Sequin Headphones

Happy Friday crafters! 

It's  actually a not-so-happy-Friday for me because I have been off from work ALL week, and I am nearing the end of my vacation. BUT the good news is, the party of the year is this weekend: New Years Eve.

(Confession: I'm not NYE's biggest fan. I mean, I feel like I am under way too my pressure to have THE BEST NIGHT EVER. And there are never any cabs. It's a mess. But I have learned to accept NYE and to appreciate what makes NYE special.)

What I love about New Years Eve: GLITTER. 

Dude. It's everywhere. Everyone is wears it. It's like candy for my eyes.

SO, in the spirit of my frienemy New Years Eve, I decided to add some sparkle to my headphones. Yes you heard me right. I have attacked yet another electronic accessory with crafts. I told you, I have a problem. 

Hello Lover:

Sequins > Rhinestones. That's my philosophy. On life. Oh, and: Glitter > Everything. 

Except Martha Stewart. She's pretty much the bees knees. 

Lace Phone Case

While I'm still riding my lace high, I thought I would apply my new technique to my favorite crafting item: 

The cell phone case.

We all know I have an unhealthy obsession with adding my crafty hand to electronic devices. So why stop now? I won't. You can't make me. 

And also, I am doing a service to you (your taste, really). See, if the glitter cell phone case wasn't your style, nor the studded cell phone case, NOR the embroidered cell phone case, then I have a hunch this one must be right up your alley. If not, well then, you are quite the picky person. Maybe next time I will paint sports balls all over a phone case. JUST KIDDING. I would never do that. 

Neon Lace Bookshelf

HELLOOOO!!!! I just realized it's been, like, forever since I last posted. NOT COOL MELISSA. Bad blogger. BAD, BAD BLOGGER. 

But... did you miss me? I sure as hell missed you!

I have a for-real good excuse for my absence and neglect. First I was celebrating Hanukkah with my family, and then I was moving, and before I knew it, it was today. Fear not, for I have been crafting all over my furniture and have a large-and-in-charge-project to share with you today. 

SEE!

If that aint the flyest piece o' bookshelf you ever saw, well then, you are clearly too cool for this blog and probably shouldn't be wasting your time here. (Please stay. I love you.)

What's that? You are wondering how I did with my wishlist? Well. I did pretty bomb-ass-fantastic, thanks to my ninja parents and sister. I am now the very happy owner of the MIU MIU NOIR SUNGLASSES!!!!!!

I shit you not:

(Remember when I went on my rant about these puppies?) When I wear them, I look like a straight up celebrity. So I made a point of wearing them indoors, at night, on Christmas. (While I was at the movie theater, like every other Jew in America.)

I am also now in possession of a NEON GREEN POWER TOOL.

Way more my style than hot pink. Watch out crafters, this blog is about to go handy!

To top it all off, the Leica Camera!

This is really a gift for you, too. Expect crispy clear pictures from now on!

And also, I got parts 1 & 2 of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. 

I pretty much had the best Hanukkah EVER. Not only gift-receiving-wise, but also gift-giving-wise, and family-time-wise. It was fantastic all around. 

I hope everyone else had a fabulous holiday and that you are all excited to find out how I made the Awesome Bookshelf, as it will be named going forward. 

Hanukkah Nails!

I have been seeing lots of Christmas-inspired nail-art going around the interwebs. And, I'm not gonna lie, I have been feeling really left out because, well, I'm Hanukkah. Not Christmas. I decided it is my mission, nay, my DUTY (lol, duty) to bring Hanukkah-inspired nail-art to the people. (My people that is. You know, members of the tribe. L'Chaim.)

I give you: The Hanukkah Manicure.

The perfect nails to match my dreidel spinnin' self.

Modern Antique Mirror

Yea. This post title is pretty ridiculous. Something can't be modern and antique all at once. Except, yeah, it totally can! 

I couldn't have chosen a better time to move into my new apartment. 

Firstly because I have a whole week off of work to move, unpack, and settle. (Like, my office closes, I don't lose vacation days or any of that nonsense. SICK, right.) 

Secondly because my grandmother recently sold her home to live in a smaller apartment. That house was FULL of gems. Whatever was left in there was mine for the taking. (Well actually, I was pretty lazy about the whole thing. So I get to chose from whatever made into the storage unit. Which is still a lot.) 

First gem: the coffee table. Second gem: the old mirror. (Stay tuned for more gems.) 

And while the mirror is (was) really beautiful in it's original state, I spray painted the antique straight out of it!

