The Art of the Ugly Christmas Sweater

As promised here is a quick tutorial on how to make the prettiest ugly Christmas sweater you ever saw and be the talk of the town to boot! 

What you'll need:

• old/second hand sweater (preferrably red or green)
• glue gun (by now I feel like this should be a given)
• mini pom poms
• mini garland
• mini Christmas tree decorations
• mini jingle bells
• 1 candy cane pipe cleaner
• battery operated string of lights (very important)
• Christmas music/hot chocolate/a dusting of snow on the ground

To begin:

Buy a sweater from a second-hand store, we got our's at Goodwill for $3.99, a STEAL!

Have your model (aka Mom) put the sweater on and mark the center of it with a pom pom.

Then, using green garland we bought on sale for $.50 (Holler!!)

create the outline of a tree on your sweater keeping the top of the tree at least 2" below the collar to allow room for a star.

**Tip: Place a piece of cardboard inside of the sweater to keep from hot gluing the sweater to itself.**

Hot glue the tree into place and decorate using any scraps of garland you have laying around, I used this small piece of leftover gold garland and also created my star with it. 

Then begin adding your mini Christmas tree decorations.

Now, from inside of your sweater add your lights.  Push the head of the bulb through the sweater and add a dollop of glue to hold it in place. 


**Lights are what really make ugly Christmas sweaters.**

Look at this BEFORE & AFTER.  The results speak for themselves here.

OPTIONAL:
Using a scrap piece of fabric, create a pocket to hold the battery pack and cover the cords inside of the sweater, this just makes it easier to wear.  Cut fabric, add some hot glue, press into place, dance of joy.

NOT OPTIONAL: add mini jingle bells to sleeves.

Using a scrap piece of cardboard inside of the sleeve to keep from gluing it shut, glue jingle bells about 1" apart along the edge of each sleeve.  This ups your Ugly by at least 15% and makes your sweater a multi-sensory experience. 

Glue mini white pom poms ($.99 on sale, SAY WHAAAT?!) to the shoulders and arms of your sweater to simulate snow.

Flatten the arms of the sweater so that they are seam-side-down and add pom poms to the top of each sleeve.

Now, cut your pipe cleaner into 5 equal parts, about 1" each and bend into the shape of a candy cane.  Glue into place....

...aaaaaaaand you're done!!! 

Now all you have to do is flip on your lights and wait for the compliments to start rolling in.

...go ahead...why don't you make me?

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Why Don't You Make Me?: Insulated Outdoor Cat Shelter

Recently my upstairs neighbor's cat, Grits, decided to move out of the house.  Seems their new baby has left her completely un-impressed.  They tried time and again to get her back inside and a couple of times succeeded...only to have her insist on being let out again.  So, we made her a nice little tent on the front stoop where she's been living and taking her meals.  (Occupy Somerville)  We assumed she'd come in when Winter got here.  No dice.  So now, with the weather getting dangerously cold outside here in New England, today's project could actually be a life saver.  (I'll be adding that to my resume` now of course: Mandee Rae- crafter, painter, conversationalist, life saver.)

I saw this project on animal lover's Paul & Dru Mudsow's website.  It's a simple shelter made from 2 Rubbermaid containers, here is my experience with it.

To start you'll need:

• 1- 18 gallon storage bin ($6.99)
• 1- 10 gallong storage bin ($5.99)
• roll of silver bubble style home insulation ($15)
• outdoor electric heating pad ($35) (optional)
• glue gun 
• heat gun or hair dryer
• exacto knife
• duct tape
• a sharpie
• hay (mine was leftover from a gardening project)

Total: $28 (assuming you have items 5-10 at home) / with heating pad: $63

Begin with 2 regular storage bins with lids,

one should fit comfortably inside the other.

Draw a semi-circle big enough for your cat about 6" up from the bottom of the outside bin.  The hole needs to be high to keep the shelter from flooding.

Heat the area to be cut with a hair dryer.  I used the heat gun I have from an embossing project earlier in the year it worked beautifully.

When the area is heated up, cut around your line with an exacto knife or other sharp knife.  

**Careful!  The knife will slice through the plastic quickly now that it's soft.**

Add about an inch of hay to the bottom of the outside bin to fill in any ridges the insulation might miss.  Hay is an excellent natural insulator.

Next, cut a piece of insulation to fit the bottom of the bin leaving enough so that it curves up the sides and leaves no blank spaces.  

I put about 4 layers of insulation on the floor to protect Grits from the cold ground.  

