Colors of Springtime ~ DIY Farmers Market Baskets

Wouldn't it be nice if it were springtime already?  I'm craving the things that come along with spring.

  

Today we were blessed with some golden warm sunshine here.  It came close to 60 degrees!  Just a little tease for us Pacific NorthWesterners.  We're pretty much guaranteed a couple months of rain still.  

So a magical day like today is just what we needed to tide us over until those beautiful sunny months are finally upon us.  

A little "fix" of pure sunshine will get us through the gray, wet months still to come.

You know what else reminds me of springtime?

Fluffy Clouds and Rainbows

Tree Blossoms

The Smell of Fresh Mown Grass

Short Sleeves

Kids Voices and Laughter Carrying On the Breeze

Ladybugs and Butterflies

Evening Strolls and Bike Rides

Hammocks

Planting Gardens

and 

Farmers' Markets

Last summer I created a white Anthropologie Knockoff Farmers Market Basket (Below).  

Say that a few times quick!

I used one of the cardboard baskets that berries come in and coated it with some Gesso (used to prime and stiffen artists' canvases), white spray paint, and spray polyurethane.

You can read about it HERE.

I thought it would be fun to make more using some spring colors, so I got busy mixing my Gesso with acrylic craft paint until I had the pastel colors I desired. 

Once they were painted I got all glittery-eyed and decided they needed some glitter too.

The Gesso makes them really stiff and the polyurethane makes them water proof.  

The glitter just makes them cheerful!

Then I dressed them up with ribbons and filled them with a few little trinkets. 

These will make adorable mini Easter baskets or fun little gift baskets for friends.

In the first basket I put some raffia, a Sweet Little Bluebird, and a mini egg.

The next one got some pretty seashells and a silver starfish.  

Gifts from the Seashore.

This next one holds some fragrant lemon body treats.  I love lemon!  

I haven't decided what to do with this Tiffany Blue one yet.  Its my favorite, with the gleaming organza bow.  I might just have to keep it next to my bed for holding jewelry and other stray stuff.  :)

These were easy to make and didn't cost anything since I already had the cardboard baskets saved from last summer.  The Gesso, paint, glitter and polyurethane were already in my craft cabinet.  

My Inspiration:

Anthropologie's Farmers' Mkt Baskets

Here's to more sunny days and laughter being carried on the breeze!

Sherry

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Flying Dove and more DIY Glass Ball Ornaments

Ahhhh, the weekend must come to an end.  

I hope you had a wonderful weekend.  I know I did.

I stayed up way too late.  Oops!

Ate way too much food.  Oops!

Drank a little wine.  Yeah!

Enjoyed a dip in the hot tub.  Yeah!

Finished most of my Christmas shopping.  Yeah!

Put our Christmas tree up and decorated.  Yeah!

Went for a refreshing walk with a friend (to burn off all of the over-indulgences.)  Yeah!

AND...I finally made something with these clear glass ornaments I bought LAST YEAR!  Hip Hip Hooray!

This was simple to do and so much fun.  It's rewarding to make something unique like these.  I'm sure there are others similar out there but these little "sculptures" are my creations!  So Cool!!!

THE STEPS I TOOK:

1. I Sculpted a little white dove out of Crayola Model Magic.  (It's  a soft, squishy modeling material that dries within 24 hours.  Even when it's dry it's a bit pliable...kind of like rubber or those foam pieces used in crafts.)  You could use another type of clay or dough here but I already had Model Magic for my preschoolers.  
2. I sprayed the dove sculpture with Elmer's spray adhesive and sprinkled with fine white glitter.  Let dry.
3. I tied a piece of mono filament to the dove and put it inside the glass orb.  I had to fold the wings in to get them inside and once I had the dove in I used a skewer to spread them out again.
4. I added fake snow that I got from the craft store.
5. I replaced the cap using it to hold the mono filament in place so it appears the dove is flying.

I put a dot of E-6000 on the bottom of the ones that don't hang ~ to hold them in place.

This is the fake snow I used.  

This little guy is the Polar Bear I sculpted.  He's waiting to get glued to the bottom and surrounded by snow.

For this one I sculpted the word JOY and glittered it up a bit with light green glitter.  

Then I hung it with mono filament and added snow.

Here's the dove ornament hanging from a branch...it looks like it's just taking flight!

Another view.

Here it is on the decorated tree.

Polar Bear.  I think he's my favorite!

The decorated tree!  

My green lights would not light up. :(  

I got tired of waiting so I sprayed the tree with a bit of fake snow and added white lights instead.  :)

Then I got out my tripod and tried to get all artsy with my camera.  

I think I better go read Beth's post over at Unskinny Boppy on How To Take Glowing Pics of the Christmas Tree.  She has some tips for making these types of pictures turn out really beautiful.

Mine just looks like our Christmas tree caught fire...Ha ha ha!

Have a cheer-filled week my friends!

Hope to see you again soon.

Don't forget to stop by Inspiration Cafe to see the darling little snowman necklace that Natalie shows you how to make.

Isn't this the cutest thing ever???

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