Hello Blue Mirror:

I'm literally waving hello. To you. Don't be rude. Wave hello back.

...I can wait. 

Fine. Be like that. I'm not hurt. I'm not crying - I've just been chopping up some onions. 

(Yes, that was a Flight of the Concords reference.)

Supplies:

1. An antique mirror from my Grandmother's old house. 

2. Newsprint paper from Blick.

3. Spray paint from Michael's.

4. Painter's tape from the Home Depot. 

5. A drop cloth from the Home Depot. 

Step 1:

Place the mirror face up on the drop cloth. 

Step 2:

Cover the mirror surface with newsprint and painter't tape. 

Step 3:

Spray paint the frame of the mirror. You might need to do two layers to get a nice opaque color. 

Step 4:

Once dry, remove the painter's tape and newsprint paper. 

And you're done!

BLUE MIRROR HELLO!

...looks like I did a pretty spotty job at cleaning the actual mirror. Must remember to buy better cleaning supplies. 

Blue mirror, meet Chalkboard table. Chalkboard table, meet Blue Mirror. You two are going to be great friends!

Hey. You guys. Do you like my exposed brick wall?! I bet you do. New apartment win!

These are my plans:

Gather a bunch of old mirrors of different sizes and style. Spray paint each one a different color. Then, put them up on my exposed brick wall salon style. Ya diggggg? 

Oh boy, my apartment is gonna look so freaking good. 

Oh, and Happy Christmas! I hope everyone has an awesome weekend. After the big move, I will be celebrating a Jewish Christmas. Movies and Chinese food. Oh and hanging out with every other Jew in this city at Matzo Ball. Party time!

Tassel Earring

Hey. You. Want to make your boring holiday party outfit way more festive, but don't want to buy new clothing because you are too broke? NO WAY! Me too! 

Holy guacamole, we are so on the same page. 

This year I am feeling particularly poor due to all of the new apartment costs, so I am glamming up my holiday outfit with these Tassel Earrings:
Cause what girl doesn't want to feel glam around the holidays?

SO GLAM!
Glam glam glam glam glam glam glam.
That word starts to sound weird when I keep saying it.

I was at M&J the other day and I spotted these tassels on their tassel wall. Something about the color was so gosh-darn pretty and I decided I needed to wear them. Somehow. So I made me a pair of earrings. And then I wore them to work the next day because I was that excited about them.  

Chalkboard Coffee Table

HUGE NEWS EVERYONE. Are you ready for it?

I'm moving. 

Why did I put myself through the tortures of looking for a new place in NYC when I had a perfectly good apartment in an adorable neighborhood with a super-cool roommate to look at and occasionally break bread with? For you of course! (But, mostly for me.)

YOU benefit from this whole ordeal in two ways:

A) A greater variety of crafts for the blog! I have WAY more space in my new apartment. (So. Maybe the neighborhood is a little bit of a downgrade. I'm OK with it. In 5-10 years it will be completely taken over by hipsters, anyways. Plus, it happens to be an easier commute to my workplace. So, suck it good neighborhood!) You see, I am quite limited crafting-wise in my current apartment due to a serious lack of space. My head has been flooded with ideas that I have been dying to execute and share, but I haven't had the space. And now I do! (This  also benefits me because, if it's not already obvious, this makes me a very happy lady.)

B) Apartment crafting! Thats right. I am planning to put my crafty hand on basically every item in my apartment. You should be excited. Holy mother of spray paint this is gonna be fun. 

I'm not moving until this weekend, but I did get into the apartment a little early to paint the walls this past week. While I was there I decided to work on my first new apartment item.

Presenting: The Chalkboard Coffee table.

That's right. I'm home. 

This idea also has a little back story of it's own. What I am saying, basically, is that this is not my original idea. I'm giving credit where credit is due. Like a good chicken. 

Anyways... A few months ago I was hanging out with one of my amigos in Washington Square Park. We got hungry and went to a local restaurant called the Olive Tree Cafe. And guess what they had? I kid you not: Chalkboard tables! Needless to say, I went to town with the chalk. I'm confused as to why said friend continued to hang out with me after this night:

Terrifying stuff, right. A sad mouse, a grenade, a diamond, a garland, and... hearts. Oh, and some pretty aggressive commentary from the sad mouse. I can't honestly define the moment where my parents went wrong, but clearly something is off. Although, my drawings aren't half as... curious as my friend's. Wonky Banana Taco? Car Driven by Grapes? A DNA-helix? Now I am wondering why I continued talking to him...

