BAM! That was it…

The wreath and a little bit of greenery and I am feeling Spring is not so far away.

{It also reminded me of how I really do fly kites…always in the trees!}

I can’t wait to see what the other WYLTC gals bring to the plate this week…it can only get happier, brighter, and warmer.  Who knows, by week’s end we may have created a heat wave!

Happy crafting and we’ll see you tomorrow-

Wendy