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April Calendar Desktop Wallpaper | Free Download

free April Desktop wallpaper calendar Spark and chemistry
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It’s April!! I’m so excited- mainly because the cold, harsh winter is over, but I feel so much more inspired around this time.  I love April.  The flowers are budding, I have a few family birthdays this month to celebrate, and Easter gives me life!  This is also the month that I do my Spring cleaning and get organized.  To kick things off, I  created this desktop wallpaper to keep me inspired and the dates of April right in front of me when I’m working.  It’s so helpful to have on hand and I also feel a sense of happy when I look at these blooms.  So I’d like to share some of this happy with you. Download this free calendar, desktop wallpaper below!

free April Desktop wallpaper calendar Spark and chemistry

 

April 1, 2017 2 comments
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BeautyGiftsHome DecorLivingMakeupOur DIY FavsValentine's Day

XOXO Lipstick Wall Art

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Hey ladies!  Add some colorful wall art to your bedroom or beauty studio using an unconventional writing tool: lipstick!  This simple DIY is bold – and can show off your favorite lipstick colors.  Check out one of our fun, beautiful DIYs for Valentine’s Day: XOXO Lipstick wall art.

Supplies:

Step 1:

This is optional, but if you want to add some color to the matte board inside the frame, paint it.  Here, I’ve chosen a gold, metallic paint from FolkArt.  For a seamless look, paint each side with vertical strokes, so that the brush pattern on the matte board is consistent.  Paint a couple of coats to ensure all of the white board is covered.  Set it aside to dry.  It should dry pretty quickly – this one dried in about 10 minutes.

Step 2:

While the matte board is drying, very lightly with a pencil, draw the XO pattern.  You’re only using this as a guide, so want to draw lightly – just enough to get an idea of where the letters will be.  If the strokes are too thick, it will show through the lipstick.

Step 3:

Grab two of your boldest, baddest lipstick colors.  Lightly trace the lines you have made with the pencil, creating the XO pattern.  Press down lightly, so that it does not break (you still want to use it afterwards)!

Step 4: 

The lipstick does not need to dry, but you do want to make sure there aren’t any areas that are too thick because it may transfer on to the glass front of the frame.  I found that standing the frame up on a table and taping the image to the matte board that way, rather than laying it face down, helped keep it from transferring onto the glass.  Add the cardboard back to the frame and you’re ready to hang it!

XOXO Lipstick Art Spark and Chemistry

Hang this wall art in your room, to compliment any colorful pictures you already have; or brighten up a bookshelf with this vibrant art.  It’s a simple DIY that is girly, sweet, and also, makes a wonderful gift idea!  We can’t wait to see you try it!

January 29, 2017 2 comments
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Home DecorSponsored

Floral Garland Card Holder (with ProFlowers)

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Picture

In continuing with our Valentine’s Day post, I had a last minute idea to create a simple, floral garland to hang on the wall, on which I would attach any cards I receive. This is another fairly easy DIY that you can do with a dozen or two roses and any other greenery you have on hand. Wedding season is almost upon us, and this wall hanger display could be a great addition to any wedding decor. You could also create this after a wedding or formal event with the flowers from your event; that way you could hold on to them just a little bit longer! We were ecstatic to receive these beautiful roses from ProFlowers, which worked extremely well for this project.

floral-garland-card-hanger-spark-chemistry-blog-1

To achieve this “viney” look, you’ll need: a 3′ wooden dowel (about 5/8″) thick. Depending on how many flowers you attach, this could get heavy and you may need a dowel that’s a little bit thicker to hold them. You’ll also need roses or flowers of your choice, floral wire, fishing line or clear filament for hanging cards, and command strips to hang it all on the wall.

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Using the wooden dowel as an anchor, attach the green stems and leaves with the floral wire. Overlap the stems for a fuller effect, making sure to cover the wire and dowel.

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Cut the stems of the roses pretty short for easier attachment- again with floral wire. Place them strategically throughout the garland, making sure to fill in any gaps or holes where one would see the dowel.

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Hang Command Strips to attach the garland to the wall.

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Cut about 24″ of clear filament, join the two ends with a double knot. Don’t worry too much if it coils around itself- the weight of the cards should stretch it out. You can cut it at multiple lengths to add some variation. Loop the string around the garland, place the cards in the string and let it hang.

