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DIY Painted Tray Set

1 · May 19, 2014 · 4 Comments

+ This DIY Painted Tray Set post brought to you by the lovely folks at Elmer’s +

With the spring in full swing and summer fast approaching, my creative spirit has started longing for all things beach. The nautical trend is one that I whole heartedly adopt. I love the colors, the simplicity, the way that it takes me back to slow days on the beach with my family and especially my sweetheart. Yea, I’m loving it!

Last month I had the chance to meet a couple of the lovely ladies that work at Elmer’s while I was attending SNAP. Now, I’ve worked with Elmer’s products for years and I’m on the Elmer’s Craft It Crew this year and while hanging out in their booth at SNAP, I started to realize the potential of a product that has kind of hung out in the background of the Elmer’s family of products… Their line of Painters Markers!

Painters Markers are acrylic paint markers that come in fine, medium or chisel tips. They are easy to use and virtually mess-free. The are permanent on most surfaces and can be used on pretty much any type of surface. Wood, glass, ceramic, tera cotta, plastic, metal, foam board & even fabric. They are streak-free, non-toxic & acid-free. Yea, they ROCK!!

Recently, I found a fun wood and metal serving tray at Target and thought it would look great with the addition of some coral to give it a bit of a nautical theme. I decided to take these Elmer’s Painters Markers for a spin to see how well they worked!

First, I found a coral image that I like and cut the image out on Stencil Vinyl from Silhouette on my CAMEO.

Then I colored in the image with the Elmer’s Painters Marker in Sea Mist Brume.

Tip… I did learn that you need to shake it up really well and draw on another piece a paper for a little bit in order to get the color to regulate.

Once I was finished coloring it in, I removed the stencil and then outlined it with the with Gold Ore Painter’s Marker which is a FABULOUS metallic marker. I LOVE IT!!

The acrylic paint from the markers dries so fast and the ease of being able to “paint” with acrylic paint in marker form just makes my day. No more brushes, and all the mess that comes along with painting. I decided my tray needed some matching glasses to complete the look so I took some jar glasses that I also found at Target, and using the same stencil process, stenciled a gold anchor onto the glass.

The gold paint goes onto the glass so smooth and looks fabulous.

Tip… I did learn that you need to remove the stencil while the paint is still wet, or you may pull some of the dried paint off when removing the stencil.

I even painted the silver metal lids that I have for my jar glasses gold with the Painter’s Markers. It was super slick!!

Now, I have a stylish nautical display piece for my house or I can make a few more glasses and I have a fun serving set for a party! I LOVE it!!

The cool thing is that it really only took a few minutes to make all of these creations, less than an hour for sure and the paint was dry within minutes.

As for the anchor glasses… I’m not sure how this paint will react to a trip though the dishwasher and I do think that it could scratch off easily so I would hand wash for sure. I plan on using them mostly for display and not really for everyday use. If you would like to use them everyday I would try to find some type of sealant to make the gold image a little more permanent.

Now, that I’ve hopefully inspired you… What would you like to paint with Elmer’s Painters Markers?

Disclaimer // I am a member of the 2014 Elmer’s Craft It Crew and was compensation for my time while preparing this post. However, all thoughts, idea and opinions are my very own!

Striped Straw Jar with DecoArt Glass Paint Markers and Diet Coke

0 · Aug 14, 2013 · 5 Comments

This post brought to you by DecoArt Glass Paint // For the 2nd time in 10 months we are MOVING!! Needless to say, I am excited to finally be in a home that fits our family better, but the idea of packing up and moving again is not very appealing AT ALL! We knew this move was going to happen soon, so we didn't unpack a ton, so this move should be easier than last time.

One thing I did learn last time, is that you need to create a system that really works for you. A system that is productive, smart and provides yourself and your helpers with LOTS of rewards. For me, one of my favorite treats is a Diet Coke. I just LOVE the stuff! I would drink it like water if I could get away with it. I love the flavor, I love the bubbles and quite frankly there are times when there is nothing better on this planet than a good, cold Diet Coke. Because of that, it is a great motivating treat for me. More than almost any little treat. If I know that a Diet Coke is at the end of the chore, my git-up, gets a going.

That's why for this move I created a Diet Coke Station with a few fun little items to dress-up the station to motivate myself and all of my helpers during the drudgery of packing…

I used my handy chalkboard clipboard and then dressed-up a Ball jar with some red stripes for my straw jar with DecoArt Glass Paint Markers and then set-out to move mountains. The striped jar was super simple to make, here is what you will need to do…

Supplies for the Striped Straw Jar

Ball wide mouths 1 1/2 pt. jar
DecoArt Glass Paint Markers – Americana Glass Paints are available at Michaels, JoAnn Fabric and Craft Stores, Pat Catan's Craft Centers, A.C. Moore, Beverly's, and other fine craft retailers. Click HERE for more information on Americana Glass Paints.
Tape – I used a thin washi tape but any type of washi or painters tape will do.

