Ballard Design inspired ornaments

Remember this post... My To DO List
One down... Many more to do...
I saw these Ballard Design ornaments

So Pretty and so easy... I love them!
I copied them and made them my own for my tree! I went with a country flair and even made a Holly Leaf in the same design. Lurrves it!
These are Mine!

I just drew out the pattern by looking at the shape in the picture.

I cut them out with an exacto knife and then I put the pages of an old yellowed book on the cutouts.


Distressed it with brown ink... Add some buttons and raffia

And hang on the tree. These look super cute with my other ornaments I have adorning the tree. I will have to show you what it looks like soon.

Many more copying to be done... I will for sure show you all!

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and...
and

Giveaway Continued...

* * * GIVEAWAY * * * GIVEAWAY * * * GIVEAWAY * * *
If you haven't entered yet, Go HERE!Okay so I hung up the cutout last night so that you can see what it will look like and how to do it yourself when your pretty little package comes in the mail.

You will recieve it looking like this. It will have the transfer paper on it already.

1. First, you will want to smooth the vinyl lettering onto the transfer paper. I use a Pampered Chef Handy Scraper to smooth out the vinyl and it really helps it adhere to the trasfer paper. If you don't have that, you can use a credit card or a ruler. Be creative!

2. Second, you can start peeling the paper backing off. I would do the "Meet" first.

* * * Make sure that as you are pulling the paper to keep the peeled paper down against the surface. Go Slowly and if a part of the vinyl is still sticking to the paper, fold it back against the transfer paper and press over it again.

3. Now that it is peeled, Cut it into two different pieces. This will make putting it up ALOT easier.

4. Now, the fun part... Find a home for your vinyl. You can just hang it up on the wall, or you can put it on a painted board. That is the beauty of Vinyl, It is really versatile and great for home decorating. It peels right off walls without taking paint with it. Plus it Looks Great!

5. Voila, you have a pretty darn cute saying on your wall now! When I was putting up the vinyl I put it up and then lightly ran my hand over it just to lightly adhere it to my textured wall. THis is great to do at first so that it will stay up and you can take a step back and decide how it looks. It peels right up while the transfer paper is still on.

6. Again run over your Vinyl with the Handy Scraper and adhere it really well. Peel back the transfer paper just like you peeled the paper off, flat against the surface of the wall. Go slowly. Patience is important.
VOILA You are done... It really is that easy!

I am so excited for this giveaway!!! I cannot even tell you. There will be at least four winners this go around. So I am serious, Go Hereto enter!!
I loved Nicole's story! Made me laugh. Looking forward to more!

Meet me under the Mistletoe... Giveaway!

Oh how we all love the age old tradition of kissing under the Mistletoe. I always splurge and buy the real deal every year. It smells so good, like Raisins! However, I like the anticipation of getting caught underneath it more...

I was talking with my Sister Marci last night and she asked me about the Vinyl sign that we put up last year that said "Meet me under the Mistletoe." She can't find hers so I told her I would cut her one today.
I cut her letters.... AND..... Drumroll Please
I cut extra... So I am going to have another GIveaway!!! Woo HOo!

YOu know how this game is played...
1) Follow My Blog
2) Leave a Comment
*AND* just for fun
3)Tell us a story about a time you got a "memorable" kiss under the mistletoe! I want to hear some funny ones too. I know I have been embarrassed a time or two under the mistletoe, myself!
Here is what the Vinyl looks like that you will get in the Mail!

This Giveaway will close on the Tuesday December 1st! I am so excited! There is going to be more than one winner this go around!
So ENTER, ENTER, ENTER!!! Oh this is so exciting!
I will put it up on the wall tonight and show you how and what you are supposed to do with it once you win! That will come tomorrow! So much fun!

I cannot believe it myself...

How many of us love the pine garlands and boughs to adorn our windows, doors and mantles? I (and here is the cheap-o side of me) cannot justify spending $12 for those garlands, that are usually pretty skimpy anyways. While putting up my tree this year, I know, I know Thanksgiving isn't even here yet... I got an epiphany!!!
A VERY inexpensive way to get the look without having to fork over the dough!
I went to the local Salvation Army where they had a ton of old discarded faux Christmas Trees that were in pretty bad condition. I must have looked pretty scroungy that day, because when I asked the lady about the trees, she doubtingly asked "do you have a dollar?" Haha. Anyway I will show you what I got...
I got all of this.....

