As a teenage girl in New Jersey – complete with my Farah Fawcett wanna-be hairstyle – I worked at the mall. As did many of my high school classmates and 16-year-old peers.

My first job in the food court serving up Greek food was short-lived. The free food was doing nothing to help my waistline, and the aroma of onions and beef and lamb in my hair … my clothes … my pores … was doing nothing to help my love life.

Luckily, my second job at the mall was in jewelry store. A high-end jewelry store, in fact. Filled with sparkling jewels. Sparkling jewels this New Jersey teenage girl coveted. Drooled over. And tried on over and over again when the store was slow.

Needless to say, a good portion of my paychecks were reinvested in the store.

If only I knew then what I know now. That you can make your own sparkling jewels for a fraction of the cost. Using plain old marbles. I first spotted the idea on this Pinterest pin …

You start by baking them in the oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes …

Then you immediately dump them in ice cold water. Ice cold water in a metal container …

The temperature difference makes them crack on the inside …

but not the outside.

Pretty cool, right?

Now for the tricky part. Turning this into a necklace.

Oh how I wish I had worked in the service center of that jewelry store!

Instead, I turned to Pinterest once again. And found this pin that led to an excellent tutorial.

So, I started with some supplies I found in the jewelry department of my local craft store.

Per those excellent instructions I found on Pinterest (complete with pictures too), I thread the eye pin through the ball cap. Then I cut the excess eye pin wire and created a loop inside the ball cap to hold it in place. At this point, there may have been some cursing. And frustration. And digging through the tool box hoping we had a second pair of needle nose pliers.

After lots of glue and a giant mess, I ended up with this …

I added jump rings (the two needle nose pliers strategy worked here too).

And strung them up on cording and chains.

Voila. Now you have a unique sparkling jewel necklace that you definitely won’t find at the mall …

You can find me @ …

It All Started With Paint | Facebook | Pinterest | Twitter | Google+

Thank you Linda, for sharing this terrific craft with us today. I am totally distracted by how perfectly clean you oven is! I am sure our jewelry will turn out fine, even if our oven isn’t clean, right? Can’t wait to try this!

We’re sharing this post with:

Pint Sized Baker, Lil’ Luna,
Living Well Spending Less, Six Sisters’ Stuff, Home Stories A to Z,
The Blackberry Vine, Cornerstone Confessions, Ladybug Blessings,
Fluster Buster, Nap Time Creations, Sugar Bee Crafts

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Dear Made From Pinterest Readers,

Have you ever been uncertain if a trend is still a trend? Or if it’s fading away. Like is Chevron print still in? And what about coffee filter wreaths? Or pallet walls … and pallet tables … and pallet beds?

Well, be uncertain no more. I’ve stumbled across a fool-proof method to test the waters. To see if the world has had enough of a trend …

or if they’re still hungry for more.

And for this fool-proof trend-testing method, I must give credit where credit is due. Right here. On the blog of my blogger friend.

It all started when she wondered if people were sick of the whole painted dinosaur trend …

So she stuck an eye hook into the tops of a tiny plastic dinosaurs …

And spray painted them …

And posted them on her blog.

And BOOM!

The world exploded. Pinterest blew up. And her question about whether a trend was still a trend was answered.

So there you have it, Made from Pinterest readers. Before you pull the trigger on that Chevron fabric purchase … or haul that free pallet into your car … or start hot glueing coffee filters onto wreath forms … test it on Pinterest first.

It’s fool-proof.

Now my trend-testing friend made painted dinosaur key rings. And the cutest dinosaur ring dish. I opted to make a gold dinosaur necklace …

Thanks again to the Made From Pinterest sisters for having me here!

You can find me on my blog, It All Started With Paint.

I also like to hang out on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Google+

We are sharing this fun idea with:Tatertots And Jello, The Country Cook, Flamingo Toes,  Chef In Training, Mandy’s Recipe Box, Hun What’s For Dinner, Living Well Spending Less, Lamberts Lately, What’s Cooking Love, Tatertots And Jello, Whipperberry, Sunny Simple

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Dear Made From Pinterest Readers,

Please accept my sincerest apology. You see, my plan was to share with you an easy DIY. Easy. Cheap. And lightening speed fast …

that, my new friends, was the plan.