Continue insulating until the entire bin is completely covered, leaving space for the door.  I double insulated the outside box using my glue gun to keep it in place on the walls. 

I also added a piece of insulation to the bottom of the smaller bin to fill an indentation so there is no place for cold air to hide.

Now place the smaller bin snugly into the insulated bin.  If it's not snug add more insulation and/or fill the empty spaces with hay. 

When you have your bins lined up where you want them, trace the hole onto the smaller bin and, using the same techniques as above, cut out the hole.

The resulting space between the 2 bins needs to be sealed to protect Kitty from rough edges and to seal it from drafts.  

 I used duct tape.  

And then, because it's Christmas, I used some candy cane duct tape I had to make it seasonal.  That part's optional.

Now you're ready to make Kitty's bed.  Lay down about 3 inches of hay in the bottom of the smaller bin for her to make a bed in.  Never use towels for outside cats because they can get wet and freeze!!  Hay doesn't retain moisture like towels and cats will burrow into it making a nice warm bed.  

I double insulated both lids- heat rises, trap all available heat by having a well insulated roof.

Trace around the lids onto the bubble wrap.  You can write on it with a sharpie.

Then cut them out about an inch smaller than the lid and hot glue them on.

Snap the first lid on to create a water tight seal and then add the larger lid.

After you've snapped both lids into place, add a strip of duct tape to the outside bin just to make sure the wind doesn't blow the lid off.  And you're done!  

The cat's body heat will fill up the space and keep it warm all night.  I plan to add a flap door after she is completely comfortable going in through her candy cane entrance.  And now Ms. Grits will be warm, safe and dry all winter.    

**TIP** I sprinkled some cat nip on the hay to get Ms. Grits to go in there originally.  Now that she knows it's safe and sound she goes in whenever she's chilly.  

****UPDATE!**** Grits loves her heating pad!

Hey Vicky! personalized picture frame

Hey Vicky!

Super sized 11"x14" wooden frame with a 4.5" x 6.5"opening.

Painted a deep teal with sunshine yellow, plum and sage green letters outlined in white.

With 3 coordinating cupcakes stacked precariously in the corner.

Handmade kickstand added to make frame stand up. 

Window Painting & the Scientific Method

New Christmas window I painted in Peabody, MA this morning.

Window painting is a cheap & easy way to decorate your house for Christmas without getting tangled up in extension cords or getting pine needles everywhere.  Plus it's scientifically proven to provide you with 85% more "ooooo's" and "aaaaaaah's" than just decorating alone. 

Here, I'll show you-

An average comment before window painting:

"that house looks nice."

and an average comment after window painting:

"oh my sweet baby Jesus look at that house!!  it's incredible!!  it's so festive and beautiful and...oh my stars is that GLITTER on his nose?!?!"

See?  At least 85% more freak out every time!  It's science. 

This window was contracted by Karyn McGovern who is a fellow crafter & Glitter enthusiast.  She made this uh-dorable Grinch bow below and sells them on her website RhinestoneObsessions.  Super the cutest.

Happy Friday!!

Up-cycled Catalog Trees: DELUXE EDITION

Yesterday I showed you how to make Up-cycled Catalog Christmas trees.  

Today, I'm going to show you how to take those regular trees (left)and make them DELUXE! (right).
**It should be noted here that in my country "deluxe" is a synonym for "has Glitter on it."

Beginning at Step 4 from yesterday's project with the catalog completely folded into standard tree form-

Next begin folding the bottom corners of each page up toward the spine of the catalog.

**Fold in about 2 inches, leaving enough space at the bottom of the catalog for the tree to form a base to stand on.**



Continue folding each page until you have something resembling this:

And finally, get out your Glitterin' kit:

• mod podge (or Elmer's glue)
• Glitter (Random Disco or otherwise)
• a paintbrush

Put a thin layer of glue on the top of your tree.

Dump a mess of Glitter on there,

shake off the extra aaaaaand....

...you're done! 

Now all you have to do is find the perfect place to display your creation.  Mine made a brief appearance on this shelf before settling in as the table centerpiece. 

Beautiful.  And more importantly easy!

***Sister thought it was important to mention here that you can also paint your trees.  Spray paint would be your best option but if you have a catalog tree made from non-shiney paper like the one below, a simple tempera paint would work just fine.***

Happy Crafting!

Why Don't You Make Me?: Upcycled Catalog Christmas Trees

Why Don't You Make Me?

