Time On My Hands!

This is spring break for my family here in Ocala and daughter #3 and her family are off in Park City, Utah for a week of skiing and fun in the snow! It seems weird but knowing they're not in town leaves me feeling like I need to find things to do to keep me extra busy. Guess that is because I know there is NO way they will be popping up at my door or calling and asking me to help out with something. And so, I decided to think about some crafting.

Normally I would be out in the garden. The sun is shining and it is beautiful out there but just a bit chillier than I enjoy when I'm crawling around on my hands and knees and digging in the dirt.

I realized I owed a return letter to my aunt and, since St. Pat's is right around the corner, I thought I would enclose it in a card. Alas, I had no St. Pat's cards in my stash so I decided to whip one up. I copied an idea that I had used for Valentine's Day a number of years ago and simply strung some shamrocks instead of hearts on a cord. It turned out kind of cute and I was thinking of making more when I got a frantic text from my daughter - yes, the one out on the slopes. She had just found out that all of my grand son's friends were signing up for the first session of Kiwanis summer camp and, because this camp fills up extremely fast, they needed to get his registration form post marked that day...and, the house they were renting in Utah didn't have a printer. Could I please download the form, fill it in COMPLETELY, enclose a check and get it to the post office?

So much for my crafting but it made me feel good that even though they are so far away, they still need help from me! So much for my theory but it really is nice to be needed! Lol

And now I'm at it again. I really did enjoy making the painted burlap door hanger for St. Pat's Day so I couldn't wait to start another. I am going to do this one day next week with a friend but since I wanted both an egg and a bunny, I thought I would do the egg today while I still have some time on my hands.

I started in exactly the same way. I decided how large I wanted the egg to be and then free handed a shape out of kraft paper. Then, I cut two out of burlap.

I marked off the sections, painted the white area and hung it to dry. Again, I put wax paper under the burlap so the extra paint didn't soak in and I used the stiff bristled brushes. Since I was able to find the traditional burlap color this time, I decided I wanted a small edge of it to show. That meant I couldn't give it a primer coat of any spray paint with color so I went ahead and gave both the front and back a shot of clear coat. I really think this helps stabilize the fabric and helps fill in the loose weave so the paint covers better.

Then it was on to the violet. This may not be the exact violet color I would have made but I was afraid if I mixed my paint - and by some chance didn't mix enough - I would never be able to match it again perfectly. As I found out with my first project, the burlap soaks up LOTS of paint.  So, because of that, I went with the violet I could find in a large bottle.

And now, the green. I did find myself going with a little more vibrant colors than I had planned. When I put my first choice of pastels together, it looked like I was preparing for a baby shower - just too soft for me. Keeping my fingers crossed I won't be sorry when this is all said and done.

I'm going to stop right here and let it dry completely overnight. I will do the decorative part tomorrow but once again I have surprised myself. After drawing out several designs, I think I am going with just polka dots...very much the same as my inspiration picture. I just don't like the busy-ness of everything else I came up with.

I was also going to use Easter ribbon but I think I'm leaning towards just a burlap bow this time...we shall see. Stay tuned.