Why "Wayward"?

We weren't always wayward. Once upon a time, we were just crazy, as you might expect in a household with four girls. We tried to hide our zaniness behind a normal exterior, but sometimes the crazy shone through.

Our parents set the standard for this, of course. Mom made sure the first interaction you had with our family was to laugh—especially if you got the answering machine. This was in sharp contrast to most of our extended family, who seldom had an answering machine greeting more interesting than "This is the Tom Johnson residence. . . . Leave a message."

One evening, we were joking about that disconnect and our relatives' greetings when we realized there was something missing. If you know us, you know our dad (okay, well, he's not Mom's dad, but you know who we mean) shares his name with a very famous historical figure. All these elements combined to create a perfect storm of an answering machine greeting, in Dad's cheery baritone:

You've reached the [Thomas Jefferson] Residence . . . for Wayward Girls. Please leave a message. [distorted piano music]

We still embrace this as our calling in life:

Over the years, the message has impressed a number of people, including my soon-to-be-sister-in-law (she wasn't sure she had the right house and hung up without leaving a message). The greeting was unchanged until another perfect storm—lightning struck in the front yard, zapping a good number of electronics in the house. But the spirit of the greeting will live on in our wayward hearts—and we hope in yours too!

Mom said so....

These wayward girls of mine have created this blog and now want me to join in the fun. I thought that somehow a post would magically appear, but apparently not. After I got a rather pointed text from the eldest daughter, I realized I had to do something. So.... to introduce myself, I am the lucky mom of four beautiful and talented daughters. I work as an academic coach in a middle school. My crafting goes in spurts. Lately I have spent my time creating a quiet book for my wonderful grandchildren and sewing a quilt for my grandchild due in a few months. I will be sharing both of those in coming posts. I am never quite satisfied with what I create, but I still keep trying! I will probably be the first one to point out what is wrong with whatever I do! (Maybe I should stop that!)

Anyway, in the giveaway spirit of our debut week, I have a lovely group of ten five-inch charm squares of vintage fabrics. My great grandmother was a seamstress in the early 30's and 40's. When my grandmother passed away 10 years ago, we found a bag of my great grandma's scraps way in the back of a closet. I don't know the exact age of the fabrics or fabric contents, but they each have a beauty of their own.

So make a comment on the blog or do any of that Tweeting or Facebook Liking or whatever it is that the girls have listed below if you want to win these charm squares. Since I don't Tweet or Facebook I really don't have a clue what those mean. 

You get:

• One entry for commenting on this blog post.
• One entry for becoming a follower of our blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for following us on Twitter, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (even if you started following us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for Liking us on Facebook, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (Even if you liked us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for blogging about our new blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link to your post!).
• One entry for asking us a question about ourselves, new blog, crazy dreams, whatever.

Just so we're clear: each of these should be in their own comments! So if you like us on FB, comment, Follow us on Twitter, you should make 3 separate comments.

The winner will be announced one week from today, and welcome to Wayward Crafts!

Cookies and Creme Cupcakes

Welcome to Wayward Girls Crafts!!

I'm Jasmine, the youngest of the Wayward Girls Crafts. I'm a college student far from home. I don't have a ton of time for crafts with classes and homework or room living in a small, shared space. I love fun, easy, and inexpensive ways to decorate in such a small space. Somewhere in my busy schedule I try to find time for creativity, crafts and baking.

I'm giving away the Cookies and Creme cupcake bundle.  They're easy to make and of course delicious!

This giveaway has ended. The winner is announced here.

 

The Cookies and Creme cupcake package will include the dry ingredients and a recipe card. As a bonus, the recipe for the homemade Cookies and Creme whipped cream will be added! The biggest surprise is when you bite into the cookie center. They're super yummy and fun to make with the kids. 

**Next week's post will include the recipe.

• One entry for becoming a follower of our blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for following us on Twitter, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for tweeting this post, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link directly to your Tweet).
• One entry for Liking us on Facebook, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for blogging about our new blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link to your post!).
• One entry for telling us your thoughts on our new blog, or asking me a question in a comment on this blog post.

Just so we're clear: each of these should be in their own comments! So if you like us on FB, comment, Follow us on Twitter, you should make 3 separate comments.

The winner will be announced one week from today, and we have more giveaways throughout this week!

Scrapbooking Layout Kit Giveaway

Welcome to day three of our launch week! 

My name is Brave Brooke, which is a nickname I have had since I was in preschool. I have been married for 3 years to my awesome police man. We are expecting a baby girl in June and couldn’t be more excited. In high school, I dabbled in many media of visual art, garnering national honors. I love expressing myself creatively and love to beautify my surroundings-sometimes a little obsessively. Now I enjoy couponing, scrapbooking, decorating my home, knitting, reading, and any and all crafts for the little girl coming in a few short months! I always have a to-do list that I am working on-sometimes 2 (or more).

Today the giveaway is a customized scrapbook layout kit! Next week when we announce the winner I will be doing the full mini-tutorial on how to do a Faux Shadow Box (and yes I just made that up).

This giveaway has ended. The winner is announced here.

Here's what my layout looked like:

The customized scrapbook layout kit you could win includes:

-Instructions
-Three sheets of patterned and one solid card stock pieces of 12 x 12 paper
-8 eyelets
-Foam squares
-Embellishment stickers (not pictured)
-Words cut out by my Cricut of your choosing (stay tuned in the weeks to come for some awesome Cricut posts!!)

