All posts filed under: Create.

kawaii snacks.

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I took a kawaii snacks gouache workshop with Yay! It’s Vica! I love painting with gouache, but I’ve not been so great at including it as an everyday life activity. So I signed myself up for a gouache workshop to get some designated gouache time on the calendar. And I convinced my God-sister to join, too, so we could spend some creative fun times together. Vica, designer of some of the cutest illustrations ever, walked us through gouache techniques and step-by-step tutorials of how to create her style of kawaii snacks. This was a nice review of gouache but I also wish we spent more time painting snacks because, OMG, look how cute! I felt so successful at this workshop because my paintings resembled Vica’s samples. We learned how to paint different bread snacks with animal features like toast cat and burger bear. Something new to me was the addition of colored pencil – in brown! I’m obsessed! What cute snacks should I attempt next? Share below. You can paint cute snacks, too! Supply list*: …

highlights and sneak peeks.

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Happy New Year! I’m kicking off this year’s posts with a Top 4 highlights from 2022 + sneak peeks to some 2023 posts! You ready? In no particular order… 1. Reinstated (low key) birthmonth activities. If you’ve been following along you know I enjoy multiple smaller celebrations throughout the month to accommodate schedules and to do new things with friends. Last year I threw a pastry picnic and a park pizza hang with a birthday white elephant gift exchange. Will definitely share more on both of these activities to jumpstart picnic season! 2. Attended online crafty workshops. I miss in-person workshops, but I also like taking virtual workshops in my loungewear. Here’s a snap of my kit for a mushroom embroidery workshop. I’m looking forward to more creative projects for 2023! 3. Reinstated plane travel – with a toddler in tow! I flew to Colorado for a work conference and brought the family along for the adventure. It was my first flight since 2019. I actually felt prepared to travel with Bebe, but I was …

ceramics with bebe.

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I took Bebe ceramics painting at Brushstrokes in Berkeley. For his first piece, since he was quick with the paintbrush, we did a collab and I tried to paint the rest of the piece with his initial paint splatter as my inspiration. We left the studio with a season pass and the intent to bring Bebe regularly to get some more painting time. He ended up painting an additional four pieces – one for each grandparent (for Christmas gifts!) He painted a pair of mugs for one set of grandparents and a pair of bowls for the other. This time, Bebe painted the full pieces. We even got his handprint on a few of them. On our visits, he also enjoyed looking at all the ceramic pieces, climbing up and down the studio steps, and exploring the studio environs. I would say he is a minimalist painter with a hint of Pollock. Brushstrokes is a full service ceramics painting studio (they also have art classes and rental space) and I’ve been coming here for years. …

paper snowflakes.

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There’s no secret to the paper bag snowflake DIY; it seems to be all over the internet again this year. I’m adding a few tips and tricks here, plus sharing how we used this craft at my office winter party. Materials: Instructions: Tip: To make this craft last through the years or if you need it to travel well, assemble the snowflakes without sealing the final pieces together. Instead, secure with ribbon (and well-hidden paper clips) when in use; and then store flat. My office started to meet more regularly in person for work meetings, and this is the first time we’ve had a craftivity since Hearts and Crafts 2020. Excited to introduce more crafts to my coworkers! Have you tried this craft? Share below!

bookmark.

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Here’s a handmade gift idea for all your book (or magazine) lovers, and in my case – craft book enthusiast! For this project I used two colors of 4mm cord. I cut 4 strands 4-feet long with one color and 1 strand 8 inches long in the second color. You can mix and match however you like. I used basic macrame knots for this project, starting with 4 Lark’s head knots to attach the longer cords to the shorter cord. Then a series of square knots alternating between a square knot for strands 1-4 and 5-8, and then a square knot for strands 3-6, until you have about 8 inches of cord left. Finish off with a double half hitch knot for strands 1-4 and 5-8 going diagonally down and inward, then tie the two inner most strands together to create the pointed bottom. Trim and fray as you wish. Add a cute tag for funsies. Pair with a book of choice. What’s on your reading list this winter? Me: Modern Macrame by Emily Katz.

dream big!

