Paint Chip Books

All the visits we've been making to the home improvement and big box stores for post-Irma stuff has allowed me to collect some paint chips to use for story palettes. Okay, I admit, I just like looking at the paint chips. There's something mesmerizing about all those colors and pamphlets and decorator photos that makes me want to redo every room in the house (even my office, which is already painted with my favorite shade of sea glass.) I also pay close attention to the color names, as they often use unusual nouns and adjectives for them -- something I can always use when writing Yet Another Blue-eyed Character.

Sure, I know what you're thinking: how hard can it be to describe blue eyes? On average I have at least two blue-eyed characters in every novel I write. Since I like blue eyes, often more than two. Times 67 novels. Try describing blue eyes differently at least one hundred and thirty-four times, then come sneer at my paint chips.

On my last visit to Lowe's I noticed that Olympic and Valspar had put out some chip cards I hadn't before seen. Olympic now pairs some photos with the paint chips on their cards (top middle of the pic here), while Valspar has trio sets of colors with little windows in them (top right.) Wal-Mart also had large sheet-style paint chips that were self-adhesive to stick on the wall and preview what the paint would look like (bottom middle.)

I collected samples of everything I liked (and I am planning to redo the guest bathroom, so I chose colors I'd like to try in that room) and brought them home to have some fun. Since I made some notepads out of paint chips earlier this month I thought I might see what I could make out of this batch. Olympic's photo paint chip cards have lots of lovely, serene images on them so I started with them.



These would be great for easy-to-make bookmarks if you cut off the paint chips and glued the strip of images to scrapbook or heavier-weight craft paper, but I was a bit more ambitious. First I trimmed the cards to separate the images from the paint chips, and then glue-sticked the image strips in four rows on a sheet of old card stock from the paper recycling bin.

Stacking them together in harmonious colors created a collage effect that I liked a lot:



For the first collage page I unearthed an ancient pack of computer stationery and a torn book board from my recycle bin and trimmed them down, punched holes in them and fastened them together with two binder rings. Now I have a bigger notebook for my desk, which I actually needed, with paper that is nice enough to use for correspondence. With the support of the book board backing I can also use it while I'm walking around the house and muttering to myself as I work out a scene.

For the second collage page I cut in half some 140lb. coldpress watercolor paper left over from the kids' school days, and used the same hole punch/binder ring approach to making myself a nice-sized watercolor journal.



For the windowed paint chip cards I settled on making some smash books to store swatches of fabric from my quilt projects. I took the paint squares I trimmed from the Photo cards and glued them over the windows from the back, then cut some old 12 X 12 scrapbook paper into six 4" X 5-1/2" pages. After holepunching everything I used a knotted piece of scrap ribbon as the binding:

While all the materials I used to make these are all recycled the end result turned out like something you'd purchase from that fussy journal section in big book stores. These two pain chip books were also easy and simple enough for kids to make, although I'd recommend adult supervision if they use a paper trimmer, scissors or any other sharp-edged objects.

If you're interested in doing something else with your paint chips, BrokeandHealthy.com has 50 projects here. I like ChicaandJo.com's paint chip mosaic greeting cards -- you could easily do these in holiday colors.

Have you done anything interesting with paint chips? Let us know in comments.

Coaster Tags

One little way to go green with your holiday gift-giving this year is to make quilted fabric gift tags that double as coasters, and today I'll show you how. For this project you'll need:

Print Fabric scraps
Muslin scraps (or a fabric light enough to write on)
Narrow ribbon
Fine-point indelible marker
Batting scraps or dryer sheets
Scissors
Wide masking tape
Sewing thread
Embroidery floss
Sewing and tapestry needles
White notepaper
Pins
Iron

Optional: Sewing machine, beads, other embellishments

Press all your cloth scraps, and cut the prints and muslin scraps into the size coaster tag you want plus one half inch (so to make a five inch square coaster tag, you'd cut your fabric into 5-1/2" squares.) Cut your batting or a stack of dryer sheets into the exact size of the coaster you want. Place a piece of masking tape across the center on the back of your muslin (like this), turn it over and write the name of your recipient on the front with your marker:



The masking tape is an old quilter's trick to temporarily stabilize the muslin so you can write on it like paper. Once you're finished writing, remove the tape, and stack a square of your print fabric on top of it so the name and the right side of the print are inside:



Place a square of muslin or a stacking of dryer sheets on top of your two squares and pin together:



Sew along the edge of the muslin square all the way around (like the black lines in this pic), leaving a 1-1/2" gap at the bottom. Clip your corners (like this), turn inside out, and press flat with your iron:



Sew closed the turning gap with a blind stitch, cut a heart shape to fit inside the coaster out of your notepaper, and pin the heart to the coaster:



The heart is your stitching guide. Stitch around it with your embroidery thread.



Thread your piece of narrow ribbon through the corner of your coaster:



Tie it to your gift with the ribbon:



Once they're done with their gift they can use the tag as a little coaster:



You can make these in all kinds of variations:



Some tips: Keep all your beading and raised embellishments on the outside edges of the tag so the center remains flat enough to place a cup on later. You don't have to write names on your tags, you can use an initial (like my K coaster above) or something else that identifies your recipient. One quilter I know makes fabric photo Christmas ornaments like this and uses them as gift tags first.

Swanning Around

I finished my latest crazy quilt tote yesterday, and I'm so happy with how it came out I'm going to make you all look at it:



I made every stitch by hand, which is why some of them are a bit uneven, but my stitching is slowly improving:



I've had this swan lace applique for a while, and couldn't figure out how to use it. Finally I just sat down and made it a center motif, and let the subtle colors in it inspire the embellishment beading:



Sometimes I think too much about how to do something, and the solution is always to just do it, trust myself, and see what happens. Even when something doesn't turn out perfect, it still gives me the opportunity to learn from my mistakes (and with this one, about a hundred stitches I had to pick out and do over.)

Working with materials I love also helps. All the backing fabric for this tote is thin, hand-dyed silk that feels like air when you stitch through it. I went crazy with the beading, which is always fun, and used holographic thread, which makes every inch of the tote sparkle. This will be part of a gift for a family friend who is going through a tough time right now, so I poured a lot of love into it, too. Hopefully it carries as many good thoughts and wishes as the beads and stitches.

All that's left is to fill the tote with goodies and make a gift tag. Tomorrow I'll show you how I make fabric gift tags that also work as a little extra gift.

Scrabble Board Collage

We're going to get crafty today; this is to show you how to recycle a Scrabble board game by turning it into a nifty Valentine's Day gift for the one you love.

What you'll need:

An old/unwanted Scrabble board game (if you want to keep yours check the local thrift stores)
Copies of your favorite family photos
Glue


First, lay out the tiles on the game board to form names and loving phrases (try to intersect two or more words to get the Scrabble effect.) Select photos that you want for the collage (if you like use a theme like your wedding, high school days, memories of the kids, or a special vacation as a theme.) Trim your photos to fit them into spaces between the words you've made with the tiles.

Lay out everything on the board so you'll have a preview of how it will look when it's finished. Once you're satisfied with the arrangement, glue the tiles to the board with a hot glue gun or tacky glue. Use adhesive splits or mounting corners to fix your photos in place (the game grid is an excellent placement guide for your photos, too.)

If you have any extra spaces on the board left that you want to fill, use adhesive-backed felt hearts or glue small mementos in those spots. Once all the glue has completely dried drill two small holes in the top corners of the board and tie on a piece of yarn or ribbon to serve as a hanger.

Here's what it should look like when it's done: