Tetris Chest of Drawers

I bought a set of drawers months ago from Ikea and spent ages deciding how to paint them. Every time I looked at them the shape reminded me of a game of tetris but I didn't think all the bright colours would go in my living room. Then it hit me - why do I need to stick to the traditional colours and then this idea was born!

What you will need:

Ikea PS 2012 chest of drawers

acrylic paint (white, black and red) - I got mind from poundland

Pencil

Ruler

Step 1

Take all the handles off your chest of drawers

Step 2 

Measure out your squares and draw them on your drawers. I had to make mine slightly more rectangular than square so that there wasn't any gaps on the drawer. You can use the same pattern as me or make up your own. If you want to use mine then just split the length and height of the drawer by the number of squares I've used in that space.

Step 3 

Paint your base coat colours on the squares until the front of your drawers are covered. I added white to the black to get the lighter grey colour and black to the red so that I had enough shades.

Step 4

Now for the tricky bit - doing the shading. For each of your base shades you need 3 colours to do the shading:

• One very light one (used on the top side)
• One not as light as the first but still lighter than your base coat (used on the left side)
• One darker than the base coat (used on the bottom and right sides)

I painted all the tops of that certain base coat first and then added a tiny bit of black to made it darker for all the left hand sides, before adding even more to make the other two sides, making sure that you paint the corners at an angle so they all join up together evenly.

I started out trying to draw all the shading on before painting it but I got bored and realised that my paint brash width gave me the desired effect so I just used that.

Step 5

Paint a thin black line round the outside of your tetris shape blocks (not the individual squares) and use the rest of your black paint to cover the rest of the drawers and handles.

Step 6

Screw the handles back in, then step back and admire your handy work before putting all your junk back on it!

I use mine as a TV cabinet as my TV is mounted on the wall so it looks like it's floating just above it and it's great for hiding DVDs and the Xbox (which fits in the tall cupboard on the right)

I'll be back,

I'm on cloud nine with my woodwork skills!!

My sister is due a baby in just a couple of weeks now and my boyfriend and I are helping to decorate their nursery. she wanted a jungle theme so we are covering the walls in jungle animals and trees so to help the shelves blend into the picture, we decided to make some that look like clouds!

There were actually really simple to do - either that or my woodwork skills are improving!

What You Need:

Thick wood - I used a pine shelf I got from Homebase

2 corner plates

screws

hot glue / wood glue

2 picture hooks

drill

sander

jigsaw

Step 1

Cut out a length of wood for the main part of your shelf (mine was 40cm long). You will also need 2 cloud shapes - one large cloud which is slightly bigger than the length of your shelf and one thats about half the length of your shelf.

Then cut the large cloud so that the bottom is the same length as the shelf but keep those end parts as you will need them later.

Sand your piece down and then you will be ready to assemble your shelf.

Step 2

Then using your corner plates, screw the large cloud to the base of your shelf on both sides. This will make your shelf sturdy

Step 3

Take your two left over bits of the cloud and cut a smaller gap in each and this will left them sit flush against your cloud with the screws inside

Step 4

Glue the ends back onto the large cloud and fill in the gaps with glue so they create a smooth surface

Step 5

Glue your small cloud to the other side of your base, picking either the left or right hand side of your shelf

Step 6

Give your shelf a couple coats of white paint to finish it off

Step 7

Screw some picture hooks into the top of your large cloud and then you can use these to nail your shelf into the wall

Step 8

Fill with your favourite toys and books but test it out before putting anything too heavy on it

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

Hopefully by now you are all getting in the Christmas spirit...are at least getting some spirits in you!! But between all the drinking and eating, you decide you want something different from your traditional Christmas tree, then this tutorial is definitely for you!

What you need

• 3D Christmas Tree (This one is from hobby craft and was given to me by my AMAZING friend Tatum)
• A shed loads of buttons (I needed about 3x300g bags - which also came from hobby craft)
• Black spray paint
• silver paint
• scouring pad
• assortment of beads
• glue gun

Step 1

Working your way round the tree, glue on your buttons. I used a hot glue gun at it makes sure the buttons are sturdy and don't start pushing each other down.

Step 2

Take the tree outside and spray paint it black, making sure you get in between all the little buttons. Also make sure it's not windy when you do it as I learnt the hard way when the black paint came back in my face! Bring the tree back inside and leave it to dry. I put it next to the heater and it dried in no time.

Step 3

Once the tree is dry, put a very small amount of silver paint on the scourer and then dab it on some paper so that there is only a thin layer. 

Gently rub the scourer down the tree until you have silver lines over the top of the buttons and you are happy with the effect. I had to go over some a few times to get the look I wanted.

Step 4

For the tree ornaments I bought a range of beads and strung them together, using this silver embroidery thread.

Step 5

I then glued the decorations evenly round the tree and then stuck these little bows over the top of the glue so you don't see the join.

There you have it and it only took 5 steps!

