Vintage Brooch Pin DIY

 Hi crafty friends! 

Today I'm posting about some brooch pins I made with a vintage flair. There are lots of different pins like this, some have the little holes for adding jump rings, others don't. I bought mine from Hobby Lobby, but I saw them on Amazon and other sites as well. Just search for "Brooch pins for crafts" and you should see some assorted types. 

Anyway, I have been collecting a few little doodleydoos for crafting these and I was totally expecting that I could use large safety pins. Um, no. It just doesn't work without extreme and unsuccessful alteration of the pins. So off to Hobby Lobby, and though they were almost hiding from me, I found them. 

Here's one of the pins (cute Boston Terrier in background):

And here are the pins I made: 

The first one features a bottle cap that I punched a 1" image from Tim Holtz Idea-ology Photobooth I purchased from Simon Says Stamp. 

This next one features a round bezel tray and an image I dug out of my stash. Is it Tim Holtz? Maybe, but I'm not 100% sure. Sometimes I'll be using supplies unknown due to having had them for a while, but I'll always try to add links if I can. 

To make this, I suggest putting the project on a sturdy surface (cardstock, plate, board) because you will need to carefully move it away to dry once the process is finished.  

I used Crystal Effects from Stampin' Up, but you can use any clear glaze product that is made for crafts. I put the glaze on the bezel (the empty metal circle), punched the image out and added it, making sure it was lying flat in the bezel. Once it was in place, I added more glaze and left it overnight to dry.

I bought a coat last spring that I've been wanting for ages, and I'll be added the one with the blue heart to the upper chest of my new coat. I'm somewhat eager for cold weather, but here in Statesboro, Georgia, we will only need a coat for a few weeks. 

I hope you enjoyed this post, I'll be sharing more in the future with step-by-step instructions or a video link where I created the craft. 

Thanks, and God bless! 

A Card for a Biker Guy

I made this card with “Legendary Ride”, a retired 2023 die set from Stampin’ Up. This is one of my most used stamp and die sets since it’s typically a guy set- but it can be for girls too! I rode mini bikes and motorcycles growing up, so there’s that! This card is for a couple, a guy who rides with his wife on the winding roads of France and I can’t wait for them to get it!

This is the card I made, and yes, that’s an Action Wobble spring under the bike. 

The stamps are red rubber and are as shown on the package front. I’ve never used the stamps, but those dies! They are perfect!

White card, black layer under the silver metal embossed layer. The embossing folder I used is an old Cuttlebug from Provo Craft

Here’s the result:

And there’s the Action Wobble Spring!

I think he’s gonna like it! 

Create Room Dream Box Reveal!

 

Hi there! 

Have you heard of the Create Room Dream Box? It's the ultimate for organizing your sewing or crafting supplies, and I've seen some posts where folks use theirs for office or salon tools. I wanted one for years, and when we moved to our home in Statesboro, Georgia, all of my crafting supplies filled a spare bedroom. Husband and I also enjoy sewing, so we needed that space for our sewing and embroidery machines. 

So in March of this year (2025) I ordered the Dream Box 3, the latest in the series, and let me just say it ain't cheap, y'all. But it is a great solution for all the pieces and parts that go along with my paper crafting, vinyl die cutting machines, and I even keep an Ikea rolling cart for my laptop tucked on the side. 

We opted for the preassembly, which is usually pretty expensive, but they had a offer and boy, are we glad we opted in! I've seen a lot of people online saying it takes quite a while (days) to assemble otherwise.

Here are some pictures from the day it was delivered! The truck driver called about ten minutes before arrival. You probably can't tell, but I was so excited! 

It arrived via a tractor / trailer, and was on a huge pallet. 

I posted a cry for help on our neighborhood Facebook page, and Dan, our super sweet neighbor helped my husband (Ninja Man) haul the big stuff inside. I carried the smaller pieces.  

The drawers! There are eleventy billion of them... ok, not really, but there are a lot! 

These parts are the preassembled ones. The center unit (standing) and two of four side doors. 

Ninja Man installing the "crown". Yes, you need this. It has lights and also finishes the look when the panels are closed. 

There's also a desk / table top that has amazingly strong hardware to hold it as a workspace or tucked in. 

Everything is ready to start moving in!

So move in, I did! You'll see I used Jennifer Maker's drawer covers svg file to "make it my own". I love grunge, Tim Holtz and vintage genre, so I chose this for inspiration! 

There is a large cubby below the desk top, perfect for stowing die cutting machines, small sewing machines or bins. My issue with it was having to get on the floor to access my machines. Here comes Ninja Man with a perfect solution! See that shelf at the bottom right? That was my problem getting under the desktop once it was open and covered in supplies for the current project. 

He used strong drawer slides and installed them on wood shelving, then added drawer pulls so I could just pull the shelf out when needed. 

And now everything is accessible! I did contact Create Room and suggested they add this feature, but they said they did previously but the representative would send the suggestion along. 

Speaking of representative, they have the 100% BEST customer service I've experienced since "back in the day" when people actually cared. Every single contact I made was met with kind and knowledgeable information, often going above and beyond. My vote for all things Create Room is 100 stars! (And no, this is not a paid promotion, it's completely my own experience.)

Crafting with Christmas Twinkle Lights from Spellbinders

 

I recently shared making strings of lights from the Twinkle Lights dies from Spellbinders Paper Arts. I enjoyed not only making them, but Spellbinders had a huge sale and they were around 40% off. They can be used for cards, scrapbooks or add them to Christmas house decor. 

I had been trying to get a decent video for over a month, having made several cards and 3D projects without my slightly expensive Switcher Studio software. I sure see the value in it now, but still not committed to subscribing again at $50 per month. It wasn't intended to be profitable, and (in my case) indeed it wasn't! I think it's an amazing tool but for my hobby interests, I'm trying to go without it. 

Here's the somewhat sloppy video- I did learn a lot about "roughing it" with just my iPhone, so hopefully future videos will be better! And my photography skills... oh... well, I'll be working on those as well. 

Spellbinders