Saturday, December 31, 2011

Glitter and Sparkle...


We celebrate the New Year, but I believe that life is a celebration and it's important to add sparkle to our lives on a daily basis.  Penelope (my dress form) certainly knows that!

Happy New Year to all, and may every day be sparkly!  
Xo, 
Margo Isadora

It started out with some gifted bows and tinsle...

Soon she had a spirited bustier... 

and a skirt to match!

The left over bows created a box tree just for her!

(A glittery tree!)

She has her New Year's Eve dress all picked out!

And just can't wait to celebrate!
Happy 2012!

Saturday, December 24, 2011

A Sugary Gingerbread House...

The front of our gingerbread house!
The holidays are a time for families to get together and share in festive traditions.  We always decorate a gingerbread house. I don't know what could be more fun than covering a house in vibrant sugary confections!  This is the whimsical gingerbread house that we created this year!  It doesn't matter what you celebrate find a festive tradition like this one and enjoy!
Hope don't MIS sharing your favorite rituals with family and friends!  

Happy Everthing, 
Margo Isadora

Supplies: A Gingerbread House, Candy and Frosting!

The Set-Up!

Working on the House...

Close up of my brother's sweet work!

My Snowman, created using
pfeffernusse cookies, M&Ms, and a nonpareil!

My brother's finished side

Mom's lovely back

My Heavily Decorated Side
A birds' eye view of the finished house!

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Magazine Christmas Trees!

DIY Christmas Trees
(Supplies: Old Magazines and A Pair of Hands!)
I love the festivities that December holidays bring. Hanukkah, Christmas, my birthday, New Years and all the fun in between makes it a month full of celebration.  This year we have put up our outdoor lights and decorated a gingerbread house, but we did not get a Christmas tree.  So, I decided to make a few of my own out of old magazines!
  
Gather some magazines or catalogues laying around your home. (You will need one magazine per tree, a few different sizes make a more interesting collection of trees.) To start pull off the front and back covers of the magazine and break the spine.  Then fold each page as follows (see images below).  I found Green Eyed Monster's video tutorial very helpful greeneyed.com/2011/12/diy-magazine-christmas-tree/ if you are having any trouble.  
I have made a small forest already, some of which I plan to uproot and give to the deserving few! 


I hope you are making wonderful things for the holidays.  Create something, whether you decorate a tree, a gingerbread house, make cookies, latkes, or fun DIY gifts. It is a holiday activity not to MIS!


Enjoy, 
Margo Isadora



Fold #1!


Fold #2!


Fold #3!  

Continue the 3 folds for each page
and you will have a beautiful tree!
A finished magazine tree!

Many people have gotten creative with their trees this year,
check out some fun ones on Apartment Therapy

Monday, December 12, 2011

P.S. I made this... at C. Wonder!

Cute Instagram from the event that Erica posted on her twitter
 P.S. I made this... is one of my favorite DIY books, and websites.  I was fortunate enough to meet Erica Domesek, the creator behind this wonderful DIY brand, at a DIY event she hosted at a C. Wonder store!  Her work is a source of constant inspiration for my DIY projects.  It truly made my night to chat and craft with her!  We made fun gift tags and colorful coasters from her C.Wonder DIY kits!    Check out 'A DIY Obession' from last year to see some of my favorite projects from her book and site.

Wanted to share some highlights from the event and some of my favorite P.S. I made this... projects!  
Hope you get to DIY this holiday season, 
Margo Isadora


The DIY Set-up!  Prepped for coaster and gift tag crafting!

A coaster I made :)
P.S. these are some of the other coasters I made!

A great bike display in the C. Wonder store!

C. Wonder's Awesome Blue Ottoman in the Dressing Rooms...

These wonderful hats were just for display...
but they provided some excellent DIY inspiration!
Erica Domesek was lovely!
psimadethis.com

Some of my favorite projects from psimadethis.com

Love my fabric gemstone earrings , all pairs!  Great DIY!

I've been meaning to make some flower print cards!

Great fringe accessory for booties!

Simple, but super cute!

Love!

Erica and I

Sunday, December 4, 2011

What Color Are You Today?

Colored with Emotion!

I believe that color has the power to transform your mood or dispostion in an instant.  Unfortunately, many people underestimate or overlook how linked our emotions are with color.  (For more of my thoughts on color check out Color is Key or Color In Action!) 

My creative writing teacher recently challenged us to create a children's book.  I immediately knew I wanted to use coloful illustrations to attract readers, young and old alike.  The idea of writing a book about color related to emotions inspired me, so I got to work!  

I constructed the book by folding 5 peices of colored paper in half and sewing up the spine.  Magazine letters were used to create the cover art.  Inside I made colorful profiles from paint chips to show the expressive emotion of each person!  One was green with envy (sticking out it's tounge), another was a purple pinnochio, and yet another was red and in love!  The moral of the story was that it is natural to experience a variety of emotions, but the key is learning how to keep your emotions from controlling you!  

Stay colorful, be happy and keep creating! 
Enjoy,
Margo Isadora

The Cover

Materials Needed: Scissors, Magazine Letters

Sew up the binding!

Paint Chip Art in process for the book!
I began the book with these words... 


Each morning
you wake up
with a new color inside.
Sometimes it shines
And sometimes it hides.

These are a few sample pages...





I concluded with these words...

It can change
every day
every hour
every minute.
And that’s okay.
It just depends how
You spin it.