Freezer Paper Stenciling

My name is Leilani and I am addicted to Freezer Paper Stenciling.

I discovered this technique almost two years ago.  I have made about a dozen shirts for each of my boys and even a few for my husband.  I love having my boys tell me what kind of shirts they want... this way they get to explore their own creative side.

My 5 year old wanted a rainbow octopus... instead of rainbow he chose a few colors and we painted it together...

He most recently commissioned a veggie tales shirt from me.  He really loved their new movie "The League of Incredible Vegetables" and wanted their logo on a shirt.  Since we already had a plain white long sleeve shirt (from his Halloween costume) I decided to start it today.

What you need:

xacto knife
freezer paper (available at grocery stores)
fabric paint
brush
cardboard
inspiration

I like to use images that are simple and more like a stencil than an elaborate drawing.  Their logo was super easy.

Step 1: cut out your image

Make sure that you start with the smaller pieces that you will need to save (in my case the letter V from the center).

Step 2: iron it down

Set your iron to a medium setting with NO STEAM.  Iron down the largest part first then work on positioning the smaller pieces.

** Remember that wherever you place a piece of freezer paper is not going to be painted.

Step 3: paint

First insert a piece of cardboard under the image so that the paint will not bleed to the back.  I like to paint from the outside in.  Making sure that you aren't pushing paint under the stencil.  For this project, I tend to not have much luck on white, I chose to paint the whole image white first.  This way any bleeding will be white and not red.

** Also if you need to paint more than one coat, make sure you let the first one dry completely.  Like with my first layer it will seal the edges of the stencil and prevent bleeding.

Step 4: remove and admire

Many different tutorials that I have seen say that you need to wait for it to dry... I think that you need to wait for it to be slightly dry.  I cannot wait to see my incredible handywork and tend to remove it within a few minutes of completion.

Others have said that you need to put a piece of fabric over it and "seal" the image with an iron and I have never done that either.  All of my images have stayed on for the past few years through many many trips in the washer.

YOU ARE DONE!!  The possibilities are endless and can be so much fun creating new and personal shirts for your family.

Superhero Party!

 My darling son decided he wanted a "Superhero" themed birthday party this year.  We tend to only do parties every other year.  He got a 1st birthday party (because you have to have those cake pictures!), a 3rd birthday and now a 5th birthday party.

I scoured Pinterest for ideas on what to do and found many that I was able to copy and make my own.

The main table... Most of the items I purchased at Dollar Tree.  The backdrop is a simple plastic table cloth with balloons above.  I used some pieces of foam board to make the signs (I wrote it out by hand and used my kids markers to color it in!)  I made the cityscape from foam board and construction paper.

We had a simple "photo booth" area too.  I used more foam board to create the signs the kids held.  My 2 year old didn't understand you shouldn't block your face... but all the kids had fun!

I added the same foam board pieces to his balloon cake from Costco.  I think it turned out awesome and still added to the theme.

This was an idea I found on Pinterest to use plastic tablecloths to decorate the ceiling... I used steamers to fill in the voids... pretty huh?

I also made all the kids, boys and girls, their own superhero mask out of felt.  They had fun running around in them!!

All the kids had a great time.  This party was a ton of fun and I was so proud of all my homemade creations!

Packing!

I have been packing one box a day for the past week or so (okay so some days I pack more than one!)...  Our boys room has turned into a storage locker more than a playroom these days.  We have just over a week before we move and right now I need to focus more on my 4 year olds birthday party so the packing will slow...

Welcome!

Welcome to Mi Casa Tranquila!

My husband and I have been looking for a house to raise our two boys in for about 7 months.  It has been a very long road.  We looked and looked in our current location for 6 months, put in over 25 offers and got 3 accepted.  House #1 needed too much work.  House #2 was not worth was we offered.  House #3 had too many safety issues that the owners were not wiling to fix.  So we made the decision to look outside of our area.  Within 1 month and 6 offers we got an amazing home that we can't wait to move in to!

Our current condo is amazing.  It has 2 bedrooms and 1.5 baths and was absolutely perfect for just the two of us.  Five years later and two small boys and we are bursting at the seams.  Our boys need a yard that they can play and dig in and we need more room to move.

This is the beginning of a new journey for our family, not only moving to a new city but getting to explore, create and grow as a family.