Switchplate Covers { Tutorial }

The latest addition to my artsy-craftsy bedroom decorating is... switchplate covers!  

(Also known as lightswitch covers.)

I also made some covers for electrical outlets and some funky pokey-thing whose purpse I have not the least clue of. I was not able to decorate the cover on the phone outlet because the covers seems to be attached to the wires.

The covers in my bedroom were boring white (not to mention stained!). Time for an updo! It's amazing how this little projects brightens up a room!

Now, it might be redundant to do this tutorial, since it is rather common-sense and the idea is by no means unique. But I took work-in-progress pictures, and... we don't want to let perfectly good pictures be wasted, do we? No!

To make Lightswitch Covers, you will need:

Screwdriver

Scrapbook paper

Scissors

Mod Podge glue and a paintbrush

Scotch tape

Any embellishments

Cost: practically free. Most crafters will have these supplies at hand.

Time: 15 minutes of working, around 45 minutes of drying time spread throughout.

Remove the lightswitch cover. Make sure no little siblings are nearby to poke their fingers at the wires.

Prepare to glue the paper!

Cut out a square of paper several centimeters larger than the cover.

Coat the cover with Mod Podge.

Place the paper on the glue-y cover and cut out the holes for the lightswitch/electric outlet.

You can do this with an Xacto knife, as I did, or trace the holes on the paper and cut it out with scissors.

Clip the corners of the paper. Paint glue onto the edges.

 Fold the edges over. Secure with tape. (The tape holds the paper tightly in place while the glue dries; you don't need to bother about removing the tape.)

Here, you can see that I added embellishments. I raided Mom's scrapbook supplies and found this hardware that was the perfect size!

Coat the entire cover with Mod Podge. I did not do this for the electrical outlets, but I put around 3 layers of Mod Podge on the lightswitch covers! I want to be able to clean off dirty fingerprints and I don't want wet hands to warp the paper!

Ta-da! No more boring covers!

You can cut out paper shapes-- you can even use book pages! Just be careful that you look at the book page before you glue it on... I wound up trying to scrape off a not-so-nice word!

This is a great craft for kids to help with.

My 7 year old sister made this cover almost entirely by herself. The only thing I did was tell her NO HOT PINK and help cut out the holes for the outlets.

Did you try this tutorial? Let me know by leaving a comment!

Check out my other tutorials {  here }.

St. Patrick's Prayer: Celtic Knotwork

Guess what I spent an entire weekend on? Art!

This is my latest project (man, I haven't been doing very many "big" art projects lately... must work on that).

It is "St. Patrick's Breastplate" prayer, calligraphied with a handdrawn celtic knotwork border.

Read on to see the in-between steps-- I went camera crazy!!!

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

 (click to enlarge)

I began by drawing the knotwork on a piece of Bristol Board.

Let's just say this took forever and a day.

First I had to draw a grid. You've no idea how long it takes to draw a million little dots, all spaced perfectly and just the right number! NO IDEA!

Then I criss-crossed the grid. (Picture #1) I "split" the knot in the middle, to add some contrast.

Next, I traced the cross-hatch pattern with over-under-over-unders. (Picture #2) This is when I began to freak out. "Real" knotwork uses only one strand of rope. As you can see in the second picture, I somehow managed to make 3 strands? I'm not sure how I managed that. I'm sure it has something to do with math... the number of dots I used or something. Anyways, I finally convinced myself that no one would notice. :)

Next came the fun part-- watching the knotwork actually "take shape." a.k.a. Tracing over everything I just did, only in pen this time. (Picture #3)

I wanted to make sure that the calligraphy would actually fit before I wrote on the nice paper. And boy, am I glad I did so!

Long story short, all of my calligraphy pens were too big or out of ink. I stopped by Micheals and spent $10 on a new pen set... Only to discover that the "fine tip" was too thick to fit the prayer on the page!

I found a smaller pen in Mom's scrapbook stuff. It wasn't ideal because the ink smudged, but hey! It fit!

So now I have three pages in my sketchbook with this prayer calligraphied and then X'ed out because they were too big and I was mad at it!

^ Here I laid a calligraphied sheet of paper on top of my artwork, to make sure it fit.

The next step was to trace guidelines and center the lines.

...and then to calligraphy it!

So I got all mad at myself again. On the left you see the artwork as I actually calligraphied it. Some of the ink smeared, the lines were not centered, and it doesn't fill the whole page!!!

On the right I just messed with the image on Photoshop so I could show you what the artwork is supposed to look like.

Next plan of attack... COLOR IT IN!

Another forever and a day project.

Quite nice to listen to the Celtic Thunder station on Pandora, though. :) 

This picture shows the "three strand" problem I was talking about earlier. Everything in green is one single strand.

