DIY Paper Antler Wreath

THIS POST IS SPONSORED BY TINY PRINTS. THANKS FOR SUPPORTING THIS PARTNERSHIP! ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE 100% MY OWN.

Create this fun and stylish antler wreath with your holiday card collection. 

40 Minutes
Gathered Holiday Cards
Yes Brand Paste

Paint Brush (for paste)

Pencil

Ribbon (about 1 ft)

Scissors

Antler Template (you can make your own or print and trace mine)

Inspiration for this project came from the joy of receiving such beautiful holiday cards this time of year and the frustration of being unable to find something fun to do with them after the holidays! This year we decided to host a crafternoon on New Year's Day and invite our friends and family over for some food, fun, and a little craftiness. I found these great invites over at Tiny Prints, and loved the antler motif so much, a DIY was born! 

To get started you will need to gather the supplies listed above. I encourage you to go ahead and purchase Yes Paste. I love this stuff. It is not well known, but it works beautifully with paper and a little bit will go a long way. I also recommend using sharp scissors. 

First you will want to create an antler template. I made mine by drawing a larger version of the antler shown on the crafternoon invitation. You may want to draw your own, or you can print out the photo below and size it to your liking, then trace with pencil onto card stock or a holiday card. Putting the card on top of your antler and placing them both over a sunny window works great to get an accurate tracing. When sizing your antler, keep in mind, the finished wreath as shown is 8 inches in diameter.

Once you have a template, you will trace it on top of your holiday cards, then cut. You will need to be sure to trace your template on both sides so you have finished antlers pointing in both directions. I used 10 antlers in my finished wreath. 

After you trace and cut your antlers you will need to prepare some paste. Put a very small amount on the tip of a short haired paint brush. As you lay out your antlers, brush a small amount of paste on the back of the top antler and lay it flat on to the bottom one. Work your way around switching from side to side into a circle.

The last step is to take your ribbon and tie a bow to paste in the middle. Brush a small amount of paste on the back of each loop of the bow and lay flat on the ends of the antlers at the bottom of the wreath. Allow your wreath to lay flat for about 2 hours or so. Yes Paste stays flexible for several hours and will need time to set. 

I hope you have as much fun making this wreath as I did. I'll be thinking of more fun ways to recycle those holiday cards. Let me know what clever projects you create with yours!

Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday and the happiest of New Year's. To great adventures!

xoxo

Lisa

Original photography, art direction + styling for Zelma Rose by Lisa Anderson Shaffer.

This post is sponsored by Tiny Prints. Thanks for supporting this partnership! All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

DIY FABRIC STATEMENT NECKLACE

I love a good DIY and this time of year a do it yourself project can not only yield a thoughtful gift, but can be a great opportunity to gather your friends and family together for a fun crafternoon. One of my favorite parts of being a creative entrepreneur in the Bay area is that there are so many wonderfully imaginative people to collaborate with. For this project I teamed up with my pal and fellow creative entrepreneur Madeline Trait. Madeline pulled together a great post of this DIY for Martha Stewart herself. You can check it out here.

Madeline and I formally met last year, but I had been a fan of her beautiful hand painted cake toppers for years. With a similar design aesthetic, attention to detail and love of laughter, Madeline and I became instant friends. We were searching for a project to work on together and when she told me about this incredible Marimekko fabric covered necklace she had, well it was easy to get inspired. With our love of vibrant prints leading the way, we created this fun DIY that in 90 minutes has you looking like a fashion forward, femme fatale.

YOU WILL NEED:

90 Minutes
Fabric at least 1 yard
Embroidery thread
Wooden Beads - We used 1" and 3/4" but you can choose any size you like.
Scissors
Needle
Iron

Step 1. 

Cut your fabric into strips. For 1" beads the fabric needs to be 2.5" wide. For the 3/4" beads the fabric needs to be 2" wide. All strips should be no shorter than 30". The length of the strip determines how long your necklace will be. 

Step 2. 

With a hot iron, create a 1/4" hem on both sides of your fabric strip.

Step 3.

This is the fun part! To add your first bead, find the center of your fabric strip by folding it in half length wise. Next place your first bead in the center of the fabric strip and wrap the fabric entirely around the bead. Once the bead is completely covered in fabric you will secure either end with embroidery thread. Put your needle through the fabric to secure it tight, wrap it around several times and then knot it at the end. You will repeat this step until all your beads are covered.

Step 4.

To finish the necklace, tie remaining loose fabric into knots and then knot both sides together. You can also cut the remaining loose fabric into 3 strips to braid and then knot at the end. We did both. 

Step 5.

Ready to wear!

Happy crafting!

xoxo

Lisa + Madeline

Original photography, art direction + styling for Zelma Rose by Lisa Anderson Shaffer

You can check out this project over on the Martha Stewart Blog here. We love you M...