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The string is so clear against my gray walls- it appears as if the cards are floating.
floral-garland-card-hanger-spark-chemistry-blog-9
Pretty simple, right? Add as many Valentine’s Day, wedding, birthday cards, etc. as you want. Also from ProFlowers, I had some left over tulips and rose petals, so I decided to create an ice bowl that would be great to hold a wine bottle or another beverage for tonight’s Valentin’s Day dinner. I essentially submerged tulips and rose petals in water between two buckets and let it freeze overnight.

floral-garland-card-hanger-spark-chemistry-blog-6

For this project, you’ll need a large bucket and a smaller one. They were both plastic- picked up from my local dollar store. Because plastic is a malleable, I found it easier to remove the ice from a plastic bucket as opposed to a metal one (similar to way a plastic ice cube tray works). The smaller bucket sits in the larger bucket and the larger bucket fills with water. The smaller bucket will start to float as you fill up the larger one, so add a weighty object (something that’s okay to freeze) in the smaller one to hold it down. Begin to submerge any flowers or whatever fun objects you’d like to freeze in the water. Place the bucket in the freezer and let it all freeze overnight.

floral-garland-card-hanger-spark-chemistry-blog-10

The next day, let the bucket sit outside of the freezer for a bout 5 minutes before attempting to remove the ice bowl. It will melt a little bit, and the smaller bucket should slide out easily. If you aren’t serving your beverage immediately, put the bucket back in the freezer until time to serve. This ice bowl lasted about 30-45 minutes before the flowers started to poke out of the sides due to melting.

Make a Floral Garland Card Holder (with ProFlowers)

2/14/2015

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Picture

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In continuing with our Valentine’s Day post, I had a last minute idea to create a simple, floral garland to hang on the wall, on which I would attach any cards I receive. This is another fairly easy DIY that you can do with a dozen or two roses and any other greenery you have on hand. Wedding season is almost upon us, and this wall hanger display could be a great addition to any wedding decor. It would look great next to some cute quotes on love. You could also create this after a wedding or formal event with the flowers from your event; that way you could hold on to them just a little bit longer! We were ecstatic to receive these beautiful roses from ProFlowers, which worked extremely well for this project.

Picture

To achieve this “viney” look, you’ll need: a 3′ wooden dowel (about 5/8″) thick. Depending on how many flowers you attach, this could get heavy and you may need a dowel that’s a little bit thicker to hold them. You’ll also need roses or flowers of your choice, floral wire, fishing line or clear filament for hanging cards, and command strips to hang it all on the wall.

Picture

Picture

Using the wooden dowel as an anchor, attach the green stems and leaves with the floral wire. Similar to the floral garland centerpiece post, overlap the stems for a fuller effect, making sure to cover the wire and dowel.

Picture

Cut the stems of the roses pretty short for easier attachment- again with floral wire. Place them strategically throughout the garland, making sure to fill in any gaps or holes where one would see the dowel.

Picture

Hang Command Strips to attach the garland to the wall.

Picture

Cut about 24″ of clear filament, join the two ends with a double knot. Don’t worry too much if it coils around itself- the weight of the cards should stretch it out. You can cut it at multiple lengths to add some variation. Loop the string around the garland, place the cards in the string and let it hang.

Picture

The string is so clear against my gray walls- it appears as if the cards are floating.

Picture

Pretty simple, right? Add as many Valentine’s Day, wedding, birthday cards, etc. as you want. Also from ProFlowers, I had some left over tulips and rose petals, so I decided to create an ice bowl that would be great to hold a wine bottle or another beverage for tonight’s Valentin’s Day dinner. I essentially submerged tulips and rose petals in water between two buckets and let it freeze overnight.

Picture

For this project, you’ll need a large bucket and a smaller one. They were both plastic- picked up from my local dollar store. Because plastic is a malleable, I found it easier to remove the ice from a plastic bucket as opposed to a metal one (similar to way a plastic ice cube tray works). The smaller bucket sits in the larger bucket and the larger bucket fills with water. The smaller bucket will start to float as you fill up the larger one, so add a weighty object (something that’s okay to freeze) in the smaller one to hold it down. Begin to submerge any flowers or whatever fun objects you’d like to freeze in the water. Place the bucket in the freezer and let it all freeze overnight.

