Custom Cards for the Dancer in Your Life...

     The kids are still asleep, so I thought I'd travel back in time a bit and share some greeting card designs I made to sell at the dance team's gift table during the competition they hosted a couple months ago.  These cards literally sold out within a couple hours, so either I priced them too low ($1 each) or everyone just really liked them... I think I'll go with that!  So, as long as you have a computer, a printer, white glue, glitter and toothpicks you can make some too.  Here's what I did...
     
     First, I found some inexpensive small (4"x 5 1/2") blank cards on sale at JoAnn's in white, ivory and natural ($3.99 for 12). Then using my trusty PrintShop2 program (I've mentioned how much I like this program before, but it's really handy!), I designed very simple layouts that I could then embellish with fine glitter. I printed all the designs in black and white, and used mostly silhouettes or straight graphics of dance quotes for the card covers.  As I'm sure you can imagine, you can find lots of dance themed or inspirational quotes with a Google search but I also added some slang terms for the teens.  For an added touch, I put a little logo on the back on the card since it was a fundraiser thanking customers for their support. Once they were printed, I used white Elmer's glue and a toothpick to 'paint' the area I wanted glittered. I've got to say this was pretty darn fun, and since I have a fashion design background it really had my creative juices flowing on the dress form designs in particular.  You'll want to practice a bit first, but for the most part I just went for it! The tutus are especially fun, just use a dragging technique with the toothpick by picking up a blob (for lack of a better word) of glue and dragging it in an outward direction.  I also had some loose sequins around and glued those on to some of the cards, which looked pretty cool too. And, of course, a satin ribbon bow made the perfect finishing touch on some of the tutus!  When designing all the different costumes, I tried to incorporate common costume designs for different dance styles to reach a broad audience...and when you've been to as many competitions as I have, that shouldn't be hard! For a professional look and to protect the cards from fingerprints, I slipped each one into a cellophane bag, also purchased at JoAnn's.  

    Oh, and when our end-of-year dance banquet rolled around, I made cards for the coaches with my daughter's team state competition costume on them.  Which got me thinking, next year I can make a set for the whole team to wish them luck!  So here's a look at a selection of the finished product...hope you make some of your own! 

Dance Team Bag Tags!

     Well, it's summertime (Yay!) and around here that means sleep-away dance camp.  So, I decided to reinvent some bag tags I'd seen on Pinterest for my daughter's team to take along.  I began by playing around on my PrintShop2 program with some design ideas incorporating their school colors, school name and team name.  I must say, I love this program because it's very easy to operate, and if you're looking to do some graphic design work without spending a small fortune on software, it's a good fit for making invitations, favors, etc.  Anyway, I used the template for business cards because it fit my bag tag sleeves that I purchased at Office Depot (there are cheaper versions available online in bulk, but I didn't have time to wait for shipping!) Once I settled on a cover design, I printed some full sheets onto card stock and cut them apart.  For the reverse side of the tag I wanted to personalize them with each girl's name, but since PrintShop2 only allows a full sheet of the same design within the business card templates, I would cancel the print after two were printed and that worked great (Hint: Rotate the page to fit two sets on each sheet of paper...less waste!)  Now, I have one set of names for the bag tags and I have a full set of the girl's names to use for something else in the future.
     Each laminating machine probably works basically the same, so you'll just want to be sure to set your heat setting to the right millimeter thickness for your project. In my case, the luggage tag sleeves are 5 mil thick.  Be sure to heat your machine up completely, and to place the sleeve seam side to the bottom of the protective sleeve that comes with the tags (it's the end with the stitching across it.)  So, I sandwiched one each of the front design and one of the personalized name design, centered it in the bag tag sleeve, placed it in the protective sleeve and let the machine do the rest. 
     Now, onto the cutesy part! I purchased some inexpensive grosgrain and metallic ribbon and some mini-bells (after all, it's the team's name!) at JoAnn's.  I used some heavy buttonhole thread to sew mine together, but I'm sure a hot-glue gun would work too. To adhere the bow and charm to the tag, I attached the loop first (they are included) then sewed it through the whole and ribbon.  I just felt like it was a bit more secure than hot-glue, but that's up to you as the crafter! Oh, and if you're wondering why there's a candle in the assembly photo...that's because I like to melt the very end of my grosgrain ribbon to keep it from fraying. Be very careful, it can go wrong quickly and melt too much or worse catch fire, so move quickly! A lighter works too, but only do this step if you're an adult please!
     I'm not gonna lie, it took a good two hours to laminate, prep the ribbon and assemble 16 tags (it would be faster to glue than sew) but I think you'll agree they are worth it.  Too cute! Can't wait to give them to the girls at camp!

