T.G.I.Free~ Father's Day Printables!

Father's Day is Sunday and if you are planning a party or celebration with Dad, we've got some great printables that might come in handy~ and the best part, of course? They're FREE!

Printable Father's Day Chalkboard Banner from Lia Griffith

Father's Day Printables from Love Party Printables

#1 Dad from ABCTeach.com

10 Free Printables from Gloriously Made

Free Father's Day Printables from The Tip Junkie

Ten Free Printables from I Gotta Try That!

20+ Printables for POPS from How Does She?

T.G.I.Free~ Printables!

This week I went foraging for freebies for you to print! I know you love them, not just because they're free, but because they are a fantastic way to create your own cards, tags, banners, bunting and more. You can also find some terrific activities and resources for the little ones, which is what this first one is all about:

Activity Village has been "providing parents and teachers with free kids' activities since 2000, and you can sign up for a free newsletter to stay posted with their latest. Father's Day is coming up and they have some adorable free cards you can print up!


Jenny B. Harris posts free printables on her blog: Allsorts~ she recently posted some Alpha-Dots as part of her series, Freebie Friday and I love them!

The Tip Junkie has tons of free printables, as well as "15,000+ tutorials" for crafts and DIY decor, parties, holidays, food and more! I love this free printable for the laundry room~ it suits me to a tee!

Another blogger offers a Freebie of the Month Club! You can get them from The Handmade Home each month~ here's the latest one for May and yes it was a printable!

I'm a huge fan of HGTV and I love their website full of ideas and FREEBIES! Right now you can get their Favorite Printable Party Invitations for Year Round Celebrations~

Cute as a bug~ Chickabug has the cutest signs for the Last Day of School 2012~ and lots of other free printables you won't be able to resist!

And since right after the Last Day of School, summer fun begins~ here's a terrific source for a summer themed celebration printable from Amanda's Parties TO GO! She has lots of other freebies too...

So just make sure you've got plenty of ink in your printer and you'll be FREE to go printing!

have a great weekend!
;) Cat

Love 2 DIY on the Weekend: Make it for MOM!

Mother's Day is only a week away, so why not take some time this weekend to make something for Mom? I found lots of easy projects for children to make on Pinterest that don't require a lot of materials or craft expertise! Some dads are very crafty but some not so. Mom can show Dad (or a helpful friend) this article with a little nudge and he should be able to handle it from there!

Sunflower Seeds!

Paper Towel Tube Flower Ornament

Puzzle Pieces and Popsicle Sticks!

"Owl" Love You Forever!

Hands and Feet Flower

No Google Eyes? Draw Them!

Hot off the Press~ or Printer!

Coupon Book for Mom~ Click on it for more projects, too!

Write 'Happy Mother's Day' Instead!

We know it's tough sometimes, Mom~ the kids want to make you something but they also want to surprise you, so don't tell Dad which one to make and it will still be a surprise, Right? Dad's not around? No worries, gather the materials and give a little guidance and they can put the finishing touches on themselves. Or let an older sibling or friend help out! You deserve something special, especially handmade by your little loved one!

Have a fantastic weekend full of lots of family fun!

Love 2 DIY~ Earth Day Edition!

Upcyclers believe EVERY day should be Earth Day~ and we try to practice sustainable lifestyles and craft methods that enforce that. We Love 2 DIY and we know our readers do to~ so this weekend we hope you'll try a project that involves upcycling a common object you might be thinking of tossing away! We've shared lots of project ideas on this blog which you can find in our archives or in our tag cloud. Today we'll share more, as well as a new Giveaway:
A handmade stamp by Terbear Collectibles that says 'Make Everyday Earth Day'! Perfect, right?

Terbear Collectibles Custom Stamp $16.99

But first we want to announce the winner of CHunks Of WOod's Giveaway! Who says number 13 is bad luck? It turned out very lucky for 'AlessandraVeg'! She's the winner of the Upcycled Reclaimed Wooden Earrings from Jason! Congrats, Alessandra~ and thanks again Jason for sponsoring our giveaway!

