Retro Canned-Ham Camper Trailer Box Kit | Review

A few years back, while scrapbooking online, I "met" a new friend, Michelle. Michelle has an amazing gift for creating 3-D projects. Not only does she design the project, but she also writes the instructions and walks you through the process of assembling it for yourself.

You can see her shop, Simple Everyday Me, on Etsy.

I put together a version of the Red Retro Canned-Ham Camper Trailer Box kit. Which also is a cupcake holder — which is awesome! 

SIDE NOTE: I have to apologize for the inconsistency in color. The red color you can see on the back window is more like the red you will get with this file. My printer ran out of ink and you can see that on the sides of the camper the window shades look more orange. That is my fault and not a consistency error on the file.

I really liked this project. I am more likely to use my Cameo for 3-D projects, but I really liked having the full download with extras as well as step-by-step instructions from Michelle on how to make this.

What glue you use will make a difference. I used Helmar's Quick-Fix Permanent Adhesive Runner. It is so sticky it is unforgiving if you try to move it afterwards. This camper is sure to stay together! 

I do advise using a small cupcake inside. A regular, large cupcake may get frosting on the edges of the opening when you try to put it inside. And the file comes with little flags and extras for both the cupcake and to decorate the camper. 

The rounded edges of the camper may make your heart skip a beat when you start to assemble it, but the tabs inside are cut so that they overlap each other and line up perfectly with the sides of the camper. Michelle thought of everything!

If you are in the market for a really unique gift box or party favor idea, I highly suggest you sneak on over to her shop and see what she's been creating.

Spring wreath

Last year I made a rag wreath by tying small strips of muslin over and over again on a wire wreath base. I love the look of the muslin for spring, so I dug it out of storage and gave it a refresher with some canvas flowers, pastel eggs and of course a birdie — in this case, an owl. 

I had the most fun buying the new pieces for this season's wreath — I was with Sara at the Hobby Lobby next to Audrey's house. I have to admit that when I look at this now, it reminds me of our fun girls weekend. 

Do you make a wreath for every season? Link yours in my comments section — I'd love to stop by your blog and see what you make.

To see the wreath Sara made, check out her blog today!

Holiday door frame

Sometimes your wreath just needs to be square. No rule says they all have to be round, right?! For my holiday front door wreath this year I used an ornate white frame I had laying around and some fun red and teal embellishments I had picked up at Hobby Lobby a few weeks ago.

The colors match my tree and decorations for the season. It just makes me happy to pull into the driveway and see this hanging on the front door. Did you make your wreath yet? Have ideas? Leave me a comment — would love to hear what you have planned!

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Reminder to join me tonight at 9 p.m. (EST) at Cocoa Daisy for the reveal of the Hello my name is... December kit. See ya over there!

Pajama Pillow Upcycle {how-to}

I did something crazy a few weekends ago — I took out my sewing machine (gasp!). I had promised my son that I would take his favorite Angry Bird pajama pants (that no longer fit him) and make them into a pillow. 

It seemed like an easy enough idea; it was the getting started part that was difficult. Well, as you can see below, he was quite happy I stuck to my word (finally!).

When we went to buy the filler for the Angry Birds pillow, I bought a larger package because it was on sale. As we walked through JoAnn Fabrics, we saw a rolled up pack of the last of the fabric from this NY Yankees fleece. We already had this fleece last year when we made a blanket. It was perfect! 

Why not make second pillow! I had bought extra filler and carved out the time to create. It turned into a wonderful Sunday. Nate sat by my side and we made these together. The Yankees one was an easier, no-sew pillow (which was helpful).

As you can tell by this enormous grin, he's pretty darn happy! In the spirit of being grateful in November, I am grateful for this grinning face. I love that we can spend these times together making things — and memories.

Thanks for stopping to see my project. I included instructions in the first image in this post, so feel free to PIN IT and make your own Pajama Pants Pillow when you get around to it.

Fall wreath

As I told my dear friend, Sara, Sept. 1st is game-on for fall decorations. I love fall and the colors that go with it. And decorating my house in these warm fall tones makes me happy.

Here is the wreath I made for my door this fall. I'll have it up until Black Friday when I start to decorate for the winter season. 

Thanks for stopping in today to see my wreath. It's one of my favorite things to make with the change of the seasons.

D.I.Y. {altered frames}

Hi! For once, I remembered to take step-by-step pictures as I made something! Woo-hoo! I never do that. I had been hoping these frames would actually turn out well and might make a nifty blog post — and I think they did!

The frames that are displayed above my couch used to be dark brown wood. Rather than fight the fact that I was going to be making them so much lighter, I used the dark brown to create distressed points in the coloring. That was helpful in how many coats of each color I was going to need to use.

I wasn't in love with the colors of yellow that were available to me, so I ended up mixing two different yellows. And I mixed them casually, creating parts of the paint job that are deeper or lighter than other parts. I liked that effect paired with the dark brown areas peeking through.

I used whatever white paint I had laying around in the basement, as well as a cool stencil sponge that was just plain fun to use.

After priming the brown wood a bit with a quick coat of white, I then painted using the color that I wanted the stripes to be — yellow.

I put down the painter's tape onto the dried yellow paint to create the stripes. I then painted the white over it. Again, I was quite casual with the white paint. I wanted part of the yellow to peek through, as well as the white under that and the dark brown wood that the frame originally was.

Peel the tape off once the paint has dried and that'll do it! Put the glass back in, choose your pictures and you are all set to go!

Here is a picture of the finished project. I decided to coat one the frames without the tape, so it was painted yellow and then painted with two layers of the white. You can see the yellow and dark brown through that middle frame as well. 

Thanks for stopping to see my DIY frames project. Maybe this has inspired you to give some of your frames a face lift, too!

Wreath in progress

Hello! Today I am sharing with you a wreath I made. I tied muslin strips to a wire wreath frame, resulting in this style of wreath. 

And now I don't know what to do with it! LOL. One part of me loves the simplicity of the muslin. The other part of me is dying to add a few pops of color.

Here is a picture of the back of it where you can see all of the knots that secured the strips to the wire frame. I loves this, too. It reminded me of a rug. 

I'm pretty sure that the "pop of color" option is going to win me over eventually. I'm thinking red for Valentine's Day. If I do add to it, I'll have to post an update here.

For now, let's vote! Write in your comment which you would do: Leave it as it is or add in a pop of color. I would love to know which way gets the most votes. 

Thanks for stopping by (and for leaving a vote, too). Have a lovely day!

Fall wreath

I took a different approach to my fall wreath this year.

I used a larger flower instead of the ribbon and bow, and I minimized the accent flowers by using hand-rolled felt flowers in a single color. The leaves are purple and the flowers are grey, which are a nice contrast to the zebra-striped flower as the main focus.

I am so happy with how this turned out. I plan on sneaking a small spider onto the flowers in a few weeks for a Halloween effect. Don't tell the hubs—it's gonna scare the wits out of him once he figures out it's on there.

Thanks so much for stopping in today to see my wreath. I always appreciate you stopping in!