AND THEN I TOOK PICTURES FROM FUNNY ANGLES! 

Because I am, really and truly, crazy.

We had a beautiful, unused frame that was intended as a Christmas present for someone who got something else instead. Since it wasn't in use... why not?

The artwork was not big enough to fill the mat, so I taped it to a background.

Can you guess what it is?

It's one of those file folders!!! Hey, it was the right shade of green, and bigger than scrapbook paper!

All nice and pretty on our otherwise bare mantle!

"...and having on the breastplate of righteousness;” -Ephesians 6:14

I always think of that verse from Ephesians when I think of this prayer.

Also known as the "Deer's Cry" or the "Lorcia," the "Breastplate Prayer" is attributed to St. Patrick. 

I love it's simplicity. It is a prayer asking that God be with you in everything, and that you may recognize Him in everything. A prayer that God be your protection, your breastplate-- and that you be His soldier.

There are several translations. What I calligraphied is just a small section of the "I arise today" version-- read it here. I have to say I'd never heard the full prayer before!

{ Here } is another version, a literal translation that's a bit amusing in word choice! Lots of cultural context there!

Another translation/version/whatever has this beautiful verse:

Christ with me, Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of
every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of
every one who speaks of me,
Christ in the eye of
every one who sees me,
Christ in every ear
that hears me.

Here is the prayer set to song:

...and another version of the song, which I'd never heard before.

So there you go! I'll get my Irish going real quick (well, I don't have any Irish, except for a relative a few generations back, but Wikipedia has the original Irish!)

Críst limm, Críst reum, Críst im degaid
Críst indium, Críst íssum, Críst úassum
Críst dessum, Críst túathum
Críst i llius, Críst i ssius, Críst i n-érus
Críst i cridiu cach duini rodomscrútadar
Críst i ngiun cach oín rodomlabrathar
Críst i cach rusc nomdercadar
Críst i cach clúais rodomchloathar.

Linky Buttons!

I finally decided to join some blog parties and linkies... and I found waaay to many. Uh huh, once I decide to do something I go all out!



Here are all of the blog linkys that I am currently participating in, or have ever participated in in the past (in no particular order). Please check them out-- all are hosted at beautiful blogs, and there is so much creativity and inspiration!

  

The Evolution of a Knot

a.k.a. I Took Pictures While Working on a Knotwork Drawing

I did not use a tutorial for this-- I was modifying what I knew about circular knotwork from the Trinity Knot. My compass got alot of use. I think I drew 26 little circles. 

Here it is, all traced in pen.

Colouring it in! 

(buahaha, had to use the British spelling. My brother Nick was just talking to me... we've never been out of the country, but somehow he's had a British accent from the day he started to talk.)

....and the finished artwork!

I made this on a small piece of Bristol board the size of a trading card. I turned it into a prayer card by calligraphy-ing a prayer on the back. No pictures of that because it really didn't turn out. :P

Artfire Referral-- Free Month of PRO

(Scroll down to the bottom of the post for a neat offer. Disclaimer: I am not being paid to do this. I just wanted to share because I <3 Artfire.)

If you ask anyone who Etsy is, chances are they know what you are talking about. Etsy has basically become the "name brand" of the handmade movement. Your average person has heard of it, and maybe even bought something.

But how many of you have heard of Artfire? If you are reading my blog, you probably have heard of it-- because I sell jewelry there! But did you know about it beforehand?

Artfire works just like Etsy. It is an online marketplace where thousands of artisans set up little (or not so little) shops to sell handmade items.

As you know, I recently opened up an Etsy store, but the only items I have listed are custom orders. (Although I am happy to move any listings over to Etsy if a customer would prefer to buy there).

Why do I use Artfire the most? Artfire isn't as well-known as Etsy, but I love their customization, SEO (search engine optimization), and customer support. Plus, they have some really awesome features with more on the way.

Some of you may or may not know that I once had an issue with someone incorrectly claiming a copyright over some of my work. The Artfire staff helped me figure out the problem and continue on with life. :)

Anyway, I'd someday I'd love to see Artfire become as well-known as Etsy. It certainly deserves to, and it is well on its way.

And did you know that you can sell on Artfire for free? That's what I did for several months..

You can set up an entire store and sell items at no cost! Perfect for those of you considering selling crafts, jewelry, or artwork, but who just want to "see how it goes" before laying down $100 a year (well, you pay monthly... and if you plan on listing alot on Etsy, it's even more expensive over there).

I had used Artfire Basic in the past for a fundraiser. That convinced me to start a Shoppe of my own... And then only a few months later I decided it is worth it to go Pro ($9.95/month). And I want to remain Pro, and will long as I sell enough to cover the $10. The Basic store has all you need to sell online, but I appreciate the customization and extra tools that come with the Pro account.

