Hello world! The Cool Christian Crafter is back and better than ever! I am so sorry for the lack of posts over the last two weeks - I was on a trip. I hope this gave my new crafters time to catch up on some of my older posts (man those clay figures seem like ages ago!) and I hope my old crafters haven’t been too bored without yours truly.  But don’t worry! To make up for the lack of crafts you can expect a huge load of new projects, ideas, and hacks, especially with Christmas Month tomorrow! Or today. . . #TimeChange #JetLagged  And, since I just got back from a European Adventure, most of my upcoming posts will be travel themed to help you cope with the stress of holiday travel as well as future vacations.  So, have fun, get ready for crafts, and remember God loves you!  Hello, Crafters! I AM BACK!!!

 Winter is coming, which means lots of cozy book time! I am not only a crafter, but an avid reader, so this quiz was really fun for me to write. I hope you enjoy it!  1. How old are you? A. 2 - 11 B. 11 - 23 C. 23 - 46 D. 46 - 60 E. 61+ 2. Describe your childhood. A. I went on lots of adventures.  B. Sometimes it was hard, but I worked through it.  C. My siblings and I lifted each other up during the rough times.  D. Scary.  E. I had close relationships with people in my family.  3. What is your biggest fault? A. Fear.  B. My strictness.  C. Vanity.  D. Destructive behavior.  E. My regrets.  4. What is your relationship with your sibling(s) like? A. I’m definitely the dreamer.  B. I want more for them.  C. We love each other so much.  D. We’re complicated, but stick together through it all.  E. Don’t have siblings.  5. What do you wish for your future? A. Magic. B. To see the world in a different way.  C. Family togetherness.  D. To learn how to love myself. E. To show my family I love

 Do you need inspiration? Play this fun quiz to discover the perfect craft for you.   1. What time do you get up?  A. Whenever my family gets up.  B. I have a detailed sleep schedule.  C. With the sun.  D. When the clock strikes noon!  E. It depends.  2. What do you wear? A. Something cozy!  B. A nice crisp suit.  C. My pjs! I’m not leaving the house!  D. A tutu.  E. Something colorful.  3. What is breakfast? A. Waffles!  B. One perfect square of toast.  C. A cup of coffee at the kitchen table.  D. Fluffy eggs.  E. A rainbow of fruits and veggies!  4. What is your favorite school subject?  A. Music. B. Math. C. English D. History.  E. Art.  5. What is lunch?  A. A sandwich.  B. Nachos. C. Pretzels.  D. Chicken.  E. Salad.  6. What chores do you do in the afternoon?  A. Mending and sewing.  B. Laundry folding. C. Responding to emails. D. Dusting.  E. Grooming the pet. 7. What fun do you do in the afternoon? A. Napping under a cozy blanket.  B. Setting the table. Yes, you actually find i

 Are you a sharp Xacto knife or some malleable clay? Keep track of your answers to find out your result based on how you react in a situation. 1. Your best friend invites you to a party. You . . . A. Cancel because it’s a national pandemic ya’ll! B. Go! It will be fun.  C. Give her a hug and say sure, because you are the best of friends. D. Pick out your outfits together!  E. Cry tears of happiness.  2. Your dog chews up your favorite slippers. You . . .  A. Yell at him. You loved those slippers!  B. Let it go. Your dog is too cute.  C. You will hold a grudge forever.  D. Buy new slippers. E. Dissolve into a flood of tears. 3. You are preparing for a trip. You . . .  A. Do nothing because you hate vacations and aren’t going on a trip in the first place.  B. Make a list of souvenirs you are getting for all of your friends.  C. Are terrified because you never leave the house!  D. Try on tons of outfits. You want to look your best!  E. Pick out the weirdest looking suitcase from a thrift