Picture

The next day, let the bucket sit outside of the freezer for a bout 5 minutes before attempting to remove the ice bowl. It will melt a little bit, and the smaller bucket should slide out easily. If you aren’t serving your beverage immediately, put the bucket back in the freezer until time to serve. This ice bowl lasted about 30-45 minutes before the flowers started to poke out of the sides due to melting.

Picture

I hope you enjoyed this post! I love working with flowers because there are so many different crafts and fun floral arrangements and displays that make a great addition to any party or event. Let us know what you think by adding a comment below!

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February 14, 2015 0 comment
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ChristmasHolidays & EventsHome Decor

Make a Woodblock Candle Centerpiece

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how-to-make-a-wood-cutting-board-candle-holder-spark-and-chemistry-12

Happy New Year crafters! Yes, the holidays have come and gone, and I’m sure you’ve finally boxed and stored all of your Christmas crafts, but don’t worry- every new year brings an abundance of fresh, new DIY inspiration, starting with this candle holder centerpiece made from a piece of scrap wood. Well, not so scrap. I found this cutting board at my local thrift store for $2.00. With a few candles, I was able to turn it into a modern, yet rustic table centerpiece used in my holiday decor. This romantic, tapered candle holder was not only perfect for Christmas, it will also make a beautiful, table centerpiece for Valentine’s Day dinner. Check out how I made it!

For this DIY, you’ll need a few tools:

  • Wood block (size and thickness can vary)
  • Tapered candles
  • Power drill with 13/16th drill bit (or a drill bit the same size as the diameter of the base of your candle)
  • Pencil
  • Small fan (optional)
  • Dry rag
  • A cup of water (keep nearby)
  • Ruler

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First things first- stand your candles up on the block and arrange them in the way you’d like to see them when the project is complete. At first, I arranged the candles in a perfect line, then had each row slightly windowed, but the end goal was that when I looked at the centerpiece straight on, or from the front or side, I could see all the candles. So I ended up doing a random placement.

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Next, mark a small dot in the center where each candle was placed. This is where you will begin drilling.

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For these candles I “eyeballed” the width of the base of the candle to match the width of the drill bit. If you’re not sure which drill to buy, check out some reviews on Tool Helpful. I found that a 13/16th drill bit was just the size I needed to drill my holes. Make sure your drill bit is sharply pointed at its end and works with a power drill tough enough to drill through a thick block of wood. It should also be okay if the drill bit is a slightly narrower than the width of the base of the candle (but only slightly).

how-to-make-a-wood-cutting-board-candle-holder-spark-and-chemistry-6

With the tip of the bit placed directly on the small dot on the wood, begin drilling your hole. This part can get a little messy, but it is important that you keep a cup of cool water nearby to periodically dip the drill bit in. If not, it will overheat and burn the wood (or start a fire!). So during this project, I drilled for about 10-20 seconds and would dip it in the water. This also wets the wood as well, counteracting the friction between the drill and the wood. As you drill, make sure also to periodically wipe the sawdust off as you go. It’s okay if it becomes a bit of a wet mess!

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How far down do you drill? About 1/2 inch to 3/4 of an inch. You want to drill down far enough so the candle can stand firm and secure on its own. As you drill, stick your candle inside the hole to test the depth. Keep drilling if you feel you need more depth. And keep that water nearby! Apply firm pressure straight down while drilling. Tilting the drill to the right or left, or making circular motions with the drill will make the hole much bigger than it should be. I placed the wood block on the floor and drilled by standing up and applying pressure straight down. Worked like a charm!

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Once you’ve drilled all your holes, the block will probably be wet and messy. Correction, it SHOULD be wet and messy. That means you didn’t start a fire 🙂 . Wipe off all the sawdust and quickly dry your now candle holder with fan or let air dry. You’ll start to see the wood lighten up as it dries.

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Place the tapered candles in the holes- they should fit nice and snug. Typically, tapered candles start off slightly narrow at the base, then widen a bit, then narrow the rest of the way up. Because the base is wider, it should sit in your hole without moving. If your candles are falling, you may need to drill the hole a little bit deeper. This is why I like to check the depth as I go.

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That’s it! I like the simple, rustic look of this candle centerpiece. If you’d want, jazz it up with chalkboard paint. In chalk, write a message- or before starting, paint your block, stain it, personalize it! The ideas are endless- enjoy!

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January 7, 2015 1 comment
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