Regardless of the questionable drawings, the chalkboard table made for a really fun night. And that's when the genius hit me. I thought, if I had this in my house, potential company would always undoubtedly be entertained! (As would I. Notice how all my actions have a selfish motive? It's just a pattern I'm picking up on.)

Glitter Computer

Today we continue in our never-ending journey of adding glitter and glue to every electronic item I own.

The latest victim: MY COMPUTER! 

Jealous?

You should be. But you don't have to be. Because I am about to tell you how to make this without ruining your computer. 

I suppose now would be the time to let you know that my mad glitter-skillz have evolved over the years from quite the shit-show to my current, more controlled, understanding of the material. (Yes. I understand glitter. And glitter understands me. We have mutual feelings.) I have been known to occasionally ruin electronic, and non-electronic, devises with glitter. I will say - this might be my best handled glitter project yet. It's no big deal. Except it kind of is. 

So fasten your seatbelt, baby. I'm about to take you on a glitter ride. Yea, I said that. What now?!

The Ultimate Crafter Wishlist

 I don't know if you noticed, but I have been avoiding holiday posts. The main reason is that I'm a super Jew, and I'm no authority on Christmas crafts. Like, I don't know that first thing about it. I'm not even sure what a garland is. 

However, Hanukkah is around the corner and that means two things to me: 

1. Latkas! Om nom nom! (Latkas=fried potato pancakes with apple sauce. So good.)

2. Presents!!!!!!

(Oh, and also the whole story about the miracle with the oil lasting eight days.)

Lucky for me, Mama Felderman is a present-giving-ninja. I'm not kidding, she puts Santa to shame. I picked out some of the craft oriented items from my wishlist to share with you crazy crafters! Hopefully my mom reads this post too, so she knows what to get me. (No, I'm kidding. She already knows. I emailed her my wishlist months ago.)

1. White dinnerware and plain stemware from Fishes Eddy. I recently found out that, when cured properly, Martha Stewart's Craft Paint will become food and dishwasher safe! I can't wait to add all sorts of glitter to these! My kitchen is gonna be just as glittery and colorful as my soul. This is why I'm single. Find me a boy who will agree to eat of of glittery plates, and he can have my heart. 

(I'll also take some of the flatware, so I can make more enamel dipped silverware. Speaking of which, I could use some new colors of enamel. Enamel is depressingly expensive.)

2. A new digital camera from B&H. Preferably the Leica that my photographer Uncle has used to replace all of his other cameras. I have been using a Digital SLR from 2004 or 2005. Something ridiculously old. It's been a struggle trying to take sharp pictures, and it's super heavy so I never want to bring it around with me. A new camera would make all my troubles disappear! This blog is gonna be gorgeous! (pending the gift of the new digital camera. I'm counting on you Mom.) 

3. A power tool. Preferably in pink. (From Target.) Sometimes crafting involves some building, and these arms need some help. Que the power tool. The pink makes me feel way less weird about the fact that I am asking for a power tool for Hanukkah. I mean, it's just... I'm pretty girly. This is for sure out of character, but definitely something I need. 

4. incase matte iPhone and Macbook cases. By the ton. We all know I have an unhealthy obsession with making cell phone cases. I would probably craft all over computer cases too, if they weren't so gosh-darn expensive. You can't get a cheap version in China Town like a cell phone case! Rude!

5. And finally, my all time obsession, the Miu Miu Noir Sunglasses from Saks Fifth Avenue. No, these have absolutely no crafty use, (except to inspire a DIY sunglasses project) but I'm pretty much in love with them and I want them so bad. SO BAD. 

You know what would make my day? I mean, yea, if you gave me all of this stuff it would definitely make my day. But if you sent me your crafting wishlist, well, it would just send me over the moon! 

Sharing is caring! E-me!

Fimo Bow - Because Fimo is Awesome.

I have to say this: FIMO IS FREAKING AWESOME. I was thinking about it the other day. It's a variety of clay that never dries. And then when you bake it - it becomes plastic. It's kind of like magic. I came to the realization that anything I can sculpt with clay - I can turn into plastic. I KNOW, I should have put two and two together way long ago, but I was busy turning Fimo into flowers. It dawned on me a week ago and I got all sorts of excited. Better late than never. Right? RIGHT?!

So what did I do with my new knowledge? I made A FIMO BOW. Duh.  

OK, I made a few. I wanted a hair bow, and a bow ring, and bow earrings. And I figured, why the hell not?! 

Wrapped Headphones

Guess what I did? I took my headphones and I turned them into a giant friendship bracelet. 

I KNOW. I am thinking about seeking help for my crafting obsession. It's only a matter of time until everything I own is covered in glitter and glue. 