Have any of you considered opening up your own Artfire Pro store? At the current rate, it is $9.95.

Please, if you are considering opening an Artfire Pro account, sign up through this link:

Become an ArtFire Pro with this link and get your 3rd month free!

Here it is again: http://www.artfire.com/users/Shealynns-Faerie-Shoppe/sell-crafts

It is my Referral link. If you sign up through this link, you get your third month free. That means three months of an awesome platform for under $20. (And I get a free month myself!)

Not ready to go Pro? Please sign up for a Basic, Free account using my referral link! If you decide to go Pro within 3 months, the same deal goes. :)

Oh, yeah, if you sign up for a Pro account through my referal link, before March 15th, we're entered to win Canon DSLR cameras. One each. I know, what are the chances, but still!

Looking for Guest Bloggers

Starting next week and ending at Easter, I will not be online as often as usual. 

Don't worry-- I'll still check the Shoppe and my email daily, so orders and immediate questions will be taken care of. I'm not going on vacation and no one is sick... I'm simply giving up a good portion of my computer time for Lent.

I plan on writing a few posts during those weeks, but I would love to keep Fairy People as entertained as they usually are. (Well, I hope you dear readers are well entertained... I'm assuming that is why you are reading my blog...)

I am putting out a call for Guest Bloggers!

I'm not going to be picky. You can be a small blog, large blog, huge blog (I wish!) or even an artsy-craftsy person without a blog at all.





Here are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing:

• Tutorials (kudos for an original one, but it is ok to use a tutorial you have posted on your own blog previously. Please do not use tutorials or posts which have been guest posted already.).
• Tips and tricks for arts and crafts
• Descriptions of various techniques in art or crafts, along with some inspirational photos or links
• You art and/or crafts story-- if entertaining and possibly informative to other artists/crafters
• You can feature and talk about your own work. Make it entertaining, not a sales pitch.
• Feature artisans from Etsy, Artfire, etc. It would be great if it followed a theme, ie "celtic knotwork" or "fantasy." 
• Descriptions and examples of historical jewelry or artwork 
• Trends in the arts and crafts blogosphere
• ....whatever you can think up, or a medly thereof!

The only criteria is that your post be about art, crafts, or creativity in generally. I occasionally dabble into writing, poetry, costumes, and the "theology" behind art ("subcreation"-- any Tolkien/Chesterton fanatics out there?), so I am open to that sort of post, too. You could write something about fairies, or.... well, you get the idea.

I won't be picky about the length, and if you need any help writing, organizing, or formatting your post I am happy to help.


In exchange, you will have my eternal gratitude and the chance to share links or buttons to your blog, facebook, etc.




Please email me at ShealynnsFaerieShoppe {at} gmail.com. Introduce yourself and give me an idea of what you would like to write. I can turn down content for being boring, unrelated to art/crafts/creativity in general, or inappropriate. Although I doubt I'll have to do that. :)


(As I said, I am specifically looking for guest writers between March 9 and April 24, 2011. However, I am open to guest posting at any time. Please feel free to contact me-- I don't bite!)

Celtic Knotwork Tutorials

I'm afraid I scared people with my last post. Normally I get at least 2 or 3 comments the day that I publish a post. I have none on the Celtic Knotwork post. I know I'm waaaaaay over-analyzing. But come, and I shall show you that Celtic Knotwork isn't so hard, after all...

Now's when I crack out my Alaadin voice and start singing, "I can show you the world/ shining, shimmering, splendid..." (Oh, wait, I can't sing. Right.)

Now, keep in mind that I have only done the most basic knotwork techniques, so I only searched for basic tutorials...

I would like to introduce you to the website that made Celtic Knotwork "click" for me. (My brain clicks. No clicking = no understanding. But once something has clicked, I won't forget it for a long, long time.)

Aon Celtic Art

Here is her tutorial page. The grids with the big and little dots are what made it click for me. You can print the grids for free, here. I recommend reading (and trying!) the basic knot and how to modify the basic knot.

This website has helpful links for various methods.

The Fantasy Art Resource Project has some helpful insights for those who, like me, know only the very basics.

I found a random blog that made the whole idea of "walls" click. That Jolie Girl has a tutorial here, and some very helpful notes here. And, wow, I just found this, which is very helpful, also.

This free PDF tutorial by Reed Mihaloew may be technical and in-depth, but just from a cursory glance it looks like one of the best I've seen so far. I plan to use this tutorial to teach myself some more complex knots.

You know, if I had the experience, I would totally make some tutorials of my own. I honestly don't think there is much out there that is very helpful.

(Although I imagine that books dedicated to the subject are very illuminating-- haha, I made a joke-- but our library doesn't have any.)