I’m so excited to be working with Plaid, the coolest craft company ever! I’ve had a blast meeting all of the wonderful people who make the craft products we all love so much.

This summer, I’ll introduce you to some of my favorite crafters and artists across the globe, and share their talents and ultra-cool studios. I’ll also be sharing original crafts and DIY videos to kick-start your imagination. I’m so excited to get started!

To kick things off, here are 6 fun & simple projects to get your wheels turning as summer approaches.

Butterfly Sun-Catchers
Capture the sun with your kids this summer with a colorful sun catcher! Visit Mini Eco for the complete tutorial.

Animal Box Mask
These super fun DIY animal box masks are perfect for pretend play in the backyard. Visit Mer Mag for the complete tutorial.

DIY Tea Painted Card with Free Printable
These adorable DIY cards are the perfect invite for a summer tea party. Visit Creature Comforts for the complete tutorial.

DIY Color Blocked Wooden Cutlery
Why ruin a perfect picnic with plastic cutlery? These DIY utensils will bring it to the next level! Visit Studio DIY for the complete tutorial.

DIY Painted Wooden Bead Necklace
This fun & colorful bead necklace is a perfect accessory for summer. Visit Laura Parke for the complete tutorial.

DIY Paint-Dipped Baby Food Jars
A perfect centerpiece for the picnic table. Visit Oh Happy Day for the complete tutorial.

We here at Plaid have been so lucky to come across many talented and creative crafters. As a manufacturer of arts and crafts we get the chance to meet and interact with crafty individuals very often. About a month ago we met a very talented women, named Rachel Faucett. Rachel Faucett is the author of the well-loved design blog Handmade Charlotte. After speaking and meeting with Rachel we here at Plaid decided to partner together. Rachel will be featured here on Paint Me Plaid every Wednesday, beginning tomorrow. She will be sharing some awesome projects, and giving you great inspiration. Here’s a little more about Rachel. Rachel lives on a farm with her husband and five children. 2011 was an exciting year for Handmade Charlotte; they designed a mini collection for Anthropologie, collaborated with J.Crew, and created DIY videos with Dwell Studio. If that wasn’t enough Rachel also contributed to a book of DIY projects, called Hand in Hand published by Lark Sterling. We are very excited to have Rachel apart of Paint Me Plaid. Make sure you check out her blog, Handmade Charlotte. Also Rachel is one of the top pinners in the country. Check out and follow her on Pinterest here. See below to view some of the projects and a video Rachel has created.

Here is some clothing Rachel designed from the Anthropologie Collection.

Here is a picture of Rachel’s adorable kids. This picture was featured in the book, Hand in Hand.

Here is a video Rachel created. Watch this to learn how to create splattered paint pants. Rachel made these pants using fabric medium and Apple Barrel paints

Are you looking for a way to liven up a room in your home? Perhaps you should take a cue from the image above. I am in awe of this stenciled wall with wall hooks. I came across this room on BHG. I love the mixture of different green hues used in this room. This is a great way to give more life and color to a room. This is a DIY project that anyone could do. While this is not a project you can do in an hour, it is a great project that is unique and definitely eye-catching. Don’t be afraid to not only use color on your walls, but check out stencils as well. Click here to learn more how this wall was created, and learn how to add the wall hooks.

This palette was created using FolkArt acrylic paint colors: Apple Orchard # 2241, Brilliant Ultramarine #484, French Vanilla # 2573, and Gilded Oak # 2495

Mod Podge Paper

Mod Podge Outdoor

Mod Podge Gloss

Mod Podge Matte

To enter this giveaway, all you have to do is leave a comment below telling us what you would use this product to create? For extra entries (leave a separate comment for each):

Follow us on Twitter

Like Plaid on Facebook and let us know you entered the giveaway

Check our sister blog, Plaid Kids Crafts and comment on a post

The contest will end Friday May 18th, 2012 at 12 noon EST.

The springtime and summer months are my absolute favorite times to buy shoes. I love sandals, wedges and pumps you name it. During this time of year they’re so many trendy styles to choose from. Currently my shoe buying is on hold, as I am trying to be more budget conscious. If you are in the same boat you may want to try creating these mod podged shoes. I have come across several projects online, where people gave their shoes a new makeover. Debbie Saenz designed these Mod Podged Shoes with Flowers. This project is very easy to do, and it will take 1 hour to an hour and a half to make. Transform those drab shoes into something spectacular with the help of Mod Podge!

