We love our Momma's

We love our momma's don't we!  Sure, sometimes they drive us crazy.  But, most of the time they're knock-your-socks-off amazing.  This saying pretty much sums up how I feel about my own mom.  She's such a sweet Grandma. 

 Just last week she surprised my boys through Easter Cards in the mail.  They came complete with stickers tucked inside.  She does so many little things that make life special.  


In honor of all the amazing moms out there, I designed these little plaques just in time for the Mother of all holidays (ok, it's really late, sorry).

There's a stack in my Etsy shop waiting to be given to some well deserving MOMs.

A chance to Give a little ... and Receive

Hi everyone.  Hope you're having beautiful weekends.  This weekend has two birthday parties in store for my eight year old.  That means two birthday gifts to shop for (insert a little grumbling by me).  So, I decided to use my skills as a crafter and a cheapskate to create them some personalized gifts.


I bought a couple of T-shirts and some of this screen printing paint at Hobby Lobby.  

My son and his friends are really into Pokemon right now, so I decided to paint their favorite Pokemon characters on their shirts.  I did this by using a vinyl decal as a stencil.  I found the graphics online and then weeded out the negative areas of the decals.

I stuffed a little foil inside the shirts to keep the paint from bleeding through.

Once they were dry, I combined them with some dollar store silly string for a couple of extra fun birthday gifts.

Then, I printed out a couple for vinyl decals for the birthday bags ($.50 at Hobby Lobby)

In total, since I was able to get the shirts 50% off, the gifts cost only $4.50 each (and that included the gift bag and silly string).  Not bad considering I've spent almost that much before on a gift bag alone.  And...bonus!  I have lots of screen paint left over to make more shirts.  My husband has already put in several requests involving old punk bands and sports teams.


Now, here's for the serious part of this post.  While making these Pokemon shirts, I kept thinking about the country where Pokemon was created.  A country full of good, honest, kind people who are now in serious need.  While my kids are off to birthday parties this weekend, many kids in Japan are just trying to stay warm and find something to eat.  We have so much, it just doesn't seem fair.  I desperately want to do something to help but, like most people, we live on a budget.  I'd love to just write a fat check, but then what would I do next month when the mortgage is due. 
  


So... that's how I hatched this little scheme.  I own an Etsy shop called Piccadilly Peddlers.  For the next week, (April 18th through April 24th).  I am going to donate all the proceeds from sales of in-stock items from my shop to the American Red Cross for the aid of individuals of Japan.  Yep, you read that correctly...100% of the proceeds.  Here's where you guys can help.  All you have to do is go to my shop, pick something out and buy it.  It's a win-win situation.  You get something you love for your home or a friend, and you also feel great that the entire price is going to people who need that dough much more than we do.


My job will be to do my best to keep up.  Watch out if you live near me, you might be enlisted.


If you can't afford to buy something right now, I totally understand, but maybe you could just spread the word.  If you love this idea, and want to do something similar on your own, then by all means, do it!  I'd be over the moon to see this idea catch on.


I'll be spreading the word myself by linking up to some of these parties.

I really hope I'll be making a nice donation to the American Red Cross on Easter Sunday!

Teacher appreciation subway tile

Last Friday my son came home with a PTA calendar for the month.  A quick scan revealed that Teacher Appreciation week is only four weeks away.  This year it's being held May 2nd through May 6th.  Every year I tell myself that I'll come up with some adorable and personalized crafts for our beloved teachers.  But, the reality is that I put it off every year until the last minute when I inevitably throw a notepad and candy bar in the back pack instead.  Don't get me wrong, I'm pro notepads and candy bars.  They're both delicious and useful.  But, since I'm a crafter through and through, I feel like I can do a bit better.  

So, this year I'm turning over a new leaf!  Presenting... teacher appreciation subway art!

I made them from 6" wide boards cut into squares.  Then I painted them white, roughed them up with some sandpaper and then added a touch of antiquing glaze. My glaze was found at Lowes in their paint section and I can't praise the product enough!

The vinyl decal was designed by me on my Sign Blazer software, using a few of my favorite fonts.  I stress the word FEW because really there are so many winning fonts out there!

I finished them off with a piece of skinny beading twine. 

I made a few extra and have them in my Etsy shop while they last.
I love linky parties and will participate in a few of these.

Three new designs

I'm taking a little break from all the Girl's camp crafts to share three new designs that were recently added to My Etsy Shop.  First of all, I have to apologize for the spacing of these images.  There was a lot of negative space involved that I can't seem to get rid of.

Now I just have to find a perfect spot for each one :)