 This quiz will tell you whether you are a Martha Stewart or a Lia Griffith, or one of the many famous crafters, based on which of these you have made or done before. Maybe you are a mix of multiple crafter extraordinaries, or maybe you have one solid skill. Take the test to find out!  1. Have you ever made paper flowers?            2. Have you ever made a paper rose?  3. Have you ever stenciled?            4. Have you ever needlepointed? 5. Have you ever sewed?    6. Have you ever worked with a fabric pattern?  7. Do you ever make homemade cards?         8. Do you ever decorate your envelopes?     9. Do you enjoy sketching?            10. Have you ever made a mixed media art journal?  Scroll to get your results!  If you answered yes to:  Questions 1 or 2 - You are Lia Griffith, paper flower extraordinaire  Questions 3 or 4 - Martha Stewart, not only a crafter but also a lifestyle expert Questions 5 or 6 - Hello Debbie Shore! You are obviously a master seamstress and have probably made

 Advent calendars are so fun! Not only do they help you keep track of the days until Christmas, you can also get a fun treat or activity each day!  Here are some of the best, and uniquest, advent calendar ideas.  Chocolate: Count out 25 chocolate kisses and place them in a fancy bowl. Decorate the bowl with some ribbon and place a mini calendar next to it. Each day until Christmas unwrap and consume a chocolate and cross off a day on the calendar. Tasty and efficient.  Books: Definitely my favorite advent calendar, this will not only help you remember the days, but it will also give you an activity.  Order 25 books. We like to get ours from a second-hand store because they are cheaper and because we like thinking of the people who have read them in the past. If you don’t want to order 25 books, scan your bookcase for any unread stories, and wrap those.  Mix up the books so you don’t know which is which, and place them underneath a tree. Open one each day leading up to Christmas and hav

 Here you will find my best crafting achievements and maybe come up with some ideas yourself!  A campfire! This was for a baby shower’s s’more station. The logs are really cardboard painted and scratched to look like wood and the flame effect was created with tissue paper.  My art journal collection.  My books I wrote - above is my science fiction edition containing two books, Adventures of Unlikely Friends. It is not yet published.  My homemade clothes - a gray caftan and a green velvet skirt using a sewing machine.  My photography. Above is a piece I took, titled Fire.  My DIY pillows.  And trust me folks, this is only the beginning.  By the way, this is my Fiftieth blog post! Crack some champagne cuz we deserve to celebrate! 

 This is a fun activity I would add to the agenda of any party. In this post I will tell you how to do photo close ups, how to organize your scavenger hunt, and give you some ideas of what to photograph. Get ready to have fun!  Ok, first go to the Camera App. On one side you will see a line with a plus and minus. Move the button with your finger to make the image you are trying to capture larger. Great! Take your pic and you have a closeup.  Take many closeups of different objects in the house. Then go to the Photos app and scroll down the sidebar to reach the albums section. Click the plus icon to start a new album. You will then be able to add all of your closeups to the new album. Send your album by clicking the export icon. Send it to all the participants in your scavenger hunt.  Hand out paper and pens and let them run around the house/area. Have your participants try and guess what the object is by just their extreme closeup.  When they have written all of their answers down, che

 Yes, I have done a lot of art journal posts during the life of this blog. But we’re entering the holiday season and lots of plans are being made every day. So I think we need a post on how to keep track of it all by art journaling.  Some of my favorite tools are:  Sponge brushes  Spray Inks  Water chamber brush pens Acrylic Paint Matte Opaque gesso  But we will use lots of tools so have all of your crafting gizmos at hand!  Learn how to incorporate modern art with your own text and diary entries below!  This was what my arm looked like after this project.  That’s a sure sign of fun crafting!  Here is a fun way to make an art journal stamp calendar!  I then wrote my daily itinerary in the stamp boxes once they dried. I love the compass road because it symbolizes the adventures you can encounter while wandering the paths of life. This page also stands out after such a funky, bright page!   This final calendar technique uses paint sticks. But feel free to use a rounded sponge brush and r