Instructions for Striped Straw Jar

Before you begin, you need to prepare your glass jar by cleaning it with alcohol and let dry. Then apply the tape to the jar to create your desired stripe look…

I wanted nice thick stripes but you may like a different style, so don't tie yourself down to my look. Next, the super easy part… Color on your paint using the DecoArt Glass Paint Markers. No mess, no fuss, they are perfect for this kind of project!!

Carefully remove the tape once you are finished and let dry for a few hours. Add your stylish straws to the jar (I found mine though Pick Your Plum) and voilá… Grabbing a Diet Coke has just been kicked up a few notches!

Looking for a great deal on Glass Paint? DecoArt has a rebate just for you guys!!

// Click on image to find full rebate offer //

Looking for some more inspiration? We have a whole slew of talented bloggers who have also come up with some fun DecoArt Glass Paint projects. Click through to find all kinds of Glass Paint love…

Disclaimer // I am part of the DecoArt Core Bloggers and have received payment for this post along with free product. I am also a Brand Ambassador for Diet Coke and have received free product. However, all thoughts, ideas and opinions are my very own!

Team Spirit Writers by DecoArt

16 · Jun 11, 2013 · 5 Comments

This post brought to you by DecoArt // Yesterday, I sent Haley and Hannah off to Girls Camp for the week! Girls Camp is a fabulous event that our 12-18 year old girls from church participate in every year. This is Hannah's first year and she is super excited. Haley is a veteran and couldn't wait to get together with all her friends and introduce Hannah to the elusive creature the Snipe (wink, wink!) Back in Vegas we had a fun tradition of using Team Spirit Writers to send the girls off in style to camp in style…

I don't know when the tradition started, but for the last several years the girls would always get a hold of these window paint pens and decorate all the cars for the trip up to camp. It was always fun to see what they came up with. Now that we live in a new state with a whole new set of traditions, we thought we would bring one of our old traditions with us.

It was perfect!! The girls felt right at home and everyone at camp drop-off thought it was the coolest thing ever. The Spirit Writers come in several colors and with their easy to use applicators they are super fun to add a little spunk for your next event!!

They are also super easy to clean off with a little window cleaner. You can find the Team Spirit Writers and Jo-Anns.

Disclaimer // I am a part of the DecoArt Core Blogger group and did receive product and payment for this post, however, all thoughts, ideas and opinions are my own.

Color Block // Bicycle Wheel Sneak Peek

5 · May 16, 2013 · 8 Comments

Color Block Bicycle Wheel // I have always loved finding quirky little treasures to add some character to my home. I seem to always have my eyes peeled looking for fun goodies to get my hands on. A few years ago I was junking at a fabulous junk shop called Patina close to my Mom's house in Denver and found a wonderful old bicycle wheel. It made it's WhipperBerry debut in this post and was an instant hit! For the last little while I thought it could work as a fabulous photo display, but it needed something a little extra to dress it up a bit. So, I decided to give it a little color block treatment and I LOVE how it turned out!!

I have been obsessed with color blocking along with gold accents. You may have noticed… I've created several posts lately with all kinds of gold goodies. I have Dressed-up Dinnerware, Gold Accented Picture Frame & a Bowl Refashion to name a few. I've been going to town with Krylon's Metallic spray Paint and it's been getting a lot of use around my home as of late.

For this project, I used Krylon's Premium Metallic Gold Paint and their Indoor/Outdoor paint in Catalina Mist. The only other thing I used was some painters tape to create a clean line. I took the wheel which was already painted off white and distressed and hung it up in my back yard to paint.

Then I added one strip of painters tape at two different spots on the wheel. For some reason I didn't get any photos of this, but you get the idea. No need to tape like crazy. As long as you spray carefully you won't really have any issues with it. The tape is really just to create a guide for where you want to spray. I sprayed two-thirds of the wheel with the Catalina Mist and then the bottom third, gold.

Now, this is just a sneak peek, you'll have to wait until next week to see the finished project and how I use it to display my Instagram photos from Origrami. I can't wait to show it off… It's going to look sooooo cool!!

Have you found some cool and unusual ways to display photos? Leave a comment and share your fun ideas!

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Supplies for the Striped Straw Jar

​Instructions for Striped Straw Jar

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Instructions for Striped Straw Jar