ForeFathers Specimen Art

I have wanted to somehow have pictures of all the Father's in my family displayed around Father's Day, and I finally figured out how - specimen art. I am fortunate to have quite a few pictures of the Dad's in my family and so this was perfect. I found a graphic called

 Cabinet Card frame, from Graphics Fairy.

I gathered all my pics and got to work sizing them on my computer and adjusting the sizes to fit the different frames I had. With a couple family lines I had three generations of men so I put them in the same frame with a surname tag.

I love these pictures. My grandfather is on the bottom, his father above him and his grandfather diagonal to him. With the surname tag I found some leaf clip art to give it a family tree theme. 

This is my grandmothers family. Her dad is in the top left corner, his dad beneath him and his dad beside. I did type their names on the picture - but you can't see it very good in these pictures as they are a small font. 

My hubbies family does not have many pictures. I put my father in law in the frame, but the two other men are my hubbies mom's family - so for the label I put "Ken's Family". I had a linen board from a frame that I used on the Italian Roots art specimen - but I didn't have more - so I downloaded a
linen digital paper from Graphics Fairy 
for my other art pieces. 

The same goes for my dad's family, I only had a picture of my dad and his - but I had a picture of my grandmother's father. The common theme here is Italian roots - so that was the title I gave this piece. 

I love family history. When I do things like this I feel a closer connection to those who have passed on. Father's Day is a great reason to get those old pictures out and celebrate all the father's in your family.

Check out my "Dad's Day" page for some more Father's Day ideas.






Linking up to...

Get Your Craft On

"Father" Wood Sign

Doing my Father mantel today and needed a sign. I used some scrap wood my daughter brought home for a project. This sign is made from two pieces of tongue and groove wood that I glued together which made it easy to glue together. I cut out a stencil using a Cricut from the "doodletype"cartridge size 5 using the shadow option.  I used the technique for my stenciled planters to adhere to the wood and paint. 

Because the wood is weathered, which is the look I wanted - I didn't sand the wood - but I did clean it the best I could. For this project I used a sponge dabber and then used the paint sparingly to give the letters a stamped look. I am going to look around for some hardware to put on the four corners to finish it up. Wish me luck!
Check out my Dad's Day page for more Father's Day ideas - and check in a day or two to see what else I am putting on the mantel. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Camp Blanket

Here is a relatively easy camp blanket to make. I purchased some fleece blankets that came in a pack of two for $5.00 (click here to see what I did with the other one). I found a clip art (this one is a Young Women logo from my church) and blew it up to the size I wanted. I cut out white fleece and started sewing. I made a purple one, and my daughter, when she was twelve, made this red one.

 The possibilities are endless - just pick an easy silhouette clip art and personalize a blanket for camp!

Linking up to...

Image Transfer on a Can

I am loving the acrylic gel medium. Remember my garden stakes? That was my very first project - I transferred an image on to wood. This is my second project using this medium - transferring an image on a tin can. So basically, this gel medium transfers the ink because you take the paper off - although it does take some work getting the paper off. But what you are left with is a paperless photocopy on objects like a tin can - it is so neat. I love how vintage this can looks! Here is how to do it....

1. Prepare the can - you will need a laser copy of a label or some kind of art work. I used a pumpkin label from Graphics Fairy. There are so many neat labels on that blog that you can find. I am going to do a few more cans. Make sure you flip or reverse the printing before you print out the label if it has printing on it. Oh yeah - the can I used was a HUGE tuna can. It is almost the size of a large coffee can but not as tall. 

2. Tape around area of the label. To do this I taped the label on and taped around it, and then took the tape off the label. 

3. Prep the can with gesso. I experimented with putting a transfer directly on a can, or using gesso, and using the gesso helped the image stick better. I put on a thin layer of gesso and let it dry for a few hours.

4. Paint over the gesso. I used silver so it looked like tin. After painting remove masking tape.
5. Using the same technique I used with my garden sticks - put the acrylic gel medium on the ink side of the label. Get out as many air bubble as possible. Let dry over night.
6. Wet down the paper - and slowly and gently take it off. Because this label had a lot of black - it took a lot of scrubbing to get all the white of the paper off. When it is cleaned to your liking and dry - spray with a clear paint to protect.

I am going to plant something in this can - but you can use it for all sorts of things. I hope this gives you some ideas!

Thanks for stopping by!

Linking to...
Graphics Fairy - Brag Monday

Black-Bottom Ice Cream Pie - Tutorial

I have never attempted to make an ice cream cake or pie before. When I saw a picture of this ice cream pie in a Taste of Home magazine, I knew I was going to go boldly where I haven't gone before. Yes, this isn't as lovely looking as the one I saw pictured in the magazine, with perfectly piped on whipped cream and a cherry to top it off, but it sure tasted good - and that is what matters. This is a definite "make again and again" recipe. The ginger crust is super yummy - and a neat change from the usual chocolate or graham wafer crust. Here is how I made it....

The ingredients:

1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies (about 24)

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 cup chocolate ice cream

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 quart vanilla ice cream, softened

Sweetened whipped cream

1. Put cookies in a blender and blend until crushed. I used leftover gingerbread cookies. They didn't get eaten because I didn't put icing on them. They worked fabulous!

2. Combine the gingersnap crumbs, confectioners' sugar and butter.

3.  Press onto the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

4. Soften the chocolate ice cream and stir it to get it nice and creamy. I eyeballed the the "cup" of ice cream - but I might have put a little bit more in than a cup. Spoon the ice cream into crust. Spread evenly. LICK THE SPOON! Freeze pie until firm, about 1 hour.

5. Meanwhile, in a heavy saucepan, melt chocolate chips with cream over low heat stirring constantly. When it is melted it will be a thick chocolate sauce. Remove from the heat; add vanilla. Cool. Spread half of the chocolate sauce over hardened chocolate ice cream. LICK SPOON!! Freeze pie until set, about 1 hour. 

6. Soften vanilla ice cream. I had no idea how much 1 quart was as I buy ice cream in 1 gallon buckets - so I spooned about 2 cups into a bowl, let soften for a while and mix until creamy. Spoon ice cream over hardened chocolate sauce; freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Spread remaining chocolate sauce evenly over pie. Don't forget to lick spoon, and of course, using clean ones with each step!! Freeze pie for 4-6 hours or overnight.

Remove from the freezer 5-10 minutes before serving. Garnish with whipped cream and a cherry if desired. 

Here is the recipe card...

Linking to...

Shirt and Tie - Father's Day Card Idea

I saw this card in a Paper Crafts magazine and thought it was a cute way to do a dress shirt card. I fused fabric on to interfacing to make it stiff and then I cut out the shapes. I machine stitched seams on the tie, collar and top of pocket. After gluing the tie and collar in place I stitched on the pocket - leaving the top edge open to put a mini picture of my daughter and I. On the inside of the card it says "Keep us close to your heart". 

Check out the other Father's Day ideas on my Dad's Day page.

Thanks for stopping by!
Linking to....

You are a Super Moto Dad - Father's Day Card Idea

My daughter and I made this card quite a few years ago - it was a "DAD" favorite. He is big time into motor bikes so of course this card went over well. What we did.... we found a toy truck in my daughters stash and dipped one of the wheels in black paint and ran it over paper. We repeated it a few times. I saw this idea in a magazine and thought it was a great idea. 

We personalized the inside of the card by adding pictures of dad and daughter on a day that we were out on a bike ride. So there you have it - a simple and cute idea for those bike loving dad's out there!

Check out my Dad's Day page for more Father's Day ideas.