d.i.y. painted wood bead necklace.

You know what spring means?  It means not having to wear a million layers of clothing!  Which  means I can finally wear necklaces without having them getting completely tangled up in knit scarves and I no longer have to choose between being warm and wearing pretty things!

In anticipation of this warmer weather (it snowed yesterday in Winnipeg guys!) I have been in a definite necklace making mood.  I love wooden beads because you can make so many pretty things out of them, and all you need is paint - and if you're me, glitter!

I wanted something that was kind of neutral, but still fun, I've been really into grays and gold lately.  I love how it turned out, and of course the little bit of glitter makes it even better!

What you need:
_wooden beads in whatever size you like.
_ribbon
_a little bit of chain (optional - if you use it you also need pliers.)
_paint
_clear coat spray paint
_glitter and white glue (optional)

what you do:
_1: paint all of your beads. I find it easiest to use a small brush and paint one half  of all the beads and then go back and paint the other half.  I did two coats.
_2: if you feel like adding some sparkle this is your chance.  I mixed two shades of Martha Stewart glitter together (yellow barite + Florentine gold).
_3:paint your bead with white glue and roll through your glitter. tap off excess and let dry.  touch up any spots that got missed.
_4: I only wanted a little bit of sparkle so I glittered three of my gold beads, but do as many as makes you happy!
_5: lay out all your beads on newspaper and spray with your clear coat.  This adds a shine to your beads and locks in the glitter to keep it from flaking off.  Spray one side, let dry, turn over and spray the other side. Apply two coats.
_6:make sure your beads are completely dry before threading them onto a ribbon.  I find it easiest to thread if I wrap a bit of masking tape around the end of the ribbon (kind of like a shoelace!)
_7:  if you want , add a length of chain to your necklace after threading the beads onto the ribbon, tying it securely and trimming the ends. Note:  leave a bit more length than what I've shown, otherwise you run the risk of it unraveling and beads cascading everywhere!
You can either join the two ends of chain with a clasp or jump ring and call it a day, or if you're like me and just happen to have a scrap of chain lying around you can tie more ribbon onto the other end to make your necklace longer.

And that's it, you're done!  And now you have something else pretty to add to your spring wardrobe.  Have fun experimenting with different paint techniques and glitter, I think a polka dot one would be sweet too!

Have a lovely weekend!   Also like the straight hair?! xo, T.

And again, the prettiest pictures are by the lovely Mackenzie loewen!

d.i.y. tassel necklace.

So apparently it's supposed to be spring now.  Winnipeg doesn't seem to know that though, currently there are 10 foot snow banks outside my window and there were flurries of snow when I went grocery shopping this morning.  Even though our city doesn't seem to be very welcoming of warmer temperatures I am very very ready for some sunshine and some colour to start popping up in place of all this white - that is also now brown, grey and sandy :(.  But since the colour is not yet appearing outside I decided to bring it into my wardrobe with this ombre necklace of mints, greens and aquas - these colours make me happy every time I see them!

This necklace is super simple, and will have you feeling like spring in no time.  It's fairly impossible to not instantly feel happier when you're wearing something so colourful and fun!

what you need:
_embroidery floss in a variety of colours.  I chose to do a ombre gradient. Do whatever makes you happy.  one skein of thread makes two tassels, so decide how big of a necklace you want ahead of time.  mine has 15.
_chain.
_needle nose pliers.
_scissors.  preferably sewing scissors.
_bobby pin.

What you do:

_2: figure out what kind of pattern you want.  I chose to do a chevron shape with a gradient of mint to aqua and teal.

_3:take your loop of embroidery floss and snip one end so that it is now multiple single strands instead of one  long strand.  divide it into two.

_4: taking one half of your thread slip your bobby pin onto one end making sure all of the ends of your floss are threaded through.  

_5:using the pin as your needle, thread your floss through one circle of your chain, starting in the centre.

_6:pull it half way through so that the length of thread is folded over the bottom of the circle of chain and there is an equal amount of thread in the front and back.

_7: cut a length of thread of the same colour and tie it around the top of the tassel to secure it, as close to the top as your can.  tie a double knot and snip the excess thread.

_8:repeat the above steps working your way outwards until your necklace is completed.  make sure all of your knots from step 7 are on the same side so that you have a back and a front to your necklace.

_9: using your needle nose pliers open the end ring on your chain and slip the ring on the other end through, using flat nose pliers to clamp down on the open ring to secure it.  clip off any excess chain.  If you like you can now use your sewing scissors to trim your tassels into any desired shape, I chose a chevron, or you can simply just clean up the messy edges and leave the ends even.

I hope adding this pop of colour to your day makes it feel more like spring, whatever the weather happens to be at the moment!

Also, notice all the pretty pictures?  They were taken by the very lovely and very talented Mackenzie Loewen.  You can find more of her awesome work here. xo, T.

d.i.y. necklace frame.

