Wednesday, April 13, 2011

My Craft and Tell Party recap: Girls' Craft Night!

I've been dying to share some photos of my crafty night of fun, but it's taken me this long to wind down from all the excitement of being a Craft and Tell host!
If you were here last week, you know that the lovely folks at Elmer's contacted me to see if I'd not only be interested in giving away a Craft and Tell mini Party Pack, but they wanted to send me a box of goodies so I could host my very own Craft and Tell party for myself and 10 friends.

You know you're a crafty person when the UPS man brings a box of free craft supplies and it's like Christmas morning for you. I had to fight off my kids as I dug through the box to ooh and aah over glue sticks, paint markers, detail scissors, fabric glue, and more.

I have to tell you, it was not hard to find 10 friends to show up. All it took was a mention of a craft, delicious food, and a goodie bag! Who doesn't love some swag?

My home is small, but I am lucky enough to have a family room that opens to the dining room, which opens to the addition (which the girls still call the "new room," even though it's been there for two years). I used my dining room table and some borrowed folding tables to create our workspace:

I wanted to keep my table and those that I borrowed in good shape, so I picked up two blue plastic table cloths from The Dollar Tree and a vinyl clearanced table cloth from Wal-Mart with a basketweave design. The placemats were decorative paper ones I found in a pack from Marshalls:

On display in our makeshift craft space?

The "Idea Project" I set out was one that my friend Heather A. came up with and we worked on together earlier in the week. A perpetual calendar:

We took the foam board that Elmer's sent and used it as a base for the calendar, which we decorated with scrapbook paper and held together with Elmer's spray adhesive and glue sticks. The little squares with the dates can be moved around to coordinate with the current month, which is easy to switch out because it's held up by a decorative clothes pin!

It was so much fun to watch the ladies thumb through the packs of paper and "shop" the Elmer's supplies, coming up with their own creative ideas!

Adrianna's cell phone provided some fun party music at just the right volume:

Everyone got right to work...





























...and it was clear that the star of the night was the Quick Dry Dual Tip Glue Pen:

Several of the girls commented on how easy the precision tip made it to get the glue into small spots.

The scrapbookers were also pleased to see that just about every product was marked "acid free and photo safe," which is very important when you're working with photos!

As it grew late, I started snapping pictures of the ladies with their completed projects:

Susannah took on the calendar!


Kathleen swore she wasn't a crafty girl, but I think her "Sweeties" picture board says otherwise:

















































Heather A. won the little Spring doorprize I picked out!























And each lady went home with a goodie bag with items from Elmer's and me!



I had so much fun that I'm hoping to host again in the not too distant future! I haven't had that much fun in awhile, and I was about as worn out as Emma looks:























Thanks, Elmer's, for a wonderfully fun and crafty evening!

31 comments:

Danielle said...

Looks like fun! I love everyones creations.

Danielle

Prudently Painted Vintage said...

Fun!! The projects turned out so cute. I will have to try the glue pen. Thanks for sharing :)

Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking said...

Oh wow what a great time it looks like everyone had! I agree the projects turned ot so cute!

Nadir@StitchSense said...

One of the best crafty nights ever & definitely one that should be repeated! *wink, wink* :-D I had so much fun, thanks again for hosting it. My sister LOVED the picture holder I made & I mentioned it in my post today. :-) Thanks again Amanda!

Sarah @ Modern Country Style said...

That looks like my idea of a perrrrfect evening. Loads of fun doing crafty things with my gal pals, and chatting and nibbling as I go. Perfect! I love all the things that have been made. And I am insanely jealous that you got sent all that loveliness!

Sarahx

Rebecca said...

I love the picture boards with the clothespins. Something like that would make for a great gift.

It looks like everyone had a great time!

FrouFrouBritches said...

That looks like soooo much fun! What cute projects! I love the photo boards. They are so cute! Where did you find that scrapbook paper that the girl in the pink Las Vegas sweatshirt is using? It's gorgeous!!!

Ashley Corrao said...

That just looks like so much fun!

Kelli @ RTSM said...

That sounds like such a fun time! I love all the cute crafts:) I get to be a part of the virtual Craft and Tell Party over at Positively Splendid and I am SUPER excited about it!

Whatever Dee-Dee wants said...

What a fun party! Wish I was there :)

Life In The Thrifty Lane said...

From the pics you can totally tell that you ladies had lots of fun crafting! Wish I was there too!!

Debbie said...

What fun! Even I might get inspired at a party like that:)

Jennifer said...

Looks like it was a really fun girls night. I love all the projects, especially the Sweeties picture boards.
Jennifer

Erin S. said...

What a fun night! There's nothing better (okay, maybe overstating there... :) ) than crafting with friends. It makes me feel like a pioneer woman at a quilting bee--in a good way. Glad you had a good time!

Jennifer said...

That looks like so much fun! I am loving the picture boards with the clothes pins...I think there might be a future project with my silhouette involved!

Holly said...

Looks like everybody had a blast! I'm a little jealous...it's been a long time since I had a crafty girls' night!

Dawn said...

love the picture boards-great idea! looks like a lot of fun! glad you all had a good time!

Jenae @ Wildflower said...

So much FUN!! I need to Host a party like this!

Meri said...

Looks like it was a lot of fun!! :)

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness!! I'm having MAJOR craft envy......I'd LOVE to come to a Craft & Tell if you have one again. ;) Kelly B

Leah said...

Your party looks like it was a blast! I'd be fighting off my older kid too if a big box full of glue & stuff came in the mail. :)

Amy @ 11Magnolialane said...

That looks like such a fun girls night. I might have to plan one! VERY Cute craft ideas too...
Amy

Brooke @ Inside-Out Design said...

It looks like so much fun!! I can't wait to have mine!!

Kassi @ Truly Lovely said...

This looks like the BEST time!! What a great hostess you are! Treats and even chocolate in the goodie bags!!! :)

Dawn said...

How fun, Amanda! Can I come next time? Hee hee!

Emma is adorable!

nanatower said...

Thank so much Amanda, I had a great time, and my goodie bag was really nice and yummy...:)

Paula said...

This looks like such a fun night! Girls night out and crafting all wrapped into one sounds like a perfect plan to me. I love the crafts that your friends created. A goodie bag to take home must have been a hit with your friends. I wish I lived in your area because I'd invite myself to your next party!

Michaela said...

How fun, Amanda! This kind of party is right up my alley! Emma looks so worn out from the excitement...that's when you know it was a great night (:

Amanda @ Little House on the Corner said...

How fun! That's so great that you can get your girlfriends together to do something like this!

Tiffany @ Iffy Scraps said...

WOW! Looks like you all had a great time. Great crafts!

Nancy McGinley said...

This is so fun! I just found your blog and I love it. You got a new follower today! :)