Last day to vote for your favorite projects in the finals! I don't know about you but I can't wait for the reveal tomorrow! In the meantime, let's look at a little Christmas inspiration from our judges.
Come back tomorrow when we announce the winner! Then Saturday you can link up your Christmas crafts. Guess what happens next week? Auditions for next season. Get your projects ready!
This week's guest judge is the lovely Karen from The Graphics Fairy! If you have never heard of The Graphics Fairy -- go there and follow her -- then come back here. Karen's site is full of gorgeous FREE graphics for use in your home decor and craft projects. 2300 images to be exact!
Every Monday Karen hosts here Brag Monday party and you can link up any project that contains her images. There is tons of inspiring links every Monday so be sure to stop by.
Since this is Christmas crafts week here on One Month To Win It -- let's look at a few Christmas images from the Graphic's Fairy.
All those plus so much more can be found on The Graphics Fairy. Now for the fun part! We asked Karen to answer a few questions for us so we could get to know her better.
What is your favorite crafting tool?
Hands down it would have to be my printer!! I love using Vintage Images in my crafts (obviously!) so my printer is my best friend when it comes to crafting. My printer has waterproof ink too, which is really nice!
Where do you craft/create?
I have a large space in my finished basement that I work in. I love it because I can be as messy or as neat as I want to be and nobody will see it but me!
Who or what inspires you?
I'm really inspired by my readers. Every Monday, on my blog, they link up amazing projects that they made with my images, I wish I had time to recreate them all!!!
Thanks so much Karen for guest judging this week! There is still time to vote for your favorite craft in our finals. Head on over and pick your favorite! Come back Friday to find out who is the champion!
It’s hard to believe we’ve come to the end of season 6! All of the contestants were amazing and it has been an honor to have them join us. It’s our last round of voting. This week’s theme is Christmas and the three finalists did not let us down! They are all fabulous projects! It’s going to be tough to choose a winner.
Voting is at the end of this post…..
Number 1: Santa Stops Here: Street Address Sign
I’m so excited to have made it to the final three! What a fun contest it has been, thank you to everyone who has voted! Now, to get in gear for Christmas.
Every kid wants to be sure Santa doesn’t miss their home on Christmas Eve!
Here’s a cute, inexpensive, easy, and completely unique sign to let Santa know exactly where you are.
Here’s how to make your own.
Gather supplies. I cut a piece of scrap wood for the sign part, and purchased an inexpensive spindle and a finial from Home Depot. I attached these to each other with screws. I also purchased precut wooden numbers from JoAnn’s. If you don’t have scrap wood for the sign, you can purchase precut pieces in a variety of sizes a shapes at your local craft shop.
Using leftover Krylon spray paint, I painted the entire sign red. Once that was dry, I painted out more detailed parts in white.
Next, I used paint pens to add even smaller details. Green polka dots on the top finial and a wavy line border around the sign. A red pen to write the words "Santa Stops Here". I used a small flat brush with red craft paint to paint the candy-cane stripe border.
Using green craft paint, I painted my pre-cut numbers. I attached them to the sign with Elmer's wood glue.
For good measure, and because I knew I’d be putting the sign outside, I added a coat of Minwax Polycrylic clear sealer.
For the final touch, I added a store bought red bow (because I’m terrible at tying cute bows).
I staked my sign directly into the ground, but you could also stake it into a flower pot leftover from Summer to add a bit of whimsy and height.
Merry Christmas!
Number 2: Snowball Tree Skirt
Christmas is such a broad theme. This was the only week I didn't know what I was going to do. After much thinking and sleeping- I get my best ideas when I am sleeping, I came up with the snowball tree skirt!
I bought a white dollar store tree skirt and used the back. My mom used to decorate for weddings, and had yards and yards of tulle left over. I cut the tulle into 3 inch wide strips, rolled them into rosettes, and sewed across them. I continued to do this, until I had a few long chains of rosettes. Then I took the chains of rosettes, and hot glued them to the back of tree skirt.
After I had sewed on all the rosettes, I used Krylon's Glitter Blast to glitterize it!
To finish it off, I put white Christmas lights underneath it. I love the soft, snowy glow!
