So my friend Jeff and I were talking at Mac’s about Merriment and he asked if I could make a unique baby gift to help him welcome Isabella, a friend’s newborn daughter. These handmade, sweet, graphic appliqué baby onesies should do the trick. Supplies: Kathy’s free onesie applique shape template (PDF; dog, butterfly, bottle shapes …
Project Type
So what was in Madison’s cookie jar birthday boxes to help celebrate her second birthday? Super fun numbers cookie cutters and a child’s size pink Wizard of Oz apron handmade by Aunt Kathy. I’ve made many aprons in my time both from patterns and from scratch. I created this child’s size pattern inspired by Amy …
So today is my adorable niece Madison’s second birthday. I made her a super cool gift that I’ll post in a few days with instructions once she’s unwrapped her gift. In the meantime here are instructions for her cookie jar wrapping paper. Supplies: Kathy’s cookie jar template (page 1, page 2, page 3) Avery White …
AT&T delivered piles of telephone books to my neighborhood a couple of weeks ago. Not needing ours but cringing at tossing the stack into the trash I decided to find some crafty uses for them. So I wrapped my sister Karin’s birthday gifts with birthday-themed yellow pages. Supplies: Telephone book (preferably yellow pages) Tape Scissors …
I made these three kitschy CD mixes to thank my friend Amy for letting me stay at her place for the first few days of my week in NYC. Back when I was a kid, my dad handmade wonderful miniature farmland model worlds. I can still remember him individually painting figurines and gluing on grass …
We customized the envelopes for our wedding invitations using a couple of easy tricks: Sewing our return address on the back of our envelopes and adding custom photo stamps from PhotoStamps.com. Supplies: A7 size (5 1/4″x 7 1/4″) chocolate envelopes 8 1/2 x 11 luxe cream 210g text paper (or other heavy paper) Yellow thread …
After a brutal Chicago winter I’m aching for spring. So today I planted vegetable, herb and flower seeds for our back deck garden. Now I’ve tried planting seeds many times before with mixed results …I’ve learned that using professional seed-starting germinating mix rather than regular soil makes a big difference. Give it a try. Supplies: …
I visited my parents in Indiana this Easter weekend and it felt like Spring outside! The crocuses are even coming up which is a sure sign of hope. I made this garden mosaic stepping stone for my Dad’s birthday. My dad’s a huge gardener and hummingbird fan but you could use the glass pieces to …
++ UPDATED: I have evolved this craft considerably and posted a MUCH better way to make them. Please go to https://www.merrimentdesign.com/chalkboard-pillows-for-kids-and-adults-redux.php instead. And enjoy!! ++
So my friend Renee and I decided to browse through Anthropologie after having afternoon tea at Julius Meinl. It’s no surprise to anyone that Anthropologie has some of the most crafty, creative, seasonal store decorations out there. But this one made me giggle. I remember back in Girl Scouts making ‘vases’ from bell jars, masking …
New mom and fashion maven Rachel Pluto made these adorable animals for her newborn daughter Maya. Taking a cue from Dwell’s baby animals that retail $105 for three, Rachel handcrafted these adorable reversible giraffe and elephant stuffed animals out of fabric that complemented her Chicago loft nursery. Humble Rachel says, “I kind of just winged …
Here are our sewn fabric wedding invitations that were featured in the The Knot’s 2007-2008 Fall/Winter National Magazine and “Amazing Wedding Cakes” on WeTV. After searching fabric stores, websites and even ebay, the poppy fabric I found inspired everything – these sewn wedding invitations in particular. We received so many compliments from guests who said …
Time consuming, yes. Overkill, perhaps. But I think wedding menus are totally worth it. Wedding menus are that extra detail that helps add anticipation while guests wait to be served at their tables. But unlike invitations that often go to couples and families, you will need to make one menu for each and every guest. …
One of the biggest challenges of getting married in a “non-traditional” space is that the backdrop might look a too plain or stark during your ceremony. We got married in a Chicago loft space with exposed brick, glass and steel. So we decided to add warmth and focus by creating an “altar” of our own. …
Here’s a detail that I thought of late in the wedding planning game. We put these reserved cards on front-row ceremony chairs intended for our families. It was easy to make them and they coordinated nicely with our sewn wedding invitations, ceremony programs, table numbers and other printed materials. Supplies: 8 1/2 x 11 luxe …