Friday, June 27, 2014

Crafting in Secret

Crafting in secret is exciting, fun, and mildly aggravating. I'm the type of person who likes to show things off when I complete them, especially if they turn out well. However, if you are making things that will later become gifts, you can't exactly do that! I've been making gifts and decorations for my best friend Amanda's baby shower, and now that the shower is over, I can finally share what I've been working on! If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you may have seen a few of the cryptic pics I posted as a tease. (I had to post something!)
Well, here's what some of those things became:
I found all of the ideas on Pinterest (of course!). Stroller butterflies Click here for the tutorial. 
plush blocks Click here for the tutorial.  A decorated bag for books Click here. a sign for the dog, and a shadow box. 

My favorite thing I made was this adorable plush bunny! It was my first time making a plushie from an actual pattern. It came from the book Storybook Toys by Jill Hamor. Which is an awesome book btw.
So cute!! And here's the one 'making of' pic I couldn't post to social media. 
Let's face it, those are clearly bunny ears!
My mom & I were also in charge of the decorations. 
The streamer 'rain wall' idea I stole from my fabulous friend Kayla Schuler who did a rainbow version at another friends shower. The block centerpieces were my own doing - I folded them using WeRMemory Keeper's Gift Box Punch Board and then cut the letters/borders on my Cricut. The name banner was also cut on the Cricut. The other ideas came from Pinterest. The chandelier is made of a metal ring, clear thread, ribbon, and lots and LOTS of punched butterflies. The alphabet book was a joint effort - mom & I created the blank pages and then the guests at the shower picked a letter to draw a picture for. We will eventually bind them all into a book. It all came together in the end and looked great! It was a labor of love for my best friend Amanda. I can't wait to meet baby Ellie!