Trishalicious & Co.

Welcome Smeared & Smudged Bloody Valentine blog hoppers!

2012-02-10T20:07:00.008-05:00

My project was created for the Secret Sister Bloody Valentine swap on Smeared and Smudged. I have to say that I really enjoyed creating these projects for my secret pal. I chose to make a couple of non traditional items: Altered cigar box, soldered hanging ornament, and a soldered "dark fairy" necklace. Hopefully my secret sister will enjoy everything and I hope all of it makes it over the pond in one piece.

One thing I loved about this cigar box was it opened in the middle as opposed to one of the sides. This also presented me with the challenge of what to do with the heart center piece I wanted to be the focal point. I decided to split it into two halves and it worked like a charm. I then filled the heart with broken jewelry, beads, spiders, skulls and a few other odds and ends. At the top of the heart I spelled out "Be my bloody valentine, insert my secret pals name here". I also stamped the words forever and love hurts. I need to note here this little gem of a heart took me over two weeks to create.

Anyone who knows me knows I will solder anything that doesn't move faster than I can get my hands on it! I am not joking. Lol The black and cream flowers were soldered individually to the front side. I figured it was going to take me awhile to do this but the whole thing only took me 45 minutes from start to finish (This included cutting the glass). Speaking of the glass.... You can not see it in the photo but the glass has a special scratched finish you can only see when you tilt it in the light.After trolling through some images I settled on a dark angel and a poem that reads;

Roses are red,

Violets are blue,

My rose is white and it bleeds for you.

On the back side I added some bloody halloween paper by Martha Stuart and another image. Oh come on.... You knew there was going to be blood somewhere. It is a bloody valentine swap after all! Lol

I thought it needed a little contrast so I soldered black and clear bling to the top and bottom of the ornament. Then finished the whole thing off with a black patina.

Last I created a goth like fairy necklace. It was quite the trick to line the wings up, hold them in place, and solder all at the same time. But necessity is the mother of invention after all and I managed to do it.

Products used:Rock Star Black metal by Ten Second Studio

Tim holtz: Advantus - Idea-ology Collection - Foundations Metal

Feet 7 gypsies: Red -

Knob - Antique Brass

Paper clay

Silver leaf

Crimson acrylic paint by Heidi Swapp

Martha Stuart 3X6 "Vampire paper"

All kinds of stuff from the "junk" box

Glass, solder, and copper tape

Thank you for stopping by! Now you are off to see Dianne. http://dkspinner.blogspot.com/

http://smearedandsmudged.ning.com/

http://ndustrial-lemon.blogspot.com/

http://suzy-ikesworld.blogspot.com/

http://welcometomydarkside.blogspot.com/

http://www.kemperneck.blogspot.com/

http://alisonsrandomthoughts.blogspot.com/

http://cromscubbyhole.blogspot.com/

http://jcocraft.blogspot.com/

http://lynsblogger.blogspot.com/

http://kc-consultant.blogspot.com/

http://sugscardsnmore.blogspot.com/

http://www.phoebekattebeest.blogspot.com/

http://www.ladybrayton71.blogspot.com/

http://cajunstampingqueen.blogspot.com/

http://www.ldfdesign.blogspot.com/

http://dontbeaprude.wordpress.com/

http://stephscreativechaos.blogspot.com/

http://insanedaze.blogspot.com/

http://piecesoffatesusan.blogspot.com/

http://jamiescrazycraftylife.blogspot.com/

http://idontdostraight.blogspot.com/

http://happycraftings.blogspot.com/

http://trishliciousandco.blogspot.com/

http://dkspinner.blogspot.com/

A wreath tale.....

2012-01-08T17:27:00.005-05:00

Christmas 2011 I had the bright idea that I was going to make a wreath for all of the mail boxes on my block. This was quite the undertaking and I had to call in reinforcements in the form of my Mom and Aunt Peggy. We had a huge assembly line going for 12 wreaths. Needless to say they were a HUGE hit with the neighbors and our block ended up winning the best decorated street award. Well last Thursday I went to neighborhood bunco and heard my wreaths were the talk of the home owners association meeting. I ended up being asked to create wreaths this year for three different blocks within the subdivision. Lol
So wreathapolooza 2012 is in the works! In the mean time.........