Go Team! Bleacher/Stadium Seat Cushion Up-cycle

     Am I the only dance team mom whose family walks away from day-long competitions with a sore bum? Doubt it!  Since I'm usually backstage, I wanted to make my family's fan experience more enjoyable by giving them some bum comfort!  So, to continue on my up-cycle theme from my last post, I made over these mildewy old seat cushions from 2007 we had stored in the barn into darling seat-saving beauties!  Here's how I did it...the photos are in order of assembly, so be sure to follow along!

     I started by disassembling the old seat cushions using a seam ripper. I wanted to use the old covers as my pattern, and the zipper, foam insert and handles were still in good shape.  Of course, if you're starting with all new materials you'll need to do some shopping.  You'll need a foam insert, 14" zipper (depending on your foam insert size), double-fold seam binding, strap webbing for handles, and oil-cloth.  I bought 1 1/2 yards of cloth, which was more than needed, because I wanted to match the pattern. But, if you select an all-over pattern you won't need to do this. Of course, now I've got lots of scraps for more projects!  And, don't forget to add enough to each side of your square of oil-cloth to wrap half-way down the side of the foam and for the seam allowances.  
So, moving right along, you'll see in the photos above, that I used the original cover as my pattern (I photographed the measurements in case you're starting from scratch!)  Be sure to pin your pattern down in the seam allowance when using oil cloth, because it will leave a small hole.  Now you're ready to cut your pieces, you should have a front, back and pocket piece.  I used a remnant piece in a contrasting fabric to tie in the school colors, but of course you do what you like!  Now, to personalize my cushions a bit more, I added some school letters (simply print off a bold letter style as your pattern, pin to fabric and cut) and the narrow double-fold seam binding along the upper edge of the pocket.  Position the letters at high-center (allowing for wrap and seam allowance) and zig-zag around the edges.  Like any good sorority girl, I learned this technique in college for letter sweatshirts! Just be sure you stop at the corners with your needle down, then lift the presser foot to pivot the fabric.  The completed pocket now gets pinned to one side of the cover (right sides up, not facing!)  Now, insert your zipper.  I like to keep my projects flat as long as possible, so I put the zipper face down and sew using a zipper foot to each unassembled side of the cover. Turn over, and top stitch about an 1/8" from the fabric edge.  You're now ready to affix the webbing handles...be sure you don't have a twist! I just zig-zagged across the bottom edge of the webbing, and once again about an inch up from the edge.  At this point turn the whole project right sides together (leave the zipper open so you can flip!), and stitch around the three open sides. Now, the only sort of tricky part to explain is the corner...once side seams are sewn, you will pinch corners flat, and sew across them at a distance of 1 1/2" from the point of the corner.  Once flipped, this creates the box shape of the bottom.  Insert the foam insert, and you're done!  It turned out pretty darn cute don't you think...complete with a pocket for the competition programs.  Be sure to share pictures if you make one for your own team!

You're at the finish line...

Up-Cycled Denim Table Runner

     I'm the first to admit I have a problem...I can't seem to throw out all those bits of fabric left over from other projects, including all the legs I've lopped off jeans when making cut-off shorts for my daughters.  But, as you'll see in this post I'm really glad I didn't! 
     It all began when we decided to throw a BBQ themed birthday party for my oldest daughter.  Party planning is a favorite around here, and really gets my creative juices flowing.  So, I began where I always do by pulling out all the items we have around the house and barn that tie into the theme and color scheme and see what I'm missing.  In this case, I needed some sort of tablecloth or runner for the table.  Aha!  I remembered I still had all those scraps of denim!

To begin, I cut all the leg sections into 3 1/2" strips hori-zontally using a rotary cutter and a quilting ruler.  Then I simply cut open the loops of denim at one side seam and laid them flat.  Once I had lots of strips (I used 7 or 8 pairs of jeans' legs, but this depends on how big you want your finished piece), I started the assembly with the help of my youngest who's learning to sew, by making long pieces that had each section sewn together at the short cut edge.  As an aside, be sure you use a heavy duty needle for your sewing machine as the seams will be bulky! I also topstitched each seam with gold topstitching thread for that authentic look.  

     You'll see in the photos that I purposely flipped some of the pieces to the reverse side, and off-set the seams when assembling the long strips to each other.  I really like the random pattern and texture it created.  You may need to trim the assembled strips to equal lengths as the initial strips you cut won't be the same length.  As for finishing the edge of your tablecloth or runner, you can either leave it unfinished and frayed, or cover it with some seam binding (Wright's Notions has a denim-look binding at JoAnn's).  