Don't Forget: Tomorrow is our Awesome 24 Hour Upcyclers Earth Day Sale~ be sure to stop by here for more details from Bee!

So now back to some DIY love! Stamping projects are hugely popular~ Terbear can tell you first hand with thousands of custom stamp sales, in fact they are the #1 seller of custom made rubber stamps according to EtsyWiki! So I was amazed that after we featured her PIF item recently as part of our T.G.I.Free series, she offered to sponsor our team with a giveaway~ talk about Paying It Forward! All you need for stamping projects is something to stamp on and stamps. Simple. Well, there's all kinds of companies out there selling fancy papers to stamp on, but Upcyclers love to find 'scrap' paper, junk mail and all kinds of other odd things to stamp on!

Like Paint Swatches!

& Recycled Cardboard!

On Brown Paper Bags~

and Vintage Newspaper!!

The list of 'throw-aways' you can stamp on goes on and on! So next time you think you have to have some expensive designer papers, think outside the box~ big box craft store, that is! Look around the house for old magazines, envelopes, old books and sheet music. Anything goes!

So now you've got some free paper you can use, you can afford some cool stamps, right? Especially since Terbear is offering an exclusive discount coupon code to our readers! Woohoo! Just use the code: love2upcycle for 10% off your purchase! Here's a peek at Terbear's rubber stamps from her Etsy shop! (Of course, I picked the Recycled Theme ones, lol!)

If you're like me, (addicted 2 stamps) you are so loving these~ and there's thousands more to choose from, not to mention the variations of custom made stamps you can order! But you can try to win the one we're giving away too! It's easy as can be to enter~

First be sure you are a follower of our blog~ But that doesn't count as an entry!

You can enter up to 4 times, but each entry must be left in a SEPARATE comment!
I wrote that really BIG cuz so many don't do that! boo. Also be sure to leave your email in at least one of your entries so we can contact you if you win. We promise not to bug you any other way, unless you sign up for email updates from our blog- hint, hint.

Okay, here's your choices:

1. Check out Terbear Collectibles on Etsy, favorite the shop and tell us here which stamp is your favorite!

2. Become a fan of Terbear Collectibles on Facebook!


3. Follow Terbear on Twitter @terbearco!


4. Pin an item from Terbear's shop on Pinterest!


5. Share this giveaway on Facebook or Tweet about it on Twitter~ we make that easy for you, just use our widgets above or below this article!

So that's it, just be sure to enter before Midnight on Sunday, April 29, 2012! And remember, four entries only, and each one in a separate comment.

Good Luck and Remember: 
Make Everyday Earth Day!

Weekly Giveaway: Art Recycles!

We hope everyone had a great Valentine's Day last week~ we celebrated with a giveaway from The Paper Peddler! Now it's time to announce the winner of our "valentine"~ Liz's Upcycled Red Heart, Diet Coke Flower Headband: #6~ Selma! Congrats to you, Selma! Thanks, Liz for sponsoring our fun giveaway and thank you to all our readers who entered!

This week we're changing things up a bit, we'll be starting our giveaways on Mondays from now on~ but thanks to my wonderful satellite (sarcasm detection alert!!!), I didn't have internet yesterday when I got home from work, so this week is a wee bit late. But all that aside~ on with this week's Giveaway from Art Recycles! Tracey Dean, owner and creator of Art Recycles, wants you to "Organize in Style"! As she explains, "Matisse's paper cuts inspire me; I create my own paper cuts into functional art that I call the "Tuck-it Board" and the "Tack-it board". The Tuck-it board is my version of the French memory board and the Tack-it board is my version of a cork board. Two great products to help you organize in a creative way." She's offering one of her "Tuck-it Boards" to you for our giveaway this week!

It's definitely a "keeper", perfect for holding a variety of memos, photos or other bits and pieces you want to "keep"! 