Upcycled Catalog Christmas Trees

Lady, my Mom, taught me how to make these paper Christmas trees when I was about 4.  She was Sister's Brownie Troup Leader and always brought me to their meetings.  They're super easy to make, a great project for kids and an easy way to add something homemade to your Christmas decorations.  Not to mention, they're upcycled so you can throw that fact around a bunch and totally impress your friends,  "oh these?  they're upcycled."  People love that sort of thing.

Step 1. 

Pull all the Christmas catalogs that you threw in the recycle bin back out. 

Step 2. 

Pick a winner. 

**Try to pick a catalog with at least 50 pages.**

Step 3. 

Open 'er up.

Step 4.

Fold the front cover toward the spine. 

Fold the remainder of the pages the opposite direction.

Keep creasing the pages until they are all folded.

Step 5.

You're done.  Stand back and be all, "look what I made, that's adorable."

**If your tree won't stand up your catalog might not be thick enough.**

Step 6: OPTIONAL: Create a catalog tree forest.

Happy Crafting!!

Rudolph the Red Nosed Window

Over the weekend I painted a Rudolph themed Christmas Window in Melrose, MA. 

Starting on the left side of their big bay window with a sign for the North Pole...

And continuing around to the right side finishing it all off with a Christmas Tree.

Candy cane letters spell out Merry Christmas above this little reindeer family while perfect white snowflakes fall all around them.
 

The owner's of the house are the proud parents of a 1 and a 1/2 year old little girl, represented by this little mini Rudolph with a present for a tail because her Mom says, "she's my little present."  I die!

And, in case you were worried that I did an entire painting without Glitter, rest assured that the Mom's bow is Glittery.  I wouldn't do you like that.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

"Ugly" Christmas Sweater

Made this yesterday...

Tutorial in the works.  Stay tuned!

E is for Ella

Ella's Mom just re-did her room for her and ordered these letters to complete the transformation.  Her room is now a bright mint green with a coordinating green and pink bedspread and I'm told these letters look great hung on her wall.

Each letter is painted on a big ol' 10"x10" square canvas which means that when it's hung on the wall 2" apart, this piece takes up a full four feet of wall space.  This type of painting is an excellent option for renters who can't paint their walls but are looking for a big piece of artwork for a focal wall.  They take up a lot of space without being too busy.  

As always, special requests like this are welcome and encouraged.  Email me if you have questions or for pricing info.  Makes a great Christmas present!

Why Don't You Make Me: Toilet Paper Tube Snowflakes

Every year, following in the neurotically over-decorated footsteps of our Mother, my Sister and I decorate our respective houses Buddy the Elf style.  As instinctual to us as a bear hibernating in winter, each Black Friday rather than standing in line at midnight to get 80% an iPhone, Sister and I find ourselves almost involuntarily crawling into our storage spaces and digging out our Christmas decorations.  Unfortunately I now live 2,000 miles away from Sister but the tradition continues and progress is shared over our regular, non-Black-Friday-sale-priced phones.  Luckily for me, I have a housemate who shares my affinity for the over-decorated.  You'll see her perfectly manicured florescent yellow nails in her hand-modeling debut below.

This year to accent our entertainment center tablescape (that's right, I just said that) we made snowflakes out of recycled toilet paper rolls.  They came out even better than I had imagined and they're super simple and practically free.  Here's how we did it.

You'll need:

• empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls
• hot glue gun/glue sticks
• GLITTER
• Mod Podge or Elmer's glue
• fishing line
• scotch tape
• a box

Step 1:

Light your Christmas Tree scented candle for ambiance and put on some Christmas music

Step 2:
Gather tubes and cut into 1/4" to 1/2" strips, then flatten to create an oval with 2 edges.

Step 3: 

Begin experimenting with pieces to arrange them into a snowflake like shape, folding the ovals in half is a good way to create more details.

Once you're happy with your design beginning gluing the pieces into place with your hot glue gun.  

**Careful cause OUCH this sh** is hotttt!**

 

Step 4: GLITTER!!!

Dip a paintbrush in ModPodge (or Elmer's glue) and apply to the entire front of your snowflake.
(My quick witted and good looking co-worker Karen suggested dipping the snowflake in a paper plate with a shallow layer of glue in it, this may work too but I didn't try it so you're on your own here.)

 Next, above a box to catch all of the extras, sprinkle Glitter onto wet glue.

Allow about 30-40 minutes for glue to dry.

Step 5: Hang 'em high.

I added 2 pieces of fishing line with a dollop of hot glue onto my snowflakes so that they won't spin.