And when I spotted a clothespin wreath online – and pinned it here on my it started with Valentine’s Day Pinterest board – I thought I found the easiest and cheapest Valentine’s Day project idea. Ever.

The clothespins were $1.00 for 36 at the Dollar Store. The hanger was free. The cheap part worked out as planned.

And it would have remained easy if I didn’t insist on fussing with it. In my need to add a bit of color, I ended up tacking on an extra hour-and-a-half of tedious time-consuming work. That whole cutting of Washi strips from a one-dollar-and-change full sheet of pink with white polka dots Washi paper I found at Michaels …

and then affixing the cut strips of Washi to 70+ clothespins.

I started the whole process during the last half hour of Good Morning America, and finished attaching that last piece of Washi when Kelly & Michael were signing off.

If I had skipped the Washi tape step, this project would’ve taken under 15-minutes. All I needed to do was bend a wire hanger into the shape of a heart …

and then clip on the clothespins. One-by-one …

all the way around …

So I’ll leave it up to you, my dear Made From Pinterest readers. You can take the easy path with the naked clothespin look. Or you can take the more time consuming one and add some Washi.

Oh, and there is a third choice. You could always just add color with some spray paint …

You can find me on my blog, It All Started With Paint.

I also like to hang out on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Google+

This is such a cute project Linda! I think I would like whoever makes mine to attach one reason they think I am fabulous to each of the clothespins. That would really make my Valentine’s Day! Want to see what we are up to today? Check us out over at It All Started With Paint!

Sharing this project at:  Whipperberry, Tatertots & Jello, Be Different Act Normal, Flamingo Toes, Inside BruCrew Life, Sugar Bee Crafts,Lamberts Lately, Living Well Spending Less, Tater Tots and Jello,

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Hello Made From Pinterest readers! I’m thrilled to be back here sharing with you what I made from Pinterest this past week …

drum roll please …

painted and distressed mason jars!

And now I must bow my head in shame. You see, my inspiration pin is mine. As in my very own project that I shared last Spring here …

Are you following my shamefulness? Or is it shamelessness? Either way it’s most certainly shameful for me to find inspiration from myself!

*Sigh*

Now, granted, that original project – a project that’s been pinned more than 89,000 times – wasn’t a tutorial. It was more of a question mark. Asking my readers if they would purchase painted and distressed mason jars if I stocked them at my Etsy shop.

But this project? This project is a true tutorial with step-by-step instructions on how to make painted and distressed mason jars …

Step 1: Clean Your Jars

Seriously. Wash them with soap and hot water. Dry completely. And if they’re still greasy, wipe them down with rubbing alcohol. And wash and dry them again.

Step 2: Paint (2 Coats)

I gave my jars two coats of turquoise acrylic paint that I found at the craft store. Make sure it’s not gloss. Or satin finish. Or enamel. They don’t work as well. They show brush strokes and don’t distress as easily.

Step 3: Patience

Let your jars dry overnight. I mean this. Otherwise when you start to distress you’ll find yourself peeling off strips of paint. The paint needs to cure. Overnight.

Step 4: Distress

I use a little square of sandpaper and sand along the top lid threading edges, all the raised type on the fronts, sides, and backs of the jars. And then I add a few more distressed areas for good measure.

Step 5: Seal

I use a matte spray enamel sealer that I found at the craft store. You could use a gloss if you wanted a shinier finish. I find the matte is much more forgiving of brush strokes. And I prefer that chalkier look. But that’s just me …

Step 6: Add Flowers …

… and enjoy!

And now here comes the second time in a single post that I must bow my head in shame. Again. As I hit you with my shameless Etsy shop plug. You see, if you’d rather not spend the time making and painting and distressing your own mason jars, I’m more than happy to make them for you. Just visit my Etsy shop here …

And I just added a listing for those turquoise painted and distressed jars here …

***You can also find me at It All Started With Paint and Mason Jar Crafts Love and follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ ***

Thanks so much Linda!  It’s always great to see the projects that are going on at your place!

