Michaels Maker

DIY Farmhouse Felt Christmas Ornaments

56 · Nov 14, 2018 · Leave a Comment

I am going to label this season at WhipperBerry the felt season. I LOVE all things felt and I love being able to cut and customize my felt designs using my Cricut Maker & my cute little Cricut EasyPress 2. I have been wanting to create a farmhouse style tree that is all black & white so I thought some simple and elegant felt ornaments are a perfect addition to the tree. Farmhouse felt Christmas ornaments are sure to be a classic staple for years to come as you decorate for the holidays, plus they are super easy to store and won’t break! I love it!! Here’s how you can make a set of your own.

+ This post is sponsored by my favorite folks at Cricut +

What I love about these ornaments is that you can tell your Christmas story right on your tree with these simple word ornaments. If you love Santa and would like to have a tree dedicated to words that evoke fond memories of all things Santa, you can create that!

If you would like to tell the story about the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ you can do that as well. I know that each family is different but that’s what’s beautiful about these simple ornaments. You create your own story.

Not to mention the fact that YOU can select the colors. If you are like me and would like to stick with black & white, great. If you want to have a rainbow tree, awesome! It’s all up to you and I LOVE that. Here, let me show you what you need and how to make these simple but elegant ornaments for your tree.

Farmhouse Felt Christmas Ornaments Supplies

Instructions

First, what you’ll need to do is to click on this LINK to my project in Cricut Design Space. My design will let you add your own words and customize it how you would like OR, open Design Space and create some ornament designs of your own.

Now, if you are using my design, everything is sized and ready to go for you. If you are creating some ornaments of your own design, double check the sizes and make sure everything is prepped and ready to cut. If you don’t know how to do that you can visit this post that has a full video tutorial on how to prep your design for cutting in design space.

Once you are ready to cut, all you need to do is load your felt onto your Fabric cutting mat and follow the directions on the Design Space screen.

Now for cutting the felt, I have been more successful using the rotary blade than the deep cut blade so, you’ll have to manually change that when you’re ready to cut.

Here are a couple of VERY IMPORTANT RULES…

When cutting felt on the Fabric Cutting Mat, DON’T worry about the fuzz that is left behind. I have been cutting all kinds of felt on just one cutting mat with fuzz and all and it’s not a problem. The more you play around with the cutting mat and try to scrape or wash that felt fuzz off, the more you are damaging your mat. Just keep going and ignore the fuzz. Of course, test to make sure that your felt is secure on the mat. It will after quite a few cuts become difficult to use and at that point, it’s a better idea to dispose of that mat and start using another one.
DON’T FORGET TO MIRROR YOUR IMAGES! I’ve done it more than I would like to admit which drives me CRAZY! When you are cutting your designs when using the iron-on vinyl, make sure to mirror your images. Remember, the design is cut on the back side of the Everyday Iron-On. You will flip it over and iron on your design onto the surface of your project.

It looks like a crazy bunch of backward letters but, flip it over and cut out your words and it looks just fine.

Now that your words are all cut along with your felt ornaments now, it’s time to press the EveryDay Iron-on onto the felt.

HANDS-DOWN the best tool to press any type of iron-on material is any of the Cricut EasyPress tools. I love these gems and don’t know what I would do without them in my crafting arsenal. The EasyPress and the EasyPress 2 machines are far superior to a regular iron. If you love to create anything with an iron-on element you need to invest in one or more of these great machines. The heat plate holds a consistent temperature all throughout the plate. With irons, you will have hot and cool spots. Also, the EasyPress 2 heats up super quick! I LOVE all three of the EasyPress 2 sizes. For this project, I’m using the small 6×7 size. CUTEST LITTLE EASYPRESS EVER!!

Now, all you need to do is to lay your felt down on your EasyPress Mat, place your words on the felt in the proper place, cover your ornament with the Cricut Protective Mat or a cotton tea towel and press with the small Easypress 2 set to 35o˚ for 60 seconds.

I use the remover tool to save my heat sensitive fingers from the Easy Press Mat and let it cool for about 1 minute.

Then I carefully pull the protective sheet from the top of the Everyday Iron-on material. Always start slow and pull carefully. If you see any lifting, stop and give it another run under the EasyPress 2.

Now, all you need to do is add some ribbon bows if you’d like and some ribbon for the ornament to hang from.

And, that’s it! You have some great non-breakable ornaments for your tree or to use as gift tags or even for a simple gift for neighbors!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.

Michaels Dream Tree Challenge 2018

23 · Nov 1, 2018 · 2 Comments

+ This post brought to you by the amazing folks at Michaels +

I am beyond honored to be able to participate in the Michaels Dream Tree Challenge again this year. I LOVE getting to put together my perfect tree and share what I’ve created with you guys. This year’s tree is standing majestically in our entryway and it looks beautiful!! I love how Michaels makes it so easy to create a cohesive holiday look. Michaels holiday décor collections make it easy to find your holiday style and bring your vision to life! From the perfect tree and trimmings to creative gifts and DIY supplies, Michaels has all the ingredients to create wonder-filled memories for family and friends.