So, this January I moved into a lovely new house with a lovely roommate and lovely upstairs neighbours!  It's  pretty awesome and it's really fun getting to slowly decorate our little apartment.  One thing that is not so awesome is that I don't know where half my stuff is. Still.  Three months later.  This is mainly due to the fact that I didn't take half my furniture with me and therefore half my belongings are thrown into the shelves of my closet in a giant mess.  This is one attempt at fixing that.

Not only do these pair of frames keep all of my necklaces and bracelets untangled and visible (if I can't see it I won't wear it) but they also add a bit of sweetness to my empty walls!

You may rememeber a similar d.i.y from a while back when I made a earring frame as a Christmas present.  This is almost the exactly the same process; ugly frames, pretty paper and a piece of wood, except this time I used Krylon pistachio spray paint instead of primer to paint my frames and hooks from Home Depot instead of nails.  You can find more detailed instructions in my previous post here.

I can't wait to fill up my house with other sweet little projects! xo, T.

The delight is spreading..

So, when I came back from my *ahem* "short" little blog break I expected things at the most delightful adventure to have fallen rather quiet.  I was rather wrong.  While I was away a few craft projects got featured on various other blogs and instead of having zero page views, I had...thousands!  It was a fantastic surprise and I thought I would share a little bit of the excitement with you!

Over at Stephanie Gerber's blog Henry Happened you can find my embroidered locket d.i.y, right in the centre of 30 other sweet necklace tutorials!

You can also find it posted on March 14th on Cloth Magazine UK's facebook page here!

Over on Babble you can find my painted heart tights d.i.y - one of my first d.i.y.'s on the blog! - in their Trendspotting: 12 Awesome DIY Tights article.

Lastly you can find my vintage book bunting d.i.y. over at Saved by Love Creations as part of her paper garland round up!

And thanks to all of you for sharing the sweetness! Happy Spring! xo, T.

21 before 22. part 2.

Happy Christmas Eve!  I hope you are all having a lovely monday, I definitely enjoyed getting to sleep in this morning.  Before my camera fills up with millions of Christmas photos I thought I should finish up my 21 before 22 list!  Here are the last 11!

11. Yep!  I made this fringe necklace earlier in the summer and I love it, I still wear it all the time.  It's even got repinned quite a bit on pintrest, fringe is the best!

12. Nope.  This is my goal EVERY SUMMER.  I really want to go on a sweet little picnic with pretty food and wine, it still hasn't happened.  Next summer.

13. Yes!  Sarah is my very lovely 10 year old cousin, and she is like my little sister.  She has me to thank for her hair twirling, love of hair bows and sass! We spent a lot of time at the pool this summer and went on a few very fun breakfast dates.  I love her.

14.  Nope.  Not even close.  I thought this would be a fun challenge since I own like 4 shirts.  Shirts are just not my thing.

15.  I think so!  I pretty much go for a walk every day, I can't stand being inside all the time, even when it's minus 40...

16.  I looked.  And looked.  And didn't find anything.  This is still a goal.

17.  This was one of the most fun challenges!  I started collecting vintage juice pitchers and it has slowly become an addiction, it seems that every time I go the thrift store there is a new cute one waiting for me.  So far I've kept it at 4, but I definitely want this collection to grow, they're just so sweet, and they make pretty vases!

18.  Kind of!  I made Focaccia bread earlier this year and it turned out pretty good.  My oven doesn't really like bread.  However, I'm moving out in a week and I have my fingers crossed that this new oven will like bread!

19. Yes!!!! That was the most exciting part of my August!

20.  Ummm.  Usually?  I like baked treats.  But I'm going to the gym now, so that kind of helps right?!

21.  I didn't end up cooking twice a month but I did more this year than I usually do.  I've been really into soup this year, I love soup. So much.

And now it's time to start a new 22 before 23 list!  I had so much fun crossing things off this list I can't wait to see what this next year as a 22 year old holds!

xo, T.

d.i.y. beach glass necklaces.

One of my favourite parts of going to the beach during the summer is wandering up and down the water's edge looking for beach glass.  I've been collecting it with my mom since I was little and our collection has grown pretty large, I love all the different shapes and sizes and patterns that you can find.  From the more common whites and greens, to the soft white blues, lilacs, royal blues and soft yellows.  I love how the waves and sand wear down broken, discarded pieces of glass bottles and plates into something so beautiful!

Generally our beach glass sits in an old mason jar on our coffee table in our living room, but I finally decided that it was time to make something out of it!  I've wanted to make necklaces out of it for a while, but wanted to keep them simple without a ton of metal or wire wrapping.  Finally I found the right glue  - that's the benefit of four years of model building, you get a chance to try out a lot of different glues - and they turned out super pretty!

This glue works with pretty much any material so you could even make necklaces out of rocks, bits of pottery, or whatever else you've happened to find!

Things you need:
_beach glass
_weldbond glue (or any glue that will bond fabric to glass,  I liked this the best though!)
_twine, this one is cotton.
_beads, bits of fabric, or anything else you want to use to embellish your necklaces.

