Photos of our Wedding Crafts

I have mentioned my wedding a few times and talked about some of the things we did for it.  Sadly, we never took a picture of the centerpieces or the amazing wall of stars--okay so it was actually a giant black curtain that the vendor had to rent last minute because someone had ordered demolition to be started the Wednesday before the big day and there was a giant hole in the wall!

Our centerpieces were simple hurricane globes with a red candle in the center.  Instead of using a wreath around the base of the globe, my mom actually sewed little fabric peppermint shaped wreaths.  I will have to dig one out of my closet and add a picture here later so everyone can see!  They were really cute and added a lot of color to the tables!

I do have pictures of some of the other things that we worked on.  All credit for the handmade items goes to my Momma and Aunt Kathy!

Silver Balls That Were Hung From The Wall of Stars

our flower girl and ring bearer were both under a year so they got cute decorated strollers to come down the aisle in

Its a pretty distant picture but the swag on top of the arch and the chandelier of crystal branches were all made by hand

I didn't mention them in the other post about where I got so crafty by my sister and brothers are VERY crafty too!

Reponding to Your Questions About the Coasters

I have gotten several emails asking about making the coasters so I wanted to put up a quick post addressing the common questions.

Q:  What size did you cut your paper?
A:  I was using a 4 x 4 coaster so I cut my paper to be 3.8 x 3.8.  This prevented having paper that was hanging over the edges and made it much easier to get a good bond with the coaster.

Q:  How did you get all of the air bubbles out?
A:  Well...as you can see in the picture of the finished kitchen tray I didn't right away.  However, I have found that it is easy to get air bubbles out when you use a light coating of mod podge on both the coaster and paper, work at smoothing the paper down for about a minute, and allow adequate dry time before sealing with a top coat.

Q:  How do they hold up?
A:  Its still too early to tell, but so far so good.  I put four thing coats of mod podge on top to seal them and so far condensation hasn't hurt them.  I will be sure to keep checking on them and let everyone know how they hold up or fall apart over time!

Q:  What else could I use to make coaster?
A:  There is no end to what you could do.  You could decoupage fabric, doilies, lace, ribbon, print outs of lyrics, photos...the list goes on!  Or you could paint them, stencil on them, cover them in glitter, bedazzle them...again the list goes on and on!


And even though it has NOTHING to do with the coaster, I couldn't help but share this one that I have gotten several times.

Q:  How did you get so crafty?
A:  Well you see, when a woodwork madman and a quilting genius fall really love each other...okay not really!  But I did grow up around some pretty crafty people.  My PaPa (paternal grandfather) and Daddy are both great with woodwork and building things.  My Jammie (paternal grandmother) can carve, paint, and quilt incredible pieces.  My Momma is the most amazing quilter I have ever known...everyone gets married just so they can get one of her wedding quilts!  My Aunt Kathy (Daddy's sister) is probably the most versatile crafter in the family.  She can do it all!  She made amazing decorations for the wedding--I need to do a post for them--and then turned a bride's worst nightmare into a stunning addition to the reception hall that looked like we had spent time and energy planning it on purpose!  Tammi--there is no classification under which she can be placed...she is like a mom, aunt, sister, bestie, all in one--is an epic photographer!  She did all of our wedding photos!  Matt--son of Tammi and pretty much my little brother--is an incredible artist.  I want him to do a guest feature on here one day!  So yeah, I grew up going to craft shows, quilt shows, carving festivals, you name it!  I have always dabbled in a little bit of all of their hobbies and skills--some of which I was much better at than others--and now I'm claiming my own little corner in our family's museum of crafts and arts.

Decoupage Trays and Coasters

There are two things I have been wanting for a while:  to try decoupaging and a tray for my makeup and brushes in the bathroom.  Tonight I decided to decoupage a tray for the bathroom and knock out two birds with one stone.  I spent about 30 minutes in Michaels after work trying to pick what paper I wanted to use and I fell in love with this kitchen appliance paper so I decided to make a little serving tray too!  As you will see in the pictures, my first attempt at decoupaging was far from perfect but I had fun and over time I am sure I will be able to refine my skill!  Enjoy!