I love after Christmas shopping and can not pass up a bargain! For 2012 I decided to change the Christmas decor in the family room to red, green, and gold with a Santa Claus theme. So the day after Christmas I started hitting the stores for those 1/2 price must have ornaments, wreaths, ribbon, garlands, and other holiday embellishments.

First project up for Christmas 2012 is a 4 foot wreath for over the fire place. I bought the wreath at Hobby Lobby for 80% off (final cost $10) and the blown glass ornaments at Macy's, Hobby Lobby, Dillards, JoAnn's, and Michaels for between 0.50 to $3.00. The ribbon I found at The Christmas store in Arlington for $5 it was 30% off and came in a 100 feet roll. I will have enough left to use the same ribbon on the garland and table arrangements as well.

Start off by making the bow for the top of the wreath and then attach it with floral wire. Next I added the big Santa that sits in side the wreath. I have to confess to using chopsticks as a brace for the back of Santa. He is a heavy guy and needed the added support. The chopsticks also gave me something to use to wire Santa into the wreath.

Last I did a dry placement of ornaments before I wired and hot glued them into the wreath permanently. I have priced wreath's this size with a lot less decoration and they were $300 and up. I spent a total of $50 for all of the supplies and have enough stuff left for a garland and table arrangement. I told my husband I saved him a boatload of money by spending some. He actually agreed. Lol

Photo card ornament

2011-12-18T17:35:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite things to receive during the holidays are the family photo Christmas cards.
I love seeing how the families change and the kids grow during the year. These are too special to discard after the season is over, so I have saved them through out the years with the intention of coming up with something creative to do with them. This year I decided to make an ornament out of them and "re-gift" them to the family that sent them to me. I think this is one gift that's okay to re-gift and the family won't mind receiving back this year.

Supplies needed: One photo cardTwo pieces of glass "I used scrap glass from an old frame"Scalloped copper tapeJump ringsRibbonBeads, loop pins, bead caps, silver ball beads

Wrapping your ornament

First step is to make sure you CLEAN the glass really well with alcohol rub before sandwiching the card between the two pieces of glass.I prefer to use alcohol rub instead of glass cleaner because it doesn't streak and does a great job of removing the grime. I peel back the tape and start wrapping the edge of my ornament.After wrapping the entire ornament with copper tape, I used a popsicle stick to smooth the edges down and remove any air bubbles trapped between the tape and glass.(If you need more detail on foil wrapping look under soldering tips on my blog)

When done this is what your ornament should look like.

Then it's time to plug the old soldering iron in and start soldering. I do the four sides first then the front and back of the ornament.After tinning the whole ornament I go back and add a thick layer of solder to enhance the scallops.(If you need more detail on soldering look under soldering tips on my blog)

Next step is to add the jump rings! I added two to the top to run ribbon through and three to the bottom so I can add some beads and bling.(If you need more detail on adding jump rings look under soldering tips on my blog)

I started my bead chain by adding a silver ball, bead cap, bead, bead cap, and another silver ball. Then I looped the opening closed. I continued this until I had twelve done.

Connect all of the beads together in two groups of five and one group of two. Then connect the two groups of five to the bottom of your ornament "creating a swag effect". Next I added the group of two to the center ring and added a little bling to the end of them. This way it dangles and adds a little sparkle

After adding a little ribbon you have a one of a kind handmade gift your friends are sure to love!

Here are a few other ornaments I created for family and friends this holiday season.

Welcome Summer blog hoppers!

2011-06-24T09:14:00.007-04:00

You should have arrived here from Janell Blog (http://janellscreations.blogspot.com/) if so you are on the right path, if not please click on the link http://scrapersdelight.blogspot.com/ to start at the beginning as we'd hate you to miss out any letters. I hope you are inspired by my project and are enjoying the blog hop so far, when you are ready please hop over to Leslie blog at http://www.lesliekcreations.blogspot.com/ and continue the fun.

I decided to do a Dress form pin cushion as my Summer project. This had to be one of the easiest projects I have done. I chose a beach theme, but think of the possibilities..... You could do anything with this girl.