Plaid Supplies

Mod Podge Outdoor – EUCS11219, Ring Bling (2) – Pink Sequin Topper # 13489

Other Supplies

Pair of shoes with covered toe, Pink floral tissue paper, Contact glue, Scissors, Paint Brush, Craft knife

Instructions

1. Rip tissue paper into ½ to 1 inch pieces
2. Adhere to shoes with Mod Podge overlapping as you work. Smooth down with your fingers. Cover entire outside of shoes, allowing paper to extend edges of shoes. Allow to dry.
3. Carefully trim paper ¼ inch above opening rim of shoes (leaving enough paper to fold over edge of shoe opening). Use Mod Podge to secure paper over edge of shoes.
4. Cut off excess paper along sole of shoes with craft knife.
5. Seal entire outside of shoes with a coat of Mod Podge. Allow to dry.
6. Glue Flower embellishments to top front of each shoe

Have you heard of the term haul? If not don’t worry you are not alone. A haul is where a person will describe and show off items they have received or have purchased, on camera. I am sure some of you are wondering why would someone film themselves showing off products? I am sure people do it for different reasons, but mainly because it is fun to do. On YouTube you can find several thousand videos of people doing hauls. Some do makeup hauls, fashion hauls, and craft hauls. Below are two people who decided to create a craft haul, showing off some goodies they received from Plaid. Click here and here to watch. Would you or have you created a craft haul? If so leave a comment below, we’d love to watch it.

This week on Paint Me Plaid we wanted to celebrate Mother’s Day, by holding a giveaway filled with wonderful prizes. The winner of this giveaway will receive 1 Martha Stewart Crafts™ 6oz Brush And Stencil Cleaner, 1 Martha Stewart Crafts™ Stencil Brush Set – 3pc, 1 Martha Stewart Crafts™ Stencil Tape, 1 Martha Stewart Crafts™ Blossoms Adhesive Stencils, 1 Martha Stewart Crafts™ Cathedral Lace Laser-Cut Stencils, and an assortment of Martha Stewart Craft Paint (5 bottles total).

Congrats

Talela Belue S.

(winner has been notified by email)

Thanks to everyone that entered this giveaway. Don’t worry if you did not win this week, we will have another giveaway very soon. Make sure you subscribe to Paint Me Plaid, so you can be the first to know what’s up for grabs next.

The time is almost here. Mother’s Day is only in a few short days. While I already have gotten my Mom’s gift, I am now having second thoughts after seeing these lovely Martha Stewart Stenciled Pillows. Pillows are a great gift to give, and a wonderful project to make. An accent pillow can really change the dynamic of any room in your home. Fireflies and Jellybean created these pillows using several items from the Martha Stewart craft line. What also really caught my eye were the colors used in this project. Yellow and dark blue hues compliment each other very well. If I were to make these pillows I would put them on a patio chair. Have you ever created an accent pillow?

Light up Mom’s day with this easy to make candle votive trio. I don’t know about you but I have been seeing votives used a lot in several different craft projects. I have been seeing them incorporated so much; I have begun contemplating a dedicated Pinterest board to votive crafts. I was extra excited when one of Plaid’s talented designed create this easy candle holder trio. Debbie Saenz designed this project. It is a great craft project for anyone, and is something a beginner crafter can easily do. This project will take 30 minutes to 1 hour to complete. For this project you can use votive candles or baby food jars. Very cute!

Plaid Supplies

Mod Podge Gloss – CS11201

Other Supplies

3 Baby food jars, Red floral wire, Tissue papers – floral & 3 solid colors, Hot glue, Sand paper, Paint brush, Wire Cutters, Needle nose pliers

Instructions

1. Clean and dry baby food jars well; discard lids.
2. Rip tissue papers into approximately ½ inch strips (You will need more of the floral paper).
3. Use floral tissue paper strips alternately with the solid colors. Use a different solid color for each jar. Adhere papers with Mod Podge to outside of jars, carefully smoothing down the papers with your fingers. Apply the papers vertically, alternating the floral with a solid color, slightly overlapping each paper. Allow the paper to extend the top and bottom of the jars Allow to dry.
4. Sand away the excess paper from the top and bottom of jars. Sand inward in one direction until smooth.
5. Apply a coat of Mod Podge to each jar to seal. Allow to dry.
6. Gather jars to form a trio and glue together with hot glue.
7. Wrap wire around lip of each jar twice and bring ends up the middle, twist twice with pliers and create a heart (Refer to photo). Snip ends of wire.

Recently I moved into a new place a few months back. I have almost completed my decorating for the entire place, but the other day I realized I did not have a welcome mat for my front door. I had attempted to buy one several times before, but unfortunately I never came across anything I fancied, until today. One of my new blogger friends, Cheryl from That’s What Che Said, created this DIY Monogram Doormat. When I saw it I immediately was envious. This is so chic. I was even more blown away when I discovered Cheryl made this using Apple Barrel paint. To see how this was made from beginning to end click here. This is a project I definitely plan on recreating very soon.

This was the before mat