These headphones are a part of my larger obsession to add handmade elements to every electronic item I own. Exciting stuff, right. This is why I am single have no friends. (JK. I totally do. See.)

Hand-painted Sunglasses

It's Sunny outside! And that means two things.

One: I am all smiles. Damn it, I love the sunshine.

Two: I want more sunglasses. 

So you know what I did? I made more sunglasses. Duh. 

Check 'em out!

Looks like I'm dreaming of summer. Who cares that I'm not supposed to wear white after labor day? I'm Gonna! And you can't stop me. 

Weekend Crafting: Hair Bows!

Happy Friday crafters! It is a glorious day for a whole variety of reasons. Mostly because of the boozy lunch I had with my coworkers! SHHHHH! Don't tell the man!

This past weekend I spent my Sunday with my besty Keighty. We drank coffee, walked around Brooklyn, made a delicious lunch, crafted hair bows, and drank a bottle of wine while listening to records DJ'd by her boyfriend. It was pretty much the perfect Sunday. 

Anyways, back to Keighty. She is pretty much the koolest kid that I know. Check out her awesome work in progress: the Live Polaroid Project. Sweet right. Those first three pictures, thats me and my roommate Jane with Lola - our bitch-faced cat. 

SO. Keighty. She wears a bow in her hair every day. What's even cooler than that is she makes them herself. On Sunday she showed me how. On Friday I show you how. And on Sunday, you make it yourself. And then on Monday you send me pictures. I have this all worked out. 

Check out this cuteness:

Glitter Business Card Holder

Hey. Guys. Remember last week when I made that bad-ass spiked business card holder and I was all like, "I made two versions of business card holders. I'll show you one next week. Mostly cause I want to keep you interested in my blog. I love you." 

I'm delivering on that promise. 

Right now. 

Are you ready? You are? Wait for it. Wait for it...

The Glitter Business Card Holder. 

For the business woman who occasionally wishes we lived in a Lisa Frank world. (Now you know what my daydreams look like.)

ooOoOOoOOoOoOoo! It's shiny, compact, colorful, AND functional. 

Neon Fimo Gems

Hey, you guys! Remember when I showed you how to make those awesome fimo coasters?! Well. What I didn't tell you was that I had some extra fimo scrap left over. I never know what to do with the left over fimo (there is always some left over fiimo) because there isn't enough scrap material to put into a new flower. #craftingproblems. 

And then I had an epiphany: I can use fimo to make other things. Mind = Blown. 

So, I had some neon colors left over and this is what I made:

NEON GEOMETRIC FIMO GEMS

Fierce. 

Embroidered Cell Phone Case

HOLY CUTENESS. (What I am trying to say is that I made something cute.) 

If you hadn't already noticed, I am forever trying to make my electronics look unique and have an element of fun. Plain electronics are straight up boring! (Sorry to attack your aesthetic Steve Jobs, I think you were awesome.) The way I see it, our phones are an essential accessory and they deserve a little attention! 

Today I bring you the third in a series of cell phone cases.

Drum Roll Please.

The Embroidered Cell Phone Case!

Mixin' technology and fibers like its my job! You see the juxtaposition of softness and cell phone. It's pretty much deep enough to be considered a "work of art." No big deal. 

Spiked Bracelet

It's Monday people! You know what that mean! (Don't you?) YOU GUYS. It means that I spent the past 48 hours crafting until my fingers bled. (No that's not true. My finger didn't actually bleed. I was exaggerating to spike your interest.) 

Point of the story: You have some very awesome projects to look forward to this week. Just Sayin'. 

Today I give you: The SPIKED BRACELET.

(Did you see how I used the word "spike" in the first paragraph. It was a pun. Clever, eh? Whatever. I'm proud of my punning skillz.)

Boom! A fantastic and violent accessory to match your spiked business holder. Snaps for coordination! 

Spiked Business Card Holder

Can I get a T.G.I.F?!  T.G.I.F!!!!

Super cool news! I got business cards! AH! I'm, like, a for real blogger now. That's how it works right? Once you get business cards, shit is official. As soon as they arrived in the mail I knew I had to make a GLAM case. What sort of crafter would I be if I had a bland business card holder? A bad one. 

So far I have made not one, but TWO, varieties of business card holders for my many moods and personalities. Today I will share only ONE with you guys. You get to see the second one sometime next week. Now you have something to look forward to! I'm so kind. 

I present to you: The Spiked Business Card Holder: For the Businesswoman who likes to intimidate with violent accessories.