IHB january: the etsy edition

Busy month here at IHB! See what's new on the Etsy store and add custom touches to your wedding or event with these made-to-order signs. Find me at etsy.com/store/InspiredHoneyBee.

craft: hang up your valentine gallery wall

We're still trying to get used to the simplicity of our home after the holidays, and one of my favorite projects last year was the holiday gallery wall. At the time, I swore to find unique replacements for the frames during the short guest appearance but not surprising, that didn't happen. So when January 15 rolled around and I was still looking at the holiday paper, I needed a solution. Answer: other paper.

Now, I didn't have cute and fluffy Valentine paper so I needed to make something. Obviously. Looking through my ridiculous abundance of paper, I found last year's Valentine mantel garland, the glittered XOXO and just some random paper, and started laying out some ideas.

Since the holiday wall gallery was so much cooler with 3-D components, I really wanted to do that again and already had the cutest scrap fabric heart wreath.

The remaining frames just needed some creative paper arranging and leftover pieces of garland in the right spots. Not a bad reuse project! Total cost: nada!

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host post: add romance with glitter hearts

Today you get me and we really hope that you've been enjoying our week of Pinterest inspiration. Since I started the new year with glitter, I think that glitter should be incorporated into at least one holiday craft this year. What do you think??

My inspiration today comes from one of my very first pins from a blog that no longer seems to exist - good thing I pinned it when I did! I just love all of the sparkle in this picture and the simplicity of the burlap and glitter hearts. Love.

I'm taking the remnants from a project that I started over the holidays and "decided" to never finish. The burlap squares were cut and I had glitter, glue and a brush on hand. The heart template I cut with the Cricut.

Using the template, I dabbed on the glue to the burlap and then added the glitter ... and then a lot of patting to remove the extra glitter. It was a cold day so the glitter project had to be indoors. Never a pretty clean-up.

I sewed jute along the top of the four squares. To avoid the sewing machine, this is a simple project that can easily take a few stitches instead to secure the squares.

How cute is the final product as a sweet headboard decoration? Celebrate Valentine's Day by putting it over the kiddo's bed for sweet dreams, or add a little sparkle in your bedroom!

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guest contributor: xoxo Valentine's day pillow

I'm always pleasantly surprised when guest contributor Kimie puts fabric to sewing machine. As a talented quilt maker, she has started expanding her skills into creative pieces like the one that she's sharing with us today. And keeping a steady stream of creativity coming through her Pinterest page, I have no doubt that she will continue to share projects for every season, holiday and celebration!

After seeing this Etsy Valentine's pillow on Pinterest, I raided my leftover fabrics to find something to make a similar pillow. Success! I decided to try to do an envelope pillow for the first time, and was amazed at how easy it is.

First, find the dimensions of the pillow insert by cutting three pieces of fabric. The first piece (or front) needs to be 2 more inches in length and width than the insert. For example: my pillow was 13"x13", so my front piece of fabric was cut to 15"x15".

The back two pieces can be the same height (15"), but the length can be shorter. I cut two pieces of fabric that were 15"x7". Lay the front and back pieces on top of each other to make sure that the sizes are similar before you begin pinning. Make adjustments as needed. 

Iron a seam on both back pieces of fabric. Only one of the seams needs to be sewn since the other one will not be seen. 

Before sewing the three pieces together, I cut and sewed the letters on the larger front piece of fabric. I found a font on Microsoft, printed the letters to size, cut them out and pinned the X's and O's onto my fabric.

Make sure to align the cut letters on the front piece of fabric, then pin the letters to secure in place. 

Sew onto the front piece of the fabric 

With the letters in place and the three pieces prepared, lay the front piece of fabric down with right side facing up. Then lay both smaller pieces down with right sides facing down. Pin along all four sides of the pillow and sew. No need to leave any opening, since your insert will slip through the envelope opening.

Turn pillow right side out and stuff! Visit momtastic.com if you need additional step-by-step instructions. Happy Valentine's Day!

Sew on little bees! 

