Thistle House Primitives: October Give Away!!

Thistle House Primitives: October Give Away!!

Check out this great giveaway!  I just love this penny rug.  

Fall festivals, Free Doll and Wreath patterns

Hi y'all!  I just love the crisp cool autumn mornings, don't you?  I am working hard to get ready for 2 craft fairs this weekend.  Yep, you heard me right.  I'm actually  nuts enough to have a booth at 2 fall festivals this weekend!  Certifiable.  Wood n' Whimsy (Pam and I)  are going to have a booth at the Lebanon Fall Festival on Saturday and Ripson Bridge Festival on Sunday.  Both of these festivals are in south central Illinois about 30-60 minutes drive from St. Louis.  They are both awesome and we look forward to these two craft fairs more than all the rest!  Maybe we'll see you there!  This weekend promises to be sunny and in the low 70's,  so what better weather for taking a drive and enjoying the sites?

I also wanted to tell all you crafters about a great new blog called Prim Friends Network.  It's a great place to list, display your wares and connect with other crafters and potential customers.  Go on by and tell Shari hello and let her know what a great job she's doing with Prim Friends Network.

I came across this cute Little Prim Lady doll at Lillie Mae's Crafts   Go on over there and download this and many more free pattern for yourself!

FREE birdhouse wreath Pattern.

Materials Needed:

Wood Birdhouse
Wreath Mod Podge,
Mat Finish
1/8 yd. Fabric
Assorted Brushes
Curly Raffia (Colors to Co-ordinate with Fabric)
Glue Gun
Barnwood Crackle
Masking Tape
Ceramcoat Paints,
Small Sharp Scissors
Sandpaper
3 1/2 yds. Cording
Wreath Hanger Directions:

1. Sand wreath to take off rough edges, dust off wreath with a large soft brush or tack cloth.

2. Basecoat fence front and edges with 2 coats of burnt umber. Let dry thoroughly.

3. Mask off edges of birdhouses that come in contact with fence areas to prevent barnwood crackle from overlapping onto edges or roofs of birdhouses.

4. Apply one generous coat of barnwood crackle to front and edges of fence, allow to dry according to package directions.

5. Using a flat brush, apply ivory paint to fence portions in vertical strokes. Allow to dry.

6. Remove masking tape and touch up any areas you missed with a small round brush.

7. Paint the roofs and edges of birdhouses using a color thatcoordinates with your fabric. Apply two coats.

8. Use pattern piece to cut out fabric. Make sure you line up the pattern pieces in the same direction for all birdhouse fronts. Transfer the 2 marks onto fabric. Cut small slits into fabric at marks. Place fabric piece over perch on birdhouse. Line up fabric, mark any overhanging edges with a pencil and trim excess

.9. Apply 1 medium coat of mod podge to front of birhouse, place fabric onto front of birdhouse and using a small scrap of cardboard smooth fabric in place. Cut X through center hole, place a smalll amount of mod podge around inside of hole and press in the triangular pieces.

10. Cut six 3/4” x 3” pieces of fabric. Fold in half lengthwise, tack in place with a few drops of hot glue. Insert fabric pieces intobirdholes, adjust so they are even with front of birdhouse. Tack in place with hot glue.

11. Cut a length of cording long enough to fit around outside edge of birdhouse. Starting at the peak of birdhouse, attach cording with hot glue,following the edge of birdhouse.Repeat for all houses.

12. Using curly raffia, tie a simple bow and attach to bottom of wreath with hot glue. Attach wreath hanger on back of wreath if desired.

Please let me know in a comment what type of craft patterns, recipes and resource info you would like me to post about.  I'd also love to hear from you if you have a free pattern or craft you would like to share with us so plese  Email me and I'll post about it with a link to your site.  Do you have marketing ideas or advice?  We want to know!  

Til next time.....God Bless,

Celene

Blog and Crafters Website Marketing and Promotion

Hi Y'all.  I ran across a new website that I hope makes it big.  It's called On The Craft Table.  It's a crafters auction site.  It boasts free listing and free stores and the final value fees are much lower than eBay.  I wish them lots of success.

Speaking of success,  whether you are just starting a blog or your are an old pro,  Blogging Basics 101  is an excellent site to help you build, improve and promote you blog.  It's a very informative and helpful site.  

If you need help getting your crafters website off the ground, visit me at Primitive Promotions

where you'll find tons of free information and DIY resources to market your website.  We also offer budget friendly plans to do the work for you.   Either way, come on by and take advantage of the website marketing information you'll find there.

Til next time....God Bless,

Celene

How to make a spicy dried apple wreath.

Spicy Dried Apple Wreath
Thanks to http://www.vickichicagomarsh.com for this craft idea and photo.

Materials:

Juice of 9 lemons 2 teaspoons salt 8-10 large firm apples

Ground spices:

6 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons allspice 1 teaspoon cloves 2 teaspoons orrisroot powder (found at natural food stores) 8-10-inch heart shaped wire wreath frame that can be opened or closed by unhooking the two ends (or make you own with a 10-inch length of heavy gauge wire)

We began by pouring freshly squeezed lemon juice into a bowl, adding the salt and blending well. We then peeled, cored and sliced the apples horizontally into 1/4-inch thick circles. We placed the slices into the lemon juice mixture for 10 minutes, turning once. (Be sure that slices are covered completely with the lemon juice). After removing the slices from the bowl, we placed them on paper towels and patted them dry to absorb excess liquid.

