Weeks Of Wonder: Back To School…So Soon?

School may be a month off, but if you’ve got a youngster heading back to class (or a college student off to the dorms), now is a fun time to think about great room décor to get the year started off right. Check out these fun back-to-school makeover ideas complete with a banner, a few Chinese lanterns, a custom white board, a personalized journal and a heartfelt note for good luck.

You can purchase simple canvas at most crafts stores. The piece used for today’s project was a remnant, so the cost was very minimal. The My Creations Banner was a perfect template for the banner pennants, and basic Grey Wool My Exclusive Inks made a great impression (just know that you won’t want to wash fabric stamped with dye-based inks.)

If you can’t find the right fabric color you need to match your paper colors, fabric is easy to dye using Close To My Heart’s re-inkers. The ribbon used on the banner as well as the flowers found on the various projects have been dyed to match the color scheme. To achieve the custom look, mix water and re-inker until the desired color is achieved. This can be done in a Ziploc bag so you can dip the elements into the mixture then knead the color into the fabric. Squeeze out the excess then heat set using a craft tool.

Use stamps, paper and embellishments to create your own B&T paper. Then any frame with a pane of glass can be turned into a customized “white board.” (It’s actually a dry-erase board, of course!)

Canvas badge buttons are a great way to add the fabric look to your projects as well. Stamp directly on them, then add a pop of color to your button. Simply, stamp the image in a second color, cut out smaller portions of the stamp image, and attach the smaller pieces on top of the original stamped image for a multi-colored paper pieced look.

The wonderful flower shape found throughout the projects was easy to create using Fill in the Blank stamp set (D1465). Create a unique design by stamping a background pattern on a piece of fabric.

Turn the project over then stamp the flower outline image on the back.

Trim the flower from the canvas and use the piecing tool to fray the edges.

Last, sponge the edges and embellish.

Back to school is an exciting time. Make your children, grandchildren or anyone going back to school get ready to make the grade!