Supplies
-Two unfinished wooden trays
-Two sheets of each print of scrapbook paper
-Mod Podge (my new favorite thing!)
-Ribbon
-Acrylic Paint
-Patience and Good Music

I found unfinished wooden trays at Michaels that were on sale for $3.99 each.  I had to sand down some of the edges and the handles to make them smooth for painting but the price was good so a little extra work is no big deal!  Once I had picked out my papers, I selected coordinating acrylic paints.  My last stop in the store was the ribbon isle to get some extra decoration.  Then I hurried home to paint and decoupage my trays!

Three coats of paint and the trays were ready to go

The bathroom tray!

The kitchen tray...I had a lot of bumps in this one but its a learning process

 

I redid some holiday coasters I never cared for to make matching ones for the kitchen

Quick Cobbler

My mother-in-law saw a post for an easy mock cobbler on Pinterest a while back and has been raving about it since she tried it.  I have never attempted to make any kind of cobbler before and to be quite honest, I didn't even know that it was different from a crisp!  Last night I made a hodge podge of finger food for dinner and decided it might be nice to treat the hubby to a dessert too.  So I grabbed the ingredients, all of which I already had on hand, and threw this super easy concoction together.  The original source for the recipe pin can be found at the bottom of this post!


Recipe:

-2 cans of ready to use pie filling
-1 cup of margarine melted
-1 18.25 oz package of cake mix

Spread pie filling evenly across the bottom of an 8 x 11 pan.  Top with dry cake mix and then pour the melted butter on top.  Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until golden brown.

I tried the recipe with apple filling and golden butter cake mix.  Before I put on the cake mix, I sprinkled a little brown sugar and drizzled some caramel sauce over the apples to give it more flavor.  This recipe definitely passed the test.  My husband, who is not a big desert eater, loved it!  I strongly suggest topping yours with a scoop of ice cream.  I can't wait to try this again with peach filling for the summer!

Homemade Mock-Cobbler

Original Posting

What is the Button Biter?

I have been asked this question a lot since I started this whole endeavor a few months ago.  The Button Biter is not a what...its a who.  And that answer is me.  I am The Button Biter and I have been since I was a wee little baby.  My grandfather, and might I say one of my biggest fans and supporters of every crazy thing I jump into, nicknamed me his little button biter when I was a baby because I used to chew on the buttons of his shirts.  When I was trying to come up with a name for my blog and Etsy shop, I couldn't come up with anything remotely crafty and creative that wasn't already used by someone else.  After thinking on it for a good while I thought of The Button Biter because, let's face it, who else would think of that?

Word Clouds

Word Clouds have been popping up every where lately.  I have seen them on Pinterest and Facebook, on advertisments, T-Shirts, even my electric bill last month...who doesn't love a word cloud telling them all the reasons why the increase in price was worth it!  Long story made short, these little projects have been on my to-do list for a long time and once I got around to it, I went word cloud crazy.  I started out with a website called Tagxedo to make my first few word clouds:

Lyrics to the hymn from my college in the shape of our mascot

Then I decided to try doing them free handed which I found to be more work but way more fun!

Portal 2 Lemon Quote--my hubby loved this one

Melted Crayon Art

I was browsing Pinterest a few weeks ago and I saw a post about melted crayon art!  I loved how the colors bleed down the canvas and together so I decided to give it ago.  This was my first attempt and it took me a while to figure out splatter control!  My darker colors got all over my lighter ones so I decided to melt them in all different directions and let it be a little more abstract (at least I'd like to think that's what it is!). 

