A Surprise for my Shoes

Several plastic food containers were fighting for room in my cupboard. Instead of banishing them to the trash, I turned them into stencils. Here's one more project to end the week:

 Clean and dry the blah containers.

I chose a design from the web and printed out a copy. 

Cut around the plastic container to yield a clear, flat sheet. Lay the sheet on top of the design, and trace it with a marker.

 Cut out the stencil with a sharp pair of scissors.

This will be useful to update another blah:

A shoe bag I picked up at the dollar bin of Target

a few years ago.  It's cute as is, but a little

decoration won't hurt.

I positioned the stencil at the center of the shoe bag and kept it in place with tape. I added some silver paint with a small foam brush. 

I applied 3 to 4 coats of paint in a brushing and dabbing motion. Then I let it dry for a few hours before gently removing the stencil.

 As much as I tried to be careful, the final design didn't come out with a neat edge.

To clean up the excess paint, I used some Q-tips and nail polish remover.  Good thing, my shoe bag is made of colorfast plastic.  

Here's a classier version of my original shoe bag.

TADA! 

I think I'm ready to plan a summer escape!

Have a wonderful weekend my dears!

A Wallet Make-Over

Happy Thursday Everyone!

 If you've been tuning in, I've been turning these 

plastic food containers from blah to TADA!

 Clean it and cut around it so we end up with a flat sheet.

Create a stencil design with a craft punch or 

by drawing on it.

Another option is to trace a pattern. 

The clear material makes this task easy. 

 These images are from a newspaper.

 I used a permanent marker to trace these birds.

Make the stencil by cutting inside the lines, getting every

detail as possible with a pair of precision scissors. 

I'll use the stencil to brighten up this old, blah wallet. 

It's in a charcoal shade.

The inside has many pockets and a logo revealing 

that the wallet's a freebie. 

Position the stencil and hold this in place with tape. 

 Fill in with color using a marker or paint.

{You may have to define/clean-up the edges 

with marker once the stencil is removed.}

 Add a few patterns inside the wallet.

 TADA! Doesn't it have more character now?

A once blah wallet is now TADA!, thanks to some stencils!

Draw and Wrap

Well hello there!

I found this empty box, and while it's in a happy

yellow shade, I feel it's a little blah.  

I'll spruce it up with TADA! stencils made from a 

blah plastic container and a craft punch. 

I positioned the stencils on the box and secured 

them with masking tape. 

 Since I've got an autumn theme going on, I chose

markers in earthy shades.

Lookie! The box looks different now. 

Put the present inside and finish with a bow...

TADA!, a cute and quick gift box!

Fluttery Cupcakes

Thanks for stopping by today!

 This week, I'm turning blah plastic food containers 

into TADA! stencils.

 After cutting out a flat square, I'm making a pattern 

using my butterfly craft punch. 

Here's what it looks like. 

I'll use it to decorate a few cupcakes. Making sure the stencil is clean, I'll lay it directly on the cupcake {the plastic sheet should cover the whole cupcake}.

I put a few tablespoons of confectioner's sugar

in a shaker {a small strainer can be used}.

 Sugar shower!

 Gently lift the stencil and this is what you'll get.

It may not have your favorite icing, but it's an easy way (with less calories) to decorate desserts like brownies and cakes. TADA!

Plastic to Fantastic!

Hello Friends! I hope you had a lovely Easter.

Do you have any of these in your house? These are some of my plastic food containers that once kept salad greens, nuts, dried fruit and pie. I can't seem to avoid them whether I buy food at the grocery or at the farmer's market.   

Add to that, I also have an overflow of deli container lids. While these are useful for stashing leftovers, I don't have any more room in my cupboard for them. What a blah. But I've got a TADA! idea.

I'm turning these plastic containers into stencils!

Rescue the flat part of the container with a 

pair of scissors.

Take off any ridges. We want it flat. This will be

helpful when adding the design. 

Use craft punches {this will work well if the plastic

isn't too thick}. 

Draw freehand, trace a pattern from a book, or

use cookie cutters.

Sharp precision scissors are a useful tool especially 

if the design contains a lot of detail.

Please stop by every day this week to see

the stencils I made and how I use them.

Have a great Monday!

Confetti, Confetti

I made a couple of Easter baskets using stuff I found at home, like yogurt containers and plastic bags. A blah to TADA! transformation indeed. 

But I was left with these plastic bag remnants. Putting them to waste would be a total blah. Here's how they became TADA!:

A pair of scissors turned them into thin strips, and now they found new life as confetti! Use these to line an Easter basket or as cushion for everyday packages that need to be mailed.

I would also use them to add color to 

plastic Easter eggs. 

 They'll protect the candy inside.

They're the perfect substitute for Easter grass

that you buy at the store.

I wish you all a fun weekend and a Happy Easter!

Fairy Tails

I hope you are having an awesome Thursday!

Today, I've got another Easter basket idea.

Excuse me if I'm using another yogurt container. I'm fond of yogurt and collected a few buckets over time. As an alternative, you can use empty ice cream tubs, deli containers or old boxes. They're all blah...

 But with a little lovin', they become TADA!

Just several blah elements used in this project.

I like how the bottom resembles a fairy's skirt.

This basket's ready for some Easter eggs!