I'll be back xx

A crazy little thing called art

Ever looked at a picture and had to double take? Well I love that kind of artwork, the kind that really makes you look closely to see the real image. Don't worry, I'm not going to start throwing arty terms about because I'll probably use them wrong but here are a few crazy pieces of artwork you'll love to get your head around!

One of my favourite artists is Tom French. His use of figures within a face or skull is extremely clever. I'm a big fan of skull artwork as my friends and family will tell you, so even just the outer image I find gorgeous but as your eyes start to peal away the surroundings and focus on to the figures contained inside I am just outstanded by the level of details and emotion that comes from the people inside the painting.

          

Artwork by Tom French

But Tom isn't the only artist that uses this concept. What about this take on a Van Gogh by Oleg Shuplyak! If you click on the link below the image then you will see many more famous figures transformed into optical illusions.

Artwork by Oleg Shuplyak 

The next painting by George A Wotherspoon takes a simple piece of human nature, gossiping, and shows it's sinister side as it's portrayed inside the face of a devil

Artwork by George A Wotherspoon

Finally we have a picture from Rob Gonsalves. This one takes a different direction by taking figures and transforming them into a beautiful landscape.

Artwork by Rob Gonsalves

If of any you have favourite pieces of illusion artwork then please share them in the comments section below. We would love to see them!

I'll be back xx

Crafty Storage Solutions

It's a new week and boy is it a cold one...the weather has suddenly changed and I've had to put the heating on for the first time brrrrr

But on the bright side it also means a new blog theme and while you are tucked up warm in your house, what better to do than start organising all those bits and pieces you have collected over the summer months.


While searching around this week I found a fun one to do with the kids - check out these fab storage boxes by Aimee Ledwell.

Chalkboard Storage Boxes - by Aimee Ledwell

In the tutorial she uses orange boxes but I've come up with some alternatives if you can't get your hands on them:

Empty Shoe Boxes

Plant Pots

Empty Food Cartons

I've found so many more amazing things to show you this week...I'm soooo excited!!!

I'll be back xx

Upcycling - Start with something simple

About to through out that old piece of furniture or sick of your old clothes, well STOP and think about all your upcycling possibilities before you do!!!

Upcycling is a great way to vamp up those unwanted items and you feel extra proud of not only your creative skills but also doing your part to help the environment by recycling. Some people fine this quite a daunting term but it doesn't need to be complicated. Today we are going to start of with something really easy but can totally change a room...Picture Frame Artwork

For a while we have thought our livingroom wall was quite plain and we were looking for a large piece of artwork to fill in all that blank space but everything we loved was quite expensive. I loveeee photographs so we decided to come up with something using all the photo frames we had lying around as they had started to make the house look a bit cluttered (not going to lie - we had to by a few extras as well) and the end result looks like this:

We started buy painting all the photo frames black so they matched (I found for the more detailed vintage style frames it was easier to spray paint to get in all the nooks and crannies) and then filled them with a mixture of black and white photos and our favourite home made pieces of artworks our friends have made us.

Using the mounted television as a central point we started putting the frames on the wall, taking turns at stepping back to make sure it fitted well with all the others we had already put up. I love the finish effect as it's a piece of art that is personalised to us and our loved ones - which is priceless!

REMEMBER to check the walls for cables etc before hammering so many nails

Or if photos aren't your thing - you could pick up wall paper samples from your local DIY store and place them in frames to make your own piece of art

Here are a range of tutorials other people have made with their own take on this idea

Bedroom Wall Gallery - Doodlecraft

Chalkboard Seating Chart - "I Do" it yourself

Artwork Peg Board - Make it & Love it

Earring Stand - House to Home

I've also made my own blackboard photo frame which I'll be putting up a tutorial for later in the week

Well I hope this has inspired you to look around your house and see what you could transform into something new. Please comment on this page or send me and email at craftalavista@gmail.com if you would like ideas on transforming a specific item and we will see what we can come up with!

Happy Crafting xxxx

Edinburgh Contemporary Crafts

Today my boyfriend and I battled the festival crowds on our way to a lino carving course with Edinburgh Contemporary Crafts on Blair St.

Lino carving?!? I hear you say...

Well it's a way to make print stamps that you can use again and again for cards, bags, clothes and more!

Our instructors were great - we were greeted with a warm welcome as we were shown to our seats and then they supplied us with the tools we needed to get started. They gave us paper to practice on and showed us how to carve the lino, making sure you know to carve the background so that you are left with your stamp image,  ready for painting. They also have a range of pattern books for you to look through and get inspiration.

You are then left to your own devices and there is no rush to get finished. They were open from 1pm - 9pm and you can bring your own booze so great for a girly day out. The girls were still about to give you a helping hand if you needed it.

Once you are finished making your printing stamp, you go over to the painting section.  There are a range of coloured paints to use and a choice of white or brown card to print on. We had fun experimenting with the different colours and even tried out some layering.

It was great to see how different everyone's designs were and you get to take everything you have made home with you - I'll definitely be checking out what other courses they have on!

Check out www.edinburghcontemporarycrafts.co.uk for more info