I had so much fun working on this tree! Several of the decorations on the tree were made with inexpensive items that you will find at Michaels that have been crafted into something simple and timeless for the tree. For example, we’ll start at the base of the tree and work our way up. I purchased this bucket at Michaels a little while ago and spray painted it a bronze-like gold and that is what I am using for my tree stand. I removed the official tree stand from the tree and fill the bucket with styrofoam cake rounds from Michaels to secure the tree in place. Then I filled the bucket the rest of the way up with matte white Christmas balls.

I wanted the tree to look nice and full regardless of the fact that it is a pencil tree so I filled in the tree with batting to make it look like it has been out in a glorious winter snowfall.

It’s crazy how the batting can add so much to the look of the tree. I wanted this tree to have a farmhouse style and what’s more farmhouse than some greenery? I wanted to think a little outside of the box and add greenery that isn’t the typical evergreen that you find during the holidays. I opted for different types of eucalyptus and some other basic greenery that you can find in the Michaels floral isles. I also tucked some wood snowflakes in as a base element for the tree.

Now for the extra fun part! This year I made my own clay ornaments out of oven-baked clay that you can find at Michaels.

I rolled out the clay and cut out stars and circles with cookie cutters that I found at Michaels. Then, I used a leather alphabet stamp set to imprint words into the clay. I will have a full tutorial on how to make these fun ornaments in the next few days. Stay tuned!

One of my favorite parts of the tree are the ball ornament clusters.

Instead of just hanging the balls on the tree, I hot glue them together in clusters and then wire them to the tree with floral wire.

This little trick can take your Christmas tree to a whole other level. It makes it look like a professional decorated your tree for you. Also, making ribbon picks by folding a 6-inch piece of ribbon in half and then wiring the ends together also make your tree look professionally decorated.

Then there is the star! I made mine using 1 inch unfinished wood balls that I found at Michaels. I did have to drill holes in them myself but, that was totally fine. I wanted a nice large wood ball for this star tree topper. I will have a post shortly as well for how to make this classic Christmas star.

And, finally… The fabulous Christmas Farmhouse decor that I just HAD to add to my Christmas scene. You guys REALLY need to check this stuff out. They have come up with some fabulous collections for this season! This is the Fireside collection that I used for my tree inspiration.

photo credit | Michaels Instagram

I LOVE the Advent House that is huge and will be a Christmas treasure from now on in our house. the reindeer, the wood presents and the pillows! Michaels has fabulous holiday pillows right now. AND then… there are the signs! You guys, enamel signs!! Metal signs!! So many incredible signs!!

All you need is to stock up on some Command Strips and you can add all kinds of great holiday signs all over the house! Are you excited to start your holiday decorating?! I know that I’m loving my entryway tree corner and can’t wait to put up my main Christmas tree in a few weeks! I can’t wait to see what you guys create this year!

Scandinavian Style Blanket Storage Box

5 · Oct 16, 2018 · Leave a Comment

The weather is getting chilly and we are all working on bringing out our warm and cozy home decor items as we dress our homes for the season. Our family loves to have cozy blankets close at hand when we are hanging out watching TV or playing games. The problem is that they end up making the room look like trash as they are left strewn about the room. I thought it would be fun to create a blanket & throw pillow storage box that could add a little design to the room as well. I’ve always loved Norwegian & Scandinavian design especially when it comes to winter designs and that was my inspiration for my new Scandinavian Style Blanket Storage Box created using Americana Decor Texture & the Americana Decor Stencils from DecoArt.

+ This post is brought to you by the lovely folks at DecoArt +

Have you guys heard of this Americana Decor Texture? This stuff is really cool. It’s basically thick paint that you apply like you are frosting a cookie. Fun! Right? What’s really cool is that is works really well with stencils and creates a fun raised effect on your surface.

Isn’t that fun? I would have to say, I really love the way it looks. You can take something simple like a box crate and turn it into some extra special. Let me show you how to make one of your own.

Scandinavian Style Blanket Storage Box Supply List

wood crate
America Decor Matte Metallics – Ivory Pearl
paint brush
Americana Decor Stencils – Patchwork & Quilt Star
Americana Decor Texture – Cream & Deep Plum
paint knife or offset spatula
painters tape

Instructions

First, I painted my wood crate with the Matte Metallic paint. I loved the little extra something that this color gives to the box. The wood grain still peaks through a bit but it has this nice soft metallic sheen to it. It’s really quite nice.

When I paint stuff like this, I use some canning jar lids to raise my piece off of my table.

You’d be amazed how handy this come in sometimes and not just for canning!

I painted on two coats and then let it dry for about an hour.

Then I tackled the fun part of the project, adding fun textured designs to the box. However, before we get started, here are a few things NOT to do. We learn from DOING and what I learned is really important when working with a high-viscosity, heavy-bodied type of paint.

Do NOT try and apply the texture paint vertically.

You want to have the area that you are working on a flat surface facing up at you.