Next, we combined the ground spices well and dusted the apple slices on both sides with the mixture, using a small strainer. After gently removing excess spice mixture with a pastry brush, we placed the slices in a single layer on a broiler pan. We placed them in a 150-200º oven until they were evenly dried, which for us took about 6 hours. We allowed the slices to cool on the pan. At this point, the apple slices will be pliable.

After straightening both ends of the heart-shaped wire frame with a pair of pliers, we folded the apple slices into halves, then into quarters, and threaded them onto the frame. When our frame was completely covered with slices, we used pliers to bend both ends back into hooks and reconnected them.We added a pretty bow made from ribbon with a loop for hanging to the top of our wreath.

This wonderfully scented wreath looks lovely hung on an entryway door or on an inside wall, and will fill your home with it's spicy scent until Thanksgiving.

Yummy, I can smell it from here! Hope you enjoy this free craft recipe.

Until next time...God Bless,

Celene

Salt Dough Pumkins

The air is getting crisp at night and fall is in the air. Here is a cute salt dough pumpkin recipe from AllFreeCrafts.com. Hope you enjoy trying your hand at making punkins. This would be a good one to do with the kids. Please share some photos of the process and the end results with us!

Til next time.....God Bless,

Celene

How to Make Salt Dough Pumpkins

Mix up an easy batch of salt dough and make yourself a patch of bright, sparkling pumpkins for Halloween. It's important to note that this recipe for salt dough makes a lot of projects. If you only plan on making a few, cut the recipe into fourths or in half.

Salt Dough Pumpkin Patch by Amanda FormaroSalt dough is a great medium for fun and creative crafting. Take this sparkly pumpkin patch for instance! Salt dough recipes aren't just for kids. Make these fun and festive pumpkins this Fall for your holiday decorating.

You will need:

1 cup salt

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup water

orange acrylic paint

paintbrush

Gold glitter

paint

2 green toothpicks, broken or cut in half

What you do: Preheat oven to 250 F. Mix together, salt, flour, and water until a dough is formed. Knead the dough on a floured surface until the mixture is elastic and smooth. If dough is too sticky, sprinkle with flour, continue to do so until stickiness is gone. BE CAREFUL. Do not add too much flour, this will dry out the dough and will cause it to crack before you get a chance to bake it. THIS DOUGH IS NOT EDIBLE, though it won't hurt you or your kids, it just won't taste very good!Roll dough in your hands to form different sized balls. Line them up on a cookie sheet, touching each other so that they will be one piece after baking. Use a toothpick to draw lines on the pumpkins. Insert toothpick halves, point size down, into the top center of the pumpkin to create the stem. Be sure to do this step BEFORE baking. Bake for approximately 2 - 2.5 hours. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. For best results, allow to cool and dry overnight, or for at least 4 hours.Paint pumpkins with two coats of orange paint, allowing to dry in between coats. When dry, paint with a coat of gold glitter paint or glitter glue. Let dry.

About the Author:Amanda Formaro is the entrepreneurial mother of four children. She is also the Chief Editor and Craft Expert of FamilyCorner.com Magazine.

FREE Crafts, Potpourri Pie

Hey y'all! A special thanks to Lisa at Cranberry Flats for giving me my first blogger's award! Prim hugs, Lisa Lou! I'd like to thank the little people who made this award possible.............OK, I'm back now. Whew! It's a little heady up here.

Anywayz, here is another terriffic FREE crafters recipe from Ruby Glen Crafts. I hope you'll give it a try and send me photos of the finished product! Don't forget to add your site to my plugboard.

Til next time...God Bless,

Celene

Easy Potpourri Pie Craft
Want an easy gift that smells wonderful and looks like it took you days to make? Or maybe one that appears to have been purchased in an expensive gift shop? Look no further -- make a potpourri pie using salt dough!


What You Need:
1 cup flour, 1 cup salt, Water, Pie tin (any size), Cooking spray, Potpourri, Butter knife
How To Do It:
1. Mix together flour and salt, and stir in enough water to form a workable, but not sticky, dough.
2. Spray tin with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 250° degrees.
3. Roll out dough into large circle about 1/4 inch thick, just as you would for making a normal pie, and line tin with the rolled out dough. Wrap up remaining dough for later.
4. Cook pie crust for at least 30 minutes. Let cool.
5. Fill cooled crust with potpourri.
6. Take remaining dough scraps, roll into a large circle, and cut into strips for lattice top crust.
7. Arrange strips over potpourri, in the same way you would make an edible lattice crust pie. Dampen dough to "glue" it down to already cooked crust.
8. Let top crust dry for 1-2 days. Decorate top of crust anyway you wish. Some ideas are fabric or ribbon bows, dried apples, and cinnamon sticks.
©2002 Brandie Valenzuela
About the Author: Brandie is a wife and homeschooling mom to three children, who also works fulltime from her home designing custom scrapbook albums and teaching scrapbook classes. For more information, visit: Brandiev Designs