Grand Finale to National Craft Month

This is it. The last project of National Craft Month. I spent a lot of time yesterday on the internet looking for ideas... stamping... painting... stitching... knitting... sewing... glittering projects... I even thought of making a pair of googly-eyed shoes. In the end, I realized that no matter what I chose, it wasn't going to be some big grand thing. I mean, I've only had a day for each project.

I decided to make a pillow for the study, the one with the map wall. It's the dude's room. Although a pillow for that room was on the list of 31 projects I started out with, it wasn't this pillow. During my searches, I saw this tutorial on making a flower from a men's necktie. I have a few ties I've collected from the thrift store, but I knew just the flower wasn't going to be enough. So I thought and thought until the pillow idea came up--a pillow made from men's suiting. Of course by the time I got to the thrift store, it had closed. As a result, this project was a little more expensive than I projected. I had to buy the fabric for it...and a silk necktie (don't worry, on clearance from Marshall's).

And then I thought and thought about what I could do to add bling. Glitter was out, but what about buttons? I added some vines and button buds. And got this:

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This has been a wonderful ride. I won't lie...some days I felt as much like crafting as I felt like running a marathon, which is to say not at all. But I persevered and ended up with some great projects, some very nice gifts, and a bit of a mess in the craft room. And some numbers:

• Page views over the month: 13,928
• Most popular post: Irish Potatoes, but only because I got picked up by Craft Gossip. Otherwise it was the Newlywed Ornaments.
• Likely to be repeated: A lot of them! Some of these are great quick gifts. I'm even thinking of making a blanket with the materials I used for that super quick scarf! I think it's easier to say I will probably not be stamping on candles for a while.
• Number going (or gone) to live with someone else: 14
• Favorite craft: I think this changes every day, but I love the bats and the fob.
• Dude's favorites: Irish potatoes, magnetic bookmark, bats
• papercrafting--8
• gluing and decoupage--6
• beading--6
• needlework--3
• knitting--2
• miscellaneous--2
• sewing--2
• food craft--1
• stamping (other than paper)--1
• estimated dollars spent on crafting in March: $180 (of course, I've been collecting supplies for a long time!)
• estimated hours: 55

Here's a Bit More Fun

I'm going to give away all of the red, white and blue things I made (except for the fob--you'll get a substitute): button magnets, floss magnets, bookmark, matchbook notes, matchbook needlebook, and tacks.  And substitute fob. To enter, just tell me, which of the projects I did are you likely to try? Be sure I have a way of contacting you via email. I will do a random drawing on April 6.