Colored the eggs today

Happy Easter Eve!

I always try to find a new and different way to color my Easter eggs every year. Sometimes I don't find something new, but most of the time I do. This year I decided to 'copy' the gorgeous eggs in the wreath I posted below and I am so happy with how they turned out! It took a bit of prep in my head though, you know how you think it all through and decide how to approach the project you have in mind. Well, it was worth the thought process and I think it's a winner. What do you think?!

First thing I want to share is to make sure your eggs are at room temperature. I had mine in the fridge and didn't wait for them to warm up - they took FOREVER to dry the first time because of the condensation. What can I say, I want it now! LOL

Chalkboard paint (I used Prima brand) is quite thick and can be thinned with water if you need to. I might not have had to do that if I had waited, but I did thin it and it was fine for a first coat. I applied it just with my hands using latex gloves, then washed them under the tap for the next coats. 

I didn't have chalk paint in the eggshell color I wanted, but I did have this acrylic paint in antique white and that turned out to be the perfect color. Again, applied with my hands in the gloves. So much easier to get a better coat after they warmed up. 

After a couple of coats of paint (the blue could have used another coat, but as I said, I'm kind of an impatient crafter, and the shells are coming off anyway so I pushed on) I added the speckles. 

I love that they turned out so well!!! 

And look how cute in the basket next to the pretend eggs in my tiered tray table decor!

My inspiration. The wreath with the faux speckled eggs. Love!

Supplies:
Latex gloves
Non-toxic paints - I used chalkboard paint in Egg Blue and acrylic paint in Antique White
Ink or paint for the splatters - I used Distress Oxide refill ink in Ground Espresso
Brush for applying the splatter - I used an old toothbrush, but will use an actual splatter brush next time
Prepare your surface - I covered my worktop with parchment paper and it worked great

Speckled egg wreath

Oh my goodness. I am so in love with this project! I was inspired by several talented ladies from the Dollar Tree crafts Facebook group and decided to try my hand at this beautiful wreath design. Here is my version. 

I started with a double wire wreath form from Dollar Tree and painted it with chalk paint. Really doesn't need to be perfect at all; I wanted to give it a sort of distressed, or rustic, look. I didn't seal it with anything either. Then I hot glued the Spanish moss to one of the forms. They are sort of rounded, so it's easy to know which side is the 'front' and which is the 'back. Once I glued down as much moss as I wanted, I began laying out the eggs to be sure how I wanted them to look. 

These speckled eggs were a rope garland I got in the $2 to $5 section of the Dollar Tree. The garland was three dollars and all of these eggs were just one garland. (I bought two of them just to be sure I'd have enough but didn't need the second one for this project.) The eggs are all styrofoam, and I simply pulled them off the twine/rope they were attached to. 

Once I had the eggs placed how I wanted them, I hot glued them to the moss. Then I added the top wreath form and tied it all together with twine. The 'bow' and the little wooded tray are just hot glued to the frame. 

A little closer look

I searched online for images until I found the one I wanted for this little mini tray, then printed it out and adhered with Mod Podge. First I painted the tray with chalk paint and inked the edges with Distress Oxide, Ground Espresso, then after I added the printed image I painted the whole thing with a coat of Mod Podge. 

The 'bow' is not really a bow. I'm terrible at making bows (I just don't like my finished product ever :( ) so I made 5 loops, pinched them in the center with wire, then just stacked them using hot glue to hold them together. 

It's good to know we are not alone, right? :)

Today's design is something completely different. You know when you have a day - days, or even weeks - where nothing seems to go right? This one is dedicated to all of us who have them. Join me on the crazy train. All aboard!

I used eight stamp sets from Heidi Swapp and one from Tim Holtz (the hearts). Also, the tag itself is a Tim Holtz die, the medium sized tag in the photo below. 

It was a really fun one to do, finding different elements/sentiments from different stamp sets that fit with the 'crazy train' idea. If you're a wife, mom, or even a woman!, you know these feelings, I'm sure.

