Last weekend I attended a fabulous craft retreat called "An Artsy Weekend" with a very dear friend. It was food for my creative soul. It stretched me and inspired me and I learned a few new tricks. Like how to make goat cheese. And how not to stamp letters backwards in leather (sometimes I learn better by experience). Plus I got to hang with some fabulous people you may know like Rhonna Farrer, Margie Romney-Aslett, Jen from Tatertots and Jello, Tausha of Sassy Style Redesign, Shelley from The House of Smiths, Becki from Whippycake, and other fabulous bloggers, artists, and teachers. It was all put together by the darling Marci Welker of Fallow Field Farm, and yes, I hear she will be doing more of these intimate crafting weekends in the near future! I'll be sure to let you know.
Before the retreat we were asked to make ourselves a name tag. I had just received a pack of Silhouette's Double-Sided Adhesive paper in the mail, so I decided to find a way to use it on mine.
If you haven't used this stuff before, be prepared to get glittery. It is hands down the easiest (and least messy) way to adhere glitter, and the best part is that you can use your Silhouette images to cut custom shapes out of it! I wanted my name to stand out, but instead of glitter I ended up going with these silver micro beads. Here's how:
1. Cut your shape with your Silhouette (or any die cut machine) out of the double-sided adhesive paper.
2. My design did not cut completely through (time for a new blade), but I was glad. With most designs, you would simply remove the yellow backing and place your shape in place. But was hoping to keep the letters of my name spaced and in line, so the fact that they were still connected worked for me! Either way, remove the yellow backing and place where you want your design.
3. Peel the white paper off the front of the shape. In my case, I pressed down on the letters a little and weeded the outside and inside of letters out, leaving the letters of my name centered and in line. Woo hoo!
4. Pour your micro beads or glitter (or flocking or what-have-you) on your image. Press down over image to ensure it sticks well. Dump off the excess and there you are--covered in bling.
I did lose a few beads over the course of the weekend, but all-in-all I was surprised at how well they held on to the adhesive!
For more images of our artsy weekend projects and fun, follow me on Instagram (ID: sybrowsky) and check out #anartsyweekend.