Supplies used:

Muslin (for dress form & sash)
Wooden spool
Wood dowel
Wooden sun (from Hobby Lobby)
Making memories (buttercup paint)
Perfect pearls (mandarin)
Sand
Small sea shells
Adirondack ink (wildflower)
Flourish stamps
small letter stamp
Stick pins
Two Summer charms
Ric rac and ribbon

1. Cut muslin dress form front and back. mark darts with an air erase pen. Stitch darts. Iron darts toward center.

2. Stitch dress form front to back with 1/4" seam allowance. Leave opening on bottom as shown. Trim points and clip curves. Turn dress form right side out.

3. Assemble dress form base glue dowel into spool, paint and add paper and ribbon.

4. Paint the sun base and glue a light coat of sand to the center. Let dry and then lightly dust with Perfect pearls "mandarin" an add the micro beads around the edge. When finish glue the spool to the center of your base.

.5. With flourish stamp add decorative markings to front of dress form. I also stamped the sash and added some perfect peals to highlight it.

6. Stuff top half of form firmly. Insert dress form onto dowel and continue stuffing. Place a little glue around dowel to hold in place firmly. Add finial to the top of your dowel and glue it in place.

7. Start arranging and gluing sea shells around the base. Then stitch your sash and charms to the dress form.

8. Lastly I glued little shells to the stick pins.

Happy Summer hopping :) Next stop is Leslie.

Bind it all WINNER!

2011-06-14T07:38:00.002-04:00

We have a winner and it is Redonna! Congratulations!!! Redonna please send me your info so I can get this out to you. The winner was chosen by Randon.org
Thank you to everyone who joined or left a comment :)

Skull Appreciation Day blog hop

2011-06-04T07:25:00.005-04:00

Hello smudged and inked blog hoppers!

As the old saying goes "I decided to kill two birds with one stone"! I needed to make an altered paint can for a friends birthday and she just so happens to LOVE skulls. I must admit that I am addicted to altering these cans and I am considering a self help program. So if anyone knows of a good "paint can addiction 101 class" please feel free to forward the information.

Hopefully she will like and enjoy it the can:)

Supply list;
Autumn Leaves - Clear Stamps by Rhonna Farrer - Flourishes
12x12 Creative Imaginations - Caution Girl Collection - Paper - Cherry and Skull Paper
12x12 Random stripped paper from my stash
Ranger ink- acrylic paint dabber- snow cap
Ranger ink- acrylic paint dabber- pitch black
Heidi Swapp - Chipboard Alphabet - White
Mod Podge- glossy
White felt (used to make skull and cross bones)
Embroidery floss (two different colors)
Buttons- three
Various ribbons that coordinate with your paper

Altered paint can

1. Remove the handle from the can. (this will makes it a lot easier in the long run when adding your paper and embellishing).

2. Cut two pieces of card stock, patterned paper or fabric 7 1/4 x 10 3/4. This will leave you some overlap at the seams and a small gap at the top and bottom. You can easily split the 7 1/4 measurement in half if you want to use 2 different papers to cover the can.

3. Place a mark about 1 1/2 inches down from the top of your paper and use a 1" circle punch to cut out holes for the handles.

4. Once the paper is cut and the handle holes punched, you can stamp, ink, sew, draw or right on the paper before it is adhered to the can.

5. Adhere your paper to the can.

a. If the paper is lightweight, you can use double sided tape (I like Terrifically Tacky Tape) to attach the paper along the seams. I just run one piece of 1" wise tape up each side of the can, right under the handle.

b. If you're using heavy weight cardstock, or if you want your can to be a bit more durable, you'll need to use Mod Podge or some other decoupage medium. If you use a wet adhesive like Mod Podge. Use a foam brush to apply the paste to the can and then place the paper. I like to slather on another coat of Mod Podge over the paper. You can do this tidily or really sloppy, depending on the look you're trying to achieve. I usually allow it to dry over night before adding embellishments.

6. To create top or bottom borders, or a horizontal stripe around the middle of the can, cut a strip or paper or a ribbon and adhere with double sided tape.

7.I use a compass set at 2 5/8 inches to yield a circle with 5 1/4" diameter. (Be warned, when I used a compass I had an ugly flashback to geometry class.....). Again, adhere the paper to the top of the can with double sided tape or Mod Podge.

