Crafty in Kansas City - First Friday at West Bottoms

One of the great things about moving so often (thanks Army) is that Don and I never run out of places to explore. Imagine my absolute joy this weekend when we discovered a monthly shopping bonanza that celebrates handcrafts and artisans of every kind. If you live anywhere near the Kansas City area you MUST check out First Fridays in West Bottoms. First Fridays is a community of antique/reclaimed/artisan shops that are only open one weekend a month in the West Bottoms District in Kansas City.

I scored a HUGE collection of handcrafted Christmas items (all 50% off - woohoo!), some hand-dyed ribbon, and I love owls - so this little wooden Valentine called my name. We found an INCREDIBLE table made out of one giant slab of wood (but did not buy it - because it was over 12 feet long. Did I mention it is one piece of wood? And we are curently living in an apartment?) and Don, who is a military collectibles buff, has his eye on a French "support the troops" poster from WWII. I have a feeling if it is still there when we go back next month it will come home with us!

We all know how important it is to support local businesses, and crafters more than most understand the importance of supporting artisans who pour their heart and soul in to their creations. You will find those people here - and probably bring home a few treasures in the process. Just stay away from the french poster and we'll all be fine! :)

(photos above by me - photos below from Pinterest)

 

PS - if you love food like the Kingstons love food, after you are done in West Bottoms hop in the car for a short drive to the Kansas City River Market.  This community is an international celebration of all things food.  Not only does this neighborhood house dozens of ethnic restaurants and African, Italian, Mediterranean and Asian groceries, it also has one of the most exciting Farmer's Markets I've been to in a while, including an open-air spice market.  Heaven I tell you!  Heaven!  Hope to see you there!

How To Build A Headboard From An Old Door

FINALLY!!!! Don and I have been talking about these headboards for months, but our schedules and the weather made this much more than a weekend project! We are SO thrilled with the results and wanted to share this how-to with you, so without further ado I am tickled to welcome my first guest blogger...my husband Don!

Hey everyone, this is my first attempt at blogging, and it shows due to my lack of pictures of the process.  Regardless, I hope that you find this blog helpful in putting together your own recycled door headboard.  You can find the instructions here, and if you are unable to download it from the link just contact Beth at aintshecrafty@gmail.com and she can email it to you directly. Please let me know if I can answer any questions if you are thinking about building your own headboard or need some help along the way. Good luck and happy building!

We had been looking for headboards for both our guest bed and our own bed for quite a while. Beth loves catalogs like Pottery Barn and we both like antiques, but we aren't crazy about paying the sometimes ridiculous prices. Beth pinned this headboard several months ago, and after looking at the Anna White Queen Headboard plans that the original poster used we headed out to a local salvage yard to find some reclaimed wood.  What we found was something even better (albeit a little more challenging), some old doors with great distressing and character. We brought them home and after cutting them down to size (remember to see my instructions for detailed information and measurements for each step of the project) I built the legs and cap around the door.

After building the frame, the next step was painting. Since these are headboards that are pressed against a wall I only painted the front facing side, which was much easier and a big time saver because I could just lay it on the ground and paint one side. I painted the entire queen headboard black...

but for the king headboard we wanted to retain some of the original color and distressing, so I masked off the panels with painters tape and some of Beth's scrapbooking cardstock.

After the paint dried it was simply a matter of mounting the headboard to the bed frame - and we had some beautiful new headboards for a fraction of the price we would have paid for buying one.

Thanks for checking out my first blog post, I look forward to your comments or questions. I hope you enjoy building your own headboard! --Don

Melissa Frances Chipboard Houses Tutorial

As I mentioned on my FB page a while back, I am OBSESSED with these houses. As I also mentioned, I am so disorganized during the holiday season that I meant to post this how-to BEFORE Christmas, but here we are. So - apologies for the lateness, but to make up for it I am giving away a few of these kits  (post your New Year's resolution by December 31st on the aforementioned FB page to enter) and I FINALLY present to you step by step instructions so you can make some of these houses yourself!  These would make WONDERFUL wedding or housewarming gifts too...chipboard houses ain't just for Christmas any more!  :)

PS - I would also like to give a shout-out to my mom (who we will refer to as Crafty Sharron from now on) who is here visiting for Christmas and helped me with the photos and made some fabulous houses of her own while I was working on this tutorial.  Thanks Mom!

