Handmade Spotlight - Pumpkins!

Check out this great selection of handmade cats. You can view this entire treasury 

by Clicking Here, or you can click on each item to see it in greater detail.

Primitive Crow and Pumpkin D... PrimitiveBlack...	Primitive Ghost Door Doll wi... angelbugprims
Set of 2 Primitive Cloth Pum... PrimitiveBlack...	Pumpkin Soap "Pumpkin S... DaisyKays
10 Primitive Metal Rimmed Ha... ChooseMoose	Large Primitive Crow with 3 ... PrimitiveBlack...
Hand Painted Primitive-Folk ... JennysToleShed	Extreme Primitive Folk Art L... FolkArtandPrim...
Gypsy The Primitive Black Ca... scaredycatprim...	Primitive Crow, Sunflower an... YorkiesPrimiti...
Primitive Scarecrow with Pum... PrimitiveBlack...	Primitive Pumpkin crow stack... ahlcoopedup
Primitive Pumpkin Doll with ... PrimitiveBlack...	Primitive Needle Punch Pillo... thetalkingcrow
3 Primitive Fall Halloween S... oldgoatprims	Primitive Crow on the Pumpki... VintageTrimmin...

Sponsored by send bulk email from excel.

Tuesday Tutorial - Burlap Bag Jack-O-Lantern

Burlap seems to be really popular right now for decorating and I've found a really cute video tutorial for making a jack-o-lantern decoration out of a burlap bag.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

 

Happy Fall!
Deena Davis
www.byyourhands.com

Jacquie's Up-Cycle Nation: Halloween Tricks

Halloween is the perfect holiday for up-cycling!

Using old books and left over scrapbook supplies, cast-off coasters can become mini works of art.

The key is simplicity.  Don't over think the design. Less says more.

Start by prepping the coasters:

* Sand the coaster surface

*Apply a coat of Gesso

*Sand the Gesso layer

Using old books cut out letters, words, faces, and fun images.  Mix the paper elements with left over scrapbook supplies to create whimsical combinations. 

Play with different designs but, again, don't over-think the layout.  Too much concentration on theme can lead to frustration.

 

 

 

Halloween is a good time to drag out all those cool tints, inks, and paints that have gone unused in the past year.  Experiment with color and texture to create a creepy cool effect.

This mottled brown was achieved with watered down black acrylic paint brushed on and immediately blotted of with a textured paper napkin.

 

 Once the coasters have the right background, use Mod-Podge to cement designs in place.  After the first layer is dry more embellishments can be added.  Use markers, more paper, glitter, or whatever strikes a ghoulish fancy!

As embellishments increases, remember to cover each layer with Mod-Podge to protect the design.

Once finished, apply adhesive magnet sheets to the back to create festive magnets or attach a hanger and display as mini works of art.

 

These little vignettes are perfect for home décor or ghoulish gifts.  Remember to keep them easy and have a fiendishly good time in the process!

LOVE  &  UP-CYCLE NATION

Blog Party Sunday -- Show Off Your Handmades

Welcome to our Blog Party Sunday. We would love to have you show us what you are crafting.

You are allowed to add 3 links to your shops or your blog each week.

The rules are simple:
1. Follow our blog
2. Handmade items only.
3. You may list up to 3 items each week.
4. Family friendly items only.

The success of this link party depends on the participants so spread the word to your friends, visit the shops, post about it on your blog, in a forum or on your favorite social networking site, grab the button and put it on your blog or website.
Just click on the Add Your Link button below and add your items.
And if you would like to add a link to the party you can grab this button below.

<a href="http://www.byyourhands.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy110/ByYourHands/blogparty.jpg">, </a>

Blog Graphics Giveaway - WINNER!!

Congratulations to Barb of barbsheartstrokes.blogspot.com. Barb is the winner of our fall blog graphics giveaway.

The winner was picked using the true random number generator on Random.org. We want to thank ALL of you who took the time to enter and for all the wonderful comments.

Would you like to be a sponsor for one of the giveaways on our blog? It is a great way to get your craft business noticed. For information email us at byyourhandsblog@gmail.com