8. Once the surface is dry, you're free to embellish your can as you wish.

9. Replace the handle of the can.

10. Tie ribbons or add beads around the handle and decorate finish off by adding a paint key.

***Become a follower or leave a comment on my blog for a chance to win a bind it all and accessories. I will announce the winner on Thursday June 8th.*** You can scroll down for more details and pictures of the blog candy

Off to the next blog you go! Enjoy Dawns creations :)

Here is the complete list in case you have got lost along the way.

Tori

Operation write home blog hop

2011-05-28T10:00:00.001-04:00

Missing you card celebrating Memorial day

I wanted make a card using a military photo of my grandfather. I thought using his photo would be a nice way to honor his memory.
I have posted two different looks for this card by adding or changing one thing.

Supplies used
K and Company - Americana collection- Glitter Pillow Stickers- Stars
Paper Studio - Patriotic collage 12X12
The Girls Paperie - on holiday "Vintage travel" 12X12
Red & Blue card stock 12x12
flower soft - Peel off sticker 306 - Silver
Tim Holtz - die- Paper rosette
Silver German glass glitter "90 grit"
Glitz teeny alphabet "cream'

*I started by adhering all of the patterned papers (see list above) to my card base which is 5X7

*Using flower soft peel off stickers #306 - Silver, and attaching the strips around each piece of paper "creating a border".

*The final step was to add the photograph and K and Company Americana collection "glitter pillow stickers". Easy as can be!

I removed the rosette and attached the soldered ornament to the front of the card for a different look. The ornament makes a nice little gift on the card.
Become a follower or leave a comment on my blog for a chance to win a bind it all and accessories. I will announce the winner on Thursday June 8th.

Happy hopping, http://stamperstouch.blogspot.com/

Blog Candy!

2011-05-28T07:39:00.001-04:00

Become a follower or leave a comment on my blog for a chance to win a bind it all and accessories. Prize package is worth over $100 and includes; Bind it all, 5 wire sets, and Zutter corner rounder. Limited to U.S residents only
Winner will be announced on Thursday June 8th.

Have a fantastic day!

Memorial day ornament

2011-05-27T21:13:00.000-04:00

Memorial day soldered ornament

Anyone who knows me knows how much I love to solder! So I decided create an ornament using a military picture of my grandfather Miriam Ferguson Ellis for Memorial Day.
When my Mom got a look at it she loved it..... Needless to say I no longer possess it because she took it home. Lol

Supplies used
Vintage photo
K and Company - Americana collection- Glitter Pillow Stickers- Stars
Tim Holtz - Idea-ology - Muse tokens "courageous"
16 gauge silver craft wire
Navy blue rhinestones
Copper foil tape
Lead free solder

Become a follower and leave a comment on my blog for a chance to win a bind it all and accessories. I will announce the winner on Thursday June 8th.

Velveeta box part four

2011-05-19T21:55:00.000-04:00

Here is my finished altered Velveeta box for Paper Cowgirls! It took me a little longer to bring it to life but I am happy with the way it turned out.

I decided to solder the roof of the birdhouse, perch, and door "opening". I also used vintage looking lace to trimmed the eaves out.

The rest of the house I covered in pieces of scrap paper and then soldered the house to the branch. By soldering it I made sure this little abode isn't going anywhere. Lol

Keep your fingers crossed that it does well in the auction on Saturday, June 11th. You can visit http://papercowgirl.blogspot.com/ for more information on the event.

2011-05-17T12:32:00.000-04:00

Velveeta box part three

What's up Crafty friends! Here comes part three of the Paper Cowgirl Velveeta challenge so grab the Elmer's and follow me into The Trishlicious Art Studio or as Andy calls it the "Shrek room".

I found these fun little plastic eggs after Easter at Hobby Lobby for 80% off. I paid under a quarter for a bag of 25!
But the best thing about these are they are an extremely hard dense plastic.

The drawback to the great pricing was they look like Easter eggs and since this isn't an Easter project I needed to change that.
I had originally planned on soldering them but decided that my project needed some bling so I ended up covering them with vintage German glass glitter 90 grit.
Just rolled the little guys in good old fashioned Elmer's glue and dipped them in the bag. Looking at these little puppies now you'd never know they were .01 each now would you?