So to enter for this kit you get:

• One entry for commenting on this blog post.
• One entry for becoming a follower of our blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for following us on Twitter, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (even if you started following us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for Liking us on Facebook, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (Even if you liked us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for blogging about our new blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link to your post!).
• One entry for asking us a question about ourselves, new blog, crazy dreams, whatever.

Keep checking back to meet the last of the sisters and our mom, to see what else we're giving away, and to see if you're a winner! The scrapbooking layout kit winner will be announced next Wednesday!

Handmade Sculpey Buttons

Hello and welcome to Wayward Girls' Crafts! I'm so excited you are here. Here's a little bit about myself:

I began scrapbooking in 2006 with a mini album for my husband. Now I have scrapped over 200 layouts. My work is defined with hand-cut embellishments, bright colors, and witty titles. I've found so much inspiration from crafting blogs and want to put it to work! I'm interested in thrifting, decorating, cooking solutions, photography, and papercrafting.

Now on to my craft:

Who didn't love to play with Play-Doh as a kid? All the Wayward Girls certainly did:

Me and Brooke, circa 1991

And I'll let you in on a little secret, I love to play with Play-Doh with my nephew now!

I equate Sculpey to an adult's version of Play-Doh. It was so fun to mess around with for an hour. I decided a few years ago I wanted to make my own buttons and bought some Sculpey for the project. I brought it with me across the country and finally, 2.5 years later, I made some buttons:

For my first time making buttons, I think they turned out great! They may have been a little overcooked so next time I will check them more often. I experimented with a bunch of different household items to cut the circles for the buttons, including a tablespoon measuring spoon, the lid to my facial soap, and the my toothpaste lid. (I ran all of that stuff through the dishwasher and then put it back on) I'd recommend putting paper (not newspaper) on your work area otherwise you'll end up with a colored table, and I'm not sure how easy that is to clean up. Also, try mixing the colors together. I loved the effect I got.

Here's how they look in action:

Isn't my nephew cute?

So now you have some buttons, now what? You can use them on home decor items, scrapbook pages and other papercrafts, accessories and clothing. Go crazy!

This giveaway has ended. The winner is announced here.

Do you want some of your own buttons without actually having to make them? You can win them! You can enter for this giveaway too! It is separate from yesterday's so if you became a follower yesterday, you can enter for that today (or anything else on the list).

You get:

• One entry for commenting on this blog post.
• One entry for becoming a follower of our blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for following us on Twitter, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (even if you started following us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for Liking us on Facebook, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it. (Even if you liked us yesterday, you can comment today for an entry)
  
• One entry for blogging about our new blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link to your post!).
• One entry for asking us a question about ourselves, new blog, crazy dreams, whatever.

Keep checking back to meet the rest of my sisters and my mom, to see what else we're giving away, and to see if you're a winner! The sculpey button winner will be announced next Tuesday!

Also, we're linking up to Tip Me Tuesday:

We are go for launch!

Welcome to Wayward Girls' Crafts! We're four sisters (and our mom) who are so excited to share our varied crafts with the world.

I'm Jordan, the oldest of the daughters. A little about me:

Jordan McMamaBlogga has three kids, plays three instruments and knows three languages, and hopes to add more to all of those counts—eventually. Aside from her children, her favorite creative efforts are in the areas of writing, cooking, knitting, and graphic design. She can't resist a good yarn where true love and justice triumph over all—or a good yarn with sheen, drape and a high natural fiber content. Her Ravelry username is MamaBlogga JordanMcCollum, and she also blogs about the craft of writing and the art of fulfillment in motherhood on her personal blogs.

To celebrate our launch, we're giving away some of our very own fine handicrafts!

Monday's Giveaway:

This giveaway has ended. The winner is announced here.

Knit (by me!) from 100% wool (from Roberts) with Meg Myers's Felted Flower Bowl pattern.

Knit in the round on a 10.5 circular needle, even with the Magic Loop method, this was a little bit fiddly. Naturally, once I finished knitting, it didn't exactly look perfect:

Eventually, I got around to felting it. I teased Brooke that felting was so difficult, but the truth is that felting 100% wool is super easy (as long as it's not superwash). You just stick it in the washing machine on a hot water cycle. The pattern recommended putting it in a pillow case (which I did) with jeans or towels to help with agitation (which I didn't—I wasn't sure if the yarn was color safe)(it was). I also used soap, since that helps along the process. Once the machine started its spin cycle, I grabbed the bowl out of the wash.

I wanted to make sure it dried in the right shape, so I used another bowl to block it. I weighted down the bottom (with a bottle of mints) to help create a flat bottom.

Helping it to dry in shape:

And the finished product:

I love the colors and they way they blend. It's a little bit on the floppy side, but you might be able to re-felt it for a firmer fabric (or just put lightweight stuff in it!)

Although I really want to keep this, it can be yours! All you have to do is enter:

• One entry for becoming a follower of our blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for following us on Twitter, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for tweeting this post, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link directly to your Tweet).
• One entry for Liking us on Facebook, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it.
• One entry for blogging about our new blog, and commenting on this blog post to tell me about it (with a link to your post!).
• One entry for telling us your thoughts on our new blog, or asking me a question in a comment on this blog post.

Just so we're clear: each of these should be in their own comments! So if you like us on FB, comment, Follow us on Twitter, you should make 3 separate comments.

The winner will be announced one week from today, and we have more giveaways throughout this week!

What can we say? We're Wayward, and we make bad look good.