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Alcohol Ink on Permanent Vinyl Easter Signs

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I've been enjoying making signs using these metal blanks from Dollar Tree by adding vinyl cut on my Silhouette Cameo . They're usually pretty easy (as long as the weeding goes ok) and turn out cute. So with the upcoming Easter holiday, I was putting up a few decorations and realized I didn't have any signs. Well, that cannot stand--it was now a moral imperative that I made a couple of Easter signs. I perused the freebies in my Silhouette library from over the years and found a couple that I could use. Since I had an idea that was definitely an experiment in mind, I measured my signs and arranged duplicate versions and backup designs and some extra eggs to fill the 12 x 12 grid. After I cut the vinyl , I started weeding the "backup" design. After the nerve-wracking bit of pulling off the exterior vinyl, I thought I was home free--but it turns out I missed a section of the second "E" and it got stuck to the exterior vinyl and thrown out in the trash. This

Easter Craft Projects Collection

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Check out all of the Easter craft projects from Sarah Jane's Craft Blog here: Easter Craft Collection  

St Patrick's Day Signs Made with Vinyl Decals Used as Stencils Two Ways

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While I was cutting the vinyl decal for last week's project on my Silhouette Cameo , I made a spare vinyl decal design (in case something went wrong). Since it was a simple design, I had the idea to try to use it as a reverse stencil (inside letters) and, if I could salvage it, a regular stencil (outside of the letters). To start out, I needed to prep a wooden sign to be used with the letters from the decal as a reverse stencil. Since the letters will be peeled away, I needed a nice surface or color to show through. I have used a paint wash in the past, but since I found out you could use alcohol ink to dye wood different colors, I thought making it green would be appropriate and a lot of fun. I got out a silicone craft mat to protect the table and a small container in which I could put some green alcohol ink. Then I added a bit of rubbing alcohol to thin the ink and grabbed a foam brush . I used the foam brush to paint on the thinned green ink and then set it aside to dry fo

Dollar Tree Metal Sign with Vinyl St. Patrick's Day Decal

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If you've been following the blog, you know that I'm addicted to these little metal signs you can pick up at Dollar Tree. So after acquiring a few more, I made a cute little St. Patrick's Day sign to add to my collection. I started by selecting a design one of my freebie designs from the Silhouette store and setting it to cut using standard glossy vinyl settings. I put my sheet of green vinyl on a cutting mat for easy loading and let it cut the design on my old Silhouette Cameo . I separated my design from the rest of the sheet of vinyl with a scissor. Then I grabbed a weeding tool and carefully peeled and picked away the excess vinyl. The thing letters were a bit of a pain (each one pulled off the backing and had to be freed from the vinyl and positioned back into place), but the weeding only made me swear a couple of times. I applied a piece of transfer tape to the design and rubbed it down with the handle of the weeding tool. I peeled off the paper backing and placed

Spray Painted and Alcohol Inked Washer Necklaces

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After sharing the  washer jewelry projects  collection last week, I had an idea I had to try. I've inked on spray paint a few times before, but I've never started washer necklaces on spray paint. I figured it would make the ink pop and provide a contrast if I let it peek through the ink. Since this was a bit of an experiment, I went through my stash of washers and picked out some dinged ones, and then I used a piece of sandpaper to scuff them up to get the spray paint to stick better. I used an all-purpose spray paint and gave them a couple of quick coats and let it dry overnight. The next day, I put down a silicone craft mat and grabbed my inks. I also got out my rubbing alcohol, a couple of paintbrushes, and a hand bulb blower . Since this was a new way to ink washers, I started inking without taking pictures. I covered the whole washer in purple ink and then came back with more ink and rubbing alcohol to get the ink to move around and create patterns. Unfortunately, the