... For $1.00 Yes you read that right... One Dollar! I was so giddy and wanted to run to the car with my loot before she changed her mind! Oh Happy Day!
These are the fake trees with a long metal rod, with the pine pieces attached by twiney string wrapped around and around to keep them together.

To get them apart, you don't even need wire cutters. Just take one of the individual pine pieces and pull... REALLY Hard!!! My arm is still sore. Haha but I saved lots of money, which of course makes it even better. Once you pull one, the rest come out of their little nestled branch pretty easily! IF you have a husband, you can put him to work here! And you'll get a bunch of these ready to be played and crafted with.

A Work in Progress. Here is a wreath that I am working on... I used some pieces and thought the brown branches looked really good against the green. * *sigh* *

Here it is adorning my mantle. Don't you just love those Ho Ho Ho letters? Too Cute! My mom got those for me at Swiss Days in Utah.


This is not the last you have seen of these little piney friends. I will show you the other things I come up with for these pines! Oh and if you have ideas or make somthing, Please share it with me! I would love to see what you all come up with!

Button, Button who's got the button?

I absolutely love Buttons! I had a dream the other night where I was looking at this comforter that someone had made for a little boy. on the top there was flap with these huge buttons. I woke and got the wheels turning for these adorable little ornaments. I love them. I have been so excited to post this and show you all. I Love them! they are really easy too. You will love it!

Start with a Mason Jar lid, you can get them in these boxes for about $2.00. They come 9 to a box. Which works out to less than a quarter a piece. Love it! You will also need a hammer, a small screwdriver and nail.

put the lid on your pounding board, label down and pound a hole in the rim of the lid. This is for an ornament hanger. You can omit this step if you don't plan on doing them as ornaments. Hot glue on the back works great as well.

Now take the nail out and flip over to the other side and positon your screwdriver where you want the holes and use the hammer to poke the two or four button holes into the center.

Push the screwdriver through the holes to get a nice circular button hole

Spray paint in your color of choice. I hand painted some with acrylic as well, but found that spray paint was easiest. Spray paint looked a lot better as well, it gave it a more finished smooth look.


Now you can thread it through with your "thread" of choice. I loved the look of the natural raffia. I encorporate a lot of raffia into my Christmas Decorations. You can use any color raffia as well. I used red raffia and it was pretty cute too.

just thread the raffia through and then tie in the back. I also secured the end of the knots with hot glue to make sure that they stay.

Add an ornament hook and Voila, you have a beautiful ornament!

or cute addition to a holiday sign

or a cute accent to a candle, just tie around with raffia.

What about for a wreath?

The possibilities are endless. You can also put them as a finishing touch on Gifts!
I love this! This is one of my favorite projects thus far!
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How Pumpkin Pie is Made...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I thought this would be fitting for us to remember as we sit down to take our first big bite of our favorite Pumpkin Pie!
So, if you have ever wondered how Pumpkin Pie is REALLY made, here you go.

Ok, is that not the funniest thing ever? Oh man! I love the facial expression on this little pumpkin! So funny!
I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving full of Family, Friends, laughter and sweet, sweet memories.
I wanted to make a list of all of the things that I am especially grateful for this year...
First of all my Family. I love my family and am so grateful for everything that they have done for me. Their support has been amazing. I am truly blessed.
I am grateful for my NEw Mexico Family. I am seven hours from home and I am so grateful for all the people I get to call friends here. I am so blessed to know such wonderful people.
I am so grateful for Ronda and for all that she has done for me Eternallly. I am blessed to know her, and am so grateful that she willingly opened her home to me. My life will never be the same. THank you
I am grateful for my sweet little Kapri. She is crazy hyper, but super cute.
I am grateful for a wonderful job, that allows me to learn and explore my creativity every day.
I am just grateful to be alive. I have so many things to be grateful for. I am grateful for the Gospel in my life and how much happiness and peace it has filled my life with. I am grateful for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. His infinite and Selfless sacrifice on my behalf. Thank goodness for the Atonement.
I am grateful for Crafting and blogging and all of you who read and visit my blog. It is so much fun and such a great outlet and way to express myself. I am grateful for all of the other creative minds out there as well who share their ideas with us.
I am Grateful for Today!
The list can go all day.
What are you Grateful for?Post a comment and let us know what it is you are Grateful for this year...

