0 We've moved!!!!!!!!!!

Please visit out new blog, on our website! Thanks!

http://hydrangeahippo.com/blog

0 Here We Go Play Wallet

Hello I am back again with yet another project

created with the Hydrangea Hippo March kit, Pack Your Bags and Scoot!

This is play wallet that made for my son.

What do mean by play wallet?

Well, it is not really meant for serious use even

though I made it quite tough.

My son LOVES to draw and when he is finished he

is always looking for that certain special little

place to stash his latest creation.

This is it!

Here We Go Wallet

Inside I have created four pockets in which he

can use. He can even put a few dollars in there which

I know he would love as well.

I glued and then hand stiched on top of

that between the pockets to make sure they

would not come apart so quickly.

                                    Lastly I cut in a little line so that the closing tab could
                                    slip right in there to help it close.
                                    There you have it! A complete play wallet to enjoy!

                                    Thanks again for popping in and I hope to see you back
                                    real soon!

                                 

1 Embroidery Hoop Wall Art

One of my favorite color combos is orange + gold + royal blue, and though it might not be totally on trend with this year's emerald green Pantone color, I find that this rich color combo is easy to work with and always produces great results!

When I inherited my grandmother's sewing notions, I was delighted to discover a cache of wooden embroidery hoops. I don't know why she thought she needed 18 embroidery hoops, all the same size, but finding such a large number of these allowed me to fearlessly experiment with turing them into anything BUT embroidery hoops.

This project is farily simple to create in just about an hour using a doily, embroidery hoop, and assorted ephemera. Create a memory piece for a family or an inspiring reminder to yourself - mine is to just "be" happy with what is.

To create this project gather the following supplies:

Connie Crystal Product:

• Suncatcher - Topaz Flower
• Mixed Media Original Suncatcher - Gold Theme

Other Supplies:

• May Arts Silk Ribbon
• Wood Embroidery Hoop
• Intricate Doily
• Ticket
• Copper Wire, in 2 sizes
• Chipboard butterfly
• Copper hinge
• Alphabet stickers
• Hot glue
• Old crochet doily that can be cut up
• Smooch Spritz in Candle Glow, Navy Twinkle, and Gold Glow
• Basic Necessites Jumbo Spritz Bottle, filled with water
• ColorBox Fluid Chalk Cat's Eye in Chestnut Roan
• Color Catcher

Assembly:

1. Insert the intricate paper doily into the embroidery hoop as if it were fabric and tighten. Trim the edges of the doily.
2. Spray a horizontal line of gold ink across the top of the hoop. Next, spray a horizontal line of orange ink across the middle of the hoop. Finally, spray the bottom of the hoop with navy ink. Spray with water and allow the lighter colors to drip downward towards the navy part of the hoop. Dry with a heat gun.
3. Tie a piece of blue silk ribbon into a bow and hot glue to the top of the hoop.
4. Spray a chipboard butterfly with orange ink and distress the edges.
5. Wrap the center of the butterfly (body) with copper wire. Thread one bead from the Suncatchers onto the wire each time it is wrapped, for a total of 3 beads.  
6. Cut two pieces of crocheted doily and adhere to the top and bottom of the center area of thehoop. 
7. Adhere the butterfly between these two doilypieces.
8. Tear a ticket in half, ink with ColorBox Fluid Chalk ink in Chestnut Roan, and tuck under each wing of the butterfly. Hot glue into place.
9. Add the hinge and sentiment to the bottom of the hoop.
10. Twist wire around the screw end of the hoop to make a hanging loop.

I hope you enjoyed this fun little artsy project. Do you have any remnants from the past that you could upcycle into wall art?

0 Fun With Fantastic Felt

Have you seen the gorgeous new pack of felt in the Hydrangea Hippo shop? It features rich, jewel toned colors that are perfect for a multitude of projects. When I got my felt, I wanted to create bows right away. My daughter's are obsessed with cute hair accessories and I'm always willing to go out on a crafty limb to indulge them. Here's what I came up with...

I made a larger felt bow out of the purple felt. I used hot glue to assemble the bows and they went together really quickly. Cutting the felt took about 20 minutes, and gluing them only took about 10. I usually pin bows of this type in their hair with bobby pins, but all of my bobby pins have magically disappeared. I'm sure I'll find them in the baby doll bin later.

This bow is my favorite. I used a pom pom flower tutorial for ideas, but I used a longer and wider strip of felt to make a fuller flower for an older girl. I've already gotten requests for more colors from my daughters.

If you make your own bows, I'd love to see them linked in the comments!

1 Crafting with Cousin Slide Bracelets!

Come hop along with me and the Designer Crafts Connection peeps and see the cool bracelets we're creating with Slide Bracelets elements from Cousin Corporation of America.

Leather and charms are IN and these slide bracelets allow ANYONE to create a totally custom, statement jewelry piece in about 10 minutes. You don't have to know how ot make jewelry at all to create one of these and, they have to look of Brighton or Pandora brand bracelets at a fraction of the cost. Plus, there is the pride of making it yourself!

I created two bracelets, one from Cousin's Slide Bracelet Collection and one from Cousin's Trinkettes collection. These can be worn together or separately. AND, the Trinkettes bracelet can match any outfit by changing the ribbon, beads, or charms on the bracelet--they easily slide on and off.

To create the bracelets, gather the following supplies:

Cousin Corporation Supplies (available at select Joann Stores):

• Metal Hook Clasp, Silver 3470-003
• Metal Butterfly Slide Charms, Silver 34740-007
• Metal Space Slide Charms, Silver/Gold 34740-035
• Bicast Leather, Red 34740-062
• Trinkettes Orange Flowers Mix 34699-041
• Trinkettes Beach Mix 34699-014
• Trinkettes 8.75" Silver Bracelet 34699-001
• Crystazzi Bicone Beads in Jonquil 7722009

Other Supplies:

• Ribbon by May Arts
• Cocoiro Letter Pen by Kuretake Zig USA
• Duck Tape by Duck Brand
• Heart Pendant, Red Crystal Beads by Connie Crystal
• Jump Rings by Bead Factory
• Wire by Beadalon

I created a handy dandy little video showing these bracelets from start to finish! I hope you enjoy it :)

And, here is a detail shot showing how the Beach Charm is set between two jumpo rings, which hold the Heart Pendant:

Thanks for stopping by! To continue on the hop, please click the "forward" link in the DCC button:

Designer Craft Connection
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1 NEW Scrapbook Room Studio Tour!! March 2013!!!

I just want to share my latest vid of my brand new space!!!! Thanks for going on this journey with me to  

1 Operation Write Home HOP today!

I am not on the hop, but, I do want to share about it with you :)

Operation Write Home's mission is: Supporting our armed forces by sending blank handmade greeting cards to write home on.  

Start here to get in on all the action: http://operationwritehome.org/spring-training-bloghop-masculine-card-tutorials/

Every year, volunteers from across the nation create blank, handmade, masculine cards (no glitter please!) to send to military serving overseas so that they can write int he cardas and send them home to loved ones. The task is simple:

Are you game?