After the egg's turned out looking like a million bucks I couldn't just stick them in a plain old nest now could I?
But before I get to the next part let me assure you that I spoke with our Minister and he ASSURED me I will not be going to hell for this next part. So I am officially going on record as saying..... If you have a problem with this I am giving you his email and you can take it up with him. I bought a box of church hymnals at an estate sale for a .25 each! I bought four books and they are a nice vintage yellow with the pages falling out so I think of it as recycling them or "spreading the gospel".
Back to the nest.... I cut some thin strips of a blessing and curled them around a chop stick (creating little curly Q's) and filled the nest with them.

Then I arranged the eggs, and bingo I have this sweet little birds nest.
Only one more part to go before I assemble this box and ship it off to the gals over at Paper Cowgirls.

2011-05-13T15:46:00.000-04:00

Velveeta box part two

Woot, woot.... Welcome back for part two of the Paper Cowgirl Velveeta challenge.

Let me start by saying I finally needed something that I did not have in my art studio :( So I had to get dressed, put on my shoes, brush my hair and grab the car keys and venture a whole fifteen steps to the front yard for that one of a kind, most excellent of all found.............

2011-05-13T15:19:00.000-04:00

No peep's your eyes are not deceiving you it is a STICK!
Now I bet your wondering what I did with this little gem of a find?

Why, what else would you do with a stick but solder it. Lol

Let me tell you soldering a stick isn't as easy as you would think. It took me about an hour and a half to two hours to solder this stick.
The most difficult part was getting in between the branches and making sure ever inch of the branch was covered with solder.

Here is a close up of the branches. I will have part three up this weekend and I will give you a little hint (It cost me .25 for 25 and I used 3 at a cost of .01 each). Yes.... I spent a whole three cents on part three!

2011-05-08T21:49:00.000-04:00

Velveeta Cheese box Paper Cowgirl challenge and auction!

Over at The Paper Cowgirl swap blog they are hosting a Velveeta cheese box challenge and I am happy to be participating in it.
The money raised at the auction goes to the Tina Wright memorial art scholarship fund. For those of you who didn't know Tina she was a very talented altered artist and solderer who was an inspiration to me. Tina was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in September 2009. Tina lost her battle to cancer on January 3, 2010 at the age of 44.

The challenge is to make something out of a Velveeta Cheese box. It can be anything decorative or utilitarian. The main rule is that the bottom of the box (brown corrugated part) must retain it's form so that it will still be recognizable as a Velveeta box. You can cut holes in it, or take it apart and reassemble as long as it keeps its shape and appropriate size. The lid can be used or not, but can be cut up to use in any way. The lid should be incorporated into the design, not as a separate item.

I have decided to break this up into four different parts because I plan on going (OVER THE TOP) with my design! I am not going to detail my vision for the Velveeta box right now, but I will tell you that I dreamt the idea. Now this isn't the first time I have had a dream about a project, believe it or not it happens a lot. That is why I keep a note pad on my night stand so I can jot things down when one gets my attention. Sometimes the ideas are a hit and sometimes they are just plain CRAZY!

Part one: The box

First thing I did was cover the cheese box with balsa wood. I did this for two reasons; One being I have TONS of balsa wood left over from building Architectural models for various jobs. I have so much that I could give Hobby Lobby a run for their money in the wood department. Two being the box was too soft as it was to withstand the moisture and the weight of the next step.

After letting the balsa veneer dry I started to mosaic the box with vintage broken china. Some of the pieces I used on this project were very special to me because they were pieces from a broken plate of my grandmother Edith's china. A few other pieces were from a bowl that belonged to my husband Andy's grandmother Nadine. I used a popsicle stick to spread the mastic "then adhered my tiles".

I let the mastic dry overnight before moving on to grouting it. As I was digging around the craft dump (other wise known as the massive walk in closet that not only holds my world but isn't organized ) I found three different shades of neutral grout. So I decided to mix them and create my own one of a kind grout color. Using once again my handy dandy popsicle stick to spread the grout a section at a time.

I took the box outside and let it set for about 10 to 15 minutes to give the grout a chance to dry and set. Then I took a paper towel and "buffet the excess grout off" leaving a nice smooth finish.

Part two should be up if a few days so check back to see the "CRAZY" part of this project. After seeing it you will be asking yourself "what the h*ll" is she doing? lol

Tools for Soldering

2011-04-30T20:25:00.000-04:00

Though primarily used for stained glass work, glass soldering can also be used to create unique glass jewelry and decorative items. Much of the method mirrors that used for metal solder work, but here is a basic explanation of the technique and tools needed to solder glass pendants.