My "Thanksgiving Resolution" for this next year... Keep a Daily Gratitude Journal. I have to write at least one thing, Everyday that I am grateful for. I have done this before and my whole attitude and outlook completely changed! It will help me remember to be grateful Everyday of the year and not just on Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving all!!

And the Winner is...

Roeshel with The DIY Showoff... Thanks for entering. I guess that makes it easy to decide a winner when only one person enters! ahhaha But I am glad that Roeshel won! She deserves some goodies after all of her sweet comments, support, and encouragement!! More Giveaways to come... So keep on coming back!!

Cute Trees, all in the spirit of Christmas

I literally pulled these from the garbage bin at work. Amidst all the glass and cardboard rubble here at work, were these perfectly cut triangles just begging to be transformed into something beautiful. I cut some of them down to the smaller size with the chop saw, I love using that thing.

I then painted on, get this, a paper towel onto the boards that were going to be white so that you wouldn't see the black writing underneath and to give it a different texture. I love the end result. All you do is take a paper towel and modpodge it onto the wood. The paper towel expands a bit, but the end result is really cool. This is a step you do not have to do, but it was fun to experiment with.
Then just paint them the color of choice

Spray paint is definately the easiest route.
I then just printed off two sheets in red and white with the words that I wanted on the signs.

I put the transfer paper on the letters and cut them down to size so that I could place them on the boards and not have two of the same words exactly side by side.

Peel and stick. I also learned the hard way that the paper toweled boards didn't allow the vinyl to adhere as easily. Add some little snow flakes to just finish it off. I love this font. IT is really just perfect for this project.

Finish by doing a clear coat of spray paint gloss just to make sure that everything is sealed in. This will allow a little more wear and tear throughout the years

Perfect for the mantle.
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AND
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And...

Let it Snow, Let it snow, Let it snow...

I have been busy, working away. My problem is that I cannot just do one project at a time. I start one and then get another idea and then another and another... and I start them all. So I have a million projects started and going at the same time and when I finally finish one, it is about time that I finish all of them up. So bear with me. I have a lot coming your way! Woo hoo!
This is just the beginning to many Wonderful projects to celebrate the season!

First I started by finding 5 frames I had lying around the house... I removed the glass and the backing of the frame. I sanded and painted the frames with Azure Blue Acrylic Paint.

I let that dry and then I took white acrylic paint and did some touchy here, touchy there dabbing on the parts of the frame I wanted to highlight.

On this frame, the trick is to use a small amount of white on the brush and lay it flat against the ridges of the wood and run it along the line. That way you get only the raised edges with paint. I love that there are some goofs on it too. Adds a nice touch I think... haha

I then printed out my Vinyl based on the sizes of the frames I had lying around. You can always go to the dollar store for cheap, but perfect frames as well if you do not have any lying around. I printed the vinyl out backwards so that when I applied it to the glass the vinyl would be on the inside of the frame.

This can be a tricky part of the process, but with transfer paper, it makes putting the letters in the right place Easy.
After The wood is painted and dry, and the vinyl is on the glass, reunite the two pieces and close all back staples on the frames. This gives it a little extra stability.

Now you take out the glue gun and just go along the edge of the glass and wood. Make sure that you do not go past the lip of the wood, otherwise you will be able to see the glue from the front side. If that accidentally happens, just wait until the glue dries, take a Razor blade or exacto knife and cut it off. Re-glue.

Now... The Best part... Hang it up and take a step back to admire and savor all of your hard work!


NOW The best part of all... I am Giving Away a set of the Vinyl letters so that some lucky someone out there can make their own!

Here's how it goes, oh man it is so easy... You'll love it!!

1) Follow My Blog!

2) Leave a comment, and a way for me to contact you so that I can get the goods to you!!
So easy...
And make sure to watch, because I am printing two sheets of vinyl with every project this season and will be having many a more giveaways. I am also researching selling some of the vinyl cutouts I make, and have made in the past. I need to know if there is any interest out there in some of the cutouts I have made. If so I will start to offer Vinyl Kits. Let me know! Oh this is so much fun!
Please send any questions or feedback to hollyaitken@gmail.com.
You are all the best!!!
Oh and by the way... Sorry, I am new to the whole giveaway thing a ding...
The giveaway will be closed on Monday the 23rd. So hurry fast!! I will announce the winner on Monday Afternoon!
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