New Years Traditions

With the New Year comes new traditions. Now that Lady A is a bit older and able to participate a little more in family activities we have had a lot of fun coming up with our own family traditions, especially since we live away from the rest of our family and won't always be able to make it out for the big events and holidays.

I'm not much of one for New Years Eve events, trying to keep my toddler up until midnight does not sound fun right now. She would be so tired and fussy by the time midnight came and the following day we would all still be paying for it.

But it is still a good reason to celebrate so for now we will celebrate on New Years Day!

We are new to Kentucky, we got here the weekend before the college semester started in August. While the winter has been pretty mild compared to what we are used to {we are from Utah and spent the last three years in Connecticut for Grad School} but we are told that the cold comes mostly in January. Here is my mug and saying for the year.

We all can use a little pep talk every once in a while.

Lady A joined in and created her own as well!

We need to encourage those little creative minds

The back detail

Paul helped her a little bit.

She wanted to use the mug I had done a little trial on. The gold dots were "oh, pretty!"

SUPPLIES

Paint Pens / Sharpie Markers
Cheap White Mug {I got mine from Wal-mart}

Vinyl {optional}
Silhouette Portrait {optional}
Saying, Quote, Shapes etc. {optional}

INSTRUCTIONS

I do not care for my handwriting on the mugs, it just never turns out the way I want. Instead I busted out my Silhouette Portrait and quickly cut out a little saying. 

Clean the surface you are going to be placing your design. I used a cotton ball and rubbing alcohol and went over the area once to wipe away any dirt and oils on the mugs.

Place your stickers, shapes, or vinyl where you want it. Now so to town with your paint pens and markers to create your one and only mug.

I used CraftSmart paint pens. I had more colors on hand with the markers so Lady A decided to use them.

Bake the dish int eh oven by placing it on a cookie tray. With your mug in the oven set it to 425 degrees, once the temperature is reached bake it for 30 minutes. Prop the door open, turn the oven off and let it your oven cool with your mug still in it.

A close up of the back detail.

I love how they turned out. Lady A is pretty pleased with herself too! Now that she is getting older and wants to join me in my creative activities I am so excited to see her creative personality emerge.

TIPS: 

I took two days to do mine because Lady A wanted me to wait so that she could finish her master piece before we placed them in the oven. When using a paint pen to fill in or around a letters and shapes, I would recommend taking them vinyl off before the paint has time to dry too much. Taking it off in the morning after the paint had time to dry and get tacky pulled up some of the paint from my letters so they don't look as smooth as I would like.

On the dishes I have made so far I have found that the Paint Pen stays great to wash in the dishwasher on the top shelf. Sharpie marker is best washed by hand. Do Not scrub! Use a soft washcloth and mild soap

Here is another Sharpie marker project with different tips and tricks.

Easter Plate

I would love to hear from you and see your projects. Leave a comment or #AlwaysCreate on your photos. Find me on Instagram {@AlwaysCreate} and follow along for behind the scenes and fun little extras.

Sharpie Marker Easter Plate

Do you remember me sharing on Instagram that I keep some designs that would normally be weeded out on transfer paper until I can use them in another project? Well, that is what I did with this bunny.

It is time to try the hot trend of a Sharpie Marker on a dollar store dish...again. I have tried this over and over again and all those claims of the dishes being dishwasher safe and the marker is permanent ~ well, that has never been the case for me. Just using dish soap and water has always taken the Sharpie marker off. Here goes another attempt.

I used the bunny silhouette saved from my Peter Cottontail burlap decor piece to create this plate. Originally I was going to use a couple different colors but ultimately decided to go with straight black on white. Remember, the dollar store dishes {or cheaper dishes from Wal-Mart and other stores} will work best because the glaze on them is thinner and will help in the baking process.

Use rubbing alcohol and a cotton ball, wipe down the dish to clean and remove any dust or oils.

Because this image used a pom-pom for the tail I had to improvise and find something to create a tail. Lady A loves stickers and we have a few of these sticker packets on hand for her. So I used one that  looked like it was the right size...and am pretty pleased with myself for my quick improvisation.

Now take the Sharpie marker and start dotting around the image.

Bake the dish in the oven by placing it on a cookie tray. With your dish in the oven set it to 425 degrees, once the temperature is reached bake it for 30 minutes. Let the oven cool and prop the oven door open with the dish still in it. 

Letting the dish warm up and cool down with the oven will help to keep the shock of the temperature changes from cracking the dishes. One of the perks is that the paper stickers on the bottom of the dishes were baked off so I didn't have to put any effort into removing them.

I love how this turned out! It will be fun to bring it out year after year and remind us of this time in our lives, as we wait for Lady #2 to join our family, as our lives change with Paul graduating and we get ready to move. We have a lot going on this Spring.

***MY IMAGE STAYED AFTER WASHING***

I attribute it mostly to the higher baking temperature, every tutorial I read said to bake at 350. It should also be noted by washing I mean with warm water, a washcloth and soap and no scrubbing ~ just lightly going over the surface to wash it off.

Tips from this project:

• Rubbing alcohol will help the marker make better contact to the dish.
• I called Sharpie and they do not recommend using dishes with this Sharpie technique for food or drink. The markers are not food safe according to the USDA.
• An acrylic spray can be used to cover the dish and will help keep the images from fading or washing away {remember not to use the dish for food with an acrylic coating}.

Check out my Peter Cottontail  post for the Silhouette Studio file where you can find this bunny.