To begin, you'll need a few tools used by stained glass artists. Most glass suppliers carry what you'll need, and luckily, most of the basic tools aren't very expensive. The Crafty Scrapper, Hobby Lobby, and The little Blue house are great resources for supplies.

Tools, Equipment, and Supplies for Glass Soldering:

Soldering iron and stand: Soldering irons are similar to the type of torch you might use for metal soldering, but instead of a flame, the end of the iron is heated through electricity. While it may not get as hot as a flame torch, it still gets pretty hot though, so it's a good idea to also purchase a stand to hold it. Most stands include a small sponge, which is kept damp and used to clean the end of the iron.

Copper foil: You can buy this by the roll. Foil comes in a number of widths and designs (such as scalloped) and has an adhesive back, so you can just peel off the back and stick it to the edges of your glass pieces.

Non-lead solder: Normally, you'll purchase your solder on a roll. There are a lot of different types of solder, but what is important to remember is that for jewelry, you don't want to use lead solder since it will probably be touching someone's skin. If you were actually making stained glass or maybe creating other types of glass pieces that were not to be worn as jewelry, then regular lead solder would probably be fine to use. It really depends. Some stained glass artists prefer to use non-lead solder no matter what.

Flux: Just as with metal jewelry soldering, you cover the areas you plan to solder with flux.

Brush: A small, inexpensive paint brush is perfect for adding your flux.

Burnisher: You need something to burnish your copper foil against the glass. I just use a wooden dowel or even a pencil or pen to do this. I use a popsicle/craft stick stick

Soldering basics

2011-04-30T20:04:00.000-04:00

1. To begin with, you need to find a well ventilated work area. I usually have the ceiling fan going in my craft room or open a window.

2. Then set up your tools. You'll need to plug in your soldering iron and soak your solder stand sponge with water.

3. Take your copper foil tape, peal off the back (only as far as you are wrapping ). Wrap it around the piece of glass you wish to solder. The foil is very easy to manipulate, so just trim off any excess with scissors. (You can use an x-acto knife to even up any uneven areas)

4. Burnish the copper around the glass. This simply means to take something, such as a popsicle stick, and rub it against the copper foil so that it is as smooth and even as possible.

5. Set your piece of glass to be soldering in front on you, making sure it is on either a tile or a non-stick metal cookie sheet .

6. Use a small paint brush and brush your flux on all of the copper.

7. Now, take your roll of solder (remember it should be lead free for jewelry), and unroll a little of the solder.

8. In one hand, hold the end of the solder over the foil you just added to the glass piece, and in the other hand, hold your soldering iron.

9. Now comes the tricky part. You want to simultaneously hold the tip of the iron against the tip of the solder and move around the copper on your glass piece. Depending on the thickness and size of your glass, you may have to do one side and then the other side of the glass.

10. To add a jump ring or bale to your piece (remember you can solder metal to metal so you can use copper wire or silver too), just rest it up against the area you'd like it to adhere to on your copper foil, and drip some solder onto the area creating a "mountain". Then using a pair of hemostats to hold your jump ring solder the ring to the "mountain". Don't forget to flux your jump ring.

With a little practice, you will be a pro before you know it.

2011-04-23T14:21:00.000-04:00

Saddle up ladies and gentlemen because Paper Cow Girls is coming to town!

I am happy to announce I will be teaching at this years Paper Cowgirl art retreat! It is such an honor to be teaching with so many talented ladies. If you're not familiar with Paper Cowgirls I suggest you visit their blog and check out the amazing classes at: http://papercowgirl.blogspot.com/
Paper Cowgirl art retreat: June 11 thru 12, 2011

2010-12-24T19:16:00.000-05:00

Project# 3 Holiday birdhouse ornament Cost: .50

Today's project is brought to you by Michael's. Back in November I was digging through the Summer clearance bin and found a couple of these wooden birdhouses for .50! I couldn't resist buying three of them and saving them for the Christmas season.

Materials you will need for this project: Mini wooden birdhouse, silver paint, Ten Second Studio Pearl metal, tacky tape, Cuttlebug “snow flake” embossing folder, two different holiday papers, silver glitter, glossy accent, ribbon, and a sanding block.