 **Tip: You can just put 1 piece of fishing line on but if you do I would suggest Glittering the back of the flake as well because it will spin freely and an unGlittered snowflake is just unsightly.**

And you're done!  

Let me know if you make this project in the comments.  I'd love to see your spin on it!  Subscribe to get more Holiday projects and see the rest of my tutorials here.  Happy Crafting!!

HOLY CRAP IT'S DECEMBER!!!!!!!

MUST.  DECORATE. 

EVERYTHING!!!!

National Mousse Day

November is going out with a bang folks because today, the last day of November 2011, is

NATIONAL MOUSSE DAY!!!

    See what I did there?  Chocolate moose.  Chocolate Mousse.  Get it?   My humor is very sophisticated.

Ornament Sale!!

All ornaments in my Etsy shop normally $19 each are on sale this week (Cyber Monday, Nov. 28- Friday, Dec. 2) for JUST $15!

Ornaments make awesome gifts and can be customized just for you!  

 Don't be shy, go check 'em out!  Let me know if you have something special in mind.  

***And don't forget, custom orders must be in by Dec. 5th this year!!***

Are you yeti yet?

Bumble from the classic stop-motion animation movie Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer adornes the new holiday window in the EU.  

He's.....almost.....got....it....just a little....closer....

Stop by and see it if you're in the area!

Happy Holidays!!  

29 days til Christmas.  NBD.  See past windows here. 

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope you're spending today surrounded by people you love.

And if not, I hope you get to eat a whole pie to yourself!  

Happy Thanksgiving!

The National Turkey Day Spectacular!

Tom Turkey looks positively dapper this year and he has picked quite a crop of young ladies to escort him on stage.  

Dry erase marker, 2011.

Why Don't You Make Me: Recycled Jar Snowglobes

Why don't you make me?

Recycled Jar Snowglobes

Recycled jar snowglobes make awesome presents and they're a perfect project for little ones too.  They're also eco-friendly because you're re-using old jars to make them so you can feel good about saving the world while all the while your friends tell you how crafty and talented you are.  Win/win!

Here's how you do it:

Step 1: Collect your supplies-

You'll need:

• an old jar (any size)
• distilled water 
• Glycerin (not the Bush song)
• modeling clay
• epoxy
• GLITTER!!
• any non-metal mini figurines

Step 2: Prepare your lid-

Add a quarter size dollop of epoxy to the inside of the lid to adhere the modeling clay to.

Shape modeling clay on top of the epoxy into a small mound for your figurines to stand on.  The modeling clay also helps seal the threads of the jar to make it watertight. 

Add figurines.  (Yellow deer with red eyes?  Don't mind if I do!)

**Tip:  I added some additional clay to the base of the trees to give them more stability.**

 Step 3: Prepare water-

Fig.1

Fig. 2
Fill jar to just below the threads with distilled water.                                                                        **Tip: It's important to use distilled water, I tried to use some diy distilled water (aka boiling water and letting it cool) and it was cloudy.  See Fig. 1, tap water and Fig. 2, distilled water.**

Add approximately 1 tablespoon of Glycerin to the water.  (Glycerin keeps the glitter suspended in the water longer rather than having it fall straight to the bottom.)

Next, add GLITTER!!

 I used a mix of 3 types of white glitter-

one of which was called "Random Disco" which coincidentally is the name of my new band that I haven't formed yet.

 Step 4: Screw it.
Place assembled lid onto awaiting jar, screw in place.

 Turn it over and make it rain!

Err, snow.  Make it snow. 

 And you're done!  Now all that's left to do is place these bad larries in your best Christmas tablescape and call it a day.  

Merry Christmas you crafty bastard. 

National Vichyssoise Day!

Today is National Vichyssoise Day!  Vichyssoise (pronounced Vi-Shee-swaz) is a cold potato and leek soup thought to be of American origin.  Delicious and patriotic, a perfect combination.  Thanks for stopping by!

Thank You for your Outrage.

 

When I'm mad I'm not looking for sympathy, I don't need the sage advice of an elder and I certainly don't want to hear the voice of reason.

 

What I need is for my friends to be outraged at the incredible injustice that I've had to face. I need them to fly off the handle if I've had to wait too long to get coffee. I want a table flipped if my boss wouldn't give me the day off. I want promises of hell fire any time I've been even the tiniest bit inconvenienced.  This is how I will know you're my friend.

 

And then I want to say thank you. Thank you for your outrage.

 

4x4" alternating grey on grey striped speech bubble painting with hot orange outline available on my "other" Etsy shop.