DIY Cork Teardrop Earrings with Glitter Paint

Do you love to make your own jewelry or want to learn how? Try making  DIY Cork Teardrop Earrings with glitter paint! They are a great beginner’s jewelry making project!

I have to admit, I have a thing for earrings. When I started making jewelry in my parent’s basement when I was 14, they were one of the first things I made. Earrings take minimal supplies, and tools. (affiliate link)You can find some craft cork sheet here.

I teamed up with DecoArt to use their brand new Galaxy Glitter to bling them up a bit. It’s a cool new paint that is loaded with glitter.

Once you get hooked on making these, you’ll want to try other jewelry projects . There is something fun about being able to make your own custom accessories. They are great for gift giving, and Mother’s Day gifting as well, like this vase, and these wire wrapped earrings.

If you want to make these fun DIY cork teardrop earrings, you can find the full instructions on the DecoArt blog.

This post was sponsored by DecoArt, opinions are entirely my own.

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Remove Wrinkles with Steam from Drapery and Curtains

I’ve never been one of those people who likes iron things. If I absolutely have to, I will, but if I can toss it in the dryer with a wet towel first, I am all in. When I recently changed out my curtains in my dining room, they were super-creased and wrinkly. Since I wasn’t about to iron those bad boys, and they wouldn’t really fit in the dryer ( just kidding…), I used my HomeRight Steam Machine Elite to Remove Wrinkles with Steam from Drapery and Curtains.

(In case you are wondering about the difference between drapes and curtains. Drapes are normally lined, where curtains are not and are generally made out of a lighter, more sheer fabric.)

I like to change out my window treatments out on a regular basis. Since we are tight on storage, they all tend to be jammed in the linen closet together. These drapes are linen, so they seem to end up even more wrinkled than other curtains I have.

(Affiliate link)

I have the HomeRight SteamMachine Elite  that I use around my house for many cleaning tasks. I love to use it to steam my ceramic tile, and other heavy duty disinfecting, and indoor and outdoor cleaning tasks. It has a ton of great attachments. For the first time, I finally pulled the fabric steamer attachment and bonnet that goes with it out of the box.

You can see the full tutorial here on the HomeRight blog.

The one thing I really liked about it, was that it went fast. Once the machine was ready, the steam took even the worst wrinkles and creases out quickly. Steaming both panels only took me about 10 minutes. It was actually very satisfying to see the winkles disappear!

 It’s funny how once you remove the wrinkles with steam, the drapery panels actually lengthen a bit too (This is a great trick to do before hemming!)!  They look so much better, and I love how the steamer even freshened them up a bit after being in the closet for a while.

This post is sponsored by HomeRight, opinions are entirely my own.

 

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Paint a Metal Lamp Base

I recently bought a ceramic lamp, and I loved everything about it : The shape, the main color and even the shade… except the color of the metal base. Even though there is nothing wrong with a silver lamp base, it just didn’t fit into my decor as well. I really wanted something that had a gold/brass coloring. I decided to pull out my multi-surface paints, and give it a revamp. It’s easy to paint a metal lamp base with the right kind of paint. This would be a great way to give an old lamp a makeover.

(this post contains affiliate links)

After unplugging, placing it on a tarp, and taping around the cord area, I also taped the base of the socket and the switch. It’s important to keep paint out of any functional or electrical areas.

I started by adding a thin layer of multi-surface paint with a soft brush, and let dry. I waited about 30 minutes between coats. If you add the second/third coat too early, it will pick up the paint underneath, and lift it off. You’ll end up with a patchy surface, instead of one that is smooth. A soft brush is important to minimize brush marks. If you want a hammered metallic finish instead of a smooth one, you can try dabbing the paint on with a sea sponge.

As each layer dried, I added a new layer. It took about 4 thin coats of the multi-surface paint to get the coverage I wanted.

After I finished my final coat layer, I removed the tape, I let it dry a full 24- hours before using.

 

The best part of a multi-surface paint when you paint a metal lamp base, is that the sealer is already in it, so no addition work is needed. It’s an easy, and very gratifying makeover. I love that the gold tone of the paint, it makes it look like a much higher-end lamp.

I paired it on the dresser I made over a few months ago, and the abstract art piece I DIY’d.

If you like lamp makeovers, or are looking for inspiration, you can see this one that is painted a coral color here,

or this watercolor- inspired lamp shade.

You can also update, and makeover a lamp shade with trim,

or add fabric.

 

 

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Santos and Art Doll Live Workshop

When I was going to make art my initial direction in life right out of high school, I split my time between the theatre program, and art classes. One of my favorite art classes to take was ceramics. There was something about digging my hands into the wet clay, and being able to makes something beautiful, from something so simple and messy, that appealed to me. Even though I veered off-course a bit (by about 12 years ),a few years ago, I was able to get back into sculpting, and I made Santos and Art Dolls. I even taught on-line e-courses for Jeanne Oliver on her creative network, and had a few of my dolls published in various publications.

I am so excited to announce I am going to be digging my hands back into clay again, and teaching my first LIVE Santos and Art Doll hands-on workshop at The Collective lhe + Makery!

 

It’s a two day workshop where we’ll get our hands dirty in clay, and build the dolls from top to bottom , including armature, limbs, sculpting faces, painting, and even making wings if you want to add them!

The weekend will include all materials, lunch, snacks and coffee both days.

 

You can make a doll with a cage-like bottom, or a solid base.

