Season 5: Week 1 Patriotic

#1 Wood Flag Bunting

In honor of the Fourth of July I wanted to create a

flag bunting using wood.

I remembered seeing a wooden "walkway" for sale at a local discount store. 

I knew someday it would be great for something...

 now it was just what I needed for this project!

 

First I removed the separators from one side of the walkway so it would be more semi-circle shaped, then I tied it back together. 

I screwed the smaller end onto a strip of wood for stability. Then I painted the bunting white and marked off where I wanted to paint the blue and the red stripes. 

Wouldn't you know it, 

the vinyl letters I ordered a few weeks ago came today!

Perfect for my sign!

 I antiqued both the bunting and the sign, 

then heavily distressed them both using sandpaper. 

I screwed my entire creation together and hung it with an old chain.

Happy Fourth of July!


#2 Straw Tote
While browsing Target one day, I came across a cute straw bag with fabric tied around it. The price wasn't too bad at $15 but I knew I could make one in a more thrifty way. I found a cute straw bag for $2 and I wanted mine to be used this summer, particularly for the 4th of July. So, I guess you can call this a Target "knock off" project.











Back view:



Now, I need my sunglasses, a big hat and sand under my toes on the 4th of July and I am set!!!




#3 Flag Screens

With not much time before the Fourth of July...I had dreams of digging through my junk and seeing if I could create a screen idea that has been floating around in my head. I found some old screen we removed from a friend's porch, leftover wood scraps, painter's tape and craft paint....maybe I could build my dream after all. It's a dangerous place...my head...for ideas to get stuck. Sometimes they are stuck there for YEARS.

While I am dreaming...can't we all just go back and live in the olden days when Sheriff Taylor picked his guitar on the porch and Aunt Bea brought out fresh lemonade?

It just took a few hours to put the frames together and paint some flags directly onto the screen. I'm so happy with my creations. These flag screen paintings are the perfect addition to my summer porch. If I can't live in Mayberry, at least I can sip lemonade with my family and enjoy that I finally got an idea out of my head...and it was absolutely free.

#4 The Celebration Skirt

Every girl needs some red, white and blue in her life, and a classic elastic-waist skirt, embellished with fireworks and stars, is just the way to go.

Stenciled fireworks light up the blue background with scattered appliqued stars. Of course, the biggest test for any skirt is its twirlability, and this one gets a perfect score. It's an idea you can apply to any holiday or the everyday - make it as simple or as complex as you like.

Kick back and enjoy the show - you'll be the brightest firework for sure.

#5 Pafta

The original pieces was used as a belt buckle in the traditional woman wear in the region of Balkan Peninsula. Here you can see a beautiful pictures of pafta. Their dimension, form and decorations may vary. I was excited about the possibility to create a paper copy of this nice buckle and to offer it as a contemporary finery, first - because it is really a lovely piece of art and second - it is an important part of the ancient history and culture of the nation.

I cut the desired forms from cardboard boxes and glue crepe paper to cover them.

I assembled the card board layers and decorated with paper lines. Afterwards I varnished the pieces. You need just to fix a belt or a simple piece of cloth and wear your old - new fashion jewels.

#6 Flag Block

I've had a glass block sitting in my craft room staring at me for a couple of months now. When I heard the first theme was patriotic, I thought what better time to use it.

I mod-podged scrapbook paper to the front for the stripes and used vellum paper for the blue.

I added star stickers on the outside and fabric around the block.

I wanted the stars to light up, so I added stencil to the inside of the block and added a stick up light. Now we're good to go during the day and an added bonus at night!

#7 Picnic and Parade Kits

I was so excited to read that our first challenge was to be something patriotic! I have to admit, I was kind of slacking on getting things ready for the 4th of July, so this challenge was the perfect motivator!

This is what I started with...

Yep...that's it...some Wal-Mart tablecloths & painters tape...

And this is what I made...with just a few snips of the scissors and a run through the sewing machine, now we have darling little 4th of July picnic & parade kits!

These took literally minutes to make...and they will be perfect for all of our summer outdoor activities...

Fill the pockets with your sparklers and your flags for wavin' and some bug spray and you're set for a parade...or stuff them with forks, knives, napkins & your marshmallow roastin' stick and you've got all you need for an impromptu picnic! The best part is they roll up and tie for easy travel and storage...AND, because they are made from plastic tablecloths, clean-up is a breeze...

Thank you, OMTWI, for getting me in gear for upcoming celebrations!

#8 Star Spangled Reflections

For this decorative mirror, I made 63 rosettes out of strips of felt.  They were rolled and twisted, then hot-glued in a flag formation right to the surface of the glass.  

The classic vibrant colors, along with the reflection in the margins, create a stunning image.  The wide ribbon bow allows it to be hung on a door or wall, yet it is equally beautiful on a tabletop or easel.  

O'er the land of the free, and the home of the brave!


#9 Learning Flag Game

 Being patriotic towards one country in a competition like this, I find a bit hard. My kids have dual citizenship, their grandparents are from two other countries and their aunt is from yet another country. And in my family, this is just a start...

 One of my kids have just started getting interested in flags, so I thought this was a great chance to be patriotic about EVERYTHING we are, and still teach them some other things. I have created THE LEARNING FLAGS GAME.

I printed out flags and the names of the countries. I mod podged them to plywood. Then I made one big and four smaller bags. I appliquéd flags from countries that have meaning to us on the bags. The big bag contains all the flags. Then each player picks a flag, make a guess about which country it belongs to. If the guess is right, the player puts the flag in his/her bag,if not it goes back to the big bag. In the end they all count their flags - and we'll have a winner.

To me, this is patriotic - to ALL that we as a family is.

#10 Captain America
The theme this week is Patriotic.
I wanted to do something that I would use all year round and that I could keep displayed all year round which brought me to this.
I started with a piece of plywood which I cut into a circle.  I drew my design, which happens to be the Captain America Shield, in pencil and added the old red,white and blue.

I hung the piece on the all on the garage to reserve the parking spot for Captain America only!!!
The garage is a place you can experiment a little more, go a little bit bold and beautiful and let your artist come out!

HOPE YOU LIKE IT AND HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!!


#11 Fireworks Dress

I'm SO EXCITED that this weeks theme is Patriotic! My Birthday is close to the 4th of July, and growing up I always thought that the fireworks were all for me! I LOVE fireworks. Last year we took our daughter to the lake to watch the fireworks and she sat there saying "wow! wow! wow!" after each one!

So as I said, I LOVE fireworks, and they really inspired my idea's for my project this week. I knew I wanted to make a dress for my daughter. My daughter is a total girly girl, so any dress for her needs to be able to spin! Also I LOVE the fashion of the 1950s and that and fireworks were my main inspiration for this dress.

I started out by going through my bead collection and finding these six perfect star glass beads. I love them. So pretty, and my daughter has been admiring them for a few weeks since she discovered my bead collection. I wanted to use the stars like fireworks and sewed a bunch of seed beads on wiggly lines like the fireworks going up in the air. The main blue fabric I got at Joanne Fabrics (they were having a moving sale a year ago and I picked this up for super cheep!) The blue fabric has different white flower designs on it, that are just so beautiful! The Contrasting red and blue flower fabric I found on clearance here at my local craft store and fell in love with it. I bought like 4 yards because it was so pretty and so cheep. I used the flower fabric to make bias tape that I used to line the sleeves, the skirt and as ties on the back of the dress. It also is used for the waist band and to line the square that has the beads. And of course no dress for my little boo would be complete without a big bow for her hair! Seriously this kid asks me multiple times a day for a bow in her hair. 

I hope you enjoy my spin on something Patriotic!