Number 3: Block Nativity
First off, congratulations to the other two ladies in the finales!
It has been so fun getting to know you both over this past month,
& it's an honor to be here in the finales with you!
{I still want to pinch myself...I can't believe I'm here! Yay!}
Originally when I saw the schedule & saw that Week 4 was Christmas
my first thought was: "Whew! That will be easy!"
Buuuut it turned out to be the hardest week for me
because, if you are like me, you've got
TONS of Christmas ideas & projects in the works
& it was super hard to decide on THE ONE I'd like to share!
I ended up deciding on my {handmade} Nativity!
It was super easy & best of all, didn't cost me a thing! Wahoo!
You gotta love that around Christmas time!
I just used scraps of wood from our shed,
and a few craft supplies that I already had on hand! :)
I'll share more of the "how to" on my blog on Friday.
I'll let you know all the sizes that my wood was cut,
& I've got a TON more pictures to share, too.
It was so hard narrowing it down to just these pictures!
Here's the {easy} tutorial on how I painted my blocks.
To make each piece:
I just got my block of wood.
Painted the face of it a creamy white. Let it dry.
I used vinyl nativity pieces as stencils. I cut these using my vinyl cutter & software.
I applied my vinyl to my block of wood & then painted over it.
It took about 2-3 coats of paint depending on the color I was using.
Then I let it dry completely & then carefully removed the vinyl.
Touched up any areas the paint might of bled through with a fine tipped paint brush.
Sanded the edges with sand paper to give my blocks a worn appearance.
Then I went over the entire block with some light wood stain.
I removed any excess stain with a rag. That was it! Super easy!
It would be an honor to have YOU vote for me!
Thank you to all the ladies from OMTWI & to all of YOU for making this such a fun experience!
I can’t believe we are already announcing the finalists for season 6! These women have done some incredible projects and we are so sad to see any of them go.
The winner this week is Styrofoam Picture Puzzle by Kate at A Piece of Kate’s.
There is still time for vote for your favorite Styrofoam craft from our contestants -- head on over there now! Come back tomorrow to see who is continuing on to our finals!
Remember we will be taking next week off to spend with family. The finals will be the week after Thanksgiving. Come back to see what these ladies have in store for us.
Now it is time to see what our judge's have for Styrofoam inspiration.
This week's guest judge is also a sponsor! The fabulous Andrea from The Cottage Market!
Be sure to follow the lovely Andrea for all sorts of DIY tips and tricks, recipes, shabby cottage decor, plus oh so much more!
We had Andrea answer a few questions for us...
1) What tool you couldn't live without?
Well I hate to be cliche but I have to go with glue gun! I mean it always seems to be there when you need it and never fails you but I might have to say that it is a tie with a paint brush : )
2) Where do you craft?
I have a studio that is dedicated to my crafting. An 8 foot desk that just never seems to be large enough! Tons of shelves and a big couch (for the dogs : ), chair and TV so everyone comes in to see me! Then there is a separate section for my computer, printer...etc. We also converted another bedroom into a craft/storage area...getting organized has never been my forte but I now have a 14 foot wall that holds over 300 Ball Jars filled with fun supplies and another wall that holds my 100's of dishes, candle sticks, vintage dishes and more! There just seems to be supplies everywhere but I have made a promise to me and my family that they never go into the living room : ) I hope to be organized in the next let's say decade!
3) Who/what inspires you?
Everything inspires me. My family is always my support and then just everything around me gets my brain moving. I am an art major and have always been someone that appreciated art if I personally enjoy it or not. I am a very visual person and just kind of soak everything in for future use! I think creating with a purpose is always something that totally inspires me. Making something for someone special or for a charity really gives things purpose! Of course it is always fun knowing that what you make will make someone smile!
They have an entire website with craft ideas using their product! Head on over and maybe make a map ornament...
Or pick another one from the hundreds of options! Styrofoam is so versitile and can be used in all sorts of ways in crafting.
Be sure to check out the store locator to find out where to purchase Styrofoam brand foam. And stay tuned as all week we have Styrofoam goodness happening right here on the One Month To Win It blog! Did y'all see the projects from last week?? I expect nothing less from our contestants this week!