     









   


     Below you can see the runner on the table...pretty cute, huh?! And the best part, I didn't have to buy anything but the thread and my scrap bin is just a little bit smaller!

Wide-Eyed Jumbo Candy Tower

Aww...Can't you just picture a child's wide-eyed gaze looking up at the tower of candy you've created?  Their imagination running wild with excitement at the thought of having it all to themselves...



Always looking for school auction or raffle ideas? You are not alone!  It seems there's always another reason to fundraise, and this easy and inexpensive jumbo candy tower is sure to attract kids of all ages!  Wanna try it?  

All you'll need is:

1. Candy....think bulk bins and $1 Store
2. Cardboard Cupcake Stand
3. Poster Board, 1 Sheet
4. 2 White Foam Circles (Dollar Tree)
5. Board for Base (I used a sheet cake board!)
5. Hot Glue Gun
6. Toothbrush...just for fun!
7. Clear Cellophane

I know it looks like it took a lot of time, but it went together in only an hour start to finish.  I just wish I had taken photos while working...when I make another I'll add them to this post!  So, for the shopping, I spent about $15 on candy (Chicklets, Bazooka Gum, Laffy Taffy, Lemon Heads, Kisses, Pixie Sticks, Smarties, Sixlets, and Lollipops), PopTarts, and fruit snacks to fill my tower.  I did not buy any candy with nuts due to the potential for allergic reactions, but maybe I'm just over-cautious! 

So, to assemble the tower you'll begin by cutting the poster board into strips that will fit between the tiers of your cupcake stand.  Once this is done, you will roll the poster board to create a circle around the stands center. I stapled the poster board top and bottom, then used the hot glue gun to adhere it to the bottom tier of the stand.  Then attach the second tier, and repeat the application of the poster board.  After attaching the third tier, I pushed the two foam rings over the top of the stand (mine had kind of a handle or top decorative portion.)  The foam was secured with a little hot glue.  Now, this is where is gets fun! You just start at the bottom and apply the large, flat items first (in my case PopTarts, Chicklets and Lemon Heads).  You'll want to space them out before glueing down to ensure a well laid out design.  Then using the smaller wrapped candies fill in all the blank spaces until you can no longer see the poster board or foam.  For the tower's topper I pushed the lollipops directly into the foam, and put a toothbrush in the center...cause let's be honest, they'll need one after eating all these sweets!  Then I glued the tower to the cake board and glued some fruit snacks around the base for added effect.  Lastly, I wrapped the tower with cellophane to prevent sticky fingers.  And, that's it, you've got a quick, easy and cheap auction or raffle item that's sure to be a crowd pleaser!

Mirror, Mirror...Make-Over!

"Mirror, mirror on the wall...whose's the fairest of them all?"  Well, I transformed these $1 mirrors into a sell-out at my eldest daughter's recent dance team competition's gift table.  Fairest? Well, at least cutest! And, they're super easy and inexpensive to make. 

I started with black hand mirrors I purchased at the local Dollar Tree for, you guessed it, a dollar. I like the mirrors in black because of the versatility, but of course you can customize it to fit your needs (my store also had navy, maroon and dark green).  Then using scraps of ribbon, tulle and some rhinestones I made each mirror unique.  Why not add more bling? Well, in this case, I wanted to keep the cost down to maximize profits but go crazy if you want!

I began by using an ordinary pencil to write the word I would be outlining with rhinestones.  Then I used my heat-setting tool and set the rhinestones. But, here's what I learned...the hard way! Even though the tool is literally melting the stone to the plastic once it cools the stones don't always stick.  So, I switched to some high-powered craft glue that dries clear and that did the trick!  On some mirrors, I used sequins to outline the letters which was cute too.  You'll see in the pictures that I also added some jewels along the handle, then lastly, added the ribbon and tulle around the top.  I secured this with a hot-glue gun front and back.  Voila! You're ready for your close-up!

"Shine"

"Frilly Pink Heart"

"Hi!"

"Sass"

"V.I.P"

This is just a sample of the mirrors I made, and I must say it was really fun to think of words that would appeal to a high school dance team member (social media buzz words, slang, etc.).  I would also suggest using team colors to really make the girls fall for them!  But, best of all the other teams just loved them, and many told their parents which one to buy them via text before the parents even had arrived.  They would also make a fun 'welcome to the team' or senior send-off gift.  Not to mention...they would be great as a party favor for that little princess in your life!