Supplies needed:
Melissa Frances ornament cottage kit
Three (3) coordinating patterned papers - I used MME Lost & Found Christmas
Xyron 510 with permanent adhesive refill
1/8" Scor-Tape
Liquid glue
Craft knife and self healing mat
Two (2) coordinating misting sprays - I used Clearsnap Smooch Spritz Vanilla Shimmer and Perfect Pearls Bronze Mist
Coordinating acrylic paint and brush
Bazzill Basics textured vellum (optional)
Clearsnap Fairy Dust Glitter
Melissa Frances mini bottle brush tree
White cardstock and printer
Distress Ink - I used Antique Linen
Two (2) coordinating mini brads
Foam tape

Select the roof, house and base from your kit. Find the "top/front" of each piece (based on the way the pieces are scored).

Put the three pieces in the Xyron 510 with the top/front facing DOWN. 

Once you run them through the 510, peel off the clear film and then GENTLY peel the pieces from the backing.  Chipboard is created in layers so if you peel too fast the top layer of chipboard will come right off.

Place the adhesive side of your chipboard on the BACK of the patterned paper for each item (see photo of completed pieces below...for example - the yellow piece of paper that the roof chipboard is attached to has a red swirl pattern on the other side).

Use a craft knife to cut out each piece and sand if you want to.  :)

(photo of completed pieces)

Use your craft knife to gently cut along the score lines of the roof and house.  You don't want to cut too deep, but if you do over-cut don't worry - see my HELPFUL TIP at the very end of this post.

Apply misting spray to your base piece ONLY. Set aside to dry.

Apply misting spray to your window and door pieces. Set aside to dry.

Apply paint to your fence. Set aside to dry.

Take your house and roof pieces (NOT the base piece) and put them back in the Xyron 510 with the patterned paper side facing DOWN. Run through the machine, peel of the clear film, gently peel pieces off of the backing and lay with the patterned/adhesive side facing UP on your workspace.

Apply glitter to both pieces, rub with finger to cover and tap off excess.

(photo of completed pieces)

Tip: If you are using patterned paper that already has glitter on it, you can use the tip of your craft knife to scrape off the top layer of glitter, revealing the pattern on your paper.

On the back side of your house, place Scor-Tape around the edges of the door and window.

At this point I should stop, take a moment, and explain to you that I am usually not a crazy adhesive woman.  When I put a photo on a layout I use some adhesive on each corner, not adhesive all around the edges and then some in the middle for good measure.  I'm not stingy with my stickiness, but I am not going through five refills per project if you know what I mean.  HOWEVER - because this is a project that I want people to use and enjoy (and I know it will be put on a tree, taken down and put away, brought out again next Christmas, etc. year after year - not something that is going to sit on a shelf forever) I used A LOT of adhesive on this project.  A LOT. I recommend you do the same.  :)

Flip the house over, center your door and window, and press to adhere.

Flip the house back over and apply scor-tape to the back of the door and window.

Cut two small pieces of textured vellum (or use the red cellophane that came in your kit) and cover door and window openings.

Apply Scor-Tape to the bottom of your house*.  I do not use liquid glue until later in the project because I HATE to wait for liquid glue to dry.  Using Scor-Tape allows me to put the project together quickly and then go back and "shore-up" any parts of the project that need liquid glue. 

*Line up the edge of your Scor-Tape with the front of your house, so the rest of the Scor-Tape is "hanging off" the back edge of the chipboard.

Use your finger to "roll" the Scor-Tape on to itself, making a thinner strip. It won't look pretty - but it will hold fabulously!

Repeat on ONE end of the house.

Fold house in to shape and adhere to your base.  I adhered mine pretty close to the back of the base, but I have seen them put on kitty-cornered and centered, so the choice is yours!

Repeat the Scor-Tape process on the roof edges of your house.

Insert the ornament holder in to your roof and apply to your house.

(photo of house with roof)

Use liquid glue to adhere your tree and Scor-Tape to adhere the fence to your base.

If you are applying a "plaque" to your house, print out your phrase in several different sizes.

Use distress ink to apply color to your phrases, cut out and determine which size works best with your house.

Use your craft knife to poke a small hole on either side of your paper.  Insert brads.

Fold both ends of your brads towards the center of your paper.

Use a small piece of foam tape in the center of your paper and adhere to the front of the house.

***HELPFUL TIP*** These chipboard houses ARE fragile.  If during the process you tear your chipboard along one of the score lines or feel like the Scor-Tape isn't secure enough, once your house is COMPLETED you can easily go back and fill in the gaps with liquid glue.  Apply the liquid glue to the affected area then sprinkle some glitter on the glue and tap off the excess.  It will strengthen your project AND cover up any small errors.  Thank God for glitter!  :)