1_choose your pieces of glass! I picked different sizes, colours and textures, and a few rocks and pottery pieces as well.
2_decide which side of your glass will be the back and apply a line of glue horizontally close to the top.  following the manufacturer's instructions, let glue sit for 2-3 minutes until tacky.
3_cut a piece of twine large enough to slip over your head, plus some extra for knot tying and wrapping. place the centre of the twine along the length of glue, wrapping the loose ends around once or twice so that they both meet in the middle of the back.  place another dot of glue at the top and secure the twine so that it will hang straight down.  Gently press the twine into the glue and let dry for 24 hours according to manufacturer's instructions.  The glue dries clear so don't worry if your gluing isn't perfect.
4_experiment with different ways of wrapping your twine around!  try and keep your gluing to just the back side.
5_after drying for 24 hours your necklaces are cured and ready to go! embellish with beads or bits of fabric tied around the twine.  secure the loose ends with a double knot and your necklaces are ready to go!

This was a super fun, quick, simple little weekend evening project and I loved how they turned out! I made six necklaces or varying lengths and I'm excited for the chance to wear them in different combinations! have a happy week! xo, T.

d.i.y. fringe necklace.

Remember when I told you how much I love fringe? Well, now I made it into a necklace and I'm liking it.

The general inspiration for this came from one of my friends for had this amazing giant fringe necklace at folk fest last summer, I think hers was thread, it was awesome and I have secretly envied it all year.  Now I have my own.  I feel it's an appropriate amount of fringe for everyday, like not just for brief moments when I'm feeling extra hippie-ish. 

Things you need:

_vinyl

_template [I drew mine based off of a 5" square, the angled point starts 3" down on either side and ends in the middle - 2.5"]

_chain

_jump rings and clasp

_jewelry pliers [ needle nose, snips, and the flat ones that I can't remember the name for]

_rotary cutter

_ruler and cutting mat

1_cut out a piece of vinyl with your template.

2_ cut out two more pieces of vinyl, shortening the template by 1"each time.  It helps to measure them all on the template to begin with, cut the first piece, cut down the template, cut next piece, etc.

3_using your rotary cutter and ruler fringe each piece by cutting small strips, stopping 1/2" before the end.  It doesn't matter if they're an even width or completely straight, it moves around and the layers mix together once you're done!

4_pin all layers together, aligning the top edge.

5_stitch. you could use either a machine or hand stitch,.

6_attach jump rings to either end.  I trimmed down the back two edges and only put the ring through the front (shortest) piece.  I used a push pin to make the holes, it took a bit of poking to get the opened jump ring through.

7_decide how long you want your necklace to be my measuring the chain around your neck, then subtract the length of the fringed piece. cut in half and slip one end onto each opened jump ring, then close.  Attach the clasp to one end using a jump ring.

8_you're all done!

Have a lovely day! I've had the best time enjoying the sunshine, biking around and making pretty things! And May isn't even over yet! xo.

d.i.y. chalkboard necklace.

And the crafts begin.

Last summer I spent all of May making pretty things instead of actually working.  It was lovely.  One of the things that I made was a chalkboard, I love chalkboards.  Like a lot, I love that sound of the chalk on the wood, not the screeching sound, the ...other sound.  Drawing things in chalk is just wonderful, and last summer I discovered that chalkboard paint is also wonderful.  Cut out a piece of wood, prime it, paint it with chalkboard paint, put it in a lovely frame, and BAM chalkboard.

However, after making my chalkboard I still had a ton of paint left and now that school is finished I rediscovered it in my basement and wanted to do something with it.  I had seen little chalkboard lockets on pretty little websites but I didn't particularly feel like putting the effort into constructing my own little locket, maybe later this summer!

Anyways, this is my little chalkboard necklace.  It's fun because you can draw pictures on it.  And then erase it and draw new pictures.  And who doesn't love getting to draw on a chalkboard?  I thought so.

supplies: basswood (this is 1/4" thick). drill. primer. chalkboard paint. painter's tape. acyrlic paint (optional). jump ring. chain.

one_ clean out your studio and discover that you have an entire forest of basswood left over.  Feel slightly guilty and decide you need to make something pretty out of it.

two_cut out a small rectagle (or any shape really.) This one was 2" x 2.5".  If you don't have a massive pile of basswood in your room you could also use thin plywood, or anything smooth, it might just be a bit heavier.  Drill a hole in the top for your jump ring.

three_ prime.  let dry.

four_ paint with chalkboard paint.  let dry.  paint a second coat.  I used rustoleum.  It said to wait four hours between coats, which I did for my big chalkboard, but this was so tiny that I only waited 20 minutes and it was fine.

five_ you can either leave as is, or add a pretty boarder by cutting out the inverse pattern out of painters tape and using it as a template.

six _ paint border with acrylic paint.

seven _ let dry and peel off tape.  Wait three days for the chalkboard paint to dry before drawing weird pictures/fun words on your new necklace! 

eight_ in the meantime put a jump ring through the hole at the top of  your pendant and thread a chain through so it'll be ready to wear!

Have fun drawing whatever you want! like set squares (ie, triangles with holes in them)! Or words (I wanted to write "ephemeral," but it didn't fit, so I panicked and wrote "love."  I know, I know, so lame)! To erase just wash off with a damp cloth and let dry.

xo.