- Kimie

guest contributor: cute, clever Valentine cards

To have creative friends is a gift. I'm always excited to see what comes in the mail or what is dropped off by these amazing people, and I'm encouraged by their love and thoughtful gifts. We welcome back Michelle from The Whole Enchelleada and look forward to what this creative spirit will be sharing with us as she settles into her new home! Today, she shares her favorite card project - with a little help from Pinterest - and as a recipient of her unique pieces, I admit that I get a little star-struck when one of these special cards arrives in the mail.

My gateway into the world of crafts was card making at a young age. Through the years, the love for pretty paper and cute, clever cards has only grown (some might argue into a full-fledged obsession). In part, I’d like to thank Pinterest for enabling my habit with so many great ideas. I continually pin my favorites on my cute and clever card ideas board.

While I love the giving and receiving of holiday cards in December, my favorite holiday to make and send cards is Valentine’s Day! Today I’m excited to share with you the Valentine cards I made with free printables from Pinterest!

As a base for the cards, I purchased three packs of Valentine cards at Michael’s. Deal alert: these are currently on sale for $1 per pack!!!! I then rounded up my favorite crafting tools and accessories and got to crafting.

Here’s what I came up with!

{Pun-y cards for nerds and geeks by Two More Days}

{Chalkboard printables by Nest of Posies}

{Valentine scrabble by Oh Happy Day}

{via Pumpkins&Posies}

{Adult wine valentine via CRAFT}

Lovely little tip: you can have your Valentine cards post marked by the Sweetheart City of Loveland, Colorado! Find out more information here.

Until next time….keep it crafty, friends!

- Michelle at The Whole Enchelleada

guest contributor: Valentine's day projects for a weekend

After a little break and a move across the country, we welcome guest contributor Carrie!  I just love the ideas showcased below ... with a little inspiration from her Pinterest page (duh!), you can make a few simple Valentine's day decorations to add to your home and office!

I’m always a little sad after packing up our Christmas decorations, so having some Valentine décor to put around the house is a great way to keep things from looking so bare. Below are a few easy things you can do to celebrate the day of love!

Please find the Pinterest-inspired links for each craft if you are interested, for the full tutorials. Most of these are pretty self-explanatory.

X and O glittered letters: I found a great tutorial from My World Made By Hand. 

Toddler Heart Handprint Art: I found some great ideas from The Happiest Mommy On TheBlock. 

Conversation Heart Vase Filler: So easy and cute. Got the idea from Pinterest but couldn't find an original source link.

Heart Branches: Inspiration from Classy Columbus Designs. You could do this for any holiday or celebration and use other shapes. Makes a great statement.

Felt Heart Hair Clips: I found great pins for adorable heart clips and really liked this one from GG Embroidery Designs.  The felt heart appliqués are from Jo-Ann’s fabric store and I simply glued them onto ribbon-covered clips. So easy!

Decorating with Heart Plates: My own idea…Boom!

Happy Heart Day! Xoxo

Carrie

sew: bright striped valentine's day table runner

Last year I picked up a 'fat eighths' of fabric for $10 that included eight different prints measuring 9 inches by 21 inches in size.  My original intention 12 months ago was to make a ruffle pillow when the design of a ruffle was so hot. Well, that never happened. #slacker

This year, I decided to use this fabric by creating a Valentine's day table runner. I cut each strip in half and then I arranged the fabric in the following pattern.

Taking the strips, I pinned each one and sewed them together. I ironed down the seams for a flat working surface. For the back, I used a solid white fabric and cut the same size shape.

When we created our t-shirt quilts, KR used iron-on backing that secured her t-shirts in place. I picked up Pellon 808 Craft Fuse for this runner.  By following the directions, the two pieces of fabric fused.

Just like making a pillow, I turned the two fronts of the fabric against each other and sewed along the edges, leaving one short side open, and then turned the table runner inside/out. With the iron still hot, I pressed the sewn edges and then carefully sewed the opening closed.

You could think that this was the end of the project but since I stumbled on a pin recently with pom poms, I just can't keep the thought out of my head and needed to add pom poms to something immediately! Here was the perfect project to pom pom my way through my craft needs. And thanks to my hubs for taking a picture of me working late night!

And these stuffed felt hearts are leftovers from two years ago when I created our first Valentine's day mantel. Click here to see instructions.

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