Queen of Hearts Teacups

Hello!  Thank you for popping in for a visit today!  Are you ready for Valentine's Day?  In honor of this special day which is just a few short days away, today I thought I would share a tutorial to make your own Queen of Hearts inspired teacups.  The cups I am preparing have an added bit of kitsch and whimsy, as I am using them in an Alice In Wonderland inspired tablescape.  You may edit yours for a more refined outcome.  I hope you enjoy the post!

 

You will need:

Plain black extra-large tea or coffee cups
Stencils
Metallic ceramic paint
Gold Sharpie pen
Silver Sharpie pen
Rubbing alcohol
Q-tips
Tape (scotch or masking)

Begin by washing the outside of your cups with the rubbing alcohol and allowing to dry completely.  Use a clean, soft cloth to further remove any residual residue.

 

Tape your stencil into place.  Stencil your desired pattern onto the cup with the sharpie. Trial and error tip:  Do not remove hastily, you will end up like I did here, oh, dear!  The good thing is, rubbing alcohol works wonders at cleaning up these sort of errors, although it can be tedious.

 
Here, I've cleaned some away with a Q-tip.

I filled in the stencil pattern a bit more free-hand,

and also added some free-hand hearts.  Allow dry time.

Next, I carefully painted tiny hearts inside the ones I drew.

Here are examples of the other patterns I made. 

This one I also accomplished using a stencil and sharpies.

On this particular cup, I began by drawing a silver heart,

and followed those with gold.

Then I carefully painted red hearts inside each.

 

For fun and kitsch, I added "Silence!"

"All ways are my ways!"

or "Off with your head!"

quotes on each cup.  If you prefer a more streamlined look, you may want to omit this step.  Give your cups a once-over, and be sure to clean all errors with rubbing alcohol before you place into the oven.

Place cups into a cold oven and heat to 325.  Fire for 40-45 minutes, and turn off oven.  Do not remove cups until the oven is completely cool.

To protect your project, follow up (on the outside of the cup only) with a layer of dishwasher-safe ModPodge. 

To see these featured in my Tea With the Queen Tablescape for Valentine's Day 2015, you may visit the post on my other blog, Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here. 

Supply list:

Stencils, paints, and pens: Hobby Lobby

Cups:  The 99¢ Store

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

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Thank you for stopping by! ❤

Easy Scandinavian-Inspired Fabric Christmas Ornaments

Brrrrr.....it's cold outside!  Cold weather is the perfect time to don your favorite cozy sweater and relax in front of a warm fireplace or get outside in the snow swishing down slopes.  My Christmas décor this year has a lodge theme, so I thought it might be fun to make some handmade ornaments that remind me of a quaint little Scandinavian village where you might do just that.  I hope you enjoy the post.

You will need:
Styrofoam balls
Paper clips
Fabric
Ribbon
Hemp thread
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Round object for measuring
Pen
Scissors

I'll begin by saying I had quite a time finding "fair isle" fabric and a lot of folks didn't know what I was talking about at all.  My idea had been to find fabrics that looked like sweaters and make the ornaments out of that.....but I guess I'd have to learn to knit again (I haven't done so since I was little), and I was in a time crunch.  I settled on these fabrics:

I liked this red and white fabric, because it almost looked like fair isle,

and this grey one because it was soft, and I thought the damask pattern was pretty.  It also reflected light with highs and lows of grey, which I thought would look good on the tree.

Begin by placing a round object on your fabric.  I used a saucer.  The circumference of the saucer should be large enough so that the fabric you cut out will cover your Styrofoam completely.

Trace the circle with a pen.

Cut out.

Place the fabric pattern-side down.  Set aside.

To make hooks for your ornaments, bend and

cut paper clips into three little U-shaped parts.

 

Shown here.

Gently push the "U" into the top of your Styrofoam ball.

Bead a small amount of glue onto it to ensure it will stay in place.

Place your ball hook side up directly in the center of your fabric cut-out.

Now, slowly turn, fold, glue, turn, fold, glue, creating pleats, until the ball is completely covered.

Make sure you do not cover your hook.

Thread the hemp thread through the hook, and tie.

 

Finally, adorn with a small bit of ribbon, making sure you cover the tied portion, and glue the bow's center onto the top of the completed ornament.  Viola!

You may also thread the ball like so prior to adding the fabric, but I found the bows stay on better if the tied thread is there to grip onto rather than it being inside underneath the fabric.

You may also opt to use thin ribbon for hanging, like I've done here.

The options are limitless!

To see these ornaments featured on my tree this year, you may view the post on my other blog Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here.  I hope you are enjoying the holiday season!!

Fabric, grey and snowflake, Joann's Fabric

Scandinavian red and white fabric, Hobby Lobby

Styrofoam balls, The Dollar Tree, 3 large/$1 and multipack sized, $1

Hemp thread and ribbon, also The Dollar Tree

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines, as it takes time and effort to find fabulous pins across the Internet and Pinterest!  Thank you!  

Thank you for stopping by! ❤

Create a Spooky-Cool Halloween Centerpiece

Hello, friends!  Thank you for visiting my blog!   Halloween is just around the corner!  In light of this, I thought I would share a super-easy spooky-cool centerpiece idea!  I was planning a tablescape this year with a Burton theme....here is my process.

My supply list:

One large coffin with Styrofoam insert
Pumpkin figurine
Fake plastic skulls
Cardboard
Black spray paint
Wooden dowel or skewer
Tan paint
Scissors
Hot glue gun and glue sticks

I began by tracing my coffin to create a template.

Shown here.

Cut out.

Trim to size until the cardboard fits just inside your coffin.  Hot glue the cardboard template onto the Styrofoam to create a platform.

Spray paint black.  Set aside to dry.

Next, I removed the hat from my little figurine, I think he resembled a Tim Burton pumpkin much more without it.  :)

Here is a glimpse of Mr. Burton's exhibit at MOMA NYC (Museum of Modern Art) which ended in April 2009.  Do you see the similiarities?  If you'd like to see more of the exhibit, you may visit the article in the Los Angeles Times here.

On the platform, I began gluing skulls one on top of the other until they were a small pile.

Right in the center, I pushed the wooden skewer through the cardboard platform and down into the Styrofoam.  These reminded me of the Burton film Corpse Bride.

 

I used a paint similar to the bones of Mr. Pumpkinhead to paint the skewer.

Allow to dry.

Set Mr. Pumpkinhead right onto the dowel/skewer. 

Arrange to your liking and hot glue into place.

All set!  Cute and spooky, isn't he?

Where to buy:

Mr. Pumpkinhead figurine, K-Mart
Plastic skulls, The 99¢ Store
Paint, Wal-mart
Wooden skewer, local grocery
Cardboard, Hobby Lobby
Coffin, a lucky find at a local thrift, items similar are sold at Michael's Crafts


To see this centerpiece featured in my 2014 Tim Burton-inspired Halloween Tablescape, please visit the post on my other blog Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here. 

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines, as it takes time and effort to find fabulous pins across the Internet and Pinterest!  Thank you!  

Thank you for stopping by! ❤