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It’s been quiet on the felt crafting front, but I’ve managed to work on a few projects over the last few months inspired by customers who dream big! I worked on a giant wall hanging for a school auction. A class of second graders shared what giving means to them and I made a collage with their responses. What a joy to cut these words out! All the students got to sign the back, too. I made a duo of metallic felt garlands for my friend – one said Happy Birthday! and the other Congrats! The goal was to make something in neutral-ish colors to match any celebration. Metallic is neutral, right? 🙂 This is the biggest word garland I’ve made yet! Each flag is 6 inches by 12 inches. And lastly, I made another happy birthday sign for a friend. They wanted something colorful that they could use every year for Henry’s birthday. This banner was so big it barely fit my craft table! I used tape to line up my letters and make …

sunshine baby.

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My Bebe turned one (ahem, in November) and we threw a little party. We were still (and still are) in keep-away-from-people times so we kept our celebration to just immediate family, but of course decorated like there was a crowd (why not!). We went with a first trip around the sun theme to inspire the photo backdrop and birthday outfits, plus You Are My Sunshine was on Bebe’s top song list. I had two ‘major’ projects for the occasion: a balloon arch and a birthday cake. Balloon Arch I’d made a small balloon arch just to experiment with making balloon arches a few years back. Bebe’s balloon arch was a much more involved, larger project with over 100 balloons. I found a balloon arch kit online; it came with balloons, a long plastic strip with holes to place the filled and tied balloons, plus sticky dots (like Glue Dots). That plastic strip is a total game changer! If you’re planning a big balloon project I also highly recommend getting a balloon pump and balloon tie …

paper bag.

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It’s the easiest Halloween treat bag ever! If you’re pressed for time or need something foolproof for Halloween crafting, look no further. All you need to create these treat bags are Paper bags – Size will depend on what you plan to use for filling. I found these smaller bags at Daiso. A black marker Treats – I picked a few types of candy and stickers. Optional materials: Brown or green felt for the stem (You can also use paper.) Fabric scissors (or paper scissors if using paper) A stapler Work on a flat surface. Fold ~1 inch of the top of the paper bag to the backside. This helps with centering your jack-o-lantern drawing. Next, draw a jack-o-lantern face with marker. If you’re using a permanent marker (or thin paper bag), consider using a piece of paper or cardboard inside the paper bag to prevent the marker from bleeding through. You can write a note on the backside of the paper bag, too. Then fill with treats. If you’re adding a stem, cut out …

laser pumpkins.

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The same friend who laser beamed craft goodies for my Crafty Bebe Shower last year also created these laser beamed geometric wood pumpkins for a special Halloween DIY kit to gift to my fam. I gave my friend a photo of what I wanted and she created pumpkins in the perfect size. These kits were really fun to put together. I included paint pots filled with Martha Stewart acrylic paints (my fave) and brushes. Here’s how I packed them up. I included a string of orange lights, snacks, pumpkin spice goodies, googly eyes, and a fun Halloween card. I love putting together items to make the unboxing super fun! Some of the creations! I got in the fun, too, of course. Here are my pumpkins: What’s on your Halloween craft list this year? Share!

go big!

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What happens when you haven’t created with your hands in over four months and you sign up for your first in person creative workshop in over a year and a half? You get super excited and create a larger than life wreath, question if it will fit in the car to take home after class, and wonder if it will even fit your regular sized front door. Seriously, I thought my 2019 winter wreath was gigantic. I didn’t think I could create something even larger! Abby Dale of Craft + Work taught this wreath making class in the Royal Bee Yarn Company‘s recently renovated garden space. Abby has taken some of my felt workshops at Craft + Work; it was so fun to take a class that she was leading! She provided lots of guidance, inspo, and encouragement throughout class. Abby brought a huge spread of foliage – milkweed, sage, rosemary, magnolia leaves, eucalyptus, succulents… – some from the San Francisco Flower Mart and others from her garden. You really couldn’t go wrong selecting foliage …