I popped up the large sentiment banner portion on foam tape for extra dimension. 

Pictured below are the size tags I use the most. Today's is the medium size Tim Holtz die.

Largest tag is Heidi Swapp, jumbo tag 7.5"x3.5" approx

Medium tag is a Tim Holtz die, 6.25"x 3" approx
Smallest tag is Heidi Swapp (what I call 'regular' size) 4.75"x2.5" approx 

Spring is hoppin'

Jumbo tag using Heidi Swapp and Tim Holtz. I'm in love with the hipster bunny set and adorable tiny toadstools, both from Tim Holtz. Ink colors for this one are Iced Spruce, Tattered Rose, and Vintage Photo distress oxide. 

I stamped off the bunny to give it a more muted tone of the Iced Spruce. It's pretty bold, so I wanted to tone it down just a bit.

I love how the toadstools look in this soft tattered rose color. Perfectly how I wanted it so they aren't overwhelming.

There is also a subtle basket weave background, also in Tattered Rose. This stencil is by My Favorite Things. 

I wasn't sure how brown would go with a spring theme, but I like it. Hope you do too! 

Easter tag

I love these HUGE letter stamps by Heidi Swapp called Billboard. I actually used them here as part of the background for my design. But first I used a cute chicken wire stencil, though it doesn't show up very well in the photos. Heidi fans will recognize several different stamp sets on this one; six or seven if I counted right.

I couldn't resist using this little hatching chick and eggs for this. It may seem odd to use it with the occasion, but the cracking/hatching egg could be a metaphor for the stone rolling away as Christ is resurrected, if you think about it. :) This is from a stamp set by Gerda Steiner. 

For the straw and nest, I used the fringe stamp from the January 24 stamp society set, turned upside down. Works perfectly for grass or a nest! 

Your Story Matters

For this jumbo tag card, I used a few different stamp sets, in addition to the new Book Lover set. They just seemed to fit the look I was going for and created sort of a theme. I love how well they coordinate with each other. 

There are three different 'sign' stamp sets here. The main one, the billboard, is a new release. I also used the road sign set from Heidi Swapp's Stamp Therapy Four class called Vacancy, and the Stamp Society traffic lights set from February 23. 

Press Pause...

Spring is finally here and the temps are starting to warm up - thank goodness! I'm so tired of being cold. Seems I've spent the past 6 months in a sweater wrapped in a blanket. Hahaha Anyway, I've used an older stamp set from Heidi Swapp to create the springy background on this jumbo tag. 

The acrylic flower is vintage Heidi Swapp from years gone by that I've had in my stash forever. I punched a hole and called it an addon tag. Love.

The books, mug and glasses from the new book lover stamp set (called Story Update if you're looking for it in the store).

 

Plot Twist!

This time I used a jumbo tag with the Book Lover stamp set (it is actually called Story Update) and a mini clipboard tag attachment. Such fun!!! Hope you like. 

In comparison, the 'regular' size tag is approx 2.25x4.75 inches, and the jumbo size is 3.5x7.5 inches.

There are other messages in the set that you can use in the boxes, but this was my favorite for a weekend of nothing but reading. LOL Also, I don't drink tea, but the teabag was too cute not to use. 

And what about this friggin adorable mini clipboard!?? It looks SO REALISTIC - especially with the slit for the note to fit into. 

I love love love the clipboard. Oh, and the cuuuuute pair of glasses. 

Previous post update

I love the book love stamp set by Heidi Swapp that I used for the tag in the previous post. I decided to gift it as a book mark, so I used removable adhesive to attach it to the card. I think she's gonna love it. 

That is all.  😊

Heidi Swapp, Book Lovers release

Fun release from Heidi Swapp for book lovers and anyone who loves reading, book club, library and all things book related! I made this one just because I HAD to use this stamp set. Isn't it so cute!?