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This scalloped felt tree tutorial is not the project I had planned to share with you wonderful Made From Pinterest readers. No, I had other plans in mind. Big plans. Plans that included plastic forks. And spray paint …

Inspired by the plastic spoon tree that’s been all over Pinterest. It caught my eye …

and sparked my imagination …

and I thought I’d give it a fun twist with forks. Instead of spoons. Personally, I thought it was a stroke of brilliance. I mean, the tines on the fork would represent the needles on the tree.

Pure genius, right?

So I picked up some cheap forks at the grocery store. And started cutting. And plastic was flying this way and that. Tines in one direction, handles in the other. After five cuts, I gave up. Because the original tutorial called for 200+ spoon “heads” …

and because my dog was quivering in the corner …

and because, quite frankly, I like my DIY’s easy.

Enter the scalloped felt tree. Which I pinned here and here and here …

So much less risky than those flying plastic tines …

although, there is the hot glue gun to contend with.

How to Make a Scalloped Felt Tree

I started by cutting up felt pieces into 2” x 4” lengths …

Which I folded in half …

And free-hand cut circles …

When I thought I had enough circles cut (which I didn’t, so I had to cut more) I started hot gluing them on the form. Starting at the bottom …

Staggering the rows as I worked my way up …

Until I was done …

And now they look so cute on my holiday fantel mantel …

So much simpler than cutting the heads off of plastic forks!

***You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+

Linda, thanks for another great post. We think the fork idea was genius too, but based on your experience we are not trying it! The felt trees sound like the way to go!

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When the super fun sisters here at Made From Pinterest invited me to contribute to their amazing blog, I was thrilled. Elated. It felt like I was invited to the most fabulous, the most coveted party of the year!

I rushed to the calendar. I marked the date. November 8.

It was etched in my brain …

At the time, it seemed so far away. I had weeks and weeks to plot and plan and get ready for the party.

Now I’m pretty sure you know where this is going. Yep. In the blink of an eye, a month flew by. And when I looked at the calendar — two days ago — and saw it was November 6, I flipped. I freaked. I only had two days to get ready for the most fabulous, the most coveted party of the year!

I had nothing to wear … was in desperate need of a cut and color … and an eyebrow wax. And was it even possible to drop 20 pounds in two days …

Luckily, I already had my party inspiration. From this pin from Country Living Magazine.

It’s an oldie but a goodie …

Off to the thrift store I ran, where I found some sweaters and some vases …

… and breathed a sigh of relief. Because I knew the biggest challenge of getting ready for this party – the most fabulous, the most coveted party of the year – was contingent on finding the perfect sweater.

And I found two.

Two perfect party sweaters that I proceeded to cut up with a scissor. Ha!

Because for this particular party I would be sporting sweaters on my vases.

I started by simply sliding the vase in the sleeve of the sweater …

and trimmed along the bottom …

and I was done …

Easy. And perfectly poised for a party.

For the tallest vase, I mixed things up a bit. Went a little crazy. Hey, it’s party after all! And slipped the sweater arm over the vase and cut it along the top …

And tucked in the extra fabric into the top of the vase …

Voila!

Seriously, this is the quickest I’ve ever gotten ready for a party. Ever. Under five minutes, start to finish …

And, if I do say so myself, I think these sweater vases are going to be the belles of the ball.

And they’re so flattering too. Slimming, don’t you think? I feel 20 pounds lighter …

Thank you Debbie, Tracy, and Sherri for inviting me to the most fabulous, the most coveted party on the Internet!

***You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and Google+

Are these darling or what???  Linda is lucky that I don’t live close to her because she just might have come home one day and these Sweater Vases just might have magically disappeared from her home! 

Thanks so much for sharing Linda!  (Now if only I could lose 20 pounds just by making these vases!)

Debbie – The Oldest Sister

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