Southern Scraps

My newest necklace creation reminds me of the clear blue ocean. I was in the mood to make jewelry last weekend so I dug into the stash of beads I've been collecting. I had no instruction to follow for this, other than the inspiration of seeing some seed bead chokers in a book I have. I picked up these raku beads at Big Lots one day and a tube of glass E beads at Tuesday Morning another day. I had no intention of using them together and didn't know what I was buying them for- I just knew they were a great price and I was drawn to the colors. Lucky for me these work together perfectly. Don't you just love it when your stash provides all the inpsiration you need for a project? Here's what I came up with: I made a set of earrings to go with it. This was my first try at  a wire wrapped loop. I love these vibrant colors and would love to keep this for myself, but I've listed it in my shop  for someone else to love and enjoy. Check out the link parties on the si...

Specimen art or punch collages have become quite popular. My first one was a heart specimen art for Valentines . I knew I'd have to do this again for spring with butterflies, since they are one of my favorite things. Ali Edwards has a popular version. Instead of the black frame I used for my heart art, I took an 8 1/2 x 11 wood frame from Dollar Tree and painted it white. I used a piece of kraft scrapbook paper for my background. It turned out okay. Now that I'm looking at the picture, I see a couple that are not exactly straight. I should have used the grid offered by Jen at Tatertots and Jello.  I was lazy and just "eyeballed" it.  Oh well, we'll pretend those few are trying to flutter away. Looking forward to the weekend! I'll be linking up to the parties on the side.

    A couple of months ago I stumble across this great find in an antique shop: A large vase full of jewelry! Some of it's broken and some of it is completely wearable as is.  See all the goodies:     I repurposed some black faceted beads for my Stella and Dot knock off from this stash. I also intend to make myself a broken jewelry letter like the ones Tip Junkie has featured. I haven't gotten around to that yet, but I do have a wooden "F" in my stash of other things from a project that was never done and now abandoned, so one day I'll have a cool initial on my craft room door.  What I HAVE gotten around to is a broken jewelry cross. I picked up a wooden cross at Michael's for a dollar. I wanted to alter/decorate it some way for Easter decor but didn't really know how when I first bought it. Then this idea came to me.... and I LOVE IT. A shell necklace and these other pieces became the final product (Please excuse the lovely ...

Don't you just love sparkly, glittery goodness? Want some glitter eggs for Easter decor? Get out the Mod Podge and some glitter. I picked up a bag of 18 eggs at the Dollar Tree. I used glitter in shades that matched the color of the egg. I coated each egg with Mod Podge and covered in glitter. I set them on some wax paper to dry. And I have glitter eggs! So easy! Here is another shot of them drying. I just couldn't resist the sparkles. And here they are piled into a clear glass hurricane: What simple Easter ideas do you have? I'd love to know. I'll be linking these up to the parties on the side. Linking to Get Your Craft On On another note, I just want to say welcome to the new followers I've picked up recently. Thanks for your interest and support.

I was inspired by  THIS Hobby Lobby project to make an Easter egg topiary. However, I used different materials and made it my own. Here's my mini tutorial: I started with a 2 7/8 x 7 7/8 inch cone from the Dollar Tree. I got mine during the Christmas season and never got around to the intended project. I also got some foam glitter egg ornaments and moss from the Dollar Tree. I removed the ribbon hangers and cut the eggs in half.  Leave one whole for the top. It only took one package doing it this way. I glued the halves onto the cone with the glue gun. Then I filled in with the moss. Some people cover the cone with moss first. I don't this it matters. Glue a whole egg to the top. After I did that, I glued on some butterfly/flower picks that I got from Tuesday Morning. Just randomly space them to your liking. I also added some tiny flowers from Michael's. That's it. I didn't put mine in a pot or base. It sits flat and can be displayed on any p...

of subscribing to a blog? I know many people like to read through Google reader, and I sometimes do, but I will more likely read a post if I'm subscribed through my email. I am going to check my email at least once a day and I don't have to go anywhere else to keep up with a blog if the posts are in my email. I've added the subscribe or follow by email option to my blog. It's just above the Google connect follow application. So I'm curious, what is your preferred method of subscribing to a blog?

Somewhere in blogland I discovered Stella and Dot jewelry. I've never been to a show but have browsed the website often. I've been wanting a long necklace for some time and their "Rachel " caught my eye, but I'm not really into paying $89 and above for a necklace. So what's a girl to do? KNOCK IT OFF! I've been having fun learing to string beads into jewelry and decided I'd tackle this one. This necklace is made to wear two ways. Here there's both ways: Here is mine:  and here is mine being worn: Mine's a little longer in length than there's but I love it. It's so light and I had so much fun wearing it last night. All of my beads and materials came from Michael's (40-50% off)  and my investment is about $30 (you could say less because I have quite a few of some of the beads left over and could make one or two more pieces with the leftovers.) Thanks for stopping by. I'll be linking this up to the parties on the...