2. I started by painting the eaves, bird opening, and perch of the birdhouse silver. This was done so any area missed by the glitter would blend in and not stand out. Next I glued one of my pattern papers on the left and right side of the birdhouse using glossy accents. You will notice I wrapped the paper around the corners to make sure if the front or back patterned paper is cut too short they will still disappear into the patterned paper. I get so frustrated when I cut a pattern too short and waste paper!

3. Then using my birdhouse roof as a pattern I cut my pearl metal to size. Placing both metal pieces into my Cuttlebug “snow flake” embossing folder I ran it through the Cuttlebug. After removing the embossed metal I sanded it and used a paper towel to remove the dust before placing tacky tape to the back. Remove your tape film and press metal to the left and right side of the birdhouse roof.

4. Now for the fun part! Using my glossy accents I lined the eaves, bird hole, peach, and base. Sprinkle all glued areas with the silver glitter making sure your areas are filled in nicely.

After letting it dry for a couple of hours I finished it off with a festive red bow. Now I have a beautiful ornament for my neighbor and it only cost me .50 and less than an hour of time.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!

Holiday washer pendant

2010-12-23T21:15:00.000-05:00

Project #2 Washer pendant

3/8” washer 2 @ .23

1/4” washer 3@ .18 total cost: .97

Home Depot is the place to be.
High livin' is the life for me.
Tools spread out so far and wide.
Keep Wally World, just give me that Home Depot smile.

You guest it ladies, today project was bought at Home Depot! We are going to make 5 gorgeous pendants out of washers and you won't believe how easy and budget friendly they are to make.

Materials needed: 5 washers, various scrap paper, left over miniature letters, bling, ribbon, glossy accents, and some bails.

Using glossy accent I adhered the paper to the washers. Set a side and let them dry for about 30 minutes to an hour. Then using your x-acto knife cut the centers out of the washers.

Now we are ready to embellish each one with left over stickers, bling, pearls, and anything else you have lying around. After you're done embellishing to your heart's desire coat the whole washer with a thick coat of glossy accents.

At this point I set mine aside to dry over night

The next day I added ribbon and chains turning ordinary hardware from Home Depot into fun holiday jewelry for five friends for 97 cents.

Christmas on a dollar

2010-11-30T19:22:00.000-05:00

The holidays are upon us and the scramble is on for those gifts for friends and loved ones. I am always stunned by how fast my money goes around Christmas, even if I try and be thrifty. This started me thinking about how we all need those extra little gifts for teachers, neighbors, co-workers, hair dresser or a hostess gift.

So this year I have decided to take a different approach to gift giving and challenge myself to embellish and create small gifts out of dollar finds.

Andy is always teasing me that I have an entire scrap store in my craft room, so I plan on only using what I have on hand to embellish my budget friendly finds.

Project #1 The Christmas votive

Cost: $1

My first project is a 3 ½” x 3” glass votive I found at the Dollar Tree.

The Dollar Tree is one of my favorite places to browse, and I just can't resist asking the check out lady “hey, how much is this?”, every time I go in there. I love it when they roll their eyes at me and say “a dollar”. LOL!

I used Ten Second Studio metal to create my poinsettia, but paper will work just as well.

You will need the following materials: Votive, Ten Second Studio metal: barn red/poison ivy, three different Cuttlebug embossing folders, Basic Grey flower layer #6 die cut, 3mm bling, tacky tape, sheet music, a sanding block, and pinking shears or decorative scissors.

*After die cutting your metal, emboss it using a texture folder.

*Die cut your metal using the BG #6 flower die in your Cuttlebug or Bigshot. After die cutting your metal and embossing it, lightly sand the top of the metal with your sanding block.

*Cut music paper into 1” strips

My sheet of music was only 5 1/2” wide, so I had to glue two 1” strips together in order to get one long enough to fit around my votive.

*After you have created one long piece, you can then trim it with your pinking shears or decorative scissors. Wrap your music strip around the votive using glossy accents to adhere it to the glass.

*Tacky tape the back of your flower pieces. Peel your tacky tape off of the two smaller flowers and start layering them on top of each other. Remember to bend your petals and leaves to give it some added dimension. Adhere the Poinsettia to the votive and tweak.

*Glue your 3mm bling to the center of your flower using glossy accents. And now you have a unique little gift that was quick and only cost a dollar.