Doing this was quite simple!   All you have to do is take a canvas (you pick what size) and hot glue crayons to the side you want to call the top like so:

Next, you will want to fully cover your work space with newspaper or a drop cloth of some kind, the wax will occassionalyl splatter and it is a pain to get off of tile and walls...just ask my husband! 
Prop your canvas up against the covered wall so that the crayons are up top.  Using a blow dryer, blow hot air onto the crayons at the low power setting.  It is a time consuming project but it's fun.  It took me about 10 minutes per section and I considered this to canvas to have three sections.  After that I spent about an additional 15-20 minutes playing with the wax drips until I was satisfied.  My end product was:

Laundry Detergent

Laundry detergent is expensive these days and going more eco-friendly typically brings an even higher cost!  A few months ago I realized that the bargain brand was irritating my skin and we just couldn't afford the good stuff at the time.  So my solution was to try my hand at making my own.  Not only does it not bother my skin, but the cost is simply fantastic!  Here's the recipe!


Ingredients:
-Clean five gallon bucket with lid
-Vegetable peeler or cheese grater
-4 cups of hot water--i just use tap water

-1 bar of soap--most recipes call for Fels-Naptha but I prefer to use Ivory Snow
-1 cup of Washing Soda--I use Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
-1/2 cup powder borax
-Essential Oils to add a scent--I like to use clean linen or lavender

*Note--Baking soda does not work for laundry detergent.  It can be any brand of washing soda but it must be sodium carbonate! 

Ivory snow can be found in most stores in the body soap aisle.  Borax, Fels-Naptha, and Washing Soda are typically found in the laundry detergent aisle near the powders.  I have always been able to find everything I needed for this recipe at Wal-Mart.

Instructions:
1.  Shave or grate your bar of soap into a saucepan containing the 4 cups of hot water.
2.  On low heat (sometimes you will need to go up to medium depending on your stove) melt the soap into the water while stirring constantly.
3.  While the soap is melting, measure out and combine your washing soda and borax.
4.  Fill you bucket half full with more hot water.
5.  Once the soap is completely melted, pour the soapy water into your bucket.
6.  Add the borax and washing soda mixture to the bucket and stir until it is completely dissolved.
7.  Cover the bucket with the lid and let cool overnight.
8.  Give the detergent a good stir to mix it all up.
9.  Optional--add about 15-20 drops of essential oil per 2.5 gallons of detergent, so 30-40 for a full five gallon bucket.
10.  Take an empty detergent bottle (yay for re-using!) that has been thouroughly cleaned out and fill it half full with detergent then fill the rest of the way with water. 

Always stir the detergent in the bucket before refilling your container and shake your container before using the detergent in the wash.  The mixture will gel so you need to be sure to mix it up well. 

Also, designate a sauce pan, spoon, grater/peeler, etc. for making detergent.  You don't want to risk soap residue getting into your food later on!

Laundry Softening Crystals

On a trip to NY last summer, my sister turned my on to Purex Fabric Softening Crystals.  The only thing I didn't like about them was that the high cost.  For a few months I bought them anyway because I liked that the crystals didn't leave a waxy residue on my jeans like liquid softener and dryer sheets do. 

While munching on some captain crunch one morning the ingredients list on the the bottle caught my eye.  The main ingredients were sugar, clay, and coloring.  I did some research and found out that coarse sea salt has the same softening abilities as sucrose (aka table sugar).  So I made my own little recipe...I thought I was original until I saw a post for it on Pinterest a few days later. 


All I used was Coarse Sea Salt and Essential Oils (from the soap making section in Michaels)



I used one 17.6 ounce canister of coarse sea salt and roughly 1 tsp. of either clean linen or lavender essential oils. 

I blended the salt and oil in my Ninja to get it all well mixed and to grind the salt down a little more to make it easier to dissolve. 
Once it was well blended, I stored it in an air tight container so that the oils would not evaporate.

I add one table spoon of this to my laundry and love the results!