 This cake puts the fun in funfetti! The final result consists of a moist cake, creamy buttercream, and beautiful bursts of colored sprinkles!  Ever since I did the best party ideas post, I was yearning to do a baking one. I am making this cake for a very special person I love so much. I hope you enjoy this treat. Love you.  This cake recipe is super easy as well as super tasty. And there are info-packed written steps with tons of pics. So even if this your first time holding a spatula, the cool Christian crafter has you covered. Blast the Christmas music cuz it’s time to get cooking!  First you need to gather your ingredients.  Flour  Baking Powder Salt White granulated sugar Eggs Vanilla extract (I make my own)  Whole milk Vegetable oil Butter Powdered sugar LOTS of sprinkles These are ingredients you probably have already, or you can find them in any super market. Leave two sticks of butter out in a sunny place to soften.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Take two 9x2 inch cake p

I love party planning and baking. A lot. I am a huge fan of huge, crazy, sprinkle cakes. But then I decided to try my hand at throwing a more elegant party. If you want some elegant food ideas, keep scrolling buddy!  1. We set up a crepe bar. Crepes are one of my signature dishes. We set out chocolate ganache, my homemade Chantilly cream, and some cheese.  2. Taking regular sandwiches and cutting them into triangles is always a smart move. Quick, easy, and elegant finger food can be created out of a greasy grilled cheese sandwich with just a few cuts,  3. Here is a cake - with a story. I was planning something crazy - a huge six to seven layered cake with Bavarian cream and slivered strawberries. Well, long story short we ended up with two three layered cakes instead.  3. Here is the third cake I made - a rich flourless chocolate cake with creamy mouse, raspberries, and a light dusting of powdered sugar. Excluding the flour created an almost brownie-like texture and taste, which was de

 Happy Birthday to the most inspirational great grandma of all time.  I love you so much. Happy 89th! You are a safe Haven, so  Awesome, and so  Perfect. You are  Pretty. You make me go  Yay. You are the  Best.  I hope you feel so loved today, because you a Re. You are so  Terrific,  Heroic, and I hope that to Day you feel like  All of these things. I love  You so much.  !

 Yes, the popular game is back! This time it’s twine! Guess the kind of yarn craft in the photo.  It’s hard, but I believe in you!  Make sure to keep track of those answers on some paper! You’ve got this.  It’s twine to shine.  1. Finger knitting  2. Slip knot  3. Pompom crafting  1. Macramé  2. Finger crochet  3. Finger knitting  1. Slip knot 2. Hook knot  3. Square-reverse knot  1. Quilting weave  2. Slip knots  3. Finger knitting  1. Macramé starter knot 2. Chinese button knot  3. Figure-eight knot  Scroll down to get answers!  The answers are 32133.  If you got:  0-1 correct - you don’t know knitting needles from a narwhal!  2 - Crochet? No way!  3 - Elementary, my dear Watson.  4 - Almost there.  5 - You know your knitting!  Hope you had fun! One note: Thursday Trivia will be canceled for the next two weeks and will start up again on December 1st. Sorry for any inconvenience.  Love you all! Have a great Thursday and God loves you! 

 Flowers brighten every home, whether in a vase on your bedside table or in a lovely garden. Flowers can also serve as a centerpiece at a party or be turned into a stunning house-warming gift. Let’s spread some joy today!  To make your paper flowers, gather some straws (any color - I recommend silver), any kind of paper (printed online maps work well too), scissors, and tape.  In the tutorial below you can watch me create these fun and whimsical flowers!  Continue rolling the strips and finish your flower!  Have a great and floral day! God loves you! 

It’s party time! These ideas work well within any theme and will bring your party fantasies into reality! I hope that these cool cakes, daring decorations, and imaginative ideas will help make your party the best. Have fun and God loves you!   CAKE IDEAS  Here are some crazy cakes to get the party started! Above is a banana bread cake garnished with brownie crumbs and covered in globs of chocolate ganache.  Here are more cake ideas! The rainbow cake is one of my signatures - sometimes topped by a standing Skittles structure! Then we have a rich chocolate Reese’s Cup cake that lives fondly in my memories. You can also make a massive cake with butterflies on it to make you feel high in the clouds! The donut is another fun treat route, mainly because it looks like my dog (small and brown). The strawberry coffee cake is perfect for a brunch. Finally, a few Firework cupcakes can be achieved by taking a piping bag and making colored drips along the sides with different food dye shades. The b