Last weeks test tube winners are: Laurie, NikiLynn, and Bonnie Belk! Ladies email me your addresses at Trishliciousandco@hotmail.com

Be sure to leave a comment so you can win some fabulous prizes!

Next project was found at home depot and cost .98!

We will be getting not one but five gifts out of it so check back this weekend for details.

Give Thanks

2010-11-25T11:48:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

Test tube Christmas ornaments

2010-11-12T08:23:00.000-05:00

I was playing around with some test tubes trying to figure out something fun to do with them. I decided to fill them with goodies like shell buttons, pearls, and metal flowers. After embellishing them I thought it would be cool to turn them into Christmas ornaments.

Test tube Christmas ornaments 2

2010-11-12T08:15:00.000-05:00

After soldering a jump ring on I was able to hang them on the tree. I think they add a fun and whimsical feeling to the tree. I will be giving away two of these great altered test tubes to some lucky person. So be sure to leave a comment for a chance to win one of these little beauties.

Up coming classes

2010-08-15T21:07:00.000-04:00

***The Little Blue House***

November 16, Beginning Soldering 10am-1pm
December 6, Holiday Soldering 10am-2pm & 6:30-9:30
December 8, Holiday Soldering 10am-2pm & 6:30-9:30
December 20, Holiday Soldering 6:30-9:30

We will be creating fun holiday projects this month!
If your interested in being a part of the class please contact the The Little blue house.

The Little Blue House
118 W. Olive St.
Keller, TX 76248
(817) 431-7930

***********************************************************************

The Crafty Scrapper

I will be at the Crafty Scrapper doing a fun holiday make n take on Saturday November 27.
It's a gorgeous cookie plate for Santa using Ten Second Metal.
If your interest in making one the cost is $5 so stop by and see me.

The Crafty Scrapper
308 South College Street
Waxahachie, Texas 75165
(972) 923-3151

Other Soldering dates at the Crafty Scrapper;

November 13, Fall 101 soldering 10:00 am
November 30, Holiday Necklace 10:30-1:30
December 3 & 4 Winter Wonderland Snow Globe 10:30- 5:00 (taught with Lisa Pace)
December 7, Holiday Ornaments 10:30-1:30
December 11, Holiday Necklace 10:30-1:00 and Ornaments 1:30-4:30

Home sweet home

2010-08-15T20:50:00.001-04:00

Home sweet home
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

I think my creativity really comes out when I am in a pinch.
Last week I needed a quick gift for a friend who had just moved into a new home. So I created a little door hanging using my FAVORITE paper artsy stamps. I got these in England a few years ago but The Crafty Scrapper in Waxahachie, Texas has them now.

Great American Scrapbook convention

2010-05-31T21:55:00.001-04:00

Soldered bead scoops
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

Once again I will be demoing for Ten Second Studio at the Arlington, GASC. This years make and take is a miniature bead scoop in black.
I fell in love with these cute little gem and got carried away when it came time to alter them. Using metal, glitter, glue, solder, charms and even an earring that's mate was lost long ago I turned them into unusual wearable art.
So if your at the convention this year stop by to make one of these cuties for $5 (glitter, glue, solder, and charms are not included). If your one of the first five people to mention the Trishlicious blog you will get a free gift!

Advanced Soldered flower frame class

2010-04-04T18:53:00.001-04:00

Advanced Soldered flower frame class
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

Five ladies from the advanced soldering class and their finished frames.
These girls were funny and a joy to spend the day with.

Class sample

2010-04-04T18:51:00.001-04:00

Class sample
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

This was the class sample for advanced soldering.
All of the flowers shown are soldered and decorated with the splatter -layering technique.

Soldering class 201

2010-03-28T21:17:00.001-04:00

Soldering class 201
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

The ladies from my soldering 201 class on Saturday were fantastic to work with. They did a good job learning to cut their own glass and designing their charms.

St. Patrick cookies

2010-03-17T23:39:00.001-04:00

St. Patrick cookies
Originally uploaded by TrishaLouise

These were fabulous Birthday cookies my dear friend Cathy made me.
They were yummy and I had to hide the last one from Andy and believe me he was trying to find it.

2010-03-10T07:44:00.001-05:00

Welcome to the start of Trishalicious!
Home of soldered art, soldering supplies, and helpful tips.