"Ghetto Febreze"

I love Febreze!  But I think it is a major rip off when it comes to the price.  I saw a post on Pinterest for "Ghetto Febreze" and there was no way I could resist making it!  I already had the three ingredients so I went for it that night after work.  I was surprised at how much I liked my Ghetto Febreze! 

-In a clean spray bottle mix:
     -1 cup of water
     -1/2 cup of rubbing alcohol or vodka
     -30 drops of essential oil*

I did not have any rubbing alcohol in the house but I did have Vodka so that's what I used.  There was a bit of an odor from this for a few seconds but it quickly disappeared and left me smelling only the clean linen essential oil that I had used.  I spot tested on the back of my suede couch and it didn't leave any kind of stain.

*Use more or less to suit your preference for strength.  For some fragrances you will need to adjust your normal amount.  I use more for clean linen scents than I do for apple and lavender.  

Pinterest Post Source

Family Tree Wall Collage

Anyone that knows me knows that my family is absolutely my life...especially my nephew!  A few weeks ago I was heading up to MD to say goodbye to my sister and nephew before they ran off to Hawaii for three years and I had an idea for a project that would continue to grow over time and would allow me to represent both sides of my family in my home...let's face it, the hubby gets a score of zero for decorating with family photos and memorabilia and I have created an all over shrine to our nephew!  I have a long, white, and blank living room wall that needs a statement piece.  So I thought of doing a collage of hand prints that would just keep growing as we added more babies and spouses to the family!  This was the original concept:

However, my sister and I talked about it some and she threw in her two cents and I decided to go for more of family tree appeal.  This way there will be my family tree starting with my parents and his family tree starting with his.  Our branches will connect to one another and start our own little tree!  I loved the idea of using bright colored hand prints because even if my tastes change over time it would still be a cute decoration in a play room or craft room! 

Positive/Negative Chandalier Canvases

The first project I took on was adding some quick, inexpensive, and easy wall-art to my bedroom walls to bring a little color to the room.  These canvases were easy to make and were well within my budget.  As you can tell from the pictures, I am still a novice with stencil painting but through trial and error, I am beginning to learn what techniques work best.  Here is what I did:
Materials:
-4 white canvases--chose your size based on either the desired finished size or the size of your stencil, for this project, I used 12 x 12" canvases
-Two colors of acrylic paint that compliment one another
-White acrylic paint
-Craft sized paint roller--usually found in the stencil aisle at store like Michael's
-Variety of paint brushes in different sizes for doing the stencil
-Stencil of your choice
-Painter's tape--this is optional but I find that it helps hold the stencil in place without damaging the canvas or leaving any residue
Instructions:
1.  Gather all of your supplies and lay down a protective barrier on your workspace.  I use cheap sheets that I find at thrift stores to protect my floors and tables when I am working.
2.  Using the roller, paint one canvas in your first color.  Be sure to carefully get each side of the canvas so that it is colored entirely anywhere you will be able to see when it is hanging.  Set that canvas aside to dry for roughly 15-20 minutes or until fully dried.  Note, you do not want to put a stencil down on a canvas that is still damp.
3.  Place the stencil where you want the design to be on one of the remaining white canvases.  You can use painter's tape to help secure it so that it will not move during painting.
4.  Taking the color that you just painted the first canvas in, use your various sized brushes to fill in the stencil.  Take care to go slowly and use precise movements to prevent smudging.  Set aside to dry.
5.  Repeat step 2-4 with your other color.  
6.  Once your two solid canvases have dried, place the stencil on top of the first and fill it in using the white acrylic paint.  As you can see in the picture, one coat is not enough to go through the bold colors I chose.  Before removing the stencil, allow the paint to dry and do another coat or two until you are satisfied with the outcome.
7.  Repeat step 6 for the other solid and voila!  You have four positive negative canvases!

Notes:
Be sure to fully rinse the roller, brushes, and stencils in between uses.  This will prevent color transfer from one canvas to the next!