Fun with Fabric

Another non-paper craft! Just to warn you, this craft is ADDICTING! I literally could not stop... And, the best part is you need minimal supplies!

Fabric Flower Accessories {Pins/hair clips}

While browsing Pinterest, I stumbled across some adorable fabric flowers, so I decided to check out the tutorials that went with them. Usually, I rely on LONDYNroads for all of my fabric flower needs, but I decided to try it myself for once. While I thought mine turned out nice enough, I still recommend LONDYNroads for top quality and the latest fashion trends. They actually SEW their flowers, while mine just required a good ol' Hot Glue Gun.

Now, my favorite tutorials (here and here) and my results...

Middle: Necklace           Sides: Hair Accessories

Coral fabric (from a 99 cent store shirt) and Burlap: Hair Accessory

Gift Idea: Infused Vodka {Tutorial}

Being a teacher allows me to have a nice {much needed} two week break from work. Therefore, I have been busying myself with Christmas crafting. I know I usually post all of my paper crafts, as this blog is called Paisley's Paperie, but I have decided to post some of my recent crafts that involve different elements. I'll just put them in a separate category. :)

FRUIT INFUSED VODKA

My husband and I decided to infuse our own vodka, bottle it, and distribute it as Christmas gifts to some of our family members. So here's how we did it...

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Materials For the Infusing Process:
1. 2 handles of vodka: Absolut and Rue 33
2. Various fruits: Blackberries, Blueberries, Strawberries, and Mangos
3. Cutting board and knife
4. Large mason jars
Directions:
*Sterilize all of the mason jars. You can do this by putting them in the dishwasher, or by filling each one up with water and zapping it in the microwave until boiling. That way any impurities are killed.
*Clean all of the fruit.
*Chop the fruit {if needed} We chopped the stawberries and mangos, but we left the blackberries just as they were. The blueberries were also put in whole, but we pierced each one to help with the infusion.
*Fill each mason jar half-way with fruit.
*Add the vodka to the top and then seal with the sterilized lid.
*Store the jars in a dark cupboard for 3-5 days
*Shake the jars each day {this was a favorite task of ours}

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Materials For the Bottling Process:
5. Fancy 17 oz. "swingtop" bottles {I ordered from here}
6. Funnel
7. Coffee Filters
8. Custom Labels
9. Embellishments {twine and buttons}
Directions:
*Remember to wash the bottles first!
*Place a coffee filter in a large funnel and then start pouring in your first flavor. The filter ensures that you won't have any "floaties" in your Vodka.
*When each flavor has been bottled you can make custom labels to make it look "official." I made my labels on Microsoft Word and printed them on fabric and brown packaging paper. I liked the paper labels better because it was easier to read. Check out the pictures below. My hubby was the "taste tester" and his favorite flavor was Strawberry with Mango in close second. However, you can be as creative as you want. When I was researching I came across SEVERAL interesting flavors...bacon, Skittles, Bubble gum, hot dog, and SNAKE just to name a few...So, I guess, make your favorite treat a vodka drink! That can be my new slogan! ;)

Shabby Chic Invites

The actual invitation for the shower was inspired by an invitation on etsy, so, to be respectful of the original creator I will not be posting the picture of my "look-a-like." However, I did create two inserts that went a long with the invitation. One is posted below. The other insert contained information about the Lingerie Shower that took place right after the bridal shower.

Since I couldn't fit all of this information on the actual invite, I created a little card with "Extra Information." This card was a little bigger than a business card and could easily be hung on the fridge or stuck in a wallet/purse.

A Beachy Wedding: San Clemente, CA

I know I gave a sneak peek to my sister Chelsea's Shabby Chic bridal shower (which took place in July), but I'm going to keep you waiting with that full post and skip right to the wedding crafts that I did for her in August. Chelsea had a beautiful beachy/natural theme for her wedding, so I enjoyed putting some decorative items together for her. The following photos were taken by her wedding photographer Allie Lindsey Photography.



Wedding Programs




Candy Buffet with several elements from Paisley's Paperie



"Sweet Love" Banner

Banner, stickers, and covered photo frame

The covered photo frames fit perfectly with the theme.

The texture on this paper is amazing! I was thrilled to find it!

Stickers to seal the candy bags! There were four different designs.

Another view of the stickers

Chair signs for the newlyweds! <3



Photo Booth Banner (it matches the "Sweet Love" banner)



The cute couple, being silly at the Photo Booth!



It was so much fun combining paper with burlap!

These are "action shots" from the day of the wedding, but I would like to schedule a session with my favorite photographer, Jennifer of j.lyniconography, so you can see all of the elements close up.



Father's Day Gift Set

Paper covered frame with twine and shell embellishments & matching "Tie Card"

The picture is one of my dad's favorites--Surfer Dad with his Surfer Boys. I'll have to get one with his Surfer Girls in it too!

The top 3 shells represent my brothers, the bottom 2 shells represent my sister and me, & the twine is the infinity symbol.

Such a fun card to make :)

Back of the card



Back of the frame

Shabby Chic Bridal Shower: A Little Bitty Peek

My little sister is getting married! As the Matron of Honor, I am so excited to co-host a Bridal Shower for my beautiful sister, Chelsea. The shower is Shabby Chic themed, which is a favorite of mine, so I have been having so much fun crafting the many details for this shower. This is the first Bridal Shower I have ever hosted and I want it to be special. There are many paper elements in the crafts, but many of the projects include paper along with other materials such as fabric, twine, and ribbon. The shower is this Saturday, the 9th, and I will be very busy these next couple of days finishing the final touches. Below are a few photos I took using my Retro Camera app. on my phone. However, I will be posting professional photos of the event shot by J.LYN iconography.

Drink Dispenser w/ Mini Pennant Flag Banner

Mason Jar Centerpieces

The paper element in the centerpieces is hard to see in this picture, but there is a paper doily wrapped around each jar. The adorable, fabric flowers were made by LONDYNroads 

Fabric framed chalkboard :)

"Thanks A Latte" Cards

I am a 6th grade teacher and today was bittersweet--the last day of school. Throughout this school year I was blessed with some amazing parent volunteers. To show my appreciation I made some "Thanks A Latte" cards where I wrote my note of thanks and included a Starbucks gift card so they could enjoy a coffee break on me! The pictures show one style with two different color schemes but the possiblities are endless!

Stripe/Polka Dot Combo Birthday Card

Recently we celebrated July Birthdays at our school to recognize faculty and staff born in that month. My special birthday person, whose name I had picked at the beginning of the school year, has a July birthday so I used the opportunity to craft a birthday card for him to go along with his gift.  

 

A Mother's Memories

When I think of my mother I think of bright, happy colors and nature {specifically flowers} so when I saw this colorful pattern I knew it would be perfect to use on the accordian photo book I wanted to make for a Mother's Day gift. My mother values family time, and she loves to reminisce the days when we were a tight-knit family living on a buffalo ranch in Wyoming. We still are a tight-knit family, but sometimes our busy schedules keep up apart. Finding and displaying pictures of our special family moments really made my mother happy on her special day.

Baby Shower: It's a Girl!

This precious, PINK accordian photo book was ordered as a gift for a baby shower. It was a custom order and my main instruction was to make it girly and, of course, include pink. While the photo book itself is pretty darling, the pictures of the new baby girl that will go inside will make it over-the-top cute! Congratulations to Rachel and Tom Alexander! 

Click the pictures to see full size view

All Opened Up!

Top Left: Inside front cover Top Right: Pg 1
Bottom Left: Pgs 2 &3 Bottom Right: Pg 4 & Inside back cover


Dainty Details: i LOVE pennant flags!