Scrabble Name Frame!

Yay! This is the first official craft to be posted on A Glue Gun & A Prayer! It's a great gift for grandparents. Something personal, sweet, and something that they will be sure to keep forever. You will win grandchild of the year for sure! Here is the finished product:

Tools:

• Glue Gun
• Scissors
• One piece of scrap paper
• Pencil

Materials:

• Frame
• Tiled letters
• One Mardi Gras necklace

Estimated Time:

• 2 Hours

My Cost (not including tax):

• The frame I found at Hobby Lobby. It's actually just supposed to be wall art but since my grandmother lives in a shore house I thought this would go perfectly. It was originally $26.00 marked down 50% off so I got it for $13.00
• Hobby Lobby did have tiled letters, but they only had two bags (40 letters per bag) and I knew that I would need more. I checked Michael's and they had bags of 60 letters per bag for $5.00. I got two bags and had a 50% off coupon for one item so I got both bags for $7.50
• I already had the Mardi Gras beads in my house. 
• Total = $20.50

The Steps:

• First, arrange all of your tiles on your board. This is the hardest part because sometimes if you're short some letters (like I was with 'L') you need to ensure that those cross. You also need to make sure everything will fit, as well as make sure it looks somewhat symmetrical in the frame.

Here's what it looked like after I arranged everything. As you can see I had Michael spelled wrong. Have one or two people look at it to make sure everything is spelled right. Unfortunately I did not realize my mistake until after I started gluing.

• Use your hot glue gun to glue the tiles into place. The tiles that I purchased were not all uniform size, which I liked because it gave it an organic, homemade look.
  
• Here's what it looked like after I managed to spell Michael right. Unfortunately it caused Kaitlyn to be squished on the edge, but I think it looks okay.

• At this point I intended to be finished. But it still looked incomplete to me. It needed something else in the negative space. I went into my bedroom and spotted a box of Mardi Gras beads in my closet. I grabbed a purple one (only needed one necklace!) and cut the beads up.

• Then I simply cut a heart from a folded piece of construction paper, traced it with a pencil onto the frame, and started hot gluing the beads on. No need to trim that excess white string, just glue that side down!

• When I was finished I just took some tweezers and pulled the glue gun strings off from around the beads. Everything dried really quickly and now I have an awesome, inexpensive, personal homemade gift for my grandmother! I want to do another one for my other grandmother but she has 28 grandchildren! It would be a project but I might be up to it, who knows! If you try this project show me the final product and let me know what you did better than me!

Essentials For Being A Craftaholic

I was browsing around Hobby Lobby (the holy grail of craft stores) today looking for some supplies for a craft that I will be doing and posting about later in the week, and I had a thought: what if people have zero clue how to start doing crafts in general? And now with that thought I bring you my second blog post. 

This post will give you some basic tools, tips, and tricks on how to start your adventure of crafting. First let's start with tools. Below is a list of some very basic tools that are essential to most crafts. Have these items in your corner and you're off to a great start:

• Scissors - I recommend investing in a quality pair of fabric scissors
• Glue in various forms. ex) glue gun (duh), glue sticks, Elmer's glue, spray glue, etc. 
• Mod Podge - a high quality glue/sealer/finish. It get's pricy but I highly recommend it for first timers. Once you get the feel for the consistency and range of uses then you can venture into some homemade recipes to save some moolah. 
• Sponge brushes in various sizes
• Xacto knife
• Krylon Clear Gloss Spray (when did this item become essential for every craft?!)
• Ruler
• One inch hole punch (you could also splurge on some shaped hole punches like hearts)
• Paper clips/clothespins
• Ribbons, thread, twine, etc.
• Sandpaper
• Scrap paper, old magazines, scrapbook paper, etc.
• Patience. PATIENCE. PATIENCE. PATIENCE. PATIENCE.

While none of these items are essential for every craft I think having them at  your disposal whenever you need them is fantastic. It stinks to get to the very end of a craft and have to run out for some Krylon spray at the last second. Especially when its 4am and all you've eaten that day is a cheese stick and two mocha frapps. (trust me on this one okay?).

Now let's have some helpful handy tips:

• Find your local craft stores, browse all of them, pick your favorite, and stick to it. In my area the craft stores are Hobby Lobby, Michael's, and JoAnn Fabrics. I prefer Hobby Lobby. It almost always has what I'm looking for and generally has good prices. I say stick to one store because once you're in there 4 times a week you will get to know your way around, know when to look for deals, know the employees, etc. Most stores also have a rewards program for frequent customers. Unless another store is having a sale you can't pass up, find a store and make it your baby. 
• Pick a craft that works for you. Just because Pinterest gives you step by step instructions on how to make a 35 foot area rug, doesn't mean you should do it when you live in an apartment the size of a postage stamp. Before you commit to a craft think "Where can I put this?" "Will it look good?" "Will it fit?" "Can I use this?" Don't waste your time or money on a craft that will end up in your moms garage and give her another reason to call you any more than she already does.
• Pick a craft that's doable. If you can't sew, don't pick a sewing project. Just don't. You will get frustrated and start to cry. Find a craft that's within not only your price range, but your skill level as well.
• If you're not having fun, STOP. Crafting is supposed to be fun, relaxing, and enjoyable. If you're getting stressed or frustrated, just stop. Come back to it another day. Maybe this time with a vodka tonic in your hand. 
• Don't Over-Craft. If you start a project, finish it. We don't need 72 half finished crafts lying around. It's dangerous not only for yourself, but for your love life as well. One craft at a time people!

Alright hopefully these tips will help you get started on your journey to crafting. If you have some more tools or tips that you would like to add, comment below! 

Welcome To Glue Gun & A Prayer!!

Welcome everyone! I would like my first post to be a little bit about myself and what I hope this blog will be and then we will get into the crafting! First a little bit about myself:

I'm 22 years old living in a small college town outside of Buffalo, NY. I'm a Media Management Major with a Minor in Business. Currently I am the Vacations Group Coordinator at Darien Lake Theme Park and Resort. I graduate in May 2014 and I hope to move to Nashville, TN soon after that. I would love to work in the country music industry. Not sure what job specifically, I like to keep my options open. I truly believe I was born to be in the south. 

Most of the crafts/recipes that I will do come from Pinterest. While I have been on Pinterest for years I have only recently gotten into actually doing some of the crafts that I pin. Since my job is seasonal, I am doing these crafts on a limited budget with limited time. I am hoping this blog will allow me to document my journey from amateur crafter to full blown professional. Also spell check is telling me crafter is not a word? I disagree spell check. It is now a Monica-ism. 

On this blog I plan to document (with pictures!) the crafts that I do including tools and materials needed, time needed, and what I spent. I might even blog a few recipes I encounter as well! Hopefully I can give you some tips on how to avoid the mistakes that I will undoubtedly make along the way. 

I hope that this blog will be as enjoyable and rewarding for you as it will be for me. I am looking forward to multiple glue gun burns, Xacto knife cuts, spray paint stains, and some beautiful projects!

Don't forget the two things you need to complete a successful craft: A Glue Gun & A Prayer