A Necklace Stand

I went to this awesome craft fair on the first weekend of June.

You must check out their website to see if they'll be in your city,

and if they'll be there, do yourself a favor and go -- lots of

craft love, handmade goodies & inspiration!

Here's one of the booths selling one-of-a-kind necklaces & earrings:

Cute display, don't you think?

If you are participating in a craft fair, street market

or selling your jewelry online, I have an

idea to show off your handiwork.

Blah: old pieces of cardboard.

Cut the cardboard to mimic a woman's upper body.

Trim an empty toilet paper roll...

This will act as the stand to elevate the cardboard.

Secure in place with hot glue.

Cover the cardboard "bust" in scrapbook paper.

Use a plain color so the jewelry you'll be putting

on it will stand out.

TADA! A great way to display intricate neck pieces

like this bib necklace or one with a fancy pendant!

If you sell online like on Etsy or ebay, this technique

will give potential buyers an idea of the necklace's

size, length & how it will look when worn.

And if you sell at shops or markets, have a few

of these bust stands to shine the spotlight on the

necklaces that you yourself crafted.

Every artwork needs a pedestal!

Craft Fairs & Jewelry Displays

Howdy Everyone!

Let me tell you about this fabulous craft fair

that I visited early this month.

It's called the Renegade Craft Fair held annually at

the McCarren Park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

There were free stuff like magazines & buttons...

Live music...

A photo booth...

Craft workshops...

And over 300 booths of spectacular crafts from clothes 
to jewelry to home goods, bags and paper products!

Craft fairs & flea markets are on my "To Do" List this summer, but as a shopper rather than booth owner for now. This got me thinking, maybe some of you will be participating in fairs & markets to sell your handiwork. I'd like to help you out with some ideas to display your wares using the blah to TADA! philosophy.

Blah: empty rolls of tissue & paper towels.

Find the center of an empty paper towel roll

then make a hole using a pair of scissors 
or craft knife.

Insert one end of another empty paper towel roll into 
the hole and secure with hot glue.

Make several in different heights.

Cover neatly with felt or fabric.

Mount on a thin yet sturdy piece 
of wood with hot glue.

To keep it from being wobbly, I did a sandwich system

from the bottom up: wood + glue + small piece of 
cardboard {directly under the paper towel roll} + 
glue + felt + paper towel roll.

TADA! A necklace & bracelet rack!

Add your handmade necklaces & bracelets

for a neat display.

{Avoid using this for heavy, chunky pieces.}

Even if you aren't participating in a 
craft fair, you can use this at home 
to organize your jewelry.

See you tomorrow!

Cool Compacts

I'm cleaning up my makeup kit and who knew that makeup

makes for wonderful blah to TADA! projects?!

Yesterday, I made weathered compact cases new again.

Today, I've got a few more ideas.

Let's begin with this eye shadow palette {missing a lid}.

I turned the eye shadow into paint the other day,

now let's see what we can do with the case.

Eye shadow's gone, case is cleaned &

ready for a makeover.

TADA! Turn it into a mini picture frame!

Resize the photos & print them on paper.

Cut & glue onto the little compartments.

Attach a ribbon and display!

Now here's an idea for a compact case

that has a mirror:

Detach the part with the mirror {a little force gets it done}

from the part that holds the makeup.

Dress it up with some scrap fabric.

Sew a pouch & leave one side open.

Turn pouch inside-out & insert the mirror.

Cut a square to reveal the mirror.

Tuck in the loose edges and secure

to the mirror with hot glue.

Close the open end of the pouch

with more hot glue.

TADA! A dressed-up pocket mirror!

It's an essential in every woman's purse!

Now that my makeup kit is clean, I think

it's time to shop for a new set!

Have a happy weekend &

Happy Father's Day to all you

dads out there!

Cute Cases

Happy Thursday! It's all about makeup on my blog this week.

Specifically, makeup that's past its expiration date.

I bet you have a few of these, too!

Compact cases for eye makeup, powder/foundation and lip color.

If the makeup police say "throw", go ahead and get rid

of the makeup (remove the small aluminum tray

containing the makeup) but keep the case!

TADA! Compact cases that look brand new!

Just clean it up with soap & water, dry thoroughly

and embellish with some bling.

TADA! We can put stuff inside!

This one keeps oil blotting paper (folded to fit).

Works for tissue, too.

This one can hold business cards.

Depending on the size of the compact, it can

fit traditional-sized cards or these mini ones from Moo.

You can steal a glance of yourself before you hand out

your card.

Keep vitamins & prescription meds

in this lovely case.

Great to take when travelling!

Mints or gum can also fit this one snugly.

See you tomorrow for more ideas!

Animal Prints

I was rummaging through my makeup bag and came up with a large pile of cosmetics that I need to throw out. But I told the trash can not to display the "Welcome" sign to my stuff just yet. We've got some blah to TADA! to do.

Blah: Powders like eye shadow, foundation & blush.

You can only keep them for two years.

Pry them out of the compact and

pound them into a fine powder.

Add the powder to a half-filled bottle of glue.

One color per bottle.

Mix thoroughly using a skewer.

Make sure the color reaches the

bottom of the bottle.

TADA! Our very own paint!

My custom colors inspired me to make some

animal-print note cards.

I used the brown paint for this giraffe print.

The black paint for my zebra print.

Let this dry overnight.

Ooops, looks like I didn't grind the powder that well.

But I quite like the 3-D effect and grainy texture!

Using glue gives an embossed look and the glitter in

the eye shadow adds some sparkle!

Imagine what else you can do with pink blush and

electric blue eye shadow!