We would love to have you join us, and if you’re coming in from out of town, we also have recommended hotels and lodging.

The Santos and Art Doll workshop has limited seating, so make sure you register early!

You can register or find out more information here.

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The Ace Hotel Palm Springs

We stayed at The Ace Hotel Palm Springs for the Creatively Made Business workshop. I wanted to share it with you because it was a really fun place to stay, and definitely very Instagrammable!

I was a little surprised when I first landed in Palm Springs, and almost the entire airport was outside! I have to admit, it was out of my norm, and I felt like I had almost never traveled before.  It felt very resort-y from the moment I got there, and I loved the fact that Sonny Bono has his own concourse named after him.

The Ace Hotel Palm Springs had a very cool vibe the moment I got there. It was one of those, so retro it’s cool again places. They had a lot of great, “modern” design choices that added to the vintage quality, with out it feeling too old. If I had to call it a style, I would say it was retro-eclectic-mid-century-modern-boho-chic.

The front lobby had a fun, eclectic, boho,  MCM feel. I loved the rock wall with the open shelving, and I wanted to take that chair home.

On the other side of the lobby, there was a giant sectional couch, and a window full of really awesome macrame. I kind of felt like these were my people.

The restaurant , King’s Highway, had that old, 1970’s thing going on. It was a great gathering place, and I ate there quite a bit. They had an amazing beet salad, and french toast with coffee jam.

Even walking to my room, there was an awesome mural by artist Laura Berger on one of the walls. I loved being somewhere that we were surrounded by art.  The rooms had a bohemian feel, with low beds, and canvas tarps for curtains. We were hardly in them, and they were the perfect place to drop your stuff, and enjoy the outside.

As a part of the workshop, we took a Mid-Century Modern architectural tour. We saw a lot of amazing homes, and heard some really cool background about Palm Springs. We even saw the “famous” pink Instagram door.

The other thing that blew my mind, is how much food was just…growing. There were tons of citrus trees of all varieties, olive trees, and pomegranate trees. As someone who struggles to keep my tiny Meyer Lemon tree alive inside, and where things only grow about 5 months out of the year (if we are lucky), this was astounding for me to see around every corner, and how it flourished in the middle of a desert.

My one regret is that I never tried a date shake. It sounded really good, and time just  ran out.  I’ll just have to grab the family and go back to The Ace Hotel Palm Springs. I think they would love the experience of something so different from what we are used to.

 

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Come As You Are…Building a Creative Business

It’s very, easy, when you run a business, to get caught up in the daily grind. You put your head down, and just work, work, work.  I’ve been building a creative business for so long now (since 2007!), that sometimes, it’s very easy to forget why I started, and that magic of creativity goes into hiding. It helps me to be taken out of my normal environment to see things in a brand new way!

When Jeanne Oliver’s Creatively Made Business Workshop came up, I knew I needed to go for so many reasons. But, I have to admit, right beforehand, I was wondering if I should really go. I’m not the best traveler, and can get anxious about it. In fact, I had a lot of excuses not to go, and I could have found more. Timing seemed complicated, and there were a lot of loose ends to wrap up. And, even though there’s no reason to,  I always feel a little guilty leaving my family behind. In fact, this time while I was gone, the polar vortex swept into Illinois. I was supposed to fly home Tuesday, and they basically closed Chicago. I ended up not being able to get home until late Thursday night instead ( Which made me slightly anxious.). Even though there were worse places to be stranded, I still felt a little twinge when my hubby sent me photos of duct tape around the door to keep the cold out, and I was hanging out in 80 degree weather, by the pool, with swaying palm trees.

So, I booked my ticket, and I am so glad I went!

I loved that the first sign I saw at the hotel was “Come as you are”… That I didn’t need to show up prepared, I just needed to show up, just as I was.

I really wanted to walk out my word of the year this year, which is “Intention”.  This workshop not only put me smack in the middle of other women who were doing the same, but it helped me to focus on areas I need to work on, and expand my thought process in other places. Everyone was so open and giving, that it was so easy to talk to everyone. We spent the time sharing our stories, and parts of ourselves.

Another thing that helped me unpack mentally, was the 4.5 hour plane rides. I always make a point to bring a hoarder-ish amount of books, pens, and paper, that I lug through the airport, and skip buying the wifi on the plane. There are so few places to disconnect anymore from on-line, that it’s a great opportunity for real decompression. It forces me read and roam, and it also helps my brain quiet down a bit. I need that.

I met so many inspiring women, and made new friends. There were so many new dreams and ideas. It gave me inspiration for new directions, and ways to honor what I’ve already accomplished, and explore items that have been placed on my heart.

The one thing I love about Jeanne’s workshops is her wisdom. She’s also done amazing things in her own business, and she’s so open and sharing to other women about how they can grow their own their own creative businesses. I’ve been so honored to call her my friend for over 9 years now, she’s such an inspiration to me, and is one of my favorite people. I came to the workshop empty, without expectations, and left full of intention and direction, all because I showed up.

What I love even more, is that the word “Expectant” kept coming up. These women came as they were, expectant to grow in new ways. The best part is, many of the other women also said they had doubts about coming, and almost didn’t show up in the last minute, but were glad they came.

Jeanne is running another Creatively Made Business later this year, and I hope if you are looking for a boost to your creative business, that you’ll consider going.

 

I think that was the biggest lesson of all , even when it’s hard, even when you doubt yourself, just show up.

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