Tracey is an Art Educator and loves to create art that is functional and decorative. She especially loves to upcycle leftover art materials and packaging like crayon wrappers. She is married to an Environmental Consultant and together they work hard to instill a love for recycling and conservation in their children. Tracey says, "Often I create with recycled and reused items. I love to pulp down construction paper to create new sheets that are multi-layered and textured. I challenge myself to reuse some of those many handouts my son brings home from school in a creative way. Crayola crayon wrappers are a lot of fun to reuse too. My students know that, 'Mrs. Dean can make art out of anything'- well, I try. I feel a strong connection between manipulating clay and cutting shapes from a piece of paper, it's just in a different dimension. The great thing with the paper is that it's already full of color and pattern. Oh, and it's instant; no extreme temperatures needed."

I love all of Tracey's colorful and creative products~ they make me just want to run around and start organizing things! I can't wait to hear about all of your favorites when you enter her Giveaway~ 

Here's how:  First, be sure you are a follower of this blog, Love 2 Upcycle~ not a follower? Just look to the left and click. Voila! You are a follower. But you haven't entered yet.
Now, you can choose 4 of the following ways to enter, up to 4 times!
 
1. Add Art Recycles to your favorite shops on Etsy! Tell us here about your favorite item!
2. Like Art Recycles on Facebook!
3. Follow Tracey on Twitter!
4. Tweet this Giveaway on Twitter or Share it on Facebook!
5. Pin one of the items in Art Recycles on Pinterest! 


Remember, only 4 entries count, and each one must be left in a separate comment! If you don't have an email listed on your bio, leave it here in one of your comments. Deadline to enter is Midnight, February 26th!

Winner will be randomly drawn using Random.org's generator.

Good Luck!
 
Would you like to Sponsor a Giveaway on Love 2 Upcycle? You don't have to be a member of Upcyclers to be a sponsor, all Etsy sellers of upcycled or eco-friendly products are welcome! But of course, we'd love for you to join the team!

Weekly Giveaway: The Paper Peddler!

Last week was groovy, thanks to Groovy Garbage~ our most recent sponsor of our Weekly Giveaway! And we know Maegan Morin is going to be feeling groovy now, she was #33 and the lucky winner of the Upcycled Inner Tube Pendant earrings they gave away! Congrats, Maegan!

This week we are proud to have The Paper Peddler as our sponsor! Liz loves to find the hidden possibilities in the garbage around us~ especially tin and paper! She is a paper piecing artist, scrapbooker, rubber stamper and upcycler. She's also a busy wife and mom to two children and, as she puts it, "entertained daily by two mini dachshunds and two hairy cats"!
We thought her Red Heart Diet Coke Flower Headband would be a perfect giveaway for the week of Valentine's Day!

See? It's cute as can be and just right for a special sweetheart! Or for you! You can find tons of other Pop can products, as well as The Paper Peddler's creative paper products and stamped art.

My favorite item in Liz's shop is the one above! She calls the letters "Tinage" and also stamps out numbers and flowers called "Metal Petals"~ you can order sets and custom collections by request. You can tell us what your favorite item is when you enter the Giveaway!

First, be sure you are a follower of this blog, Love 2 Upcycle~ not a follower? Just look to the left and click. Voila! You are a follower. But you haven't entered yet.
Now, you can choose 4 of the following ways to enter, up to 4 times!

1. Favorite The Paper Peddler on Etsy!
2. Add Liz to your circle on Etsy!
3. Tell us here about your favorite item in her shop!
4. Tweet this Giveaway on Twitter or Share it on Facebook!
5. Pin one of the items in The Paper Peddler on Pinterest!

Remember, only 4 entries count, and each one must be left in a separate comment! If you don't have an email listed on your bio, leave it here in one of your comments. Deadline to enter is Midnight, February 16th!

Winner will be randomly drawn using Random.org's generator.

Good Luck!
 
Would you like to Sponsor a Giveaway on Love 2 Upcycle? You don't have to be a member of Upcyclers to be a sponsor, all Etsy sellers of upcycled or eco-friendly products are welcome! But of course, we'd love for you to join the team!