DO NOT press down hard when applying the Americana Decor Texture using a stencil.

Just like with any stencil and paint project, a slower, lighter hand makes for a much better stencil experience. You don’t want your project to end up looking like my first attempt in the photo above. Also, when working with Texture, you want to work in light short strokes like you are frosting a cookie, not like the longer strokes that you use when frosting a cake.

DO NOT let the Americana Decor Texture sit and dry before removing your stencil.

Yep, learned that the hard way. I have been stenciling for years and sometimes, depending on the type of paint, it’s better to let the paint dry a bit before you remove the stencil. So… I tested that technique out and it did not work at all. With this type of paint, you need to gently and carefully lift up your stencil as soon as you are finished applying the paint making sure not to let it slide around at all.

Now that we have those items of what “not to do” out of the way, let’s get busy with what to do!

It’s a really good idea to tape down your stencil and to press down each section as you are applying the Texture paint as you go. This will help avoid the paint going underneath the stencil and creating issues. Again, use light shorter strokes like you are frosting a cookie. You can make it as thick or as thin as you would like. You can also play around with the texture, keep it smooth, add peaks, run a comb through it to create stripes or make swirls with your spatula. This stuff is super fun to play with.

Speaking of that, I would play around with it a bit before you start a project on a surface that you really care about. Test out your design and style. That way you get your method down before the real deal project.

Once you have applied the Americana Texture paint and have pulled the stencil, move onto the next section. You may find that you will need to cut your stencil so that you can continue to work and that’s totally fine. Just make sure to press down the stencil as you apply the Texture paint. Typically the weight of the paint will hold down the stencil as you apply it and because it’s so heavy bodied, unless you are pressing down and overworking, you shouldn’t have issues with the paint seeping under the stencil.

Now that you’ve finished applying the Texture paint and you’ve removed the stencil, it’s time to let it dry completely.

I set-up a fan to help speed up the process but, you really should let it sit overnight and let it dry completely.

Now you can use your new Scandinavian style blanket box to corral all of the cozy blankets when you are finished with them AND add a little style to your room!

Macrame Autumn Door Hanging

7 · Sep 17, 2018 · Leave a Comment

We’ve kind of fallen in love with the macrame trend at our house lately. We made a HUGE macrame celebration arch for my daughter Haley’s wedding a few weeks ago and I then felt inspired to make a macrame Autumn door hanging for my front entry for the impending season change. Oh, Autumn… You truly are my favorite!!

• This post is brought to you by Michaels Craft Stores •

I’m going to date myself here, I’m not old enough to remember the first macrame trend in the 1970’s. However, I do remember the aftermath of that trend. Garage sales full of macrame goods looking desperately for a new home. Needless to say, when the Boho trend started a new a few years ago, I kind of chuckled a bit when macrame returned in fashion. Then my little side chuckles disappeared and I kind of fell in love with the look. Like fell hard… I want to macrame all the things now. My Macrame pinboard has gone nuts with all of the fun macrame projects I would like to tackle.

Macrame Autumn Door Hanging Supplies

Of course, when it came time to stock up on supplies I ran to Michaels my go-to supply store. They have everything you need to make all things macrame, fall decor & blank surfaces for signs. I especially love that you can order online and pick-up easily at the store. I save so much time just placing my order online and then my husband or daughter can run over and grab my supplies when they are out and about. We no longer have frustrating phone calls with my husband trying to find something at Michaels only to have him come home with the wrong item or not enough for what I need. I have the isles memorized but he sure doesn’t! It’s also nice to tack a pick-up to another errand without having to spend too much time walking through the store. Yep, I’m a big fan!

Instructions

For this project, I’m not going to share a tutorial for the macrame. Now don’t worry, I have you covered. I’m going to send you over to A Beautiful Mess to share the tutorial that I used to learn how to macrame. Seems only fair, right?

My neighbors were trimming their trees and I found a fun branch that would be perfect for a macrame door hanging and asked if I could snag it. I scaled down the macrame project from the curtain with 15 sections to 5 sections and set to work.

Next, I cut the vinyl for the sign part of the door hanging with my Cricut Maker. You can even use my design if you’d like in Cricut Design Space. I then affixed the vinyl to the galvanized metal sign base.

I originally started with white vinyl and it didn’t stand out as I had hoped on the galvanized metal. So, I switched to some black vinyl to go with my door. You may want to try a different color that fits the color of your entryway.

Then I used my wire cutters and cut sections of the Fall floral picks of the pick and hot glued them onto the galvanized metal. Then I hot glued the metal sign onto the macrame and that was it. I had a perfect door hanger to use in Autumn.

For more Fall inspiration, visit Michaels. They have all kinds of fabulous Fall finds!

Michaels Maker

Farmhouse Felt Christmas Ornaments Supplies

Instructions

Here are a couple of VERY IMPORTANT RULES…

Scandinavian Style Blanket Storage Box Supply List

Instructions

Macrame Autumn Door Hanging Supplies

Instructions

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